Cowboy Bebop Marathon - Wrap Up

 

Well, that was a fun experience, and got some use out of my Channel 4 membership. Now I wait another two years before they decide to close my account.

Cowboy Bebop still stands as one of my favourite animes, and one of my favourite shows of all time. The action is great, the characters are memorable, and the music kicks ass.

I love writing about characters who are misfits in their societies, and this show has these in spades. I feel for all the Bebop crew: Spike presents himself as a happy-go-lucky thrill-seeker, which hides a death wish over a shady past he's never been able to fully walk away from; Jet tries to present himself as a wise mentor, but his sense of morality isn't compatible with a society that's rife with corruption and isolates him from his few friends; Faye is a fish out water due to being in a cryogenic sleep for 54 years, and has been swindled by everyone she's known; Ed was abandoned by her absent-minded father, and her eccentric nature possibly conceals a state of denial over this.

What are my favourite episodes? Hmm...I'm trying to figure out whether I want to do a standard top ten, or my favourite comedic and dramatic episodes.

I'll do both.

My top five comedic episodes:

1. Cowboy Funk
2. Mushroom Samba
3. Toys in the Attic
4. Stray Dog Strut
5. Speak Like a Child

My top five dramatic episodes:

1. The Real Folk Blues Part 2
2. Jupiter Jazz Part 2
3. Black Dog Serenade
4. Ballad of Fallen Angels
5. Pierrot Le Fou

That's about it. Now I need to prep a project for Camp NaNoWriMo.

Until then, happy writing.

I mean, "See You, Space Cowboy".

Cowboy Bebop Marathon - Sessions 25 & 26: The Real Folk Blues (Part 1 & 2)

 

Well, it's the grand finale, and what a finale.

While Spike and Jet are sitting in a bar, they're attacked in force by hitmen. Although Jet is wounded in the leg, they escape with the help of Shin, a disgruntled member of the Red Dragon Syndicate. Shin explains that Vicious attempted to usurp power from the leaders of the syndicate, and they're now purging all of his former associates. Meanwhile, Faye encounters Julia, Spike's old flame who is also being targeted by the syndicate. She asks Faye to relay a message to Spike, saying that she'll be waiting. As Spike and Julia reunite, Vicious escapes his execution and assassinates the Red Dragon's leaders, taking over the syndicate. After Julia is killed, Spike heads to the Red Dragon's headquarters for the final confrontation.

This episode finally reveals this mysterious part of Spike's backstory through flashbacks: Spike and Vicious were both enforcers for the Red Dragons. When Spike had an affair with Julia, who was in a relationship with Vicious, he wanted to elope with her and leave the syndicate. As the syndicates don't allow their members to leave, Spike got into a shootout at an old church, in which he faked his own death and planned to rendezvous with Julia afterwards. However, Julia never showed, as Vicious had learned of her plan and told her to kill Spike or else he'd kill them both, after which she went into hiding.

There's a lot of action in both parts. The first part has the aforementioned shootout in the bar, along with a car chase as Faye helps Julia elude her assassins, and a space battle pitting the Swordfish and Red Tail against syndicate gunships. The second act features Spike and Julia having a running gun battle across rooftops, before loading himself up with guns and explosives and storming the syndicate's headquarters.

In addition to the action, we also get a fair bit of drama, and not just through the flashbacks. My favourite scene takes place just before the final confrontation; Spike returns to the Bebop and re-unites with Jet, who cooks him a meal. Spike tells a fable, and claims he hates it because it features cats, and he and Jet share a laugh. It's one of the few times I've seen them do this, and there's the underlying fact that Spike's upcoming battle is his fight and he's doing it alone. It may be the last time they see each other again.

This is probably one of the strongest episodes in terms of drama, and a great ending.

Bang.

Cowboy Bebop Marathon - Session 24: Hard Luck Woman

 

We're almost at the end. Two more episodes to go, but they're a two-parter so I'm gonna review them both together.

Faye studies the home video obtained in "Speak Like a Child", eager to find out who she is and where she's originally from. When Ed claims to know the location of the video, they change the Bebop's course and head to Earth. They travel to an orphanage where Ed once resided, and learn that Ed's father previously visited in search of her. Faye later encounters one of her school friends, who has now aged when she hasn't. Meanwhile, Spike and Jet pursue a lucrative bounty on Ed's father, Siniz Hesap Luften Appledehi.

This episode is largely focussed on Ed and Faye. It's largely comedic, showing that Ed's father is just as eccentric and quirky as she is. It turns out that he's a cartographer looking to create new maps of Earth (which is impossible due to the constant meteor showers). There's an action scene as Spike and Jet try to bring him in, but he easily subdues them. Then Ed appears and re-unites with him, revealing that she'd posted the bounty and it isn't as much as they originally thought.

As silly as this episode is, it's also downright depressing. Faye arrives at her childhood home, only to find it in ruins. Meanwhile, Ed's father offers her the chance to travel with him, but runs off to pursue another meteorite impact before she can answer. She ultimately decides to leave the Bebop and go after him, and Ein goes with her.

Well, I guess it's just a breather for the finale.

Cowboy Bebop Marathon - Session 23: Brain Scratch

 

"Cleansing the soul" always sounded rather ominous to me.

