Netflix’s Cowboy Bebop Was Fine, Shut Up

I love Cowboy Bebop. I have said time and time again that it is without a doubt, my favourite anime series ever. Nay, not just anime – just favourite story ever. I believe that Cowboy Bebop belongs in the world of classics such as the Illiad or Romeo and Juliet. I love Bebop that much and I feel for it so strongly, yet I still enjoyed the Netflix adaptation. And everybody who is hating on the Netflix adaptation are literally griping about the same shit “It’S nOt LiKE ThIS iN tHe AniMe”. You’re right it’s not. This is a made for tv, live action series based on the story and anime Cowboy Bebop. It is not the anime transcribed to live action – it is a live action adaptation to Cowboy Bebop. This critique is very much like the critique one would give when comparing ex’s or when you’re gatekeeping foreign food because it’s not as good as when you had it in the country of origin. It’s such non-critical thought fodder that people are just spouting off because they can’t think critically and for themselves.

Is the series perfect? Hell no. I didn’t like the Julia/Viscous plotline, I would have preferred the anime versions of Ana and Gren, and perhaps Pierrot Le Fou could’ve been made to look differently? But besides those points – how are you going to tell me that there is something objectively wrong with the series? Was the problem the acting? No. The mise en scene? No. The direction? It was fine. The writing? It could have been better but it wasn’t bad. I really do think it’s just people unwilling to separate the anime from the Netflix adaptation.

And the bit about Ed at the end? That person who performed as Ed was so much like Ed. She sounded like her, moved like her, even looked like her to an extent. The one part of the show that was near identical to the anime, you don’t like? What the fuck are you talking about? Did we watch two different shows? Did you not realize that Cowboy Bebop is a parody of  other popular movie genres. The anime is literally parodying Hong Kong action films, film noir, (spaghetti) westerns, space operas, and science fiction – yet the live action isn’t allowed to take itself lightly, but the anime can. None of y’all deserve Cowboy Bebop. It’s a hard 6.5/10 for me – give your head a shake.

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *