Haggar - Blog Posts
When the witch you've been trying to take down turns into your dead friend in order to convince the youngest member of your team to betray you.
This sprung from a idea that wouldn't go away. If there's any fanfic writes left in this fandom please take this as a promt
Voltron ‘Lets only think of Love’ SU
I don’t own anything except the alterations!
Please give me credit if you do use it though!
Alfor was an altean who loved the universe
Saw it’s beauty and it’s worth
Alfor made the lions and fought for peace
That didn’t end up mattering when the alteans went scattering
Zarkon was a galra who went unopposed
With the plans he’s made when he arose
Zarkon then was consumed by greed
And I think that we can all agree
That is a little bit upsetting
I’d rather think about a wedding!
Let’s think about cake, let’s think about flowers
Let’s think about dressing up and dancing around for hours
There’s an awful lot of things we could be thinking of
But for just one day let’s only think about love
-Keith- Okay Lance, I gotta get dressed now so don’t look. And no peeking either!
-Lance- *chuckles* okay
-Shiro- oh Hunk(idk you’re oc too I guess), I wished I could have said something sooner about Haggar and Kuron
We can think about lies we were forced to keep
-Shiro- They took it so hard
We can think about hurt feelings and how they go so deep
-Shiro- How can we get past that?
Or we can think about hope
-Shiro- Hope?
You know I’ve been hoping
-Shiro- About what?
That everything’s better now everything’s out in the open
Lotor, is that what you’re wearing to the wedding?
-Lotor in armor- It’s the nicest thing I own
Looking sharp!
We could think about flowers, we could think about cake
We could think about wonderful promises we have the power to make
There’s an awful lot of awful things we could be thinking of
But for just one day, let’s only think about love!
-Pidge- Maybe I shouldn’t have picked up juniberry flowers, seems a bit controversial
We could all rethink how we feel about our foes
When it comes to the galra and the things they did in the past I suppose
-Pidge- yeah...
Or we could both feel better, cause we could think about how
We could think about us and how we can change the now
-Pidge- Well if we’re not gonna use these we’re gonna need something else
No worries Lotor just went to gather more flowers right now, I’ll go get him
But for just one day let’s only think about...
Lotor?
-Lotor- What if my generals were right? Sooner or later the galra are gonna catch us. We’re all going to die!
We could think about war, we could think about fighting
We could think of our old friends we wish we were inviting
We could of the innocents we are fighting for
Or we could think about the sacrifices we’ve made
So that they can’t be hurt any, they can’t be hurt anymore
We could think about joy, we could think about pain
We could think about sunshine, we could think about rain
There’s an awful lot of awful lot things we could be thinking of
But for just one day, let’s only think about...
-Everyone- Just one day let’s only think about...
Just one day let’s only think about
Loooooove~
Voltron Characters Summed Up In 1 Sentence
Takashi Shirogane: We all know the original plan for me was to stay dead after season 2 and in hindsight that would have been better than dealing with what comes in later seasons.
Keith Kogane: I might be the only somewhat well developed character in this show simply because of how much I change for the better while everything else is either rushed or confusing.
Lance McClain: I am the only normal Paladin who isn’t insanely smart or an alien, maybe a little annoying, and all I wanted was to live a peaceful life with Allura and I sTiLl cOuLd nOt hAvE tHaT.
Katie “Pidge” Holt: I causally hack into alien technology I barely know about because we all know that I am the smartest and most capable person in existance.
Hunk Garrett: I actually am a cinnamon roll that thankfully got some characterization squeezed in at the last two seasons of the show.
Allura: I have suffered all my life and instead of actually getting to balance my character’s suffering and have a satisfying or happy ending, which you know, is what good writing actually is, I die in favor of fixing a genocidal killer’s mistakes.
Coran: My goofy nature makes you forget that I am literally millennia older than all the Paladins, Allura included, and despite being one of the most lighthearted characters in the show, I still lose the only family I have left.