A mysterious figure known as "Dr Londes" has established a cult known as "Brain Scratch", which offers immortality through the upload of spirit to the internet. After a number of suspicious deaths and disappearances, a bounty is placed on Londes. When Spike notices Faye being interviewed as a member of Scratch, he and Jet conduct their own investigation. Spike takes the direct approach by asking Scratch members, while Jet tries to find those believed to have worked with Londes. Unfortunately, neither of them are able to yield results.

After the laughs of "Cowboy Funk", the way is being paved for some of the more dramatic episodes. This episode is kinda philosophical and depressing. One big thing that occurs is the cancellation of Big Shot, which provided a comedic tone while discussing the bounty of the week. There's not much in the way action, but I love the mystery. It's also interesting to see Ein get involved in the story; Jet uses a special headset to try and join Scratch, but it emits a high frequency which almost puts him into a coma until Ein senses something's amiss and bites him.

I must admit that there are times when I feel like it's re-treading the same ground as "Jamming With Edward" with a manhunt involving cyberspace, but that gives Ed something to do.

Londes provides an interesting philosophy on how television is the greatest and worst invention of all time, and how it's become a religion in and of itself. But the reveal of who Londes really is ends up being quite poignant. I'm not going to share the details on here.

Cowboy Bebop Marathon - Session 22: Cowboy Funk

This is my favourite episode, since I'm a big fan of westerns and because it's also one of the funniest episodes in the series.

Spike is going after a bounty known as "The Teddy Bomber", a serial bomber who targets high-rise buildings using explosives concealed in teddy bears. Unfortunately, his hunt puts him in competition with rival bounty hunter named Andy Von De Oniyate. At first, Jet and Faye are incredulous of Spike's story, but then encounter "Cowboy Andy" and find his destructive nature too similar to that of Spike's.

Being the egotistical prick that he is, Cowboy Andy steals the show in this episode. Hailing from a rich family, he takes up bounty hunting for the thrill of it and fashions himself as a Hollywood gunslinger: he uses a six shooter and a lasso, dresses like a cowboy, and even travels everywhere on a horse. He's accompanied by his leitmotif, "Go Go Cactus Man" which other characters can somehow hear (to the point where Spike thinks he's approaching when he hears someone whistling). Even when Faye spends the evening with him, he toasts his reflection in her eyes.

The other main "focus" character is the Teddy Bomber, although some audiences may be uncomfortable with his methods (this episode was pulled from broadcasts around the time 9/11 happened). There's a running joke in which he gives a monologue about his motive, but he's cut off or ignored every time he gives it. He actually gets angry when Spike and Andy are too busy bickering with each other to listen to him. He even sends a letter to Big Shot, dropping hints about his next target to lure the bounty hunters out, and includes his speech...which gets cut off because they ran out of time.

It all boils down to a final showdown between the two rivals, with a comedic payoff.

See you, space samurai.

Cowboy Bebop Marathon - Session 21: Boogie Woogie Feng Shui

 

Feng Shui is something I know little about, but it nonetheless intrigues me.

Jet receives a cryptic email from an old acquaintance, Pao Pu-Zi, whom he knows as one of the most prominent Feng Shui masters on Mars. His initial search takes him to a cemetery, where he finds Pao's tombstone. He meets Pao's teenage daughter Meifa, and they escape an ambush by a pair of assassins who bear a close resemblance to the Blues Brothers. As the rest of the crew speculate over Jet's relationship with Meifa, he learns that Pao was apparently killed in a hyperspace fluctuation while travelling to Jupiter. Having more questions, Jet accompanies Meifa as she searches for an item known as "the Sunstone". He later ambushes the Blues Brothers and learns they're from the Blue Snake crime syndicate, and were following Meifa in the hopes that she'd lead them to her father. Jet later reveals to Meifa that Pao was a consultant for the syndicate but wanted out, and had given information to Jet when he was a detective for the ISSP.

This is another episode which largely centres on Jet as he solves the mystery. It's interesting to see the plot unravel, and there's still some humour over the rest of the crew's speculation.

There's some great action, with Jet subduing the Blues Brothers, showing that he uses a less refined fighting style compared to Spike's martial arts techniques. We later get a cool dogfight as a Blue Snake ship pursues the Bebop into hyperspace while they're following a path the sunstone is leading them on. It provides a truly poignant ending as they use it to locate Pao.

That's about it. I'm hyped for tomorrow's session, which is one of my favourite episodes.

Cowboy Bebop Marathon - Session 20: Pierrot Le Fou

 

Damn, this one's creepy. It's also one of my favourite episodes.

While leaving a pool hall, Spike witnesses a shooting by a mysterious assassin. When the assassin turns on Spike, he displays an ability to fly through the air and can even stop bullets with a forcefield. After Spike narrowly escapes with his life, Jet learns that the assassin is known as "Mad Pierrot", and he's killed several high-ranking ISSP members. Spike later gets a message from Pierrot inviting him to the "Space Land" amusement park. While Spike goes off to confront him, Jet tasks Ed with finding more info on Mad Pierrot, who turns to be the test subject in a cancelled project to create a super-soldier.

