When Trigun first came out on DVD here, I had been an anime fan for a while, mostly through Toonami and such, like many current anime fans. Trigun, however, was the first series I ever actually bought. I don't know what attracted me to it, but it just seemed cool. I remember seeing ads for it in gaming magazines, and Vash just seemed like an awesome character. So I bought it, and loved it (and got the McFarlane Vash figure), and I guess that was one of the things that led to my otakudom! Years later, the manga came out, but by then I was somewhat over Trigun. I bought the first big "Trigun" volume and later on I bought the first volume of "Trigun Maximum" ( I skipped the second "Trigun" because they didn't have it at the store). They both entertained me (it was Trigun after all), but since they were similar to the anime I simply assumed that the rest of the manga was pretty much exactly like the anime. Manga was still relatively new to me at the time, so while I did enjoy Trigun, I guess I didn't want to read a story that I had already seen.
A few years later (maybe 2 years ago), I randomly decided to pick it up again (and I'm pretty sure the reason was because the spines looked nice on the shelf at the store)....and then I realized how wrong I was. This was a similar story, yes, but it quickly diverged and became a completely different story set in a very familiar world. And my love for Trigun was multiplied several hundred times.
Before I finished volume 14 I decided to reread the entire series, one volume a day. It really helped since there were a lot of references to earlier characters and such in 14 that I couldn't quite remember. It also helped me notice how certain themes and quotes were echoed several times throughout the series (blank tickets to the future, etc.). I also remember the first time around feeling like Meryl and Millie didn't have enough of a role in the story, but this time I noticed they were along for the ride throughout most of the series (only really disappearing during the Wolfwood/Livio arc). Another thing I reevaluated was Nightow's action scenes. The most common complaint about the series, hands down, is that the action scenes are drawn confusingly. I remember there were a lot of scenes that were REALLY confusing, but a lot of time you only had to go ahead a page or two to get the bigger picture and realize what was going on. As the series progressed, they got less confusing, or maybe I just got used to his style. Anyway, when I reread the series I didn't encounter the problem a single time! The solution to the confusing action scenes is merely to reread them!
Okay, this isn't meant to be a review of the entire series so:
The actual Volume 14 review
I'll be vague to avoid spoilers, as this is the final volume. The volume begins with the end of the Vash/Legato fight, which ends with a moment calling back to an important scene way back in volume 1 of Maximum. After that, we get to the meat of the volume, which is the conflict between Knives and...everyone else. The Earth forces in space want to attack Knives and the fused entity(regardless of the danger it would pose to the people below), while the group down below is actually trying to communicate with the fused plants. In the midst of all the action the fused plant sheds feathers which show the onlookers the history of the planet as seen through the plants' eyes, both good and bad. Then....we get the Vash/Knives confrontation we've all been waiting for and learn the ultimate fate of our hero and his friends. (And we also get the lovely bonus of a color spread at the end.)
As I mentioned above, Nightow's art became more understandable as time went on, but in this volume he kind of went back to his old ways. The first time I was reading it, the fight between Knives and the Earth forces just seemed like a collection of lines and flashes (but again, rereading gave me a better idea of what was going on). Also, a small complaint which is likely limited to my copy: page 69 was upside down. I didn't notice right away because it's a page of ships descending, but upside down it just looked like rockets rising. It wasn't until I noticed the clouds and sound effects were upside down that I realized what was up. Or down. The fact that I didn't notice instantly is an indication of how ambiguous the art can sometimes be.
What I really want to talk about is the ending...and the fuzzy feeling I got in my heart. The final conflict doesn't really end up being all that much of a conflict. There is some fighting...but it's not long at all. Considering how long the past several fights had been, I was expecting something along those line for the final Vash vs. Knives fight. BUT, on the other hand, the way the event plays out is very well done, and the little bit of fighting we do get was drawn awesomely enough (Knives!) that it satisfied me. If there had been a longer fight, it would've made the end as it unfolded less meaningful somehow. In this case, the action didn't matter as much as the interaction (that was cheesy, sorry).
Now to give you fair warning SPOILERS AHEAD!
The end of the final battle was great because it stayed true to the characters of Vash and especially Knives. Vash would never kill Knives, that's a given, but Knives would never kill Vash either. This was his one redeeming quality. As twisted as he was throughout the series he never wanted his brother to die. I loved that Knives got a small bit of redemption in his ending, and that it didn't play out as a complete 180 in his personality. He didn't all of a sudden see the error of his ways, he just wanted to help his brother. Knives was actually my favorite characters, so I was pleased. As for Vash, I'm SO glad he didn't die. I think main characters dying at the end is just as cliche as a happy ending, if not more so. The story had gotten pretty serious, and considering how this story started out, it would have just felt wrong to end it on a bittersweet note. I'm big on epilogues, and Nightow gave us a great one that showed us the state of the world, the people, and Milly, Meryl, Knives, and Vash. I feel like other mangaka would've ended the series on the semi-ambiguous note of the second to last chapter, and I'm happy Nightow decided to give us a happy epilogue that brought things full-circle.
SPOILERS OVER!!!
Okay, one final note to make. The gag cover on the inside. This is my favorite one out of all of them because it's a Dr. Slump parody. I've always thought that Dr. Slump image was so cool ever since I first saw it.
I wonder how many people got the reference?
I'll try not to be so long-winded next time.
LOVE & PEACE!!!!
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