Romelle: I was brave, courageous, and quick thinking in season 6 but soon became useless and irrelevant, basically Allura’s sidekick.
Lotor: I’m an abuse victim that unsurprisingly went down a dark path in life and in the end I never got a chance at redemption.
Matt Holt: I was teased for like 4 seasons and when I finally hit the stage, all of you loved me.
Acxa: I randomly got a shoehorned redemption “arc” in season 7 and was barely present to help the Coalition at all in season 8.
Krolia: No I won’t ever say my husband’s name on screen and no I will not explain the meaning of the name “Yorak”.
Honerva: I am the definition of selfishness, and I don’t own up to the fact that Alfor was right and had I listened to him and not got overworked on quintessence I actually could have had a life and family with Lotor and Zarkon.
Zarkon: I am the definition of a big fat mess, and don’t do quintessence kids.
I might do more characters later :PPPPP
Narti Week 2017 - Day 3: Memories
===
The earliest memory Narti had was far from pleasant.
A voice belonging to a woman ,who she would later learn was Grand Witch Haggar, was scolding her. For what, the female Galra could not remember. She did, however, remember being struck.
Blood flowing from her face.
She had been so young then. Unable and unused to living in a world without sight and speech. Terrified of the handicaps she had, seemingly, been born with.
The Witch used that to her advantage.
Narti remembered the nails on that horrid woman's gnarled hands. Filed like serrated knives, those nails had pressed into Narti's young face. Nearly, but not quite, drawing blood as the Witch pulled their heads close together The smell of rot on the Witch too strong for Narti's heightened sense of smell, and the girl gagged. Desperate for cleaner air.
Unintentionally pushing the nails deeper into her skin.
“Little Beast!” The Grand Witch had hissed. Her scent like toxin and metal. The female Galra frantic to get away from the warm, rotten breath and sharp hands, but much too frightened to even move.
Much less run.
“Never forget you cost your mother her life, you wretched thing! You killed the only creature who could ever love you. Remember that the next time you dare disobey.”
Narti could only do as she was told.
She remembered.
Sometimes Haggar catches Shiro goofing off when she’s spying on him...
She is not Amused
BTW Shiro’s using one of these bad boys ;)
Quintessence, part II
This is a two-part comprehensive post on quintessence, its functions and role within the narrative of Voltron: Legendary Defender (VLD), and its effects on particular key characters - Zarkon, Haggar, Lotor, Allura, Shiro, and Keith. Part one found here. Images can be better viewed on another tab after right-clicking (PC) or control+clicking (mac) on them, then choosing “Open Image in New Tab”. As with any analysis, these are my interpretations of the text and not meant to be treated as canon, though I strive to support my readings with canonical evidence. This post contains spoilers for all aired six seasons, including SDCC 2018 information.
In 1.01, Allura states, “The quintessence of the pilot is mirrored in his lion.” Earlier on in the same episode, however, we get the first implied mention of quintessence through Haggar after she senses something amiss across the galaxies.
Likely due to her exposure to the trans-reality comet and deep connection to sorcery, Haggar also detects something off about Lotor, who has secretly been building the Sincline ships out of the trans-reality comet he seized from Voltron after the Paladins ventured into another reality. (4.03)
During 6.02, we learn that the Galra were able to design sensors that recognize the lions’ signature energy within limited range. This allowed Galra scout teams to score through the systems under Zarkon’s command after the discovery of the Red Lion.
The signature is nearly identical to that of the Red Lion’s.
How did you know to look for the Blue Lion on Earth? We didn’t. After Sendak found the Red Lion, the Galra engineered a way to pick up the lions’ signatures from close range. Zarkon had thousands of scouts searching for them.
(Is it coincidence that the first time the Galra are introduced in the series, they were scouting near Kerberos? Doubtful, but nothing is certain yet. It is clear that over a year later, Zarkon located the Blue Lion on Earth, prompting Ulaz to help Shiro escape from the empire.)