Pierrot carries this episode. He's essentially a mash-up of several Batman villains; he resembles The Penguin in both appearance and attire, has a laugh and personality reminiscent of The Joker, and an origin story similar to that of Bane. He's also one of Spike's toughest opponents and almost like a slasher movie bogeyman; he can't be reasoned with, he can't be hurt with bullets, he can fly, he's carrying a massive arsenal of weapons, and he wants nothing more than to kill. His only apparent weakness is that he's afraid of cats.

The first act utilises shadowy visuals that create an eerie and haunting atmosphere. This gives way to a more glitzy style during the confrontation in Space Land, which looks incredibly tacky. However, this sequence also contains some more explosive action as Spike and Pierrot duke it out in the amusement park. The setting allows for a lot of creative action as the pair fight on different rides. And the end result definitely brings new meaning to "Kids can be so cruel" while also providing a comedic edge when Jet shares what he and Ed have learned.

One of the best. And I agree with Spike; I hate theme parks.

Cowboy Bebop Marathon - Session 19: Wild Horses

 

Which Blue Sox is Miles rooting for? I've found at least four currently active teams with that name.

As Jet and Faye go after some pirates, Spike takes the Swordfish to his old friend Doohan to get it overhauled. He meets Doohan's assistant, Miles, a talkative baseball enthusiast and avid supporter of the "Blue Sox". Meanwhile, Jet and Faye's sting operation fails when the pirate gang infects the Red Tail's systems with a computer virus, prompting it to go haywire and shoot at the Hammerhead. After the pirates insult the Bebop, Jet is eager to bring them in, and Spike reluctantly agrees after receiving Doohan's invoice.

This is one of the more light-hearted episodes, but there isn't really much to it. However, it does delve into the origins of the Swordfish without being a flashback episode. It turns out that Spike originally obtained his craft from Doohan, and that it was originally a mono-racer. We don't get much more than that, but it's interesting to get some insight into Spike's past that doesn't involve Julia or Vicious.

There are still some great moments. One funny part involves Spike and Faye planning to ambush the pirates, going on information that they're travelling in a cargo hauler with a purple penguin on the side. When they see two identical haulers leaving the truck stop, Faye suggests they shoot at both and see which one runs (which Spike claims is the first time he agrees with Faye on something). Naturally, Jet is aghast at this plan, but they carry it out anyway only to find that both haulers leave. Faye pursues one of them, but it turns out to be a real hauler and the pilots think they're being accosted for an unpaid parking ticket.

The main action scene happens shortly afterwards, when Spike is forced to disable his systems after being hit by the pirates, and finds himself facing a potentially fatal re-entry in the Earth's atmosphere. Miles picks up the incident on his radio while listening to a baseball game, and he and Doohan try and pick Spike up using an old space shuttle. The whole thing has a Gerry Anderson vibe, albeit with second-hand technology. It's also kinda sad to see how unperturbed Spike is about the whole thing.

All in all, this episode has its moments, but isn't one of my favourites. And hot damn, that teaser for the next episode is creepy.

Cowboy Bebop Marathon - Session 18: Speak Like a Child

 

This episode is kinda pointless. Even the teaser acknowledged this fact. And that's what makes it funny.

The Bebop is visited by a courier drone with a package for Faye, which Jet reluctantly accepts. When he asks Faye to reimburse him for the shipping and handling charges, Faye leaves for a day at the races. Meanwhile, Spike impulsively opens the package to find it contains an antique Betamax cassette. They attempt to sell it to a local expert on 20th Century technology, but the tape gets caught in his player and Spike promptly breaks it. Ed later discovers that there may be a working Betamax player in an abandoned underground museum on Earth. Spike and Jet venture into the derelict underground and recover the technology. Unfortunately, upon their return they discover that they've picked up a VCR.

This is essentially a filler episode, and what TV Tropes refers to as a "shaggy dog story"; a quest which is rendered moot when it ends. But it's still a funny episode. Jet discusses how he should carry out tests on the package to ensure it doesn't contain explosives or biological agents, while Spike just opens it. Later on, their visit to the expert concludes with Spike trying to perform percussive maintenance on the Betamax player, with him later claiming "my ship works when I kick it". The second act consists of the precarious journey through the underground museum, with the aforementioned punchline.

However, there is some dramatic moment at the end; the crew receives a working Betamax player and are finally able to watch the cassette, which turns out to be a home video made by a teenage Faye. As she watches, she's unable to recall who she really is.

Despite not amounting to much, it's still a funny episode.

Cowboy Bebop Marathon - Session 17: Mushroom Samba

 

After yesterday's dramatic episode, we've got a funny one. Specifically one which is essentially a 70s-era drug comedy and Blaxploitation parody.

The Bebop crew is at rock bottom, with no food, no money, and no fuel. After a hit-an-run collision with another ship, the Bebop crash lands on Io. As the crew make repairs, Ed is sent to find food with Ein. Their quest brings them into contact with Domino Walker, a wanted drug dealer who has been selling hallucinogenic mushrooms. The pair also come into conflict with Shaft, one of Domino's dissatisfied customers, and a Pam Grier-esque bounty hunter also on Domino's trail.

