10 Kids Cartoons Featuring LGBTQ+ Characters
2. Voltron: Legendary Defender
Netflix's reboot of a classic cartoon, Voltron: Legendary Defender, had a lot going for it, with excellent characters and writing and stunning anime-esque animation keeping the action cartoon fresh and exciting.
No single character was the "main" character of this show, with the ensemble cast of Voltron's Paladins each having equal importance.
A fan-favourite, however, was Takashi Shirogane, or Shiro, the eldest of the team and a seasoned fighter and leader, the Black Paladin (of Voltron's head, the Black Lion) whose level-headedness yet friendly and supportive demeanour got him the fandom nickname of "Space Dad".
So popular was he that when originally, the creators intended for him to die early on, he stayed; first as the leader of the Paladins, losing that role briefly, and then becoming a commanding officer of the battleship Atlas, when Voltron joined earth's forces in fighting the Galra Empire.
It's later revealed that Shiro once had a significant other named Adam, who died defending the Earth from Galra invasion. The final scene of the entire series features Shiro marrying fellow Atlas crewmember Curtis, in what is considered the first gay male marriage, and second same-sex marriage (the first appearing later on this list), in all-ages Western cartoon history.