Because Alfor connected Allura’s life force to the lions’, she can locate their whereabouts by using the Castle of Lions and enhance Voltron’s quintessence. (1.01, 4.06)
Furthermore, she can even carry the quintessence of another living being; after learning Oriande’s secrets, this ability becomes refined. This is key for the Balmera-Altean symbiotic relationship and for Shiro’s “resurrection”. (Allura heals the Balmera in the episode called “Rebirth” even…) (1.05, 1.08, 6.07)
Interestingly enough, Keith at times has shown a similar aptitude to perceive and guide quintessence without outside assistance or mechanical instruments. Somehow he is able to find Shiro inside the Garrison’s quarantine tent with no delay. (It is important to note that many times energy is detected, it is quintessence or quintessence-related, so bear that in mind.) (3.04)
He is the one who sensed the Blue Lion in a general vicinity but couldn’t pinpoint its specific location until Hunk, Pidge, and Lance came along.
Inexplicably, he identifies the Red Lion’s position within Sendak’s war ship (after echoing Shiro’s mantra regarding patience/focus), an impressive feat unlike the other Paladins finding their lions because of the long range and lack of provided coordinates. (1.01)
It is quite analogous to how Allura is able to track down the compass stone located inside Haggar’s lair with Lotor’s encouragement. (5.06)
The Red Lion has attuned with Keith in a similar fashion, finding Keith when he and Allura are stranded and reacting violently as Keith chooses his role as a paladin over recovering his identity during the Blade of Marmora trials.
Right as Keith is engulfed in red, the Red Lion’s eyes illuminate. One can infer that these cases are only possible through the quintessence linking a pilot and their lion together. (A really nifty blink-and-miss detail is Allura’s eyes shift towards Keith when Shiro says “connect”, considering Allura’s composure turns fraught as she stands by the sidelines with the rest of the team as the Red Lion batters the Marmoran headquarters.) (2.06, 2.08)
During the assault on Naxzela, Coran notifies the Blades of Marmora’s strike team that the oncoming Galra fleet ceased quite a distance away from the planet, confounding Keith at the uncharacteristic move. Then he realizes that it spells danger, and acts upon that intuition with the rebel forces. Indeed, Haggar has repurposed and activated Naxzela as a bomb that could wipe out at least ten solar systems. (4.06)
When Voltron suffered from the effects of a virus on a sub-molecular level, Allura revealed that the bayards amplify each paladin’s life force; Keith is the first to employ his bayard while the lions are joined as Voltron, bisecting Myzax. (5.03, 1.03) This amplification may have saved Shiro’s life in the battle against Zarkon and evolved Voltron’s sword from standard to blazing sword. (2.13)
With Keith piloting the Black Lion, it was able to locate clone Shiro - likely because it sensed original Shiro’s signature energy, the foundation of the copy’s essence - before he could expire in his escaped vessel. (3.05)
Here are some more visuals to illustrate and compare Keith’s innate ability.
Notice the difference in coloring and framing of Shiro seeing through the Black Lion’s eyes, Alfor seeing through the Red Lion’s, and Keith seeing through the Black Lion’s eyes. (1.02, 3.07, 6.06) Alfor and Shiro’s are direct parallels to each other as they form and communicate through a psychic link with the Lions, whereas Keith’s is a superimposition. His eyes also do not glow yellow with the Lion’s; they glow in blue, the color of pure/concentrated quintessence.
Allura as she prepares Voltron to unlock the rift reflects the former examples as well. (6.07)
Keith’s instance as a medium for quintessence to activate the Black Lion’s wings/teleportation ability is similar to what transpired when Allura absorbed Shiro’s quintessence from the Black Lion and integrated it with clone Shiro’s body. (6.07)
Another comparison can be drawn to when she innately counteracts against Naxela’s magical gravity; blue quintessence surrounds her before outlining Voltron. (4.06)
Altean alchemy along with quintessence manipulation facilitates restoration, which is further foreshadowed by Haggar awakening both her memories of a past life and Zarkon from his coma through sorcery, and reverting to Honerva once she gains even more knowledge from undertaking Oriande. (3.07, 6.01, 6.07)
Perhaps Keith’s connection to quintessence is similar to Allura’s (and by extension, to Alfor’s and Haggar’s), just on a smaller scale. After her, he even comes next in line when they channel their energy together to open the rift in 6.07; I bring this up because based on top-down sequence, Pidge should come after Lance as she is the left arm, but Hunk, one of the legs, precedes her. I postulate that it indicates the ranking of each paladins’ sensitivity to quintessence.