This episode largely focusses on Ed finding food, ultimately getting her hands on some mushrooms which Domino had dropped while running away from Shaft. When Ein one of the mushrooms and starts hopping, Ed believes they're not food. This is later proven when she leaves the other mushrooms out back at the Bebop. Spike, Jet, and Faye all eat one and begin hallucinating. We see the hallucinations through Spike and Faye's eyes, and are then treated to what Ed actually sees them doing. Ed later recognises Domino when his face is shown on Big Shot and goes after him, culminating in all parties chasing each other on a moving train.

While I'm not the biggest fan of drug comedy, I still get plenty of laughs out of this episode. My favourite joke has to be Shaft's introduction, where he's seen dragging a coffin through town like Django (the Franco Nero one, not the Jamie Foxx one). He later confronts Domino and announces his intent to put him that coffin. As soon as he's said that, the coffin is hit by a truck and smashed.

All in all, it's a good episode, and shows what the doldrums of life are like at their worst for our protagonists.

Cowboy Bebop Marathon - Session 16: Black Dog Serenade

 

Looks like Jet is getting another day in the limelight.

A prison ship had faced mechanical difficulties while transporting convicts to Pluto, causing the inmates to riot and take it over. Jet is contacted by Fad, his old partner in the ISSP, who reveals that one of the inmates was Udai Taxim, a former assassin for a syndicate in Europa who has a history with Jet; during his time in the ISSP, Jet and Fad attempted to arrest Udai in a sting operation, but were led into a trap in which Jet lost his arm. After replacing it with a mechanical arm, he left the ISSP to become a bounty hunter. Jet is initially reluctant to go back to working with Fad and the ISSP, but soon relents when he feels the need to settle the score.

I realise I made a slight mistake in an earlier post, saying that Jet's last ISSP posting was Ganymede. In actual fact, he left Ganymede when Alisa left him, but was still in the ISSP at that point. I've amended that now. Anyway, like the "Ganymede Elegy" session, this one is purely focussed on Jet and delves into his past.

Udai has a menacing presence, and is not somebody you'd want to meet on a dark night. Jet mentions he's old-fashioned, determining that he'll travel to Europa and attempt to contact his old syndicate. In a way, both Jet and Udai are similar in that they're both relics of a bygone age.

There's a great flying sequence as Jet and Fad attempt to infiltrate the prison ship, and it's great to see Jet confronting Udai. But the real twist adds a lot of depth to Fad, who carries the episode.

Plus, I love the song "Farewell Blues". The tune previously appeared as a music box tune in "Waltz for Venus", but now we get a sax version.

Cowboy Bebop Marathon - Session 15: My Funny Valentine

 

Ooh, an origin story!

As Jet goes off to apprehend a con artist, Faye tells Ein about her past. The rest of the first act is told in flashback. Three years earlier, Faye was awoken from a cryogenic sleep following an accident which occurred 54 years earlier. Despite having no memory, she was promptly saddled with an extortionate medical bill. She's visited by Whitney Haggis Matsumoto, ostensibly a lawyer from the insurance company looking into her case. Faye escapes from the hospital, and but is found by Whitney, who promises to help her. They soon develop affections for one another, until they're found by a collection agency. Whitney draws the pursuers away, only to apparently be killed in the ensuing crash. Faye then learns that he's made her a beneficiary in his will, only to find that all she has inherited are his debts.

In the second act, it's revealed that the con artist Jet has apprehended is Whitney. As they prepare to hand him over, Faye becomes eager to question the man who betrayed her, to the point where she spirits him away in the Red Tail before the police can collect him.

The first half of this episode is taken up by the flashback, which is framed by Faye waiting for the ship's toilet to become vacant so she can clean out Ein's litter box. While waiting, she notices Ein's resemblance to Whitney and begins her story. It does provide the funniest moments in the episode, as Ein looks clearly uninterested by Faye's story from the beginning, and is asleep by the end. This is followed by Spike finishing in the toilet, having heard the whole story, and claiming it's "too long" and "needs editing".

The whole session is largely a day in the limelight for Faye, providing some answers to her past, but not everything. Even Spike doesn't believe the whole story, having been told something different in a previous session.

I do think it's a little bit too coincidental that Jet's bounty happens to be Whitney. Regardless, it's a touching episode which provides the most insight into Faye's character.

Cowboy Bebop Marathon - Session 14: Bohemian Rhapsody

 

Inserts Wayne's World reference here. But in all seriousness, I did tear up at the end of of this.

A mysterious gang has been hacking tollbooths on the hyperspace gates to empty the accounts of people using them. The gate company places a hefty bounty on the ringleader, and the Bebop crew (at Faye's suggestion) work separately to bring them in. Unfortunately, none of the people brought in are the ringleaders, nor do they have any knowledge or association with each other. As the crew agree to pool their resources, they find the only connection to be chess pieces, which Edward determines to be storage devices for a virtual chess game. Jet digs deeper and inquires at the gate company and learns that the possible suspect is "Chessmaster Hex", one of the original designers of the gate until he was dismissed for voicing concerns about the safety of the system. Over fifty years later, he's now planning his revenge.

There's an element of film noir in this one, with the notion of a corporation trying to suppress a past mistake. I kinda like the humour stemming from Ed's enthusiasm over the virtual chess game she's playing, especially when it turns out that her opponent is Chessmaster Hex. The chess motif provides an element of intrigue and mystery as the crew dig deeper. It builds up Hex to be a masterful manipulator of the people around him, but also provides a comedic payoff. After all, setting up an elaborate revenge plot to be carried out in fifty years' time does have certain drawbacks.

