is the protagonist of Trigun, a manga series created by Yasuhiro Nightow in 1995. Set on the planet No Man's Land, Vash is the most feared outlaw who has earned a bounty of $$60 billion ("double dollar") on his head and the nickname after accidentally destroying a city with his supernatural powers. He is a skilled gunman who battles bounty hunters and assassins working for his twin brother, Millions Knives. Despite his reputation, Vash displays a kindhearted personality by befriending citizens and refusing to murder his enemies.
Nightow created Vash as a strong gunner who would stand out because of his pacifist ways, traits that are different from those of the stereotypical protagonist of action films. The manga was adapted for television as an anime series in which Vash was voiced by Masaya Onosaka as an adult and Kōki Miyata as a child. For the English dub, Johnny Yong Bosch voices him as an adult and Bryce Papenbrook as a child. The character also appears in the 2010 film Trigun: Badlands Rumble, among other one-shots. Nightow was surprised at Vash's popularity with Western audiences.
Critics praised the mixture of seriousness and goofiness of Vash's character. However, his pacifism received a more mixed response. While some reviewers praised it as a part of Vash's heroic traits, others disliked the negative consequences when his pacifist choices failed. He remains popular in the anime adaptation and has appeared in multiple "best character" lists and articles. Onosaka and Bosch were praised for their performances.
Concept and creation
Trigun manga author Yasuhiro Nightow has stated that Vash's name was his own creation rather than references to bands he gave to other members from the cast. He developed Vash as having a serious personality with a childish side, and found him to be the most relatable of all his creations. To contrast Vash from the typical heroes in action films, Nightow portrayed him as a pacifist since he did not want his lead character to be a murderer. Throughout the story, Vash avoids killing enemies by disarming them and avoids inflicting mortal wounds during combat. His cheerful personality was used to highlight this trait with his catchphrase being: "Hey, sorry. Love and peace?" To emphasize that Vash is an experienced gunman, Nightow depicted him as having a strong eyesight that gives him a more precise aim. While making the series, he was surprised by Vash's popularity with Western readers.
Comparing Vash's manga characterization with his anime persona, Nightow said his version does not have as many crushes on the women he meets. To create suspense, writer Yōsuke Kuroda suggested that Vash would not shoot a bullet until the fifth episode. While the Vash from the early episodes was portrayed as comical, following episodes reveal a more deeper the character hides. Kuroda claims that Nicholas D. Wolfwood serves as both Vash's ally and rival at the same time whereas Million Knives' first appearance in the anime was used to tell the protagonist's backstory. Character designer Yoshimatsu Takahiro expressed appreciation for Vash's pacifist values.
Vash's characterization in Stampede was created to give him a less experienced portrayal that rejects violence and through his character arc, learns to deal with it. His bounty and expressions are meant to portray him as younger than the original Vash with the first arc's ending highlighting his transformation into the classic Vash with his design acting as symbolism to it. Takei wants the narrative to focus on the depths of Vash which lead to more scenes about his backstory. Takei stated that while in the original manga and the previous anime adaptations the story is always centered around Vash, in Trigun Stampede they "really want to focus on the depth of Vash", so they decided to focus on his origin, memories, and the time he spent with Rem and Knives. Stargaze grabs the same character according to Director Masako Sato who wanted to portray as a person who cannot be truly righteous. He further wanted to keep pointing the differences between him and his brother while also exploring his sensitive side the more episodes air.
Design To make Vash's appearance distinctive, Nightow often changed the character's hair color throughout the serialization. Although fans questioned if this was relevant to the story, Nightow chose not to reveal his reason for it. In the series' climax, it is revealed that Vash's blond hair turning black is a secondary effect of overusing his supernatural powers. Despite his efforts in his design, Nightow regrets giving Vash and antagonist Legato Bluesummers detailed eyes because he drew them inconsistently in the manga. Vash's red coat was inspired by Todd McFarlane's Spawn, which Nightow is a fan of.
Nightow had trouble designing Vash's gun as he aimed it to look visually attractive and effective to use. Although he originally wanted to create a gun with unlimited bullets, he replaced it with a traditional one after consulting a picture of an upside-down barrel for inspiration. Besides Vash's guns, Nightow portrayed him as having a supernatural power known as the "Angel Arms," in which his arms mutate to form a weapon. The Angel Arms adopt a feminine form and can create or give birth to matter.
In 2023, a new Trigun anime was made, Stampede. Studio Orange sought to appeal to the audience and had to alter Vash's design for this reboot. Producers Katsuhiro Takei had been a fan of the series since reading the manga as a teenager and liked the protagonist due to his values.
