The final episode leaves me with mixed feelings, just as the whole season 8 did. It is quite disappointing that a series which had an incredibly promising start, had to end like this. It sort of reminded me the original Mass Effect trilogy and the total messup they did in the end... So to.conclude with, they should really have put more thought into the scenario of the final season. Nevertheless, the series as a total is one of the best anime series I 've seen.
Voltron: Legendary Defender (TV Series)
The End Is the Beginning (2018)
User Reviews
Review this title22 Reviews
What a tragic disappointment
kylewdowden18 December 2018
Ending that is just appropriate
battleaxe-15-90582419 April 2019
The most difficult thing about making a TV show is ending it. Endings are never nice, but they are needed.
Voltron's ending might not have been ideal (as other comments might make you think) but it gives closure. It conveys a good message and made me feel happy it ended the way it did. Sure it might have been a weird pacing on the last season, but I think the last episode has some nice touches and definitely has the grandeur we are used to when things get wrapped up in this series.
The only thing that stood out to me was Shiro's ending, which just made me think why didn't they include a love ending for anyone else? Hunk and Shay would have been nice for example. Still, all in all a feel-good episode.
Don't listen to the hate and don't take it to seriously, it is in the end a show about magical space lion robots.
Voltron's ending might not have been ideal (as other comments might make you think) but it gives closure. It conveys a good message and made me feel happy it ended the way it did. Sure it might have been a weird pacing on the last season, but I think the last episode has some nice touches and definitely has the grandeur we are used to when things get wrapped up in this series.
The only thing that stood out to me was Shiro's ending, which just made me think why didn't they include a love ending for anyone else? Hunk and Shay would have been nice for example. Still, all in all a feel-good episode.
Don't listen to the hate and don't take it to seriously, it is in the end a show about magical space lion robots.
This episode is hard crying!
peravujakovic22 August 2021
I cried like never before. This is so sad ending in one way, and very fulfilling in other way. Animation in this episode was God tier. Whole ending is on point, just not what fandom wanted and expected. Ratings of the whole season is not objective, because most of fans gave 1 stars just because of ending. This was a great show and for now best cartoon I ever watched, with ATLA!
Don't listen to the fandom! Make your own opinion! This was a fun experience!!
rantherandomartist16 December 2018
It's really crazy to see so many people who watched this season be really mad at what the final outcome was. This episode, like the final episode of season 6, was so suspenseful and heartbreaking. I've had a great time and a fun experience with this entire show and I thought that the ending, the 10 - 12 minutes or so was the best conclusion that this great show deserves. I know there are a few things that weren't good here or there, but I still enjoyed it. No matter what happened, I'll always remember the great tale of the Paladins of Voltron.
Not sure what was up with this season
bretlucas21 December 2018
You're either gonna hate it, or love it
Uzer_error40421 December 2018
Depending on who you are and why you chose to watch this show in the first place, be it for the gigantic mech fights, the wisecrack humor or the characters and plot, Voltron has plenty to offer to a diverse viewer base. I went into this show with low expectations and little to no knowledge of the show or its premise. What I can tell you is that no matter what the one star reviewers tell you: Voltron is a well put together show.
I got into this show late, I read no reviews or anything before giving it a shot. Season 1 was a mixed bag for me and so were seasons 4 and 5 since they were pretty much like 1 hour movies if you tie in all their runtimes. But with that being said, Voltron has some pretty deep moments.
From its exploration with its characters to the plot, for a show tailored towards a much younger audience than myself, it goes to some pretty great lengths that surpassed my expectations.
While the fandom of this show is UNREAL when it comes to these "ship wars", "queerbaiting" and romantic relationship (I am not kidding, you hop anywhere on the web about this show and THIS is ALL you will find!) they all seem to miss the point that this show is trying to illustrate.
The loudest voices in the fandom treat Voltron like some romantic comedy of "who's-gonna-kiss-who-first! OH-LAH-LAH!" when that's not even the point of the show. Voltron is about war, and yeah, even war stories can have their share of romance (either it be hetero or not), but it shouldn't be the main focus. And I'm glad it wasn't in Voltron's case.
