Hyakujuu-Ou GoLion

More Info

About Voltron (U.S.)

The original Voltron series was created by Peter Keefe in 1983 using material he had licensed from the Japanese cartoons Beast King GoLion and Armored Fleet Dairugger XV. The series was dubbed into English and edited, rewriting the scripts with reduced violence and the removal of Japanese cultural and location references. The series was an immediate hit in the United States, topping the syndication market for children's programs in the mid-1980s.

(Source: Wikipedia)

The series was to consist of three parts:

• Lion Force Voltron (Voltron of the Far Universe), based on Beast King GoLion
  
• Vehicle Voltron (Voltron of the Near Universe), based on Armored Fleet Dairugger XV
  
• Gladiator Voltron (Voltron of the Middle Universe), to be based on Lightspeed Electroid Albegas, but later abandoned due to the success of Lion Force Voltron

The U.S. version of Voltron included a slightly different plot, as a result of the name and setting changes, and included other changes such as not killing off one of the major characters (which turned out to be much better received by fans). While GoLion in Japan was not very successful, Voltron was far more successful in the United States (partly due to there being little competition from other giant robot shows), and has a pop-culture legacy that survives to this day in unlikely places (such as rap music and professional commentators).

After the conclusion of the original series's localization by World Events Production, WEP requested more episodes from Toei Animation specifically for U.S. distribution. These extra twenty episodes would be broadcast as "The New Adventures of Voltron", up through the 90s and early 00s.

WEP later produced "Voltron: the Third Dimension", a fully computer-generated (and U.S.-based) sequel set some years after the fall of Planet Doom, using new English voice talent, involving new characters, and featuring redesigned character costumes.