Keith has constantly resonated with quintessence almost on an instinctual level.
After Voltron enters the rift, just like Alfor, Keith is the first paladin to be focused on; I find this significant because in 3.07, Alfor is the one guiding his team into the rift, since it is Altean alchemy which makes it possible to enter it. However, instead of the frame focusing on Allura, it is Keith.
Keith, again, is the focal paladin as the team pursues and experiences the visceral surge of energy from the quintessence field. (6.07)
Getting power from the quintessence is the only way we can match his strength.
All this quintessence is keeping us at full power. It’s more than that. Can you hear your Lions talking to you? Voltron is capable of more than we ever imagined.
Later, after saving the multi-universes as we know them, the team confronts the state of Shiro. Keith informs them that he interacted with Shiro in the Black Lion's consciousness, where the Lion retained Shiro's essence ever since Zarkon was grievously incapacitated. Shiro's life force resonates with Keith's, allowing them to communicate with each other in the astral plane; because quintessence is also involved, both Keith and Allura are instrumental to Shiro's reanimation. (6.06, 6.07)
This body is barely living, but Shiro’s spirit is alive. It’s inside the Black Lion. I’ve heard him talking to me.
We’re glad you’re back, Shiro. Rest.
As to why Keith is quintessence-sensitive is left unanswered for now. Many, including myself once upon a time, theorize he is part Altean, which is not far-fetched, but it seems like too easy of a conclusion to settle upon. This reboot is known to twist itself in satisfactory ways. Going full circle, it was a deliberate choice to have him chase after the Blue Lion’s leads in 1.01 and the druid in 1.10, foreshadowing his hunt to find the enriched quintessence for over two seasons (and years). (4.01, 6.02)
It’s been two years. We can finally finish our mission.
I’m picking up some readings similar to those of the quintessence Ranveig found. This is the source of the readings. Let’s go check it out. (6.02)
Moreover, I believe Zarkon’s scouts encountering the Kerberos crew, Shiro’s return to Earth after Zarkon’s scouts located the Blue Lion, and the cave markings depicting a momentous arrival are connected, and may shed light on Shiro’s unique role within the story and on the probing question on everyone’s minds: why is Haggar so fascinated by him that her very agenda was to weaponize him?
Both Haggar and Allura have demonstrated the ability to harness and channel this mysterious substance for divergent purposes. They each use Altean alchemy to manipulate it. Haggar’s grand extraction of quintessence emphasizes her absolute disregard for life, the same disregard she stubbornly upholds prior to her reanimated state, which ultimately catalyzed doom for Daibazaal, Zarkon, herself, and even Lotor. Tangentially, I want to briefly touch on Lotor. Gradually Lotor’s goals are exposed, some intentionally given by him, and most times under pretenses and delusions.
Due to the fact he was conceived before Honvera entered the rift, quintessence is part of his genetic make-up, slowing his aging as well as imbuing him with powers that may have granted him the Mark of the Chosen yet overall remained dormant until he once again returned to the quintessence field.
