Willys/Overland beat Isuzu to the 4x4 roadster/speedster/coupe thing....by about 55 years. They called it a Jeepster. Def an icon and def moved a bunch of bars forward, to the International Scout, the Ford Bronco, the Blazer, the FJ Land Cruiser.....Crosley had a few.....Mitsu had the old Montero (which Mopar sold as well) Power Wagons could ONLY be called aggressive.
VX was the first of the new millenia maybe, but nowhere near first in anything I can think of....even Rav4s had a plastic lower half in like '94
The VX is a cool looking vehicle. (I worked for Isuzu of Daytona while they were being made. I knew I was getting one, the instant I saw it.) It has been a perfectly reliable friend. I will likely not sell it for a very long time.
I just think it more or less ends there