I can only speak to our intent and I can truly say we did not intend to bait anyone. “If anyone for any reason took away from this season that our intention was to queer bait the VLD fandom I’d like to personally apologize. In an open letter to the Voltron: Legendary Defender fandom, showrunner Joaquim Dos Santos addressed the fandom’s responses to Adam’s death in addition to highlighting some of the boundaries that still exist in representation today.
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In addition, many fans believed that Adam’s death perpetuated the “bury your gays” trope given that he was introduced to the series and killed within the season. Others argued that revealing that Shiro was gay at the series’ SDCC panel build up significant excitement only to lead to disappoint in the series and a lack of reference to Shiro and Adam being in a relationship in the series. Some Voltron: Legendary Defender fans argue that Adam’s death was indicative of both of these tropes, arguing that they had been baited by cover images for the series that seemed to suggest a reunion between Shiro and Adam. The “bury your gays” trope refers to queer characters being killed off for shock value and/or to further the development of a more central character. Queerbaiting refers to the phenomenon of shows and movies hinting at the possibility of a queer relationship, but ultimately refusing to make the relationship romantic. Fans accused the Voltron crew of queerbaiting and invoking the “bury your gays” trope. Voltron showrunners talk end of season 7 and incoming series finaleĪlthough Adam only briefly appeared in the seventh season, his death was the source of major controversy in the fandom. Adam’s ultimatum eventually comes true: when Shiro eventually does return to Earth, he discovers that Adam died while attempting to defend the Garrison base from the first wave of Galra cruisers. He leaves after effectively ending their relationship, telling Shiro: “If you decide to go, don’t expect me to be here when you come back.”Īfter leaving Earth in the Blue Lion and going on to lead Voltron, Shiro doesn’t return to Earth for several years. After Shiro laments the fact that his superiors are trying to prevent him from going on the mission due to his illness, Adam sides with the Garrison rather than his boyfriend. Season seven introduces Adam through a flashback in which he and Shiro argue about the Kerberos mission. “Are there still boundaries? Well, for this type of action adventure/product driven/traditionally boys toys” show the answer is unfortunately yes.” “I’d like to say that we created this version of Voltron with the intent of being as inclusive as possible within the boundaries given,” Dos Santos wrote. Following the season premiere, fans expressed anger and hurt in regard to LGBTQ representation on the show, and how things ultimately played out for the character. In the letter, Dos Santos acknowledged the controversy surrounding Adam, Shiro’s ex-boyfriend who briefly appeared in season seven. Earlier this week, Voltron: Legendary Defender Joaquim Dos Santos posted an open letter to the Voltron fandom several days after the release of the series’ seventh season.