#trigun analysis

[allbuthuman]

Ever think about how it makes so much sense for Vash to have even more dissociative symptoms than those we see?

Like. His body was handled extremely violently against his will in a situation heavily mimicking assault twice. After one incident he had severe memory loss and constant nightmares and flashbacks, and after the other he was so gone from himself that he could do nothing but wander around in what could easily be described as a fugue state (and for all we know wasn't even responsive when Lina found him). He was kept in a tiny space for fucking months on the ark, that can't not fuck somebody up.

And Vash is full of heart. He bears to have space to witness and remember and be affected by the people that he meets even after 150 years, even after this much hurt. And he does so decidedly. For someone like him, having to constantly put his emotions aside in order to handle whatever dire situation at hand, having to put his grief on hold 'cause he just has to jump into the next fight, must take a whole lot of compartmentalisation.

The thing is, he seems okay with closeness most of the time, even initiating it, and in that context it's so easy to imagine all this trauma hitting him when he least expects it. Someone happens to touch him in a way that mimics an Incident a little too much and he just goes Blank. Or his body refuses to listen to him, refuses to move at all or moves on autopilot against his will, or he feels numb when he should be feeling so much, when he's used to feeling so much, and he's unable to tell anyone what's wrong when asked, or so scared 'cause Fuck, what if his body or mind that he already has no regard for betrays him when people need him the most?

And I bet he'd hate it even more than the average guy, 'cause he loves being around people, both by nature at this point and deliberately, and he wouldn't care about himself nearly enough to try to figure out his own triggers, not when he'd have to decidedly relive everything in the process just to learn how to be kinder to himself, but being unable to predict when your mind's gonna do you in is Terrifying. man.

[mothlady-garden]

My two cents about the anatomy of the Angel Arm & the Gate

Last update: 09th of May

Spoilers for basically the whole story

• Core starts to form in the Ulna

• The core is formed first in the ulna, of independents through either physical contact with a trigger or a triggering biochemistry that is found in stressfully situations, if willingy or not.

can also be triggered though Plant-Song (presence of Knives in a close distence in JuLai)

Hardening of the skin and partial melting and with clothing (assimilation of matter into body)

Prominent Plant markings appear on the whole area

• Tissue growth around the core follows this

• Growth before Structure

• Solid and dense at first

• Changes from solid to more feathery

• Winglets develop, which will provide stabilizers/visor

dominant side seems to differ from individual to individual

Arm Design

• 4 Structural Supports:

• 2 act like heart muscles, which can achieve contractions and expansions -that's propaply whats been his lower arm

2 maybe be the same but didn't need to spread

massive core

• 2 lower growths for stabilization to better shoot at city's (fuck Knives)

• 2 floating rings-one at the very front and one at the tail of the Arm while charging (most likely for energy concentration and To polarize the energy in one direction

• 4 Faces Encased in Forearm

• Depict 2 men, 1 woman, and 1 angel (?)

• Wing-like Structure, Bat and dragonfly wing crossed

• Probably finger bones transformed to extend as wings from the arm

Muzzle Design

• The tip has parallel striped bands evoking muscle fibers or connective tissue for stability

• Feathers form at the end, which may subconsciously formed for resisting maximum recoil and hurting of Knives

Smaller "Backfire-prison-break" version

• Later in the manga, a small and compact version of the Angel Arm is used.

• No secondary sexual characteristics appear.

growth of another 4 faces at the elbow part, they appear more deformed

• New growths act as counterweights for upper and lower parts.

• Hand behaves like an end of the arm with plates of bone that help to control the release of energy.

• Golden Angle Alignment, its design probably has the Golden Angle, about 137.5°, which may help reach energy and structural optimisation

Symbolism of the four faces and different genders

•There are four faces: two? men, one woman, and one angel. This could be the manifestations of humanity in their various facets, such as strength, compassion (Rem) the struggle between human and godhood

They have legs (!)

the core seems to be located in the stomach area similar to his sisters

• Perhaps the inlayed male and female figures are indicative of the balance between masculine and feminine character traits of him

Vashs first Angel Arm (July)

realease seems to aktivate a part of thier brain that is responsible for pleasure, adds to the impression that the Fith Moon Incident was way worse than on first sight

This post about it is great:

The structure is less smooth, which may be due to the missing experience with the newly developed body part. Similar to certain animals, whose bone surfaces appear blocky or rough—such as in birds or dinosaurs, where these structures serve as anchors for tendons, muscles, or scales—the rough texture here could also be the result of incomplete adaptation or development bc of the inecpirience with his power

more feathery than later apprances

very small core with a single little wing on the (later would have grown) angel part

feathers spread on arm to upper torso

Additionally up to 2m (6.5 feet) long feathers grow out of right shoulder

Small faces grow on the upper arm above the core without any distinguishable features

Shoulder feathers will grow up to 5m (16ft)

Feathers seem to be more like Primaries (more for ranged actions like protecting or maybe fleeing)

Further characteristics of his arm in the trance like state and a few ramblings about Vashs phycology

possibly a mental hellscape when using the gate connected to one's mind

No Plant-Marks appear

matter seem to be more flesh-like than the other versions

Self image displays several eyes mouths and disformed bodyparts

Doesn't seem to follow a order, spreads like a Tree into more and more parts

human and snake like with tongues and even carnies

similar are also apperand in Knives pardon

10+ tentacle like growths at the former hand part

~15 deformed finger like growths

the deformed faces seem to be in pain from his selfharm -same nerves system

he tried to scratch his arm of at the schoulder area (where a emmense scar-cut in his skin and muscle is)

Survivor's guilt in relation to traumatic experiences or PTSD will, more than likely, involve self-image at its core. In having survived a tragedy, he is overcome with an immense amount of responsibility and guilt for having lived while others have died. More often than not, this is attached to the guilt associated with being unworthy of having survived, leading to feelings of low self-worth (for example jumping into line of fire or not healing his scars if subconsciously or not) and or blame being placed upon one's self. This may result in distortion of their self-concept and in the feeling of being undeserving of happiness or unable to move further in life.

PTSD can exacerbate this guilt through intrusive memories, flashbacks, and hyperarousal, whereby the survivor is pressed to continually relive the event in question. This inability to escape such mental relapses can further promote feelings of helplessness that will degrade one's self-esteem and reinforce negative self-judgments. The latter, in turn, can promote further avoidance behaviors, such as dissociation or emotional numbing, possibly counterproductive for trauma processing and creating a self-sustaining cycle of repression.

Another coping mechanism we see, is repression this can even more strongly compound the problem. By excluding painful memories or emotions from consciousness, survivors skip confrontation with guilt or trauma in a straightforward way. Yet, this usually leads to internal conflict because the unresolved feelings of the survivors continue to impress their subconscious, confusing them, self-doubting, and fragmenting their identities. The usually resultant picture is that of a deformed negative self-image, alienated from one's real self.

Ultimately, his past actions and unresolved trauma may trap him in a cycle of guilt, anger, and self-hate. This inner conflict, combined with toxic relationship with his brother, could leave him emotionally isolated, struggling to reconcile the good he tries to show with the darker parts of his past, unable to find peace with himself or others.

Also in the Book of Revelation, Revelation 13:1 is a kinda similar thing discriped: “And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads.” (ESV)

Vashs Gate in the elevator-arc

The clothing appears to integrate into the skin, suggesting a bio-synthetic fusion mechanism, potentially mediated by specialized cellular processes or biochemical signaling pathways

Carnies seem to exhibit growth, potentially influenced by hormonal or environmental factors that stimulate cellular proliferation or morphogenesis.

His iris and pupil appear to disappear, potentially due to a regression or atrophy of ocular structures, to be more suited/in touch to the higher dimension like his sister are. This phenomenon might represent an adaptive response to environmental pressures, such as reduced reliance on conventional vision in favor of alternative sensory systems. In the case of his sisters this may also indicate their genetic engineering. This might suggest that such modifications could involve the downregulation of ocular development genes or the activation of latent traits better suited to lower-dimensional sensory and perceptual demands.

Similar to how some deep-sea organisms adapt to bioluminescent environments or how snow animals adapt to reflect excess light, the bioengineered sisters may exhibit depigmentation as a protective measure against overwhelming brightness.

components of thier eyes might have been modified to diffuse incoming light. For example, a highly reflective or translucent outer layer (like a tapetum lucidum in nocturnal animals) could scatter light, reducing glare while still enabling some form of light perception.

