Episode 12: Diablo

Review by Dale

August 6, 2000

In a dark building, a muscular man is training while a mysterious figure looks on. The man notices the figure and states that he believed that he was only a legend. The figure tells the man to hunt down Vash. Meanwhile, Vash is in a shoe store happily conversing with the owner. The next day, Meryl and Milly are outside on a park bench enjoying the weather. Vash is playing with the neighborhood kids and offers them ice cream after the game. He buys an extra cone for one kid who is sitting alone; the kid strangely refuses the treat and runs away. The mysterious figure appears and sits on a bench behind Vash. He communicates telepathically and introduces himself as Legato Bluesummers. He states that Vash will lose his life, but he is only a messenger. He offers the kid a hotdog and grabs his skull, ready to crush it. Letting the kid go, he just wanted to see if Vash got nervous. If he felt like it, he could destroy the entire town in a flash. Before leaving, he says he will leave a lesson for Vash. Instantly, the wife of the owner of the shoe store comes screaming out that her husband isn't moving. Vash is arrested, despite the agents' pleas on his behalf, since he was the last one in the store. He has flashbacks of a city filled with bodies, and someone who looks just like him standing over the bloodbath greeting him.

The agents come to visit, but unknown to them, the muscleman has come to kill Vash. Vash realizes what is happening and tells them to duck. The muscleman bursts into his cell and holds him by the neck, but Milly saves him at the last second. Vash runs screaming for everyone in the city to stay out of his way and keep hidden. For those who don't listen, he fires warning shots and pushes them into safety. The muscleman finally finds Vash and tells him he will take out the town and everyone in it. He begins doing just that, and after the smoke clears, there are bodies everywhere. Vash appears and fires three dead on shots right into the muscleman's face mask. The agents come upon him, but he tells them to stay back. Vash runs into a bank to set up a trap for the muscleman. He pretends to use a safe as a shield, but he is actually nowhere near the safe. When the villain comes to get him, he blows the safe door off to knock him down. He then fires off all of his gun's ammo, and the muscleman thinks he is out. But Vash fires off a shot from his hidden arm cannon, surprising the villain, and grounding him. Vash shoves the arm cannon in the villains face, debating whether to fire, but has a vision of Rem in which she tells him to look within himself for the answer. He decides to spare him, and begins crying.

Legato Bluesummers is a mysterious character indeed. With telepathy, he uses his powers to control others minds. This is mostly likely what he meant by him being "the messenger." He used the muscleman to carry out his dirty work. In him, I think the true villain of the series has finally been revealed. The flashback in the cell was revealing. In it, there was a character which looked as if he could be Vash's twin, and the tone suggested again that Vash had once been evil. With such a serious turn, I hope that the comedy element of this series will not be dropped entirely, as it was been a major factor in my enjoyment so far.

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Buy the DVD (eps 11-14) from DVD Empire

<<back to Trigun