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#you might not like it more than stampede but you WILL feel cool when you realize how it all relates to stampede
blueskittlesart · 11 months
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Hi! As someone who now kinda wants to check out Trigun because of the hype, do you recommend that I can start with Stampede? Or do I really need to watch the OG anime first to better understand/enjoy it? Thank you! 🙋🏻‍♀️
you can start with stampede! i'd say knowing the context of the original enhances the experience but isn't necessary to enjoy the show. I would consider stampede more viewer-friendly, especially for those of us who are used to modern storytelling conventions (the original suffers the consequences of general writing trends in anime at the time it was produced and of the fact that it was produced long before the manga was finished, so the story is somewhat disjointed and has a lot of filler which makes it REALLY hard to get into.) if you do end up liking stampede, however, I'd suggest trying out watching at least SOME of the original because it adds a lot of cool nuance and context to the story that stampede tells!
#your only REAL handicap is that you're missing out on references that clue you into the context of the story early on#and quite a few references in the finale. but none of those references are hugely necessary to understand the plot so you should be fine!#i didn't DISLIKE the origial and like i said im glad i watched it first but it was. REALLY hard to get into.#even as someone who understands writing trends & enjoys a lot of older anime trigun is. a product of its time.#there's almost no context given for the story you're witnessing until a good 20 episodes in.#the main villain isn't named at all until halfway through the runtime#and even TWO EPISODES BEFORE THE FINALE i still did not have enough information to fully understand what the hell was going on#vash was going into the final fucking battle and i still didn't know what knives WAS let alone what the fuck he WANTED#not to mention nick was FULLY DEAD and i still didnt know what his deal was. like ok go off king have ur moment bleeding out in the church#but can you EXPLAIN WHATS GOING ON BEFORE YOU SUCCUMB TO THE BLOOD LOSS PLEASEEEEEEEE GOD#stampede does that whole thing WAY better imo. it sprinkles the backstory more naturally throughout the show#again. part of this is 90s writing conventions. but there's only so much i can take fr#it was like comparable to evangelion in terms of LACK OF CONTEXT#anyways. this isnt supposed to be me complaining about the original. it had its moments. i watched 24 episodes of it like it was not BAD#but like. i think the story really benefits from the way that stampede chooses to lay everything out. is what im saying.#tldr watch them in whatever order but if you like stampede try the original#you might not like it more than stampede but you WILL feel cool when you realize how it all relates to stampede#asks#vash is also WAAAAAY sexier in stampede. HOWEVER. the women of the show are like 10 times sexier in the original. so. pick your poison ig
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sporesgalaxy · 1 year
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I've been seeing a lot of Trigun posts around and ngl it's got me interested in the show! What's your recommendation for what to start with first? Like reading the manga first or starting with Stampede?
I actually really recommend MY experience, which was Trigun 1998 -> Trigun Stampede -> Trigun & Trigun Maximum manga
I'll explain why under the cut :) But tl;dr the order is
Very Little Lore Explained -> Some Lore Explained -> All Lore Explained And Woven Beautifully Into The Themes
Trigun 1998
the Trigun 1998 anime was made before the manga was finished, so some major plot points towards the end are very different because they were at least partially improvised. There is also very very little worldbuilding lore revealed in the 1998 anime-- but when they did touch on it, it really piqued my interest!
I'd imagine the 1998 anime might be a bit disappointing to watch after Stampede or the manga, when you're aware of all the cool characters and worldbuilding you're missing out on. Going into 1998 blind, I just felt vaguely confused yet emotionally compelled & willing to accept it because YeeHaw Space Cowboy, yknow?
Stampede
Trigun Stampede was made after the completion of the manga, and was clearly more than excited to dig into the worldbuilding and villain buildup that the original anime missed out on. But as I've said it ends up so tightly paced that it's missing the weight 1998's slower pacing could lend to the Average Human Lives around Vash.
It will offer you much more worldbuilding and some very strong character introductions, which I think are good lead-ups for meeting the characters in their Fullest Forms in the manga.
The Manga
Now, the animes are gonna leave you with a lot of questions. About character motivations and Plants, mostly. You'll feel the themes were well-delivered, but have the distinct feeling that they could be stronger. They're also going to leave you wanting more time to spend with these charming, lovable characters.
I am delighted to say that the manga delivers everything you could possibly be left wanting for after the animes BEAUTIFULLY, AND THEN SOME!!!!!!! I've been devouring it at a record pace and it has yet to disappoint. The themes and their spectacular deliveries are changing my brain chemistry. I'm absorbing it into my soul.
Please Please Please even if you dont like either anime, read the manga anyway. Especially if you don't like either anime because you feel they don't deliver on their philosophical musings adequately. Because the manga DOES deliver. So much. Please I'm begging. It's so good it's so fucking good
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My current top 15 Anime and why
Because why the fuck not. I'm doing top 15 so that I have some variety behind it. Otherwise I would just be gushing non stop XD
Apparently numbers go big now - AND THEY GO SMALLER IF YOU TRY TO TYPE IN THE SAME LINE AS THEM???
comparison:
15
15 -
DA HECK????
(Edit: I was going to colour all the numbers because I wanted a rainbow. WHY THE FUCK FOR THEY CHANGE TO SMALL WHEN YOU COLOUR THEM??????)
Guess the titles of the anime get a small heading. Anyways. Onto the actual list!
15
Technoroid OVERMIND
Ayo. Starting out with a really random one. So if anyone were to look at my Anilist then they might be a bit confused. I decided I'd keep movies out of here as well as anything I haven't specifically finished. Also takt op. Destiny needs a re evaluation.
Anyways. This premise is so sick and I feel like they managed it really well. The characters were all really fun and the music was fantastic which is honestly the most important thing about Idol shows. I really like idol shows but often struggle with the stupid drama in them that just leads to seasons upon seasons that didn't need to happen or wouldn't actually happen.
In this they're just androids. The fantasy twist works so well for the genre and I honestly don't know why it isn't done more often. This way they can bullshit the drama and it actually makes sense.
Honestly my favourite character was Kite. He was great and his voice always gave me shivers. Especially his piece in the closing. Damn.
I don't want to go into full reviews with this, rather just gushing about things I like and stuff. I really don't think this got the recognition it deserves - probably because of it's deviation from the norm - but it would be cool to get some sort of sequel.
(Edit: There's a manga releasing apparently. Imma check that out.)
14
UniteUp!
Continuing on with the trend of idol animes apparently. UniteUp! was so good. As I mentioned in my Reviews while I watch of the show, it felt so grounded and real that other idol shows just don't seem to capture. These were all real people with real problems dealing with real life.
I also like how we had such a large cast of characters but it never really felt overwhelming as they focused on group dynamics and specific individuals rather than trying to cram every single person into their own arcs.
Once again the music was fantastic and by god was this show pretty gay. Honestly I don't know what the sentiments of others are, but the Anela duo definitely weren't straight and neither were Akira and Daiki. That bath scene says it all.
Anyways. If you want a fun time with a really solid idol anime, please check it out. I saw earlier that we're getting a season two soon. I am so looking forward to it.
13
Trigun Stampede
Damn! I don't even know what to really say about this one. The visuals are absolutely stunning - there is no doubt about that. The score and the characters are excellent. And how dare they leave us on that cliff hanger.
I have absolutely no history with this story and still need to watch and read the originally but I am really looking forward to seeing how the story adapts between the three.
You can ask my partner. I've already said we're watching everything trigun related as soon as we are done with our current show.
I'm really looking forward to season two. And especially seeing how this all pans out. Apparently there will be tears according to the fandom. Concern.
12
Re-main
Damn this show came out of nowhere for me. I watched it quite awhile ago and have been meaning to rewatch it again.
The premise is definitely a sports anime but honestly so different. All because of one thing. The fact that he is an amnesiac is such a fascinating concept to work with - especially with how he was before (trying not to spoil - can't remember when this comes up in the anime)
And then the ending?? Damn. They seriously set up that cliff hanger and I really hope this show gets a sequel.
I really can't say too much about it without giving away some spoilers but damn does it change up the formula and do it so fucking well.
11
Given
Given is great. Such a pure but heartbreaking portrayal of love on one side with such conflicting but also nurturing views on the other. Having the different realtionships throughout this is really well done how they all bounce off of each other. Especially when they entertwine it with the music.
As it is said. That is how they communicate - through the music.
I'm busy catching up with the manga and really hope the anime continues with it.
Also the fucking is just fucking gorgeous. It has no write to hit you that hard.
Also - something else that shouldn't be allowed to hit you that hard. Damn Mafuyu has had a difficult past. We love how he learns to heal and grow with Uenoyama at his side.
Anyways, moving on.
10
Bakuten!!
Okay. Who said a sports anime could be this pretty.
I love the art style and the music throughout all of this. I love the portayal and the evolution of these character - seriously all their arcs are great. The interactions of the team is so tangible and real.
I watch a lot of sports anime and I often struggle with some of the drama used within the sports - it feels like the only thing that ever fuels the story is the matches. Whereas in Bakuten - the character seriously fuel the story. You can understand their motivations much more than just - I want to play this sport and be the best!
I also feel like they really captured everything really well in the movie. The whole concept of wanting to sore is great and really well executed.
I also love the interactions they have with the other team. It's not just a once off competition or practice match that they face each other. We actually get tangible characters for the whole team and see how much they two teams are similar to one another. It's a very healthy rivalry that isn't normally this expanded on in sports anime.
9
Sasaki and Miyano
Yesssssss. These two are just absolutely amazing. Their whole story arc and relationship is just tooth rottingly sweet. They bounce off of each other so well.
And I love the fact of how slow the actual story is. They meet at the start of Miyanos first year (from what I know - I still need to read the novels) and sasaki's second and they only end up confessing just before graduation happens. It really plays out well and is so healthy.
There is no problematic elements like in so many BL stories which is such a breath of fresh air. And the fact that sasaki is very specific about making sure to maintain boundaries to ensure that miyano is comfortable is also excellent.
On a slightly different note - I still need to see the Hirano and Kagiura movie. Been dying to watch it. I've been keeping up to date with both manga and both of these stories are amazing. I love the dichotomy of the two stories and how they are coming to their own realisations of their feelings in honestly very different ways.
I also recently watched the dub of the anime due to some videos on tiktok. Fucking hell it is absolutely hilarious. Kellen Goff as Sasaki has no reason for being that good. Seriously. Damn.
8
Link Click
On a completely different note. Damn this one makes you questions your own morals and reality as you know it.
I really don't want to get into this one much as I do believe watching it blind is the best way to go.
The art style is fantastic and that opening hits like a truck it is so good. The characters just click (pun not intended) and you just understand their motivations and don't know which side to side with most of the time. It brings about such high moral dilemmas that will seriously mess with your brain sometimes and there is one episode that will likely make you cry.
Anyways. Season 2 has just started airing and I am so ready for it.
7
Buddy Daddies
Why did a show about two queer platonic dudes who adopt a child while beings assassins hit so damn hard.
The show jumps between episodes with backstory and episodes with them just being good dads and it is balanced so well. This anime won't end up getting a sequel most likely with how it ended but damn I wouldn't say no to one.
Rei is my favourite character and I relate to him far too much. His interactions with the world are so fascinating and his whole arc with Miri is honestly some of the best media I've seen.
I absolutely loved watching this show weekly and it always brightened up my day when I realised a new episode would be up.
