Trigun Bookclub: makima-s-most-smile: Trigun Maximum Volume 2: Part 1

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Original Tumblr Post: Trigun Maximum 2 Part 1

Trigun Maximum 2 Part 1

Time to dive into Vol. 2. (weeks to late, but I get there!)

Also, why does Nightow has the Shojo-Style from the 80s down to the t?

01: The return of the blue wind of death

Is he a prisoner that exchanges his imprisonment time for this task? Does he really think that he would work for his whole sentence of 830 years? It looks like the life expectancy is like 50 years max on No-Man’s-Land, with exceptions of course. So many young and middle aged men, but not very many old ones sitting in the pubs. Many children, many orphans and not enough people to take care of them. Those who get older seem to be in the crafts, like… uh… the shoemaker that was killed by Legato… Yeah…

The uniform reminds me of something… gimme a minute…

Ah! Fitting for a “western” the government dudes are dressed in the get-up from the US.Army from the American war. Wasn’t sure which side, but it is the U.S Army side, so they are at least not evil coded. 😀 Looks like something between a Sergeant, a Major or a Captain. But we shall never know which rank he has exactly. But the look fits with the whole genre!

Ah! Yaoi man! I know him! When I found the silly figurine on amazon I thought its head was too small… But I think I stand corrected.

But isn’t he -designwise- like a counterpart to Wolfwood? Hair gelled back, a white, immaculate suit, contrasting Wolfwood’s design of messy hair and a black suit, but they have the same tendency to not fully button the suit jacket up. Another thing, that we see later in the chapter, is a sense of selfpreservation that both share. Though the reason behind it seems different. Wolfwood needs to survive for his purpose, the protection of the orphanage, while Hornfreak just has a normal, human survival instinct. He may actually like being alive, even with being a killer.

The whole fight is interesting. Why did the commander send his men there? What happened? The owner of the property is not in town, so why is he even interested in that place? What does the occupation mean? How did they know? Then Hoppered warning the men about Legato and asking them to save themselves, which makes me ask if the army has any ulterior motives here.

Hooboy, Nightow knows when the reader’s imagination is worse than whatever he can draw. We know what happens in the truck… We can imagine that… Not showing it makes it so much worse…

I love how we, the readers, see the impending danger to Home. We get to see the puppet fly, we get to connect the dots. Everyone else is unknowing. We already experience the tension, the foreboding. Which makes Vash staying away from Home so much more sad. He doesn’t allow himself to be welcome and feeling safe, because he knows he is hunted down. It still won’t keep his close ones safe.

02: Resume our Business

No way anyone forces Legato to eat like this! Legato is having a fucking pity party and punishes himself, because Knives was mad at him for trying to kill his brother. He does this to himself. He revels in the punishment. It is a theatrical play of how much he idolises Knives. And it is scary.

Hoppered being the sensible one. Dude, you seem so nice, what are you doing with those people!

Yeah, something snapped in Legato, when Knives punished him. Knives is such a fucking tyrant. “Hey, I punish you violently and over the top for wanting to fulfil my wishes, because I, without communicating it, changed my mind! And that is your mistake.” And Legato has to believe that, because if not it would mean his whole idolisation is wrong and that would destroy this man’s self. I pity him. Knives needs someone who stands up to his bullshit and Legato needs someone who actually cares about him. Both make each other worse!

And… while I like Hornfreak’s speech… As an assassin you don’t give a whole speech that announces that you want to kill your target! Especially since you know he has some kind of power, too! *headdesk* Well, get bretzel’d.

I think it is interesting how he starts by trying to connect to his other gun-ho-guns, but then turns around and distances himself from them by calling them “Maniacal killers”! He gives a whole speech to give reason to his betrayal and excuse it.

BDSM-Knives return! I think revenantghost already said this, but… Knives, if you are the reason people hunt Vash down… It is not the human’s fault that Vash suffers… Knives is fucking delusional… And selfreflection? Never heard of her!

