List of Trigun characters
The Trigun anime and manga series features a cast of characters created by Yasuhiro Nightow. It takes place in a western/steampunk setting, primarily on a fictional desert planet where humanity has settled after leaving Earth, where civilization is sparse and mostly lawless. The plot and characters of the series differ greatly between the original manga and its anime adaptation, with the anime following roughly up to the second volume of the manga before diverging into a unique telling of the story. The series' story follows the adventures of Vash the Stampede, a legendary gunman who aims to spread his message of love and peace while combating his brother Millions Knives and Legato Bluesummers.
The protagonist of the series is Vash, a jovial, pacifist gunman who is followed by disaster and misfortune due to the large bounty on his head. Early on in the series, he is pursued by Meryl Stryfe and Milly Thompson, insurance agents assigned with evaluating damages involving him. He also meets Nicholas D. Wolfwood, a violent and serious traveling preacher who becomes his strongest ally and friend. Throughout the series, Vash interacts with and befriends many people across the globe. Opposing him and his companions is his twin brother Millions Knives, who hates humans and his way of life. Closely following Knives is Legato Bluesummers, a cold and powerful man who is the leader of the Gung-Ho Guns, a group of super-powered assassins.
Main characters
Vash the Stampede
Vash the Stampede, aka Vash Saverem is a sentient Plant who wields a silver revolver and travels from town to town, and is known as "The Humanoid Typhoon" due to the destruction that surrounds him. He and his brother, Knives, were born on a colony ship that was part of a fleet sent to find and settle a new world to extend the human race. There, Rem raised them, instilling in Vash the philosophy that every being deserves life, which he takes to the extreme by attempting to save everyone. However, Knives, who was disgusted by the actions of humans, caused the fleet to crash, killing Rem and many others. Since then, Vash has made it his mission to hunt down Knives and stop him from harming others. During one of his confrontations with Knives, he was forced to destroy the city of July, an incident which haunts him greatly and started his reputation. Initially, Meryl and Milly, representatives from an insurance agency investigating claims made due to damages the "Humanoid Typhoon" caused, find him as bandits are hunting him down to collect the bounty on "The $$60,000,000,000 Man".Meryl Stryfe
Meryl Stryfe, also known as "Derringer Meryl", is a hot-headed and strong-willed agent of the Bernardelli Insurance Society, who, along with her coworker and best friend, Milly, is sent to evaluate claims regarding Vash. At first, she finds Vash to be a nuisance and dismisses the idea that he is the legendary "Humanoid Typhoon." However, over time, she realizes that Vash is not the villain that he is made out to be nor the buffoon that he presents himself to be, and comes to respect him. She hides dozens of derringer-style "throwaway" pistols under her traveling cape and is skilled at wielding them, but rarely has the opportunity to use them. In the manga, she becomes frightened upon discovering Vash's true nature as a Plant, but later comes to understand his past after seeing his childhood memories and of the destruction of July through his eyes. After Bernardelli shuts down while Knives is ravaging the planet, she and Milly, along with Brad and Luida, assume support roles to help combat him. At the end of the manga, they become investigative reporters for the planet's first television broadcasting channel, continuing to follow Vash wherever he goes.Milly Thompson
Milly Thompson, also known as "Stungun Milly", is a kind-hearted and optimistic agent of Bernardelli who works alongside her best friend Meryl, who she looks up to and refers to in a respectful manner. She comes from a very large family, and often writes letters to them, which is known as "The Milly Monthly". She wields a concussion gun, referred to as a "stun-gun", which she hides under her coat and is powerful enough to knock over trucks. Although she does not have a relationship with Wolfwood in the manga, events after his death imply that she may have had a romantic interest in him. In the anime, Milly spends the night with him before his death and her reaction to his death is greater than in the manga. In the manga, she has blond hair, while in the anime, she has brown hair.Nicholas D. Wolfwood