If you would like further thoughts on this one then check the Reviews while I watch on it for more chaos.
6
No Game No Life
So. This was the first ever anime that I ever watched. It was a random recomendation from a friend. Look at where we are today.
This show is honestly just so fun. The characters are silly and the whole plot is just absolute chaos. I really enjoy the games aspect and how it was all incorporated into the world.
I can't even really say much about it. It is just a guilty pleasure of mine and will always hold a special place in my heart.
Also. Please can it just get a second season already.
5
Assassination Classroom
So. Unlike everything else on the list - this one I only finished really recently. My partner and I were watching it together. And to put it out there straight away. I cried. That ending was far too emotional.
I really enjoyed the humour throughout the whole thing as well as the constant underlying dread of the whole situation.
They also really played out Koro-senseis backstory really well. The teasing to it was excellent. I must say though that one of the twists seriously came out of left field. Like damn.
I've just recently bought the boxset and am reading through the manga. Once again. It's absolutely amazing.
Also the openings of them all jumping are absolutely fucking hilarious and you can't tell me otherwise.
If you want to know what officially sold me on the show was just in the first episode. (Note we watched in dub)
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Don't ask me why but I found this to be the most hilarious thing ever. The absurdity and the line delivery was magnificent. I annoy my partner by quoting it atleast once a day.
4
Life Lessons with Uramichi Oniisan
Speaking of comedies. This show has no right to be this good. The absudist dead pan comedy in the middle of whats meant to be a TV show is such a random premise but just works so well.
Due to the nature of the show, the characters are extremely relateable. I especially love Kumatani and Kikaku.
If your on the same side of anime tiktok that I am then you have definitely seen/heard snippets of the dub.
I think this was the first anime that I originally watched in sub and then tried it in dub and actually enjoyed it. (I often find that whatever I originally watched it in is the only one I can watch it in - it's very difficult for me to change it)
The voice acting on both sides just works perfectly for the show. And that final episode and how they did it was the best thing ever.
Please just give it a try.
3
Angel Beats
Okay. Time for a hard hitter. This comedy like assassintaion classroom is fucking excellent but will make you cry, like damn.
In complete and utter contrast to No game no life, this was the second anime I had ever watched. I had found a video that gave some suggestions and thought I would give this one a try. When I say it destoryed me, I mean it literally. I constantly think about the end of this and I absolutely love revisiting it.
The twist and turns along the way are fascinating and I love how each one alters the characters and the narrative. Each of the characters feel unique - even the lesser developed side characters - with fascinating and complex backstories.
The whole thing just makes you question your own place in life.
2
Moriarty the Patriot
Another one I just randomly tried because I saw a video on tiktok. The first episode immediately pulled me in. I thought it was just going to be some simple detective story (At the time I didn't know much about Sherlock Holmes and who Moriaty was so I didn't have any of that to guide me into this story.) But nope.
I keep saying this but in this one I really mean it. The characters are built so well. The dichotomy between William and Sherlock - as the fandom would probably agree - is just amazing. How they bounce off of each other - i don't even know how to really descirbe it.
Honestly just go watch it.
And if you enjoyed the anime - please go check out the manga too. If the anime was done well - then the manga is done to lamost perfection.
This show was what got me into reading and then eventually buying manga. I now have every single one that is out.
1
Yuri!!! on ICE
Did I make the title gay? Yes.
Okayyyyy. This is just going to be me going on about how much I love this show. Bare with me.
So I was in an anime watching slump just before I picked up this show. I had been seeing some videos popping up talking about it and decided to give it a try (this was in 2020)
I immediately fell in love with this show. Literally everything about it. I ended up rewatching it three times over the course of a week. It got to a point where I was so upset that there wasn't more content for it that I just cried for half a day. (Ask my partner - it was chaos)
This show is the reason I now read fanfiction - all because I found a way to technically have more content for it.
This show holds such an important place in my heart that I sincerely cannot express it properly.
If you've never watched it - go give it a try. It would mean a lot - and hopefully one day we might get a season two.
----
Thanks for reading, if you managed to get to this point. I find it interesting how my explanations managed to slowly get shorter throughout the list as I just started becoming more emotional than factual.
I hope you enjoyed it and maybe grabbed a recommendation or two. If you'd like to know more or hear me ramble on more about anything in particular then please let me know.
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eshtaresht · 1 year
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holy. fuckin'. DAMN. I was pretty good at predicting the plot so far, but this episode proved that stampede is going in a whole new direction for real. spoilers for ep 9!!! (and manga a bit)
first of all, we still haven't got a full story of the great fall, but I think it's something they'll reveal in this season, probably during confrontation with knives. and still no scar reveal!! I'm angy but it's something that could be relevant to the standoff with knives, hope we'll get it
the piano scene... oh we're eating GOOD, it's just so wholesome but goes to confirm my theory that twins weren't completely fine on the ship. vash feeling useless because he can't do cool plant shit, knives envying vash for being good at human shit.... oh it's great
so glad knives is getting proper characterization and not just "he evil because he evil"! the fear, the hurt, the genuine care for vash, but then frustration with him – it's right there and I'm eating it up so yummy
the way they recontextualized vash's arm loss is GORGEOUS! I've seen ppl reading this scene differently, but to me it was an act of care from naï. he looks really scared for a reason: we see that the gate consumed all matter, including the hand. vash couldn't control it, so it would only grow bigger and destroy him. NAÏ REALIZED THIS AND SAVED VASH THE ONLY WAY HE COULD
he didn't want to fight him, this was not an act of anger, like in previous versions. all he cared about in that moment was saving his twin..... and what did he get in return? a gun pointed to his face. a gun he gave vash to kill human scum. oh, the DRAMA
ahem, now to the less intense stuff
homeboy has so much trauma, like, damn... how is he gonna fit any more from his impending epic brother fight...... I'm quite curious on how they're gonna characterize him in the next season. concidering that we're taking off earlier than previous versions, he might end up with the same unhinged vibe 98' vash had, as a coping mechanism (if depression didn't work, try dissociation and silliness). but then it would be even more interesting to see meryl's and wolfwood's reactions: they knew him before the accident and saw the big sad
vash has sense in the prosthetic arm, so it must've hurt when he damaged it... probably it hurts less than the real one, and it's clearly painless to take off. but the hand seems to be rather sensitive and fic writers are gonna go crazy for this
age reveal! also brad and luida being in cryosleep makes sense, I was racking my brain on how they're still alive. seems like they're using much more plant power tho... both for cryo and the vegetation, while in manga they tried to keep it as low as possible and send signals to earth
saw someone say that they're probably not doing that here because the earth is destroyed... could be that they decided to go the hard way. but in the manga the earth was still fucked, and it wasn't clear if they communicated with the ppl left on the planet or the fleet that was in some new place. what I'm saying is, there is a possibility that they are looking for help in stampede, we just don't know it yet
meryl was so cute! go off, comedy relief goofy girl, while you can, there is more trauma coming your way :3 yeah, enjoy roberto calling you by your first name... oh it would be such a shame if he gave you his derringer before his untimely death..........
pretty weird that nobody knows why they fell on no man's land, but ppl probably were too ashamed of their past and 150 years later the new generation is oblivious. also so funny that luida has to explain what vegies are..... they have so many plants but haven't see any plants
tbh I wasn't expecting the zazie twist at all, but I'm excited! they are SO gender in stampede, might be the best redesign in the series, love me a genderless bug creature with bold fashion choices. really cool to see that storyline adapted, it was barely touched upon in the last volumes of trimax
btw the multiple bullets story about a plant, worm and human who went around figuring out if their species could coexist and just.... creating this foud family and then building a town there all were equal...... that's my favorite mb story for sure
wolfwood saying "I'm not your friend"... I know what you are. and we got a "you'll have to decide one day"... oh oh the misery, but the context was lacking. it just doesn't hit the same when he isn't daring vash to shoot him in the most homoerotic way possible. on and he looks so goofy trying to ride with his cross
in the last ep's rant I assumed that luida lied about rem saving everybody for some reason?? but no, she actually saved them, I just got a bit confused
so, as I predicted, the gang separated (tho not because of vash) and by the end of the next episode vash'll be in july and meet naï. the poster, man.... that gorgeous futuristic city is getting obliterated for sure
btw vash's gate being opposite to knives and sort of a black hole is nothing new. but there are new layers to this, like vash willingly giving away energy, but destroying things against his will, and knives with the opposite of this. ying yan twins go brrrr
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alena-reblobs · 8 months
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Trigun Bookclub Trimax Vol11 Part1
Vol01: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3  | Vol02: Part 1 | Part 2
Trimax: Vol01 Part 1Vol01 Part 2 | Vol02 Part 1Vol02 Part 2 | Vol 03 Part 1 | Vol03 Part2 | Vol04 Part1 | Vol04 Part2 | Vol05 | Vol06 | Vol07 | Vol08 Part1 | Vol08 Part2 | Vol09 Part1 | Vol09 Part2 | Vol10 Part1 | Vol10 Part2 | Vol10 Part3 | Vol10 Part4 | Vol11 Part 1
Time to make my vol11 post so that I can read the other bookclubposts! This one will be MUCH shorter than my vol10 review. Chapters 1-3 below the cut!
Chapter 1:
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EXCUSE ME I thought we had just established that we had FINALLY gotten over this old man and now we have to see his face one more time?? The audacity
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Aaah I love Zazie as a character! Their concept is really cool, and it's pretty easy to kinda overlook it in your first read through, because I remember that it was Stampede where I understood that OH Zazie ist one of the worms! Of the native inhabitant species of the planets! Makes you remember that this is, after all, a Scifi Manga. (In a way).
Also hehe Elendira and her murderous side is so funny.
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Snork mimimi snork mimimi God knows he needs the rest after all. I wonder if he dreams, and what he'd dream about in this night.
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The fact that even Livio is shocked to hear that Vash was willingly making himself vulnerable in Livio's presence...really shows how much of a good guy he is I think! And the fact that Vash was trusting Livio enough to do that is something I really really like...regardless of how he might feel towards Livio now. I don't think he hates him. It's complicated and at first was a bit hostile-sounding, rightfully so, maybe, but Wolfwood gave his life to bring him back, and Vash trusts Wolfwood, so, logically he trusts Livio, too.
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Ouch, not saying his name because that might still hurt too much... I'm a little confused why Vash blushes here? Is he embarassed because he's sounding so naive? Or maybe it's less blushing and more being close to tears? Could be that.
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uuh cool panel and cool Knives look!
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THEY ARE HERE THEY ARE HERE
Chapter 2:
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Even though Nightow is sometimes a bit, well...chaotic with his worldbuilding, I still feel like he's doing a great job. Because he's really good at getting the overall feeling across, the atmosphere, and making the world feel lively, so that we know there's stuff happening around our main characters. This might also mainly be because the stuff happening heavily influences our protagonists and the story. But it's also because it's well put into words and pictures!
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Yeah girl you show that military guy!! Love her :D
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Have I told you that ponytail Milly in a jacket and jeans is my favourite Milly flavour? I have now! She's so sweet and strong and huggable. Also these two are girlfriends.
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And directly after that we get a trigun humour scene, where even those two scratch the 4th wall in disbelief :DD I love the duality of this manga, we have sooo many dark and tough scenes, but in between, at the right moments, we get a bit of fun to have a breather. But really, this happening just after both of them stare into the distance, reminiscing about old times, is peak humour.
