Ani-Me #14: Fully Lovin’ That COWBOY BEBOP (Ep 14-20) (Patreon)

Welcome to Ani-Me! The Series Where You Make Me Watch Anime! To be clear, you aren’t making me do anything because I have enjoyed every bit of this so far.

And omg omg omg you were all right this show is getting so damn good. My game-plan for the remainder is to cover the last 6 episodes with third post and then do a fourth and final post on the movie (I like watching things in order of release). But for now, let’s just get to part two of this sucker!

Today’s Entry: COWBOY BEBOP (1998-1999)

14. BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY

“Here, we merely have an old man who loves games.”

For a whole bunch of episodes now I’ve come to really enjoy the “gamesmanship” of the plotting of this show. Because that’s what it is. Which only works because on a pure story level, the show is *perfectly* attuned to its conflict, clarity, and stakes. But what I find fascinating is just that it has so little interest in milking those things for tension. Compare it to a a show like, say, Breaking Bad where all the deep conflicts, double crossings, and last second saves are meant to tie your stomach in knots. But here? Those same exact kinds of plot mechanics instead play for raucous fun. And it’s often not just because Spike is and company are disaffected characters, but because it’s precisely the aim of a lot of folks around them, too. Heck, even when it gets serious, death often feels like a simple part of the game. It feels like one big game. And of course I mention this because of how much this episode leans into that idea.

The whole arc with the Chessmaster is just fantastic. The way you get pulled into this ingenious “what does it all mean!?” game of clues. They way Jet plays with the sides and the corporation and plants the bug in the cigarette. In pure Bebop fashion, there’s so many lovely details along the way, like the moment where Ed hisses when they try to take the board, the cat floating in the hallway, and the idea of unhoused folks hanging out in spaced wreckage. But then, it all leads to a conclusion that I think so perfectly effects the ethos of the show. From the way the angry corp dude learns to chill and get high, to the inescapable sadness of the old man’s dementia, to the fact the Bebop crew will, once again, give up money because they simply can’t do something that cruel. But it’s especially that little emotional denouement at the end that: “Ed would get lonely if she lost her chess partner,” which is on of the most sentimental and weirdly beautiful moments the show has had so far… hot dang I loved it.

15. MY FUNNY VALENTINE

Well, I guess I care about Faye now!

Which isn’t to say that I love all of this episode? Or more to say I didn’t feel entirely safe within it, mostly because it spends so much time treading water in sexist tropes that leave a lot to be desired. I know I’ve talked a lot about 90’s dated-ness in the show last time, but this also makes me want to make another point clear: these tropes were not just “how it was.” It’s was an active choice that artists were making even then. To wit, Cheryl Dunye was making incredible films like The Watermelon Woman and saying everything that’s still relevant now and yet we were too busy valuing films like As Good As It Gets saying lines like “how do you write women so well?” / “I picture a man, then take away reason and accountability.” But the point is this shitty attitude can ALWAYS be there. There was so much sexist “wOmEn bE LiKe” crap was all over vine and its still all over TikTok. The point is these views are *always* a choice to go with reductive gender norms or not to.

Which is not to say the episode is fully going along with them either? It’s just harder to parse out. Because we get so much casual crap from Spike and Jet about how “women don’t work on reason” (which, whether consciously or subconsciously, is something used as tactic of control and making women feel wrong no matter what they do / shows men are in denial about how much anger drives their so-called “reason”). But what’s perhaps interesting is the way the show also explore the flip-side of the coin, which is the controlling nature of patronizing adorers, specifically for the “woman with no memory” trope. Because those stories are often about fulfilling men’s need for control and telling them “you don’t know who you REALLY are, so you are defined by my kindness / admiration of you!” And it also gets wrapped up with the sleeping beauty / fell in love with you while you were sleeping gross stuff too which sees women an inanimate objects which are brought to life with YOUR love… You really can see the weirdness behind it / all over this dude who was, in the end, just saddling her with debt.

Now, does the show seem to be aware of this and on her side as she finally gets revenge on this fucko? Yup! And is it possible even to see the show as taking the piss out of Spike and Jet for their casual dismissal of / ignorance her experience? Also yup. It’s not exactly underlined or handled with deft clarity, but it’s one of those things where you can sense where the episode’s empathy really lies (read: her). And finally getting to the reveal that Faye woke from earth 54 laters to the scattered ruins? And doesn’t know who she really is? Well, there’s really something there for the story to hopefully mine. And I love the way this episode plays with the two half format. Specifically how the first part ends…

Cause the reveal that Spike was listening to her story while on the shitter is an all-time gag.