Nicholas D. Wolfwood, also known as Nicolas the Punisher, is a member of the Eye of Michael, an organization of assassins. After showing potential in the orphanage in which he was raised, Chapel trained and modified him, giving him enhanced abilities and the ability to regenerate from injuries using special vials, though this causes him to age at a faster rate. He wields a cross-shaped gun called the Punisher, which contains two machine guns and a rocket launcher; the anime depicts one of its unused arms as containing a rack of pistols.Millions Knives
Millions Knives is the main antagonist of the Trigun manga and anime and Vash's twin brother, who is one of the few fully sentient Plants. They were born during a mission to further the human race, with Rem raising them until Knives disrupted the course of the ships, causing them to crash. While Vash believes that all beings have potential for good and deserve to live, Knives believes in the survival of the fittest. After discovering experiments performed on other plants, he decides that humans are evil and self-destructive and must be eradicated. Vash disagrees with his plans and seeks to stop him, with Knives seeking to dissuade Vash from basing his life around the "idealistic nonsense" Rem taught him.His character differs between the manga and the anime; in the manga, he is shown to be apathetic and misanthrophic towards humans but is caring towards other Plants, as he mourns their death and apologizes to one for his impulsiveness when "sacrificing all of those companions". He also cares about Vash to the point of almost absorbing him to stop them from fighting and prevent him from dying. Before his change in attitude, Knives is shown to have been the more enthusiastic of the twins when interacting with humans, before the discovery of Tessla.
In the anime, Knives goes from being introverted as a child to a ruthless sociopath bent on exterminating all humans on the planet. Although he is the primary antagonist, for most of the series he appears only in flashbacks, only appearing in person during the last few episodes. Acting on a tip from Wolfwood, Vash finds Knives at a desert oasis, leading to a battle that initially ends in a stalemate; however, Knives gains the upper hand and tries to annihilate Vash with the power of both brothers' Angel Arms. Vash shoots him repeatedly, disabling him, then bandages his wounds and carries him back to the nearest town.
His role is more prominent in the manga. Many years after landing, he and Vash meet in the city of July in a battle that leaves Vash without his left arm and Knives in a critical state. He slowly regenerates over time, forming the Gung-Ho-Guns to act for him. After he revives and learns using his abilities is causing him to slowly die, he begins absorbing other Plants into himself to strengthen his powers. After fusing with thousands of Plants, Knives launches his "Ark", a floating ship designed to leave humans without resources. As he absorbs more Plants, his Ark takes on the form of a sentient organism, capable of defending itself and, in some cases, teleporting short distances. Vash and Knives fight for a final time, after which Knives saves Vash from the exploding Ark. After bringing Vash to safety, Knives uses the last of his power to create an apple tree before dying.
Legato Bluesummers
Legato Bluesummers serves directly under Knives, giving him command of the Gung-Ho Guns, and has devoted himself to him. He has made it his main goal to have Vash experience eternal pain and suffering.In the manga, Legato takes over while Knives is injured and uses the Gung-Ho Guns to play a "game" with Vash. He gives Vash a case and each Gung-Ho Gun a half coin to place into it, stating that "something interesting will happen" after it is completed. After Knives recovers, Legato's body is crushed and his neck twisted for using the Gung-Ho Guns for his personal agenda. Afterwards, he is restricted to a coffin-like container; he later gains a new coffin with metal appendages that allow limited movement. He eventually learns to use his threads to manipulate and strengthen his own body, and begins wielding a ball and chain and a handgun. He later fights Vash with the coin case completed and subsequently activated, which nullifies his threads, and loses. He then forces Vash to kill him by threatening to kill Livio.
In the anime, Legato, whom Knives recruited to make Vash's life a living hell, becomes the leader of the Gung-Ho Guns and receives Vash's left arm from Knives, giving him the ability to manipulate victims with telepathy. He worships Knives as a god, and sees humans like himself as garbage, only good for consuming resources. Legato forces Vash to kill him by threatening to kill Milly and Meryl, becoming the first person that Vash consciously and willfully kills and fulfilling his promise to "make Vash the Stampede feel eternal pain and suffering".