This one is subdued in terms of action, but that doesn't detract from the episode. The only other complication is that another bounty hunter who lost his savings in the scheme is going after Hex, but is more interested in revenge than the bounty itself. He trails the Bebop to a floating junkyard inhabited by squatters, and tries to confront Hex. It's kind of anticlimactic.

I think the best part of the episode is the payoff. It's truly heartwarming, and once again proves that the Bebop crew aren't always interested in profit. And the final scene is really sad. I did say it made me tear up.

Cowboy Bebop Marathon - Sessions 12/13: Jupiter Jazz

 

After the hilarity of the previous session (including a teaser for the next episode in which Ed falsely claimed the rest of the crew had died), we move to one of the more poignant episodes. This one is a two-parter, but I'm gonna look at both episodes together.

Faye has left the Bebop after absconding with the money in the safe, and has found herself drowning her sorrows in a bar on Callisto. Meanwhile, Ed intercepts a message about a meeting in Callisto from someone known only as "Julia", a mysterious woman from Spike's past. Spike opts to go after Julia rather than Faye, prompting Jet to kick him off the ship. Meanwhile, Faye befriends a saxophonist named Gren, but soon discovers that he's associated with Vicious. Elsewhere, Jet hunts for Faye and learns that Gren is a fugitive who has escaped from a military prison.

In the second part, Gren reveals to Faye that he and Vicious served together in the Titan Defence Force, during which time Vicious saved his life, only to frame him as a spy.

This episode provides a bleak setting on Calisto, with an industrial city in recession whose population is almost exclusively male. We also get some deeper insights into Spike's past, about how he was planning to leave his old syndicate with Julia. That, combined with Gren's backstory, managed to create some of the most heart-wrenching drama this anime has produced so far. The overall story and setting is actually reminiscent of a film noir.

There's still some great action, with the first part involving Spike getting jumped by a gang who mistake him for Vicious and him single-handedly taking them down. Rather than having the usual action cliché of everyone attacking him in turn, the thugs try to rush him, but the cramped quarters of the alleyway make it difficult and Spike puts up such a fight that the rest eventually flee.

In the second part, we're treated to an impressive three-way dogfight between Spike, Vicious, and Gren. Spike seeks to take down Vicious, but he's also tasked with capturing Gren so Jet will let him back on board the Bebop. It's a great fight scene, with a strong pay-off.

Cowboy Bebop Marathon - Session 11: Toys in the Attic

 

Apparently this episode was inspired by a Weird Al Yankovic song.

Work is slow for the Bebop crew as they drift through space. However, Jet is attacked by a mysterious blob-like creature and falls ill. As Spike tries to determine what the creature is, it also attacks Faye and Ein, forcing he and Ed to subdue it.

The whole story is reminiscent of Alien, with a dangerous creature on the loose in a confined location. It succeeds in providing the right atmosphere, as the creature picks off isolated crew members.

It's also one of the funniest episodes to date. Highlights include a scene after Jet is attacked and Spike's first aid kit consists of a dried up lizard which is meant to be crushed up and dissolved in water. Jet asks if there's anything else, and Spike gives him a dried-up scorpion. Another great moment is Spike loading up and having a tussle with the blob, running out of the corridor after throwing two gas grenades, stopping for a smoke, realising he's forgotten his lighter, and then trying to light a cigarette with a flamethrower.

The episode is also divided into four "lessons" in which each character tries to teach a moral: Jet talks about the importance of working hard, and the dangers of trying to get rich quick or live off others; Faye seems to contradict this by talking about survival of the fittest, how one must either deceive others or be deceived themselves; Edward provides a completely nonsensical one about following strangers; as for Spike's, you'll have to watch the episode to find out.

While these lessons are contradictory or nonsensical, they do provide insights into the characters themselves.

Cowboy Bebop Marathon - Session 10: Ganymede Elegy

We don't often see Jet's Hammerhead craft in action.

The Bebop crew have captured a bounty and are delivering him to the police on Ganymede, which was Jet's homeworld and original posting when he was in the ISSP. While there, he re-unites with his ex-girlfriend Alisa, who had unexpectedly left him. Meanwhile, one of Jet's former colleagues contacts Spike and reveals that Alisa's current boyfriend, Rhint Celonias, is wanted for murdering a loan shark.

This is the first episode to delve into Jet's past, and is more about him coming to terms with his break-up. We also see how burdened by guilt Rhint is after killing the loan shark, and suspicious of strangers (including Jet). When Alisa learns that Jet's now a bounty hunter, she and Rhint attempt to flee, but are pursued by Spike in the Swordfish. After almost colliding with the Hammerhead, he relays the bounty details to Jet, who sends him back to the Bebop while he finishes the job. It's a good action sequence, the the Hammerhead having to negotiate tight spaces, but there's a greater focus on the emotion than the action. It's great to see the more level-headed Jet in comparison with the impulsive Spike. The conclusion is heart-wrenching, but also provides a glimmer of hope to the people involved. 

