I Am Sorry In Advance To My Handful Of Followers For The Person I Am About To Become When The Golden

Need to ramble a bit about Livio in Stampede, have had thoughts tumbling around my head for a bit and need to put em out somewhere-

For a while I think I’ve been on the fence about the character that’s been portrayed for him so far in the anime- ill very readily admit I’m biased, as the manga version of him and Razlo I can easily say have been my favorite characters from any story I’ve experienced thus far and have been for quite a few years now.

As much as I joke or whine about his size in Stampede I think his design is fine on its own, it portrays what his character is supposed to be- a clean cut professional hitman/assassin that’s tied to this universe’s tech. I can also appreciate the concept of him constantly chasing after Wolfwood, I think there’s a lot that can be worked with there- but there’s an issue with the sense of his agency with that, which I’ll get into more.

It’s difficult not to compare Stampede to the manga, I understand that it’s supposed to be “its own thing”- but in regards to this specific topic I’m going to go into, imo, compared to the manga it’s objectively handled worse. (I also understand that being it’s an anime there is a greater time restraint to work with, and the episodes he was featured in are meant to have Wolfwood as the primary focus- at the end of the day LR are side characters)

The thing that easily gives me the biggest ick is was him attempting to “check out” at the end of ep. 7- actively suicidal and acting on impulse as a result of the rush of memories returning because of horrid acts either he or Razlo committed (this ramble isn’t about how Stampede portrayed Razlo in the brief .5 seconds he was there, given we don’t know for sure how Stargaze will handle him- but given how Liv was treated, I’m preparing myself to be very disappointed ((but open to being pleasantly surprised))

For me personally, one of the things that makes manga Liv so relatable is his passive suicidal nature, especially while being under Chapel in EOM. His general apathy and readiness to claim the status of being a victim can have someone easily argue that he is a bad person, and he doesn’t have much of a stance on whether he lives or dies. We do get hints of empathy from him (like killing the bad guy who was threatening the child from the orphanage and being willing to take the time to tell Wolfwood his story), but overall he believes his only purpose is to serve as sword and shield to the best of his abilities and does not care how others fare as a result, including himself. Quite frankly he more than likely would not be alive, either by his own hand or allowing someone to take his life if it weren’t for Razlo.

Part of this mindset of his remains even after volume ten, again I’ll refer to his quote referring to himself as a tool/weapon- while now having a purpose to live and go on, at no point does Liv himself state or portray a fear of dying. Regardless, his character development from having a victim mindset being turned into a sense of resolve and making choices to do better for himself and those around him is, quite frankly imo, the entire message that Trigun conveys.

Manga Livio is the precipice of the “blank ticket” metaphor- someone who was given the opportunity to start over, and made a choice to do better in spite of the actions he knowingly and readily committed prior.

Stampede Livio is unfortunately not that. From what we’ve seen his entire ability to choose at all was taken from him at some point. We’ve seen that he was a willing volunteer of EOM, and we’ve seen that he was working really hard to be on par with Wolfwood- but at some point it’s strongly implied that he was forced to commit atrocities that he wouldn’t normally have done by his own volition, and that the piece of tech he wears insures that he continues to do as instructed. There is a sort of horror that goes with that which in of itself is extremely interesting, but it doesn’t really flow with the message that Trigun intends to give. What can Livio learn or change from if it wasn’t “him” ever committing heinous acts or if his troubled past doesn’t continue to eat at him? What does he learn, or the main cast learn, if he was successful in committing suicide in a state of panic?

I honestly have no idea what to expect from Stargaze- I’m excited for it (although nervous) and I really hope they expand on the narrative for Liv, even if just a little bit. I can imagine it’ll be hard for the anime to make Liv be the precipice for the blank ticket metaphor again story-wise at this point, so I won’t be surprised if that turns out to be someone else.

"sadistic freak" and "pervert" very easily two of the best traits a character with healing powers can exhibit

but have you considered that the longnose gar's nose is long in comparison to the shortnose gar's nose?

look at this fellow! like 20% nose! imagine if you were 20% nose.

what a nosey guy.

ICE raids happening in Chicago on Tuesday January 21st. Get organized and get prepared.

I think some of the things in AFTG don't make sense to a lot of people who aren't also abuse victims, and it means that a lot of fandom posts are just... wrong?

Like, I really don’t think Jeremy going to the press about his family's abuse would help him. He's financially dependent on them; his ability to go to USC and not be in prison hinge on his family's support. They're classic abusers in that they've tied him down.

Just like Andrew couldn't just tell his foster parents about the abuse; the ones who knew didn't care anyway.

There's a perfect example of this in Kevin leaving the Nest and making things worse on Jean. Riko's rage towards Kevin was just turned onto Jean. The abuse didn't end; it was just redirected. And Kevin was still traumatized and constantly in danger. He couldn't go anywhere near the Nest safely. He couldn't talk about what happened publicly without facing retaliation.

All of this is true for Jeremy, too. Financial and emotional abuse is still dangerous; he can't just suddenly leave. He can't just stay at Laila's place and try to hide; that kind of reset is both horrifying and extremely dangerous for most victims.

I feel like people who aren't victims just miss half the context of AFTG. I wouldn't wish that depth of understanding on anyone because this series hurts me intensely. But I do wish I could explain it to people better.

LOOK AT HER EYES LOOK HOW HAPPY SHE LOOKS L O O K

Clownfoolery (but with bunnies) ✨

My three girlfriends. And yes, they smoke weed.