 In the context of higher-dimensional species adapted to lower-dimensional environments, the whiteness of the eyes might also indicate the prioritization of non-visual sensory modalities, such as heightened bioelectric, auditory, or tactile senses. These senses could be better suited for navigating or interacting within a dimension characterized by overwhelming brightness.

The presence of a significant number of feathers may also result from the uncontrolled activation of genetic pathways related to feather development, possibly mediated by external stimuli linked to the gate’s activation

 The wide variety of feathers, ranging from small to primary feathers, might suggest an adaptive response for enhanced physical protection. This could involve evolutionary pressure favoring diverse feather morphologies for thermal regulation, camouflage, or structural defense.

The ability to establish a mental connection may be associated with the feathers of his dying sisters, potentially linked to specialized bioelectric or biochemical signaling mechanisms. This phenomenon could involve a unique frequency of communication facilitated by the structural and functional properties of the feathers

The involvement of a specific frequency, combined with a symbiotic relationship akin to a mycorrhizal network, could suggest the presence of a complex interspecies signaling system. Such a system might leverage biochemical signal transduction pathways to facilitate communication and resource exchange between individuals

Primary Wing

the growth of a wing seems to be triggered by a flee instinkt (in Vashs case)

4 sections, one extra on the back for horizontal range -from fused together limbs?

Vash Angel wing in the end and defence mechanism of the Gate

2,5 meters long, bird like minus the Coracoid

Sooo he's got feathers that protect him like I'm my food, as seen right after the elevator-arc

If a shot’s fired at you from 4 meters away, you’ve got almost no time to react. Bullets typically travel at speeds ranging from about 300 to 1,200 meters per second, depending on the type of gun and ammo. At 4 meters, that bullet’s gonna hit you in a blink—literally. For a rough estimate, if the bullet’s speed is, say, 340 meters per second (a typical handgun speed), it would cover 4 meters in roughly 0.012 seconds. A blink of an eye takes about 100-150 milliseconds. So yeah, by the time a human even think of moving, that bullet’s would have already hit its mark.

Extreme elegance is key to dodge bullets (as seen in the Legato fight)

At this range roughly of 3 meters, a bullet traveling at 800 to 1,000 meters per second is gonna reach you in about 0.003 to 0.004 seconds. That’s less than the blink of an eye, hell, even thinking about dodging would take longer than that.

With multiple angles and those rounds coming at you that fast, you’d basically need to start dodging before they even fired. We’re talking some ultra-instinct, superhuman reflexes here.

Trigun: We have some of the most powerful characters in seinen hehe

Power of Vashs Gate-Bullets

Trimax Vol 12, Chapter 08: Lights

the shots seem to inplode like a black hole

Anti matter bullets

Explanation (As seen in the battle against the Arc-Collective)

If a single shot could destroy 7% of the Northern Hemisphere of a habitable planet, we are dealing with a weapon of cosmic-scale power. The energy released in such a shot would far exceed any terrestrial weapon, venturing into the realm of exotic physics. To put it into perspective, to annihilate an area of around 14 million square kilometers, the energy output would need to be on the order of 10^24 to 10^27 joules, which rivals phenomena like gamma-ray bursts or the Sun’s total output over several hours.

The cartridge contains exotic matter capable of distorting space-time enough to form a micro black hole. This might involve the use of antimatter or even negative mass to reach the required density and energy concentration. By collapsing the mass-energy within the cartridge through an exotic quantum process, a micro black hole emerges, which can either evaporate through Hawking radiation or expand, depending on the stabilization mechanics used. Luckily for them he's made them evaporate after a second.

To control and limit the effects of the micro black hole, the bullet employs gravitational confinement techniques or manages Hawking radiation to ensure the black hole persists for just long enough to cause catastrophic damage. It uses quantum field manipulation to create a gravitational gradient, holding the black hole in a state of quasi-stability before allowing it to collapse in a burst of energy.

The transfer of matter across dimensions occurs through a temporary connection to higher-dimensional space, such as in brane cosmology theories, where our 3D universe interacts with a higher-dimensional structure. When matter is drawn into another dimension, a transient wormhole or topological defect, like a cosmic string, forms, allowing matter to be siphoned off.

This process resembles Kaluza-Klein theory, where compactified extra dimensions permit the energy to escape from our familiar three-dimensional space-time into the higher-dimensional realm. It’s as if the explosion opens a drain that lets matter flow out of thier universe, erasing the affected area from existence.

Imagine it as pulling the plug on a bathtub; the water (representing matter) rapidly drains into an unseen reservoir (the higher dimension), leaving behind a chaotic disturbance on the surface (massive explosion and gravitational disruptions). It doesn’t just destroy; it erases a portion of space-time itself.

If he limits a shot to a maximum diameter of 50 cm and a duration of 1 second, while ensuring that it does not cause terraforming-scale damage, then we’re dealing with some extreme physics constraints.

Energy Compression and Containment

To achieve such massive destructive power within a confined space of max 50 cm, the energy would need to be incredibly dense and compressed, using some form of exotic energy state or quantum-scale manipulation. We might think of a process similar to creating a quark-gluon plasma, where matter is compressed to such high densities that conventional atomic structures no longer exist. This would allow for an incredibly high energy concentration without needing a massive physical size.

Control Over the Shockwave

To prevent the shot from causing terraforming-level damage, the shockwave dynamics would have to be controlled precisely. This could involve using fields or containment mechanisms that limit the expansion of the blast wave to a very small effective radius, absorbing or dispersing the energy beyond that point.

For example, a localized gravitational field could be used to constrain the energy within the 50 cm radius, causing the shockwave to rapidly lose intensity beyond that point. This would result in a highly concentrated but short-lived explosion, powerful enough to cause intense localized destruction without spreading its effects over a larger area.

Duration and Rapid Energy Dissipation

With a duration of only roughly 1 second, the energy release would need to be extremely quick and then dissipate almost immediately. One way to achieve this could be by utilizing a form of Hawking radiation or controlled quantum tunneling, allowing the energy to decay rapidly into other forms of radiation or be siphoned off into a higher-dimensional space right after reaching its peak.

This approach would make the explosion appear like a brief, intense flash of destruction, where the peak intensity lasts less than a second, followed by rapid normalization of the local environment. There would still be a violent local effect, but it would be contained to prevent any significant alterations to the landscape.

Think of it as a controlled fusion explosion, where the fusion reaction is ignited but then immediately halted by a containment field, causing the released energy to dissipate almost as soon as it appears. It would be like a microburst of a star’s energy, contained and then extinguished just before it gets out of control.

The shot would feel like a brief, intense thud, with a powerful but contained shockwave that wouldn’t extend far beyond the immediate vicinity, preventing large-scale geological or atmospheric effects. It would still be lethal within its limited range but without causing collateral damage on a world ending scale.

Knives Angel Arm

possess more animal like traits

Pant markings seem to appear more regulary maybe a matter of practice to hide them

Massive Blade(s) on left arm

For direct slashing

Seem to be able to reach for hundreds miles

probably with some kind of ultra thin blade almost like a wire

Gate

form seems to be similar

creating of blade bullets when leader of collective

discharge of a spherical projectile

during its flight trajectory through the air, the projectile undergoes structural disintegration, transitioning from its original form into numerous spiral-shaped, highly flexible, and extraordinarily sharp blades

these blades at first align in a conical arrangement trailing behind the projectile then coming forth in a more circle like shape

within the core of the projectile, distinctive phenotypic characteristics of the Gate are observable, which maybe be directly linked to its dynamic spiral motion and the sequential release of the blades

cutting of everything in range of these blades if not countered by another Gate

The Ark-Collective

First sister to be absorbed seems to trigger growth of multible tumors, some kind of autoimmune response

at first 2 wings, they possess more bones

Width: 689 feet

roughly the length of two football fields placed end-to-end (a standard football field is about 360 feet long).

Height: 453 feet

about the height of a 45-story building, as each story is approximately 10 feet tall.

length to the space ships round about 311 miles (500km)

It has its own gravity field

It's gonna be interesting when/if they ever animate that behemoth.