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Oho! It's one of Vash's newly developed bullets!
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Yeeeess the family is back together! <:'))
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Haha I didn't get this on my first, possibly two, read throughs at all: the mechanical parts of the ark are breaking apart, while it's transforming into this even bigger ship, an amalgamation of all the plants...there's this trace of a female body at the bottom, wow. Body horror! Looks pretty badass though.
Chapter 3:
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Saving this for the only reason that it's all 3 of them together and it's therefor a precious panel
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Ouch. (It's good that he's mentioned though and not just "oh well character is dead bye" We'll get to see this more, but really, until the very end, Wolfwood will not be forgotten and will stay a part of the story) And the look of Livio when he's mentioned! We know that boy must be overcome with guild and shame. Brad comes in to help him, though he says later in the chapter he didn't do it for him, but still, a tiny part of Brad, the one that believes in Vash, is willing to believe in Livio for him, and has already accepted Livio as a companion! I'm sure of that.
The most cruel thing through all of this is how we don't get to see any reaction from Vash. Because we really don't need to. Simply showing his grayed out back is SO telling already...again, some things are best left to imagination, like his expression. I imagine that's not always easy to follow as an artist, at least I LOVE to draw the hurt, the pain and all strong emotions in my characters, so I would really have to force myself to not do that.
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Oh my god Milly :'( She's trying to go along with that story (a story that fools nobody), to not ruin the mood or well make a big topic out of it in this situation I guess, but she's just so open with her emotions, she just can't : (( Milly and Wolfwood also were such great characters with a nice dynamic (most of which we got to know at the Dragon's Den), how lovely it would have been to see more. Especially since they are both pretty different in ways, but also so similiar in ways! Both care deeply for family and both are protectors! Wolfwood could have probably learned a lot from Milly, like asking for help and such things.
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Hehe Zazie got kicked out
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Did pre-Juneora Rock Vash collect figurines?? What a nerd (lovingly)
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If I had to choose a fetish it would be about Nightow's hand drawings. Maybe call it an art fetish. Cause damn he makes hands look so...substantial! Real! It's not even that they are super accurate anatomical wise (all joints are there and where they belong, but I think sometimes some lengths of the bones look a bit off?) but..I think it's the little details like scratches and such stuff that makes them not look so hospital-clean. Uhm know what I mean? I'm gonna stop talking now.
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Livio, you're looking like a cockatoo!
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Someone in the bookclub already pointed out this scene and I just want to add, there's now way Livio DIDN'T cry his eyes out after this
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FINALLY someone closer to Vash says this to him. I really like Marlon for this (and that flashback drinking scene is great) because someone needs to drum this into Vash's head...good thing Marlon always speaks his mind!
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I also love this right after, but I wanted to put the Dark Horse translation (right side) next to the Overhaul on the left! The Overhaul makes a bit more sense to me, at least sounds more sensible, but for some reason, the Dark Horse translation kinda stuck with me! This "Please, let me be! You'll get me all confused!" I really felt that, and I always thought this was a great way of showing the mess of emotions Vash must be feeling! The left one makes it a bit more clearer that Vash doesn't really know how to ask for help and NOT try to shoulder everything on his own. The Vash on the right...he feels a bit more like he's just so overwhelmed with everything that's been going on, Wolfwood's death, and now someone telling him he's allowed to get help, to ask for it...it's just too much at the moment and he doesn't know how to process that now. I like both, but I love the vulnerability the right translation gives off.
And that's it for chapters 1-3! Next ones in another post!
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diableasura · 4 months
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Now that i've watched every one piece movie that isn't a retelling of an anime arc or straw hat chase i'm gonna go ahead and indulge in the very human tendency of ranking them in order from best to worst (SPOILERS!!!!):
One Piece: Strong World. Maybe it's because this was the first movie i watched and my first experience with one piece in animation but strong world has remained my favorite since day one (though the second place is very very close i must say). The straw hats are all great and have their little moment to shine the plot is solid and they do a great job with nami, out of the four straw hats with a movie more focused on them she's by far the one that gets the best treatment. Strong world is in the perfect position of being a pre time skip movie, so it's not dragged down by the expanding cast of post time skip, but also since it was the tenth anniversary movie they put in more effort than with the previous movies and it shows. Also sanjis cowboy outfit instantly makes it top tier.
One Piece: Film Gold. I'm... kind of obsessed with this movie?? Seeing the straw hats in a heist really scratched an itch i didn't know i had but my god does it feel good. The designs really excelled here the crew looks gorgeous throughout the entire movie and tesoro's island is so interesting and fits very well in the one piece world. Tesoro is also my favorite villain of any movie, i've seen people say he's the perfect blend between crocodile and doffy and that's so true lmao. Loved having zoro as the damsell in distress, inject that shit straight into my veins i love it when the strong character is the one in need of rescue. Everyone was very cool during the heist but i remember really enjoying franky and luffy's dynamic cause lbr we're kinda starved of it in the manga so it was nice to see them interact so much here. Overall amazing movie and the only one i've rewatched out of all of them.
Baron Omatsuri and the Secret Island. This movie has become a cult classic amongst the fandom and with good reason. It breaks away from the loud spectacle of the other movies and is quieter and more unsettling and so far the only example of actual psychological horror in the lore. I've talked about this before but that final scene with the straw hats cheering luffy on even while they're being consumed by the baron and luffy struggling to the brink of death to save them changed me... I love seeing this family love each other so much!!
Clockwork Island Adventure. I know, I know what's the second movie doing so high up... but it was just so good!! It's very short but that's just a benefit to the plot and i love the gimmick of each straw hat being captured one by one till it's just luffy remaining and the one who has to free them (can you tell i love the movies where the straw hats are kidnapped and the others have to rescue them?? that's my drug). Sanji's fight in this movie kicks ass too, the animation is gorgeous.
One Piece: Film Red. This might seem like a sin, to have this movie so far down the list cause i've seen its pretty unanimously tied up with baron omatsuri as the best movie but to be honest i feel like that's just recency bias. The movie is still a spectacle and the songs slap and yes one of them was in the top 5 of my spotify wrapped this year lol. Uta is a good antagonist but i was never that hooked by her shared past with shanks and luffy, mainly because it's so aggressively impossible for it to be canon, it almost broke my suspension of disbelief. Zosan sleeping side by side was pleasing to my monkey brain and it almost made up for including st charlos in the movie seriously what the fuck was he doing there-
One piece: Stampede. The start of this movie is amazing cause they come up with the perfect competition to have all of these pirate crews on the same place but it quickly devolves into a "how many characters can we fit in" contest and the plot quickly turns into "lets all beat up the villain", which is fine! I did like seeing so many characters, at one point half way through the movie crocodile just appears out of nowhere lmao but hey i'm not complaining i love crocodile. Usopp is the straw hat who's focused on the most in the movie and i feel conflicted with what they did with him cause it just felt like they were making him go through his water 7 arc all over again by having his inferiority complex flaring up. And usopps arc was amazing in water 7 but reviving it for this movie felt a bit weird and repetitive. Despite this though i was very happy seeing him getting the focus, usopp is a painfully underrated character so having him on the spotlight is always welcome.
Dead End Adventure. This movie is a lot of fun. There's a bar fight, a secret pirate race and sanji being his sneaky self and helping out luffy during the final fight. Whats not to love?
One Piece: Film Z. Much like Stampede, i really enjoyed the start of this movie cause the monster trio get to briefly fight the big baddie together, but the plot kinda loses some steam for me after that. Also they tried to make the admirals sympathetic cause the villain is a retired admiral who was once their mentor but i really really really dont care about the marines at all so that was a bit awkward. The straw hats look stunning in this movie, i love that in the movies they give them a million different outfits and the ones from this one absolutely slayed.
Choppers Kingdom on the Island of Strange Animals. Another fun movie where all the straw hats get a moment be cool. There's a kid on this island who i found completely insufferable but i can forgive this movie cause this is also where zosan have that famous scene where they praise the other to their defeated oponent, which made my monkey brain happy.
One Piece: The Movie. This movie's biggest misstep is that sanji isn't in it, but even with this critical flaw it was still quite enjoyable. Zoro is very funny on his own but add luffy into the mix and their dynamic was hilarious. Usopp as always was great. The villain is small potatoes tbh but not really the important part of the movie, which focuses more on the relationship between the kid they meet and his gramps. The final message was surprisingly very sweet. Also sanji appears briefly in the end credits to appease me.
Giant Mechanical Soldier of Karakuri Castle. This movie is a-okay. The villains are a complete joke and it takes the crew less than five minutes to deal with them. The crew dynamics carry all of my enjoyment with this one.
The Cursed Holy Sword. Yeah... this movie commited the unforgivable sin of having zoro as the main focus and yet managing to do absolutely nothing interesting with him. Even if they did shamelessly create kuina 2.0 with saga, they could've delved into how zoro would react when two different duties (his promise to saga and his position as the crew swordsman) clash against each other... but instead we see no conflict with zoro, even though we all know this situation would be conflicting for him. They just make him scowl throughout the whole runtime and thats just not who Zoro is... Luffy and usopp are a lot of fun though.
TL; DR my ranking is:
Strong World
Gold
Baron Omatsuri
Clockword Island
Red
Stampede
Dead End
Z
Choppers Kingdom
One Piece: The Movie
Karakuri Castle
Cursed Holy Sword
Conclusion: the one piece brainrot is no joke.
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hikennosabo · 9 months
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trimax vol 9 random thoughts
sorry if you saw this post disappear and reappear in the tag multiple times, i was fighting for my life much like wolfwood using trial and error trying to get it to even show up in the tag because tumblr is a functional website and not fucky in the slightest. </3
i wrote this post extremely sleep deprived 2 days ago let's GOOOOO
also heads up for potential spoilers for tristamp since i talk about it a little. even though i spoiled 98 untagged in my last post. sorry about that
chapter 1:
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someone in the book club tag (don't remember who it was, sorry) said something about sharing food being a love language for wolfwood... :') wah...
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^_^
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why is this thing even on the building in the first place. and for that matter how did the dog even GET up there...... whatever
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hi razlo. i don't know where to say this in the post so i'll just say now i unintentionally spoiled myself on razlo's identity because i was googling when i shouldn't have been. all totally my fault LOL [anime girl bleh gif]
the boy didn't even have the decency to wash the blood off his hands. kid, please, you're not doing livio any favors here.
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livio manspreading on the couch... chapel, have you considered there's another reason why livio's breathing might be "irregular" as he helps you take his former home hostage? hmmm?
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^ FUNNIEST PIECE OF DIALOGUE IN THE WHOLE VOLUME
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thank god for livio, this guy was doing a speedrun on being the most annoying one-off minor villain--WAIT is he kicking him with his hands in his pockets? that's SO funny. i'm liking livio more and more.
chapter 2:
"he shouldn't be that old" <- the kids would be expecting wolfwood to be, hmmm, in his early 20s, thereabouts? ww looks around a decade older than that...
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he's giving... something here. it's the combo of the glasses and all-white outfit i think. the y2k fashion vibe.
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who is saying this? livio? razlo? both? chapel, since he was the one just talking? also, nice visual metaphor!
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this is obviously NOT the reason wolfwood spared these guys, but this is reminding me of when oda said that luffy doesn't kill his opponents because shattering their dreams is worse than death. LOL
also i am convinced nightow drew this chapter for the sole purpose of making wolfwood do cool shit on his motorcycle.
