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Some Thoughts on the Live-Action Cowboy Bebop

Our “heroes”.

 

Cowboy Bebop, the 26-episode Sunrise anime from 1998, directed by Shinichiro Watanabe, is, to me, peak fiction. You can talk about classic literature, independent theater, popular museum art, and the golden age of television or film as works of artistic brilliance, and you’d hear little argument from me, except perhaps some of the specific titles. But I think that, that specific Japanese cartoon is every bit as genius as any of the things in those categories. Maybe someday I’ll see that view as embarrassing, and some may see it as already disqualifying for my opinions, but it’s honestly where I stand. I think Cowboy Bebop is brilliant, it was shaped by brilliant minds and crafted with brilliant hands, and is the crown jewel of my anime fandom. I don’t see it as mere entertainment, I see it as genuine art. read more

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Otaku Evolution Episode 199 – Top 10 Otaku Evolution Videos

 

There’s not a whole lot of commentary I can provide for this one… mostly because it IS commentary on other commentaries. It’s turtles all the way down. And this won’t be the only favorites list this year, either. You can say I’ve gotten lazy, but I’ve been working nonstop on the 200th video (so far it’s over 40 minutes long).

My Dailymotion page

My DeviantArt page

My Patreon (please support my videos!)

My Curious Cat (ask me some questions!)

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Otaku Evolution Episode 119 – Cowboy Bebop

Hm, maybe I should have timed this better so it could be the 120th episode. 20th anniversary of the show, 120th episode, get it? Well, whatever, 119 will have to do.

Cowboy Bebop is an unvarnished work of genius, an exquisite blending of genres set to a multitude of rhythms. It’s not defined by its genres, though, but by ingenuity in execution and emotional gravity. There’s plenty of other reasons why it remains my favorite anime after so long.  So for my 35th birthday (what the fuck am I doing with my life?), I’ve decided to review this eternal classic of Japanese animation. read more

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ANIME TOP TEN (LIST #2) – #3: Cowboy Bebop: Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door (2001)

 

Director(s): Shinichiro Watanabe
Screenplay: Keiko Nobumoto
Music: Yoko Kanno
A great companion piece to the television series, this movie captures the flavor of Cowboy Bebop in a one-off that feels like a single episode type story but is on a grander scale that suits a movie. It has high production quality, to begin with. The art and animation are stunning. Everything is very detailed and the flow of animation is stunning, especially during the fight scenes, which are brilliantly coreographed. The music is yet another great accomplishment of Yoko Kanno and The Seatbelts, with each piece reflecting the atmosphere of the setting and situations given. The city (cities?) the movie takes place in are intricately drawn and have an active personality, as though it were a real place. There is a grittiness and activity that helps the city seem so real. The movie adds in slightly more insight into Spike’s personality and I personally couldn’t  help sitting at the edge of my seat, rooting for him. Fans of the series shouldn’t miss it. 
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ANIME TOP TEN (LIST #1) – #1: Cowboy Bebop (1998)

 

 

 

Director(s): Shinchiro Watanabe Script: Akihiko Inari, Aya Yoshinaga, Dai Sato, Keiko Nobumoto, Michiko Yokote, Ryota Yamaguchi, Sadayuki Murai, Shoji Kawamori, Shinichiro Watanabe Music: Yoko Kanno   I’m probably going to seem like a "entry level" anime fan for saying this, but Cowboy Bebop is probably the perfect anime. I think Cowboy Bebop is absolutely a product of genius. I think genius minds conceived and executed the concepts, story, and production of this series.    The show is episodic, yes, but rather than being a bunch of completely unrelated adventures that just feature the core cast in different situations, the episodes are more like a series of short little films that each reveal a little more of the bigger picture, not necessarily of the main underlying plot, but something much more important, which is the world and atmosphere, the environment and attitudes which are pervasive in the show. The very lives of the characters are "episodic", but an episode rarely ends without having made some headway in unveiling more of the tapestry of this world the characters live in.    The main plot, the plot of Spike’s past with the Red Dragon, that’s something that keeps together the threads, but ultimately only exemplifies- well, perhaps more than that, epitomizes- the grander attitude of the entire work. The production values are breathtaking, some still by today’s standards.    The soundtrack, by Yoko Kanno and the Seatbelts, is especially spellbinding. The show is very stylish, and so more cynical folks may be lured into believing the show is "style over substance", but the style becomes part of its substance, much in the way a Tarintino film both indulges in and skewers pop art culture. It’s a show that feels almost as new every new time I watch as it did the first time.    The characters are charming, charismatic, and colorful, the character design is excellent, as is the animation. The music is breathtaking. The action is palpable. The themes are presented fantastically, and you get a real "feel" for what the show is about overall. Perhaps the most representative of what anime can accomplish, it is both entertaining and provocative. It’s a rousing jazzy ballad of the bizarre and the sorrowful. It’s a must see for anyone.
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Otaku Revolution’s Top 15 Anime Soundtracks: Number 1


Introduction | 15-11 | 10-6 | 5-2 | 1 | Honorable Mentions

1. Cowboy Bebop (Yoko Kanno and The Seatbelts)

Come on, what did you expect for the #1 spot? I’ve never seen an anime that so thoroughly impresses me, that entertains and, at times, even moves me. I guess it’s a little heavy-handed to say that about a cartoon, but I’m sure if you’ve seen it, you wouldn’t say it was a stretch. Likewise, Cowboy Bebop‘s soundtrack is the best I’ve ever heard, of really anything ever. So naturally a space western would have mostly jazz music, right? Uh, well it does, anyway. But if you think you can pin it down so easily, forget it. It runs the gamut from jazz, blues, rock, alternative, country, rock, and pretty much anything you can think of in between. However, it’s never out of place, because the world of Bebop is an eclectic mix of hipsters, dreamers, schemers, criminals, lawmen, geeks, freaks, and whatever the hell that blob thing was (and no, it wasn’t pudding). Accompanying these compositions are vocals from Emily Bindiger, Steve Conte, and Mai Yamane, with lyrics often written by Tim Jensen. Yoko Kanno’s band The Seatbelts is a presence throughout, too. The music is almost a character in itself, and when Cowboy Bebop climaxes, the music goes out with a “Bang.” read more