Despite this being a dramatic episode, there is still one comedic moment at the beginning. While en route to Ganymede, Ein barks at the prisoner they're carrying, who tries to shut him up by kicking a can at him. That's not very funny, I know. It gets funny when Ed drops out of a vent on top of the guy, hisses at him like a cat, and then starts biting him while Ein looks on with a dog smirk.

All in all, I'd say this is one of the stronger episodes in the series.

Cowboy Bebop Marathon - Session 9: Jamming with Edward

 

That satellite is a mood.

A satellite network orbiting what remains of Earth has been using laser to re-create the Nazca Lines in what was once South America, prompting the government to post a hefty bounty on a suspected hacker. Not believing the reward to be challenging enough, Spike opts out while Jet and Faye investigate. They soon learn that the prime suspect is a notorious yet mysterious hacker known only as "Radical Edward". Meanwhile, the actual Radical Edward - a quirky androgynous teenager - is doing her own investigation of the satellite and discovers that it's controlled by an artificial intelligence. She soon relays this information to the Bebop crew in exchange for a favour.

This is one of the more comedic episodes, and sees the introduction of Edward, who provides most of the show's comic relief from this point onwards. In one funny moment, she's playing with a remote-controlled aircraft which looks like it was cobbled together. When the police knock on her door, she hacks into their craft and begins remotely flying (and crashing) it. This joke later returns at the end of the episode. I've heard that Edward's peculiar mannerisms were inspired the series composer, Yoko Kanno.

There's still some great action, with Spike showing off his ace piloting skills in order to reach the satellite. Speaking of which, I also kind of like the artificial intelligence, which Edward dubs "MPU". The interactions between them are actually kind of sweet.

One strange thing is that there's no real "villain of the week". The AI is not malicious at all, and its laser satellites are merely a defence mechanism (and artist's toolkit). It's motivations seem lacklustre, but I guess that's the joke, and gives it some depth. After all, even an artificial intelligence can get lonely.

Cowboy Bebop Marathon - Session 8: Waltz for Venus

That might be the first time I've seen the Bebop crew successfully bring in a target alive.

Spike and Faye apprehend a gang of notorious hijackers on a space liner to Venus. After collecting the bounty, Spike is approached by Rocco Bonnaro, who had witnessed him dispatch the hijackers and wishes to learn Spike's technique. Eventually giving into Rocco's pestering, Spike gives him a brief lesson. Rocco promptly flees when he notices a group of thugs, but leaves Spike with a package in his possession. Back at the Bebop, Jet suggests they go after the minor crime boss Picarro Calvino and his gang, who had stolen a prized "grey ash" plant used to treat a local malady. When Spike discovers that Rocco is one of the wanted gang members, he opens the package and finds it contains a grey ash plant. Digging deeper, he learns that Rocco has a sister, Stella, who has been left blind due to the malady.

This is one of the more poignant episodes. While Rocco is seemingly built up to be an annoying sidekick, he does get some interesting depth, looking after a sister but trying to conceal his criminal endeavours from her. We also get a chance to see Spike having a caring side beneath his bitter exterior when he meets Stella and learns that she idolises her brother.

We also get to see a moral debate when the Bebop crew discover the stolen grey ash. Faye is adamant on selling it on the black market, Jet is hesitant due to the risk, while Spike realises it's bait to draw out the rest of the gang.

There's a bit of humour too. Especially Spike getting a high-pitched voice from a minute level of helium in Venus' atmosphere. Rocco offers him a pill to counter-act the effects if Spike teaches him. Spike immediately takes the pill and leaves, but it doesn't work and turns out to just be a throat sweet.

End the ending is a pretty sad one. I won't reveal the details here though.

Cowboy Bebop Marathon - Session 7: Heavy Metal Queen

Does anybody else have "Space Truckin'" by Deep Purple stuck in their head?

Spike and Faye are at a truck stop in search of a bounty named Decker, who's transporting volatile explosives. Unfortunately, their sting operation results in heavy damages to their craft and puts them in contact with "The Heavy Metal Queen", a trucker named V.T. who loves heavy metal and harbours a prejudice against bounty hunters. After one of V.T.'s friends is sideswiped by Decker, V.T. pursues him into an old asteroid mine, forcing Spike and Faye to fly in after them. The trio must then work together to escape from the highly unstable mine.

The first act has a more comedic tone, with Faye staking out a family diner. She witnesses a rather burly thug and confronts him after thinking he's Decker, who's identifiable through a dragon tattoo. She promptly realises her mistake when the small man resembling Woody Allen whom she asks to get the police runs off and she notices his dragon tattoo. She promptly tears open the other man's shirt to discover that his tattoo is an eel. Apparently the guy had a thing for eels. It also establishes the danger which Decker presents, who escapes after throwing a small vial of nitro which is powerful enough to down Faye's craft, the Red Tail.

While that's going on, Spike is staking out a bar which V.T. frequents. Unfortunately, it's full of bounty hunters also after Decker. And to make things worse, Spike's got "a hangover the size of Neptune". A brawl ensues when V.T. confronts a trio of bounty hunters who harass a waitress, but Spike is preoccupied with making a prairie oyster. Until someone gets knocked into him and he spills the egg onto his trousers. At which point he steps in and single-handedly subdues the trio (although they do vandalise the Swordfish in revenge). It just shows how badass Spike is, and warms him up to V.T. (until she discovers he's a bounty hunter).

