Cowboy Bebop

Introduction

I write this article with great grief because, an anime series that I have rewatched innumerable times has only 26 episodes in it. To be elaborate, You ever see a piece of art , be it music, a painting or a movie or an anime that it touches your soul so deeply that you long for more of it? To me Cowboy Bebop is one such anime. To be honest, it is the only anime I connected so deeply with.

Why? For starters, Its characters with their enriching background stories, the wonderful jazz music that make high tension action sequences feel like a beautifully orchestrated melody, the realness of the story and the characters, the flaws in all the main characters along with the beautiful dialogue are what makes it an all time classic.

The maker of the show, Watanabe, blends multiple genres such as the western cowboy theme, film noir, jazz/blues, action and futurism to create an entirely new genre that will be come to known as Cowboy Bebop.

The Philosophy of Cowboy Bebop

It is difficult to understand the philosophy of Cowboy Bebop by only watching it once. To a surface viewer it might seem like the main character is a nihilistic, nonchalant and easy going. But it goes way deeper than that. If anything it’s about a character or characters who is/are a-nihilistic, coping with whatever tragedy life deals and moving forward constantly.

There are multiple things you can observe in the show.

The first being the artists attempt to create a non traditional, never been done before genre which combines a bunch of genres which itself, I believe has to do with the naming of the show. Let me explain. The word “bebop” refers to a for of jazz which can be called non conventional. While most jazz was oriented towards dance, this form of jazz to bring out the best in the performers. Here is a definition from wikipedia about the same -

Bebop or bop is a style of jazz developed in the early-to-mid-1940s in the United States. The style features compositions characterised by a fast tempo, complex chord progressions with rapid chord changes and numerous changes of key, instrumental virtuosity, and improvisation based on a combination of harmonic structure, the use of scales and occasional references to the melody.

Bebop developed as the younger generation of jazz musicians expanded the creative possibilities of jazz beyond the popular, dance-oriented swing music-style with a new “musician’s music” that was not as danceable and demanded close listening.[1] As bebop was not intended for dancing, it enabled the musicians to play at faster tempos. Bebop musicians explored advanced harmonies, complex syncopation, altered chords, extended chords, chord substitutions, asymmetrical phrasing, and intricate melodies. Bebop groups used rhythm sections in a way that expanded their role.

And just like the music, the show is a new genre in itself.

There are some cut screens during the show, meaning after a scene ends, a screen comes in which usually says “Cowboy Bebop” but is accompanied by some extra text,(I guess cut scene is just a name I gave it) and following is one of the extra texts it has -

in 2071 in the universe. The bounty hunters, who are gathering in spaceship “BEBOP”, will play freely without fear of risky things. They must create new dreams and films by breaking traditional styles. The work, which becomes a new genre itself, will be called COWBOY BEBOP

And the show is indeed one of a kind, can’t be put into a definite genre, it has created a genre for itself. In fact, If I were to create or build something unique in the future, I would name it The tribute to Cowboy bebop.

The second thing that stands out is the rich mysterious past of each character in the show and the lessons about the past.

We all have pasts, and it affects, day after day. It influences our decisions, decided our love and hatred, decides the way we interact/behave/trust people. And the show beautifully showcases this phenomenon. It puts it on bare display how each main characters contradicting past lives have shaped them and how it influences them. I really want to get deep into in this, But I cannot do so without giving spoilers, so maybe I’ll make separate post for that in the future.

But also, at the same time, it emphasises the importance of not dwelling on the past and moving on. After all, the 4 person team or 5 if you include an adorable corgi dog choose the cowboy bounty hunter life to never look back, to move from one bounty to the next, to constantly keep crunching and not think about their past. Thats one of the main lessons of the show -

Never leave things in the fridge

Just like how things left in fridge for a long time rot and turn toxic, a person who is always living in the past reminiscing about it, will rot, decay and one day loose himself and turn toxic.

The key is to move forward no matter how difficult it is, you have to carry the weight of your past and move forward.

The next attribute that adds to the show is the flexible attitude of the protagonist Spike - He never frets, he never worries, he has an attitude of “Well, Whatever happens, happens”

I don’t want to give you any spoilers by describing the situation in which he feels this way, but trust me, he is the chillest dude in the entire galaxy!

He embraces every situation with the same mood and temperament and never looses his cool, like, got a 100 people shooting at you? “Well whatever happens, happens”, Won a billion dollars ? “Well,Whatever happens, happens”. In a way, one could say Spike is a true stoic.

The main character also draws inspiration from the famous fighter Bruce Lee, a minor spoiler but he once says - “You have to be like water” and most of his animated fighting style imitates that of Bruce Lee’s “Jeet Kune Do” which Bruce Lee describes as the “art of fighting without fighting”, in a way utilising your enemies strength as your own while you are relaxed and flexible.

In summary this show is an amazing homage to pop culture, jazz and a bunch of other things that you would have to notice on your own (It’d ruin the fun if I told you everything).

If all these reasons do not compel you to watch the show, then you must watch it for Spike, A cigarette smoking, cool head, who loves to do things that kill him with a bunch of flawed people that are almost borderline the same in their own way.

- Written By Hari Charan