| Cowboy Bebop | |
 Key visual of the series, featuring the entireBebop crew | |
| カウボーイビバップ (Kaubōi Bibappu) | |
|---|---|
| Genre | |
| Created by | Hajime Yatate |
| Manga | |
| Cowboy Bebop: Shooting Star | |
| Illustrated by | Cain Kuga |
| Published by | Kadokawa Shoten |
| English publisher | |
| Magazine | Monthly Asuka Fantasy DX |
| Original run | September 18, 1997 –June 18, 1998 |
| Volumes | 2(List of volumes) |
| Anime television series | |
| Directed by | Shinichirō Watanabe |
| Produced by |
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| Written by | Keiko Nobumoto |
| Music by | Yoko Kanno |
| Studio | Sunrise |
| Licensed by | |
| Original network | TXN (TV Tokyo),Wowow |
| English network | |
| Original run | TV Tokyo broadcast April 3, 1998 – June 26, 1998 Wowow broadcast October 23, 1998 – April 24, 1999 |
| Episodes | 26(List of episodes) |
| Manga | |
| Illustrated by | Yutaka Nanten |
| Published by | Kadokawa Shoten |
| English publisher |
|
| Magazine | Monthly Asuka Fantasy DX |
| Original run | October 18, 1998 –February 18, 2000 |
| Volumes | 3(List of volumes) |
| Anime film | |
| |
| Live-action television series | |
| |
 Anime and manga portal | |
Cowboy Bebop (Japanese:カウボーイビバップ,Hepburn:Kaubōi Bibappu) is a 1998 Japaneseneo-noirspace Western[12]anime television series that aired onTV Tokyo andWowow from 1998 to 1999. Created and animated bySunrise, it was led by a production team of directorShinichirō Watanabe, screenwriterKeiko Nobumoto, character designerToshihiro Kawamoto, mechanical designerKimitoshi Yamane, and composerYoko Kanno, who are collectively billed asHajime Yatate.
The series, which ran for twenty-six episodes (dubbed "sessions"), is set in the year 2071, and follows the lives of a travelingbounty-hunting crew aboard a spaceship, theBebop. Although it incorporates a wide variety of genres, the series draws most heavily from science fiction,Western, andnoir films. It explores themes such asexistential boredom,loneliness, and the inability to escape one's past.
Cowboy Bebop was a critical and commercial success both in Japanese and international markets, most notably in the United States, and has been widely hailed as one of the best animated series of all time. It garnered several major anime and science fiction awards and received acclaim from critics and audiences for its style, characters, story,voice acting, animation, and soundtrack. The English dub was particularly lauded and is regarded as one of the best anime English dubs.[13] Credited with helping to introduce anime to a new wave of Western viewers in the early 2000s,Cowboy Bebop has also been called a gateway series.[14]
In the year 2071, roughly fifty years after an accident with a hyperspace gateway that made Earth almost uninhabitable, humanity hascolonized most of therocky planets andmoons of theSolar System. Amid a rising crime rate, the Inter Solar System Police (ISSP) set up a legalized contract system, in which registered bounty hunters (also referred to as "Cowboys") chase criminals and bring them in alive in return for a reward.[15] The series' protagonists are bounty hunters working from the spaceshipBebop. The initial crew consists ofSpike Spiegel, an exiled former hitman of the criminal Red Dragon Syndicate, andJet Black, a former ISSP officer. They are later joined byFaye Valentine, an amnesiaccon artist;Edward Wong, an eccentric child, skilled in hacking; andEin, agenetically engineeredPembroke Welsh Corgi with human-like intelligence. Throughout the series, the team gets involved in disastrous mishaps leaving them without money, while often confronting familiar faces and events from their pasts:[16] These include Jet's reasons for leaving the ISSP and Faye's past as a young woman from Earth injured in an accident andcryogenically frozen to save her life.
