Trigun Stargaze

Episode 7

For better or for worse, this is the closest that the modern Trigun reboot has come to the tone and content of the original anime series. That means a mixture of goofy nonsense, heightened philosophical tensions between Vash and Knives, and a smidgen of over-the-top edginess. The thing is, I was never a massive fan of much of the original Trigun. I enjoyed Stampede for its propulsive plot and lack of dicking around, and while I've enjoyed Stargaze so far, I don't think it has managed to scale the heights its predecessor frequently succeeded in conquering. Perhaps part of that can be attributed to the change in director, but for the first time this season… I'm not really feeling it with this episode.

For once, there isn't a big action showcase, as the episode focuses on manoeuvring everyone into place for the climactic battle(s) sure to come. For some reason, there's been another time skip, of five months, though this is mentioned only in passing. During this time, Knives has continued to raze human settlements with his flying Ark, stealing the essential power source, Plants, as he goes. Without Plants, humans have no chance to survive in the arid world of Noman's Land, and all of the refugees are congregating in and around the single city with surviving Plants. Not that we see this directly, we're only told by Milly and Meryl. At least the gag where most of their photographic evidence consists purely of daft selfies is amusing. Milly has achieved almost nothing of import since her introduction at the beginning of the season; she may as well only exist as comic relief at this point.

In the Trigun Maximum manga, from where Knives' plan to exterminate humanity is drawn, we see far more of the utter desperation and degradation afflicting the normal people of this increasingly hostile planet. In Trigun Stargaze, instead, we see the Home ship's inhabitants playing around in the sand after their ship has been fully repaired. It's an odd vibe, considering the planet-wide genocide Knives is currently enacting. Midvalley the Hornfreak and Leonof/Emilio the Puppetmaster appear to have been rehabilitated, as they respectively teach kids music and perform puppet shows for them. I find it hard to believe that people who committed such heinous crimes against humanity are allowed anywhere near kids, to be perfectly honest. Oh well, at least the shiny spaceship works again.

Meanwhile, back on the Ark, a very tired-looking K-pop Legato has been busy psychokinetically pretzeling Vash into unnatural bodily positions, without rest or sleep, for five months' solid now. Seems like Knives' lackeys have a severe lack of workers' rights baked into their contracts. This is why unionization is important, folks. This lack of workplace regulation is what allows Wolfwood, who has just sort of been hanging around on the Ark, biding his time and refusing to use the sketchy doctor's regeneration medicine, to distract Legato enough for Vash to escape from his grasp. As anyone with a brain would do, Wolfwood pumps the blue-haired grumpy BTS wannabe full of hot lead, but of course, Vash implores him to spare Legato's life. Just as in every other version, Vash's extreme pacifism and concern for his enemies are likely to bite everyone in the ass later.

Before this, of course, Vash and Knives have another philosophical debate about the irredeemability of mankind, where neither listens to the other. It's very in line with every other iteration of Trigun, though this time, with his diatribe about how humanity does nothing but exploit Plants for selfish gain, Knives is revealed as an utter hypocrite. When even the completely unhinged Elendira the Crimsonnail starts to question Knives' intentions, after he absorbs the power of twenty individual plants, causing them to shrivel and die, then we know he's lost all moral authority. Mankind may have dissected the first Independent, Tessla, but what Knives is doing to the Plants in the name of justice is even worse. I wonder if half-Plant Elendira will eventually turn against him?

The final scene is something I've been waiting for, ever since Livio the Doublefang's apparent defeat in Stampede. He's back… Or is he? This personality wearing his skin, sprouting an extra arm, and carrying three separate Punisher guns is the first appearance of Razlo the Tri-Punisher. His Trigun Maximum version is grossly overpowered and super-edgy. I'm a bit concerned by the title of next week's episode, considering what Razlo does in the manga…

This action-light episode is by itself fairly unsatisfying, as it's mostly transitional and somewhat clumsy in its management of the time-skip and demonstration of the changes in the world. The goofy humor seems at odds with what should be a more grimly apocalyptic vibe. Hopefully, next week's episode, which is likely to feature a deadly, drawn-out fight between Vash, Wolfwood, and Razlo, will be more engaging.

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Trigun Stargaze is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.