(Notably, his marks look different from a typical Altean’s marks, and look similar to emaciated Honerva’s elongated marks before and after entering the rift. They both were immersed and came into contact with the rift creatures.) (5.06, 6.01)
Lotor’s fascination-turned-obsession for quintessence predates him. It is highly probable that Lotor will return from his prison, warped beyond recognition, just like and unlike his parents. Behind the veneer of charm and composure, quintessence reveals Lotor as a man completely consumed by his traumatic upbringing and heritage, keen to achieve his vision of peace with whatever brutal means necessary. But one does wonder... have we heard all there is to know about Lotor’s Altean colony and quintessence harvesting? Lotor has mentioned before that quintessence acquisition for him is something of an equivalent exchange, which echoes the Altean-Balmera rejuvenation ceremony. (1.07, 5.06)
And what did he mean when he does not wish to resort to the barbarism of the komar when he still gathered and harvested Alteans like livestock for over a millenia? (5.01) When, according to Romelle’s account, he exhausted them as scientific resources for his research on quintessence? When, in a particular perspective/interpretation based on one-sided evidence, he manipulated Allura to do his bidding by cultivating a veneer of charm and admiration for Alfor/Altea, appeasing her deference for her father, their shared culture and her wish fulfillment towards universal peace? What other uses did Lotor have for the enriched quintessence? (5.01, 6.04, 5.06)
But in order to [create another Altean colony to increase their chances of survival], he needed to assess which Alteans were viable candidates to survive the journey. One by one, every Altean in the colony was given a series of tests.
Lotor is a monster and has been harvesting Altean quintessence for generations!
Back to Haggar and Allura: as Haggar’s inverse, Allura serves as a conduit (like her name’s meaning - “Divine counselor” - suggests), transferring that life energy to mend others and to facilitate advancements. (1.08, 6.01, 4.06)
In the same vein, the komar and Lotor suffer the detrimental results of suffusing an extreme amount of concentrated quintessence. (2.13, 6.07)
We give Lotor all the power he wants.
What did you do in there? I transferred the excess power from Voltron. It’s a technique I learned on Oriande. Thanks to Lotor.
A running motif regarding Allura’s quintessence manipulation is that it is selfless. It emphasizes giving. This mirrors her character development from refusing to expose her worries and concerns, to becoming openly vulnerable to others. It commends dependability. That is how she connects with the Blue Lion, whereas stubbornly commanding it had been futile. (3.03)
Her trials in Oriande punctuate this point: she yields and presents her life as an offering, ultimately unlocking Oriande’s secrets. (5.06)
On the other end of the spectrum, Haggar uses force, puppeteering events to happen to her own benefit. (6.01)
She wields quintessence to create monstrous alterations using organic life, technology, and dark magic. Robeasts, an amalgamation of “robot beasts” helpfully coined by Hunk, are manufactured through an excruciating process of transferring a living being’s essence from its biological body into a massive artificial one. (1.03, 1.06)
I’ll audaciously throw in my speculation that clone Shiro is a sophisticated robeast that was...not-so-subtly foreshadowed back in 2.03; at least his glowing cybernetic arm counts. (1.01, 2.03, 6.05)
Here’s another observation I found. White/silver hair on a person seemingly insinuates quintessence (over)exposure (or more aptly the individual possessing quintessence-fused DNA).
All the following characters have this hair type: Alfor, Allura, Allura’s mother, Lotor, eventually Haggar, and, with 6.07, Shiro. One wonders if Shiro’s white forelock in the beginning denotes the types of experiments Haggar forced upon him (and his clones…) during captivity. (3.05)
Speaking of clones, it’d be remiss to bypass clone Shiro’s amplified version of original Shiro’s negative traits relating to control and ruthless survival instincts; his actions seem more brutal after undergoing Haggar’s experimentations. And since learning that Project Kuron eliminated Shiro’s degenerative disease, one wonders if Haggar used quintessence to do so, just as she had done before for Kova. The unkempt appearance of Honerva poisoned by the quintessence and Shiro’s clone compromised by injections, as well as their increased assertion on authority, mirror each other. (1.11, 3.07, 1.03, 5.03, 6.04)
I digress again to mention that only white/silver haired individuals have been able to enter the trials - presumably Alfor, certainly Allura, Lotor, and Haggar/Honerva… Would that mean Shiro would undergo different trials proctored by Oriande’s guardian? Hardly a coincidence that clone Shiro vicariously experienced the trials, particularly being engulfed by its guardian lion, through Haggar as she manipulated her way into restoring herself.
