Trigun Stargaze

Oh, "Trigun: Stargaze"... you could never make me form a consistent opinion about you. I am circling back to this adaptation after recently completing its 1998 predecessor. In my previous review of Stampede, I lamented that watching the '98 series left me with a lot of mixed feelings about this newer iteration. While Stampede was my initial introduction to the world of Trigun and a massive attention-grabber, it felt like a shame that so many elements of the original were excluded. It just wasn't giving "space western". However, after finally completing both '98 and Stargaze, I have a whole new world of thoughts about this adaptation... Firstly, I still miss my cowboys. I still don't think this project did nearly enough with the space cowboy vibes of the original. Secondly, Stargaze doubles down on Stampede's plot-first dynamic. The characters rarely get soft, quiet moments together, making it feel like a lot of crucial relationship-building happened off-screen in favor of rushing to "fix" certain narrative elements. I deeply missed '98 Wolfwood and Vash's "buddy cop" dynamic- I was obsessed with how they were portrayed. While I understand this newer characterization is much more accurate to the manga, I still found myself mourning that specific loss of chemistry amidst the new pace. And "fix" is a keyword here... Stargaze frequently feels like a "fix-it fanfiction" come to life, and I don't mean that in a derogatory way! Once I started looking at the show through that specific lens, it completely changed my tune. The production certainly worked with this vision; the animation is absolutely beautiful and wonderful. There is a bit of a jarring production snafu toward the end, but since I am not deeply knowledgeable about the behind-the-scenes issues that occurred, I can't really commentate on that part. Just know: You'll know when it happens, it'll be distracting, but it's easy to get over. The visuals are gorgeous and the audio is fun. As a dedicated dub enjoyer, I had no complaints at all. The audio quality was great and every single voice fit their character perfectly. This brings me to my inability to form a cohesive opinion: somehow, the show manages to give these characters deeper development while simultaneously running out of time to actually do anything with them. It feels like they were chained down by episode/time constraints, so almost all character development is forced through pushing the plot forward. While there are brief moments that try to capture the inherent softness and hope of the story, the pacing still struggles at times... which I almost can't blame the writers for at all. Meeting Livio fundamentally changed my brain chemistry. When I reached the end of the '98 anime, I was looking left and right wondering, "Where is he?!" And I've seen his manga design. I know both versions fumbled in different ways, but it was a moment of "at least he was in this one". He is a fantastic example of how the creators tried to improve by squeezing in more of the characters and trying to quickly have them have fulfilling parts of the story without driving up runtime. Furthermore, the redemption plotlines? Normally, I am all for an adaptation that explores these themes, but the execution can give you whiplash. Once in a while, a character will switch up so fast, like okay! We're doing squares now. That's cool. And I recognize that a lot of development just had to happen off-screen, but even the final stretch felt exceptionally rushed at the expense of the final resolution between Knives and Vash. No spoilers, but don't get me wrong... I sympathize with what they were going for. I see it, I think it's something that's fun to play with in fanfiction/roleplay, and I love Vash's character to my core. I feel like this was an important story for him... but Knives 100% deserved what happened during their final altercation in the '98 anime. I think Vash should've done it again. And I guess this entire story could lead to a huge discussion about atonement, redemption, pacifism, etc. Ultimately, Stargaze possesses so much potential because it genuinely feels like a fan's dream. It feels put together by a creative team who truly love the universe, wanted to do right by it, and wanted to make long-time fans feel seen in their historic gripes. I have to love it for that. But when you spend so much energy trying to get every single detail just right, you inevitably end up missing a few major points along the way. Guess I should actually read the source material next then rewatch the media and see if my tune changes AGAIN...

🎹 Nai and Vash will live in my head forever🌱... Stampgaze is an ambitious reimagining of a beloved series that’s unfortunately held back by its short runtime. What it manages to deliver though, is a visually impressive homage that does things differently to set itself apart from the other two versions of this story. For what it is, I enjoyed this spectacle. Read the Trigun+TriMax manga for the full experience!