# Cowboy Bebop questions **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 4, 2011, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cowboy-bebop-questions/601888 "2011-11-04T19:16:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Chopper9760](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cdc98d/32.png) [@Chopper9760](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chopper9760)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2011, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cowboy-bebop-questions/601888/41 "2011-11-07T20:50:22Z")
I’m sure that spacing is fine. It’s a silly point for me to raise, I have no will power and I tend to pig down media even when I know I’d get more out of it if I savored it. Hello Again, I hope I didn’t come across sarcastic or pointed, “_some people,_” it’s really a comparison/complaint I’ve heard a lot. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2011, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cowboy-bebop-questions/601888/42 "2011-11-07T20:54:37Z")
Yeah, I don’t have that problem. 🙂 Even games or shows I love and am totally hooked into, I need breaks from. ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2011, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cowboy-bebop-questions/601888/43 "2011-11-07T21:38:13Z")
> [@Chopper9760](#): > > Hello Again, I hope I didn’t come across sarcastic or pointed, “_some people,_” it’s really a comparison/complaint I’ve heard a lot. No, not at all. Not to worry! It actually made me think and go … “oh yeah…” that’s all. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2011, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cowboy-bebop-questions/601888/44 "2011-11-08T03:56:08Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > They both have a band of misfits running from their pasts. Both go to great lengths to feature the space-ships as characters in their own right (and both are named after the ships). They both have a space-faring society that exists in a single star system after Earth undergoes a disaster. The characters in both are always running close to the edge, with shortages of food/fuel being a big issue to force them to find their next job. They both have crews that seem like a family, always threatening to break apart but coming back together. Both tend to visit worlds and places that are run-down and impovrished > > Again, I think its a coincidence, but especially as Firefly started airing shortly after Bebop aired in the US for the first time, it was kind of weird how similar they were. In all fairness, all three series are a bit derivative of Han, Luke, Leia and the rest of the Millenium Falcon team. I’ve only seen a few Outlaw Star episodes but… …the female android character and River Tam from Firefly are both introduced to the audience as the contents of a large attache case. I recall reading somewhere that it wasn’t a cooincidence. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2011, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cowboy-bebop-questions/601888/45 "2011-11-08T04:21:40Z")
> [@Chopper9760](#): > > I don’t buy Cowboy Bebop = Firefly but Firefly = [Outlaw Star](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Staxringold/Firefly) is looking pretty good. Damn! I’ve never actually seen _Outlaw Star_, but man, that list is incredibly tenuous. River and Melfina being female, government-created supersoldiers who arrive on the show in a box is a pretty solid similarity, but the rest? One of the arguments there is literally, “Both shows have villains,” f’christsake. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2011, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cowboy-bebop-questions/601888/46 "2011-12-16T15:28:27Z")
Ok, so I finished the show last night. I was surprised to realize that while I had been thinking of Bebop as sort of candy of a show, light and fun and, I’d become deeply invested in the characters. I was really sorry to see Faye leave and find no pease, and when Ed and Ein left, I knew shit was going to go down. And oh man did it. I’d managed to avoid most spoilers so I was genuinely surprised at the end. A very Japanese ending, on the whole. Excellent, but I admit it depressed me a little - I was really hoping for some resolution for our boy, and a way for him to go forward. All over the web it says that Spike’s death is unconfirmed, but it sure looked like it to me. So that leaves Faye and Jet. But the show certainly is going to stay with me for a long time, in the back of my head, and I’m glad I watched it. And yes, I did love the music, and have gained an appreciation for jazz I never had before. Thanks again, everybody! ---
**Author:** ![psiekier](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/psiekier/32/116_2.png) [@psiekier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psiekier)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2011, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cowboy-bebop-questions/601888/47 "2011-12-19T21:55:55Z")
> [@Tengu](#): > > (Which is closer to the (also wrong) rumours about Evangelion’s finale, which was a departure from the rest of the series, and really, really weird - although even there the rumour is simply that they ran out of money, and couldn’t film their intended finale.) The ending to _Evangelion_ is terrible. I hated it. I _still_ hate it after all these years. I’m only buying the _Rebuild_ movies because I’m hoping they change the ending. What you describe, **Tengu** , is a sitaution that _did_ happen to Studio Gainax as they were working on _Gunbuster: Aim For The Top_. The final episode is partly in black and white, and the big climactic battle between us and the aliens is shown as a series of storyboards with the music in the background. Still, it’s one of my favourite series and has the ending to _Evangelion_ beat by _miles!_ > [@Anaamika](#): > > Ok, so I finished the show last night. > > [snip] > > But the show certainly is going to stay with me for a long time, in the back of my head, and I’m glad I watched it. And yes, I did love the music, and have gained an appreciation for jazz I never had before. > > Thanks again, everybody! I guess I came in too late. I was going to say that if you can make it past the first three episodes, you’ll fall in love with it. It took some encouraging for me to get that far, and I picked the rest of it up after that. Glad you liked it. You should try tracking down the soundtracks. Counting all the live stuff and remixes, there are at least a half-a-dozen. ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2011, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cowboy-bebop-questions/601888/48 "2011-12-19T22:29:32Z")
My favorite episode is about the shrooms. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![randwill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a3d4f5/32.png) [@randwill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/randwill)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2011, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cowboy-bebop-questions/601888/49 "2011-12-19T22:40:00Z")