Theory about his worp usage of the higher dimension

he's creating a cut in the reality goes into the higher dimension and reappears at a different place propably with exotic matter (warping space-time)

The Ark is organic in composition and, in structure, would be much like a biological entity that achieves buoyancy, from certain deep-sea life forms to large organisms with gas-filled cavities. In its advanced organic material, there is a percentage of gas pockets or low-density compounds, enabling it to stay aloft in a dense atmosphere. The organic superconducting materials of the combined might also serve to create strong magnetic fields upon activation. This highly developed organic structure creates these fields for the lifting effect on objects in a certain radius. It apparently has the ability to emit or manipulate antigravitons-particles that act against gravity-and such an ability would reduce gravitational pull on everything in a localized area. In creating a small field around itself, it is essentially working against or neutralizing gravity. The Ark also has the possibility of causing local distortions in gravitational fields, creating a sort of "bubble" that decreases the pulling power of gravity on objects around it, hence allowing it to levitate them. In such a case, the bio-machinery of this organism would need high energy density structures, such as muscle fibers, that store energy and afterward release it. It’s cells would need organelles with very high output energy, which would be able to store energy and afterwards release it to build force or fields. These cells function like biological equivalents of batteries or power cells, generating very powerful bioelectric fields. The Collective amplifies bioelectric potentials to considerable magnitudes to generate site-specific magnetic fields, or any other force-related phenomena that are powerful enough to levitate masses. In its domain of quantum biology, the entity uses quantum effects for levitation or lifting. It taps and channels energy with high efficiency through processes somewhat related to quantum coherence in photosynthesis. Presumably, this biological use of quantum interaction enables it to achieve the very fine control over force fields and manipulate gravitational pull on a quantum scale, thus enabling the lifting forces.

lower section resembles a flower🌺

To be added:

My auto correction made "his sisters" into "his disorders" lol I love my phone gremlin

I'm so happy to have a reason to work with all this cool scientific theories and concepts bc of this post about a Sifi-Western.

Characteristics of his wing

struckture reflects his gate

made of many different blades

its made of 2 different sections

lower section is connected to his back /schoulderblade

Phycological factor:

does he has the need to harm humans trough his true nature (most likely yes)

The Gate of their Sisters (dependends)

look at Death Omen

Core seems only to manifest when entering their last run

Or maybe it is always there but covered by flesh?

thier Core forms in their womb

Maybe their naitve environment has lead their "original" species evolve to have body patterns to express emotions, Multi-layered membranes so their sensory organs could detect tiny changes in the fabric of space-time, like a natural “gravitational radar” leading to a different kind of seeing as their primary source of well... visual information

Melting of the body:

- first the feathers start do disintegrate

- Hair gets black

- then the outer layer of their body’s rots (skin, muscles….)

- head seems more resilient

- later the more solid structures like bones start to melt…

(I want to find my old notes about this)

Knives morphed form in Volume 7

-THIS THING FOLLOWS THE BONE STRUCTURE OF A HAND!!!

So my theory is that Vashs power is to delete/absorb/take matter into the higher dimension and Knives is to add/give materia into the lower dimension.

Feel free to comment your own thoughts.

Also, I was listening to that while making this🔥:

Have a good day

[supernova351]

C/W for SA and spoilers for Trigun Maximum

I finally can verbalize my thoughts on why the Angel arm situation is so fucked up even if you don’t look at it through a lens of it being sexual assault. Knives completely disregards the autonomy of anyone hes In contact with. Even the dependent plants, who he sees as his sisters. But Vash-his own fucking brother who he claims to love- is not afforded any autonomy. Because when it comes down to it knives doesn’t care. The Angel arm incident is to directly show how powerless Vash is. That Vash isn’t even allowed control over his own powers, but Knives is. Knives violates Vash’s bodily autonomy and makes him go against his principles (which at the time are the only things he’s living for!!) as a show of power. A “look at this, your ideals mean nothing because you’re too weak to uphold them.”

I think this along with the very obvious metaphors for SA is what makes this scene so gut wrenching. It’s Vash trying to hang on to his personhood, and this is one of the very few times we see him do it. Vash barely ever actively fights to protect himself, he mainly just dodges and runs. Except for his fights with Knives and a couple of the Gung-ho-Guns. Vash is actively fighting and being overpowered and that’s why it’s so disturbing

[lost-technology]

SEEDS Security Codes and Why They Matter

So, I've been thinking about one of the details in Trigun: Stampede that was not present in either '98 or the manga. In '98, Knives just hacking into the SEEDS codes was left as-is. He walked up to Captain Joey and shot him and apparently took his pilot's seat. Did the Captain have the navigation open at the time? Was it closed and Knives had to do some hacking? Anyway, there, he did it on his own. Now, in Trigun Maximum, which treats Vash and Knives' childhood differently (just Rem there raising them), there is a foreshadowing of what is to come. In Volume 6, Rem is depicted waking up to an emergency signal in the middle of her sleeping-hours. (Aw, she sleeps in her regular clothes, mom-jeans and all...). Panicked, she yells at Knives for him and Vash to lock themselves in their rooms and not to come out or speak up for ANY reason, even if they hear voices outside. She tries to handle the situation, but it goes from bad to worse and the automatic crew-wakening protocol goes into effect, which she is very concerned about (for reasons that we who have read the manga know about)!

In the beginning of Volume 7 the crew wakes up, there's a situation-update. The ships are going off-course and will collide if things are not corrected. They're working through the issues and suddenly, there's an unknown factor that kicks in to correct the course. Rem then gets the crew all settled back in again for nappy-time... And proceeds immediately to Vash and Knives, where she scolds Knives with (Rem's angry mom-face, my beloved)! Knives was playing around with the ship codes and systems. He'd apparently hacked his way into the system and was curious about SEEDS' functions. (One would assume that Rem changed some of the codes after this, but I bet they were in some kind of hacking-war, with her trying to stay one step above curious Plant-twins). Knives did not mean to nearly cause a catastrophe, but this shows that he can and is a foreshadowing to when he DOES mean to cause one later. Now, in Trigun Stampede, it is stated by Nai / Knives that Vash gave him the ship-codes, also that he spent a lot of time and trouble changing the codes for every human ship. (The manga lists the ship they are born on as the Mothership, presumably guiding the entire fleet, in Stampede, it is just Ship 5, which implies multiple guides with multiple navigators). I am wondering where Studio Orange is going with this. Will it be a situation like the manga where the kids are just playing around? Little prank-war with Rem? Maybe Vash is sharing a ship code innocently, as part of their games? Or is it going to be darker, more sinister? I wonder if Vash was originally of the thought of "maybe we need to crash the ships and kill all humans (except Rem) because they're scary and dangerous because of what happened to Tesla" and then had a change of heart and backed out of it? - I can see that happening... him having his cathartic alone-time with Rem as in the manga and then talking things out with Nai and thinking that they weren't going to go through with it. And then Nai betrays him. I've been wondering about the guilt Vash carries over the Big Fall in Stampede. Is it an unnecessary, undue guilt like he seems to have about a lot of things? Or is there a guilt born from "I had originally planned disaster / we had originally planned disaster" and it came true even after he'd backed out? It's just that... in both '98 and Maximum, he does carry his cross (that is not Wolfwood's), but he seems to feel less specifically guilty over this (the Big Fall). He's really more like "Knives, how could you do this to everyone / Rem?!" He just seems more guilt-ridden in Stampede than in the other media and I am wondering if there is a dark secret behind it. I can see it going either way.

[b0tsbby]

Signifying Meaning in Tristamp’s Vash and Knives S1 Designs and Visual Cues: Part 2

TLDR: How Everything but Stamp’s dialogue supports it’s characters

Trigun Stampede spoilers and potential Max/98 spoilers. TW for fucking episode 11 and 12 of this show I hate it.

I wrote this so that the order doesn’t matter and you can read part 2 or 1 first, though I ask of not reading just one part cause the two kinda work together? Sort of???

If you want a fun drinking game, take a shot everytime I mention the other twin (I’m sorry).

Vash the Stampede

Despite my overt support and gravitation to a certain twin in Stampede and Trigun as a whole, I actually started out Trigun like many, and empathised with Vash more. While not my favourite character at first, ( Wolfwood holds that title), the sadness I felt for Mr Vash after that finale was insurmountable, and now he’s like…guy no.3 I like. With that outta the way, let’s get started.

Ep.1 Ghost of the Man

It shouldn’t be a surprise that I started Trigun with Stampede, and later delved into 98 and Max, so my outrage at Stampede Vash’s design wasn’t so genuine. A google search later and I could tell that the difference however, was jarring.

We first get introduced to Vash laughing hysterically, upside down with his hair mimicking his original look and glasses obscuring his eyes (hold on to that, it’s important). Not the most charming of introductions, but a fun reference to sir Diablo nonetheless.

