Cowboy Bebop

:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/Cowboy-Bebop-5dbea8a55cde4ea88547485f46032a8e.jpg)

Ah Cowboy Bebop, where do we even begin with you, no, actually where DO we begin?

Cowboy Bebop is an extremely difficult show for me to write a satisfying review of for a few reasons:
-It is an decently old anime with a legendary status in the industry.
-It is challenging to find a new and original angle to tackle it that isn't just regurgitating what everyone else says.

So I want to try do my favourite way of doing reviews and try and be mostly subjective whilst always explaining what i think some of the hang ups can be with these kinds of shows.

Those are merely two of the reasons I'm worried about posting this review, I really want my thoughts and heart to be expressed in a way that people don't just write it off as "oh another person loves Bebop woopdeedoo".

So here goes nothing.

Episodic television is very, very difficult to both objectively and subjectively "rate", some episodes will fall flat with their isolated narratives, where as others may pass with flying colours. Sometimes writers and directors like to have a bit of fun with the world and characters they've created, chucking them into episodes with varying themes, dynamics and genres. Obviously that should go without saying, will greatly impact your thoughts and enjoyment depending entirely on your preference. I am not going to sit here and tell you Bebop is this masterpiece of television that everything following it should strive to be. I would even say there are a few episodes I find to be simply unenjoyable and even bad to a certain degree. That is the beast that is episodic television. Much like how one of my favourite shows to have ever existed in Doctor Who, a show that is unbelievably dear to my heart, a show I would not hesitate for a single second to say is one of my favourite shows ever. That does not change the fact that some episodes of Doctor Who are admittedly some of the worst television I have ever seen hahaha.

Creating episodes episodically leaves a lot on the shoulders of the viewer, it gives every person a chance at a different "hook" episode. To some people that genuinely might be none of them and that is obviously understandable. I cannot say you are incorrect for that.

In my case however that episode was episode 10, annoyingly it's hard to explain why. But once Ed (another case of preferences a lot of people hate Ed) joins the Bebop something just clicked with me and I started to find my groove, I found myself no longer confused by what other people were seeing. I stopped thinking about anything of the kind. I started loving the show, loving the characters and loving this little family that had come together. I was enjoying every episode for what it was and moved by the characters story resolutions. I was always extremely fond of the show, it has loads to enjoy. It has the gorgeous old school anime style, an unbelievable soundtrack, charismatic and fun characters and an incredibly cool space western setting. But i struggled to see the perfect 10/10 show that others had.

And then the show ends.

It ends with an extremely melancholic episode.

That's when i noticed the void, the void i had been left with. Suddenly something was missing from my life, I thought it would pass, but for days later i kept thinking about the show, non stop. Maybe I loved it more than i thought I had.

I promise you there isn't a SINGLE DAY that goes by where Cowboy Bebop doesn't cross my mind. Whether that would be from me listening to the stunning soundtrack, watching one of the countless youtube compilations videos that always put a smile on my face or just glancing down at the Whatever happens, happens tattoo permanently engraved on my arm.

That to me has always been the gauge of how i think about something and the way of thinking that will always define my opinions and feelings and what separates my absolute favourites. Those lingering memories, the desire and yearning for MORE and the constant random thoughts of "Man i really want to watch Bebop again". The fact I find some of the episodes underwhelming suddenly becomes quickly irrelevant . That simple desire to watch the show again and again and again or to re-experience moments means more to me than I can ever truly express. In many peoples cases the FEELING it gives you takes precedent to the overall quality deemed by public opinion, that is very very much the case with me. That's when the show hit the 10 for me.

There will be people saying this show isn't great and they don't recommend it, there will also be people saying it's a masterpiece. Neither is inherently correct, nor are they incorrect. If you watch a few episodes and decide it isn't for you, you don't have to force yourself to watch just because others say its great. Nor should you avoid it because some people don't rate it higher enough to catch your eye. Give the show a watch if YOU WANT TO and then make up your own opinions. You never know you might find yourself watching a piece of media that will stay with you for the rest of your life like it has with me. Or, of course, maybe not. That being said...