Title: Trigun Volume(s): 2 Creator(s): Yasuhiro Nightow Format: Unflipped; Right-to-Left Publisher: Dark Horse MSRP: $14.95 Genre(s): Sci-Fi/Action Rated: Teen (13+)

There is so much Japanese manga on the bookstore shelves now, you’d think there was virtually nothing big to look forward to. And when I say nothing big, I'm talking about your monster series like "Dragon Ball" and "Sailor Moon," you know -- the big series that absolutely EVERYONE loves, the series that could put a small company on the mark! However, if you thought there were no more big series to pick up, then you were WRONG! There is one series that everyone was waiting and praying for to be picked up. That series was “Trigun” and the sequel “Trigun Maximum.” However, the wait is now over, as Dark Horse has picked up the rights for both of these series and is releasing them with virtually no changes to the source material at all. This is both a blessing and a curse however, and I’ll discuss why a little later on, but until then, let's get the story out of the way first.

Chances are if you're an anime fan, or you watch Cartoon Network a lot, then there's a good chance you’ve heard what “Trigun” is about. After all, this thing has had a healthy run on DVD, and then when the show aired on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim block, it gathered even more fans, and all animation lovers pretty much agree that “Trigun” is arguably one of the best animated series ever created! The story starts out with a human that walks into towns and leaves them in ruins, a human that causes so much destruction wherever he goes that the government has posted a $60,000,000,000 dollar reward for the outlaw. That outlaw just happens to be a man by the name of Vash The Stampede, also dubbed “The Human Typhoon.” Right off the bat, it may sound like Vash is a dangerous man, but one of the best things about Vash is that he's not someone to be afraid of at all. Because “The Human Typhoon,” who has a $60,000,000,000 dollar bounty on his head, is kind of a goof to tell you the truth.

However, despite the fact that the guy is a goof, he can shoot, move really fast, has sharp reflexes, and gets out of the most unlikely situations. This is what gives “Trigun” most of the charm it has. The story revolves around a complete IDIOT who makes goofy expressions that would make the Looney Toons jealous, runs around like a maniac, has the fastest reflexes ever, he can use a gun and shoot like it was second nature to him, and he gets out of the most dangerous of situations (how he always does may surprise you too)! Vash is also one of the most likable heros to come from Japan as he does possess these incredible skills, yet he refuses to kill anyone and is just a plain nice guy. The series is a great blend of sci-fi and western, which makes the world of "Trigun" a very unique and interesting place. Everything about this series is original, lively, and interesting... which is why it pains me to say that this series is also not as great as I was hoping it would be. I guess we need to get to the fact that since the TV series has earned SUCH a great reputation, there is no possible way any reviewer can avoid comparing the manga to the TV show, and in comparison, the manga just doesn’t cut it as well as the TV series does!

The first problem with the manga is that it establishes the fact that Vash IS the $60,000,000,000 dollar man very early on in the series, where the anime gave you that feeling of “he might be... on the other hand he may not be” feeling that made observing Vash a lot more interesting in the show. Another problem with the comic is the artwork. Quite simply, it isn’t very good, with a lack of detail in the early chapters and bland character designs. There are a couple of great looking pages in these early books, but for the most part, the art looks incomplete and rushed. Another problem is the steamroller story. This particular section of the story is over 200 pages long, and that’s way too long for a part of the story that is largely uninteresting and boring. And then we have the problem with Dark Horse's handling of the series itself, which is a very mixed bag, to say the least. To start out the translation is largely incomplete. One of the few stand-out things when it comes to the art in "Trigun" is the sound effects. Yasuhiro Nightow can draw sound effects, he has drawn probably the most alive sound effects I’ve ever seen in a comic book!

Where Dark Horse screwed up was that they didn’t translate the sound effects or even leave notes on the page so that you can read what they say. They translated a couple of the sound effects in the second book, but most of the second book (and the entire first book) is completely void of sound effects translations. This is a major problem because there are several instances where the sound effects cover a good portion of the page, yet without any translations, you have no idea what they mean. This is very sloppy for a few reasons, and it is also inexcusable since we are supposed to be paying for a complete translation, and yet we're not. However, there're some good things about Dark Horse's treatment that I need to mention, too. Despite the lack of translations for the sound effects, the dialog IS translated, and it is translated very well. Also, the book looks entirely similar to the Japanese book. Dark Horse went out of their way to make no changes to the cover (with the exception of Dark Horse's logo replacing the "Young King Comics" logo, the cover looks exactly like the Japanese cover), and printing Nightow's bizarre sketches inside the covers of the book. And finally, the actual size of the book is impressive.

Some of you may already have noticed the $14.95 price tag and don’t want to buy the books since it's more expensive than your average title from Tokyopop, but I will tell you now that the price is justified in the size of the book. The average Tokyopop title costs $9.99 and usually is around 200 pages a book. These books are $14.95 each and are around 350 pages each! That makes for some pretty thick books, and it’s kind of nice to pick up a manga that you can read in more then one sitting. However, at the end of the day, “Trigun” is still a little disappointing in more ways than one. It's nice to have the books so thick, and it's also nice to have "Trigun" translated at all, but the truth is that at this point, the story feels too rushed, the art isn’t that great, and the lack of translations for the sound effects is really, really frustrating.

I’m still recommending this title, however, since the second book starts to pick up in the story department, and considering how big these books are, they make for a great deal overall, plus "Trigun Maximum" promises to be a MUCH better read! So while I was a bit disappointed with "Trigun," the price is still right, and it does start what is looking to be a very interesting read ahead. Here’s hoping the second time's the charm (and that Dark Horse will translate the sound effects from here on out).

- -Review By Kevin T. Rodriguez- -