Voltron = Latest 80s Property To Get Mattel Toys...And A Cartoon.

[Jekyll]

Hey Has any non club members yellow lion ship yet ... ???

I'm a non-subscriber and I got my shipping notice last night .

[AnnnaMot]

Still waiting on mine as well

[JonWes]

Quick review of "Deceive and Conquer", the penultimate episode of season 1...

Sometimes this show both frustrates and entertains me in equal measure.

I really enjoyed this episode overall, but..

 

For last week's episode on the voltron.com forums I was saying how the writers are way to smart to just have Keith hand over the black lion (AND LEADERSHIP OF THE FORCE!) to Daniel.

Whoops.

I thought this was boneheaded in the extreme. I don't care if it doesn't work out for Daniel next episode. The fact is Keith gave the leadership of the force over to a guy who has acted like a reckless, immature brat for most of the season. I don't hate Daniel, and I wouldn't mind him on the force...

But the fact that Lance wasn't made the leader and the pilot of black lion and red wasn't given to Daniel makes no sense to me. And it makes no sense in the context of the series itself.

No matter how it plays out, I just think all of this was kind of silly.

Now, that being said, I really DID enjoy the episode. I thought LoLider or whatever looked kind of funny but he was kind of cool too. And I enjoyed the climactic battle. The twist with Lotor and Daniel being able to be in each other's heads was great, and Mahoox was really cool in the end.

So, all is not lost. I still enjoy the series. Just the last couple of episodes have just been a slight let down in the common sense department.

Two more quick points:

 

It was actually pretty cool to see Larmina and Vince in the blue and green. I'm looking forward to seeing where season 2 goes.

So... was Allura proposing to Keith? He seemed a bit nonchalant about it!

[markatisu]

I enjoyed the episode but god almighty what an awful writing decision, and we are not alone. The outrage over at the VF message board is fun to read, most everyone thinking the same thing.

 

I understand Keith was not going to pass up marrying Allura and becoming King, they did not really need to do much there as the past series established that he loved her and its a young kids show.

What ****** me off was Lance was not given Black Lion and Daniel should have been given Red. There is absolutely no way that Lance was not the next in line. It basically makes that entire episode about Lance wanting to be leader moot, while he did learn that teamwork was better I don't think he outright thought "OK I will never be Leader so screw it I will just say Red Pilot" I think it would have been better for the story to have the end scene be Lance transferring Red power to Daniel and then accepting Black from Keith and telling all 3 cadets Welcome to the new Voltron Force

Daniel lied to hide his infection, that right there in my book DQ's him from being the leader for now

I will reserve final judgement till the season finale airs, maybe they will redeem themselves


I do get the feeling the way the season is ending up, the rush to do certain things is a contingency plan in case the 2nd season does not go forward. If it gets a new season then things will probably get fleshed out more, the cadets will struggle in their roles. If it does not well then you at least have some resolution and a foundation to continue the series via the new Viz comics contract

[Firefly]

I just watched the last episode. I have similar viewpoints as you guys do.

 

It was crazy that during the middle of battle against an enemy,
an enemy made up of their 3 biggest foes, that Keith just hands his lion
over to Daniel. Now, Daniel is the leader? It is a bit too much to take.
I think Daniel may take over Vince as my least favorite cadet if they
keep going this way. I get that they want the show to appeal to kids,
but there are better ways to do it.

[markatisu]

They have the teaser up for the finale and Daniel is a straight up ass

I hope his lies come out and he loses his spot

[Firefly]

They have the teaser up for the finale and Daniel is a straight up ass

I hope his lies come out and he loses his spot

Maybe, they will make him Season 2's arch villain.

[Dr Kain]

I got my new Matty subs today, so here are my thoughts on the Yellow Lion and Hunk.

http://archivaria.com/DrKain/Voltron...ellowLion.html

[markatisu]

I got my new Matty subs today, so here are my thoughts on the Yellow Lion and Hunk.

http://archivaria.com/DrKain/Voltron...ellowLion.html

Cool review, the only thing I disagree with is your commentary about opening the cockpit. I can get mine open easily without doing anything different then with Red. I don't even need to use the key I just use the knife/saber thing. Other than that though I agree with a lot of what you said (the QC of Hunk himself, and the fact all the legs are tied to the button being a negative and positive)

I can't wait till you get the full thing though, it will be interesting to hear your thoughts since I played with it last weekend at C2E2 and it was very sturdy. Of course the versions that WEP had may not have been final ones and we all know how final Mattel product can be a tad worse with QC

[Krueger]

With all this talk lately of Thundercats possibly being shelved, how is Voltron doing? Is it fairing better all round?

