Ask Questions About the New Voltron Series HERE...

[Brandon Thomas]

All,

Dynamite head honcho Nick Barucci asked if I'd be interested in contributing to and maintaining a Q & A thread devoted to the new Voltron series, where I could take on any and all questions you guys and gals might have about the upcoming series. Thought it was a great idea and I'll do my best to answer as much as possible, provided it doesn't give away too many precise story details. Nick thought it'd be best to start off with a little background in regards to my personal history with the original cartoon and how I ended up writing the book in the first place.


Now to me, Voltron is part of my own personal “holy trinity” of animated series from the 80’s, which also includes Thundercats and Transformers. Those are the ones that really spoke to me throughout my childhood and I had all of the toys, all the stuff, and on top of everything...I had grand story ideas about dozens of unseen episodes that I didn’t realize until much later on were my first clumsy attempts at telling stories. Wish I had kept some of them as I’d think it’d be pretty interesting, since I’m now in the position to contribute something significant and hopefully lasting to the characters and the universe. The licensors are giving us a lot of freedom to turn this into the ultimate, modern interpretation of Voltron, and we’re going to give long-time fans a lot of things they haven’t seen before from the concept.

How it all happened was pretty simple actually---I was already working on a Project Superpowers mini for Dynamite and when I heard they got the Voltron license, my ears perked up a little bit. Had a meeting with them at C2E2 and asked if they’d found someone to write it yet, they said they hadn’t, and editor Joe Rybandt said something, a little kernel of an idea that he thought would really set this take apart from everything else, and it stuck in my head up there and got me thinking.

Can’t say exactly what the idea was because it gives a few things away, but I was off to the races from there and got the initial pitch in pretty quickly. In addition to laying out the first storyline, also included a few bullet points for stories that could naturally spin out of the first and I think that’s one of the things they liked, that long-term approach to the title. Wasn’t too much longer before I was turning in a massive proposal that gave a walkthrough of nearly the first two years of the book, so we have big plans for it and are excited for people to start seeing what we’ve been planning...

So there we go...any questions?

B

[Ralok]

now, I know its a bit odd but we all know that voltron was glued together from a couple of different shows

will the comic make strides to help bridge these aspects, such as portraying different races exclusive to these different aspects together in one environment, or characters making references to worlds from the other show

will the visual aesthetic for that matter help bridge whatever gap there may be?

[Brandon Thomas]

now, I know its a bit odd but we all know that voltron was glued together from a couple of different shows

will the comic make strides to help bridge these aspects, such as portraying different races exclusive to these different aspects together in one environment, or characters making references to worlds from the other show

will the visual aesthetic for that matter help bridge whatever gap there may be?

Series will have elements from both the Americanized version of Voltron, as well as the Japanese Go Lion series. But we'll be seeing a universe populated with a number of races, alien species, strange planets, etc., and I think that will be one byproduct of shifting some of the action away from Arus. Voltron is supposed to be the "defender of the universe" and we're going to show that by making sure the team isn't stranded or permanently stationed in any one place for too long.

Thanks for getting us started man, keep 'em coming if you like...

B

[Ralok]

Series will have elements from both the Americanized version of Voltron, as well as the Japanese Go Lion series. But we'll be seeing a universe populated with a number of races, alien species, strange planets, etc., and I think that will be one byproduct of shifting some of the action away from Arus. Voltron is supposed to be the "defender of the universe" and we're going to show that by making sure the team isn't stranded or permanently stationed in any one place for too long.

Thanks for getting us started man, keep 'em coming if you like...

B

not quite the answer I was looking for

the american voltron shows were two shows, teh vehicle and lion voltron, both with their followings

and there was even a crossover movie made specifically for voltron I hear taht featured both

since these two shows were different in japan there wa a bit of a disconnect

so will planets and races from the vehicle voltron show . . . make appearences!

[Brandon Thomas]

not quite the answer I was looking for

the american voltron shows were two shows, teh vehicle and lion voltron, both with their followings

and there was even a crossover movie made specifically for voltron I hear taht featured both

since these two shows were different in japan there wa a bit of a disconnect

so will planets and races from the vehicle voltron show . . . make appearences!

Ha! Okay, that's what you meant...we'll be dealing primarily with lion force, but there are a couple nods to vehicle force coming down the line...though I can't say exactly where and when quite yet...

