Episode 16: Fifth MoonReview by Dale August 16, 2000 Legato sends another Gung-Ho-Gun, EG Mine, to seek out Vash. As a backup, he also sends Raidei the Blade. Back in Jeneora city, the agents are wondering what has become of Vash in the two weeks they have been apart. They decide to track him down, regardless of the risk. Vash is in a bar contemplating how to find Legato. A large man, under mind control, delivers a message dictating that Vash is to show up for a duel in the city of Augusta. He then kills himself, but there is no blood. Nicholas and the agents begin hearing rumors that Vash is causing havoc in Augusta. Vash announces that he will kill the entire city if they don't run away form him. He runs around like a madman firing shots into the air, obviously trying to scare people away without hurting them. When everyone is gone, he notices blood dripping on him. When he looks up, he sees two Gung-Ho-Guns impaled against a wall. EG Mine appears in front of him and explains that failure is not tolerated. He fires spikes at Vash, but is unable to hit him. When it becomes apparent that EG Mine is no match for Vash, Raidei steps in and interrupts the fight. He explains that he has no personal vendetta against Vash, but that they must duel to the death. When EG Mine tries to kill Raidei for stealing the spotlight, Raidei kills him. Vash becomes infuriated at the waste of life, and Raidei encourages him to bring out his true nature. He tries his best to avoid Raidei as Legato watches from a mountain top. Meryl can see the dust flying and heads off to get a closer look. Vash attempts to stop Raidei by shooting a water tower in front of him, but is stopped by a hidden gun in the sword. Injured and leaning into a wall, Vash is hit by several more shots. As it appears to be nearing the end for him, he gets a vision of Legato in his head telling to use "it" because he is the only one who can. Vash's gun begins to glow, and his arm opens up into a futuristic looking cannon. The agents see the glow, and Milly is forced to restrain Meryl in order to prevent her from getting any closer. Unable to control his arm, Vash tells Raidei to run before the cannon reaches full charge. He is able to aim the cannon towards the sky at the last second, but the city is still destroyed. Legato explains that this is the second time in 23 years that this light has shone. The beam is so powerful that it carves a hole in the moon. Nicholas is sitting calmly in the rubble, after the blast subsides, when Raidei drags himself to his feet. When Raidei tries to recruit him in the hunt for Vash, Nicholas kills him. News spreads quickly to every major city, and we see characters from previous episodes commenting on the devastation. They are beginning to believe the rumors that Vash caused them to live on the planet. The agents receive a letter from headquarters which states that Vash is now considered an enemy of all humanity, and that they are to return to the main office. Meryl breaks down crying in Milly's arms. As predicted, this episode was full of action. The beginning dragged a bit as it tried to set up the conflict in the second half. We do get some new interesting bits about Vash's past, but only in the last few minutes. Apparently, this planet is not the native home of the people on it, and Vash is responsible. This would explain all the advanced technology lying around. It also seems that Legato does not want to kill Vash, since he told him to kill his own henchman. The end leaves quite a bit open, with the agents being taken off the job and Nicholas reappearing. With the series about 2/3 of the way done, I wonder when the origin of Vash will truly be given instead of all these cryptic clues scattered around. Overall Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
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