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that being said, all the cool shit wolfwood does is immediately overshadowed by livio CATCHING A BOMB IN MIDAIR AND THROWING IT BACK AT THE GUY WHO SHOT IT. stampede livio could never do this, he's too skinny
chapter 3:
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people have already said stuff about this page, but I Also Want To Say Stuff. the wispiness of the smoke, livio's hair blowing in the wind... it feels very much like the calm before the storm, simultaneously serene and tense. and i LOVE how wolfwood is shaded in grey, while livio is the one shaded in black. fantastic contrast and composition, i adore it.
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why is this razlo's first note to livio. "!" like...?! you're letting livio know you exist, but giving literally no other information like at all? okay. razlo's a bit of an oddball, to put it mildly.
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the rest of his letters are... well they're not "normal," i guess, and not any less cryptic, but they are kinda sweet in their own way.
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knowing who razlo is i love the way his introduction scene is presented. livio is keeping information from ww and from the reader, so it's both literal and not. also razlo is appropriately unsettling, i wish he would stop... unhinging his jaw like that.
...also who tf told him about EoM?! this is a difference with stampede... stamp!livio joined EoM because he wanted to follow wolfwood. no razlo involved in the decision-making, as far as we know. compared to here in the manga, livio left the orphanage on his own, so there isn't really a clear timeline on when ww joined EoM vs when livio did. we don't even know if he knew ww was in EoM at all.
also upon rewatching this scene for this post i got distracted by legato's lack of ass and had to pause because i was laughing too much
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the guy is literally flat as a board help
*cough* anyway. razlo is only alluded to and never named or even really shown, except for a very brief very blurry reflection, so his level of involvement in... literally everything is unknown.
speaking of characters who are weirdly absent, chapel isn't around either...? i thought maybe they combined his character with conrad, but he DOES speak in livio's memory, i even checked the credits for his seiyuu. (hiroshi naka - he voices a lot of old men but most notably garp from one piece!) i don't really know how his role in all this has changed, if at all, since conrad seems to be the one in charge of the experiments...? and i really... do not like what they did with conrad in stampede, he went from being shitty but having nuance to just being extra shitty... okay, tangent over.
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oh, this fight is so WEIGHTY!! i love it!! they gave a lot of weight and physicality to the livio vs ww fight in stampede too, (and all the fights, for that matter), despite stamp!livio's loss of bulk... it's a really fun fight to watch!
chapter 4:
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OHHH..... okay.... soooooo.... this means he's coming back in stampede season 2 i assume?
not to go off on another tangent but this is the second time this has happened to me... i went into stampede more or less blind (oh how things change) and so when knives died at the end of the season I HAD NO REASON TO BELIEVE HE WASN'T DEAD... but then i saw people talking like he would come back in season 2 and i was like, "how?? he DIED" and then i read the manga and i was like oh. and now with livio too. i thought he served his narrative purpose and then died. and he shot himself through the head, which is notable because that's how ww killed monev who was ALSO a subject of EoM's experiments in the tristamp universe!! so i had no reason to believe he wasn't dead!!
i dont have that much to say about this chapter because it mostly consists of the fight, but OH what a fight it is...!! i know i should be rooting for wolfwood, and i am, but livio is just so COOL in this fight. they're both cool...!!!
also, how many little glass vials(tm) does wolfwood have?! honestly, it's amazing that he still has any at all left to drink, it's a wonder they haven't all shattered already with how much he's been thrown around. especially because the one he drinks from CRACKS when it hits the ground... these vials aren't exactly bulletproof, lol.
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THE HUG...?! UUUEEEEAAHGHGHHGH
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MESSAGE TO ALL BITCHES ughhh ww looks so pained here. when he told vash that his blood runs cold when he points his gun at livio... he's feeling that through this whole volume. man.
something about brothers fighting each other... vash and knives, wolfwood and livio... uagh.
chapter 5:
HEY CAN WE KILL CHAPEL ALREADY??
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oh, the punisher is taller than him... i was trying to get an approximation of relative character heights recently, and i saw somewhere that the punisher is 5'7, the same height as me...
also, 10 punishers, huh... wolfwood's is one, razlo has three... does chapel's count even though it has a different design...? do livio's handguns count? will we see the others? is there even a significance to the number...?
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oh great, is this another wolfwood death flag?! we haven't seen him drink THAT many of them so far but still. hope chapel keels over already. i know ww's making an effort not to kill people but can he please just shoot chapel in the head. also wolfwood's pose in that panel... he's kinda serving cunt
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OH, THIS SPREAD FUCKS!!!! once again the CONTRAST... THE STARK BLACK AND WHITE... SO COOL!!!
so these guys work for razlo specifically, i assume? not livio? also... just who are they? random EoM goons?? why are they so loyal to razzy???
and he has a mechanical third arm. somehow. sure okay
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^ um... trigun lol [roll credits]
oh, it's tri-p as in tri-punisher. i thought it was the word "trip" and didn't question it. ...although "trip" could still work.
--also, wait, hold on, upon rereading i noticed razlo's left ear is covered up (by... something) and it's making his head shape look uncanny (more like a skull?!) and now i have to scroll back through the previous chapters to see if livio has ears. [several minutes of scrolling later] okay, he DOES have a right ear. okay. another pointless diversion for this post
chapter 6:
razlo was a real one for killing livio's shitty parents!
also another thing i'm noticing! razlo opens his mouth pretty wide, while livio doesn't open his mouth much at all... i mean okay there are a ton of differences in physicality between the two of them, but that one in particular stands out to me because last volume i complained that i couldn't tell when livio was talking because he never opens his mouth LOL
spraying wolfwood with blood and guts is a fucking wild battle tactic bro. also i'm convinced that nightow gave razlo three punishers for the cool factor first and foremost. three crosses also brings the scene of jesus's crucifixion to mind... but nahhhh it's definitely the cool factor. unless...?
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"killing and violence! killing and violence! :D"
ALSO CAN CHAPEL DIE ALREADYYYY PLEASE
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VASH MENTIONED!!! i'm so caught up in wolfwood's story rn that i haven't even really thought about the fact that vash isn't present in this volume at all... and then it evolves into a fucking. memory montage. stop with the montage please that's another death flag
and... oh man... wolfwood getting back up to fight because he's thinking of vash... and last volume vash said wolfwood is his reason to fight... both of them staring death in the face and thinking of each other... oh my god. ohhhh my fucking god. oh my fuckign god you guys. VASHWOOD.
oh, looks like i lied when i said vash isn't in this volume, he's right here
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...and that ends that volume. i said more than i thought i would... sorry for the rambles and tangents, i wrote this post running on about 3 hours of sleep lol. time for something lighter as i await next week's volume, let me continue to rewatch the 98 anime... what episode was i up to... ahh... 22, huh...
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triplesilverstar · 3 months
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Kids a bus and a headache don't mix
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Rating: 18+ Minors DNI
Pairing: Vash X F!Reader
CW: Crying kids, headaches
Word count: 1.6K 
A/N: The second chapter of “I guess you’re friends now? That’s kind of annoying” which takes place between “Bounty Hunting 101” & “An idiot walking in the Desert.” You still haven’t lost Vash but at least he’s good with kids.
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Hearing another round of crying start up you flinch. The past several hours on the bus have been like that, it was either screaming or crying from the child sitting with their parent in front of you. You’ve been trying to sleep since you got onto the bus and that plan has failed spectacularly, and the throbbing behind your eyes hasn’t been helping. 
Letting out a small grumble as you adjust yourself between your bag and the seat pressing more against the side of the bus and hoping against hope that the metal might be cool to help relieve the warmth radiating off your forehead. 
You’re exhausted. It’s been a week of traveling across the dunes and with your constant blond shadow, you haven’t been sleeping that much. Sure the two of you agreed to take watches at night but there was no way you were going to succumb to slumber when the biggest bounty on the planet was right there. Vash still didn’t make sense to you in your head, he was too much of a goofball to take seriously. Yet you’d seen others use that as a front before and there was no way you were going to give him the chance to slit your throat or worse while you slept. So you spent most of your nights in the desert pretending to sleep and you were beginning to pay for it in the form of your head feeling like it was on fire.
You’re starting to wonder what it’s going to take to get rid of Vash. A small part of you had hoped once you got to this town and you hoped on the outgoing bus almost as soon as you hit the town limits he’d remain behind. Nope. He was still hot on your heels and crawled into the seat next to you on the small passenger vehicle claiming he’d rather sit with someone he knew and a soft smile. 
You didn’t believe it for a minute. 
Another harsh cry and you squeeze your eyes shut. Even an hour of deep sleep would be a reprieve to the buzzing in your skull. 
Only for the cry to cut off suddenly. Opening one of your eyes to see Vash kneeling down in the aisle next to the kid and making what seemed like funny faces at them. His fingers pulled his lips in different directions and sticking his tongue out as if his sole purpose in life was to entertain this crying child. 
You can’t help but smile as the kid seems to be cheering up and Vash starts talking to them, asking where they’re from, where they’re headed. Does the kid like traveling? At one point he even asked him about his teddy bear which makes you chuckle as the kid seems to clutch it closer to their body. 
Yet after a few minutes of this, it’s like all the screaming the kid has done and with Vash’s short distraction they passed out. “Thank you.” It’s soft from the mother as you hear rustling that can only be the child being tucked against them, an almost collective sigh flowing through the enclosed space.
“It was nothing, all I did was talk to them.” He’s nodding as he stands and you think you hear a pop from one of his knees before he shuffles back into the seat beside you sinking down into the fabric with a thud and whoosh as the air leaves the padding. 
“I really don’t get you at all.” 
“Hm?” You’d kept your voice down to try and keep the risk of waking the kid again at a minimum and in response, Vash leaned closer so his side was tucked into yours with his head tilted so your mouth was near his ear. 
“You heard me.” 
“Maybe.” A low chuckle that you feel more than see. “I just don’t like seeing anyone in pain.”
“Pretty sure the kid wasn’t in pain Stampede.” Dropping your voice to just above a whisper because you don’t want someone confusing your words for something other than them crying as being in pain.
“I meant you.” What? Tilting your head to scowl up at him as he gives you a sad smile with a shrug of his shoulders. “You look like you’ve got a headache and could use the rest.” 
“Funny.” You snort turning your back more towards the window. “I wouldn’t have a headache if I could relax around you.” 
“Why don’t you think you can relax?” He sounds curious and you almost want to smack him. Almost. It’s like he’s forgotten that in the past few weeks, you went from trying to catch him for his bounty to him following you like you’re his newest toy he wants to figure out. 
“Did you forget the part where you’re a notorious skirt chaser?” You don’t bother to hide the disdain in your voice and he gives the smallest of jolts. 
“Come on now. I’m not that bad.” Through the reflection in the window, you can see the pale pink flush forming on his cheeks and his wide pupils.  
“Sure. At least here you won’t try anything.” Settling more of your weight against the inside of the bus and letting the sound of the tires across the sand and the humming of the engine in the much more silent bus lull you to a deep sleep and dreams of losing the humanoid typhoon. 
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Vash for his part as you start to softly snore smiles, taking the time to move his own bag under his legs and sort of make a divider for you so no one else could see you. He hadn’t missed the fact you weren’t sleeping, it wasn’t like he was either. 
So when you hoofed it for the bus he had a nagging suspicion you were trying to get rid of him. 
