"Cowboy Bebop" (Anime)

[pkristen]

26 Episode Television Series/Movie. Originally reviewed November 13, 2001.

Summary
Follow the tales of the bounty hunter crew of the spaceship Cowboy Bebop: domestic Jet, yakuza-guy-on-the-run Spike, con-artist Faye, and hacker extraordinaire Ed. Oh yeah, and Ein the data dog. Sometimes they get their bounty, sometimes they don’t. Well, make that most times they don’t.…

Review
This series has a status of being a modern classic for the anime genre, and I agree that it earns that label. A fresh approach to storytelling, visually stunning and distinctive animation style and unforgettable characters.

Personally, while I agree it’s very good, and some of the episodes are my personal favorites (like “Mushroom Samba”), it still felt a little too much like a “guy’s” series for my taste. The whole Spike/Julia/Vicious storyline was so glaringly obvious where it had been, and where it was going, that I more or less watched those episodes just to further my general education about the series, not because I was necessarily looking forward to them.

In the beginning, I had serious issues with the character of Faye Valentine, who seemed to be a caricature of every bad, male stereotype about women. At least she got more fleshed out towards the end, especially in her quest to uncover her identity and past, which was a storyline I liked, since it was told in a way which was surprisingly emotionally touching. And the other main woman in the series, Julia, was so two-dimensional that she didn’t really exist as a character that invoked any real care in me.

Some of the things I did like are the character of Ed (the girl) and the self-contained storylines that had nothing to do with the Spike/Julia/Vicious thread. Ein was particularly fun for me in that I loved the way he was animated and presented, and this comment comes from a person who is SO NOT a dog person!

Recommended viewing for anime fans, either as a permanent part of your collection or as a rental.

Lesbian Analysis
Actually, there’s really not much to comment on this one. As I indicated before, it’s a guy’s action series so an abundance of women (at least well balanced ones) are not to be really expected. Nobody triggered any real blips on a gaydar for me, not even Ed, the girl who looks like a boy. Ed’s behavior is one of the more genuinely asexual (meaning having no apparent romantic or sexual interest in ANYONE.) I would be hesitant on putting any other label on such a character and just letting her be herself, which is her ultimate charm.

Activist Rant: I will say the strongest (bad) impression that I have from this perspective is the movie’s use of “homosexuals for humor”. A big thumbs down from me on that!