We have yet to explore the reason why Shiro became heavily affected by Oriande, so I look forward to hopefully receiving answers in the upcoming episodes. But that’s for another post altogether.
Six seasons of VLD has a lot to unpack, but I think I covered everything I wanted to discuss regarding quintessence for now… I’m sure future episodes will provide more topics to go over. I hope you enjoyed the read, and let me know your thoughts!
Edit: I included some bold italics regarding Lotor’s actions and the colony reveal. After some thought, it’s never made clear exactly if Lotor committed the very things Romelle passionately accused him of doing. Not to mention the incongruities found in her account; nothing was ever corroborated, almost as if this is something to resolve in later seasons.
Quintessence, part I
This is a two-part comprehensive post on quintessence. I figured I should gather my thoughts regarding quintessence, its functions and role within the narrative of Voltron: Legendary Defender (VLD), and its effects on particular key characters - Zarkon, Haggar, Lotor, Allura, Shiro, and Keith. There is a lot of information to sift through, so bear with me (images can be better viewed on another tab after right-clicking (PC) or control+clicking (mac) on them, then choosing “Open Image in New Tab”). As with any analysis, these are my interpretations of the text and not meant to be treated as canon, though I strive to support my readings with canonical evidence. This post contains spoilers for all aired six seasons.
Quintessence is woven ubiquitously throughout the series’ mythos, but we only have it properly defined around the tail end of the first season: “[...] [T]he substance with the highest known energy per unit volume in the universe.” (1.10)
Essentially, it is the VLD universe’s “life force”, a self-generating power source that provides fuel, longevity, and restoration. Zarkon’s dominating empire relies heavily on it as standardized fuel, colonizing and mining countless planets in order to harvest its power. Within the present timeline, Haggar successfully constructs and brandishes a device called the komar, capable of consuming an entire planet’s quintessence in minutes. (1.06)
We have seen it heal lifeforms. (1.10)
Confirmed when we see that Honerva administered an ailing Kova to live beyond his life expectancy, it is the elixir keeping Zarkon and Haggar alive over 10,000 years. (3.07)
Ultimately, quintessence drives Zarkon’s obsession to seize Voltron in order to create a new rift and attain unlimited access to the purest kind of quintessence which comes from the zone between realities. (1.11, 3.07)
It is why Voltron’s return after its absence did not deter Lotor; his means to enter the quintessence field (again) was within reach. (3.03, 3.04)
The main, overarching conflict of the series stems from quintessence acquisition. (5.05)
The properties found within quintessence can be broadly defined within two categories - healing and transmutation. It can be divided into subcategories by color: yellow for raw, purple for refined, blue-tinged white for concentrated/pure. The following are visual examples. The first is Zarkon’s quintessence-infusion ritual conducted by Haggar and her druids sprinkled across the first season; Zarkon then has them enhance his paladin-lion link to track down the Black Lion across great distances. (1.03, 2.06, 2.03)
Next, is the results of Haggar performing her tests on the komar and using it in combat. (1.06, 2.13) The container which housed an entire planet’s worth of quintessence could not withstand Voltron’s, implying that Voltron’s quintessence greatly exceeds the amount found within a planet, and there are still some remnants left even after the extraction. Removal of quintessence begets death.
In contrast, immersion of quintessence promotes life. (1.08) (Too much of it, however, can be addictive and poisonous; I’ll touch more on this later.)
After raw quintessence is refined into fuel, it powers Galra technology and grossly augments or sustains biology. (1.10, 2.10, 2.13, 5.02, 5.05)
Enriched quintessence makes its presence known in recent seasons, once even overloading Kolivan’s sensors while gathering intelligence.
