#Trimax isn't just a sci fi western story

[duncanor]

I'm still a firm believer Orange made a mistake by changing the sci-fi esthetic of trimax. They lost so much man. Like the raw mix between flesh and metal. The Biopunk disturbance of it all. It mattered.

And It's still there don't get me wrong (you could not fully remove it if you tried) but it's not as.. disturbing, as deviant ? Even though, it's supposed to be! It's the core of the story isn't it?

Living beings used as machines and treated even worst!

[serenephenix]

There are already some really good points made here and I hope it's okay for me to add my two double dollars.

Please keep in mind that what I am going to talk about here is Trimax and Tristamp exclusively, since I never managed to finish the 98 anime.

Meryl, and by extension Milly, are an essential part of the plot. No matter whether Tristamp or Trimax, Meryl fulfills a very important role and is the one to get important notions, that other background characters had to make as a collective effort, across to Vash.

With Trimax, Meryl's and Milly's purpose was at first presented as comic relief. After all, No Man's Land is a lawless rock of sand, and the mere idea of there even being an insurance company is absolutely hilarious. It is also a genius writing move, because frankly speaking, there would have been no way for someone as level-headed as Meryl to tag alongside someone crazy like Vash long enough to get to know him.

Meryl and Milly, throughout the entirety of Trimax represent a simple but very important concept in this over the top sci-fi western universe - they represent the mostly average people in an environment fraught with different but extreme problems. They are the grounding force of the narrative representing the normal people and normal background characters that litter the world of Trigun.

They are the characters and supporting cast/main cast needed to balance everything out.

As much as Vash and Nick are foils in their own right, so are Meryl and Milly to them.

In a way, the boys often get too caught up in their otherness, of them being undeserving of kindness and forgiveness, or their simple right to just exist. And then here are Milly and Meryl, two of the arguably most normal and sanest people in the story (considering the circumstances), returning to them (un)prompted at different times in the story, despite everything that would drive most away.

They represent the hope for a better future to Vash and Nick, because they stand in such stark contrast to all of the terrible things that seem to follow them.

Milly does it a bit more overtly than Meryl, with being her caring self that takes time out of her day to write to all of her extended family. She has a deeply ingrained sense of right and wrong, is a good listener, more observant than people give her credit for and, most importantly, she isn't one to judge people too quickly despite her morals.

Her determination and capabilities allow her to hold her ground in a lot of fights, which is decisive in the last battle against Knives where she and Meryl thwart the military's attack on the ark.

And she teaches a lesson to the boys when Meryl is kidnapped by Zazie: Asking for help is okay. The fact that help is something we sometimes need is okay.

As for Meryl, she undergoes her own arc during Trimax. As mentioned earlier, Meryl starts out as a business-woman. She is level-headed, has little patience for nonsense, and has already a pretty good grasp on how the world is supposed to work.

In a sense, she is just as jaded as Nick, but in a different, more day to day kind of way. She is well aware of how difficult it is to live even a simple life on this arid planet and how dangerous things can get at the drop of a hat. She has already had to shoot someone to keep herself safe and is ready to do so again, albeit reluctantly. But her experiences have left her callous towards anyone who is a stranger, thus repeating the terrible cycle people live through on this planet.

That is, until she meets Vash, and he leaves an impression on her with his well of kindness. And the crucial thing is that she understands that it takes a lot of effort and fortitude to be kind on this planet.

And as @sleepyinstardewvalley already pointed out, this gives Meryl hope in a better future, making her more proactive after Vash's return when she realises what the company was planning to do after he reemerged.

And her overcoming the fear of the monstrous is so important because she also stood in perfect contrast to Nick when Vash transformed.

While Nick was shocked but able to compartmentalise by virtue of all the shit he has been through, Meryl was overwhelmed by what had happened. For one, because she was starting to realise just what she had gotten herself into, and second, because she saw what Vash had lived through over the years.

And it is obvious that while she was deeply afraid, she felt very guilty about her reaction after they had parted ways with Vash and Wolfwood. Because, ultimately, it isn't Vash's fault that he is the way is he is.

But she knows that she can't let fear consume her, because it will ultimately mean that more people will die.

And her managing to stand by Vash's side till the bitter end, after Vash already lost someone important to him, in spite of fear still persisting, it is her trust in him that actually gives Vash the strength and the hope he in turn needed to go through with the plan of separating Knives and the Plants.

Because, in a sense, Meryl represents the majority of the people living on No Man's Land. And if she can work up the courage to understand, so can they.

As for Meryl in Tristamp, she is different from her Trimax iteration but her core remains the same. While she may be more naïve, more sheltered and less experienced, she is once again the grounding force.

But the reason why she also is the foil to Roberto, is that even here she is willing to believe in Vash despite the odds and the unanswered questions. She will be important to Vash not losing hope, because he already helped her realise that pure nihilism and cowardice will get nothing accomplished.

She wants things to get better and that means taking a leap of faith that so very few are willing to take in No Man's Land.

i made a mini essay of a post abt this already but seeing the more shipping obsessed trigun fans view vashmeryl as the boring cutesy fluffy one and vashwood as the narritively richer, angst ridden, "and they were narritive foils" sexy one is infuriating bc it shows in abundant clarity that they have not bothered to take 2 more seconds to think about meryl besides "aww shes so cute"

like bro. there is some truth to seeing them that way considering the difference in ending both pairings get and how VW spend more time together and have more physical contact and are in life or death situations far more often but w VM its more Quiet Pining, You Stay I Go, Run Off Into The Sunset Together but thats not ALL they are

as someone who fucking LOVES both it gets very annoying when certain (thankfully not many) VW stans start acting. You Know. about meryl and theres a whole thing about misogyny and gay male fetishisation in here that i wont get into bc its 1am n i have fish fingers (fish sticks 4 all the sexy bodacious american babes in the audience) in the oven

vashmeryl are so rich and maybe they dont have that same Sworn Allies (But Maybe More) With A Tragic End sting that vashwood do but theres other things in there. Please Consider Understanding them a bit. maybe ill continue this post wen im eating and can think straight..