While much of the show is episodic, the main story arc focuses on Spike and his deadly rivalry withVicious, an ambitious and ruthless criminal of the Red DragonSyndicate. Spike and Vicious were once partners and friends. However, when Spike begins an affair with Vicious's girlfriendJulia and resolves to leave the syndicate with her, Vicious seeks to eliminate Spike byblackmailing Julia into killing him. Julia hides to protect herself and Spike, while Spike fakes his death to escape the syndicate. In the present, Julia comes out of hiding and reunites with Spike, intending to make their planned future a reality. Vicious, having staged acoup d'état and taken over the syndicate, sends hitmen after the pair. Julia is killed, leaving Spike alone. Spike leaves theBebop after finally apologizing to Faye and Jet. Upon infiltrating the syndicate, he finds Vicious on the top floor of the building and confronts him after dispatching the remaining Red Dragon members. The final battle ends with Spike killing Vicious, only to be seriously wounded himself in the ensuing confrontation. Looking up to the sky, Spike sees a vision of Julia. The series concludes as Spike descends the main staircase of the building into the rising sun before eventually falling to the ground in front of the remaining syndicate members, presumably dead.
Shinichirō Watanabe created a special tagline for the series to promote it during its original presentation, calling it "a new genre unto itself". The line was inserted before and after commercial breaks during its Japanese and US broadcasts. Later, Watanabe called the phrase an "exaggeration".[17] The show is a hybrid of multiplegenres, most notablyWesterns,noirs,pulp fiction.[18] One reviewer described it as "space opera meets noir, meetscomedy, meetscyberpunk".[19][6] It has also been called a "genre-bustingspace Western".[20][21]
The musical style was emphasized in many of the episode titles.[22][23][24] Multiple philosophical themes are explored throughout the series using the characters, includingexistentialism,existentialboredom,loneliness, and the effects of the past.[16][25] Other concepts referenced includeenvironmentalism andcapitalism.[26] The series also makes specific references to or pastiches multiple films, including the works ofJohn Woo andBruce Lee,Midnight Run,2001: A Space Odyssey, andAlien.[23][27][28] Additionally, the series incorporates extensive references and elements fromscience fiction, bearing strong similarities to the cyberpunk fiction ofWilliam Gibson.[29] Several planets and space stations in the series are made in Earth's image. The streets ofcelestial objects such asGanymede resemble a modernport city, whileMars features shopping malls, theme parks, casinos and cities.[27] This setting has been described as "one part Chinese diaspora and two partswild west".[18]
The characters were created by Watanabe and designed byToshihiro Kawamoto. Watanabe envisioned each character as an extension of his own personality, or as an opposite person to himself.[30] Each character, from the main cast to supporting characters, were designed to be outlaws unable to fit into society.[31] Kawamoto designed the characters so they could be easily distinguished from one another.[17] All the main cast are characterized by a deep sense of loneliness or resignation to their fate and past.[17] From the perspective of Brian Camp and Julie Davis, the main characters resemble the main ones of the manga and anime seriesLupin III, if only superficially, given their more troubled pasts and more complex personalities.[29]
The series's primary focus is on main protagonistSpike Spiegel (voiced byKoichi Yamadera), a space cowboy with fluffy green hair and often seen wearing a blue suit, with the overall theme of the series being Spike's past and its karmic effect on him.[32] Spike is portrayed as someone who has lost his expectations for the future, having been separated from the woman he loved, and so was in a near-constant lethargy.[17] Spike's artificial eye was included as Watanabe wanted his characters to have flaws. He was originally going to be given an eyepatch, but this decision was vetoed by producers.[31][33]
Jet Black (voiced byUnshō Ishizuka) is shown as someone who lost confidence in his former life and has become cynical about the state of society.[17][32] Spike and Jet were designed to be opposites, with Spike being thin and wearing smart attire, while Jet was bulky and wore more casual clothing.[31] The clothing, which was dark in color, also reflected their states of mind.[17] The rebellious hustler Faye Valentine, hacker "Radical" Edward (voiced byAoi Tada), and "data dog" Ein join the crew in later episodes.[32] Their designs were intended to contrast with Spike's.[31] Faye was described by her voice actressMegumi Hayashibara as initially being an "ugly" woman, with her defining traits being her liveliness, sensuality and humanity.[33] To emphasize her situation when first introduced, she was compared toPoker Alice, a famous Western figure.[31]
Edward and Ein were the only main characters to have real-life models. The former had her behavior based on the antics ofYoko Kanno as observed by Watanabe when he first met her.[31] While generally portrayed as carefree and eccentric, Edward is motivated by a sense of loneliness after being abandoned by her father.[32] Kawamoto initially based Ein's design on a friend's pet corgi, later getting one himself to use as a motion model.[34][35]