This show touches base on comradery, war, genocide, overcoming racial prejudices, finding forgiveness, trying to find happiness in a crap situation, leadership skills and finding the strength within yourself to overcome challenges. It also paints these themes in a digestible way that doesn't seem to on-the-nose and just goes with the flow of the story.
I can understand how some viewers feel about the "queer baiting." About how the showrunners teased to show a same-sex relationship on screen. But I believed the showrunners illustrated one of the best gay characters in animation without making that character's sexual orientation the mainstage focus on who he is. And he was by far the best written character on the show, IMO. When it was revealed he was gay, it just added another layer to his characterization rather than overshadowing it like a bright neon sign saying "SEE! WE GOT GAY CHARACTERS TOO!" Until the very end, where the showrunners shoehorned those unnecessary post-credit scene.
Apart from that, Voltron IS a great show. Some viewers hate the ending... no ending is perfect, but it has to end regardless.
I got into this show late, I read no reviews or anything before giving it a shot. Season 1 was a mixed bag for me and so were seasons 4 and 5 since they were pretty much like 1 hour movies if you tie in all their runtimes. But with that being said, Voltron has some pretty deep moments.
From its exploration with its characters to the plot, for a show tailored towards a much younger audience than myself, it goes to some pretty great lengths that surpassed my expectations.
While the fandom of this show is UNREAL when it comes to these "ship wars", "queerbaiting" and romantic relationship (I am not kidding, you hop anywhere on the web about this show and THIS is ALL you will find!) they all seem to miss the point that this show is trying to illustrate.
The loudest voices in the fandom treat Voltron like some romantic comedy of "who's-gonna-kiss-who-first! OH-LAH-LAH!" when that's not even the point of the show. Voltron is about war, and yeah, even war stories can have their share of romance (either it be hetero or not), but it shouldn't be the main focus. And I'm glad it wasn't in Voltron's case.
This show touches base on comradery, war, genocide, overcoming racial prejudices, finding forgiveness, trying to find happiness in a crap situation, leadership skills and finding the strength within yourself to overcome challenges. It also paints these themes in a digestible way that doesn't seem to on-the-nose and just goes with the flow of the story.
I can understand how some viewers feel about the "queer baiting." About how the showrunners teased to show a same-sex relationship on screen. But I believed the showrunners illustrated one of the best gay characters in animation without making that character's sexual orientation the mainstage focus on who he is. And he was by far the best written character on the show, IMO. When it was revealed he was gay, it just added another layer to his characterization rather than overshadowing it like a bright neon sign saying "SEE! WE GOT GAY CHARACTERS TOO!" Until the very end, where the showrunners shoehorned those unnecessary post-credit scene.
Apart from that, Voltron IS a great show. Some viewers hate the ending... no ending is perfect, but it has to end regardless.
Terrible ending to a great series
mssaifox9 January 2019
There was simply nothing redeeming about this season, but in particular about this episode.
Its pacing was off, it was rushed, holes were never filled in, the characters were barely friends, and the staff and cast has already said that this season was edited. Anyone who has eyeballs can see that this season was edited, but you can especially see it in the poor animation quality in this episode. The fact that they forgot to name the random husband, instead having the audio description call him "Adam" Shiro's dead ex-boyfriend is... telling.
Voltron didn't care about their ending so neither do I.
Its pacing was off, it was rushed, holes were never filled in, the characters were barely friends, and the staff and cast has already said that this season was edited. Anyone who has eyeballs can see that this season was edited, but you can especially see it in the poor animation quality in this episode. The fact that they forgot to name the random husband, instead having the audio description call him "Adam" Shiro's dead ex-boyfriend is... telling.
Voltron didn't care about their ending so neither do I.
Great Ending.
harillen14 February 2019
Warning: Spoilers
Great Ending. Deep meaning. Especially what Lance says last about Allura knowing there is good in everyone including Emperor Zarkon. Just needed an epilogue episode around 20 years later. Plus could have set up the ending a little better only for people who could not accept the ending.