16. BLACK DOG SERENADE

My very first note was “ohhhhh, this is a darker ep.” And it is. The show’s moments of violence aren’t exactly like the sudden, gory bursts of Evangelion, but they’re still shocking punctuation marks. Like, seeing a real sociopath in this show is a little unnerving (the prior ones like Vincent and the blood drug dude feel a bit more operatic). But once again, the episode’s biggest strengths lie in direction. There’s always these little perfect beats, like the way that Jet’s eyes slightly narrow upon hearing Udai’s name. But overall I don’t know how crazy I am about the two Jet episodes so far? I mean, I enjoy them. This one takes the noir-ish past and turns it up to 11 with the outfit / black and white stylings / the classic story of a once partner who secretly double crossed him. But perhaps it’s just that it’s one of those things where I still want a little more vulnerability from the proceedings. All the stories of lost arms and lost loves can’t really matter unless you see the way it’s really, truly effecting them (and please don’t spoil any future eps, but I’m guessing we’ll get there with his character eventually, for such is the way the noir cookie crumbles).

17. MUSHROOM SERENADE

I unabashedly LOVED this episode (with one small caveat).

It’s wonderful how many of these episodes start with free-floating destitution and being on the edge of starvation, always brought to life with such good details (like Ed biting the fridge and the observation that “grudges over food are scary.”) Also, Ed is continuing to completely click for me now. From the moment she slides on the floor, to her accidental kidnapping in the trunk, to the final, delirious mushroom swap, I loved every moment. Someone responded at one point (sorry I can’t find the tweet, maybe it was even in a chat) that they were something like a “a perfect chaotic queer idiot” and these vibes are on full display. The fact that their hunger quest ends with them eating nothing but regular shittake mushrooms delights me to no end. It also so perfectly characterizes the way this show is funny. I mentioned this in a different article recently, but it plays into that observation about how Kafka and the Coens are funny. It’s this kind of view of the universe that isn’t miserable. It’s just noting “there is hope, but not for us.” Which feels so apt for our ragtag bounty hunters always clawing their way to the bottom.

But, caveat! I also wanted to talk about the reflexivity of watching black characters in this show, particularly the last couple episodes. One of the things that’s sort of been fascinating about diving into Anime is seeing the way that American culture and movie-dom get absorbed into this other culture. In one way, what we see in Cowboy Bebop is no different than what happened with a lot of 90’s artists like Tarantino. They grew up idolizing the 70’s and then got to recreate the things when they hit a certain age (which is why so much of the 90’s got it’s revival in the 2010’s). But with anime, there’s this added layer of diffusion. There’s just even more distance from the reality of Black America and a reductive understanding that comes from one of the most homogeneous cultures in the world trying to reflect a global community. Meaning there’s *only* what has come from movies, which is why it’s all Pam Grier and Shaft and Kareem Abdul Jabbar. Or worse, the 90’s-esque dangerous gangster felons we saw just in the episode prior. The truth is I have no great insight into these choices this because 1) I don’t know know enough about how Japan regards that culture and 2) there doesn’t seem like there’s a lot to have insight about. These portrayals are barely anything but empty shells, reflective of the hollowness behind choice itself. But hey “it looks like the thing” so maybe that’s all they wanted.

But luckily, the show is SO GOOD at giving life through so many other little details. There’s so many great moments I have to single out: the long shot of the crash happening off screen / the stomach ache being the reveals that Faye at the stash / the SoCal landscape / the hopping corgi high on shrooms / how different Jet’s voice sounds high / the other bounty guy not being able to pursue because of brain freeze / the three dudes at bar from episode one / and, of course, the sudden moment where the dog talks to the cow. All just amazing.

18. SPEAK LIKE A CHILD

Holy shit.

From the first thirteen episodes of the show, I never, ever imagined the back half of this show would ever offer something like… this. Sure, Cowboy Bebop has had beautiful moments. But the entirety of this episode is so quiet. So intimate. So small stakes. All propelled by a simple, but genuinely alluring mystery of the VHS tape and finding a way to play it (hahahaha a Beta explanation plays so delightful in 2021). There’s the familiar little details like Spike putting out the cigarette on the equipment (and the VHS collector, who is now my favorite bit character on the show, losing his damn mind). But I knew it was up to something. If only because there’s so much to Faye’s characterization of avoidance: “so many things it could be, for now i’ll just run away!” and so she keeps going to the track in search of elation.But then the moment of mystery reveal finally comes…

Y’all… The idea that this was all just building up to a small time capsule video, wherein a young Faye speaks to her “future self” and… doesn’t even know what to say? Like, there’s no giant secret here. It’s just the incredible power of them all seeing that young, normal teenage girl. One who is so giddy, so unshaped, and yet unsure of herself and the future. Faye’s jaw drops watching as she sees something so vulnerable and excited, hoping that she “woke up well” (knowing her prior ep, oof) and that she has a good life (which she is currently wasting at the track). And then that haunting, gorgeous little line, “I’m always cheering for you, my only self.”

