I wish this was on it's way, I was obsessed with this show back in the 80's! I had the massive die cast lions that formed Voltron and used to be able to do a really cool 'Pidge' impression. :b
The big news is here!! The first set will be released in September by Media Blasters.
So not only will we see Voltron, but the original Japanese series as well. Here's the links to the Media Blasters page and the story posted at tvshowsondvd.com.
Hopefully Media Blasters mean a real video restoration process and not using cleaned up (and sped up!) PAL masters. Yes, I'm looking at you, BCI Eclipse.
I trust Media Blasters to do a fine job with this. They've had issues in the past with some releases, but lately, they've really turned around and put out many high quality releases.
I just hope that they actually get around to airing the resolution of the "lion voltron" series on DVD. When I was a kid, I missed the last few episodes and was suddenly thrust into vehicle voltron.
One of the things my brother said was mentioned was that they were uncertain if they were going to be able to release the movie (which was produced for the American market) where the two Voltrons met each other (which I didn't even know existed).
Wasn't the movie supposed to be the ending to the American version? From what I've gathered episode 52 was the true ending to the "Lion Force" series. The 20 episodes that came after that were made specifically for the American version. The "Fleet of Doom" special was supposed to tie up both series (vehicle and lion).
That's 120 episodes or so. Unless "approximately 15" actually means "about 9" there's something off here. The only thing I can think of is they're going to include the CG Voltron series from the '90s.
It's going to include the complete Lion Force series (72 episodes), and the complete Vehicle Force series (52 episodes), with the 3-D series from 1998 on the fence, depending upon how well the two originals sell.
Also, the "Fleet of Doom" special is virtually a lock for inclusion in the eight "waves," but it hasn't been announced in which, yet. The first five DVD sets will be the Lion Force portion of the series, with the Vehicle Team comprising the back three sets.
One of the other things they're discussing at the moment is the inclusion of the commercial-break "bumpers" between the acts, similar to the Robotech DVDs (and which, in my opinion, are part of the whole "Voltron experience").
At last, it appears we'll finally be able to see that legendary Albegas pilot that World Events commissioned as a "third" Voltron series ("Voltron of the Middle Universe"), which test-aired in like Hawaii, and -- if rumors are correct -- San Francisco, but which ultimately got scrapped after Vehicle Voltron underperformed.
I was rather on the spot (but not 100%) with my predictions concerning how the discs would be laid out, in terms of episodes and supplements -- six eps on the first two DVDs, three on the third, along with bonus features. Didn't know if they were going to be using the Harmony Gold Robotech DVD model (two discs with six episodes apiece, plus a third disc of nothing but extras), or if they were going to spread things out a bit more.
Something else I just realized:
Wave 1 is called "The Blue Lion." It's been officially announced that they'll be releasing five Lion Force and three Vehicle Force sets. Thus, we'll probably be seeing "Air Team," "Land Team," and "Sea Team" sets for the 52 Vehicle Voltron episodes.
Hot damn. This baby has my money, come September 26.
The second "wave" -- the "Yellow Lion" set, containing episodes 16-30 of the Lion Force series -- is due out on November 21, coincidentally the exact same day that the Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles movie hits. Also, in a move that has me cheering, Media Blasters have announced that each episode will feature the original "We now return to Voltron: Defender of the Universe" commercial act-break bumpers between acts, recreating the classic viewing experience of the 1980s.
The Fleet of Doom special? Still under discussion at the moment, vis-à-vis its placement within the DVD sets, or as a separate release. Also, no closed-captioning on the discs, for those wondering. The DVD episode release pattern is also given for the five Lion Force sets -- 15 episodes ("Blue Lion"), 15 episodes ("Yellow Lion"), 14 episodes ("Red Lion"), 14 episodes ("Green Lion"), and the final 14 episodes ("Black Lion").
One more thing:
Apparently Media Blasters are only going to be producing the DVD "collector's tins" for a limited time before reverting to the slightly more "traditional" digipak-type packaging...not only that, but when the Voltron DVDs eventually shift to this latter form, ALL of the special features will be removed from the discs, to maintain a high level of value for the true fan who bought his/her sets early, so they don't feel cheated if the exact same configuration comes out at a cheaper price at Best Buy or Wal-Mart.