Cowboy Bebop was created and developed by animation studioSunrise andHajime Yatate, the well-known pseudonym for the collective contributions of Sunrise's animation staff. The leader of the series' creative team was director Shinichirō Watanabe, most notable at the time for directingMacross Plus andMobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory. Other leading members of Sunrise's creative team were screenwriterKeiko Nobumoto, character designer Toshihiro Kawamoto, mechanical art designerKimitoshi Yamane, composerYoko Kanno, and producers Masahiko Minami and Yoshiyuki Takei. Most of them had previously worked together, in addition to having credits on other popular anime titles. Nobumoto had scriptedMacross Plus, Kawamoto had designed the characters forGundam, and Kanno had composed the music forMacross Plus andThe Vision of Escaflowne. Yamane had not worked with Watanabe yet, but his credits in anime includedBubblegum Crisis andThe Vision of Escaflowne. Minami joined the project as he wanted to do something different from his previous work onmecha anime.[23][33]
Cowboy Bebop was Watanabe's first project as solo director, as he had been co-director in his previous works.[36] His original concept was for a film, and during production he treated each episode as a miniature movie.[37][38] His main inspiration forCowboy Bebop wasthe first series of the animeLupin III, a crime drama focusing on the exploits of theseries' titular character.[23] When developing the series' story, Watanabe began by creating the characters first. He explained, "the first image that occurred to me was one of Spike, and from there I tried to build a story around him, trying to make him cool."[36] While the original dialogue of the series avoided any profanities, its level of sophistication was made appropriate to adults in a criminal environment.[23] Watanabe describedCowboy Bebop as "80% serious story and 20% humorous touch".[39] The comical episodes were harder for the team to write than the serious ones, and though several events in them seemed random, they were carefully planned in advance.[31] Watanabe conceived the series' ending early on, and each episode involving Spike and Vicious was meant to foreshadow their final confrontation. Some of the staff were unhappy about this approach as a continuation of the series would be difficult. While he considered altering the ending, he eventually settled with his original idea. The reason for the ending was that Watanabe did not want the series to become likeStar Trek, with him being tied to doing it for years.[31]
The project had initially originated withBandai's toy division as a sponsor, with the goal ofselling spacecraft toys. Watanabe recalled his only instruction was "So long as there's a spaceship in it, you can do whatever you want." But upon viewing early footage, it became clear that Watanabe's vision for the series did not match Bandai's. Believing the series would never sell toy merchandise, Bandai pulled out of the project, leaving it indevelopment hell until sister companyBandai Visual stepped in to sponsor it. Since there was no need to merchandise toys with the property any more, Watanabe had free rein in the development of the series.[36] Watanabe wanted to design not just a space adventure series for adolescent boys but a program that would also appeal to sophisticated adults.[23] During the making ofBebop, Watanabe often attempted to rally the animation staff by telling them that the show would be something memorable up to three decades later. While some of them were doubtful of that at the time, Watanabe many years later expressed his happiness to have been proven right in retrospect. He joked that if Bandai Visual had not intervened then "you might be seeing me working the supermarket checkout counter right now."[36]
The city locations of the show were generally inspired by ofNew York andHong Kong.[40] The atmospheres of the planets and the ethnic groups inCowboy Bebop mostly originated from Watanabe's ideas, with some collaboration from set designersIsamu Imakake,Shoji Kawamori, andDai Satō. The animation staff established the particular planet atmospheres early in the production of the series before working on the ethnic groups. It was Watanabe who wanted to have several of ethnically diverse groups appear in the series. Mars was the planet most often used inCowboy Bebop's storylines, with Satoshi Toba, the cultural and setting producer, explaining that the other planets "were unexpectedly difficult to use". He stated that each planet in the series had unique features, and the producers had to take into account the characteristics of each planet in the story. For the final episode, Toba explained that it was not possible for the staff to have the dramatic rooftop scene occur onVenus, so the staff "ended up normally falling back to Mars".[41] In creating the backstory, Watanabe envisioned a world that was "multinational rather than stateless". In spite of certain American influences in the series, he stipulated that the country had been destroyed decades prior to the story, later saying the notion of the United States as the center of the world repelled him.[42]
The specific types of guns in the show were chosen by Watanabe, and in discussion with set designer Isamu Imakake and mechanical designer Kimitoshi Yamane. Setting producer Satoshi Toba said, "They talked about how they didn't want common guns, because that wouldn't be very interesting, and so they decided on these guns."[43]
