#theeioo

So I reallllyyy love Stargaze. It'd been so long since the first season, with a lot of time spent worrying about other stuff- I forgot what masterful story tellers Studio Orange are.

Like stars. The showcasing of character development is maybe one of the most important things to me. Vash has been static for 2 years because he basically decided to stay catatonic. But like- stars, MERYL. MERYL'S WRITING MAKES ME ILL. She's like. Patient Zero for showcasing why Vash's kindness matters. She's grown a lot more confident in the years since Vash disappeared, and on top of that, she took his kindness and goodness to heart. She's so much more forward with him and other people than she was in Season 1? in Stampede she's often shown doubting herself, holding back, worrying, fretting. But in Stargaze she's SO confident. And like!!! She's matured- and Also she saw how staunch Vash was about his beliefs, and she went, "I want to be like that". It makes me so unwell. She's so good. I also really enjoy this characterization of Milly asdklfjKLSJDG, She's so good. She's so FUNNY????? But also like. She's got that ability to snipe people with her insane emotional intelligence out of the blue. Catching things and pinning them down when other people hadn't noticed them. The two girls' dynamic is just DELIGHTFUL. I love that both are competent in their own rights and while Milly definitely lets Meryl take point as her "mentor", their relationship is actually rather equal. They trust each other enough to talk about stuff and take each other's advice. Vash is GREAT in this season too. Its so fun to see him come into his own. Really taking the lessons he realized at the end of Stampede to heart. And i love how he's even less willing to bend- and more willing to fight Nai. Like. In Stampede he was quick to shrivel away and run when confronted by Nai. But now he's been more and more willing to go toe to toe (mostly verbally) and defend humanity with all he's got. Specifically I really liked that scene when Legato was torturing him- And he just REFUSED to bend to Nai's reasoning. I feel like in Stampede he still would've had the same arguments- but he would've been more afraid? (And who could blame him T_T) while in Stargaze he wasn't even afraid, just DESPERATE. Desperate to communicate with Nai and put an end to this. Also stars. Wolfwood makes me so unwell. I said to my friend- I think him being the one character without any design changes in his clothes for most the season was intentional. It shows how stagnant he is. After Julai he basically just. Walked away. He didn't change. Didn't grown. Didn't do anything. He probably didn't exactly know WHAT to do with himself. And its soooo. He shows up and its almost like nothing changed at all, but EVERYTHING changed and he still doesn't know how to accept and move on from everything. Its what makes it even more poignant to me when something DOES change >:) but i'll get to that. All in all its just a very good season. They did a good job figuring out some points for times sakes (knowledge from the '98 anime + I have SO many spoilers for Trimax despite never reading it). The animation is still Absolute FIRE and i'm still in awe that we get it at THIS quality. For real i wish it could've been 3 seasons if only for more of this animation.

I love the continued themes of redemption, love, and kindness. The fact that Vash has reached out to save every one of the guys on Knives' team despite the fact that he would have EVERY reason to fight back with lethal force. The way in the Midvalley ep we get confirmation that Wolfwood no longer really wants to kill either- (Stars the midvalley ep had me in tears. When Midvalley broke down after Vash said he would defend him too??????? I'm. I can't even. Thats just. So good. its soooooo goood man). I love that he reaches out to the Puppet guy (forgive me I forget his name) and even to Legato!!! Again and Again!!! Stars!!!!! Also Nai man. Naaiiiiiiiii. I"m grabbing him and shaking him in my teeth (delighted). His sunk cost fallacyyyyyy. That scene when Elendira is like, "hey if he's willing to sacrifice all these plants, what are we to him" HmmmMMMMM. we were already making jokes about Nai being an absentee father in Stampede and now this just prolongs it /silly. But for real- the way its showing his on lost sense of morality. The fact that Nai is willing to kill his own sisters to save them????????? Stars. It gave me such a cold and visceral feeling during that scene. Its such a cruel thing to do and he's not even capable of recognizing it at this point. Not to even mention that it seems like all the plants in his care are doing poorly.

I love how messed up Legato is. He's so funny to mee asldkfjLAJSLSDG I want to grab him and shake him and also i think he needs to be wrapped in a blanket and put on timeout for a minute asdjflKJDSGSDJKL. He's so stupid (affectionate). Thats me being goofy tho- Narratively I think he's so interesting and fun. He's just as deep in this as Nai and its sooooo bad for him. My best friend pointed out how like- after holding Vash and torturing him for AGES, Nai didn't even ACKNOWLEDGE his efforts. Its sooooooo. And having watched ep 10, the way that Vash is worrying about Nai's feelings- and Legato takes that as an opportunity to grab that feeling and just, twist it. And its interesting- because Legato LEGITIMATELY believes he has a point- but like. Buddy. Nai is doing a murder. Also Vash has put a lot more effort into trying to communicate with Nai than Nai has EVER Done. Its a fascinating look into how his mind is working, and the way he's lost in his own unhealthy obsession over Nai and the plants. I also just love a freak who's insanely powerful. Episode 8 might be my favorite so far. Because. Wolfwooooooddddddddddddd. Some of it is purely just me things tm. I'm eating up the tiny whump Crumbs of Vash being out of it at the beginning and then the post of it all in episode 9 But that aside. Stars. Starrrrrrrssssssssss. I'm so proud of Wolfwood and I'm so happy for him man. That whole episode had me gripped and I cried so hard by the end of it. The music, the emotions, the voice acting, the animation, the build up. Wolfwood finally being able to accept that he'd made a friend. Finally able to move on and change after years of being lost and without hope. And the fact that his adoptive caretaker didn't care. Those other kids didn't care. Everyone was just happy to see him again. And livio too!!!!! Stars!!!!! Him and Livio getting to bond afterwards is also everything to me they're so STUPID (affectionate)

There's just so much i love too, brad, luida, jessica- the sense of humor, the endless fight for hope and kindness. The OPENING?????? which took some getting used too but I listen to it ALL THE TIME NOW. Its just. Man. Its everything i could've hoped for in another season. the only thing i would've wished is that they actually got another season- because my only real criticism of Stampede is true w Stargaze- its pretty breakneck and I wish we had more room to breathe. They make it WORK so i don't really feel all that bothered by it in the end, And I don't fault Studio Orange for it. They probably didn't have a choice in the matter.