Meryl gets him down, and his attitude changes slightly. This mysterious man turns out to be somewhat approachable if a little looney.

This sequence already introduces a visual cue Orange loves to use in Stampede, the obstruction of eyes, the window to the soul. This is particularly significant for Vash’s character. His words and gestures suggest an open, friendlier nature, but we as an audience are kept at an arms length through this obstruction. Vash definitely makes no effort to separate himself or keep a distance, a good facade, as Vash still keeps his deepest thoughts and feelings to himself.

This changes after a bit, we see Vash’s eyes for the first time at the bar. Vash here has calculated the type of people Meryl and Roberto. This doesn’t mean he lets his guard down, but rather has decided on the best way to now approach them. Like a mask, Vash has now decided the best one to wear for this social charade.

Ep 1 is littered with moments like this. Another significant one is his encounter and our first introduction to the plants. We're shut out of Vash’s psych once again as Vash looks at both the dying and healthy plant, one lens red and the other blue, a visual of Vash’s internal conflict before we ever really get to figure him out.( And yes that is a Matrix reference, red pill, blue pill. Oh my god.)

Contextually we can link these colours to certain themes and characters, but we’ll sum that up later.

With the psychology of his glasses out the way, we can move on to his style.

Vash wears a big red coat, with a turquoise interior, a black turtleneck, black trousers and swept forward, spiky hair. He still has his signature prosthetic arm, however in this iteration, it’s made of turquoise translucent like metal. And of course, Orange kept his very important mole and left earring.

The bright red is undoubtedly pretty flashy in this drab, brown landscape. If you didn’t know he was the main character before, now you do! On its own, his look is, okay, not exactly groundbreaking but visually distinct enough for you to care.

The disappointment really lies in the comparison of this design and his 98/ Max look. It’s jarringly underwhelming, uncharacteristically new age (ew, new things!). They even swept his anti-gravity needle hair forward! This isn’t so much Vash THE Stampede as it is some shoddy pretty boy imitation of him!

Ring the bell though cause that is where the magic is.

EP 8-9, A Whole Lotta Red (and other colours)

(He’s so tiny here stooooop😭)

Our Home and Millions Knives is littered with the use of red. We’re able to finally give meaning to the colour that defines Vash.

Starting off with his teenage design, Vash is not much different from his brother. He’s wearing scrap cloth he found on this downtrodden planet, painfully human and painfully bland. To reiterate, like his brother, he doesn’t know who he is at this point. He hasn’t decided whether to embrace his past, as his childhood plant suit is nowhere in sight, or embrace his future, whatever that may be. A blank canvas with no solid attachments or motivations yet.

We’ll start off with the psychology of blue;

At this stage, both brothers are blank canvases, barely coping with, well, still being alive. Vash is unlucky enough to be taken in by brad and Luida at first. While some sympathy is garnered from Luida, Vash is still very much othered, until he does something for the wellbeing of Ship 3. It’s here we see again that blue from Ship 5, a plant! But blue doesn’t just represent the sole plant existence, it also signifies their safety and vitality. The blue of his healthy plant sister is the marker for some decency earned from the humans on this ship.

It’s here Vash is walking a fine line to be accepted. He may be a ‘monster’, but he did good, so he’s safe, he’s welcome. It’s here Vash sees what he needs to do to stay on with them in the hopes maybe they’ll forgive him for the Big Fall and being who he is.

It’s then he’s gifted, his signature red coat that doesn’t even fit him yet (awwww). A gift from the humans that took him in despite labelling him as a monster, something other. We learn, red now signifies the love he’s received from humans. This red coat is a living symbol of their ability to change. It’s all figured out.

Then he meets his brother, who naturally, is there just to keep us on our toes. (They called the ship Seeds specifically after Knives impeccable ability to plant the seeds of doubt into almost every 20-something year old watching this show for the first time btw)

The psychology of red takes on a whole new form. Everything is red. The dying plants, the warning lights, the pools of blood on the floor, (from Vash too might I add). Red takes on this meaning of violence, corruption, sickness, pain and death. Most importantly the death of Vash’s plant sisters.

With extra trauma to spare, Vash goes home to ship 3 with a red coat and a red bleeding heart for his sisters and very ambitious brother. Both the bad and good of the psychology of red are displayed, the overarching qualities of humanity.

Ep 1-10, Where Vash Goes Back and Forth

As our main character, we have the privilege of watching Vash’s internal struggle for a sense of purpose and value in real time! In the events of Stampede, we get to pick up a few pieces.

Now that meaning has been attributed to both colours red and blue, destructing the colours of his design becomes a lot more fun.

Thank you Silversora for actually bringing this to my attention specifically.

Overall, Vash’s design communicates a want to blend in, not stand out and well, belong! He’s not an idiot. He knows just as much as his brother the dangers he could put himself in if he fully embraced his plant being. He knows the dangers he could put humans in if he just, fully embraced what he is. In that regard, he’s a little bit ashamed of it.

Vash yearns so badly to be a part of humanity, to be accepted by the same humanity his mother believed in, even if it means suppressing who he is, even if it means being humanity’s showdog.

The tragedy of Vash’s existence lies in an overtness in both sides of the plant and humanity spectrum. Vash is painfully human, and would have easliy passed for one, if he wasn’t such an immensely powerful plant. His existence is dizzying in that its constantly oscillating between two extremes, I’d like to think, too human to be a perfect plant, too plant to be a perfect human. At the end of the day, it is not humans in water tanks. At the end of the day, it is not plants that raised him.

Vash’s coat communicates this tragedy pretty clear, its red with inner blue lining. Outside, Vash is as human-presenting as he can possibly be, it’s what he wants people to see. Internally, his planthood will never leave him, it's the shame, insecurity, he keeps behind this exterior.

And no I haven’t forgotten his black turtleneck and black slacks. There’s no better way than to compare that whole setup with looking into void. Fitting, and very similar to his glasses convention, it’s too obscure his body, his build and yes his scars. A terrible indication of his ever cascading self worth and bodily shame. (If you’re wondering where he got all this shame from, he’s holding on to Knives shame too so his brother can come back one day and collect it with 45% interest.)

Ep 11, The danger of indecision

Okay so we’re at arguably the worst episode ever now, but it’s still littered with visual cues so sit down and just trust me.

Ep 11 is jarringly blue.

I hate to bring the other guy into this, (I’ve done that 5 times in this essay already) but the blue representation in this episode doesn’t fall short on me, considering this is when “The Memory World of Knives” plays from the OST. Back to character design though, this is the unfortunate moment Vash is robbed of his autonomy, and his ability to choose who he is and wants to be. This is where a new colour is brought into the mix, purple.

But this purple is not particularly bright, being more of an accent to black with only his glasses being purple, (I’m going to reiterate here how his glasses are a visual embodiment of the window to the soul). It shouldn’t be missed that the geraniums that grow out of him in this mental warp, are a drowned out purple.

While all this could genuinely mean nothing and I’m wasting your time, I believe it’s expressing the danger of Vash’s foot-in foot-out fawning response. If he doesn’t decide who he is and what he stands for, perpetually living in a state of reaction and guilt, someone else will just figure it out for him and he’ll end up being nothing at all, hence the lack of colour and subtle purple (a muddy middle point between blue and red).

Hope is not lost though, and a second meaning is given to this particularly traumatic hue in the finale.

Ep 12, Where Vash Makes a Choice for himself

Despite holding an unfair amount of empathy for Stampede’s Knives, I don’t think I’ve ever been happier than when I watched his ass get kicked. The actualisation, reclaiming of autonomy and defining moment of Vash was incredibly therapeutic.

Vash’s forming of identity was definitely met with more resistance than his twin, but characteristically Vash supersedes Knives again in the transformation of his personal identity and purpose. Vash reaches a level of self awareness, confidence and acceptance that even his brother doesn’t get to until he chooses to ultimately off himself. The exceptional defining moment of Vash the Stampede starts here.

Now that we have defined what blue and red mean in terms of theme, Vash’s purple and black final form gains so much significance. The inner lining of his coat takes on a bright purple colour. As well, red and blue mixed creates a purple hue, this design choice symbolises Vash’s acceptance of his dual identity; he’s too much of a human, he’s too much of a plant. This is just the bittersweet nature of his existence and he’s learned to embrace it.

