#huh... weird for me...

I wonder if the font for the letter in original Japanese is different too. I always like it when this is done instead of using "quotations". It's a nice touch.

Seems like the focus of this chapter are our dear insurance ladies. Love love Milly's devotion in whatever she does. She always strives to do her best in her job, but this dedication to write to each relative she has every month is just something else. I also appreciate how she is kinda treasured for her sweet nature - from Meryl's clear guidance and their boss radar gift.

Ah, Meryl. Ask for chaos and you shall receive. LMAO. However, does she have some problems at home. Just going by her lines here.

OMFG. BWAHAHAHA!!! THESE TWO PAGES!!! 😂🤣😂

I really need to buy hard copies of the manga. This must have been a page turner shock. It looks so serious from one page, but when you go to the next? HA! IT'S VASH GETTING BULLIED BY TWO SENIORS INTO BECOMING THEIR MEAT SHIELD!!! It's such a clever and funny layout.

Admittedly, this was a bit of a busy page. However:

One of my fave drawings by mangakas are when the "break out" objects or characters from the traditional panels. That gun sticking out has a nice 3D like effect.

Speedlines to show how quickly Vash went into for real real meat shield mode for the old couple. Meanwhile, that clear drawing of his hand feels like he is about to take out his gun.

Gun and nail details and... Have I mentioned before how I never really understood the beauty of negative spaces until I started reading this manga? Just something that hit me is all.

THE INSURANCE LADIES TO THE RESCUE! ROFL! Poor Vash getting bowled over. Poor Vash's spine!

Oh my.... Let me just appreciate this for a while.

They're just so beautiful. Oh my goodness. Again let me just gush about how the volume insanely Nightow is at visually communicating scale? Not to mention clothing folds and drapes!

Another fine specimen of scaling and foreshortening! And.. did Meryl just called Vash BROOMHEAD?! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

Man's got a point. Unfortunately. Poor, Vash.

BWAHAHAHAHAAHAHAH!!! I CAN'T- I JUST CAN'T!!! Everyone just rolls with it for the greater good while Vash is just stressed! 😂🤣😂

Interesting set of panels:

Again with the negative space

Awww! Milly's sweet tooth and where is she exactly? I can't remember, but she must be from somewhere really stable/rich, right? I mean her family sounds big which indicates their location can support a big population. Plus, the food the she often mentions are not exactly easy to get.

Vash looking for an escape or is it?

Oh, Meryl. I love you and you usually hold the brain cell, but this one time you had been fooled! Grandpa used everything you told them earlier to lay a trap! MERYL, YOU WERE OUTPLAYED!!!

Uhuh? Oh, really? The blush makes me think she didn't think this through and is scrambling for an excuse pronto.

Also, again with that negative space! Nice because it really helps with this "transition" in the next page.

They are walking under a clear blue sky. Idk why it matters a lot to me but it does. It feels "smooth".

Huh... I wonder if Tristamp took queues from this one when they animated Meryl's joy in seeing the garden in Episode 9.

Exposition can be a slog to go through *cough*jjk*cough*. However, this exchange was not overwhelming. The lay out really helped. While some panels/boxes have overtaken by speech bubbles, there are plenty of blank spaces to make it easier on the eyes. It properly built up the last panel which made it more impactful.

This is so lovely to read and the composition is just beautiful.

Again with that negative space. There's a lot of it in the manga I realize.

It's odd to see Meryl without earrings.

Investigative Meryl Mode!

Huh?

And there we go, the rest of the Nebraska Family.

Obviously, this went really differently from the '98 anime. I don't know why I expected Woof Woof already when it's already been made obvious that both anime adaptations shuffled events around.

However, I really appreciate how Meryl and Milly got the spotlight early here. In '98, this was kinda halfway through the series. It was way waay late and Woof Woof already entered the scene.

I must say... '98 really had to get creative with the material that they had because the BDN's Arc was covered from Episodes 7-8. Then Episode 9 introduced Wolfwood. From 10 to 12 were anime originals... I think. Not yet far enough in the manga to know if they were "remixes".

Anyway, the fillers in '98 are not bad and plenty entertaining. Some of the funniest shit and badass scenes of Trigun were from those. They were great addition to the story especially since it never contradicts the characters core (sans the horn doggy-ness).

But it does screw over Wolfwood tho... just a tiny bit on hindsight. I mean if '98 is judged on its own, he is perfectly fine. However, with Tristamp giving his background (which I believe is more loyal to the manga), it is kinda odd how he didn't stuck with Vash after they met in the bus. Then again, Woof Woof has a bit of a different background in '98 which made sense... Kinda.

Augh the challenges of adapted of an on-going manga. Studio Mad had to make things up as they go, but they still did great! The inconsistency with Wolfwood is pretty minor - almost negligible... except why didn't he stick with Vash the first time? Sigh... this may nag me for a while.

Oh. Also for @revenantghost

Ok. Now I'm more excited to see more with the manga's plants.

Sorry for the confusion! When I said I prefer the 9o's version of plants, I'm mainly referring to the lightbulb design which fits the vibes of the plant angels more. It's very magitek which I really like while Tristamp uses tanks which totally make sense since its more sci-fi heavy.

The interesting thing about the plant design in Tristamp is how I can associate them with earth, sky, and water. Earth because of how they remind me of faeries, Sky because of the wings, and Water because they give me mermaid vibes as the live in their tanks. It has its own charm... but yeah magic lightbulb angel ftw!

Again... my bad for not being clear. Sorry.

I do hope we see more of the Bad Lads and eventually BDN in Tristamp properly. HARD AGREE on some lore bible or art book from Studio Orange! I think there were some supplementary materials from the limited edition DVD release tho?

That's a good way to describe Tristamp - a love letter to Trigun itself. I also respect Nightow for just letting Studio Orange do its own spin. Most creators won't be so comfortable giving other free reign in their sandbox.