Legato says: “That is his will. And it shall be done.”

And it reads like a fucking quote from the bible.

Acts “And since he would not be persuaded, we fell silent, remarking, “The will of the Lord be done!””

James “Instead, you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that.””

Legato is idolising Knives so hard, he makes him his God.

And to counter this unhealthy behaviour, we have the dumbasses on the next page. Especially Wolfwood treating Vash like an equal human being. I love this whole skit!

Vash, you had your whole 150 years to learn how to drive anything! How did you survive, walking miles upon miles between the cities under the sun’s heat? You were run out of them so often! How did you get away quickly?

Liar by omission? Wolfwood? Nah! Liar by avoidance! He really just needs someone who does not stop asking and he would break down. But Vash does not do that. No one does!

Well, Rai-Dei literally spelled out that Wolfwood is part of the Gun-Ho-Guns, no denying that. They know each other, Rai-Dei says loudly that Wolfwood is “planning” something. And Wolfwood looks just so conflicted, maybe even near tears?

I am confused what Rai-Dei means by Vash’s “selfish ways”. Is it based on his bushido? The morals of the bushido changed with the eras, like there are different types. Some say to retreat from an unwinnable battle, while others say to stay until your death.

And Wolfwood, you know this guy! I am sure you already know that he is using a fucking blade against guns and fared splendidly enough to become a Gun-Ho-Gun… Wolfwood in this fight feels like fucking Speedwagon.

*snorts* Wolfwood tagging out and Vash calling him a “Demon Priest”. Peak comedy for me!

I love the change from the silliness to dark seriousness, when Rai-Dei nonchalantly tells Vash that they are about to invade his home. I also think it is interesting, how Nightow then pans to Wolfwood, dark-eyed and serious, as if he just made up his mind about something. Most likely that he is not okay with innocents being killed just so Vash feels bad. Again a contrast to Keele, who was willing to kill a random woman so he gets to Vash.

And again, Vash is put into a trolley problem. Kill Rai-Dei to move to Home faster and maybe rescue more of his close people or waste time to keep Rai-Dei alive, but risk losing close people. For many people, it would be an easy decision (if you call killing someone easy), but Vash needs to save every person. If everyone is family and thus equally important, no one is. Rai-Dei literally tells him that he came here to die, but Vash cannot accept that.

03: Samurai Showdown

And while Vash hesitates, Wolfwood deems Vash’s home as important enough to interfere and to get ready to fight Rai-Dei. He hides himself behind his sunglasses, but still gets spotted. And I like that about Wolfwood, that he is able to decide for himself who he is ready to protect and how far he is willing to go.

Damn, Rai-Dei just called Vash not human. Together with his weird fixation on the fight, he comes off as a weird monster hunter. Poor Vash.

Are you talking about them or about yourself, Wolfwood? Wolfwood’s selfhate is on the platter here.

I know it is Vash’s ideals, but that he stalls and takes so much time to “Make Rai-Dei cast away his sword” while the people he calls his family are in danger, always reads as so cold, like he has no real connection to them. Like I said, if everyone is important, no one is.

Why is Wolfwood so weirdly fixated that guns are better than swords? Why is he so offended by this? This whole shout feels so out of the place! I stay by my stance that in the two years Rai-Dei talked Wolfwood’s ear off about how much better katanas are and how much more graceful and yadayada and Wolfwood was just so close to ending him after like five hours of that.

04: Wolfwood

Oh, fuck. It goes down! That front page?! Four being the unlucky number connected with death. Wolfwood holding onto the punisher, that reaches out of the panel, but also wraps kinda around him. The way he crumbles the cigarette package in his hand and his forlorn, bitter look on his face, away from us and staring at something off the screen. Chef’s kiss. I hate it *thumbs up*

It looks like a memory of the past. An impression that Wolfwood left after they have already parted ways. He looks so incredibly lonely and burdened here. And at the same time, a shield to somebody.