Vash wasn’t an idiot. As much as he played the fool for his own advantage and to hide behind a mask he wasn’t stupid. He knew that following you was a bad idea after you offered a truce of sorts, he’d been burned before by such tactics. The second he dropped his guard you might tie him up and drop him off at the nearest outpost for the seven cities and laugh all the way off into the sunset about how you caught the great humanoid typhoon. Just another bounty hunter who wanted that large paycheck and the rest of their life on Easy Street. 
But. Biting his lip and turning to look at you now on the bus as you slept like the dead with your chest softly rising and falling. Something in him stirred, deep down in his core as his heartbeat remained steady and the flicker of a flame started in his chest. 
You weren’t like that. 
He’d seen it firsthand more than once now. When you helped save that little girl in the saloon, going after the kidnappers and making sure everyone escaped and it almost costing you your own life. He knew if he had let you fall that day that would have been the end of you. No one comes back from a fall from that height, you’d have been nothing but a pile of meat and bones. And the latest incident. He knew it was eating at you turning that just past being a teenager and his two friends over to the local sheriff. Heard as you worked long into the night on cleaning your rifle and into dawn. You can’t fake guilt like that. He knew that all too well. You cared about people no matter how much you tried to put on an act as if you didn’t care, the clenching of your fist and the way you had snarled at one of the deputies when they hit one of the bandits on the back of the head like a feral creature as you spat out they weren’t going to do anything. 
You had thought he had been judging you. When really he had been marveling at you. You did what you were good at to survive while trying to not take anyone else's chances away. That single small flame of hope flickered in his chest again. If you could see the hope in people how many others were out there like you? Those who believed in a blank ticket to the future without knowing it.
Hearing you give a slightly louder snore and shifting he smiled as he reached over to adjust your jacket that you were using as a blanket over yourself. Part of that same hope was that he might have found someone to travel with who understood his morals as well, a slight cure for his solitude.
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Back to Masterlist for the series
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angel-armed · 1 year
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Tristamp OST analysis
This is going to be a bit of a monster even with me just jumping to favorite songs so bear with me... I'm a classically trained vocalist, I play piano, guitar, and a load of different woodwinds.
1.KNIVES’s Piano
This is the most important leitmotif in the series, legit. This is part of how Knives ‘haunts the narrative.’ While he doesn’t appear in every episode, his leitmotif is everwhere. This melody appears even in songs that are not necessarily about him, and can also be tied directly to the concept of Plant Song, which is another track on here. It gives the idea that Knives’ theme is not something he just magically composed and pulled out of the aether– it’s a primordial melody that belongs to the Plants themselves. We see this especially in the scene in Episode 11 (Or 12, they blend together for me oops) where Vash starts to sing this very melody and the Plants sing along with him. 
Millions Knives vocal Ver.
This is probably the most obvious and prominent track in the entire show. It takes the same melody and motif as Knives piano theme and adds lyrics that are really only fully heard here and in Drain Arm, the 2nd to last track. These lyrics turn that Plant Song into a blatant lovesong, even including a call and response– a lyrical/vocal style used primarily in lovesongs in musicals and even Disney Lovesongs. Without official lyrics to look at the, lyrics I hear go as follows: 
Can we breathe (or maybe be, but breathe is more likely) the same way together?
All of the lives(Lights? Lies? All fit) are a part of me
Wish we could stay here forever
Although the stars are falling down.
Remember how
We used to be
No turning back
Stars falling down
These are the main vocals, but the response is, either right after the last stanza or during it, underneath the vocals as a joined swell “I still care for you” suggesting that said response is Vash responding to Nai’s previous thoughts. I could go on about this one forever, but those are the main points to take away. 
Vash the Stampede
This is Vash’s main theme and leitmotif, heard very prominently throughout the first few episodes. It harkens back to the more Western heavy themes of the original anime and manga, and really represents Vash’s spirit. It’s upbeat and introduces several motifs that will be used to represent Vash throughout the rest of the OST. It also includes the big brass fanfare that are the main Trigun Stampede theme from the first OST (which I haven’t played to death as much as the 2nd one) We’ve got the harmonica and guitar that brings us that western feel, but that quickly gets wrapped up in a modern almost hip-hop rock beat and really encapsulates the way Vash presents himself, less than his actual inner being. It almost feels like this song is how Vash wants the world to view him. That cool cowboy that Nai talked about when they were kids. 
10. Boyhood/ NICHOLAS THE PUNISHER/ Whom to let live
This gives us Nico’s leitmotif, and some that might later be associated with Livio depending on how they decide to utilize him in season two. This is the only place in the soundtrack where we hear the use of the theramin (A very cool instrument you should look up the history of) which is famous from classic sci fi shows like the Twilight Zone and the Original Star Trek. It’s used to invoke a sense of spookiness, and often used to tell us through the music that something strange and alien is happening which is appropriate, as part of Boyhood is used during the scene where we’re shown how Conrad’s experiments transformed Wolfwood and Livio.This and NICHOLAS THe PUNISHER makes use of another instrument we don’t really hear anywhere else– the Saxophone, which if you know Trimax and the 98 anime, is a cool throwback. Whom to let live uses it even more prominently. Whom to let live is a personal favorite of mine, it’s so introspective and soft– almost soothing. This plays on the Sand Steamer during one of Wolfwood’s introspective moments; when he’s trying to choose who he should save. 
11. Energy of the Plant
This one contains some of the same musical elements of Knives’ vocal theme, eventually ramping up into the violins that are often used, in my opinion, to represent Vash in a theme– a cool little nod to them being connected literally and figuratively. 
20. Home
This track is SO near and dear to my heart. It’s built out of melodies and themes that are simply not present in the rest of the OST. No sign of Nai’s theme, yet the theme is played on the instrument associated with him– piano. It starts out simple and then bit by bit, brass and woodwinds come in to swell the melody into a heart-bursting wave of warmth. Just as it reaches that climax, the violins that represent Vash come in, and give us a tiny glimpse of the leitmotif from Vash the Stampede, as though whispering of the man he will become after growing up in the company of the people from Ship Three. See if you can pick it out right at 1:46!  This right here is why I believe the violin is the instrument used to represent Vash throughout the rest of the OST. 
23. Last Run
I can’t help but mention this track, as it is probably one of my top three favorites. Of course the most obvious part is how it incorporates Knives’ theme towards the middle and end, but the build up to that point is a masterclass in creating musical tension. It starts with the underlying sound of weeping violins, and then a synth instrument that just barely offers a TEASE of Nai’s theme as the other elements, discordant slides and very subtle percussion build up. As Vash enters the scene, the violins become more tense as well, playing short staccato notes instead of the long, weeping notes before. It drops off into that synthesized guitar bomb slide, which is used to almost simulate the beating of a heart along with deep bass. Then, the Plantsong itself comes in– the same vocals used to represent the Plants in other songs just as the Climax of the scene begins, and then Knives’ piano theme slowly comes in, falling like tears before another stop that leads into the actual climax. Honestly this song is an absolute masterpiece. Just then, some organs come in very softly, picking up what can only be called a transformative moment for Knives as his worldview is cemented into stone, his path to becoming the god of this planet laid out before him in rage and fury. Then in the very last quarter of the song, it transforms almost entirely into his theme just around the time Vash’s gate manifests– but with the added oomph of Vash’s absolutely gut-wrenching violin playing along in a duet. They are both in so much pain in this scene, and the song spells it all out. 
28&29: Erhu in July and Plant Song on erhu
I love these two tracks because they really are one song, and go one into another seamlessly– they are simply Vash’s and then Knives’ leitmotifs played on an Erhu, which is legit one of my favorite instruments of all time. Really brings into focus that July has a TON of Chinese influence!
41. Conception
Jumping way ahead on this because while there are a lot of great tracks, I really wanna focus on the ones that stand out. This one in particular is really special because it takes Knives’ theme that is usually played in Minor key and moves it almost entirely into Major Key. It’s triumphant! His eden is at hand, and then, those sad strings come in (a cello this time–) that just suddenly dies out, just as Vash cuts him off. 
42. Memory of Rem
This song is really cool because it is, once again, part of the same melody that Knives always plays– but it’s only ONE part of it accompanied by violin, likely to represent the half of the melody that is attributed to Vash. Obviously it represents his connection to Rem and his childhood. 
44. Drain Arm
This song is a fucking magnum opus, and starts with the same notes that are present in Memory of Rem, symbolizing how she lives on through Vash. It almost immediately starts with a slow, sad violin melody that then builds up and up using some of the same melodic motifs as Home– and then Nai’s piano comes in, cascading downward along with the vocals that are used to represent plants. The beginning movement really is a mix of everything that made Vash who he is today. Then, it moves into mirroring the melody of Knives’ piano theme entirely with new added piano flourishes that make this moment feel so beautiful and yet sad. Vash and Knives are both becoming who they are going to be for the duration of the rest of the story. The old is dying, and the new is being born– very painfully. The vocals swell and then drop, bringing the focus back to the piano and some ominous percussion and bells before coming back up into a crescendo. This is where the lyrics from Knives’ Vocal theme appear, expressing Knives’ pain and Vash’s desperate “I still care for you,” 
I’ve said it before but the piano here really feels like cascading tears, which are then joined by the weeping of a violin as that lyric: “I still care for you” plays. The melodies all start to join up into one as the violin now starts to play the intro to Knives’ theme and carry the song into its final climax and the pain we all know it overlays. This time, the violins play Knives’ theme– while his usual piano plays a countermelody and harmony. Still, the two are unavoidably intertwined. I can’t help but feel as though this represents Vash taking that melody into himself, carrying the Knives he knew and loved with him. 
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dandelion-wings · 4 months
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ok that anon's ask went
WOW
wonder how Barbara's relationships with everyone in the mond cast would be like in this swap au (like her friendship with noelle and bennett and what not) im going to assume Seamus lived too cause man gives me Vash the Stampede vibes and that means he ain't going down withoutn a fight - The Stampede
TBH I imagine that those relationships would go slowly, given all that she has to adapt to, and that she'd probably at least feel like her relationships to her family should come first. But, as with finding Rosaria easier to deal with than Jean, she might find herself having less trouble with people who have fewer preconceived expectations? Bennett in particular could actually be very interesting, because he's not even a Knight, so he doesn't have any connected to either her origin or personal co-worker knowledge of Jean. She's just a new healer in the Church and he's happy to deal with her however she wants! (Seamus like two months in, catching her making him trade her things for healing: We don't do that here, Barbara- Bennett, giving him a thumbsup and a grin: It's cool! I'm just helping Barbara build her emergency stash. My dads say it's good to have one, too! And she taught me this really useful thing you can do with raw wolfhooks and lampgrass when you, y'know, fall into a bunch of thorns....)
Seamus was an adventurer before he was a Cardinal! If Seamus lived, there's three options: Fredrica died, they stayed together for Jean, or they still divorced (possibly sooner if this put a strain on their relationship). I like the first and last best for this, tbh; the first gives Jean more access to her, while the last complicates the overall family relationship. Hmmm....
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spectre-writes · 1 year
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Okay, so… Trigun Stampede thoughts. All 3.3k of them. Goes without saying this will include stampede spoilers, but there will also be some spoilers for trimax and the og anime too. And there will be some critique, but understand that’s coming from a place of love (because I do love the show), but if you’re someone who just can’t deal with people critiquing things you like then uh maybe pass?