Reader, I cried. It’s just one of the best “sneak up on you” emotional moments I’ve ever seen from a TV show? I genuinely don’t know what to say. It was so simple and kind and… well, the thing I said that the disaffection of the show was in need of: vulnerability. I mean, last time I also talked about how noir works and literally wrote the following: “The thing most people don’t understand about noir is that all that disaffection and hidden emotion always bubbles up by the story’s end, often in the spectacular ways of coming undone. Like, the vulnerability explodes by the end.” And here I feel like we’re starting to REALLY get a sense of the quiet depth of that, but in far more a generous spirit than I ever imagined… Holy shit, y’all. That was amazing.

19. WILD HORSES

“It’s just an old machine. I don’t want it, but it’s part of me.”

For all the fun hijinks with space pirates and crooked couriers, it’s mostly it’s that line above that sticks out to me. There’s something lovely about the way the Spike interacts with friendly characters from his past, one that evokes the masculine silence of certain “strong, silent types,” but with just a little bit more whimsy and kindness. It’s something perhaps best expressed in the way that Spike, upon certain doom, nonchalantly tells Jet about his hidden booze stash so he can enjoy it. By the way, Spike never cares about the prospect of death, not because he’s fearless, but because most of him is already dead. He just keeps moving forward like the old machine, out of habit.

And again, all I can think about is the way this will change in some with with his character by the endgame (again, please don’t even hint or be coy about it, I’m so damn invested at this point and terrified someone’s gonna try and dance around an explanation of what makes it good and basically give away the ballgame). But I also love the way the show plays with the masculine archetypes, too. Like the fact the greasy mechanic is daintily drinking espresso my favorite thing. But it’s funny, every time I watch one of these episodes I’m now waiting for “the moment of transcendence” where there’s some big fun turn or reveal which makes me grin. And y’all, the SPACE SHUTTLE COLOMBIA REVEAL had me cackling with laughter. And the final choice of cutting to the taped picture of them having survived the crash landing? It’s just a perfect ending.

20. PIERROT LE FOU

When I first saw the outline of the dude walking up I was like, “oh shit it’s the Babadook!”

AND THEN IT BASICALLY FUCKING WAS.

So when I write these little recaps I genuinely stop and do a little first draft between eps. And I swear when I wrote about being interested in where the show will take Spike’s vulnerability in the last episode? And then literally the next episode BOOM, HERES EXACTLY THAT! This only happens only because I’m just paying attention to the way the show is setting things up, that’s all. And there’s so much great stuff in this episode that I don’t know where to start.

It’s not just that this is one of the best directed things I’ve ever seen? I can say this about the show in general, but there’s so many little great character details like the way way Ed swings her arms as she immediately blurbs about the secret secret mail? Or the way Faye says “i hear you got beat up by some weird guy?” as she steals his tangerine? Or that there’s the perfect callback with the cat? Heck there’s even the massive Nier: Automata vibes that come with Spaceland. But really it’s all about the power of our antagonist. It’s not just that they crafted one of the most legitimately freaky, terrifying villains I’ve ever seen in Pierrot. Nor is it that they actually got me somehow care about that same poor soul by the end. For the haunting cries of him shouting “it hurt! it hurts! Mommy, it hurts!” ring in your ears all before his pained existence gets crushed underneath the foot of an overblown toy parade, as haunting a metaphor as you can imagine.

But really, it’s about what this all of this has to do with Spike.

Just an episode ago I claimed Spike wasn’t afraid of death because part of him is already dead, which now only seems to be half right. Because make no mistake, this guy’s been chasing death since the start of the series. He’s done the most dangerous, careless things and faced his end with a stone-faced cigarette - and one day it’s probably gonna hit him. But this episode tells us so much about what’s *really going on* there. Sure, Pierrot is absolutely his grim reaper figure, but Spike isn’t running. No, Pierrot is really there to foil him. For, the first time we’re having an opponent who truly ruffles him. Meaning we’re seeing Spike get panicked and nervous, eyes darting around and horribly injured and unsure. And of which clues you into something so clear: Spike’s more afraid of being afraid then he is of death itself.

That’s the whole thing. You can read it in his lines to Faye earlier, “Maybe this really would be the end of me? Just kidding! Would you come rescue me if i said that?” And it’s not just that she helps in the end, it’s that we can suddenly see the seams of his character. It’s all part of the brave posture he puts up after exiting the vehicle and he clutches his ribs, hurting before quickly and comically regaining his cool. This is a guy afraid of vulnerability more than anything else in the world. And in real Bebop fashion, he’s gonna be amusing as hell in showing us that.

I can’t wait to see how this keeps shaking out.

<3HULK