OrderToWatch Voltron: Defender of the Universe poster

Voltron: Defender of the Universe

Series, 1984, The '80s reruns, Set in Planet Arus

Voltron: Defender of the Universe is #1 of 16 in release order and #1 of 16 in chronological order in the Toonami Classics.

The story

Five lion robots and their pilots defend the planet Arus and the galaxy from evil King Zarkon.

Voltron: Defender of the Universe recap

Voltron: Defender of the Universe is the American version of the Japanese anime Beast King GoLion. Five space explorers, Keith, Lance, Pidge, Hunk and Sven, escape from the tyrant King Zarkon of Planet Doom and land on Planet Arus, where Princess Allura and her adviser Coran show them five giant robot lions. Each pilot takes a lion, and together the lions form Voltron, a giant robot with a blazing sword. Each episode, Zarkon's witch Haggar sends a monster called a Robeast, and the team forms Voltron to destroy it. After Sven is badly wounded, Allura takes over the Blue Lion. Zarkon's son, Prince Lotor, arrives, wants Allura for himself, and becomes a rival to his father. A separate run, Vehicle Voltron, followed with fifteen vehicles that form a different Voltron.

Voltron: Defender of the Universe ending explained

The Lion Force story ended without a true finale. The last episode, "Breakin' Up Is Hard to Doom," is a standalone story, and Zarkon, Lotor and Haggar are never finally defeated; they return in the 1986 special Voltron: Fleet of Doom, which teams the Lion and Vehicle Voltrons. Voltron came back in several later series, most fully in Netflix's Voltron: Legendary Defender (2016 to 2018).

Where to watch Voltron: Defender of the Universe

Voltron: Defender of the Universe isn't on a US streaming service right now. You can rent or buy it on Amazon, Apple TV, and Google Play.

Ratings

IMDb 7.9/10

Where it fits

Cast