Saturday, December 30, 2017

'Toon Reviews 11: Voltron: Legendary Defender Season 1 Episode 5: Tears of the Balmera

Tears of the Balmera


 
 
 
 
 
 
 
This episode is primarily a continuation of the previous one where some of our heroes are given shining moments in reclaiming their castle from Sendak.  From the title, you might think that the main focus would be on the two most light-hearted characters in the cast, Hunk and Coran, retrieving a crystal from a Balmera, a living creature that serves as a planet for smaller creatures.  There are some enjoyable moments from this part of the episode from the many ways Coran shows off his eccentricity, even amidst the dark aspects of Balmera the inhabitants teach them, and Hunk, who’s always prided on nervousness and looking for the easy way out in the past, showing concern for the Balerans and wanting to help them, and for good reasons.  They live in harmony taking what they need from Balmera while giving something to them in return, but things become complicated with it now owned by the Galra Empire.   Because of their problems, two Balmerans represent two believable reactions to Hunk and Coran’s presence.  One named Shay wants to help their cause believing they can give to the Balmera in ways no one has in a while and expressing hope for the future by possibly leaving with them, and another called Rax is loyal to his home and wants the outsiders to leave.  Rax even goes darker in his beliefs when he orders Hunk, Coran, and Shay, who helps them get their crystal behind Galra’s back, to be attacked even imprisoning Shay who allows Hunk and Coran to escape with their crystal.  Overall, this part has further implications of how hard Galra’s rule is on what they conquer, creativity with the concept of Balmeras, and bits of humor coming from the protagonists at the center, even if it seems to gloss over things at times such as with Coran apparently cracking his spine while lifting their crystal and act like it never happened in the next scene.  Surprisingly, this business with the Balmera doesn’t get the most focus.  That honor goes to Pidge who has to help Allura and the Paladins regain control of their castle while being hunted down from Sendak’s army.  In addition, we see more of her past such as the details of what she went through when her dad and brother got captured during their mission, how she got banned from flight school when using their computers to look up information on them during the flight, and her being unsociable with Lance and Hunk when they first met.  It’s always great to see the past of appealing characters, and it makes me wish we’d see more pasts from other main heroes besides her, Shiro, and Allura.  Regarding Pidge’s past, it allows her to move forward with her mission to stop Sendak and actually be a valued member of the team, just after wanting to leave it.  Watching her evade capture/death from the enemy brings out a lot of shining moments for her despite losing her drone, Rover, needing help from Allura’s mouse friends in the final takedown and hearing her closest companion, Shiro, get attacked as leverage to get her to surrender.  While the latter point loses its impact when we see her push on later without a scene of her making her choice in between, she still plays a significant role in helping the team reclaim the castle and defeating Sendak, and the episode ends with a heartwarming scene of her declaring that her loyalty belongs to the Voltron team.  It’s an engaging example of how facing one’s past can lead to great changes in the present.  While the story could have been tweaked with a few additional scenes and things can drag at times, there’s enough heart, creativity, and nice character-building moments to make me consider this a strong entry. 9/10
The Ranking
1.      The Rise of Voltron
2.      The Fall of the Castle of Lions
3.      Return of the Gladiator
4.      Tears of the Balmera
5.      Some Assembly Required
 
Be sure to stay tuned for the review of the next episode where the Paladins enter the galaxy and stop to help seemingly common refugees as they start "Taking Flight."
If you would like to check out other Voltron: Legendary Defender reviews on this blog, click here for the guide made especially for them.

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