Rem was more of a motherly figure to him. Even if Vash had romantic feelings/a crush on her, I doubt it would've ever been reciprocated. It seemed her heart was still with her old love, Alex.
Vash's one and only true love was REM. She was beautiful, eloquent, caring and she taught Vash how to be a good person. She was clearly his soul mate and I will hate the creators forever for ruining this show for me.
Millie is nothing, she is retarded and dumb. Sorry but there is no comparison, so sorry to digress but my conclusions are fact, real, true, and people should infer to them as the gospel.
Millie? Meryl was the one that was being geared toward a romance with him. Also, Millie is one of the best characters on the show, to me. Her relationship with Wolfwood was heartwarming and resonated a lot more with me than anything involving Vash/Meryl.
As for Evangelion, it's not everyone's cup of tea, but these two anime aren't very comparable other than from a 'popular anime' perspective. I prefer EVA myself and I had some issues with Trigun, but I'd recommend people interested in classic anime to give both a go (along with Cowboy Bebop).

Oh he is and I love him desperately.
A cat I took in back in late September last year was pregnant and had 5 kittens. I found homes for three of them and kept 2. Named them Spike and Vash. Now I have someone that I can pick up and say "I love you SO much, Vash!!" mwah mwah mwah LOL
Found a Vash plushie at this anime con i went to Memorial Day weekend. He's standing on my Trigun manga on the bookshelf in the living room here smiling at me. Sigh.
Back off, Meryl, he's mine, ALL MINE! LOLOL
Three two one Tiger & Bunny Over and Out.
http://mrsspooky.net/bebop

You just want him for yourself!
I get that-is Vash not the sweetest man?
http://thinkingoutloud-descartes.blogspot.com/

That too.
Three two one Tiger & Bunny Over and Out.
http://mrsspooky.net/bebop

Or maybe Vash just didn't want to get involved because of the fact that he's immortal, or at least so much longer-lived than humans that for all practical purposes he could be considered immortal? Meryl could spend the rest of her life with him, but he couldn't spend the rest of his life with her. If they do get together, he'll have to watch her age and finally die, while he remains untouched by time.
http://thinkingoutloud-descartes.blogspot.com/

I mean, there was Meryl right in front of him and it still took him forever to get a clue.
Or maybe he had a clue but didn't want to act on it out of fear of what would happen to her? He did drive them both away because it was too dangerous.
I don't think he would have willingly gotten involved with her out of fear that she would be harmed. Well, there was that one family, but they took him in. He left them anyway.
Besides, to heck with Meryl, I'm hopelessly in love with Vash myself! LOL
Three two one Tiger & Bunny Over and Out.
http://mrsspooky.net/bebop

Even Vash said he was lucky that Millie didn't know how sharp she is.
I remember that! Yeah, Rem was dead long before the show started-even if she hadn't blown up in the spaceship she would have been dead of old age and somehow I don't see her and Vash ever getting together. I mean, there was Meryl right in front of him and it still took him forever to get a clue.
http://thinkingoutloud-descartes.blogspot.com/

Vash was a child, but he obviously adored her and probably wanted to be her boyfriend. He was a child. Brilliant though he was, he had no experience or maybe even knowledge of what that entailed.
Then there's Rem. Of course she loved Vash, but he was a child she was nurturing. I think it's pretty common, or at least very natural for a child of his intelligence to develop feelings for that caretaker that they may not understand. I think Rem knew this. Besides, she was in love with someone else. He was dead, but her heart was with him.
Vash loved her yes, but it would never have been, even if she lived.
Besides, all that - the fleet, Rem's death, everything - was more than 100 years before the start of the series. Even if she didn't die then, she would be dead by the time the show started. I guess I don't see the problem. No, I guess I do understand, but she'd be dead by this time anyway.
You can see Millie's quick insight from early on. She recognizes things and comments on them. Even Vash said he was lucky that Millie didn't know how sharp she is. Meryl's love for Vash grew slowly, but yeah, but I think it was by episode 13 or 14 that she starts showing it, and more and more after that.
To say any more would be spoiling things and I'm not interested in doing that. The rest of the series is VERY worth watching. I think you won't regret it if you finish the show.
Three two one Tiger & Bunny Over and Out.
http://mrsspooky.net/bebop

Like I said, I stopped watching after REM died. My passion for the show died along with her. I also disagree, that Vash had no romantic feelings for her. YOU seriously need to rewatch the dream sequences and the clips of them together. He would not have cried for her if was just normal love for a friend, his true feelings run deeper than an ocean.
I agree that alot of people do misinterpret sophistication for intelligence, perhaps it's a type of intelligence, social awareness or high self esteem. Something that Rem had a lot of. Maybe I also misjudged the other females in the show and will defintly go back to this and watch the end of the show to find the depth your talking about.

