Story: 5
Cowboy Bebop! Yeah!!! Well, if you can't tell, I'm a little biased on the subject of CB, but it's hype/bias is well worth it. That is no lie. The story line of CB is set in 2071: The moon has crumbled, Earth is uninhabitable, so man goes to the Solar System. Living on multiple planets, including Mars, Venus, and Jupiters moons (technically not planets, but they still live there), man hoped for a future different than the past on Earth. But, nay, man is vain, and brought crime with him unto the other planets. There came about too much crime, and even the police couldn't control it all.
Enter, the bounty hunters. Cruising the solar system, and picking up the pieces of shit of the universe, they are the new cowboys. Jet Black, a man with a dark past and one arm, and Spike Spiegel, a man with an even darker past, are two of these said bounty hunters. They are elite of the elite... but they're broker than crap. Picking, or trying to in this case, up the trash of the universe, they make dos on they're ship, the Bebop. Eventually picking up a few more crew members; Faye Valintine, a super sexy, and super old lady who can melt the fire's of any man's heart; Ed (there's no way I'm typing out that fricking name), a super-genius hacker who looks like a guy... but in reality is a girl; and Ein, the super pimping dog of the Bebop. This is their story, this is their life, this is their destiny...
Wow... Bebop... How can one review such a good anime? I mean seriously... It's a little overwhelming. Well, the storyline in CB is unmatched by any anime series I've ever seen. Each episode runs like a separte movie, so this is the perfect series to get newbies to begin watching. While there are the occasional storylines that drag on for one or two episodes, there is one subject that keeps coming back, and back again: Spike's past, and the Red Dragon Syndicate. There are a good 5 or 6 episodes that divulge into Spike's past, and his mysterious eye (note: These are also among the best episodes in the series). Now, when I was first told about CB, this is how it was described: 'You ever seen 'Outlaw Star'? Well... this is a show similiar to it... but far superior. You thought OS was a kick ass space cowboy show? Wait til you see this! It's got drugs, drug trafficing, fake pregnancies, fake deaths, great fight scenes, hangovers, death, murder, destruction, kick ass animation, amazing soundtrack and musical scores, a sexy chick, a kick ass main charecter, a dog, and comedy thrown all through out it!' Yes, I heard this description in a L.A. anime/comic book shop, and then watched the first episode... And I was never the same... And neither will you... The guy at the counter told no lie...
Music; Animation: 5; 5
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Ahh yes, the acclaimed soundtrack of CB... Is it as good as they say? Well... yes, yes it is. In fact it's better than they say. Made by Yoko Kanno (yep, the same YK from Macross Plus) and her band, 'The Seatbelts', they have sucsessfully created one of the greatest anime soundtracks ever made. From the very first song you'll hear in the series, the opening sequence 'Tank!', to the last song in the series, the closing song of episode 26, 'Blue', you will spend money buying the soundtrack, or your valuable time downloading the soundtrack.
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Comprising mainly of Be Bop jazz, with also a few specks of classical, western, and various other musical genres, the tunes of CB always fit the mood perfectly. Whether it be jazz when Spike fights the bounty in the first episode (great fight scene btw) or when Spike enters the Red Dragon's cathedral to 'Rain' in Balled of Fallen Angels or when he's falling out of that same cathedral's spire to 'Green Bird', it always fits the mood. (*Personal favorites of the soundtrack/reviewer recomends: 'Ave Maria', 'Bad Dog No Biscuits', 'Blue', 'Call Me Call Me', 'Cats on Mars', 'Green Bird', 'Mushroom Hunting', 'Piano Black', 'Rain', 'Rush', 'See you Space Cowboy', 'Space Lion', 'Tank!', 'The Egg and I', 'The Egg and You', 'The Real Folk Blues', 'Too Good Too Bad', 'Want it All Back', and 'Words That We Couldn't Say'.)
Now onto the animation, and man is it good. Every episode is almost OVA quality animation. Charecters are vastly designed, and every charecter, whether it be a major or minor charecter, is so finely designed, you can almost tell apart their ethnenticity.
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Then, there's the mending of CGI with animation, and that is just gorgeous too. When the fly through space, it leaves you breathless (usually...). The fight scenes always make me drool... literally. My shirt and pants are always wet with slobber after an episode of CB.
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(Personal Favorite episodes/review recomends: 'Asteroid Blues', 'Balled of Fallen Angels', 'Toys in the Attic', 'Black Dog Serenede', 'Mushroom Samba', 'Wild Horses', 'Pierrot le Fou' <--- best episode, 'Cowboy Funk', 'Brain Scratch', 'Hard Luck Woman', 'The Real Folk Blues Pt. 1 & 2'.
Charecters: 4.5
Now we come to the charecters of CB. Of course we come to my two favorite charecters: Spike and Vicious. Spike is a lanky, 20's something, green-haird, goofy pimp/bounty hunter who is an expert at martial arts, flying planes, and shooting things. Vicious is a sadistic 20's something who always wears black, always carries his bird with him, and is unbeatable with his coldness and katana. Then there's Faye, the sex appeal of the show. Then, there's loveable 'ole Ed. Now, Ed's real name is 'Edward Wong Hau Pepelu Tivrusky IV', and that is pretty funny if you ask me. Ed is always the comic relief of the group, cause she's so quirky. 'Faye-Faye!', 'Stop calling me that!' (Typical Ed talk to Faye).
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Now, we come to Ein... and... he's a dog... not much else... Here we are at Jet Black, the old foogie of the group. Jet is the man who has a plan in the group. Calm like Spike, but can get just as angry as Faye, I guess he's supposed to be the old wise sensei of the group. He has a past he tries to forget, grows banzai trees, and is the crew's maintenance worker. And finally we have the 26 or so villians/bountys for each episode, and they come in various shapes and sizes. We have insane killing machines (Pierrot le Fou's bounty) to explosive weilding nerds (Heavy Metal Queen's bounty) to steroid addicted killing fanatics (Asteroid Blue's bounty) you'll like the nice variety of bounty's. Though, it's also it's downside too... it might get a little confusing for some, but all in all, you'll enjoy the series.
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Total: 19.5
Paladin's Opinion: I give Cowboy Bebop 4.5 out of 5 (five what? Go to the forums and vote!) If you like great fight scenes, great soundtracks, hot chicks, cute dogs, a kick ass main charecter, a kick ass villain, drug smuggling, fake babies, bombs, explosions, insane killing machines, dark/mysterious pasts and a blown up moon... then you'll love Cowboy Bebop, and who doesn't love those things? :p
.:: See you Space Cowboy, somewhere, sometime... ::.
Producer: Minami Masahiko
Studio/Director: Watanabe Shinichirou
Length: series: 26 episodes, 30 minute each
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