Anybody else watching Trigun: Stampede?
It’s SO GOOD. I’m going nuts for it! So far it’s such a GOOD remix of the original, and I’m having a great time watching the different choices they’ve made and how they’re tackling things. They’ve also made what I think are some really smart decisions in terms of when the plot beats happen. Like bringing Livio in way earlier is definitely a good fix for some things the manga struggled with.
I’m really enjoying how much worse everybody is at keeping their secrets in this version.
And how much more evident it is from the get-go that both Vash and Wolfwood aren’t plain old human. Like, it doesn’t tell you much about what they ARE, because this planet has plenty of posthuman nonsense of all kinds going on. But the kinds of crazy things they’re each able to pull off is highlighted more clearly from the get-go as being beyond human normal.
But MAN I’ve still got Knives at Jeneora Rock on the brain. The way it resets the scale of what those two are truly capable of. Establishes why Vash has every reason to be afraid of himself.
The way it brings out Vash’s underlying anger so much earlier in the series. It reframes his whole sweet quiet-voiced persona as him trying to keep a tight lid on his anger, and being unable to decide between the different priorities of his life that he’s stretched between. Unable to commit to any of the paths he sees lying before him, because he’s so angry, and yet afraid of being a violent, murderous person. And he’s also afraid of what actually trying could mean for, like, the entire planet.
And it’s GORGEOUS. The hand-painted backgrounds are superb and lend it all such atmosphere. And the character designs didn’t really stand out to me at first–I remember when I first saw them, I was like “…Oh.” But they grew on me a bit, especially when the creator was like, “Well the original designs are already right there, we wanted to get a bit fresh with it.” But ALSO…my god, once they start moving. The body language. The attention to detail. Every character lives and moves in their own unique way and style. I keep getting chills at the sheer quality of the animation.