Keith becomes adamant that this new form of quintessence has something to do with Lotor, and rightfully so. (4.01)
His search leads him to one of Zarkon’s commanders, Ranveig, who intercepted a shipment containing the unusual quintessence.
Ranveig experiments with the quintessence in order to create an incredibly powerful superweapon whose whereabouts are currently unknown. (5.05, 6.02)
I was with Ranveig when an unmarked cargo ship passed into his region. When we checked it out, there was no crew aboard. The ship had been nearly torn to pieces, but inside, a single vat of quintessence remained. It was unlike any other quintessence we’d seen.
Later, it is revealed conveniently insinuated by Romelle and Keith that one source of this type of quintessence comes from Alteans harvested by Lotor. (6.04)
As they explained their mission to me, we knew there must have been a connection between the missing Alteans and the pure strain of quintessence.
No! Petrulius! What’s happening to them? These people were supposed to be headed to the colony! Lotor is harvesting their quintessence.
He uses concentrated quintessence to unsuccessfully traverse through the inter-reality gate before he recalibrates his plans. (4.05) It is uncertain if he used this type of quintessence for any other purpose, but the existence of large amounts of it, which are transported through clandestine, sometimes rigged routes, raises some suspicions.
Without quintessence, Voltron would not have ever existed. (5.01)
The inception of Voltron came from a comet that pierces through Daibazaal’s atmosphere and leaves a tear across reality in its wake. (3.07)
These tears, or rifts, radiate pure quintessence because quintessence resides in the layers between realities; these openings can lead to the quintessence field. (3.07, 3.04)
Alfor’s research into the quintessence-fused ore uncovers the secrets of life, encouraging further exploration to synthesize industrial uses for the universe’s sustenance. A single drop of quintessence can energize machines with no lapse in performance, a principle that Alfor implements to supply the Lions with endless energy and one that Zarkon seeks after for his own purposes.
Quintessence also seemingly grants a sense of sentience to the Lions, which offers them a way to communicate with their chosen paladins.
Alfor’s experiment with the ore in all likelihood led to his discovery of Oriande, the birthplace of Altean alchemy; the knowledge gained there is used on the Lions. Magical engineering grants machines remarkable resilience, demonstrated throughout the story.
When spacecraft made from the mysterious comet are successfully imbued with quintessence via Altean alchemy, they obtain the ability to traverse between realities. (3.07, 3.04, 5.05)
Voltron and the Sincline ships benefit from Allura’s abilities and alchemic knowledge, making the quintessence field accessible to them. (5.06, 6.02, 6.07)
Your father, King Alfor, was a gifted alchemist, whose unique ability allowed him to infuse the Voltron ore with Altean energy, granting it and the paladins access to the quintessence field. Now you, Allura, possess that same gift.
Our visit to Oriande has taught me more than I ever thought possible.
How can he just disappear like that? He’s entering the quintessence field at will. Didn’t we blow up the gate? How is he entering without it? Because I gave his ships the ability.
Form sword.
Being neither inherently good nor evil, quintessence is pure and malleable. External factors can determine its usefulness. Alfor and Zarkon’s ideological differences and goals for quintessence exemplify this: Alfor wanted quintessence to be used as clean energy dispersed throughout the universe whereas Zarkon aggressively coveted it because of his greed for power, mirroring Honerva’s insatiable pursuit for knowledge. (3.07)
Allura and Lotor repeat this polarization: Allura shows reasonable fear towards this ultimate power, while Lotor eventually abuses it for his own selfish agenda. (Is he truly autonomous, or is his agency compromised as well? Another point to tackle later in this post.) (6.04, 6.07)
In the hands of the wrong person, this power could easily corrupt.
I can feel the quintessence coursing through me. It’s like my spirit, my whole being, is more alive.
Poor Allura! All the power in the universe at your fingertips and you still fear using it.
Caution should be exercised when handling quintessence; like medicine, too much quintessence can deteriorate the mind and body. (3.07) Quintessence overdose also accentuates the negative aspects of the individual misusing it, leading to fatal consequences.
