10 most essential episodes of Voltron: Legendary Defender

“The Black Paladins” (Season 6, Episode 5)

In one of Keith’s visions from “Razor’s Edge,” he sees a future in which he’s attacked by Shiro. There’s no context until this episode comes around. Keith and Shiro have one of the strongest relationships in the series. It’s a healthy friendship between two men who care about each other. Shiro has always been there for Keith, so Keith naturally wants to do the same for Shiro and that bond shines through in this episode.

An entranced-looking Shiro takes an unconscious Lotor to Honerva. She orders Shiro to distract Keith so as to not have any unwanted interruptions. This leads into one of the most emotional storylines in the series. Shiro lures Keith away to a secret facility. There, Keith finds numerous tubes with clones of Shiro. An intense scene starts to unfold in which Keith and Shiro fight against each other, putting Keith to the test.

What makes it even more heart-wrenching is the flashback of how Keith and Shiro first met, and in which Shiro promises a young Keith he will never give up on him. It’s a wonderful sequence of scenes, as it reinforces how a brotherhood as strong as the one between Keith and Shiro survives in the face of adversity.

This episode is also the catalyst for Honerva’s grand scheme of finding the perfect reality in season 8. When she reveals herself to be Lotor’s mother, he refuses to accept her as such, and Acxa fires her weapon on her. Honerva escapes, but it sets into motion a series of events that changes Team Voltron forever.