The outer lining and main composition consisting of black is just as important. While being a very clear reference to Vash’s black coat in his last fight in Max, the black again, obscures his form in this nighttime setting. While we know much more now, Vash is still and will always be a mystery to humanity and the audience; the chameleon in a crowd.

And yes there is Yin and Yang symbolism consistently in this fight. The black passive, female principle associated with sustainability and things earthly, dark and cold (yin code for Vash) and the white aggressive male principle associated with creation and things heavenly, light and warm (yang, code for Knives).

Phew…(Don’t make it weird though, I find the imagery genuinely heartbreaking thank you.)

The more obvious references and ties to Vash finally defining himself remain in his hairstyle, being in the style we know so well. It took a whole season, but the Vash we know is finally coming to be! He’s powerful, he’s agile and he’s determined to live for an active cause, not to simply erase the steps of his own existence.

In the end, Vash doesn’t really change much goal wise, and he ironically sticks to the initial coding of the plant’s existence; to be of service to humanity. But what matters is it’s now his choice and his choice alone. No more (entirely) motivated by shame, guilt and seeking repentance, Vash is now fueled by the love and hope he holds for humanity. He is Vash the Stampede!

And that’s all folks. To end off, I wanna mention something I learnt about broadway that is somewhat related to this analysis. Never listen to the lyrics, listen to the music. I think Stamp’s dialogue is genuinely ass and there’s so much to be missed if you kinda take everything at a surface level. From the character design to visual cues to the INCREDIBLE OST, you find that a lot is not what it seems and a parallel narrative is constantly taking place. While I hope but doubt this was intentional, I fucking love meta stuff like that. With the insinuation of warped memory, an unreliable narrator and fraudulent identities, the possible number of paths this show could take for S2 are almost overwhelmingly endless.

Hopefully in the future I can write an essay solely on identity and adolescence in Stampede cause honestly this is only half of it. I might make an extra part 3 on not exclusively character design facts and things I picked up about the brothers. Otherwise thanks for reading. If you didn’t read this whole thing in Philomena Cunk’s voice though, then I take that back sorry.

Part 1 - Millions Knives

[plan-3-tmars]

this is my favourite thing studio orange did with trigun

cuz like. YEAH! THEY ARE RLLY FUCKING SIMILAR!

Wolfwood's a kid who grew up too fast. he tries to hide behind the identity of "the punisher", a title that makes him sound like a horrible killing machine. the title screen disagrees with him though, knows deep down that kid is still inside there trying to look after his brothers and sisters. Wolfwood takes on "the punisher" in order for the eye of michael to leave the orphanage alone, so they don't have to go through what he did.

Nai is also a kid who grew up too fast. he doesn't hide behind an identity though, he embraces it. He believes that 'nai' is weak, 'millions knives' is strong and will be able to save his brother and sisters. The title screen agrees with him because it's shown how intent he is on following this path of mass destruction as he attacks and kills the workers just moments before. Knives IS Knives because of how the humans treat his siblings, because of witnessing the Last Run and Tesla. He doesn't want his brother and sisters to go through what they did.

[iwritenarrativesandstuff]

Stampede Wolfwood got Metaphorically Isekai'd (No This is Not a Shitpost)

Oh my god if this winds up being part of my legacy I'll probably cry.

So. Everyone who's watched the new show knows that Wolfwood is introduced by getting hit by Meryl's van in the middle of the desert where he is literally the only thing to get hit for miles around. What an entrance. Welcome to the team buddy.

[ID: A screenshot from Trigun Stampede Episode 4. At an above view, the van has spun, unfortunately sending the trailer back part crashing directly into Wolfwood. He is starfished face-first into it, rather comically. End ID.]

It's funny as heck, but, since I am deranged, I'm gonna try and convince you that this is not only an isekai joke, but that the basic premise of an isekai actually applies fairly well to Stampede Wolfwood in the first season... but then a lot of the standard tropes are made into notable and tragic subversions. Also please note I have never actually watched an isekai anime so maybe take all this with a grain of salt. Or several. (Also isekai is a really broad genre. I'm talking specifically about the tropiest things to come out of it - please don't take what I'm about to discuss as representative of the entire genre!)

In the manga, and I believe in the 98 anime as well, Wolfwood is spotted by Vash while him and the insurance girls are travelling on a bus. He is out in the middle of the desert, and so thirsty and exhausted he's initially mistaken for dead. Vash and the girls manage to cause enough of a ruckus that he is literally saved (which echoes the influence they, but especially Vash, will have on him later on), and they all end up on the bus as him and Vash become acquainted - the start of their companionship, and the start of their journey together (being quite literally on a moving vehicle). In the 23 anime, it all seems set up to give us the same intro: there is a vehicle, Wolfwood is clearly exhausted from trekking through the desert, Meryl and Vash are there... and then, suddenly -

[ID: Two screenshots from Trigun Stampede Episode 4. In the first, Wolfwood is walking with Punisher across the sand with a bright blue sky background. He does not see the van coming into sharp focus on a direct path towards him. In the second, Meryl, in the driver's seat, looks out with a shocked expression. Roberto's hand has reached over to grab the wheel. End ID.]

Pfft. Sorry I had to rewatch this to get the screenshots and I swear it does not get any less funny. Anyways, Wolfwood gets hit instead of getting rescued, but the end result is the same - he ends up in the vehicle and his journey with them begins.

So. Why the difference?

Well, I can only really speculate, and honestly it was probably just for the humour of it, but I do have another (deranged) suggestion.

See, Wolfwood in the manga is a little different from Stampede's Wolfwood - he's a lot friendlier for one (though no less trying to scam people), and he's got a little bit more self-made purpose (protecting and providing for the orphanage), even if he still lacks true agency. Stampede Wolfwood, by contrast, is a lot more aimless. He's on constant survival mode, which makes him a lot more openly abrasive right from the get-go, more cavalier about his own life (smokes way more than in the manga, takes bullets when there's actually no reason to), and a lot less in control of his outward persona (there have been many observations I've seen on how he's not the best at holding back his emotions - imo I don't think manga Wolfwood is especially good at that either, but in Stampede, it's really obvious).

Stampede Wolfwood also plays up his "monstrousness" a lot more in front of people, which is probably the most significant difference to me. Manga Wolfwood... doesn't exactly try to hide it, but he tends to take a "well, somebody had to do what needed to get done" attitude, like a kind of tired "I know there's no going back and I know I've turned into a monster. This is all I know how to be now. Somebody has to make the hard calls." But he feels shame about it all the same - look at how he puts his sunglasses on whenever he's about to do something he finds reprehensible (well, except the Ninelives fight... but no one was around to witness him there). It's made pretty explicit later that the glasses are a way for him to say "don't look at me. don't see what I've become".

Meanwhile, Stampede Wolfwood never takes the glasses off. He's much more upfront about the threat he poses - calling out Vash for not watching his back, outright saying he could've shot him - not a smart move when trying to earn someone's trust. His teasing, when he does it, isn't quite as playful, and has a bit of a bite to it. It's almost like he wants to be hated; like he's torn between justifying the necessity of his actions and convincing others that he is just as much of a monster as he feels.

I really think the key differences have a lot to do with their respective situations. Wolfwood in the manga... he got out, for a bit. He couldn't go back to the orphanage, but for at least a little bit, he wasn't under the Eye of Michael's thumb, he did get to meet people outside of missions and travel a bit, and was acting on his own intent... until he ended up pulled back into it because of Knives. Stampede Wolfwood has been under their control since he was taken from the orphanage. Everyone he loves is a hostage. He's taken on the name of his weapon and has known nothing else except this world of darkness - there's very little to imply he's travelled or spoken to anyone without it being for some mission. He's under consistent surveillance.

This "babysitting" mission, then, is something very different from his usual. It's not an assassination. Even more so, it's putting him in close contact with people who are not part of the world that he inhabits, the only one he's known since he was taken, which kickstarts significant changes in his life. You could even say he's been... transported to a different world than the one he'd lived in up to this point...

Enter Truck-kun. Or, rather, Van-kun.

Alright, so what is an isekai? Essentially, it's a wide-ranging genre where the protagonist gets transported or reincarnated to another world (usually regular world -> fantasy/sci-fi world), and typically involves an ordinary person becoming important/powerful in this new world - the genre is, a lot of the time, a mix of power fantasy and wish fulfillment.