Disappointment
hexazo26 April 2019
A series made for a happy ending
breadvolution9 January 2019
In so many ways, Voltron is an incredible series; but when season 8 rolls around, everything is bleached of its values, passion, and dynamism. Characters you love have had the best parts of their personality wiped away, relationships you watched grow are torn apart, and the idea of "found family" is thrown into the trash in favour of whatever giant robot fighting scene they wanted you to swallow instead. If you plan on indulging this series, stop after season 7, because the final season is a disgrace, and this final episode, truly the worst of the worst, will only leave you feeling hurt and angry.
An incredibly disappointing ending to what had been an immensely wonderful show.
filmfanpr16 December 2018
Warning: Spoilers
There were a few bright spots in this final season, but overall, the plot was messy and disjointed, and few of the characters were recognizable as themselves.
The relationship between Allura and Lance was sweet and well-earned after seasons of careful buildup, but Lance's personality began to entirely center around being with Allura or worrying about her. Establishing a relationship should have strengthened both characters, but neither of them seemed particularly happy in the end - with each other, or in their own lives.
Allura spent the majority of the season talking about how she felt out of place and unwanted, which made her eventual sacrifice hollow. She felt she had nothing to live for, so she chose to die to allow others to go on. It's meant as heroic but reads instead as a heart-rending conclusion to a lengthy depression. Allura's death - a WOC lead, an incredibly empowering character who had inspired many women and young girls - was unnecessary, abrupt, and essentially handled off-screen, with a brief round of farewells from teammates, friends, and found family who didn't make any attempt to stop her or come up with alternate solutions. (Such as sacrificing the lions, or enlisting the help of the revived spirits of the former paladins.)
Her heroic actions happened off-screen, which dampened the emotional impact; I felt more sorrow over the loving farewell to the Castle-ship in Season 6 than over the loss of one of the show's most important characters, and that was entirely due to the way it was handled as an afterthought, with the episode's time running out and a need to hurry on to other closing elements.
The lions' departure at the end of the episode was confusing, only explained by a closing shot at the very end of the credits (which no one watches on Netflix, which means most viewers would have missed this crucial tribute to Allura). Instead, a very jarring amount of time was given to cheesy, out of place, sloppily drawn "where are they now" closing images, showing that the paladins who had grown so much and become such a close-knit family over the years all parted ways, several of them giving up their life-long dreams for odd pursuits. (Grief-farming?)
Shiro's marriage to a background character with whom he never had any meaningful interactions on screen was a particularly strange choice; this character was so unidentifiable to viewers that even the captions incorrectly labeled him as "Adam," Shiro's ex-boyfriend, who died in Season 7. It was clearly a reaction to the backlash over Adam's death in Season 7, a "representation" band-aid that rang false and simply added confusion to an already muddled season. (Read the December 14 2018 article on geekdad for a much more detailed analysis of why this so-called "representation" was out-of-place, badly handled, and a great disservice to LGBTQA+ audiences.)
These additions all seemed like an afterthought, distracting from Allura's sacrifice. Another jarring moment was seeing her friends take cheesy selfies in front of her memorial, bare minutes after she had died on screen, giving viewers no time to grieve her loss before she became a literal backdrop for her loved ones.
Most of the central relationships fell by the wayside this season. The friendships and bonds between the paladins had formed the heart and soul of the show and had been of primary importance in every other season. In the final season, Shiro and Keith's strong friendship - which had closed out Season 6 and opened Season 7 with episode-long explorations of how much they meant to each other - was suddenly and completely wiped away. They barely interacted or spoke to each other, amplifying Shiro's strange disconnection from the core group.
Shiro felt like a shell of his former self. Throughout the seasons, he had been an incredibly inspiring character: a chronically ill, physically disabled, gay Japanese man with PTSD who led Voltron, became the captain of Atlas, and was endlessly kind, generous, and supportive to his teammates, friends, and allies. He had a wonderfully dry sense of humor, deep-rooted loyalty to those he cared about, and an incredible passion for exploration and adventure. None of that was visible in the final season.