The second act utilises a lot more jeopardy, as V.T., Spike, and Faye try to escape from the mine, made more difficult due to the fact that the Swordfish and the Red Tail haven't been repaired. Although it is still kinda funny when V.T.'s method of motivation is to blast out heavy metal.

V.T. is a pretty interesting character. She's tough, but also principled. One recurring element is a sweepstake she runs in which people bet to guess her real name, which has nested her a tidy profit. It's a subplot which has an interesting payoff.

Overall, this one's pretty good.

Cowboy Bebop Marathon - Session 6: Sympathy for the Devil

Hmm...I'm not too sure about this one.

Spike and Jet shadow a bounty known only as "Giraffe" at a blues club where a child prodigy named Wen is on stage playing the harmonica. As Jet distracts rival bounty hunter "Fatty" River, Spike continues to shadow Giraffe as he shadows Wen and his wheelchair-bound guardian to a hotel. Unfortunately, Giraffe his mortally wounded and thrown out of a window. Before he expires, he gives Spike a gemstone and an obscure warning. Jet subsequently learns from Fatty that Wen's guardian, "Zebra" was part of the same militia that Giraffe was a part of, and apparently betrayed him during a raid on an R&D facility. As Spike goes after Zebra in a bid to save Wen, he soon discovers the meaning behind Giraffe's warning.

Okay, I think this one has a pretty interesting twist. It turns out that Wen is a lot older than he appears to be due to a disaster involving the hyperspace gate some fifty years earlier. While his parents were killed by the disaster shielding him, Wen survived but is now eternally a child due to...weird space magic. Often subject to experimentation, he was in the R&D facility that was raided, and took the opportunity to escape by drugging up and kidnapping Zebra to pose as his "parent". Like the episode title suggests, the reveal of Wen's background is meant to present him in a more sympathetic light. For the most part, he seems to just make a living by performing at blues clubs, but he also has to get by through kidnapping and murder since he's either seen as a child or experimented on.

Spike and Jet later realise that the gem in their possession is apparently the key to solving Wen's condition. Again, I don't really understand the "science", but I don't think Spike does either.

The notion of Spike having to kill a person who is seen as a child by all probably doesn't sit well, which meant this episode had to be censored in it's Western release. The original American airing actually had to be delayed due to some imagery many viewers would have associated with 9/11.

All in all, this one was a mixed bag.

Cowboy Bebop Marathon - Session 5: Ballad of Fallen Angels

This might be one of the strongest episodes so far.

Spike and Jet are looking at pursuing a bounty on Mao Yenrai, a capo in the Red Dragon Syndicate who is apparently wanted for the murder of a rival syndicate boss. However, Jet backs out when he thinks that Spike is hiding something. It's revealed at the beginning of the episode that Mao had formed an alliance with the other syndicate boss, only for both to be assassinated by a syndicate enforcer known only as Vicious. Faye pursues the bounty, only to find that Mao is already dead and the bounty posting itself was a trap meant for Spike, with whom Vicious has a history.

This episode takes the opportunity to delve into Spike's past as he shares a drink with Anastasia, a corner shop owner who secretly deals in weapons. We also have the introduction of Vicious, and his sinister presence instantly makes the episode darker. With his cold demeanour, his katana, and his cormorant, he certainly lives up to his name.

While it's a shame that Faye ends up becoming a damsel-in-distress this episode, I love the showdown between Spike and Vicious' goons in an abandoned church which also holds significance to Spike's past.

All in all, this is a pretty good episode. We know a little more about Spike's past, but we don't have the whole story. Just enough to find out a little more.

Plus the resolution is kinda funny.

Cowboy Bebop Marathon - Session 4: Gateway Shuffle

These days it feels like being regressed to a primate could actually be a step up.

While watching a bounty at a restaurant, Spike and Jet witness an attack by the Space Warriors, an eco-terrorist group led by Twinkle Murdoch. With their initial proposed bounty killed in the attack, the pair capture Twinkle instead. Unfortunately, they find that the bounty has been cancelled under mysterious circumstances. As they make their way to Ganymede, they encounter Faye Valentine, who has been drifting through space after gambling away the money she had stolen from them in the previous episode. Also in her possession is a vial which she'd recovered from a derelict spaceship after the ship's dying pilot instructed her to take it to the ISSP.

This episode takes a much darker tone, personified by Twinkle Murdoch. This is established when she has her gang shoot up an entire restaurant just because she overheard an obnoxious customer order a dish which contained the endangered Ganymede Sea Rat (which Jet explains doesn't actually taste very nice and is only eaten as a status symbol). It's later revealed that she's developed a bio-weapon known as "Monkey Business", which causes humans to regress to apes, and is threatening to release it on Ganymede if they don't meet their demands.

This episode is genuinely tense, especially during the climax in which Twinkle launches a warhead filled with the Monkey Business towards Ganymede from hyperspace, forcing Spike to reluctantly accept Faye's help to intercept it. There's also a darkly hilarious moment in which Spike tries to open the protective casing in which the vial is carried while Twinkle looks on in horror.

