Trigun Stargaze

Episode 9

After last week's non-stop battle, we were probably due a bit of downtime, as Vash and his friends consider their next move before Knives' upcoming attempted genocide. Almost the entire population of planet Noman's Land has been driven to the final functioning city, Octovern (which I can't help thinking should probably be translated as “October,” considering how the other cities are named for calendar months), as Knives has systematically harvested all of the other life-giving plants humans need to survive on this arid world. Octovern harbors the only plants left outside Knives' custody, and is therefore the only place where refugees can gather with the hope of accessing water and electricity.

Octovern isn't a viable destination for the vulnerable children of Hopetown orphanage, however. With water and food rations sufficient for only a week at most, the city's too far away to reach on foot within that timeframe. Are they doomed to die of dehydration in the cruel desert? Not if Vash has anything to do with it. The Home ship is still operational, and it's a good idea to ask its people to take in the kids. It's a shame Knives wrecked all of the communications satellites a few episodes back. Wolfwood's in no state to ride his motorcycle to reach the ship in time. In fact, it's unexpected that he's even still alive. I have no idea what Stargaze plans to do with his character now, and the same goes for the other surviving enemies spared by Vash – Midvalley and Emilio, who seem to have taken on new roles as children's entertainers. Are they likely to play any role at all in the looming finale, or is the story truly done with them? As their fates have been changed so drastically from both the previous iteration of the anime and the manga, who knows?

With Wolfwood out of action despite rocking a new silver fox look that succeeds in making him appear even more tired and grumpy than usual, it's down to either Vash or newly sane Livio to ride to the rescue. Except they're both totally useless. The extended motorcycle slapstick scene is incredibly dumb, but I'll admit it had me cackling despite myself. It feels like something transplanted from the Trigun anime of old, and that's not necessarily a bad thing. In fact, this episode may be the closest in vibe to the original than any other in the reboot series so far. Vash, Wolfwood, Milly, and Meryl end up reunited with one another and get to spend a little time bouncing off one another. It's not amazing drama or anything, and we've barely gotten to know this version of Milly at all, but it's still nice.

In personality, Milly's not much different from how she was in the 1998 anime or manga version, though she's not quite as physically intimidating. This episode confirms she's still one of a huge brood of siblings, though in this instance, she was raised as a “worm tamer,” as revealed in a bizarre scene where she gets a little too close to one of the planet's insectile indigenous species. No wonder she seemed to share some kind of affinity with Zazie the Beast earlier in the season.

Meryl's suggestion to Vash that he and Knives may share a psychic connection similar to that between individual members of the worm species seems like a wild leap in logic, but it pushes Vash to stop being so passive and go actively seek out his brother before he destroys not only mankind's final refuge on Noman's Land, but the entire fleet of starships rapidly coming to the rescue. Vash secretly siphoning off his power into Plant-powered bullets is a worrying development, especially as each one seems to drain a little more of his hair color (a marker for his reduced lifespan). I don't think he's planning to kill his brother, though I expect he still intends to at least injure him with these special bullets, which I guess will probably interfere with his ability to absorb and control other plants.

Everyone sending off our heroic quintet at the end with a shower of confetti is a nice touch, signalling an end to this pleasant breather. It's surely only a downhill journey into darkness and struggle for Vash from now on, as the post-credits teaser suggests a showdown with Knives fanatic Legato Bluesummers is imminent. Manga readers and fans of the original anime know what's likely to happen when they clash, though with Stargaze gleefully playing with audience expectations (at least in regards to Wolfwood), all bets are off as to how the final three episodes will proceed.

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Trigun Stargaze is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.