Obviously, there is no literal transporting to another world here; it is still very much the same world (I'll bring up why this is important later.) But it's notable that Wolfwood remains very much the outlier in their group - he does not blend in, and his methods and approach are very different to that of the rest, who do not come from the same "world" as him. It's the start of a pretty drastic change in situation for him. It's why I really wish there were more episodes showing his dynamic with the group before it all went to hell - I bet he was so awkward.

The next thing I want to mention is that if you thought I was going to be arguing that there is a standard isekai parallel here... well I lied to you. A lot of the common tropes actually get subverted in kinda heartbreaking ways.

Usually the protagonist of an isekai (not always, but often) is some kind of chosen one. They are able to excel in situations that others cannot, and it's usually because they bring some kind of skill or knowledge from their old life that the people in the new world, obviously, don't. They tend to become ultra powerful, well able to take on any of their challenges in this new world, with advantages others don't have.

This doesn't sound like anything to do with Wolfwood after being hit by Meryl's van. But it sure sounds an awful lot like him after being taken by the Eye of Michael.

He is transferred from his comparatively normal life to one straight out of a sci-fi horror. He's a chosen "Child of Blessing", ranked "S+". He was able to survive grievous harm and experimentation, "excelling" where most other hapless kids did not. What did he bring with him from his old life that none of the people in his new life seem to have that allowed him to survive in the way he did? Well... he had something to protect didn't he? That's how he continues to struggle on. This is far from the sentiment shared by people like Conrad and Legato.

And so Wolfwood becomes ultra powerful - his body is fast, strong and resilient; he's efficient and good at what he's been trained to do. But this is far from anything he wanted. The power fantasy is subverted. Wolfwood is powerful enough to handle pretty much any threat that's thrown at him... but all it does is isolate and alienate him, and make him feel like a monster. Another aspect of isekai is that freedom one gets from being able to start over and become someone closer to their ideal self in a new setting - that's the wish fulfillment part. Well, Wolfwood has never been further from free, or less like the person he wishes to be. He hates everything he has become, but can't get out. Unable to change his situation, and increasingly jaded and disillusioned, Wolfwood takes on the moniker of "Punisher" and gives up on his old self. "Wolfwood" has effectively died.

Other than "transfer" isekai, there is also another kind - the "reincarnation" isekai. I'm not going to even touch bringing up the premise of reincarnation with a guy who carries around a giant cross on his back as I am far from qualified (knowing very little about Christianity at all), but I think it's worth noting that Wolfwood's arc (in all iterations) has much to do with his ever-present conflict with Vash over morality, but also just as much about his struggle to reconcile the person he was with the person he was forced to become, and if there is such a thing as forgiveness or redemption for him.

If "Wolfwood" has died before the story started, then he is "reincarnated" over the course of the story as he slowly starts to find himself again, with the kickstarting impetus being him getting hit by Meryl's van.

The changes don't start instantly. He wakes and things seem relatively normal - the plan is working, there's someone obviously suspicious of him - all stuff he's probably very used to. And then Vash goes and completely blindsides him.

[ID: A screenshot from Trigun Stampede Episode 4. A close up of Vash's face in the dim lighting, with eyes softened and a smile. End ID.]

"I can see it in his eyes."

Okay, so we all kinda giggle a little bit here because who the hell says that to some sketchy guy wearing dark sunglasses in a dark cave-like area when you've only just met, but I really want to stress that this is probably the first truly positive interaction Wolfwood has had in years... and I think Vash is well aware of that.

Wolfwood starts the transition from darkness to light... quite literally.

Almost all of Wolfwood's defining scenes are in the darkness of night, in contrast to the brightly lit desert in the day - think of when he moves away from the fire to speak to Zazie at the end of his intro episode, and assassinates the EoM traitor at the beginning of episode 6. In episode 5, we also get this:

[ID: Two screenshots from Trigun Stampede Episode 5. In the first, Rollo has Vash pinned to a metal wall by his neck. The sun can be seen between the two of them. In the second, Rollo lies dead on the ground. It is now night, and Vash stands over him, head low. Wolfwood stands a distance away. End ID.]

As Vash tries to speak to Rollo, to talk him down, the sun, though setting, is bright and illuminates both their faces. This all comes crashing down, literally, as Wolfwood takes the shot. Rollo falls, the sun stops shining on him, and by the time they all reach his body, night has fallen and the world is in darkness. The light goes out for Rollo... and in Wolfwood's eyes, for him too. He shot out of mercy, after all. He's living a nightmare he sees no escape from nor feels deserving of escaping from - worse, he feels as though he's a part of that darker setting, dragging it into their journey along with him.

However, we've established the lens of the "reincarnation" isekai for the purposes of this analysis, and along with that usually comes a way to compensate or reconcile for missed opportunities or mistakes made in the past by becoming something closer to one's own original ideal - sometimes this can even be a literal starting over, by being reborn into one's own younger self. And that's the importance of what Vash says to Wolfwood in episode 4 - he sees the potential in Wolfwood; the old self he thought had "died" a long time ago. Vash knows he's not the person he's been made to become and encourages him - not to do as Vash does, but to do as Wolfwood actually wants to do but thought for the longest time as hopeless. After all, what is a blank ticket if not a second chance or a new lease on life?

On the sand steamer in episode 6, the scene starts off in daylight once again, but after Wolfwood realizes the new assailant is Livio and we see their backstory, the snap back to the present scene is at night, and the scene darkens as the situation becomes more dire... and as Wolfwood comes to the conclusion that he will have to kill his brother.

But as Zazie's bug, or "eye", gets shot by Vash deflecting what would have been a fatal blow to Livio... suddenly, Wolfwood is free to act without the EoM's ever present surveillance. This is a serious step to severing the binds to that old life, and, as Wolfwood ultimately does not want any harm to come to Livio, he finds another way. And the sky starts to lighten again.

[ID: A screenshot from Trigun Stampede Episode 7. A close up of Livio's face with a distant, pensive expression. A wisp of smoke trails underneath as the pinkish hue of the sunrise is seen in the background. End ID.]

Of course, while this does succeed in waking him, it doesn't actually save him. But it is enough that Wolfwood decides to try letting a little bit of hope back in - to acclimate, even if just a little, to Vash's ideals, or his "world". Wolfwood's wish, to protect the orphanage, is (temporarily) fulfilled - in broad daylight, and without the death he'd been so accustomed to in his old "world". While he outwardly denies it, angrily telling Vash that he is no longer "Wolfwood" and instead merely "the Punisher", that "I'm not like you", the episode's title card, which appears directly after this exchange, does not agree.

[ID: A screenshot from Trigun Stampede Episode 7. A black background with white text; the title card for the episode that reads "#07 Wolfwood". End ID.]

He's more himself than he's been in a long time.

In that sense, going back to my insane original premise, we can say that he was isekai'd once by transfer, turning him into someone else... then isekai'd again by reincarnation after he thought his old self dead, helping him to start on the path to finding that younger self and that hope he thought he'd lost. It's a double subversion, in a way, as the first is far from wish fulfillment, and the latter is actually a restoration - a realization that as he slowly starts to transition to the light, he actually never left this world at all when he was changed against his will. He's not a monster of the dark. He still has a place in this lighter world.

Heartwarming, in a way, but also kind of heartbreaking, as if he hasn't truly left this world then there are still consequences.

Wolfwood, after this, still has to complete his contract. He didn't actually get out.

And Vash, for all that he appears to be someone "not like" Wolfwood, is actually far more similar than he'd initially suspected - Vash, too, came from darkness. The Big Fall happened at night. And even as Wolfwood's world grows lighter, Vash's grows ever darker as what he has tried to stave off bleeds into the light, culminating in the events of July, which take place entirely at night, and are truly Vash's darkest hours. Rather than Vash being some naïve creature of a lighter world that Wolfwood cannot reach, he is instead another person from darkness who is struggling for the light all his own.

Because of course, there is no "lighter world" or "darker world". No true "travel" between the two. Just one world that is both at once. And what one finds in it is dependent on what one chooses to read into their circumstances. A kinder, brighter world isn't something they can simply get isekai'd to. It's something these characters have to struggle to make a reality - it's what Vash does, it's what Meryl takes a stand for, it's what Wolfwood, deep down, wants to believe is possible. Hope is something you build yourself, etc.

Anyways, I can't believe I just wrote all that. I think I'm losing my mind. If you came out of this going, "Story, what the hell are you talking about?" then... well. Me too. Thanks for reading anyways!