The music forCowboy Bebop was composed by Yoko Kanno and primarily comprisesjazz, along withwestern andopera.[44][31] Kanno formed theblues and jazz bandSeatbelts to perform the music.[45] According to Kanno, the music was one of the first aspects to begin production, before most of the characters, story, or animation had been finalized.[31]
Watanabe said Kanno operated independently: "She gets inspired on her own, follows up on her own imagery, and comes to me saying 'this is the song we need forCowboy Bebop', and composes something completely on her own."[39] She was sometimes surprised at how her music was mixed into the show, at times wishing it had been used elsewhere, but felt that none of its uses were "inappropriate". She was pleased with the working environment, finding the team more relaxed than other teams she had worked with.[33]
Watanabe said Kanno's music inspired him to create new scenes, which in turn inspired Kanno to create more music, including music she had not been commissioned for. According to Watanabe, while this normally would be "unforgivable and unacceptable", it was a "big hit" withCowboy Bebop. Watanabe described their collaboration "a game of catch between the two of us in developing the music and creating the TV series".[39][46]Cowboy Bebop's music has been released across seven soundtrack albums, two singles and EPs, and two compilations through labelVictor Entertainment.[47]
Cowboy Bebop debuted onTV Tokyo, one of the main broadcasters of anime in Japan, airing from April 3 until June 26, 1998.[48] Due to its 6:00 p.m. timeslot[49] and depictions of graphic violence,[50] the show's first run only included episodes 2, 3, 7 to 15, 18 and a special. Later that year, the series aired in its entirety from October 23 until April 24, 1999, on satellite networkWowow.[51] The full series has also been broadcast across Japan by anime television networkAnimax, which has aired the series via its respective networks across Southeast Asia, South Asia and East Asia.
The first non-Asian country to airCowboy Bebop was Italy. There, it was first aired on October 21, 1999, onMTV, where it inaugurated the 9:00–10:30 p.m.Anime Night programming block.
In the United States,Cowboy Bebop was one of the first programs shown whenCartoon Network's late night blockAdult Swim debuted on September 2, 2001, being the first anime shown on the block that night at midnightET.[52] During its original run on Adult Swim, episodes 6, 8, and 22 were skipped due to their violent themes in wake of theSeptember 11 attacks. By the third run of the series, all these episodes had premiered for the first time.Cowboy Bebop was successful enough to be broadcast repeatedly for four years. It has been run at least once every year since 2007, and HD remasters of the show began broadcasting in 2015. In the United Kingdom, it was first broadcast in 2002 on the adult-oriented channelCNX. From November 6, 2007, it repeatedly aired onAnimeCentral until the channel's closure in August 2008. In Australia,Cowboy Bebop was first broadcast on pay television in 2002 onAdult Swim, and on free-to-air-TV onABC2 (the national digital public television channel) on January 2, 2007.[53] It has re-aired several times, most recently starting in 2008.[54][55]Cowboy Bebop: The Movie also aired on February 23, 2009, onSBS (a hybrid-funded Australian public broadcasting television network). In Canada,Cowboy Bebop was first broadcast on December 24, 2006, onRazer.
In Latin America, the series was first broadcast on pay-TV in 2001 onLocomotion. It aired again on January 9, 2016, onI.Sat.[56][57]
| DVD name | Content | Release date |
|---|---|---|
| Session One | Episodes 1–5 | April 4, 2000 |
| Session Two | Episodes 6–10 | May 2, 2000 |
| Session Three | Episodes 11–14 | July 13, 2000 |
| Session Four | Episodes 15–18 | April 4, 2001 |
| Session Five | Episodes 19–22 | May 2, 2001 |
| Session Six | Episodes 23–26 | July 13, 2001 |
| The Perfect Sessions |
| November 6, 2001 |
| Best Sessions | Various | November 19, 2002 |
Cowboy Bebop has been released in four separate editions in North America. The first edition was released in VHS format either as a box set or as seven individual tapes. The tapes were sold through Anime Village, a division of Bandai.[58]
The second edition was released in 2000 individually, and featured uncut versions of the original 26 episodes. In 2001, these DVDs were collected in the special editionPerfect Sessions, which included the first 6 DVDs, the firstCowboy Bebop soundtrack, and a collector's box. At the time of release, the art box from thePerfect Sessions was made available for purchase on The Right Stuff International as a solo item for collectors who already owned the series.[59]
The third edition,The Best Sessions, was released in 2002 and featured what Bandai considered to be the best 6 episodes of the series remastered inDolby Digital 5.1 andDTS surround sound.[60]
The fourth edition,Cowboy Bebop Remix, was also distributed on 6 discs and included the original 26 uncut episodes, with sound remastered in Dolby Digital 5.1 and video remastered under the supervision of Shinichirō Watanabe. This release also included various extras that were not present in the original release.[61]Cowboy Bebop Remix was itself collected as theCowboy Bebop Remix: The Complete Collection in 2008.
