Only six episodes? No problem for Voltron.

Fans of Voltron: Legendary Defender have it easy. Not a year and a half has passed since the sci-fi mecha reboot launched on Netflix, yet here we are being treated to a fourth season, and the second in as many months.

There is a “catch” to this, so to say. August’s Season Three was seven episodes, and Season Four is a mere six—both much shorter than the 13-episodes Seasons One and Two—but even when Voltron: Legendary Defender comes in an abbreviated format, it manages to tell an eclectic, compelling story with all of the action, laughs, and mystery that fans have seen out of the series since its inception.

Season Four has no time to waste, and it doesn’t dawdle. The opening episode throws a huge monkey wrench into the Paladins’ plans as Keith chooses to prioritize his efforts training with the Blade of Marmora and assisting their covert operations against the Galra Empire. It’s a believable conundrum, given Keith’s mixed results with leadership, and especially because of his alleged Galra heritage. It, however, kind of comes up abruptly. There was no prior build up that showed Keith beginning to identify more with the Blade of Marmora over the Paladins of Voltron; this internal conflict begins and ends in a single episode, when it should have been stretched out across several.

From there, the storytelling is smooth sailing, righting the ship with a second episode that is one of the series’ best to date. Pidge’s search for her missing brother, Matt, finally reaches a conclusion in what can only be described as a roller coaster of emotions. If it hadn’t been cemented several seasons ago, one particular scene during Pidge’s search firmly cements that, while Voltron: Legendary Defender may be geared toward a wide age range, it is willing to tread into heavy emotional matters that will strike deep into adult viewers.

Related: Check out all of The Geekiverse’s Voltron articles

There is, of course, plenty of humor to balance out the graver moments, and Season Four includes one of Voltron: Legendary Defender’s patented “all comedy” episodes where the action and drama take a backseat to a slew of laughs. The show’s wacky, overdone expressions and reactions may not be chuckle-worthy for everyone, but it’s brilliant satire of real-life tropes is what makes the comedy-focused episodes such as the one in Season Four so grin-inducing for tween viewers and older.

The episode here in question sees Coran and the Paladins embark on a galaxy-wide tour to recruit liberated planets into their coalition to fight the Galra Empire, this time employing all kinds of spectacle and showmanship to rouse enthusiasm in their cause. It’s one great exercise in self-awareness, subtlety poking fun at the show and the many cliches of the giant robot genre.

But even when Season Four is delivering the comedy, it’s not a complete joke. The rockstar-like tour that the Paladins take is just one of many instances where they continue to try to unite all of the worlds that they’ve freed from Galra control. Warfare is not simply head to head encounters on the battlefield, and Voltron: Legendary Defender has smartly portrayed the many sides to fostering an army in such a widespread conflict. Winning battles is important, but to win those battles, you must maintain your fighting force and resources. In highlighting the recruitment effort, Season 4 quietly dives into the political nature that goes into warfare.

The recruitment effort is given one heck of a payoff during the final two episodes of this season, which might be two of the most exciting in the series, thus far. Characters and alien species from all across the show’s four seasons make appearances as the Paladins lead a massive attack on a Galra stronghold that would cripple Emperor Zarkon’s grasp on the galaxy. This thrilling climax proves Voltron: Legendary Defender’s ability to create high drama and tension within a small window by pulling from what previous episodes and seasons had established. The danger that the Paladins find themselves in during this pivotal battle will send you to the very edge of your seat, leaving you guessing at just how they’ll escape safely until the very last moment.

Shop: Amazon has lots of Voltron stuff

When all is said and done, the war between Voltron and the Galra Empire is forever changed–if for no other reason than because of the final scene, which poses all kinds of questions to be answered in the next season.