Hand on the trigger!

God, this page. The contrast to the wild action the page before, the weird, blurred lines surrounding Wolfwood, Vash, Rai-Dei’s end and Wolfwood’s cold stare with pinprick eyes. It gives you a feeling how quickly everything went down.

I’ve thought about Rai-Dei’s train of thought. Surely, there is the whole: “I cannot start anew! All the time I’ve used to become this! The sins I’ve committed!” But… it feels more like him acting upon his way of the warrior. If you cannot win the fight, you die in it. Kinda like a version of seppukku or kamikaze, which all kinda rounds back to bushido and societal standards.

I am sorry, what does that even mean?! The blade is still in its original position? What? No, he took the sword, wrapped his finger around the trigger and was about to thrust it into Vash’s back. This always reads for me as Vash in denial. Why wouldn’t he have pulled the trigger? I feel like I am too dumb to understand this panel.

This may be a controversial take, but hear me out. Vash’s recurring modus operandi! He gives other people all the agency to act as they like and he reacts to them. Is this a way to unconsciously have no real responsibility for the outcome? It puts him apart from every normal human and puts him more into the position of a mightier being. And, damn, at the same time this must sound completely naive and away from any kind of sound mind to Wolfwood. It is a way of life that is possible only if you have no connection to other people! As long no one cares about him, he can do as he pleases with his own health. But here he is confronted with somebody who cares enough that he killed for Vash and because of Vash’s denial of action. Vash could act in the past as he liked, because he didn’t share his path with someone who cares for him! But now, if he gives all his agency away, not only his opponent may act as he wishes, his partners may also act upon their wishes. Wolfwood’s wish was to save Vash! And I understand why Wolfwood may feel like the deed was pushed onto him by Vash.

Wolfwood hates his way of life and he judges himself harshly. It defines his whole being. At the same time he is in a position of no real agency. To protect the orphanage and survive himself as a former orphan, he needed the power that his position brings. Like we all said, a man between a rock and a hard place. He calls himself a devil! You can’t put yourself down more, especially as a priest. I get that Wolfwood does not really expect Vash to shoot, that he acts out of anger here. But damn, this is a cry for punishment, something, some human reaction from Vash. And Wolfwood does not get it.

I love the detail of Vash having his finger pointedly away from the trigger.

And while I get that Vash does see Wolfwood for who he really is and not for what kind of front he puts up, this is not the time to put him down a peg. The man just killed someone for Vash, he is hurt like fuck and is lashing out. And what Vash says comes off as pity and judging. It is Vash not understanding humans and especially Wolfwood at all through the lens of his ideals. Which is so fucking weird when he is at the same time spot on about Wolfwood’s inner workings! He goes like half the way and then just stops. There is no follow up from Vash to find the reason why Wolfwood is so determined to play the devil or why his heart cries out. And that is a very big flaw in Vash and how he interacts with people. He gives people all the agency to control the furthering of their relationship (until he runs away). The problem is Wolfwood never learned to open up, from what we can tell, he never was in a space safe enough to learn that. Wolfwood is self reliant to a fault, because he had to. Both of their flaws and past makes it impossible right now for them to understand each other. And that makes me just sad. Wolfwood does so much to understand Vash and Vash stays still.

Thanks, I’ll take that for my nightmares.

Girls, I love you, but you had him! You had him already! But you chose to use all of your vacation days and let him go!

This whole scene reads so weird, like Keele did not happen. XD I love how especially Milly are like: Yep, we’re friends! And I love how they include Wolfwood, even though they seem to have forgotten his name. Guy left an impression, at least.

Damn, Meryl must be squished with the guy kinda climbing out the window from behind her! But good from her to ask Jessie to check the wreckage out! Saving people is always the right thing to do!

The girl is calling out for Vash. Is she the one with the puppy crush? But calling out for him when your literal ship fell from the sky is weird. I feel for Brad.

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