I really felt for her after Nicholas died-I always hoped she got pregnant so at least she had something of him in her life.
You too? Awesome. Yeah, so do I.
Three two one Tiger & Bunny Over and Out.
http://mrsspooky.net/bebop

Yeah, a little polish goes a long way. Millie wasn't polished at all-maybe that's why she saw things so clearly. I really felt for her after Nicholas died-I always hoped she got pregnant so at least she had something of him in her life.
http://thinkingoutloud-descartes.blogspot.com/

I think a big part of why she doesn't get the credit for her intelligence is that she's not sophisticated. She is a big, sturdy small town girl who's very open. Some people mistake unsophistication for stupidity when nothing could be farther from the truth.
Three two one Tiger & Bunny Over and Out.
http://mrsspooky.net/bebop

Millie is also the one Nicholas fell in love with. She had such a good heart-I just loved her. She's really the one who kept them all on an even keel. And like you say, Spooky, she was very smart. I guess people who are kind never get credit for being smart.
http://thinkingoutloud-descartes.blogspot.com/

LOL!
Well, Millie is the one who figured out that the goof in the red coat was really Vash. She's the one who could see that Meryl was falling for him. She's the one who noticed that Vash was buying food for himself and what looked like a kid while on the sand steamer.
She has a bright, cheerful personality, but she's sharper than the all-business Meryl.
Three two one Tiger & Bunny Over and Out.
http://mrsspooky.net/bebop

You tell 'em, Spooky!
http://thinkingoutloud-descartes.blogspot.com/

Millie is nothing, she is retarded and dumb. Sorry but there is no comparison, so sorry to digress but my conclusions are fact, real, true, and people should infer to them as the gospel.
You ARE joking, right? Did you even WATCH the show? I know this is the internet, but I'm going to infer this posting to be a massive joke. It's funny enough. xD
Three two one Tiger & Bunny Over and Out.
http://mrsspooky.net/bebop

Vash loved Rem. He was not in love with Rem. His only love interest was Meryl. And Millie is a sweet and loving woman. To see her as retarded and nothing says more about the person who sees her that way than about her.
http://thinkingoutloud-descartes.blogspot.com/

Vash's one and only true love was REM. She was beautiful, eloquent, caring and she taught Vash how to be a good person. She was clearly his soul mate and I will hate the creators forever for ruining this show for me.
Millie is nothing, she is retarded and dumb. Sorry but there is no comparison, so sorry to digress but my conclusions are fact, real, true, and people should infer to them as the gospel.
I see your mocking the animatin of episode 26 of Evangelion when you SHOULD actually be judging it on it's DEPTH, a philosophical masterpeice that has one of the best endings ever created. It also setups perfectly for the movie.

Love interest? I wasn't aware there even was one until late in the season when Millie starts giving it a crack.
Also lol @ going back to Evangelion and claiming THIS to be a disappointment. I hope you enjoy a finale that involves 1 animation and a guy talking to invisible people

Yes I agree, it was very cute. Especially when she finally realized how much she actually cared for him.

Yeah really. It was a joy watching that develop, wasn't it? One of my favorite things was Millie seeing it plain as day with Meryl fighting it tooth and nail.
Three two one Tiger & Bunny Over and Out.
http://mrsspooky.net/bebop

Haha yeah, if you had watched more of it you will see that Meryl is actually the main romantic interest during the events of the show, although from what i remember it was mostly very subtle until the end. Also you should realize that Vash was a lot younger when he knew Rem, and he loved her with a pure, childlike love that transcended romance. She never really "died" to Vash; he still carries her beliefs and ideals and everything that she taught him hundreds of years ago with him.

Keep in mind that she died more than 100 years ago. Even if she didn't die saving those ships, she'd be dead now.
Or didn't you watch that far?
Three two one Tiger & Bunny Over and Out.
http://mrsspooky.net/bebop