What Happened to Keith’s Dad?: Theory
Okay so I normally don’t post my theories on Tumblr, ‘cause of laziness, but I CANNOT LET THIS ONE STAY SILENT!
So as you can see from the title, it’s a theory of what happened to Keith’s father, and though we already know he died (RIP Texan Dad), we still have yet to find out how. However, after rewatching episodes from Season 1, 2 and 6 for a fanfic I’m currently writing, I immediately noticed something; something I didn’t see the first time I watched season 6.
In Keith’s flashbacks from S6 Ep 2, we see Krolia and Tex standing outside their house with baby Keith (bless him) in Krolia’s arms. But in this screenshot, there is another building that is obscured due to Keith’s figure in the frame.
HOWEVER, in this screenshot of the house after Krolia crashes…
You can clearly see that beside the house is a tree and a one story shack.
AND WHO DO WE KNOW THAT LIVES IN A ONE STORY SHACK?!
So we can confirm that this is in fact Keith’s shack we saw in season one, based on the design. And look! The tree is there in the screenshot from S1 E1.
But then… where’s the house?!
At first I was thinking “What the hell, Tex dad’s house just up and vanished (like Shiro)”? But then I thought about S2 E8, and how Keith and his father were in the virtual mindscape, standing in the shack during Keith’s Blade of Marmora trial.
Kolvian stated to Shiro that Keith’s suit refelcts his hopes and fears in the virtual mindscape.
When Shiro’s hologram left Keith and transitioned into this scene with his father, we can assume that Keith desperately wanted to see his dad (as well as find out who he is). “You’re home, son.”
But why would he imagine him in a scene with this kind of blurry and dusky atmosphere? Let’s take a look!
The scene has a very orange and yellowish hue, and is almost hazy, like smoke is starting to cloud the room.
And then Keith discovers that the Galra are attacking, causing explosions, smoke is billowing, etc. Now, the sky outside is a variety of orange, yellow and red, and that could be because its sundown. However, I think that’s not the only reason. These are also the colors associated with fire.
And just after the last screenshot, the red lion appears perched on a cliff, witnessing the madness unfold, smoke, embers and debris blowing past it.
Keith is also confirmed to be the Guardian Spirit of Fire on the Official Voltron website and in The Paladin’s Handbook.
You’re probably thinking “Okay, what does this have to do with Keith’s Dad?” and “Holy hell this is long, get to it already!”
Just hang in there, there’s a bit more evidence left.
So Keith’s character has always been associated with fire, we’ve known that from the very beginning when he became a paladin, from emerging from volcanic magma and fire in the title sequence, to when Red shot plasma from its mouth, to the website and book. That there is obvious. But what if the meaning behind fire and Keith’s association with it is much deeper than that?
Let’s go back to focusing on Keith and his dad.
In these screenshots, they are almost the same scene as the screenshot a few pictures up. But the color of the room gradually changed from the hazy orangey-yellow to a hazy dark red, before there was an explosion. And this particular explosion looks like one that would have happened in an already existing fire. Keith is obviously shaken while his dad is calm and collected, almost like he’s used to it and fire doesn’t scare him.
He did say to Keith earlier “Everything is fine,” and even asked him if he wanted “to catch up,” after there was a loud crash and termer outside.
Lastly, when Keith says “Goodbye Dad,” and walks out of the door, he engulfed with by a gradual red light and a little bit of light artifacts, before the screen completely turns red.
This could be assumed as a really cool transition to Red when he sensed his Paladin was in danger, because he’s walking into a (mind) battle on his own. But if they wanted to transition to Red, why wouldn’t the creators go with a normal cross dissolve transition or have the transition fade to black and then to Red? Maybe because red is known to be a color of chaos?
I think theres more meaning to it, based on this screenshot. Keith’s figure is slightly warped, like flames are surrounding him and he’s walking out of a fire. I believe the screen showing the color red, and Keith saying goodbye to his father symbolizes Tex truly dying (and Keith accepting it).
Based on the evidence I have provided, with Tex’s disappearing house and Keith’s flashbacks, Keith’s shack, and the Blade Of Marmora mindscape, I theorize Keith’s dad died in a house fire (and S2 E8 was an allegory for Keith witnessing his father perish in the fire, but longing to say a proper goodbye, on top of wanting to find out who he was).
The fire left Keith without a home and orphaned until he was able to get out of the foster system and go back to living on his father’s own land, where he truly felt at home.
BONUS: It also explains why in S1 E2, he was thinking about his shack when the Paladins were doing the mental training exercise. And look at his face. Yes he’s focused, but compared to everyone else (Like Lance for example), Keith almost looks sombre. He’s thinking about the closest thing he associated with his family, as well as the place he feels most home.
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