Trigun: of sexy goofball gunslingers and the insurance agents that chase them

[dangermousie]

Thanks to whoever it was (who was it????) who recommended Trigun as the next anime to check out in my fledgling interest in the genre.

I am in love.

I love the little visual gags. I love the characters: Vash the Stampede is the most endearingly goofball main character I've ever seen (and he's blonde :P) and Milly and Meryl the hapless insurance agents crack me up. I love the set up and I love the plots.

For those who don't know and are interested, the set-up for Trigun is the following. It's a quasi-Western set in some future Western-lke world (think the milleau of Firefly). Milly and Meryl are two insurance agents who've been sent down to track the notorious Vash the Stampede, a man who was a $$60 billion bounty on his head, because the insurance company is tired of paying out enormous sums for destruction that automatically happens when Vash is around. They meet up with Vash, who is actually a peace-loving goofball (though of course utterly amazing with weapons and totally anime-hot), but don't believe it's him because you know? He isn't scary but nice and comes across as rather ineffective. And as you watch you do realize that all of the destruction isn't Vash's fault, it's the fault of either those who pretend to be him to freak others into doing what they want ot it's the result of bounty hunters destroying everything in their path to get to him.

I knew I was going to love it from the first shot of the bar and the bounty-hunters shooting up the place where there is nothing left at all, including the walls, except for one lone figure in a red coat calmly enjoying his drink. And it was utter, giddy "woo-hoo" infatuation from the moment Milly and Meryl stepped into a rough bar and asked for a tea and a banana split and the rough guys gaped incredulously before saying: "you have to ask for milk, otherwise the gag won't work."

Also Vash wins the "anime character dangermousie would most want to date so far" title: he's funny, and laid-back, and pacifist and really nice, and very competent. Yum.

If you want more info on the show (it's 26 episodes and I am only 3 episodes in), go to:
http://www.theotaku.com/anime/trigun/

Vash picture:

Comments

[plazmah.livejournal.com]

Aw, I didn't recommend Trigun. But I'm glad you've found your future boyfriend ;)

[crumpeteer.livejournal.com]

*points*

The infamous Zechs Wild Turkey picture.

*grins*

[plazmah.livejournal.com]

*nodnod* The picture that made hundreds of anime fangirls cry out in happiness! ;)

Yours is very nice!

[crumpeteer.livejournal.com]

The fangirls certainly can't say we were shorted when it came to Zechs eye candy. It almost makes up for Teh Mask of Ugly. Almost.

I've been rewatching that series and suddenly am reminded why I love Zechs so much, as aside from the delusional tendencies, he's totally the type I go for in real life.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Zechs is Gundam Wing, right?

[crumpeteer.livejournal.com]

Yeah. I adore him. He's smart, charming, angsty, is constantly either reading or playing chess or doing SOMETHING intellectual, and is extremely kind to those close to him (for being the 'bad' guy). He's my type.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Well, I certainly approve of the blondness :P

[plazmah.livejournal.com]

Oh my, your icon has reduced me to a silly squeeing thing.

I agree that I can forgive the Fugly Mask of WTF due to the fanservice that came after. But I've never watched GW in full, skipped a few episodes here and there simply because the politics bores me to tears.

[crumpeteer.livejournal.com]

I wanted to jab knives into Relena. Poor Zechs having to be related to that. I loved Zechs and Noin though. They had such a cool relationship.

I just adored Zechs.

[plazmah.livejournal.com]

I think I pretty much wanted to pimpslap every character at one point or another. Even Zechs and Duo ;)

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Mmmm, yes indeed. Love Vash. Need Vash icon :P

[crumpeteer.livejournal.com]

Trigun is one of my favorite anime series, if not my favorite. I adore Vash. He's such a goofball, but you know he's taking everything to heart. He's a pacifist, but also such a badass when he wants to be and capable of SO MUCH destruction (I'm not sure how far you've gotten in the series). There's just such a kindness to him and he rubs off on everyone around him. The series gets darker as it goes (leading to some of the most heartbreaking scenes in anime, one in particular involving Wolfwood that few Trigun fans have ever gotten over), but you always love Vash and the sweetness he brings even then he's emotionally, mentally and physically torn to pieces.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

I really need a Trigun icon.

Yeah, I am so surprised at just how genuinely nice Vash is, and hey, he is willing to take a lot of punishment rather than kill someone (I loved the bit where he was pointing his gun at someone point blank and the bad guys were "shoot anyway, there is more $ left for us" and Vash just gets all serious and still of a sudden and can't pull the trigger (and mutters "Rem" which I am sure they will explain).

I love this.

[crumpeteer.livejournal.com]

Oh, Rem. *heart breaks a little* Yeah, they explain it.

My favorite earlier episode is probably "Diablo". It breaks your heart to watch it because it's Vash when he's finally pushed to the edge. I can't wait for you to get more into the series, because there's so much TO Trigun. It's such a deep anime from the perspective of someone who likes character analysis. Wolfwood is also a great character. It's such a great look at redemption and guilt.

