The End of Hazar's World/Galactic Dawn

The End of Hazar's World

Jeff looks back on how they helped the citizen of the Drule Empire against their oppressive government.  Now Jeff wonders what Zeppo was thinking, and reflects on how they've escaped.  Ginger sees Hazar emerge from the crowd of Drule citizens, and he asks them for help in evacuating the planet.    Hazar explains the situation to the Voltron Force in a building nearby.  Mozak enters the room and tells them how the weapons-testing destroyed the planet's internal balance.  They have only hours until the planet explodes.  Outside, Drule citizen panic at another earthquake.  Jeff has Ginger ferry Mozak to the Explorer to speak to Hawkins and Newley.  Then another earthquake strikes, and molten lava erupts somewhere.  Hazar looks grim.

Newley and Hawkins are looking over the underground city and trying to decide how to get them offworld.  Newley has contacted the reinforcement fleet, and hopefully they will arrive in time.  Ginger brings Mozak into the room and introduces him.  He drops to his knees and begs for their help, while Newley explains that they'll evacuate as many as they can, but there are more transports on the way--who will hopefully arrive in time.

Hawkins sends Ginger to prepare the women and children for evacuation.  The Alliance ships ground to board evacuees.  Jeff and Hazar discuss what led up to this, then Rocky tells Jeff to load the women and children first.  Hazar is optimistic.  Hazar, Dorma, and the Voltron Force in their mecha lead the citizens to the ships' landing area.

At the Alliance ships, Sparks is wondering why they haven't heard from the reinforcement fleet since first contacting them.  Then the people arrive.  Newley tells Mozak that they have a planet to migrate them to.  Mozak is overjoyed. 

The loading ensues, women and children first.  And there's some typical loading chaos, with some men freaking out.  Hazar assures children that everything will be OK.  Jeff shares his optimism with Dorma.  Two Drule officers approach Hazar . . .  And we cut to a fissure opening on the surface.  There's some panic.  Inside the ships, the Drules are packed in everwhere--hallways, engine rooms, with the Voltron Force on the lounge.

On the bridge, they haven't received word back from the reinforcement fleet.  Page appears onscreen and warns them that they only have two hours. 

Then we see the reinforcement fleet under Commodore Steele, composed of all ship types.  Some anty-gravity field has slowed them down. 

Some members of the Voltron Force are still holding back the Drule men.  Hutch tells Cliff they can't take any more, and they batten the hatches.  Jeff and Hawkins are sitting with bowed heads when Cliff and Crick get to the bridge.  Newley says they have to lift now and save the ones they have.  They leave, and Hazar and Dorma are left with the remainders.  The Voltron force is in the crowded lounge, downcast at all the lives they've left behind.  Jeff flashes back to Sandu.  They pretty much encapsulate the entire episode.  Then Jeff flashes back to Antor, and they talk about the rugby game.  Er, football. 

Finally Steele contacts Hawkins and Newley, and there is a lot of interference.  He's still not sure they'll make it in time, and they blather about magnetic polarities and rifts and things.  Because WEP doesn't really know what they should really be talking about. 

The damage to the planet's surface is increasing.  The Explorer and her heavily-laden fleet take off.  A radar operator on the Explorer bridge gets a signal--and then they see the reinforcement fleet coming in over the horizon--last great use of that device.  The two fleet pass, and Hawkins launches the Voltron Force to help Steele evacuate the rest of the citizens.  Hazar sheds a tear at the arrival of the ships.  Then his voiceover narrates the montage of survivors boarding the reinforcements.  He continues to usher them to the new Drule homeworld and the future as the ships leave the collapsing planet.

Then we get a montage of the Voltron members as Hazar thanks them all, superimposed over the planet's destruction.  Next follow surface views of the planet bursting into flames, and various Voltron member exclaim at the sight of its collapse. 

Hawkins then tells the fleet to land the immigrants on their new planet.

Galactic Dawn

The date is February 9, 2203.  The narrator makes a rare appearance and explains where we are--Galveston military defeated, planet about to explode.  Then Patty sees Teles in the crowd at Dairugger's feet, and Teles surrenders.

Survivors are gathered in the ruined center of the city.  In a building, Aki introduces himself to Teles.  Teles asks them to forgive the Drule citizens.  Then Tes arrives ad asks to see Asimov.  Aki realizes the two are father and son.  Outside, an Earthquake dumps debris on the survivors.  Aki orders Patty to take him to see Asimov.  Aki says they'll evacuate what they have, but they have few ships left in the fleet.  The tremors then worsen, and magma spouts out of a vent.