Which does lead me to a minor gripe I have with the episode; when Spike and Jet release Twinkle, it's revealed at the end that Spike discreetly slipped the vial into her pocket. While this does provide a resolution, I'm just wondering what Spike was thinking at the time.

Regardless, it's only a minor issue. It's still a great episode, and one which sees Faye becoming a regular member of the Bebop's crew (much to Spike's chagrin).

Cowboy Bebop Marathon - Session 3: Honky Tonk Woman

I kinda like the idea of a space casino.

This episode sees the introduction of Faye Valentine, a con artist with a substantial debt. After caught cheating at a casino orbiting Mars, she agrees to do a job for the casino's ruthless owner, Gordon. Posing as a blackjack dealer, she's instructed to clean out a player in order to discreetly retrieve a special chip in his possession. When Spike plays at her table, she mistakes him for her contact, and when he leaves without handing over the chip, he bumps into the real contact and swaps chips. Faye attempts to escape, but is captured by Spike and Jet, who simultaneously learn that she's wanted, and that there's more to the chip than meets the eye. When Gordon pursues them to recover the chip, Jet agrees to an exchange.

In addition to the introduction of Faye, this is the first episode to reveal that Jet previously worked for the Inter-Solar System Police (ISSP), when he discusses the truth behind the chip with Gordon.

Personally, I think the misunderstanding is a little contrived. However, it's still a good episode with some great action. Faye's introduction involves her walking into a shop and then firing on the casino security trailing her with a submachine gun. We later have Spike demonstrating his martial arts on more guards after he accuses Faye of cheating, and a zero-gravity scuffle outside the casino ship when Gordon attempts to double-cross Spike and Jet. I also love the design of the casino ship, having the glitz associated with Vegas in outer space.

That's about it. Easy come, easy go.

Cowboy Bebop Marathon - Session 2: Stray Dog Strut

After the somewhat dark and edgy previous session, the show decided to tease a more light-hearted episode.

Spike and Jet travel to Mars in pursuit of a serial pet thief named Abdul Hakim, who has recently stolen a "data dog" from an illegal research lab. The "data dog", a Welsh corgi named Ein, ends up on the Bebop, despite Spike's hatred of dogs, and Jet devises a plan to use him to draw out Hakim. However, things get complicated when the scientists who had experimented with Ein attempt to retrieve him.

As stated above, this episode takes a more comedic tone than the previous one, with Ein causing mayhem for Spike, Hakim, and the researchers. This episode also sees the introduction of Big Shot, a recurring segment consisting of a show-within-a-show marketed towards bounty hunters, advertising the latest bounties. That actually makes the previous episode more of a downer, as it reveals that no bounty is paid if the criminal is killed.

There's still some great action, with both a foot chase and a vehicular chase. Hakim has a menacing presence, and it's interesting to Spike looking out for Ein despite not liking dogs.

All in all, there's not much else to say.

Cowboy Bebop Marathon - Session 1: Asteroid Blues

As promised, here's my look at the first episode (or "session", as they're called), "Asteroid Blues".

Spike Spiegel and Jet Black are bounty hunters who drift the Solar System in their converted trawler, the Bebop. Their current target is Asimov Solensan, who has stolen a large consignment of a combat drug known as "Bloody Eye" and has fled to the asteroid colony of Tijuana with his pregnant girlfriend Katerina.

The episode opens with a dialogue-free, sepia-toned montage of Spike getting involved in a shoot-out in a church. This is one of many hints of Spike's mysterious past, along with him telling one of his informants that he once died because of a woman, and telling Katerina that he was originally from Mars. We also get an insight into how Spike operates as a bounty hunter, when Jet cooks him bell peppers and beef. Spike points out the lack of beef in said dish, to which Jet explains he couldn't afford beef because most of their last bounty went into paying damages incurred by Spike during the job.

The Tijuana asteroid colony is painted as a bleak place where poverty is rife, like some small town in a more modern day American West setting (despite it being sci-fi). Spike seems to grow closer to Katerina, who dreams of a more comfortable life on Mars.

Of course, there's plenty of action. One sequence involves Asimov and Katerina going to a bar, where Asimov attempts to sell the Bloody Eye. As he's giving a demonstration, the bar is raided by members of the syndicate he'd stolen from, who kill his buyer before being killed by Asimov while under the drug's influence. The use of Asimov's POV makes the event kinda blurry, but we later see the aftermath when Jet investigates the bar and interrogates more hitmen.

In the second act, Spike poses as a buyer to confront Asimov and engages him in a fight, which is interrupted by another syndicate hit squad. Asimov and Katerina steal a ship and try to escape, pursued by syndicate gunships and by Spike in his modified racer, the Swordfish. Again, it's a thrilling chase, but ends on a low note. It also shows how little Asimov cares for Katerina.

All-in-all, I'm looking forward to the next episode.

Cowboy Bebop Marathon

It's been a while since I've written anything on here. I handed in my last assignment a month ago, and now I'm dealing with the dread of what comes next after university. With that in mind, I decided I might do another review marathon.

I got an email threatening to close my Channel 4 account since it had been inactive for two years. As I browsed their library, I noticed that Cowboy Bebop is on there. It's one of my favourite animes and crosses multiple genres, and it's been a while since my last blogging project, so I decided I'm gonna do another marathon.

I'll post a review a day, with my first review appearing later today.