Sorry about the confusion there

B

[Ralok]

Ha! Okay, that's what you meant...we'll be dealing primarily with lion force, but there are a couple nods to vehicle force coming down the line...though I can't say exactly where and when quite yet...

Sorry about the confusion there

B

I really hope you guys build a cohesive universe based on elements from both shows.

If only one member of an alien race appeared from vehicle force in the first twenty issues . . . it would be worth it and awesome!

and although your initial answer wasnt what I was looking for, it was still an awsome answer actually answering some further questions I had ! Good job

and although I am sure the original anime are great, I think that perhaps it would be best if you guys latched onto some of the differences . . . because from my understanding both have their own spirit!

And I heard (but donnt know anything about) subsequent voltron series . . . will you guys be incorporating aspects of them?

like . .. . voltron 3D OR THE THIRD DIMENSION or whatever . I heard it had mixed reviews, but it cant be so bad that it has to be totally ignored

[Ralok]

is this a continuation or a re-envisioning ?

[Brandon Thomas]

is this a continuation or a re-envisioning ?

A bit of both actually. Right now, we're only treating the Lion Force episodes as actual "canon," so we won't be seeking much cohesion between all of the different versions and interpretations. More using Lion Force as a natural starting point to head off in some different directions that will touch on some ideas and concepts from Vehicle Force and some other things that've been done with the characters in the past. Sorry to be a bit vague about this, but I can tell you that a lot of your questions are things that were discussed and some of it will definitely be addressed down the line, but I shouldn't reveal where just yet.

Thanks again for getting the conversation going, and anything else you can send my way is much appreciated.

B

[Ralok]

A bit of both actually. Right now, we're only treating the Lion Force episodes as actual "canon," so we won't be seeking much cohesion between all of the different versions and interpretations. More using Lion Force as a natural starting point to head off in some different directions that will touch on some ideas and concepts from Vehicle Force and some other things that've been done with the characters in the past. Sorry to be a bit vague about this, but I can tell you that a lot of your questions are things that were discussed and some of it will definitely be addressed down the line, but I shouldn't reveal where just yet.

Thanks again for getting the conversation going, and anything else you can send my way is much appreciated.

B

Well sir, I hope for at least one vague reference to a planet or race from voltron the third dimension!

It was my starting point for voltron, while not as good as the original series (vehicle or lion) it was good enough that it did not damage the spirit of it!

I hope that during your writing, you watch all the episodes of each series and take note of things!

Although that might be a pain, it might be worth it!

and later if this series is successful, you guys should do a vehicle force spinoff but get more into the spirit of the controversy . . . . actually incorporate the fan reaction into the peoples ideals towards the vehicle voltron

like . . . .when someone is saved by vehicle voltron . . . they would react in a hostile manner. And many people would view this machine as a pale shadow of the original voltron! And I am talking about in-universe of course!

It would be very interesting to see these peoples . . . . just refuse to awknowledge it as voltron . . . and in time that would be the theme of a vehicle voltron storyline . . . the need for the vehicle team to prove themselves as defenders, and the voltron machine itself to prove itself as a powerful contstruct

[Brandon Thomas]

Well sir, I hope for at least one vague reference to a planet or race from voltron the third dimension!

It was my starting point for voltron, while not as good as the original series (vehicle or lion) it was good enough that it did not damage the spirit of it!

I hope that during your writing, you watch all the episodes of each series and take note of things!

Although that might be a pain, it might be worth it!

and later if this series is successful, you guys should do a vehicle force spinoff but get more into the spirit of the controversy . . . . actually incorporate the fan reaction into the peoples ideals towards the vehicle voltron

like . . . .when someone is saved by vehicle voltron . . . they would react in a hostile manner. And many people would view this machine as a pale shadow of the original voltron! And I am talking about in-universe of course!

It would be very interesting to see these peoples . . . . just refuse to awknowledge it as voltron . . . and in time that would be the theme of a vehicle voltron storyline . . . the need for the vehicle team to prove themselves as defenders, and the voltron machine itself to prove itself as a powerful contstruct

The folks at Classic Media were kind enough to send me a complete set of the original Go Lion episodes, so I've been able to directly compare both versions. And not sure exactly how much Vehicle Voltron-type stuff we'll get to, but think you'll be happy with the subtle nods throughout the first year of the book.

Sorry for the delayed response...been locked in the lab the last few days finishing up the next new issue...

B