[to-eat-laugh-love-in-peace]

Personal Posts List

Since I'm going to be more active in this blog again, here's a list of all of the posts I've made so as to not have to go through the hassle of finding them amidst the sea of reblogs and other posts I'm probably going to make later on. Overall thoughts on what could go down in Trigun Stampede S2

The possibility of the existence of worm-worshiping cults in Trigun Stampede Thoughts on what could be the deal with Tonis in Trigun Stampede S2 Prospect of Legato showing up in that ridiculous casket/full-body cast looking contraption he wore in Trigun Maximum in Trigun Stampede S2 The possibility of Meryl and Milly getting to fight alongside Wolfwood against Gray the Ninelives in Trigun Stampede S2 Theory on why Luida and Brad decided to by five Vash only one out of four of Rem’s photos they found in Ship 5 The existence of multiple accounts of someone or something surviving the Big Fall in various forms in Trigun Stampede The contrast between Brad’s initial and eventual view and treatment of, and relationship with Vash in Trigun Stampede and the crew of Ship 5’s view and treatment of, and relationship with Tesla in Trigun Maximum The probability of Vash having known Roberto was going to die in the elevator before he had met up with Knives Thoughts on the general public’s perception and treatment towards Meryl after Lost July and on the possible confrontation between her and Brilliant Dynamites Neon in Trigun Stampede S2

[secretly-an-alien-oops]

Vash and Knives being called angels is so important to me. First of all angels in the Bible are sent down to be earth to be messengers of God. Knives sees himself as sending the message that plants are being harmed and should be freed. While Vash is spreading the word of love and peace, and that humans should coexist with plants/ one another. Another thing angels do is appear in human forms as to not scare the human receiving the message. GUESS WHAT VASH AND KNIVES DO. Vash more than Knives because Knives doesn’t give a shit if you listen or not, he’s going to make you.

[shantalangel]

A very interesting topic are these humans and Plants hybrids.

I doubt they were naturally born - humans aren't cool enough to be able to get pregnant by a "biblical angel" - so it seems to me that Plant cells are planted into human embryos, and those mutate into a hybrid creature. Similar happened to Legato in old anime (his power, which is never explained in Maximum, in old anime was a result of implanting Vash's severed arm), and in new one both of Elendira's eyes are different color and the blue of them may belong Tesla because only it has Plant eyelashes (especially since earlier Dr. Konrad reacted strangely to the similar looking eye, spliced with Nai's angelic claws).

And the following questions arise:

1) For Plants, the main part of their body and, maybe, where their consciousness is contained, is a metaphysical core in another dimension (it is interesting, by the way, that even the half-decayed physical body of Tesla found by the twins was listed as "Alive" in the spacecraft system. I think Plants are able to leave their mutilated or dead bodies and move into new ones - it would be logical; why does Tesla keep a connection with hers?). So with which core hybrids are connected: their own somehow created, a core of the Plant with whom they were spliced, or have no core at all and their body functions with human mind? If there is no core, where do they get the power for angelic weapons?

2) Can they communicate telepathically with the Plants and each other?

3) How much weaker or stronger a hybrid compared to Independent?

4) Can they merge into one being, like sisters with Nai in manga?

5) Why hybrid infants looks nothing like Independents, humans, sisters and Elendira?

[allbuthuman]

love for one's children / love for humanity

I think a big part of Vash putting Rem on a moral pedestal, thus clinging to unrealistic standards for himself, has to do with him projecting the particular kind of love that Rem had for him and Knives onto humans indiscriminately, while Rem didn't mean for it to be that way.

He thinks that, in order to honour her memory, he has to love everyone to the point of self-denial, to have space in his heart for every person he meets and to grieve them when they're gone as if they're his friends and family, because that's how Rem loved him.

The thing is, Rem loved him, Knives and Alex, and she also loved humanity, but those are not the same kind of love. Being fond of humanity as a whole and devoting yourself to it with your work is very different than loving your children or your spouse. Both are loves, but Rem, having had a life on Earth, would be able to tell them apart.

But Vash, at the time of Rem's death that marked him irreversibly, hadn't yet lived among humans at all. His conviction to live by "Rem's wishes" traces back to when he'd only been alive for a single year, among his immediate family. The only love he's ever known is his mother figure's towards her children – unconditional, self-sacrificial. So, with Rem having told them that they are humanity's protectors, he twists this into thinking that he has to suffer for everyone in the same way she would suffer for them, jumping in front of bullets like she jumped in front of that knife.

Being assigned the role of the protector, in combination with having wholly internalised his otherness (alongside his massive guilt complex), he fully believes that he has to protect every stranger as if they were a family member, a child or a spouse, and anything less is a betrayal to the woman who simply loved her children as her children.

It takes him actually getting close to people on a personal level and loving them as his friends versus indiscriminately as humans, it takes him realising that they don't see him faltering as a betrayal, that they'll forgive him if he breaks his moral code, that they will neither leave nor die because of it, to begin to deconstruct this.

[mothlady-garden]

Trigun and the angel parallels

I had this thought in my head for a while... so here goes nothing:

The celestial hierarchy is a tapestry of light, wisdom, and divine purpose, where every rank radiates its unique glory. In my theory that would be Vash, thier sisters and Knives. So let's start with the Seraphim.

1. Seraphim: The Spirits of All-Consuming Love (Vash)

• Element: Fire

• The name “Seraphim” translates to “The Enflamed” or “The Burning Ones,” symbolizing their unyielding devotion and love that ignites the heavens.

They are often depicted as pure flames of divine passion, ever-engaged in praising and reflecting the absolute love of the Creator.

TriMax Vol 4, Chapter 06: The Bystanders in form of the light of destruction.

light of love -his love for humanity/Rem

2. Cherubim: The Spirits of Harmony and Creation (Sisters)

• Element: Eternal Creation

• “Cherubim” signifies “The Fullness of Knowledge” or “The Outpouring of Wisdom,” embodying profound understanding and the ability to share divine illumination.

• In scripture, Cherubim guard the Garden of Eden, their composite forms blending animal features

• Referred to as the “Spirits of Harmony,” they are seen as the true creators of eternity, weaving the fabric of divine balance across the cosmos.

they are creating things and so protect humanity from its absolute doom

(What happens when they are taken away)

in the manga their powers actually cover a kind of illumination in form of the sharing of thoughts and memories with the humans in the end

3. Thrones: The Spirits of Will and Divine Authority (Knives)

• Element: Air

• The Thrones embody ultimate authority, elevated above all that is lowly. They stand unwaveringly aligned with the divine will, receiving and channeling God’s presence with unparalleled reverence.

• Often associated with the Ophanim—the “Wheels” described in the apocryphal Book of Enoch and in the visions of Daniel and Ezekiel—they are the chariots of God’s throne, ever circling in celestial motion.

• Their essence is to be “God-bearers” (Theóphoroi), opening themselves fully to divine inspiration without the distractions of the material world

That would also very much fit with the way Knives is shown to direct the will of the collective as its ruler discarding what makes him human

also he is the wheel of apocalypse in the manga

he is also floating/flying in the air as a harbinger of destruction for 25% of the story lol

he's seeking harmony for his kind at all coasts

[supernova351]

Warning for nuanced Vash conversation Tumblr

I’ve seen a few take a different approach to Vashs pacifism and non violence, but one of the most intriguing ones is that Vash doesn’t actually believe in it; and instead is doing it because it’s the only thing Rem ever really asked of him.

And while, from a general standpoint I do think it’s an interesting stance to take. From that viewpoint it shows why Vash clocked Wolfwoods whole deal immediately, because they’re the same. It also elevates Vashs anger in a way I haven’t really thought of before.

However

It takes away the only agency Vash has in his life. It’s what Knives is trying to tell him, that he “doesn’t really believe in it.” And that takes away so much of what makes Vash a strong character. Taking away his pacifism hurts him so bad in Trimax because that is who he is. Vash stand firm on his ideals and that’s what makes him Vash

[lost-technology]

The Twin's Dossiers

So, something I've been thinking about a lot and something I have seen speculation about, both on tumblr and on the sketchiness that is TV Tropes: The Dossiers of the twins on the Project SEEDS computer in where the Tesla record is being stored. It has information on Kni (Nai) and Vash, with Vash's file expressly in with Tesla's folder, which alarms a lot of fans. And a lot of us are wondering how did it get there? I've wondered, was it just a computer record the ship just does automatically about whatever goes on in it? Did Rem input the data for, say, health-information reasons (presumably to delete it all later?) Was it...for sinister reasons? Or did William Conrad come along and input it? I believe that Conrad did it.