The episodes "Lost July", "Murder Machine", "Paradise", "Sin", "Live Through" and "Under the Sky So Blue" are all incredible also. I particularly like "Murder Machine".

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

I just finished "Lost July" and it was utterly incredible. It's amazing how an ep can be both so funny and so heartbreaking. When that girl locked him up in a plant to die because he is responsible for the destruction of the city of July that she is from, and he manages to stop it (I am really interested in what that freaky thing he did is, bit don't spoil me :P) and then he gets out and they come up to each other and stand really closely while this city rejoices it didn't get destroyed and he tells her really quietly "I am sorry I didn't die" *heart breaks*

And then he tells her he didn't want this city to be destroyed with him and that he has no memories of destroying July, just wandering in its ashes and his childhood and nothing in between, and then she points the gun at him and she is really close to him and she realizes he is the man who protected her when she was 3 and her parents died in the ruins (and I do love the point that even though nobody died in the destruction of the city, plenty died in the chaos afterwards) and they stand really closely so it looks as if they are lovers or similar but it's just the opposite and he is crying. OMG.

On a more cheerful note, I love how Millie (is that the name of the short haired girl?) kinda likes him in a bossily adorable fashion. Heee.

But I think I really fell for the character (instead of just thinking he was cool) in the ep before "Lost July" when that town was hunting him and he got caught by these diner people but the Mayor brought this giant to fight him but the giant was uncontrollable and destroyed the diner to rubble and when the dust clears you see Vash and he quietly and methodically starts digging the people out one by one and putting them gently on the ground and meanwhile the giant's minder is saying "you had to have done something horrible once no matter how nice you are now, to have a $$60b on your head" and Vash just takes it and the insurance agents finally realize who he is and guuuuuuuh. He is so still.

[crumpeteer.livejournal.com]

I love "Lost July" when he just hugs her and is crying and apologizing. Your heart just breaks for Vash because he hates killing and destruction, yet he causes so much just by being who he is. It's not his fault, but it happens. He really is a "Humanoid Typhoon". He can't control what happens around him.

You're going to have to wait until the episode "Rem Severem" before they explain exactly what Vash is.

The whole relationship with Vash and Wolfwood gets very interesting at the end of the series, because you have two men who have completely different philosophies of life. Vash thinks that killing is never acceptable, yet Wolfwood is more pragmatic about it all. He's a priest, but he'll kill if he thinks it necessary. The whole thing sort of circles around until you realize that Wolfwood really admires Vash but isn't willing to take on the pacifist philosophy himself. Wolfwood walks the grey line and the great thing is that you can see him struggling with that the whole way through.

And when Legato shows up, all hell breaks loose. Legato and Millions are two of the most unredeemable anime villains ever. Unusual since they're both bishounen, generally the type of villains that would have a past that explained their actions. Nope, not these guys, just baaaaaad. And it's all the more brutal when you figure out who Millions is.

[antiqueskies.livejournal.com]

Me! Me! I recommended it!
/is extremely proud of you/

Trigun love, baby. Trigun love!

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Ohhh, it was you! I am totally grateful! I am on ep 5 now and I seriously love it more every moment: just now Vash is running away from a whole town and he is muttering to himself "Why is everyone so animated today, Maman? Why are they hunting me Maman...this is not the time to be talking in French!!"

So much love.

[antiqueskies.livejournal.com]

Ha, I remember that episode.

What always got me about that show was all the random utterances like that; stuff you'd never expect a sane hero to say in that situation, but seem completely normal coming from Vash.

And that laugh. Oh man. It makes me giggle every time.

It's cute what begins to form between him and Millie (I think, if I remember correctly.) Sort of offsets the darker tone that will develop as you get further into the series.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Yeah, Millie seems to like him and she is so bossy about it :P Sort of like an anime, insurance agent, gun tonting version of Hermione Grainger :P

And yeah, the show been getting into a bit darker territory and whoa.

[antiqueskies.livejournal.com]

Haha, Hermione is bossy? Hmmmm. I guess I never noticed that, seeing as I saw only the third movie (Ugh.) and read the first book (Ugh.) I'm not a Harry Potter fan and have somehow avoided being lynched by the masses. Don't worry, I'm pretty amazed too.


Ahh yeah, it does. I think that may be one of the hazards of liking a show I watch: it's going to be dark, maybe twisted, and definitely depressing at times. The difference with Trigun is that it also counters it with Vash's overwhelming cheerfulness and even the sheer hilarity of some of the situations he finds himself in. But the angst is there, and it will become really prominent but, if I remember correctly (It's been a year since I last had access to Trigun DVDs and therefore my memory is probably off.) it does lighten up a bit at the end.

I think.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

No lynching. :P I like HP books, can't stand the movies, but don't care if no one else cares for them.

Oh, and I love fictional angst, so yay!

[antiqueskies.livejournal.com]

Wow, you're a rarity in HP fandom. Probably the only one that wouldn't kill me. Awesome.

I know! Why d'ya think I recommended it.

/skitters back to watching 24/