In December 2012, newly founded distributorAnime Limited announced viaFacebook andTwitter that they had acquired the home video license of the series for release in the United Kingdom. Part 1 of the Blu-ray collection was released on July 29, 2013, while Part 2 was released on October 14. The standard DVD Complete Collection was originally meant to be released on September 23, 2013, with Part 2 of the Blu-ray release, but due to mastering and manufacturing errors, the Complete Collection was delayed until November 27.[citation needed] Following the closure of Bandai Entertainment in 2012,Funimation (laterCrunchyroll, LLC) and Sunrise had announced that they rescuedCowboy Bebop, along with a handful of other former Bandai Entertainment properties, for home video and digital release.[62] Funimation released the series on Blu-ray and DVD on December 16, 2014.[63][64] The series was released in four separate editions: standard DVD, standard Blu-ray, anAmazon.com exclusive Blu-ray/DVD combo, and a Funimation.com exclusive Blu-ray/DVD combo.[63][65]Crunchyroll released a limited edition Blu-ray box set on April 4, 2023, for its 25th anniversary.[66][67]
Netflix acquired the streaming rights to the original anime, with all 26 episodes available worldwide as of October 21, 2021.[68] As of October 21, 2023, the show is unavailable in the United States and Canada.[69] The series is available onHulu and Funimation in the United States.[70] On March 1, 2022, the anime became available onCrunchyroll to consolidate both Funimation andWakanim into the service.[71][72]
TwoCowboy Bebopmanga series adaptations have been released, both published byKadokawa Shoten and serialized inKadokawa Corporation'sshōjo manga magazineAsuka Fantasy DX.[73][74] The first manga series, titledCowboy Bebop: Shooting Star and illustrated by Cain Kuga, was serialized from October 1997, before the anime series' release, to July 1998.[73][75] It was collected into twotankōbon volumes in 1998, the first one in May and the second one in September.[76][77] The second manga series, simply titledCowboy Bebop and illustrated byYutaka Nanten [ja], was serialized from November 1998 to March 2000.[74][75] It was collected into three volumes, the first two in April and October 1999, and the third one in April 2000.[78][79][80] Both manga series were licensed byTokyopop for release in North America.[81][82]
ACowboy Bebop video game, developed and published by Bandai,[83] was released in Japan for thePlayStation on May 14, 1998.[84] APlayStation 2 video game,Cowboy Bebop: Tsuioku no Serenade, was released in Japan on August 25, 2005,[85] and an English version had been set for release in North America. However, in January 2007,IGN reported that the release had likely been cancelled, speculating that it did not survive Bandai's merger withNamco to formBandai Namco Games.[86]
In 2022,Cowboy Bebop made its debut in the Bandai Namco crossover gameSuper Robot Wars T, which is traditionally focused on turn-based mecha combat.[87] In 2024,skins based onCowboy Bebop characters were added toBlizzard Entertainment's first-person shooterOverwatch 2.[88] In 2025, skins based onCowboy Bebop charactersSpike Spiegel andFaye Valentine were added toEpic Games'Fortnite Battle Royale.
An anime film taking place between episodes 22 and 23 of the television series, titledCowboy Bebop: Knockin' on Heaven's Door (カウボーイビバップ 天国の扉,Kaubōi Bibappu: Tengoku no Tobira), known in English asCowboy Bebop: The Movie, was produced, with the staff and crew from the show returning to their roles. It was released in Japan in September 2001 and in the United States in August 2002.