I’ll preface this by saying that I never watched the og anime back in the day. I think I tried to watch the first episode a few years back because everyone went on about it being a classic, but I just didn’t vibe with it so I gave up. So for me, there was never any nostalgia involved in my perspective on the show and on stampede as an adaptation. I watched stampede first… well, the episodes that were out at the time, and for some reason my brain just latched onto it. I then watched the og anime in its entirety, read the whole manga, and then watched the remaining stampede episodes as they came out.
Visually, stampede is stunning. I know a lot of people are ‘eh’ about CG but it was pulled off really well, the action is so fluid and the characters are still very expressive. The og anime was a product of its time - it felt very static by comparison, and the fight scenes just weren’t as intense. Some of the wacky faces and things were cool but overall I feel like stampede was a glow up in the visual department.
The tone is definitely darker than the og anime, but I think it’s still not as dark as the manga gets… whether that will change in season 2 we’ll have to see. It did strike me as odd that stampede seems to pulls its punches in some places? Like when Knives makes his grand appearance, at the end of that episode we get a shot where Gofsef and his dad are both bandaged and alive, which was weird? Because Nebraska was screaming about how EG killed his son? Like… did he just never bother to go check? Narratively it’s a strange choice considering they’ve both served their purpose by the end of episode and it feels like the writers both want to punish Vash emotionally for those he failed to save, but also leave them alive?
Same goes for Tonis to a degree… it would have been even more heart wrenching if they had died (especially for Meryl), and it’s not like the show doesn’t do horrible things to children at other points… Knives was just cutting a lot of arms off that episode I guess. But overall, the darker tone works for me - I like that sort of thing, though I get why fans of the old show might miss many of the more lighthearted elements. 
There are quite a few changes from the manga/og anime to stampede, some of which I really like, some I’m less sure about. Guess I'll use bulletpoints for this.
Removing the whole 'Vash creeping on women' thing was absolutely needed, that trope can go die, thank you.
I love how they really leaned into the whole ‘millions knives’ thing and just… gave him a million knives. Made him feel so much more threatening as a villain than he did in the og anime, and fits with the abilities he shows off later in the manga. 
Changing his original name from Knives to Nai (Kni?) makes way more sense than calling a child Knives too.
I’m personally fine with them changing Merly to a reporter and adding Roberto - the insurance girl thing seems a bit silly for the tone they’re going for in stampede, and as it’s also a prequel it gives her room to grow into the character she is after the events of July. And since we know we’re getting Milly in season two I don’t consider ‘no Milly’ a valid complaint.
I don’t mind the changes to Elendira, it’s a way to explain her powers and I think with the timeskip there’s a very real chance we’ll see her more like her manga counterpart in season 2, and I appreciate what they’re trying to do with the whole plant experimentation thing. Like… Knives wanting to wipe out all humans and start a paradise kind of falls flat on its face as a concept when you consider that he and Vash are the only independent plants, and also no one seems to know how to make new plants. Like… their sisters are still going to have to live in containers and as a species they’re a dead end. Him and Conrad looking into solutions to this (for different reasons since Conrad thinks it’s possibly a way for humans to continue as hybrids and Knives only cares about plants) gives the impression that he’s thought things through a bit harder. 
I think some of the changes to Vash and Knives’s relationship are good - I love how in this version, Knives cuts his arm off not just because he’s angry and being a dick about it, but because Vash opened his gate with no control and could accidentally kill them all. He’s trying to save him. You get a real sense that he still cares about Vash… you can see the pain on his face when Vash points his gun at him. 
The choice to split them up earlier too rather than have Vash follow him around for years before they split allows them time to build up their own lives, and when they clash it’s because they have both been pulled in different directions. 
I’m fine with them giving Vash and Knives more distinct personalities as children, with Knives being more quiet and withdrawn and Vash being more outgoing and boisterous… but I do wish they’d left in stuff about how Knives was initially just as hopeful about humanity as Vash was? Like… in the manga, at least, he really wanted humans to be their friends, he wanted to be loved and accepted by them too… part of the tragedy of him is that he wasn’t always the way he is. So it would have been cool to see that.
As for ship 3… I think them first picking up Vash works fine, as again, it gives him a chance to grow apart from Knives and see something good worth protecting again. I’m less sure about Brad and Luida being there? And then also being there 150 years later? Like I get that they want to give Vash a sense of family, but I think what stood out to me about ship 3 was that Vash’s attachment to it isn’t just because of two parental figures… Vash is old. He’s not human. He’s watched generations of these people grow old and die, and he’s loved and cared for their children, and their children’s children. They’re this big community that he loves, and he knows all their names and remembers them all, but he’s never… quite one of them in the same way. Which is kind of the tragedy of being Vash. I would have loved if after the sand steamer episodes, when Vash wakes up there’s a couple of people who look like Brad and Luida there to greet him… but no one mentions their names, and there’s something just… a little off about it, little quirks that aren’t the same… and then it clicks. We get dropped the truth - that that’s not Brad and Luida, that’s their grandchildren. Vash outlived them. He’s 150 years old, he’s always going to outlive humans and that’s just something he has to accept.  It also would have been nice to see more of the other people living on ship 3, especially to set up a part from the manga/og anime which I really, really hope will be adapted. Like… Vash has to see these people that he loves so much just… fall apart in his arms. Families, adults he’s watched grow from infancy, children, everyone… For stampede they now either have the option of killing Brad and Luida that way, or trying to squeeze in some time with the ship 3 peeps in the second season so that their deaths have an impact, when they could have just done the leg work in this season. But hey that’s probably a problem with the limited number of episodes.
Back to other changes… I think introducing Livio that early was a good call, so he doesn’t come out of nowhere later. 
But I do feel like we should have seen more of Legato given the big part he’s supposed to play later (if they follow the manga). He kinda just disappeared after the sand steamer episodes.
I’m… still not sure how I feel about them revealing the whole SEEDs ship thing and Knives part in the crash so early on. I think it was done with intent - stampede (the first season at least) only has 12 episodes to make things happen, so they need to cover stuff fast. For me… while maintaining the mystery for longer was cool, the og anime was too slow. There was a lot of filler and stuff before we even got to the main plot points and honestly if I hadn’t seen stampede I would have given up on it. I think what I would have liked would be some kind of middle ground? Like… something between the two which lets you uncover the mystery but still feeds you enough that you know there’s something there and can begin piecing it together.
Getting to see the July incident as it happens was obviously a change, and I’m on the side about that one too… like… Vash kind of knowing that he completely destroyed a city but having no memory of it and trying to figure out what happened and that being part of his journey? I feel like we won’t get that, because Meryl and Wolfwood can just tell him what happened. It’s not going to hang over him in the same way. 
And on that subject, I think they really, really needed to dedicate some time to just… showing people living in July? In the manga, when Vash regains his memory of destroying July, part of why it’s so traumatic is because he spent several days living there, talking to the people there… seeing their kindness, glimpsing that community, getting to be a part of that briefly… and he just erases all those smiling faces in the blink of an eye. In stampede we only see some military police who shot Vash and tried to capture him, and one noodle seller who none of the main gang interacts with. I just… think July would have so much more impact if we’d had an episode dedicated to them spending time there first… This also means we probably won’t get Vash accidentally mindblasting the event into Meryl’s brain (because she was there anyway and Vash never connected with the people in the city), which personally I think is a shame…
Last change that stands out to me is that Vash's use of the angel arm is fully intentional in this adaptation. I’m on the fence on this? On one hand, it’s needed, because Vash has been fairly passive for a lot of this show, and horrible things just happen to him, so for him to have some agency and sort of win a fight makes for a more satisfying climax? On the other hand, the horror of Kives forcing him to manifest the arm against his will and him not being able to control that part of himself is sort of gone? We do still get the creepy sort-of-rape buisness with Knives making him uhh… do that to the other plants and go all black and viney, but it’s different? It’s… yeah, I dunno. Makes me wonder if they’re going to do anything with the 5th moon incident and all that, seeing as it’s strange for Vash to seemingly have so much more control over his abilities and still get made to basically cause the same catastrophe twice… It would feel less satisfying happening a second time around if he just does the same thing we saw during July and tries to blast the energy into space? So on one hand I like it and on the other hand I don’t, if that makes sense?
Moving on from changes, I think the show could have also benefited from some stuff that was skipped/missing. Some of this would have resulted in better pacing, better characterisation, or fill a few plot holes that go ignored. I guess the best way for me to cover this is to go in order of episodes?
So, I’m fine with the start, but maybe there should have been one more episode between Wolfwood’s introduction and the sand steamer episodes. We get the one with Rollo, but I think one more to cement his place in the group would have been nice. I also think the sand steamer event should have had one more episode. A lot of the two we get is filled with flashbacks, and while I love those (and the style they’re done in) it means that there’s less time to cover events happening in the present. The badlads gang just… kind of shows up, gets punched down by Vash, and disappears again… they don’t serve much of a purpose. Having an extra episode for them to be more of a threat, and Vash (and maybe Roberto and Meryl) having to deal with that would be more satisfying (for me at least). And if we want to stick a little closer to the source material, then Vash dealing with the badlad’s gang leader could result in him helping them (maybe with the canon this time? Because two people pushing it up is silly, not gonna lie I had to suspend my disbelief for that). So yeah, that would be my first major change.
Then I still have an issue with how it’s never explained how Vash gets from the plant room on the sand steamer to ship 3. Did he call them? Do they have some kind of ‘Vash is in danger’ sensor that alerted them he was in trouble? How did they convince Meryl and Wolfwood and Roberto to let them take him?
I would, if I could, add another episode after the flashback one which shows Vash getting picked up, and then gives us a little more time on ship 3. Time to see the people there, get a sense of the community that lives there… I also think we could have actually seen Meryl and Roberto getting kidnapped, because that happening offscreen was weird. 
As I mentioned before, another episode to better flesh out July is needed. And I think I would maybe add another episode so that we could have some more time on flashbacks… specifically, there’s events from the manga that I feel were too briefly touched upon in stampede to have their full effect. 
I am, of course, talking mostly about Tesla… In a lot of ways, she’s the turning point for the twins. Before then, they were both hopeful about humanity and wanted to be accepted by them. But after Tesla… they break down. 
Following the manga, Knives and Vash lock themselves away for days. When Rem finally gets to them, Knives ends up in a coma. Vash wakes up first, and faced with the reality of what humans did to his older sister… he tries to kill himself. Just grabs the knife and goes for it. Rem stops him by grabbing the blade, and Vash ends up stabbing her. And there’s this moment… a brief moment, when Vash seems happy with what he’s done… before it all comes crashing down and he realizes what he’s done, how that’s not what he wants, and he drops the knife and patches Rem up.
When she wakes up again, they have a conversation. She tells him about her depression following her partner’s death, and how she had a dream where she was handed a blank train ticket. And she was happy because it could take her anywhere. And after that, she joined the SEEDS project, which led her to meeting Vash and Knives. She tells Vash that everyone deserves that blank ticket.