[markatisu]

With all this talk lately of Thundercats possibly being shelved, how is Voltron doing? Is it fairing better all round?

As far as what? The show is the highest rated show on Nicktoons and the Classic Lion sets are sold out on Matty and in most retailers and commanding 2-3x the price on eBay

Yellow Lion and Hunk sold out faster than MOTUC and lasted less than 4hrs

Voltron Force ends its 1st season next Wednesday, no news of renewal or cancellation yet and it has been implied that it depends if they can launch a Voltron Force toyline so we are all waiting on Mattel because WEP and Classic Media from what I know have given the OK

[JonWes]

Here's another clip from the finale. Again, if you didn't like Daniel before...

[markatisu]

Oh man he is even more of a prick then he was in the 1st teaser clip I saw. They are going out of their way to make the audience hate him and see him as unfit

[Krueger]

As far as what? The show is the highest rated show on Nicktoons and the Classic Lion sets are sold out on Matty and in most retailers and commanding 2-3x the price on eBay

Yellow Lion and Hunk sold out faster than MOTUC and lasted less than 4hrs

Voltron Force ends its 1st season next Wednesday, no news of renewal or cancellation yet and it has been implied that it depends if they can launch a Voltron Force toyline so we are all waiting on Mattel because WEP and Classic Media from what I know have given the OK

I find it weird that no new toy line has been released yet. We know they've made them, because they were shown at SDCC last year. Why the hold up? If the cartoon is doing well, why not strike whilst the iron is hot? The reason why I find it funny is because CN said that one of the reasons why Sym-Bionic Titan prematurely died was because there was no accompanying toy line.

[markatisu]

I find it weird that no new toy line has been released yet. We know they've made them, because they were shown at SDCC last year. Why the hold up? If the cartoon is doing well, why not strike whilst the iron is hot? The reason why I find it funny is because CN said that one of the reasons why Sym-Bionic Titan prematurely died was because there was no accompanying toy line.

I think I said this earlier last week and also in the Thundercats toy thread, the holdup is with retail. Retail decides whether they will carry a line or not. If they show no interest in a toyline then 99% of the time it won't get made.

What most of us assume is retail (TRU, Walmart, Target) was offered the Classic Voltron series and they passed/declined which is why its on MattyCollector. The inclusion of an action feature on the Lions screams basic retail and not "Collectors".

WEP has also said as much that there are circumstances keeping the toys from being made, WEP is on board, Classic Media is on board and Mattel is on board (as we saw the Prototypes at SDCC for toys and kids Roleplay items) so the only reasonable guess is that its retail that is refusing to carry the toyline.

Now due to the success of the Classic Voltron set on Matty we might see Voltron Force end up there if Retail is still opting out. We won't really know till July I think and the SDCC Panel

We might get some indication in the next month or so when the MattyCollector SDCC Exclusives are revealed.

[JonWes]

Oh man he is even more of a prick then he was in the 1st teaser clip I saw. They are going out of their way to make the audience hate him and see him as unfit

I know! The fact that they are going out of their way to make him so unlikable really makes me wonder where this is all going. I suppose it might end up with him humbled, but surely they won't think he's still fit for leadership. Honestly, if the finale ends with anyone other than Keith or Lance in the Black Lion I'll be annoyed.

I find it weird that no new toy line has been released yet. We know they've made them, because they were shown at SDCC last year. Why the hold up? If the cartoon is doing well, why not strike whilst the iron is hot? The reason why I find it funny is because CN said that one of the reasons why Sym-Bionic Titan prematurely died was because there was no accompanying toy line.

From the comments made, it seems they are worried about the support being there. TG said they are looking for the right retail partner. With some of Mattel's more high profile failures of late in the boys action category it could be that retailers are being skittish. I really hope there is some good news at SDCC. I'd love a VF exclusive and some solid news of VF toys coming out (hopefully before the end of 2012!) because I'd really love to have the new version of Voltron. I think it's a great update and the proto models from SDCC last year looked great.

