Product Details

• Actors: Jack Angel, Michael Bell, Peter Cullen, Neil Ross, B.J. Ward
• Directors: Franklin Cofod
• Producers: Franklin Cofod, John Teichman, Peter Keefe
• Format: Animated, Color, DVD, Subtitled, NTSC
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 5.1)
• Subtitles: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 3
• Rating: Unrated
• Studio: Anime Works
• DVD Release Date: September 26, 2006
• Run Time: 375 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (45 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000FUTV64
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #18,044 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Like Robotech, Voltron is an anomaly: an anime series that never aired in Japan in this form. The program Americans know under that title is comprised of recut footage from Hyakujuo Go-Lion ("Hundred-Beast King Go-Lion") and Kikou Kantai Dairugger XV ("Armored Fleet Dairugger XV"). Voltron debuted in syndication in the US in September, 1984, with a completely new storyline. Five young pilots from the Galaxy Alliance, Keith, Lance, Sven, Hunk, and Pidge, crash on the planet Arus when they're attacked by the minions of the evil King Zarkon. In the ruins of an ancient castle, they learn the secret of recreating Voltron, the ancient robot "loved by the good and hated by the evil." Each of them must pilot one of five lion-mecha that link to form Voltron. They also befriend Princess Allura, who pilots of one of the lions after Sven is wounded in battle. Together, they fight Zarkon's robots and "ro-beasts," the witch Haggar and Zarkon's son Lotor. Obviously pieced together like a jigsaw puzzle, Voltron reuses some footage over and over, but leaves out big chunks of the narrative. When the five pilots initially crash on Arus, they stand at the edge of vast desert; after the commercial break, they're wandering through a fog-shrouded forest. These problems won't phase Gen-X'ers who grew up with Voltron and want to revisit this relic of their childhoods. The extras include a rather stilted documentary on the restoration of the series. (Rated 7 and older: violence)--Charles Solomon

Product Description
From days of long ago, from uncharted regions of the universe, comes a legend. The legend of Voltron: Defender of the Universe! A mighty robot, loved by good, feared by evil. A force of space explorers, Kieth, Lance, Hunk, Pidge, and Sven are sent to find the last princess of planet Arus, Allura, and the keys to Voltron. Together they find the five robot lions that make up the legendary robot. King Zarkon, an evil warlord, rains down destruction across the universe. But our heroes form Voltron at the last moment, and begin a new war against his cruel empire.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

107 of 109 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars DVD Breakdown!, June 27, 2006

By	Servo (Atlanta, GA USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

"Voltron: Defender of the Universe - Collection One: Blue Lion" (as newly titled by Media Blasters) is a 3-disc set featuring Lion Force Season One episodes 1-15 digitally "re-assembled frame-by-frame from the best available sources (mostly from original Japanese film negatives), and video and audio imperfections wiped clean wherever possible." The set comes in a "[Blue] Lion's head" special molded tin designed to be stackable with subsequent volumes. Described as "quite the set" by Media Blasters, fans who've been longing to own "Voltron" on DVD are sure to be pleased by all the work put into this set and following volumes. Here are how the discs will be configured, plus a list of extras:

Disc 1:
1. "Space Explorers Captured"
2. "Escape to Another Planet"
3. "A Ghost and Four Keys"
4. "The Missing Key"
5. "The Princess Joins Up"
6. "The Right Arm of Voltron"

Disc 2:
7. "The Lion Has New Claws"
8. "The Stolen Lion"
9. "A Pretty Spy"
10. "Secret of the White Lion"
11. "Surrender"
12. "Bad Birthday Party"

Disc 3:
13. "The Witch Gets a Facelift"
14. "Yurak Gets His Pink Slip"
15. "Give Me Your Princess"


Special Features:
*Original Pilot: "The Voltron Trilogy"
*Staff Interviews
*Making of the DVDs
*New 5.1 surround mix
*Insert: Episode Synopses with Original Air Dates


Voltron - Collection One: Blue Lion
September 26th!

Form Blazing Sword!

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars VOLTRON LIVES!!, September 12, 2006

By	Jumpondees (Pittsburgh) - See all my reviews

First of all, my apologies to Amazon...I had this item preordered and then I cancelled my preorder today when I was able to get a copy from a national electronics chain with a price tag for a logo...TWO WEEKS SOONER THAN AMAZON WAS GOING TO GET IT!!

The packaging is great...Just one look at the tin with the head of the blue lion on the front and Princess Allura on the back shows just the surface of what is inside.

The episodes are just about as you remember them, just better looking.

Hardcore fans will notice certain minor things that are different, but they are just minor. One of those items is that the on screen fonts used for scene locations and the end credits are totally different than the original shows...There is a reason for that. If you watch the "making of" DVD feature on disc three, you will see that Media Blasters had to go to Toei Animation in Japan to get a new digital copy of the original animation film since the World Events Productions broadcast copies were to "blurry" to even work with. What this means is that MB recreated each scene frame by frame, matched it up with the audio tracks, and rebuilt each episode practically by hand to give us the best experience ever.

Someone over on the Voltron.com message boards posted side by side comparisons of the new US release and a Aussie DVD release in terms of picture quality, and the US release is hands down the best.

I can't wait for the next volume to come out later this fall as well as the eventual subsequent releases of the rest of the Lion Voltron series, Vehicle Voltron and the Japanese originals of GoLion and Armored Squadron Dairugger XV

If you are a VOLTRON fan, don't wait, get on board now!!

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Voltron Season One , October 19, 2006

By	Richard A. Mckeel "Chattanooga Christian" (Chattanooga, Tennessee) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Man I have said it once I will say it again; the 1980s was the best time to be a child. We had Voltron, Transformers, GIJOE, M.A.S.K., Thundercats, Battle of the Planets aka G-Force, and many other awsome cartoons. I am glad to see many of my favorite cartoons coming out on DVDs that way I can share it wth my little cousins and my own kids when I have them. Voltron ranks up there with many of the best cartoons of the 1980s and this series is a must for anyone that wants to relive their childhood. GO VOLTRON FORCE!!!