(As an aside, clever in hindsight to have Shiro - his clone, yes, but still ultimately another Shiro - mention inner darkness as his own is involuntarily perverted by Haggar’s hand, once again drawing narrative parallels between the fallen hero and antagonist.) (6.04)
But even if they do reach the quintessence field, then what? That last time anyone got in there, it turned Zarkon evil. [...] Zarkon fell prey to his own evil instincts. The quintessence field didn’t create them, it revealed them.
Hints scattered across the show illustrate this: Zarkon has always shown a sense of ethnocentrism and superiority based on social hierarchy and strength. His detestation for weakness means he has no qualms with looking down on those he deems lesser and extinguishing them. This is highlighted by his prejudice towards Alteans warping into unadulterated hatred for the entire Altean species after his resurrection. (3.07, 1.01) Remorselessly, Zarkon destroys Altea in retaliation to Alfor destroying Daibaazal. He shows zero hesitation in killing his own kin if their actions read as a threat of usurpation. (5.02)
Honerva gradually discards ethics and morality in the name of science, viewing anything living as expendable and only worth her attention if it advances her research. As Haggar, her sadism knows no limits. (3.07, 6.05)
However, you’ve continued the work I started all that time ago and have indeed seen it through to heights I could have only imagined. Your never-ending pursuit of knowledge is truly-- [...] You are an abomination. A twisted perversion of what was once so pure and beautiful.
Lotor’s fear of yielding to his enemies morphs into a frenzied determination to wipe out all of his foes, boasting his status as a pseudo-god. The story emphasizes that Lotor’s all-consuming, infectious violence felt within the quintessence field stems from prolonged exposure to it. No one is immune to it. (6.06, 6.07)
Once I wipe out Voltron, I’m going to start a new Altea. An Altea that will never know of Princess Allura or King Alfor. Nor will they know of the Lions of Voltron. All they’ll know is me, their great leader! I’m ready to wipe the universe clean of all my enemies. Voltron, Haggar and the rest of the Galra.
Let’s end this! Finish him! Let’s destroy that guy! We have to get out of here. What are you talking about? This is exactly what happened to Zarkon. Exposure to all this quintessence turned him into a monster!
If we’d stayed in the quintessence field, we would’ve kept fighting until we destroyed ourselves. Just like Lotor.
It may explain why Alfor kept the location of the second trans-reality comet (the one from which Lotor built the Sincline ships) a secret, to avoid it from falling into the wrong hands again. (3.04)
Similarly to quintessence-infused vessels, strange, shapeshifting creatures are capable of safely traversing between realities. (3.07)
Do they reside in the quintessence field? Or do they come from the particular reality neighboring the core one? Oddly enough, when Voltron and the Sincline ships fight within the quintessence field, no dark creatures appeared, which may mean they reside elsewhere yet still have the ability to traverse through the field… In any case, these creatures affected Zarkon and Honverva when they exposed themselves to pure quintessence, and perhaps give reason as to how they returned from the dead. (3.07)
Would they also explain the growing fractures in sanity experienced by Honerva, Zarkon, and eventually even Lotor, the latter with whom was exposed to the rift creatures in utero? Perhaps the rift creatures leech off of quintessence for sustenance; the more quintessence overdosing a living being partakes, the more the rift creatures consume, poisoning the being’s mind. As she writhed in pain, all Honerva could utter (likely under the influence of the rift creatures) was quintessence and the one thing that could ultimately wrest even more of the addictive substance - Voltron.
During Shiro’s astral trip down memory lane, Zarkon’s eyes are glowing, unlike his former self before Honerva’s research, suggesting he was affected by quintessence and/or rift exposure but not to the extent that Honerva’s constant contact within her lab perpetuated (2.07).
Continue to part two here.
Edit: After reading up some theories that we don’t know the full story regarding Lotor, the Altean colonies, and Romelle’s suspicious, biased account, I altered some claims I made regarding Lotor.