Shiro was absent for much of the action, strangely expressionless in scenes where he wasn't actively speaking (even if dramatic events were happening around him, he rarely reacted), and largely silent unless he was barking out orders or asking for status reports. The story happened around him. He was no longer a central part of it, and that was a highly visible loss.
Few of the characters felt like themselves this season, and the story was convoluted and full of unresolved threads - from this season and former ones. Why did Keith's teeth and eyes turn Galra in The Black Paladins? Why was he sensitive to quintessence in his battles with the druid? What was the "entity" and why were there no negative repercussions to Allura letting it possess her? This is a short list that could go on for pages.
Voltron, in seasons 1-7, was a beautifully animated, intelligently written show with wonderfully nuanced and complex characters. Something went badly wrong in this final season, and I hope the showrunners take the time someday to tell us why.
The relationship between Allura and Lance was sweet and well-earned after seasons of careful buildup, but Lance's personality began to entirely center around being with Allura or worrying about her. Establishing a relationship should have strengthened both characters, but neither of them seemed particularly happy in the end - with each other, or in their own lives.
Allura spent the majority of the season talking about how she felt out of place and unwanted, which made her eventual sacrifice hollow. She felt she had nothing to live for, so she chose to die to allow others to go on. It's meant as heroic but reads instead as a heart-rending conclusion to a lengthy depression. Allura's death - a WOC lead, an incredibly empowering character who had inspired many women and young girls - was unnecessary, abrupt, and essentially handled off-screen, with a brief round of farewells from teammates, friends, and found family who didn't make any attempt to stop her or come up with alternate solutions. (Such as sacrificing the lions, or enlisting the help of the revived spirits of the former paladins.)
Her heroic actions happened off-screen, which dampened the emotional impact; I felt more sorrow over the loving farewell to the Castle-ship in Season 6 than over the loss of one of the show's most important characters, and that was entirely due to the way it was handled as an afterthought, with the episode's time running out and a need to hurry on to other closing elements.
The lions' departure at the end of the episode was confusing, only explained by a closing shot at the very end of the credits (which no one watches on Netflix, which means most viewers would have missed this crucial tribute to Allura). Instead, a very jarring amount of time was given to cheesy, out of place, sloppily drawn "where are they now" closing images, showing that the paladins who had grown so much and become such a close-knit family over the years all parted ways, several of them giving up their life-long dreams for odd pursuits. (Grief-farming?)
Shiro's marriage to a background character with whom he never had any meaningful interactions on screen was a particularly strange choice; this character was so unidentifiable to viewers that even the captions incorrectly labeled him as "Adam," Shiro's ex-boyfriend, who died in Season 7. It was clearly a reaction to the backlash over Adam's death in Season 7, a "representation" band-aid that rang false and simply added confusion to an already muddled season. (Read the December 14 2018 article on geekdad for a much more detailed analysis of why this so-called "representation" was out-of-place, badly handled, and a great disservice to LGBTQA+ audiences.)
These additions all seemed like an afterthought, distracting from Allura's sacrifice. Another jarring moment was seeing her friends take cheesy selfies in front of her memorial, bare minutes after she had died on screen, giving viewers no time to grieve her loss before she became a literal backdrop for her loved ones.
Most of the central relationships fell by the wayside this season. The friendships and bonds between the paladins had formed the heart and soul of the show and had been of primary importance in every other season. In the final season, Shiro and Keith's strong friendship - which had closed out Season 6 and opened Season 7 with episode-long explorations of how much they meant to each other - was suddenly and completely wiped away. They barely interacted or spoke to each other, amplifying Shiro's strange disconnection from the core group.
Shiro felt like a shell of his former self. Throughout the seasons, he had been an incredibly inspiring character: a chronically ill, physically disabled, gay Japanese man with PTSD who led Voltron, became the captain of Atlas, and was endlessly kind, generous, and supportive to his teammates, friends, and allies. He had a wonderfully dry sense of humor, deep-rooted loyalty to those he cared about, and an incredible passion for exploration and adventure. None of that was visible in the final season.
