I guess it hasn't really hit me yet that it's over. I can't believe that there won't be another season trailer to look forward to, no more crazy theories to read, no more new scenes or that infamous Voltron formation sequence.

I have been with this show since it's first season and that's part of the reason why I feel so strongly about it. Without this show, the works I've written that have brought me so much happiness and friendship would never exist. Without these characters, this amazing universe that Voltron has created for us, I would never be able to share my love for writing through it and I would never meet the amazing people who've come into my life from it.

I'll never forget Voltron and the impact it's had on my life, as cheesy and cliche as that sounds.

So here are some memories that have stuck with me over the years:

-the whole fandom going batshit about Keith being Galra but then knowing Krolia was his mum as soon as we saw her
-the whole leakira ship with AU klance was pretty cool (what ever happened with that?)
-everyone screeching about
clone!shiro's eyeliner
-black Paladin Lance has always and will always be a dream
-again, the ridiculous (yet lovable) voltron sequence
-our love for kaltenecker and the space mice
-"Coran Coran the gorgeous man"
-how we were sure that shallura was gonna be canon Space Parents until Shiro was outed
-the "Adam!" vine in every crack vid ever
-our thirst for ponytail!keith and Altean!lance (at what cost, though??)
-our love for Matt Holt (we're not going to talk about what happened to his hair)
-fanon lance being an actual meme lord
-everyone making beautiful art and fics and everything else that brought us together as a fandom
-klance staying at the top of the tumblr ship chart and becoming the number one of 2018

Now, about season 8, I have a lot to say.

There were certainly things that I loved about it, don't get me wrong.

-that breathtaking klance moment on top of the black lion
-Acxa x Veronica? I smell a ship
-Ezor x Zethrid? I'm so happy that they were reunited and are on the good side
-pre-corruption and baby Lotor! He's so cute omg
-kinkades vlog omg. What a cutie. It's okay, baby, i don't care that you're a yeast nerd.
-Pidge and Colleen's 'fight' hahaha I lost my shit
-SLAV
-Lotor bc his voice gives me shivers ahhhhhhh
-Shiro Shiro Shiro being the best space dad
-good Zarkon
-beautiful music and a wonderful reunion of the Paladins in the last episode
-hunk saying "shay" and looking like a lovestruck angel

But, along with many other fans, I'm really disappointed to say the least. Here's why.

Well, lets start off with Lance. As you all know, Lance is my favorite character and has been since day 1. I like to think that I know his character pretty well. In general, Lance seemed completely out of character through season 8.

I'm really disappointed that, in the end, he was reduced to a farmer who dedicated his life to Allura. He was her second choice and she never really showed him the love I think he deserved. The relationship felt forced on Allura's part- she had so much going on and had just gotten over Lotor, which had been brutal.

I don't think that Lance and Allura were meant to be together at all, and I'm not just saying that because I ship klance. I want Lance to be happy more than I want him to be with Keith and he didn't seem happy in this season, at least not in terms of his relationship with Allura.

He had such big dreams and so much potential and spirit and it just felt like he was reduced to his romantic arc with Allura and nothing else. We never got a true Lance arc, which makes me all kinds of upset.

And then there's the issue of Allura. I'll admit, Allura has never really been my favorite character- I was never truly able to connect with her, I think. But still, I respected her character and I knew how much she cared about the team. But this season, I was actually a bit scared of her. With the whole entity thing, she started making really impulsive decisions. She seemed to be lashing out and was really aggressive. I don't know, it just made it hard for me to sympathize with her.

But, what they did to her at the end of the show was... terrible. I wasn't even very clear of why she needed to die, but that whole scene was brutal and I was literally sobbing. It didn't seem right.

If you think about it, Lance and Shiro were both hurt in this way. Both of them had relationships and then both Adam and Allura were mercilessly killed off "for the greater good".

Shiro's endgame also made me feel sad- it was like putting a bandaid over a bullet wound with Adam. I wanted to see more scenes between Shiro and his future husband to see their bond, but it felt like they just threw in another character just so that Shiro could have an endgame. Don't get me wrong, I'm happy that Shiro's happy, I just wish that it could have been different.

Which brings me to the next point. This season had so much death and fighting in it. I know it's an action show, but it was so full of battle and battle planning and death and destruction that it really took away from the message of the show. I wish that the amount of violence could have been toned down a bit so that we could have had more time for actual plot.

Also, a little random, but Shiro and Keith. There were barely any interactions between them, even after their whole backstory in seasons 6 and 7 that proved how close they were. Personally, I don't really ship Sheith, just because I think of them more like brothers, but even still, it was like they were strangers. It felt wrong.

Am I upset about Klance?
Yes.
Is that the only reason why I'm upset?
No.

Please understand that. Besides everything that I didn't like about this season, I'm upset that it's over, just like everyone else. I'm nervous what's going to happen to my works, even if that sounds selfish- the Voltron fandom, whether we like it or not, is gradually going to start to disappear. Some of us will find other shows and join the fandoms, some of us will just lose interest.

But, Fandylions, I can promise you this. I'll stay right here. My fics aren't going anywhere and neither am I. I'll always be here for you and I'll always love this show.

It's just like Keith said. "Voltron isn't gone. Voltron is within each and every one of us. We're bonded to it and to each other."

I love you <3