This is a really important moment for him, because I think that’s where he solidifies his ideals. The idea that people all deserve the chance to start fresh. The idea that killing isn’t okay because it robs people of that chance, and also dying isn’t okay because of his promise to her… 
Stampede touches on it briefly with Vash telling Luida and Brad that he wanted them to leave him there to die, but I think the manga touches on it much more closely. Vash has… tried to kill himself as a child. And I think, at times, he would quite like to die as an adult too (because he goes through so much suffering). But he doesn’t, because he has so much to do and people to protect and he promised Rem… and ugh, it hurts, but he still has that blank ticket. And sometimes, he still finds joy in the world, and those little moments mean a lot…
And we’ve seen that Vash is capable of lashing out too. He stabbed Rem. But in the same way that Knives used to be as loving of humanity as Vash, Vash had the same capacity to strike as his brother… 
Now, Knives… when he wakes up, he says he remembers nothing (idk if that’s actually true it’s very possible he was lying). They tell him about Tesla. He pretends everything is fine, but he quietly plots to take down the ships, and we get a panel of him biting at his hand while he works… you get an idea that he’s super anxious. He’s afraid. He’s so afraid of what humans could do to him and his brother, and that’s what motivates him. Not just hate or betrayal, but a deep, visceral fear he won’t admit to. I feel like stampede didn’t quite hit the mark there… 
We might get a closer look at the events around Tesla in a season 2… it’s implied (?) in stampede that Knives might have absorbed what was left of her (which is a departure from the source, but also sets up/hints at later major plot points). But we’ll see.
On the whole I think the pacing of the very last episode was fine. And they’ve set some stuff up for season two (Milly confirmed)!
Moving into season two there’s going to be changes to the source again, but I am super glad we’ll be getting to stuff that the og anime never had a chance to adapt. One thing I am curious about is Wolfwood… seeing as in stampede, he’s already betrayed Vash and handed him over to Knives and cut his ties (?) to the Eye of Michael. So, this time around, I’m guessing his motive for tracking down Vash is going to be either personal, or he is invested in stopping Knives or the Eye of Michael and wants to find Vash because Vash could help… 
I also wonder how much of his memory Vash has lost… and are we going to get the darkening hair effect? Please say we still get the 5th moon incident? Can we have more body horror pretty please? Are they aiming for a different ending from the manga or are they going to play that the same? I… kind of, really want a scene of Vash and Knives actually reconciling this time and maybe playing piano together… 
So yeah… that’s… kind of my thoughts for the moment, as best I can put them. I really enjoyed stampede! I think it has some flaws but I’m so glad to have been pulled into the Trigun universe and experience these characters and I am very excited for what comes next. 
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I have OPINIONS.
firstly. I’m here because of @lonelysnowymemes​ introducing me to this fandom. We watched the 90s anime before stampede.
EPISODE 10 SPOILERS BELOW.
however, my opinions are entirely based on episode 10 and how Vash just takes a shot and does nothing about it except like. pout. I cannot tell you how many times I paused this episode to yell out loud about things and my thoughts. Which this isn’t dissing anything either, the animation style and efforts are really nice and lovely in stampede, so kudos to their efforts. (Even if the plot feels like they are throwing darts at a timeline and smashing it together. and they put Wolfwood into loafers with no socks. WHO DOES THAT.) anyway, this isn’t about that.
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this is about dumb and fucking dumber. SPECIFICALLY ABOUT WHEN VASH WAS SHOT. The scope on that gun insinuates that it’s got distance, which means that gun has quite a bit of power behind it in order to travel that distance. This is absolutely a long range gun, as usually shorter ranges won’t need a scope this techy or would need a laser sight.
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So, there’s no real reason that Vash wouldn’t probably fall the fuck down when he’s shot, right? Especially considering this guy is on the upper railing and is closer, and even from that distance it’ll fucking hurt. Especially as the gunshot has enough power to flick blood onto Wolfwood’s cheek.
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That’s a pretty hefty round, I’d probably assume it’s gonna be a larger round too. Not only does Vash not fall over, he at BEST hunches inward a little bit and more or less just stares at the metal under his feet like - bestie, are you good?? that’s a good powered shot you just got hit with. Not even a stumble back a little bit? Also, Wolfwood why are you not going absolutely berserk?? dude just got SHOT next to you and clearly you are concerned and attached. Then Vash just ups and WALKS OFF. He doesn’t even initially stumble there, while yes you could said adrenaline makes it easier, it’s still remarkably cool and unaffected by the shot that literally just THREW blood onto Wolfwood’s face.
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like dude. come on you just got shot. at least you know, walk with a little bit more curve inwards to protect that part???? But okay, whatever. we’ll move on to the part where you just are CHILLING IN THE SEWER SYSTEM, HANGING OUT WITH THE WOUND. Which might I add, at that distance and with the possible power of a long-range rifle, would’ve ripped right through his torso and made a larger exit wound on the back. that coat should be torn by all rights. Instead it didn’t make it out, and is just hanging out in there???
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my man at least cry a little bit, that is a wee bit more pain than like a scrape. You got SHOT VASH. AND THEN HE JUST GOES IN THERE WITH HIS HAND, DIGGING AROUND IN HIS OWN BODY WITH NO PAIN KILLER OR REACTION.
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VASH THAT’S HOW YOU GET AN INFECTION. Not to mention, the bullet is fully intact and didn’t balloon or explode at all inside of you????? It must’ve hit something to keep from popping out the other side, and that would have had to been hard enough to at least crush the tip.
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if we are ignoring the fact that it should’ve been mauled, you at least could’ve kept it and re shelled it?? come on, save money in this economy. ALSO WHO GIVES MECHANICAL ARMS FINGERNAILS. THAT SEEMS UNNEEDED. but seriously, i get you are a plant and ain’t human, but even you shouldn’t just casually walk it off and rip it out later. TLDR: vash shouldn’t have been able to walk off being shot with like no reaction, and should’ve had more pain and reaction, and shouldn’t have been able to rip out the bullet (that shouldn’t be intact) that easily without even a whimper.
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lotus-mirage · 9 months
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Trigun Stampede episode 4 liveblog!
I had a bit of a double take at “plant-based meat”.  Come to think of it, are there any actual plants on this planet? Or are they talking about eating the irreplaceable technology that sustains them...?
Welp, there’s Wolfwood.  Wearing that big old gun cross.  Thing.
lmao that’s not a very dignified first look at the guy
Interesting that there’s only seven cities when they seem to be named after calendar months.
Actually huh. I wonder how big this world is anyway.  It feels like it should be pretty small, especially with the number of cities, but I have no idea how big those cities could be.
Those are worms?????
Also another kinda bacteria-looking thing after the bombs, huh.
NEVERMIND WHAT I SAID ABOUT THAT BEING AN UNDIGNIFIED FIRST LOOK. guy just went flying :0c
and now he’s just flopping around in the backseat.  fantastic. no notes.
Plant... outpost? wonder what this is.
Wait Wolfwood is like. actually religious? I kinda thought it was just symbolism.  I can’t believe he’s actually religious and lugging around a big cross on his back.  I can’t tell if that’s delusions of self-importance or just... dweebery.
...drinking from what may or may not be holy water.  My guy. I understand resources are low.
Oh it keeps going.
...I do not believe this man is ordained.
Okay “undertaker”... may check out more?? I have no idea what they might be expected to know in a historical or modern day setting, let alone space-fantasy. I wouldn’t expect them to have access to holy water though?
Actually wait I need to google the difference between undertaker and gravedigger.
Nevermind, they probably do! Alright then. 
okay all that aside - what is happening with the background music here??? It’s unexpectedly unsettling, kind of.
Okay I switched audio languages briefly to see if the additional religious allusions in like every line from Wolfwood was also reflected in the Eng dub (even more blatant actually) and got hit with “You did get hit by big-ass truck, after all,” which was unexpected enough to make me stop and laugh out loud.
Speaking of which I was kind of expecting them to gloss over that given the cartoony nature of that whole sequence, but huh.
ah jeez what now
...we’re going Dune now?? Alright, okay.
the bug things are also Worms?
“detached electrons” I have no idea what this is supposed to mean. That sounds like it’d cause chemical reactions, which doesn’t look to be the case?
“tool of the trade” as a gun or as a reusable grave marker?
oookay eating the weird glowy bug alive and raw. I mean I guess if they’re Worms, we know they’re edible like that, but uh.  yikes.
assassins that control Worms, huh. that sounds like a lost technology thing, presumably
“I can see it in his eyes” yeah yeah okay lay it on a little thicker oh my god
Roberto vanished while they were having a moment! I’m honestly sure if that was an intentional comedy moment lol
okay my prediction is either another bug or a more worm-looking Worm
there is also like barely any liquid, there is no way digestion is happening that fast
OH LMAO is that what’s been happening!? They’ve just been getting launched??
Okay nvm that doesn’t make much sense and also they’d be less likely to survive it than these two I guess
Ooh I really want to see the Worm’s whole design
I guess that makes sense that is an incredibly acrobatic child.
okay yeah that looks like it’d cause rapid digestion
oh yuck the floor
the cross gun has a fucking skull on it. I don’t have words.
it’s a machine gun
oooh that is a really cool creature design!
so like.  is the kid also a Worm or do they just have some sort of power/technological control over them?
it’s a machine gun that also shoots lazers
it also decently high-tech, but still not entirely sure where it falls in terms of technology type
side note, the consistent mild back-and-forth between Meryl and Wolfwood is great
and now the thing about deserving to eat is linked back to the deserving to cry thing from last episode. great. fantastic. ow.
come to think of it, why are they still travelling with Vash?  just cause they got lumped with him after the last episode, or after more info...?
okay I honestly expected the kid and Wolfwood to actually be two different factions. It makes sense but now I want to know if there are more groups out there.
hold up. narration??
okay. red glowing tubes with characters I can’t read.  that’s not an aesthetic that we’ve seen in this show yet I think?
“the gate that allows access to the higher dimension.” the WHAT
I guess this has to be the ‘Gate’ Knives mentioned last episode, but also higher dimension, what
“his morality and ethics are acting as a defensive measure” ???
oh wait no it is Knives’ group. huh.
those look like plants in the background, but all of them are red.  was it the blue one that was having trouble, then? I assumed blue = alive and red = dead, but that may not be the case.  they’re also markedly smaller than the ones in the town.
“more human than anyone” uhhhhhh not sure I agree with that on principle, but I get what they’re saying. sure, I guess.
lmao wolverine claws
End notes:
Hmm, not sure where to start! First off, I think pacing/tonal issues were more or less entirely absent from this episode! nice.
I think that’s our entire party assembled, aside from Millie, who as I understand it is less of a key figure in TriStamp so far, but not so in other versions?? Anyway.  Nice!  I think they did a good job of establishing the dynamics between the different characters.
I guess the main thing to really speculate on is the Gate thing.  So far seems like simultaneously a physiological thing and a psychological thing. He’s had it for a while, but can’t control it (isn’t aware of it?), but it’s a way to access a higher dimension, but it’s also affected by his state of mind.
Not much by way of explaining the key antagonists or their goals, other than now we have... I guess half a goal? Maybe a step in the process.
Step 1: Collect Plants
Step 2: Utilize Vash’s Gate, allowing access to a higher dimension
Step 3: ???
Step 4: Profit      
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meow-sus · 11 months
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Idk how to use this thing, man
Anyways. I recently started writing smaller pieces on my notebook and this is the first of them. Longer fics can be found on my AO3 but I thought posting these there would be weird so I decided to give this place a shot
Hope this works and nice to meet you all
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Meryl takes refuge in the truck. She might have always done that, it’s not like Wolfwood pays her too much attention—or she might have started it after he started this thing with Vash the Stampede. The blond idiot lays their sleeping bags next to each other, like he had done for the past week.
“I’ll take the first watch today,” Wolfwood heard him say.