> [@psiekier](#): > > Glad you liked it. You should try tracking down the soundtracks. Counting all the live stuff and remixes, there are at least a half-a-dozen. This made me get up and count. I’ve got eight including a double disc set and the 4 CD box set which has the great live concert recordings. That adds up to 12 discs total of great music. ---
**Author:** ![psiekier](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/psiekier/32/116_2.png) [@psiekier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psiekier)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2011, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cowboy-bebop-questions/601888/50 "2011-12-20T02:17:28Z")
> [@randwill](#): > > This made me get up and count. I’ve got eight including a double disc set and the 4 CD box set which has the great live concert recordings. That adds up to 12 discs total of great music. OK, there’s:[ul][_]OST 1[_]OST 2 (“No Disc”)[_]OST 3 (“Blue”)[_]Ask DNA Single[_]Limited Edition Boxed Set[_]Music For Freelance[_]Vitaminless[_]Cowgirl Ed[/ul]Plus the movie soundtrack _Future Blues_ (does that count?) and a “Best of” that some new tracks from the game. Wow… I guess I should’ve checked first! Does that cover it all? ---
**Author:** ![randwill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a3d4f5/32.png) [@randwill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/randwill)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2011, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cowboy-bebop-questions/601888/51 "2011-12-20T04:27:38Z")
Okay, what’s here is: O.S.T. 1 O.S.T. 2 - No Disc O.S.T. 3 - Blue Music for Freelance (remixes) Vitaminless No Onagku (Yoko Kanno, but not really Cowboy Bebop) O.S.T. Future Blues (Movie) 2 disc set O.S.T Limited Edition Box Set - 4 disc set So I need to grab the Cowgirl Ed and Ask DNA CDs, which I didn’t know of until now. Thanks! Since nobody asked, I also have a Best Of compilation of my own making which includes: NY Rush The Real Folk Blues Fantasie Sign Don’t Bother None Want it All Back Road to the West You Make Me Cool Gateway The Signing Seal The EGG and YOU Adieu Ask DNA Blue Call Me Call Me Space Lion (Oh man, I LOVE this one!)\* The Real Folk Blues (Live) \*Everybody should set aside 7:12 and go listen to this right now. I’ll understand if you don’t or you do and don’t love it, but man do I think it’s _good._ The sax, the bass, the chant…chills. [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/WKnVaDwUg5s/hqdefault.jpg "Cowboy Bebop OST 1 - Space Lion") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKnVaDwUg5s) ---
**Author:** ![bldysabba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecccb3/32.png) [@bldysabba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bldysabba)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2011, 6:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cowboy-bebop-questions/601888/52 "2011-12-20T06:28:28Z")
> [@Anaamika](#): > > Ok, so I finished the show last night. > > I was surprised to realize that while I had been thinking of Bebop as sort of candy of a show, light and fun and, I’d become deeply invested in the characters. I was really sorry to see Faye leave and find no pease, and when Ed and Ein left, I knew shit was going to go down. > > And oh man did it. I’d managed to avoid most spoilers so I was genuinely surprised at the end. A very Japanese ending, on the whole. Excellent, but I admit it depressed me a little - I was really hoping for some resolution for our boy, and a way for him to go forward. > > All over the web it says that Spike’s death is unconfirmed, but it sure looked like it to me. So that leaves Faye and Jet. > > But the show certainly is going to stay with me for a long time, in the back of my head, and I’m glad I watched it. And yes, I did love the music, and have gained an appreciation for jazz I never had before. > > Thanks again, everybody! Glad you liked it. Shinichiro Watanabe has another awesome, though completely different, show called Samurai Champloo. Instead of jazz in space, it applies a hip-hop sensibility to Edo-era Japan. I really loved that show as well, in case you’re looking for more of Watanabe’s stuff. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2011, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cowboy-bebop-questions/601888/53 "2011-12-20T14:41:02Z")
My favorite episode was definitely the one with the alien horror on the ship. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Jragon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19b73/32.png) [@Jragon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jragon)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2011, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cowboy-bebop-questions/601888/54 "2011-12-20T14:53:50Z")
> [@smiling\_bandit](#): > > IMHO, this series is fantastic, and has only two faults: > > 1. The mood swings wildly. There is no consistent tone, to the point that some of the series darkest momens follow directly to its most comic and light-hearted. > > 2. The ending is… poor. And the creators, while politely not saying anything, have implied that they most definitely intended more seasons (the way the show is setup also demonstrates that they weren’t ready to end it). However, many anime studios in Japan apparently don’t like making money, so it did not receive a second season. The show ended in the wrong place, somewhat ambiguously, and not very well all arond. I don’t know if the ambiguity signified much other than cultural differences. If there’s one point where Eastern storytelling and Western storytelling have major differences, it’s in how they want to end things. Westerns prefer terse “this is what happened” epilogues, with open endedness being left to things that aren’t integral to the genre/story and minor threads. Eastern storytelling LOVES ambiguity, multiple plot threads not being resolved (including introducing new plot threads not intended to be resolved at the end of the story), and incredible open endedness. It may very well be that they intended there to be more, but when I saw Bebop’s ending, I really thought it was supposed to end that way, and found it to be the perfect Japanese ending to the story. I really can’t imagine it ending any other way. Also, I’m still in love with the full version of [Spike’s poem](http://site.sckoon.com/organicliving/2010/06/22/your-childs-favorite-books-the-cat-who-lived-a-million-times/) from the last episode. ETA: randwill – You have a best of compilation without “Tank!”? Heresy! ---
**Author:** ![randwill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a3d4f5/32.png) [@randwill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/randwill)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2011, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cowboy-bebop-questions/601888/55 "2011-12-20T15:08:13Z")
> [@Jragon](#): > > ETA: randwill – You have a best of compilation without “Tank!”? Heresy! “Oh my God!” he thought, his head hanging in shame. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cowboy-bebop-questions/601888.md?page=2)