Trigun Stargaze: Everything You Need to Know About the Prequels Before the Anime Drops

Trigun Stargaze is already one of the most anticipated animes of 2026. The new series continues the story of Vash the Stampede, the kindhearted gunslinger who always tries to save everyone he meets. But before Stargaze hits Crunchyroll next January, it’s worth looking back at how we got here.

From the late ’90s original Trigun to Trigun Stampede, this is an explosive franchise filled with high-stakes storytelling worthy of celebration.

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The Beginning: The 1998 Classic That Started It All

As far back as 1998, anime fans were swept to a desert planet known as No Man’s Land. It is a land of bounty hunters, outlaws, and futuristic tech. In this wild world, we met Vash the Stampede. He is also known as the Humanoid Typhoon and has a huge bounty on his head. But what was bigger than the money he was worth was his heart.

Yasuhiro Nightow’s original Trigun, which Madhouse animated, was unlike anything else on TV. It consists of 26 episodes and originally aired from April 1 to September 30, 1998. Trigun was a huge success. The anime saw even more recognition when it aired on Adult Swim, making it accessible to a larger audience.

In hindsight, that original series really was special. It combined old-west shootouts and futuristic energy weapons. The moral lessons also made it stand out from other shows of its time. And most importantly, it gave us characters like the priest Nicholas D. Wolfwood and the Bernardelli Insurance Society employee Milly Thompson, who became fan favorites for their humor and heart.

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A Return to the Desert: Badlands Rumble

After the anime finished, everyone wondered if the show would return. And it did. Fans were finally rewarded with the Trigun: Badlands Rumble film. In the movie, we saw Vash and Wolfwood, Meryl and Milly, back for one last outing.

The movie takes place two decades before the events of Trigun. The outlaw Gasback's gang turned on him when they attempted to rob a bank. Vash intervenes, stopping a massacre but allowing Gasback to escape.

Years later, Gasback seeks revenge on his former partner, Cain, now the wealthy mayor of Macca City. When word spreads that he’s coming, the Bernardelli Insurance duo, Meryl and Milly, are sent to protect the city, and Vash soon crosses paths with a mysterious woman named Amelia, who holds a painful link to his past.

That movie has everything that fans love about Trigun: redemption, compassion, and a whole lot of loud gunfights. Behind the scenes, it was produced by Madhouse and spent a lot of years in the making before its 2010 debut in Japan and subsequent release via Funimation.

And to this day, Badlands Rumble remains the ideal bridge between classic Trigun and now. It proved that Nightow’s world still had stories worth telling and that fans were ready to ride again across No Man’s Land.

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The Rebirth: Trigun Stampede

Fast-forward to 2023, and Trigun Stargaze’s immediate predecessor, Trigun Stampede, gave the series a bold new look. Created by Studio Orange (the same team behind Beastars), this version used gorgeous CG animation to retell Vash’s story for a new generation.

At first, Stampede received a little resistance. The art style is different, the pacing seemed faster, and some of the character designs looked different. But when people tried it, they discovered the show was just fine.

Trigun Stampede shows a younger Vash as he tries to bring peace to a world filled with violence. We also meet his brother, Millions Knives, and see a young Meryl Stryfe just starting as a journalist. It gave new context to old mysteries and set the stage for Trigun Stargaze.

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The Next Chapter: What to Expect From Trigun Stargaze

Now, Trigun Stargaze is finally giving fans what they’ve been waiting for. Set two and a half years after Stampede, the series finds Vash living under a new name, Eriks, trying to escape his past. Meryl has grown into a senior journalist. We also get to see her old partner, Milly Thompson, who was absent in Stampede. Together with Wolfwood, the trio will face new dangers as mysterious plant robberies shake the planet once again.

According to the official description, Trigun Stargaze will dive into new territory for the franchise. The people of No Man’s Land receive a strange message from space offering them a “new frontier,” but before they can even dream of peace, a one-winged figure returns to spread chaos. If that doesn’t scream “epic showdown,” nothing does.

What’s most exciting about Trigun Stargaze is how it promises to merge everything fans love. It combines the emotionality of the classic show, the incredible visuals of Stampede, and all of these characters that people have fallen in love with.

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Where to Catch Up Before Stargaze

If you want to catch up before the release of Trigun Stargaze, you can watch the series online. The 1998 Trigun, Badlands Rumble, and Trigun Stampede are all available on Crunchyroll and Hulu. If you prefer the physical copy, you can also get them or collector’s box sets on Amazon.

Watching everything in release order (Trigun from 1998, Badlands Rumble, and then Trigun Stampede) to experience the franchise’s evolution might be best. You’ll see how thoughtful each version is in fleshing out Vash’s character while adhering to his pacifist principles. Plenty of fans think watching it in canon order may be better, but that’s up to you.

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Conclusion

What Trigun has always been about is hope, redemption, and kindness that still exist in a broken world. With Trigun Stargaze around the corner, fans are getting one last chance to see Vash reach his destiny.

So even if you’ve never seen the series or it’s been years since your last trip to No Man’s Land, there has never been a better time to jump in and catch up on some fondly remembered classics while feeling yet more waves of excitement toward whatever comes next. Because when Trigun Stargaze finally drops, you’ll want to be front and center when Vash the Stampede makes his long-awaited return.