On July 22, 2008,If published an article on its website regarding a rumor of a live-actionCowboy Bebop film in development by20th Century Fox. ProducerErwin Stoff said that the film's development was in the early stages, and that they had "just signed it".[89][90]Keanu Reeves was to play the role of Spike Spiegel.[91][92]Variety confirmed on January 15, 2009 that production company Sunrise Animation would be "closely involved with the development of the English-language project". The site also confirmed Kenji Uchida, Shinichirō Watanabe and series writer Keiko Nobumoto as associate producers, series producer Masahiko Minami as a production consultant, andPeter Craig as screenwriter. This was lauded by various sources as a promising move for the potential quality of the film.[93] At the time, it was slated to release in 2011, but problems with the budget delayed its production. The submitted script was sent back for rewrite to reduce the cost and little has been heard about it since an interview with producer Joshua Long on October 15, 2010;[94] the project currently languishes indevelopment hell. On October 25, 2014, series director Watanabe was asked about the live action film at theMCM London Comic Con. He stated: "I'm afraid I don't know what they're thinking in Hollywood. Apparently the project hasn't come to a stop but I don't know how it's going to progress from here on. I hear that there are a lot of 'Hollywood' problems."[95]
In 2017, it was announced that an American live-action adaptation of the series was being developed by Tomorrow Studios, a partnership betweenMarty Adelstein andITV Studios, with executive production by Sunrise Inc.[96]Christopher Yost was to write the series,[97] andNetflix announced that it would distribute it.[98][99] On April 4, 2019, Variety reported thatJohn Cho,Mustafa Shakir,Daniella Pineda andAlex Hassell had been cast.[100] Production was shut down in October 2019 due to a knee injury sustained by Cho, setting production back by more than six months.[101] On April 17, 2020, it was revealed that the episodes would be an hour long.[102] On May 19, 2020, Adelstein revealed that there were three finished episodes and that they had shot at least six episodes before Cho's knee injury. In the same interview it was revealed that the director of the anime series, Shinichirō Watanabe, had been hired as acreative consultant.[103] Production in New Zealand resumed on September 30, 2020, followinga COVID-19 lockdown in the country.[104] The series was released on November 19, 2021, to mixed-to-negative reviews.[105] On December 9, 2021, it was announced that it would not be renewed for a second season, with Netflix cancelling it entirely due to poor ratings and reception.[106]
An official side story titledCowboy Bebop: UT tells the story of Ural and Victoria Terpsichore (V.T. from the episode "Heavy Metal Queen") when they were bounty hunters. The story was available in its own official site; however the website was closed and is currently available at the site mirror.[107]
Adeck-building board game,Cowboy Bebop: Space Serenade, was released in 2019.
Cowboy Bebop received unanimous acclaim upon its debut. In 1998, Japanese critic Keith Rhee highlighted the series as a standout in an otherwise "run-of-the-mill" season, praising its overall production values, and singling out Kanno's soundtrack as "a much-welcome change from all the sugaryJ-pop tunes of most anime features". Rhee also highlighted the show's Japanese "all-star cast",[49] which his colleague Mark L. Johnson described as being filled with "veteran voice talent", turning in even greater performances than those of their "above average" US counterparts.[108] In 1999, Australian magazineHyper reviewed the anime and rated it 9.5 out of 10.[109]
Anime News Network's Mike Crandol gave the series an 'A+' rating for the dubbed version, and an 'A' rating for the subbed version. He characterized the series as "one of the most popular and respected anime titles in history", before adding that it was "a unique television show which skillfully transcends all kinds of genres". Crandol praised its characters as "some of the most endearing characters to ever grace an anime", and commended the voice acting, especially the "flawless English cast". He also complimented the series' "movie-quality" animation, "sophisticated" writing, and its "incredible" musical score. Crandol hailedCowboy Bebop as a "landmark" anime "that will be remembered long after many others have been forgotten", and went on to call it "one of the greatest anime titles ever".[110] Additionally, Michael Toole ofAnime News Network namedCowboy Bebop as one of the most important anime of the 1990s.[111]