Shiro was absent for much of the action, strangely expressionless in scenes where he wasn't actively speaking (even if dramatic events were happening around him, he rarely reacted), and largely silent unless he was barking out orders or asking for status reports. The story happened around him. He was no longer a central part of it, and that was a highly visible loss.
Few of the characters felt like themselves this season, and the story was convoluted and full of unresolved threads - from this season and former ones. Why did Keith's teeth and eyes turn Galra in The Black Paladins? Why was he sensitive to quintessence in his battles with the druid? What was the "entity" and why were there no negative repercussions to Allura letting it possess her? This is a short list that could go on for pages.
Voltron, in seasons 1-7, was a beautifully animated, intelligently written show with wonderfully nuanced and complex characters. Something went badly wrong in this final season, and I hope the showrunners take the time someday to tell us why.
A disconnected, empty, scrap of an ending to a souless season.
molinagrn16 December 2018
Despite some funny and cool moments here and there, at it's core it is just bad. The buildup was a drag and the end was an ultimate middle finger to everything. Things in the characters buildup was left out and felt choppy and the events often feel unnecessary from how it's structured and played out. I give props to the animators who poured their heart and soul into this but I can't say the same for the writing.
I was able to rewatch S7 but I don't think I can with this. A total tragedy.
I was able to rewatch S7 but I don't think I can with this. A total tragedy.
Out of Character and Rushed Mess
DrReverb9 January 2019
I have never seen a show end this poorly. The pacing is all over the place, character interactions are either forced or non-existant, and there's numerous animation errors throughout the season. Whoever is responsible did a horrible job. How does such a good show end so poorly?! I don't think World Event Productions will ever let them touch their IP again.
My favourite show ever
voltronredlionrampant9 January 2019
Disappointing.
annalanna5 April 2019
No Cohesion ,No continuity
fingolfin2918 December 2018
Warning: Spoilers
When this show first came out i loved it , and continued to do so for about 3 seasons, seasons 1- 4 ,i have liked this show for 2 more and i have tolerated it for the last two , i watched through though in the hope it would come to a good end , that did not happen ,not only did it feel rushed ,choppy and pointless .not only did it not make any sense at all , this whole season didn't ,the plot line is just laughable ,i wonder was this writen by different people ,or was it just rushed to be done with ,a Major character Allura was killed off in the end , for the sole purpuse of creating a dramatic effect ,no other reason .
No continuity ,No Cohesion ,just what they THOUGHT would be a crowd pleaser , its appalling what they did to this poor show , i will agree with everyone who said this was a tragedy
DISAPPOINTING! WHAT A RIP OFF!
desedo-6115310 February 2019
I was a HUGE fan, got the merch & always HAD faith in the creators. Wow... what a "LET DOWN"... WORST FINAL SEASON EVER! This is worst than the ending of "HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER" ... Is this a new trend? Make a series people would love then TROLL the fans? I am still upset that I didn't even want to see anything about Voltron. But I gave in. SAVE YOURSELF & NOT BOTHER TO SEE IT... I KNOW I REGRET I DID! This is the perfect example of how wrong people are when they say, "It's not the destination, but the journey.." It is more like, ENDING A DATE WITH YOUR DATE PUKING AND GETTING DIARRHEA IN YOUR CAR!! I WISH Can I get the last two fanon years of my life back... I can't even return the merch!
Painful, Emotionally Draining Nihilism
dragon_of_yang5 April 2019
Do not let your kids watch this season, especially this episode. It hurts to watch, the buildup we've been getting literally every other season doesn't get any payoff whatsoever. The story feel hacked apart, the characters are listless at best, and honestly there's nothing good to say about the show other than you can see how nicely animated it is, but kids should be kept far away from s8 as a whole.
The last episode is big let down after a great build up from Season 1
johnnyp250726 May 2019
Warning: Spoilers
Just why....
wpuric15 November 2019
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