Tell me, what is the sky like?
- Hunk: Well, it doesn't have to be like this. You can be free, too.
Shay: Free?
Hunk: Yeah, free. It means you can go where you want, be what you want, do what you want. No Galra masters to tell you what to do.
The Castle of Lions has fallen to Sendak's forces, and Pidge is the only one who can prevent Sendak from launching the ship and delivering Voltron to Zarkon. Meanwhile, Hunk and Coran learn more about what has happened to the Balmera and its native people under Galra control.
Tropes:
- Always Save the Girl:
- Averted when Shay is captured; Hunk and Coran have to leave her behind so as to escape the Galra onslaught. Hunk does promise to return, however.
- Played straight when Pidge hears Sendak torturing Shiro. She immediately switches tactics to go save Shiro and Lance from him, when before she was conducting sabotage.
- Beware the Nice Ones: Sweet Shay, who has never seen the sky or outer space, ends up striking a blow against the Galra by helping Hunk and Coran escape with the crystal.
- Big "NO!": Pidge releases two of them when Rover performs its Heroic Sacrifice.
- Character Development: Pidge and Hunk find reasons worth continuing to fight as a Paladin of Voltron in their adventures.
- Chekhov's Gun: Remember the modification Pidge made to the rocket booster from last episode? Turns out, it actually worked.
- The Determinator: Katie knew something was wrong with the disappearance of the Kerberos crew, and vowed to let nothing stop her from finding the truth, even if that meant changing her identity after she was caught trespassing.
- Die Hard in a Castle-Spaceship: Pidge ends up as our John McClane. While she's the least physically capable of the team, she's the most technologically capable, and smart enough to Indy Ploy her way out of most situations. Also, she's small enough to fit in the castle's vents in the first place.
- Et Tu, Brute?: Shay's reaction to seeing that her brother Rax turned in Coran and Hunk to the Galra.
- Heroic Sacrifice:
- Shay openly aids and assists Hunk and Coran in escaping with a crystal, knowing full well there will be dire consequences for her as a result.
- Rover powers down when a Galra grabs onto it, so that they both fall into an energy stream.
- Heroic Second Wind: Lance recovers from his coma long enough to shoot Sendak in the back and save Pidge.
- I Ate WHAT?!: Hunk and Coran are enjoying the food Shay's grandmother made for them, but when she describes the ingredients the two visibly try to hold back their disgust.
- Important Haircut: "Pidge's" first day at the academy, where Katie officially cuts her hair short to pose as a boy and infiltrate the Galaxy Garrison without being recognized.
- Irony: Rax doesn't trust Hunk and Coran and wants to leave them to fend for themselves in favor of family, but he ends up condemning Shay by reporting the Paladin and Altean to the Galra.
- I Shall Return: Hunk, who is forced to leave Shay behind promises that he'll come back for her.
- It Only Works Once: Pidge manages to fool the Galra sentries that first came after her with holograms. When she tries it on Sendak, however, he immediately reveals that he wasn't fooled.
- Jerkass Realization: Pidge realizes that in her quest to find her family, she abandoned her duties as a team member, even before becoming a Paladin.
- Logical Weakness: While everyone else tries to attack Sendak head on, Pidge attacks the energy stream between his shoulder and arm, severing the connection and disarming him. Er, literally.
- Overly Long Scream: As Coran dives into one of the Balmera's openings, Hunk continues to scream the further down they go and only after a few seconds does he pause to ask Coran how deep this tunnel went.
- Over-the-Shoulder Carry: Shiro does this as he takes Lance somewhere safe.
- Paper-Thin Disguise: Coran and Hunk stack up on each other, cover their bodies with a cloth and use a Galra soldiers parts for their disguise.
- Sadistic Choice: Hunk is forced to leave Shay behind and take the crystal that the castle needs, though he promises to return for her.
- Time for Plan B: When the Galra separate Pidge from the power, Allura communicates with the mice to shut down the engines instead.
- What You Are in the Dark: Shay comes to free Coran and Hunk, even though the Balmerans have never rebelled against their Galra captors.