T.H.E.M. Anime Reviews gave the entire series a perfect score of 5 out of 5 stars, with reviewer Christina Carpenter believingCowboy Bebop as "one of the best [anime]" and touting it as a masterpiece that "puts most anime...andHollywood, to shame". She described it as a "very stylish, beautifully crafted series that deserves much more attention than it gets". Carpenter praised the animation as "a rarity and a marvel to behold" and that it was "beyond superb", and the plot and characterization as having "a sophistication and subtlety that is practically one-of-a-kind". She also praised the soundtrack, and hailed the opening theme as one of the best intro pieces she had ever heard. Carpenter went to say thatBebop was a "must-have for any serious collector of Japanese animation".[112]
In his article "Asteroid Blues: The Lasting Legacy ofCowboy Bebop",The Atlantic writer Alex Suskind states, "On paper,Cowboy Bebop, the legendary cult anime series from Shinichirō Watanabe, reads like somethingJohn Wayne,Elmore Leonard, andPhilip K. Dick came up with during a wild, all-night whiskey bender." He goes on to write, "The response from critics and fans may have sounded hyperbolic—the word 'masterpiece' was thrown around a great deal—but the praise was justified. First-time solo director Watanabe had created a gorgeous tale of morality, romance, and violence–a dark look at the lives of outlaws that's shot like an independent film."[113]
In January 2015, television writer Kyle Mills ofDVD Talk awarded the series five stars upon review. He stated, "Regardless of the medium, be it live action television, film, or animation,Cowboy Bebop is simply one of the finest examples of storytelling ever created." In his review, he describes the finale as "one of the best in television history", referring to it as a "widely revered" ending that "still sparks fan conversation, resonating with viewers 15 years on". He closes by writing, "Cowboy Bebop ends with a bang."[114]
In his 2018 review of the series,Paste critic John Maher wrote, "It feels like amagnum opus produced at the pinnacle of a long career despite being, almost unbelievably, Watanabe's first series as a director. It is a masterwork that should justly rank among the best works of television of all time." It was also placed at #1 on the publication's list of the "50 Best Anime Series of All Time".[115]
Onreview aggregatorRotten Tomatoes, the series has an approval rating of 100% based on 23 reviews. The website's critical consensus reads, "Blending a head-spinning array of genres and references,Cowboy Bebop is an anime television classic that must be experienced."[116]
In an April 2019 interview with Diego Molano, creator ofVictor & Valentino, he said that Cowboy Bebop was the first anime he "obsessed over", as he spent time tracking down VHS tapes of the show in high school.[117] He also argued that this series showed him "how cinematic and emotional animation can be".
At the 1999Anime Grand Prix awards for the anime of 1998,Cowboy Bebop won two first place awards: Spike Spiegel was awarded the best male character; and Megumi Hayashibara was awarded the best voice actor for her role as Faye Valentine.Cowboy Bebop also received rankings in other categories: the series itself was awarded the second best anime series; Faye Valentine and Ed were ranked the fifth and ninth best female characters respectively; "Tank!" and "The Real Folk Blues" were ranked the third and fifteenth best songs respectively; and "Ballad of Fallen Angels", "Speak Like a Child", "Jamming with Edward" and "Mish-Mash Blues" were ranked the second, eighth, eighteenth and 20th best episodes respectively.[118]
At the 2000 Anime Grand Prix awards for the anime of 1999,Cowboy Bebop won the same two first place awards again: best male character for Spike Spiegel; and best voice actor for Megumi Hayashibara. Other rankings the series received are: second best anime series; sixth best female character for Faye Valentine; seventh and twelfth best song for "Tank!" and "Blue" respectively; and third and seventeenth best episode for "The Real Folk Blues (Part 2)" and "Hard Luck Woman" respectively.[119] In the 2000Seiun Awards, Cowboy Bebop was awarded for Best Media of the Year.[120]
A 2004 poll inNewtype USA, the US edition of the Japanese magazineNewtype, asked its readers to vote the "Top 25 Anime Titles of All Time";Cowboy Bebop ranked second on the list, afterNeon Genesis Evangelion, placing it as one of the most socially relevant and influential anime series ever created.[121] During that same year,Cinefantastique listed the anime as one of the "10 Essential Animations", citing the series' "gleeful mix ofnoir-style, culture-hopping inclusiveness and music".[122] In 2007, the American Anime magazineAnime Insider listed the "50 Best Anime Ever" by compiling lists of industry regulars and magazine staff, andCowboy Bebop topped the list.[123] In 2012,Madman Entertainment compiled the votes of fans online for "The Top 20 Madman Anime Titles" and rankedCowboy Bebop at seventh.[124]
