Did voltron always have gay character
Voltron: Legendary Defender Had a Gay Character All Along
For those who grew up on the classic ’80s cartoon Voltron, Netflix’s remake, Voltron: Legendary Defender, will seem quite different. Yes, five mechanical lions still combine to form a giant robot that kicks ass in space, but the show has been modernized in ways big and small. Not only is the storytelling more serialized, with the five paladins of Voltron fighting to stop the domination of the evil Galra Empire, but in the seventh-season premiere, Legendary Defender reveals that the group’s leader, Takashi “Shiro” Shirogane, is gay.
In the episode, which premiered on Netflix last Friday, the audience learns that Shiro was killed during a battle and that his liveliness was transferred to the consciousness of the Dark Lion that he pilots. (Come on, it’s a space cartoon. How much reality do you expect?) While his body is healing, we see a series of flashbacks about the relationship between Shiro and Keith, a paladin that he took under his wing. During these flashbacks, we learn that Shiro was in a romantic relationship with a man named Adam and chose to pilot a mission into deep vacuum — which is what eventually lead t
Keith Kogan: A Portrayal of Homosexuality Done Right
I always explain people that Voltron is a lot more clever than it gets credit for. It can spin a cliche/trope on it’s brain beautifully, and while all the characters are easily digestible archetypes (i.e: the nerd, the loner), the creators insert layers to them that not only make them experience like real people, but also makes social commentary on those very archetypes.
In no surpass way do they do this than with the ethics of Keith.
Before I get into how and why Keith deviates from you’re typical lgbtq+ male protagonist, I want to settle as a evidence that Keith is homosexual.
If you don’t see - what I contemplate to be - blatant evidence that Keith’s gay, good, I can’t tell I blame you. Most people contain ingrained heteronormative lenses, meaning they’ll lose the subtext of homosexual characters. Us in the LGBT community are much more attuned to seeing these because, well, for one, we’re queer, and two, because up until around the 1960s, the portrayal of gay characters in the media was illegal and could only be shown subtextually.
So it makes feeling that people overlook the very nuanced portrayal of Keith’s sexuality, but
It is always frustrating to see when a show decides to destroy all of the potential it has when it comes to queer representation. Voltron Legendary Defender Season 8 showed how the writers didn’t learn anything after the backlash the animated series received over how Shiro was handled in the previous season. And yes, VLD does not deserve any of the homosexual representation points the writers were clearly aiming for!
I wrote a piece help in August about how Voltron Mythical Defender Season 7 decided to uncover Shiro as same-sex attracted and how the writing showed him easily fall into the ‘Sad Gay’ trope. The disclose was met by backlash from the fandom which led to the showrunners writing an unlock letter.
While fans were understandably disappointed about Shiro’s treatment, some of them were looking forward to the final season of VLD in hopes the showrunners learned something and would give the character his due.
But then, Voltron Legendary Defender Season 8 was made available on Netflix and it was a mess, especially during the last 10 minutes of the finale. Do make sure to read Jamie’s review.
Not only did the show eliminate Allura for feeling exploitation,
Shiro’s Sexuality in Voltron: Legendary Defender
One of the most talked-about revelations of 2018 was Takashi “Shiro” Shirogane being gay. Initially, most were in support of this development. Very rarely are significant characters in western animation openly gay. Typically characters that hold a sexuality that differs from what is considered acceptable will be put in the role of comic relief. Their alternative lifestyle would be made to appear eccentric. This almost always leads to some form of quirky interaction with them and their companions.
Because of that gender non-conforming characters are almost always arrange up as different from the rest of the cast in their series. But, Shiro was unique in how he commanded respect from his allies and enemies alike. He was undeniably the leader of Voltron even after giving up piloting the black lion. His sexuality was not made the sole point of his characterization. Nor did it act as a means to alienate him from the rest of the main cast.
Shiro the Hero
He filled many roles throughout the series, acting as a mentor for Keith and Lance. Being the confidant, Allura needed in the early part of the series. Shiro also showed far