Voltron Legendary Defender (Season 2)

After barely surviving their first encounter with Emperor Zarkon, the Paladins have become separated to the far corners of the galaxy. Down but not out, they will have to reunite to plan their next step to bring down the galactic tyrant. The key to victory may rest with forging alliances with other races, including Galra themselves. Will this new plan tip the scale of battle into the Paladin's favor, or will Zarkon's connection to the Black Lion be their undoing?

For more information on the overall series, check out our review of Season 1.

One of my big questions watching Season 2 was this.

"After the group reunites, where can they go from here?"

The answer came as a second season full of great character moments (both funny and serious), unexpected allies, fantastic world building, and a slew of revelations that gives the new tale of Voltron even more depth.

After ending the first season on a major cliffhanger, season two hits the ground running right from the very first episode. With the group splintered off from each other, we get to see some more character exploration that made the first season so strong. We get some more allusions that Shiro and Keith have known each other for quite some time before the events of the series.

Along with Shiro's cryptic trailer line to Keith, "If anything happens to me, I want you to lead Voltron."

Speaking as a fan from the old series, I felt it was an odd choice that Keith had been the odd character out in the first season. While I do enjoy that the other members of team Voltron were much more fleshed out, Keith seemed to be just fulfilling his role as rebellious rogue. Thankfully, it would seem that the first major steps that will shape him into full-fledged leader begins here. In fact, there is a huge season long subplot concerning Keith which is not only well paced but adds a new wrinkle to the ongoing conflict. The arc goes a long way to show how Keith's position in the group is slowly starting to change, which should prove interesting to watch unfold next season.

My second complaint from the previous season, was that the villains were just as underdeveloped. This was also addressed with some elaboration on Zarkon's mental connection to the Black Lion and why he seems so single-mindedly obsessed with it.

However, the biggest saving grace concerning the villains is that we not only get to see the different personalities that inhabit Zarkon's army, but that there are plenty of Galra who are unhappy with Zarkon's rule. Adding a great deal of intrigue within the villain's story on which Galra characters side with Zarkon, or the Paladins.

Yet another aspect of this show that never fails to impress is the amount of creativity and detail that has gone into not just the animation itself (which remains consistent in this season) but the character design and world building. With each new corner of the galaxy that the Paladin's explore, there is always something new and exciting to see. Even if some of these visuals don't last for more than an episode, that isn't to say that they may not be revisited in the future if they can serve a purpose to the narrative.

There was a great deal of buildup with each episode escalating toward the climactic 2 episode season finale. Which is hands down the biggest climax that Legendary Defender has seen to date. Though there was a great deal of payoff, once again the final episode ends in yet another cliffhanger. Leaving just as many questions if not more than we were left with season 1. However, unlike the first season, this twist didn't feel completely unexpected. Instead, it feels like the emotional cap to the end of one journey before the next one can begin.

While it is hard to say how long it will be until Season 3 will be released, it will definitely be a game changer. However, from the consistent level of writing, animation and design that has been in the past two seasons, I believe that Lauren Montgomery, Joaquim Dos Santos and their talented team will continue to deliver a phenomenal show. One that cares more about telling a good story than simply relying on fan's nostalgia.

Voltron Legendary Defender Seasons 1 and 2 can be streamed on Netflix.