TRIGUN STARGAZE gives us our long-awaited duel between Nicholas and Livio/Razlo in Ep. 8 “Good Bye, My Friend”. As you can imagine, it’s an epic duel of the fates worthy of a Star Wars movie in more ways than one. And as readers of the original manga by Yasuhiro Nightow will know, this duel portends tragedy…or does it?

TRIGUN STARGAZE Ep. 8 “Good Bye, My Friend”: Details in Brief

TRIGUN STARGAZE JP key visual
It’s pretty much Nicholas’ show here…and with a guest appearance by Vash.

TRIGUN STARGAZE Ep. 8 “Good Bye, My Friend” is the eighth episode (you can read my reviews of Ep. 1, Ep. 2, Ep. 3, Ep. 4, Ep. 5, Ep. 6, and Ep. 7 here) of the second and final season of this reboot anime, with TRIGUN STAMPEDE serving as the first season. Said reboot anime is the reboot of the 1998 Trigun anime series, which itself was the anime adaptation of the manga of the same name by Yasuhiro Nightow.

Studio Orange (Land of the Lustrous, BEASTARS, Leviathan) returns as the animation studio behind this anime. Interestingly though, Kenji Mutō is not returning as the director, and none of the writers from TRIGUN STAMPEDE are returning either. Instead, Masako Satō will be the director, with Kazuyuki Fudeyasu as the writer. Tatsuya Kato does return as the composer though.

The opening theme song for TRIGUN STARGAZE is “Picaresque Hero” by ano. Meanwhile, “Stardust” by FOMARE is the ending theme song.

Synopsis

Alas, both Meryl and Milly are missing from this episode.

Alas, TRIGUN STARGAZE is an ongoing anime series. In fact, Ep. 8 “Good Bye, My Friend” only just made its debut on February 28, 2026 exclusively on Crunchyroll. Thus, to prevent spoilers for those who haven’t watch this episode yet, here’s the official synopsis from Crunchyroll below:

“Wolfwood helps Vash break out of the Ark, but is pursued by Razlo, Livio’s alter ego.”

TRIGUN STARGAZE Ep. 8 “Good Bye, My Friend”: The Good

TRIGUN STARGAZE Ep. 8 "Good Bye, My Friend" screenshot 1
Even his outfit screams “Edgy teenager phase”.

The highlight of Ep. 8 “Good Bye, My Friend” is undoubtedly the clash between Nicholas (voiced by Yoshimasa Hosoya (JP)) and his childhood friend/adoptive brother Livio (voiced by Genki Muro (JP)). Or rather, a clash with Livio’s alternate persona of Razlo the Tri-Punisher of Death. If you think that’s a name that a particularly edgy middle schooler came up with, then you’re not entirely wrong. This episode reveals that this Razlo persona is something Livio created in order to compartmentalize…some sort of trauma. They don’t mention what that trauma is, but it was enough for Livio to go through what looks like dissociative identity disorder, which results in the ultra-violent Razlo persona who appears to inflict pain in order to release internal pain.

It creates a separate battle within Livio as he struggles to control his alternate persona, all while the external battle with Nicholas and then Vash (voiced by Yoshitsugu Matsuoka (JP)) takes place in reality. It’s this dual battle happening amidst the duel that’s what makes the action in this episode all the more engaging.

Speaking of which: the action in Ep. 8 “Good Bye, My Friend” is on par with some of the best action films in cinema history. It’s almost like watching a deadly duet between Nicholas and Razlo as they dance around, firing their crosses at each other in between using them as shields. It makes the battle feel like something in between The Matrix and John Wick, with a hefty dose of Star Wars mixed in when their crosses briefly turn into lightsabers.

And the fun part? The massive deviation from Yasuhiro Nightow’s canon at the end, when Nicholas lives through the duel. In Nightow’s original manga and in the original 1998 anime, Nicholas dies after that same duel, so seeing him live through this one is a very interesting plot choice indeed. It may not be the end of the story though, and he may still die later. We’ll just have to see in future episodes of TRIGUN STARGAZE.

TRIGUN STARGAZE Ep. 8 “Good Bye, My Friend”: The Bad

TRIGUN STARGAZE Ep. 8 "Good Bye, My Friend" screenshot 2
Not as bad as it looks…maybe?

Honestly, there are two big problems with Ep. 8 “Good Bye, My Friend”. The first is that the episode doesn’t really go into Livio’s past. Specifically: in regards to the existence of Razlo. In Yasuhiro Nightow’s original canon, Razlo’s existence is due to severe abuse by Livio’s biological father. That abuse caused Livio to develop the alternate persona of Razlo as a coping mechanism. However, this episode barely goes into why Livio developed Razlo at all. All we get in a vague idea that maybe Knives and/or his subordinates were involved in his creation, but that’s it due to the lack of any additional information. I’ve no idea why writer didn’t delve into his backstory more, but it makes Livio’s and Razlo’s story and the resulting conclusion feel incomplete without it.

The other big problem is the issue of Nicholas’ altered fate in this episode. On one hand, it is a fascinating deviation from canon that has some complex repercussions for the story. On the other hand, canon purists will be confused at best at this change in the story. While Nicholas’ death was tragic in the original canon, that was the point. It gave him so much more impact in the story because of that, so it baffles me as to why Orange went with this plotline. We’ll just have to see in future episodes if this plot change pans out.

Anime Recommendations

While we wait for the next episode of TRIGUN STARGAZE, you may be a bit starved for more of the action we saw here. In tha case, you might want to check out Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Kaiju No. 8, DDDD, DAN DA DAN, Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online II, Zenshu, Blue Box, Solo Leveling, Black Butler, Nyaight of the Living Cat, and/or May I Ask for One Final Thing?. On the other hand, if you want something more quiet to calm down with, then you might want to watch Spy x Family, Senpai is an Otokonoko, Apocalypse Hotel, Spice and Wolf: Merchant Meets the Wise Wolf, The Ancient Magus’ Bride, My Dress-Up Darling, This Monster Wants to Eat Me, Hana-Kimi, and/or Journal with Witch.

What did you think of this week’s episode of TRIGUN STARGAZE? Tell us your trigger happy dueling thoughts in the comment section below.

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