The Allied fleet awaits in an open area under the surface.  Asimov and Ise decide that they will use the soon-to-arrive reinforcement fleet to evacuate the Galveston people. but conditions aren't allowing them to make contact.

Patty brings Tes to speak to Asimov, and he drops to his knees before the Earth Alliance Commander.  Asimov vows that they will evacuate what they can with what they've got, and that there is a reinforcement fleet on the way.  Ise orders the ships to land and begin taking on civilians.  Meanwhile, panic is beginning as the crumbling planet starts claiming more lives.  Teles urges them to to start the evacuation.  Then Kai jumps out of his mecha and says they will start the evacuation at launch station three.  Sirk, Teles, and the Rugger mecha lead the way for millions of Galveston citizens.  The crews of the ships have prepared boarding ladders and ramps, and see the mass of aproaching Galvestons.

Aboard the Rugger Guard, Asimov tells Tes that he will consult the Alliance and urge them to migrate the Galveston people to the 3rd planet.

Women and children are boarding foirst.  The Rugger team members assist the people in getting on the massive elevators.  There is some unrest as men fear getting left behind.  Aki and Sirk see Teles looking happy for the first time.  But two young Drule officers are in the crowd with knives.

On the surface, magma vents claim wreckage.  People are packed into the ships wherever there is space.  Kirigas and others serve food to the survivors.

On the bridge, they can't raise the reinforcement fleet and Dr. Search says they have only a little more that five hours.

In space, Dewa is leading the support fleet, and they cannot raise Ise, and don't know if they've lost or won the battle or been killed in the progressive collapse of the Galveston homeworld.

The Rugger team is forced to stop boarding the ships.  Teles and Sirk are with the remaining Galveston people.  On the Rugger Guard bridge, Ise and Aki wait with bowed heads.  Keats and Walter arrive and demand to know why they've stopped boarding.  Then Asimov appears on the viewer and tells them they have to launch.  Panic ensues among the Glaveston survivors.

The fleet lifts out of the underground area and begins to launch--when they see the reinforcement fleet coming over the horizon.  Ise updates Dewa on the situation, and Mutsu sees the fleet and begins a celebration among the Rugger team members.  Ise orders the Rugger teams to launch and assist in loading the rest of the citizens.  The Glaveston people are overjoyed as the reinforcements enter the underground launch complex, and Teles sheds a tear.

Teles watches the evacuation, then walks away to be alone for a time.  He sees three men in the shadow of wreckage, and tells them that they must evacuate.  He approaches them, and they draw knives and stab him.

Sirk is overseeing the final boarding of the Galveston survivors, and realizes Teles isn't with the rest.  The traitors (one of whom is the brother of Sim) blame the war ouncil for the fighting and the destruction of Galveston, and swear they won't let him leave.  Teles doesn't blame them, and urges them to reach a ship.  They vow to stay and share the planet's fate if it means accepting Earth's pity.  Teles lurches to his feet and commands them to rebuild Galveston.  The three conspirators flee to the ships.

Sirk and a former guerrilla can't find Teles.  Then Sirk sees his body.  Walter and Aki see Sirk running, and the planet begins to collapse around her.  She comes upon his body.  Aki tries to comfort her with the fact that he lives on in the hearts of . . .  blah blah blah.  Aki lays the good luck charm he got from Kaga many episodes ago at Teles' head, and they leave him to be cremated with his planet.

The Rugger team members leave the planet with their fleet just as it collapses.  There is silence (NO NARRATION!!!) as the planet finally collapses to an absolutely awesome piano-and-orchestra rendition of the Dairugger theme.  The planet disintegrates and swallows Teles in flame. 

That was a somber, bittersweet ending.  When I first got the Vehicle Voltron DVDs, I watched this with my girlfriend and another friend of ours (who happens to be my contraband-unlicensed-in-the-us anime supplier--that's how I saw Ideon and all the post Macross Plus Macross series).  We finished this, and then Monica asked about "that team-up epsisode."  So I got Fleet of Doom and we watched that.  Yep, I think that's a shark in Voltron's wake.  Good gravy, is that a shit in tone compared to even the Voltron dub of these last few episodes.  I think the movie and the following "second season" of Lion Voltron are clear departures from what made Voltron stand out next to G.I Joe, He-Man, Transformers, and the other American-made series of the time.

Even though there are no corresponding Japanese episodes to compare these ones with, I'm going to watch them anyone.  Look forward to it!