Cowboy Bebop has been featured in several lists published byIGN. In the 2009 "Top 100 Animated TV Series" list,Cowboy Bebop, labelled as "a very original – and arguably one of the best – anime", was placed fourteenth, making it the second highest ranking anime on the list afterEvangelion, and one of the most influential series of the 1990s.[125] In 2011,Bebop was ranked 29th in the "Top 50 Sci-Fi TV Shows" list, once again being the second-highest ranking anime on the list afterEvangelion.[126] In 2006,Cowboy Bebop's soundtrack was ranked first in the "Top Ten Anime Themes and Soundtracks of All-Time" list, with the series being commented as "one of the best anime ever and certainly is tops when it comes to music."[127] Spike Spiegel was ranked fourth in the "Top 25 Anime Characters of All Time" article.[128]IGN Movies also placedCowboy Bebop in its list of "10 Cartoon Adaptations We'd Like to See".[129]
The series has been subject to study and analysis since its debut, with the main focus being on its style and mixture of genres. Miguel Douglas, describing the series style in a review, said that "the series distinctly establishes itself outside the realm of conventionalJapanese animation and instead chooses to forge its own path. With a setting within the realm ofscience fiction, the series wisely offers a world that seems entirely realistic considering our present time. Free from many of the elements that accompany science fiction in general—whether that bespace aliens, giantrobots, orlaser guns—the series delegates itself towards presenting a world that is quite similar to our own albeit showcasing some technological advances."[130] Daryl Surat ofOtaku USA, commenting on the series' appeal, said that it was "that rare breed of science-fiction: 'accessible'. Unlike many anime titles, viewers weren't expected to have knowledge ofJapanese culture—character names, signs, and the like were primarily in English to begin with—or have seen any other anime series prior."[131] Michelle Onley Pirkle, in her bookScience Fiction Film, Television, and Adaptation: Across the Screens, said that "Cowboy Bebop is taking a new take on genre, not by creating unique images and sounds, but by playing 'freely' with, 'remixing', or adapting the images and sounds of other familiar genres in a dynamic way."[132]: 164 Robert Baigent, writing for theGraduate Journal of Asia-Pacific Studies, said that the series' appeal likely stemmed from the trend in anime to emulate Western fiction.[27]
In March 2009, the print and web editions ofThe Onion'sThe A.V. Club calledCowboy Bebop "rightly a huge hit", and listed it as a gateway series to understanding the medium of anime as a whole.[14] Suskind said: "It was unlike anything the genre had seen before. It even approached its music differently. The show kicked off with a wormhole of a theme song, and the soundtrack moves so seamlessly through genres, from rock to country to pop to jazz to funk, it's shocking to learn that one set of musicians is behind it all". In an interview, producer Sean Akins also stated that the series "created a whole new world". "It's hard for me to quantify the impact that I think it has had. It changed anime. I think people began to think about what shows would be cool. I think it redefined cool within animation, not only in Japan but in the States".[113] One of the series' main animators,Tensai Okamura, went on to create his own anime in 2007:Darker than Black. Okamura used his experience fromCowboy Bebop to write the screenplay ofDarker than Black, leading to narratives composed of two episodes similar to Japanese dramas.[133]
American film director, screenwriter, and producerRian Johnson has citedCowboy Bebop as a visual influence on his films, most notablyBrick (2005).[134]Ender's Game writerOrson Scott Card also praised the series. He stated that the series is "better than most sci-fi films out there". He goes on to say that he "found this series brilliant, but what held me was a combination of strong relationship-based storytelling, a moody visual style that never got old and really smart dialogue".[113]
After the creation of the series, an interviewer asked Watanabe if he had any plans to create moreCowboy Bebop material. Watanabe responded by saying that he does not believe that he "should just keep on makingCowboy Bebop sequels for the sake of it". Watanabe added that ending production and "to quit while we're ahead when people still want more" is more "in keeping with theBebop spirit".[135] In a later interview from 2006 withThe Daily Texan, Watanabe was asked if there would ever be moreCowboy Bebop. Watanabe's answer was "someday...maybe, someday".[136]
In May 2020, composer Mason Lieberman partnered with Sunrise and Funimation to produce an officialCowboy Bebop charity track forCOVID-19 relief. This track was released on vinyl and featured the return of original series composer Yōko Kanno, the original recording band Seatbelts, and a collection of forty other special musical guests.[137][138]
Media from Commons
Quotations from Wikiquote
| Preceded by Kodomo no Omocha (April 5th, 1996 – March 27th, 1998) | TV Tokyo Friday 18:00 Timeframe Cowboy Bebop (April 3rd, 1998 – June 26th, 1998) | Succeeded by Hatsumei Boy Kanipan (July 3rd, 1998 – January 29th, 1999) |