Wolfwood doesn’t ask. He simply sits down on his sleeping bag, feeling the soft sands shift under him. Soon the sparkly particles will mold to the shape of his body. Something tells him that Vash will take the entire night watch by himself again; but it doesn’t hurt to leave a “wake me up when it’s time”. For some reason, he would rather endure the quizzical glances from his traveling companions than waking up Wolfwood in the middle of the night. 
Roberto takes his spot far from the two of them and makes sure to stay out of sight. Wolfwood can almost believe that they’re the only ones stranded in the desert night. The dry planet does little to retain the sun’s warmth when the night falls and Wolfwood can’t help but shiver as he settles in the sleeping bag and the cool fabric comes into contact with the back of his neck.
“Are you cold?” Vash starts to search for something that can help. “I might have a blanket somewhere. Or you can have my coat—”
“I’m fine.” The fluffy golden hair on the top of his head ruffles in the wind. “Aren’t you cold?”
“Hmm?” Vash smiles. “I’ll be fine. Sleep well.”
“Wake me up if you need help.” Wolfwood tries again. The sand dunes around them are empty of movements. There are no signs of life no matter where he looks, in fact. 
“I will. But I’ll do my best to protect you; good night.”
His intact right hand comes to rest on Wolfwood’s torso, the touch quiet and ambiguous through the sleeping bag. He feels himself relax nevertheless. No one has tucked him in in a very, very long time. He wonders if the other man also feels better sleeping by someone’s side.
Protect me? He wants to laugh. The man wanted by Millions Knives and has a bounty of six million on his head? What more can he focus on other than staying alive?
The bullets. Words. Scorching sun. Freezing cold when the sun is down. SIckness. Running out of resources: water, food. Betrayal. Words. His past: living in it, and forgetting it. Someone who wants to kill him. Death. Pain.
None of it as terrifying as losing sight of the man he’s found himself falling for.
“Protect me from what?” Wolfwood still asks, eyes searching for an answer on Vash’s face. How will you protect me when you destroy me the most?
The other man lowers his gaze; somehow his eyes still glimmer like stars dotting the vast universe. “Anything you’re scared of,” he whispers.
========
Meowsus 5/21
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robthegoodfellow · 2 years
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I saw your tags in the reblogs for a clip from the movie NOPE and it got me thinking about the movie's connections to American history/literature. I'm just going to share a few thoughts:
The relationship between Ricky Jupe Park and the Haywood siblings has some interesting historical subtext as it is korean/african-americans interacting with each other. When Ricky has his non-confrontation with Em over her "Re-Location" of the "Decoy Horse" he may have been thinking about the LA riots of his youth and a certain incident where a Korean shop owner shot and killed an African-American teen on the suspicion of shoplifting.
It's cool that Jordan Peele incorporates the principles of pacifist resistance into the horror movies. The main characters in each one are less interested in killing the threats to their lives and more interested in uncovering the truth or just surviving.
It's ironic that Jean-Jacket's creature design incorporates elements of marine biology while the movie takes places entirely on land.
A non-fiction book that I would connect to Nope is "Stampede: Gold Fever and Disaster in the Klondike" by Brian Castner as NOPE is an inversion of the gold rush: The pursuit of wealth is what lead to the deaths of men and beasts of burden (mules and horses) whereas Ricky Jupe Park sees the consumption of horses as a possible source of profit.
A non-fiction documentary I think would be highly relevant to NOPE is "Buck" (2011) which is about Buck Brannaman, a horse trainer who is a leading advocate for intelligent and empathic animal handling. From what I vaguely remember of the movie, his method basically calls for the needs of the horse to be equal to the needs of the rider and vice versa, and that if one takes priority over the other then bad things happen. But people who don't know what they actually need then transmit their confusion through the reins to their steed. Anyways, I believe this method is now mainstream and is practiced by the Compton Cowboys who trained Daniel Kaluuya in preparation for his role as OJ.
I feel like NOPE was made as a counter-point to the movie "Arrival" and the short story it was based on, "Story of your Life" written by Ted Chiang. The basis of the latter is that while knowledge and communication are powerful enough to prevent conflict, it's not powerful enough to prevent one's own inevitable death. Jordan Peele basically spent the entire movie going "Death might be inevitable but it comes a helluva lot quicker if you don't know what you're working with." Which I think is a much more clear and consistent than what Dennis Villenueve was trying to state with his film (Which has a lot more of everything than what was in the short story).
Sorry for dumping all this on you, hopefully you find it interesting or relevant to teaching American literature.
You raise so many compelling connections to history/culture that I don’t even know where to start, so I’ll just take it point by point and also explain where I’d broaden vs refine certain topics:
- Re: RJP & his relationship with the Haywoods—it opens the door for exploring both the history of solidarity between Black and Asian-American communities but also the sources of racial prejudice/violence between marginalized communities. I’ve also seen other posts pointing out the damaging effects of different stereotypes (ex: “model minority”), which is especially apparent in the scenes where we see RJP vs OJ interacting with the entertainment industry.
- Introducing the competing push for violent vs non-violent resistance throughout the history of civil rights activism would be valuable to discuss, especially given how to the legacies of MLK and Malcolm X (and other leaders) have been warped and/or misappropriated by mainstream society, and given how different forms of violence are justified or criminalized by mainstream power structures... The differences between pacifism and non-violence would also be important to highlight (and it’d be interesting to examine how/why Peele depicts violence in his films)
- As for the inspirations behind JJ’s design—endlessly fascinating. There have been such compelling comparisons to old timely daguerreotype cameras (which thematically I adore) but the vibe was equally eldritch jellyfish/tentacled sea monster, and that offers its own entry point for discussion of frontiers of the unknown existing not just between earth and outer space but also between land and sea… and how there are forms of intelligence right here in front of us that on the one hand conform to recognizable patterns of behavior (predatory vs prey behavior, for example) but on the other present such a totally foreign/otherworldly modus operandi that we lack the frame of reference to fully comprehend them (OCTOPUS, for example, which are my favorite animal for that very reason)
- Never considered a connection to the gold rush!! But I’m immediately intrigued by the thematic relevance given the film’s exploration of greed, exploitation, ambition, consumption… and who profits or suffers in such scenarios. Thanks for the book rec :)
- The depiction of animal (mis)handling as an allegory for supremacy (as in, the pitfalls/problematic aspects of humans viewing themselves as superior to animals, but also the horrific history of humans positioning fellow humans as inferior on account of their supposedly being “animals”) wasn’t something I’d been able to articulate fully, but you also bring up the role of humility/empathy in establishing healthy relationships between beings (giving equal priority to differing needs of all parties). The connection to BB could really help highlight that.
- FINALLY I dunno why it hadn’t occurred to me, maybe because I just associate Peele with cerebral horror films, but I ALREADY teach a sci fi unit as part of the American lit course (which includes a different Chiang story), and it would be sooo easy to justify adding NOPE into the mix there, because yes, it is definitely an entry into the grand tradition of extra terrestrial/“first contact” narratives a la Arrival (which I must admit I haven’t seen, but it’s been on my to-watch list for ages). But where so many of those narratives are an allegory for colonialism/imperialism (basically the reflexive fears of the Western world—what if something did to US what we did to the rest of the planet??? Oh noooo), films like NOPE and series like VanderMeer’s Area X instead approach first contact in a way that more explores… ecosystems, in a way? How we participate willingly/unwillingly, knowingly/unknowingly in all kinds of ecosystems, and what happens when specimen of vastly different ecosystems interact for the first time. The crisis of self when confronted with the other—themes related to identity, communication, annihilation… SUPER METAPHYSICAL SHIT and I love it.
Thank you for taking the time to highlight so many connections and suggest so many relevant texts!! Is there a limit to the depths of this film?? Nope.
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twistedroseytoesy · 1 year
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I've got it! How bout this:
Trey: Birthday by Katy Perry
Ruggie: Here comes trouble by Neoni or Bills by Lunchmoney Lewis
Jack: Live Forever by Hollywood Undead
Azul: Who's laughing now? by Ava Max or For your entertainment by Adam Lambert
Jade- Blackout by Aviva or The Show by Jake Daniels
Rook- Ghost by Confetti
Epel- Reckless Tongue by Airways or Bad Reputation by Joan Jett & the Blackhearts
Idia- Anxiety by blackbear
Sebek- High Hopes by Panic At The Disco
I hope these fit!
Hello again! glad to see you back with even more songs to pick from! If it's alright ima call you 🎵 anon! now onto the songs!
Trey- Fun song! could definitely see this as a birthday song that the Mc could sing to him, again not the biggest fan of the innuendos in the song but I can easily adjust them to be more wholesome! good choice! might try and write that closer to his birthday though, oh well.
Ruggie- Such an interesting song! As I listened to it I could envision this song as Ruggie is overblotting. when I first read the second book I thought h was going to overblot from how magic he used to cause the stampede, and he was pretty upset that Leona was just giving up after all his hard work. Maybe an alternate universe where he overblots rather than Leona. Amazing choice and great ruggie vibes!
Also, the second song is very fun and also fitting, but I loved the first one so much that I immediately set up a draft for that... Both are wonderful though!
Jack- Cool rock song! I can see it fitting a specific asset of him, but the Jack we see is fairly chill and cold, but soft to those he has respect for. Also a tsundere. A good song, but not quite how I envision him but its pretty close.
went searching myself for some songs that would fit jack and looked up a bunch of montage songs. found one I liked; John Cafferty - Hearts On Fire. Thought it was pretty fitting with his strong moral compass and burning passion.
Azul- YES! this is wonderful! good song! shows how he worked hard to overcome those that mocked and hurt him before. I'm loving the song. I can see some sort of dream sequence where Azul sings this cause he's proud of how far he has come. Despite still struggling at times, he's brought justice to his bullies. Might write an animatic as he watches his bullys suffer. Heck yes!
The second song doesn't fit azul that well, too many innuendos and such demanding lyrics... nice try.
Jade- Somewhat unsettling song, definitely fits his mysterious and scary side, but it just doesn't hit quite right. I don't know how I could change it either to fit better. It's so close just missing something.
Now the second song is perfect, I would need to change quite a few of the lyrics to fit him better, but the mysterious but knowing lyrics and deep beat in the background are perfect for him! Don't know if I could write this as a story, might just end up as a simple parody. Great choice!
Rook- Wonderful song choice! love the hints to how hes hard to find and how he can seemingly appear out of nowhere. Could write an animatic-style song with him appearing and watching from afar. nice job!
Epel- Some of the lyrics fit him and his intense hatred for certain topics. Somewhat fitting but I don't really feel the vibes from the sing itself, I could make it work but I'll look at the other song first.
Oh MY GOSH, that second song is so perfect for Epel! how he hates the way Vil tries to reform him, how likes his country accent and lifestyle. Can definitely write a thing where he's screaming this, might get in trouble with Vil and Rook later but he doesn't care at that moment. HECK YA!
Idia- Hate to say that this song is perfect for his insecure and introverted personality but that's exactly what I'm saying. Could write this when he and the prefect are friends, or could just make it so he's just anxious about all kinds of stuff. OR a better idea is that he's singing to ortho, he can't live without ortho. perfect fit.
Sebek- Amazing song, no idea that it was by panic at the disco! but not really fitting for the Sebek I know, then again I don't really know him other than he's loud and obsesses loves malleus. Too upbeat of a song but loving the idea.
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