[markatisu]

I know! The fact that they are going out of their way to make him so unlikable really makes me wonder where this is all going. I suppose it might end up with him humbled, but surely they won't think he's still fit for leadership. Honestly, if the finale ends with anyone other than Keith or Lance in the Black Lion I'll be annoyed.

I am weary of this episode, many fans complained to the producers in the last 48hrs and their response on Twitter and FB was "Kids loved when it happened and they cheered Daniel" which reportedly from the panel showing is true. And since that is their key demographic they probably could care less what us old fans think of the story.

Regardless of what they say I know WEP sees a clear divide between fans 4-10 and fans 20-40

While I would love to see Lance in charge I just get the nagging feeling they will try to make it look like Daniel learned his lesson about lying/deceving, acting pompous and keep him in the chair

[Dr Kain]

I find it weird that no new toy line has been released yet. We know they've made them, because they were shown at SDCC last year. Why the hold up? If the cartoon is doing well, why not strike whilst the iron is hot? The reason why I find it funny is because CN said that one of the reasons why Sym-Bionic Titan prematurely died was because there was no accompanying toy line.

A toyline did not save Samurai Jack. Nor did it save Transformers Animated. Yet, Johnny Test is on like 40 times a day and there is no toyline, so I think CN was just full of ****.

[markatisu]

I saw a Chinese eBay seller had a bunch of Lance figures for $14 so I bought one. He is the same body as Sven so I will just repaint him and display both heads once the sub figure ships!

[JonWes]

Got my Yellow Lion and Hunk today! I have to say, putting aside all the little things I might have liked more if some other choices had been made about these, I really like these toys.

As annoying as the spring-loaded features can be when trying to position the legs, you CAN get the lions into a few cool poses. And the feature is kind of fun to activate. As long as they don't mess up in the long-haul I'm okay with it. I love the heft and the sculpt of the Yellow Lion, and thankfully my cockpit stickers are straight this time.

This is my first Voltron ever and I have to say I think I'm going to be very pleased once they are all here and I can assemble them. And it's been great to enjoy them individually until that happens.

[markatisu]

Got my Yellow Lion and Hunk today! I have to say, putting aside all the little things I might have liked more if some other choices had been made about these, I really like these toys.

As annoying as the spring-loaded features can be when trying to position the legs, you CAN get the lions into a few cool poses. And the feature is kind of fun to activate. As long as they don't mess up in the long-haul I'm okay with it. I love the heft and the sculpt of the Yellow Lion, and thankfully my cockpit stickers are straight this time.

This is my first Voltron ever and I have to say I think I'm going to be very pleased once they are all here and I can assemble them. And it's been great to enjoy them individually until that happens.

Yellow Lion's action feature is better than Red's. If they had made the push button smaller or indented instead of protruding I don't think many people would have a problem with it.

I took out my Panosh Place Voltron and figures last night and put him next to the Yellow Lion and then transformed yellow and the look on my face was something like this

Like I have said, I think once its fully been released and people assemble the Voltron we will feel like kids again.

Really anticipating July and the Matty Panel to see if Voltron fans get anything for 2013 or not

[JonWes]

I know. The more I think about, it the more I'd really just love some 3 3/4'' villain figures if nothing else.

[Firefly]

I saw a Chinese eBay seller had a bunch of Lance figures for $14 so I bought one. He is the same body as Sven so I will just repaint him and display both heads once the sub figure ships!

I bought one and got it in the mail last week. I figured what the heck for only $14 shipped. He came in a padded envelop with no accessaries. I think it only took a week to get it. I haven't been collecting the line, so I was a little surprised by how small he was, but it makes sense since they have to fit into the lions.

[JonWes]

A little info from the Voltron.com board, from members who talked to the producer (Jeremy):

- Jeremy has seen packaged samples of VF toys.
- There will be alternate centers for Voltron like on the cartoon, but they will be non-transformable
- The plan is to get the toys out along with the S1 DVD sets in a big push along with season 2

I'm intrigued by the alternate centers that feature green, yellow, blue and red. I thought they might be a different toy altogether in the center, but not having it transform into a lion (even if it's a non-accurate larger lion for the color) is going to be an interesting challenge to sell. I thought maybe the center transformations for the non-black lions might be accomplished with a shell the colored lions snapped into or something.

Still, if everything goes well it seems there's still hope for this line. I really hope they figure out a way to get it to retail.

[Firefly]

Voltron Force's future sounds pretty promising with those bits of news.