It's possible that I'm wrong and will be eating crow when the second season of Stampede comes out, but as of now, I believe that it makes the best sense. There isn't a record of them like this in the manga. There is the Tesla record, but no trace of them on the main ship's computer.

First of all, I'm not sure the ship's computer would just be tracking them and making its own record, even with advanced AI, nor would have a deliberate file-placement. Second, Rem isn't stupid. She tells Nai to eat and drink like a human and to hide his powers. She does this for a reason. It is doubtful that she would keep records that the rest of the crew could be in danger of discovering should an emergency happen with the ship that would cause them to wake up. Third, the idea that Rem would have something sinister in mind for them is grossly out of character. I've seen that idea fronted. I think those people haven't read the manga. That leaves... The bastard, himself. In the manga, Conrad had opposed the experiments on Tesla along with Rem (according to her). He met Vash and Knives briefly when he'd not gone back to sleep right after the emergency situation on the ship and had snuck around. He was accepting of them, found them quite a wonderment and agreed with Rem to keep them a secret. He later wound up being recruited by Knives, but was more of his personal doctor / Plant-scientist and wasn't involved with the Gung Ho Guns / was just another recruit, held at literal knife-point and looking for atonement. In Stampede, he took a level in Asshole. He wasn't the greatest of guys in the manga, but he took a real hit in Stampede, doing gruesome human experimentation on Wolfwood and Livio personally, as well as on Rollo (who is sort of a new, Stampede-only character given how much he differs from the original Monev's origins). In Stampede, much like the recruitment meeting in the manga - Knives knew Conrad. He sought him out. While Knives *could* have found out Conrad purely from records, I think they'd met before, on the ship, just like in the manga. So.... since these suspicious dossiers exist, since Knives knew Conrad on sight and since Conrad is much more of a bastard in Stampede, (I think he was more involved with Tesla, too) I'm going to wager a guess that an incident happened like what happened in the manga with the crew waking up, Rem putting them back to beddy-bye, Conrad staying awake to meet the twins... And then at some point, putting their data into his research-computer. In other words, I think in the reboot, he gave Rem false assurances, convinced her of his remorse over Tesla when he probably wasn't as remorseful as he let on. Or perhaps something more complicated is afoot. Nai he saw as a "perfect being" - untouchable, the perfect bridge between Plants and Humans. Meanwhile, Vash is in the same folder as Tesla - perhaps, as a Plant with some human needs (food / water / sleep) and no apparent powers (until the push-pull thing comes into play), Conrad sees him as "the expendable twin," and thus a good test subject model, just like Tesla. He certainly treated Vash as such in the Soup.

[the-cooler-phantomowlet]

one thing i find wild is the dynamic between Vash and Knives/Nai. in the manga Vash reads as the older, more mature one, while Knives felt like a little brother (despite his name he was just a lil guy before ✨the incident✨) that went down the wrong path, while in stampede Nai definitely feels like the older brother with the whole protective dealio he's got going on, with Vash being the younger, more "naive" one.

and then there's '98. shit's just goofy lmao

[rotaryclaw13]

i really dig this analysis.

Considering tristamp Vash’s feelings about his plantness compared to trimax Vash. I don’t think trimax Vash had any real engagement with his powers prior to Knives forcing them out of him in July. And then once that happened, trimax Vash is just incredibly upset by any manifestation of his powers until the whole escape from the Ark where he finally gains control over them and uses them defensively with intent. Which makes sense. Aside from the initial traumas of Tesla and The Big Fall, it seems like Vash just kinda hung out for however many decades. First with Knives, then with humans, and like, he actually allowed himself to become part of the fabric of communities (Ship 3, July). Aside from being functionally immortal and able to commune somewhat with dependent plants, he was basically just a human. His interaction with plants is limited, and what we do see is generally centered on helping humans.

But Tristamp Vash is such a different kettle of fish. First there’s the stronger contrast between him and Knives, with Knives being far more plant-like than Vash and that being a source of conflict between them. And then right after TBF he learns he does have plant abilities. He can help/heal dependent plants, which is enormously powerful and earns him a place in the human community. And then the more dramatic discovery of his drain arm, which of course he promptly loses. So like, that’s a LOT to process for him. He had this part of himself he had no idea about and it was super dangerous but it’s already gone, so— ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ And he clearly spends the next 140-odd years going around helping his sisters as his main thing. Like, he also enjoys being with humans very much. He cares for both groups. But he isn’t just hanging out like any human. He has a real purpose in taking care of all the plants all over NML. And there’s no way 140+ years of regular interactions with plants and this power doesn’t change his perspective compared to Trimax Vash.

And not only that, but Tristamp Vash apparently had no idea about this Core thing which could be considered either connected to his other powers or as a third power. So that’s thrown at him, but even though it’s tangled up in uhhhh the whole JuLai fiasco, once all that is unlocked, he bounces right back up, embracing his full strength, the wing, uses his powers to make plant bullets (and making a prosthetic angel arm), the whole deal that Trimax Vash took until the very end of the manga to achieve. And I think a big part of his ability to do that is the 140+ years of embracing his plantness, not ignoring it or denying it. Tristamp Vash is just so much more connected to that part of himself, despite his complicated feelings due to Tesla and Knives, and the general threat humans represent to his autonomy and freedom.

Tristamp Vash does hide his true nature from people (wisely so given his off-the-charts value as a plant that can heal plants), but the bounty is a new thing at the start of Stampede, he hasn’t been forced out of human society like Trimax Vash. Being the planet’s itinerant plant engineer has probably made him everyone’s favorite cryptid. Clearly there’s still chaos in his life, as far back as Rollo he has his Stampede/Typhoon reputation. But it’s a gentler one than post-July Trimax Vash starts his story with. The destruction of Juneora Rock is what starts to darken Tristamp Vash’s rep, cemented by JuLai.

And JuLai is very different from July in so many ways. July was an almost completely involuntary action on Trimax Vash’s part, Knives made everything happen and the only part that didn’t go to his plan was Vash pointing the angel arm at him, and while Vash puts the blame on himself he’s not a reliable narrator for it. JuLai, meanwhile, while it still had a lot of Knives violating the heck out of Vash, Vash was able to fight back and come very close to salvaging the entire situation up until the very end. And Knives put himself in the way of the destruction this time, while Vash begged him to stop and save himself.

Vash will of course 100% blame himself for JuLai because that’s what he does, it’s how he copes. And his failure to safely get rid of that energy cube probably feels like more of a direct responsibility, direct guilt, than Trimax Vash maybe kinda pulling the trigger on the angel arm that Knives had really already fired. More relevant is the fact that while Vash’s powers were what caused the explosion, they’re several steps removed from it. It wasn’t Vash’s body that turned into a gun against his will and swallowed JuLai, with all the body horror that provides. Vash reclaimed his self and agency from Knives, put the energy into the cube to stabilize it, tried to get it out, tried to save JuLai and Knives, and it was a direct struggle between the twins that kept Vash from getting all the energy safely into space. Vash is obviously devastated as Ericks, there’s no way he wouldn’t be devastated at having even a fraction of the responsibility for so much destruction and death. But I don’t see why he would feel the way Trimax Vash feels about being a plant and his powers. It’s just a totally different dynamic.

For Trimax Vash, his identity as a plant represents trauma and loss of agency. For Tristamp Vash, his feelings are complicated but overall his identity as a plant enables him. It gives him purpose, belonging, strength. Trimax Vash is more emotionally aligned with humans because he feels more like a human. Tristamp Vash loves humans but I think he does accept himself as a plant to a significant degree. Tristamp Vash’s greater conflict is being stuck between humanity and plants in terms of the survival of both species. He wants to save both but the best he can do is keep everyone alive until he can’t anymore. That’s devastating to him in a totally different way. I think Tristamp overall is far more focused on survival for entire groups instead of the survival of individuals via pacifism vs killing. Tristamp Vash has a bigger worldview than Trimax Vash, who ignores the bigger picture to overly focus on individuals as a source of hope. Trimax Vash wants to save everyone but Tristamp Vash wants to save EVERYONE. Trimax Vash’s pacifism is driven by his Tesla trauma and subsequent suicide attempt/Rem’s efforts to help him. Tristamp Vash’s savior complex is driven by his Big Fall trauma.