Considering how quickly anime can gain and lose traction among fans (does anyone talk about Ergo Proxy anymore?), it’s impressive that Trigun still seems to show up in “my favorite…” lists. And with the long-awaited movie coming out, the franchise isn’t likely to fade into obscurity any time soon.

According to Sankaku Complex’s report [NSFW], the movie will be released during spring of 2010 and will star Vash the Stampede, Meryl, Milly and Nicholas Wolfwood, all voiced by the original cast. Given Wolfwood’s presence, this probably isn’t going to be set after the end of the anime or the manga–unless Nightow has been getting some inspiration from Lost.

From the Japanese I was able to decipher on the official site, the movie is set in Makka, a town surrounded by quicksand. Rumors around town say a legendary robber named Gasubakku is targeting the place. In order to protect his town, Mayor Kepler gathers ruffians to take him out…for a monetary prize, of course. Meryl and Milly happen to be in the town on a job for their insurance company when, to their surprise, they see Vash in the line of people hoping to take down Gasubakku.

So it seems the movie will be like a longer, self-contained version of the average episode of the TV series. This will likely please existing Trigun fans, but will it be able to expand the fandom?