Genre Anime Director Shinichirô Watanabe Writer Akihiko Inari (Japan) Marc Handler (US translation) Stars Voices of Kôichi Yamadera, Unshô Ishizuka, Megumi Hayashibara (Japanese), David Lucas, Beau Billingslea, Wendee Lee (English) Format DVD region 1 Running time 26 Episodes, 30 minutes each Made Japan 1998

Welcome to the 21st century. Mankind has now reached up towards the stars and developed an interplanetary society. Here are the lawless and dangerous worlds of our Solar system, a new breed of ‘cowboy’ bounty hunters pursuing the outlaws and crime families who strive to make a dishonest buck.

The motley crew of the spaceship Bebop are all ‘cowboys’ of some description - Spike Spiegel, a dangerous yet funny man with a hidden past, Jet Black, the ex-police officer turned bounty hunter, Faye Valentine, a stunning woman on the run, Ed, the hyper kid, and Ein, the Welsh Corgi dog with a smart I.Q. They are all ready for crime-fighting adventures and collecting a bounty, even if they don’t always achieve it. Lethal and funny, cool and romantic, the space cowboys of the Bebop take on all kinds of scum to stop those stomachs rumbling.

Once in a blue moon there comes an animated series that stands head and shoulders above the rest, a series that encompasses every area of quality production, which, in my opinion, rivals and even betters most live action films and certainly television series out their today. Perfection is a rare thing within any medium and Cowboy Bebop, along with Batman: The Animated Series, are the only ones I would give as an example. They are the best of their breed - faultless in every way. BTAS is, for me, the best adaptation of the Dark Knight and the best Western animated series to date. However, Bebop is the greatest anime and that is how I divide the two, as anime has a style that stands on its own, even within the medium of animation, a unique look that separates the Eastern influences and styles from the West. Yet Bebop is so post-modern in terms of its structure, there is no connection to its routes other than it’s distinctive character design, typical of anime.
Both series are post-modern and mix all kinds of styles and flavours, but Bebop has no restrictions to the world surrounding a vigilante and his city. It has an entire universe to explore. Think Blade Runner on a larger scale.

There are even subtle references, but more of a homage than connecting the two in any way. This is the universe you imagine when Roy Batty gives his moving speech at the end of Blade Runner. Now we can see the things we wouldn’t have believed - C-Beams glittering and the journey from one world to another. However, Bebop stands on it’s own. This is a series that has everything and, like most post-modernist science fiction, mixes every shape, style, sound and feel of what has come to pass. It is placed in a blender and then spat out. The result is the most powerful anime series you will ever see. The music - five albums worth - moves you as much as the incredible visuals and superb story telling. Also, the characters are some of the most original in years.

Let us get one thing straight before we go any further - this is no kids cartoon. It is no run-of-the-mill smutty ‘manga’ label release either, which you pick up at your local Virgin Megastore. This, truly, is the greatest production you will ever witness of it’s medium. There are other good anime series, but nothing with the scope and magnitude, the feel and style of Cowboy Bebop. It is violent with its action-packed sequences, there is bad language, nudity - but none of it gratuitous. They simply help the development of the story, instead of trying to entertain stereotypical spotty teenage fan-boys of hardcore manga. No, this is for those that appreciate a good film, good directing, high artistic styles and knock out camera tricks, music - jazz, blues, opera, rock, hip-hop, you name it - with characters and stories. The medium of animation should by no means put you off, but introduce you to what it is capable of.

Originally only 12 episodes of the series were broadcast in Japan. Only after this was the entire series shown uncut on their satellite channels. There is a distinct style that is reminiscent of the pulp Sixties shows, with its stylistic intro and jazz music, and Cowboy Bebop is one of the most human and involving dramas you will ever see. Set against a futuristic backdrop, you almost forget you are on another planet, due to the sophisticated storylines and subtle environmental designs - each planet closely resembling different countries of today, instead of out-of-this-world concepts. There aren’t really any aliens, no robots as such. It is almost as though it could be now, only man has visited all the surrounding planets in our solar system through gateways which resemble highways of space. The future is very close. Plot construction and characters are highly developed and surprisingly deep - rare in anime. The voice talents, both in the original Japanese and, surprisingly, in the dubbing, are excellent. It will take a lot out of you and by the time you have finished watching the series in its entirety you will sit there quite happily for an extra 10 minutes, stunned. Every episode is a mini movie, yet an ongoing story runs throughout, which is well thought through. Already, having had its run in Japan, the Cowboy Bebop movie, Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door, has been snapped up by Columbia/Tristar and is to have a limited run in the States. Eventually an R1 version will be released on DVD, as have the Original Sessions, which I cannot recommend enough to people.
The makers of this series are highly talented and have achieved what they set out to do.

I quote: "The work, which becomes a genre itself, will be called... COWBOY BEBOP".

Yes, it’s that perfect.


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