Voice actors
Masaya Onosaka started voicing Vash in the anime, which premiered in Japan in 1998. Onosaka said he was unaware when the 2010 film, Trigun: Badlands Rumble, would be made and that most of the cast and crew felt left in the dark for a long time before production began. After the film's announcement, Onosaka was happy to see his character featured in theaters for the first time and to work with the Trigun cast for the first time since the anime ended twelve years earlier. New voice actor Maaya Sakamoto said she liked being involved in the film because she interpreted Vash through her character, a bounty hunter named Amelia Ann McFly, who starred in the movie as a lead. Kōki Miyata voiced the young Vash.
For Trigun Stampede, Vash is voiced by Yoshitsugu Matsuoka in his adult persona and Tomoyo Kurosawa as a child. Matsuoka used to watch the original Trigun anime during high school years and was grateful for being cast as well as nervous. He claims that Vash's charm comes from his straightforward personality and his hidden shades which makes his work challenging as he has to portray both of the protagonist's seriousness and cheerfulness. Masako Sato was moved to tears when recording one of Matsuoka's lines which made him feel he really fits the character.
Johnny Yong Bosch started his voice acting career by providing Vash's voice in Trigun's English-dubbed version. He had never heard of the series until he was hired for the role. According to Bosch, most of the fan responses to his performance were positive, and Nightow found his performance to be appealing. Bosch attributed his positive reception to the story and casting director. He enjoyed Vash's traits, specifically his pacifist philosophies alongside the catchphrase: "This world is made of love and peace!" Vash's younger self from the flashbacks is voiced by Bryce Papenbrook. Bosch is also reprising his role for the English dub of Stampede expressing gratitude for being able to portray him again.
Appearances
Trigun and Trigun Maximum The origins of Vash and his twin brother Millions Knives are explored in flashbacks from the Trigun manga when the children live in a spaceship containing the last few surviving humans who have fled Earth due to its lack of resources. The two are identified as "Plants" since they age at a slower rate. They are raised by a researcher named Rem Saverem in a space ship colony. Through Rem's education, Vash gains a newfound respect for life, but his brother seeks the mayhem in mankind. Knives disrupts the navigation system, triggering an alarm and waking the dormant passengers. When Knives sabotages the fleet, putting it on a crash course with the planet No-man's Land, Rem puts him and Vash in an escape pod to save them. Rem chooses to stay behind and attempts to prevent the crash rather than escaping. As the two children become young adults, they separate, with Knives amputating Vash's left arm in a fight. Vash is found by a group of humans who construct his cybernetic arm. Knives also attempts to activate Vash's dormant supernatural powers, the Angel Arm, but the plan backfires and a blast obliterates the city of July, leaving 200,000 people without food or shelter. The incident earns Vash's reputation as "The Humanoid Typhoon".
When the Trigun manga begins, Vash travels around the planet searching for Knives. He befriends Meryl Stryfe and Milly Thompson, two agents of the Bernardelli Insurance Society, sent to evaluate claims regarding the dangers he has caused and whether or not his bounty should be canceled. He also meets a priest named Nicholas D. Wolfwood, who fights alongside him. Vash is targeted by Legato Bluesummers from the Gung-ho Guns assassins who are followers of Knives. After Legato confronts Vash, Knives reappears. A shocked Vash requests evacuation for Meryl and Milly because of the danger his brother presents. Knives then tries to use Vash's Angel Arm to destroy another city, but Vash resists and redirects the blast upward, where it hits one of No-man's moons.
In the Trigun Maximum manga, which occurs two years after the moon's destruction, Wolfwood discovers Vash relating Knives' exploits in regards to mankind's extinction. In facing Legato's group, Vash fears that they have discovered the location of his home, resulting in the deaths of his friends. Vash learns a ship has made contact with Earth and will be arriving to save them from No-man's Land. Knives uses his powers as a Plant to shut down the satellites used to communicate with Earth. Vash learns of the severed connection and guesses its cause. Gung-ho Guns Hoppered the Gauntlet, a survivor of July, seeks revenge on Vash, but is killed by his partners as Knives ordered them not to kill their target but tormenting him. Vash and Wolfwood continue traveling to Knives' base. However, Vash is defeated and restrained by Legato. Wolfwood, revealed as a member of the Gung-ho Guns, rescues Vash.
Vash rejoins Wolfwood, who fights with Gung-ho Gun Livio to the death. When Wolfwood dies, Livio, Wolfwood's childhood friend, joins Vash' cause while grieving for his friend's death. As Knives approaches the city with the "Ark", a floating ship designed to leave humans without any resources and end life on the planet, Knives begins dueling with Vash. Throughout his past battles that required him to use the Angel's Arm, Vash has transformed into a regular human signified by his blond hair now turned black. Vash breaks his pacifist vow by killing Legato to protect Livio from the last Gung-ho Guns. Knives also starts losing the powers he stored with the Ark through Vash's actions. Vash then saves his brother from the vengeful ships from Earth. Following his defeat, Knives uses his last powers to help his weakened brother by creating a small fruit tree to feed him. After his brother's death, Vash continues his travels on the planet with Meryl and Milly.
Adaptations In the first anime