2017.07.05
Watched episode one dubbed, then immediately subbed. I've heard little to nothing is lost in translation, so far I agree, it might actually be better dubbed because I can just keep my eyes on the whole picture all the time instead of trying to read and watch at the same time.
Why am I watching this just now, after its been out 20 years, and I've known to watch it for 10? The only subscriptions I have right now are Netflix and Hulu, and there's nothing else I feel like watching so... its long overdue.
2017.07.07
Watched a few more 'sessions'... spoilers for the rest of the series to follow...
The corgi joined the crew. Fay joined the crew. You can see the shape of things to come. Its beyond obvious just how much Firefly borrowed from Cowboy Bebop. Its too early to say, but as much as I love Firefly, Cowboy seems to actually have more cohesive style. Some of Firefly's country and western stylings seemed spraypainted on, Bebop seems to run a little deeper, and is actually a little less silly, I hate to admit. Again, its early, no need to rush to any conclusions.
Speaking of conclusions, the ending of this series has been spoiled for me multiple times over the years, in text, in images, and even an animated gif. Oh... I recall that sad animated gif now, and it has even more meaning as I get to know the character. Best to push it out of my mind. It doesn't matter who lives and how dies, only why (which is the leading indication you're watching a story, instead of real life).
2017.07.13
Got to the Jupiter Jazz two-parter. Vicious is in this episode right from the start, so you know that its an arc episode (as opposed to monster of the week episode... like that recent fridge monster) and its going to matter.
Or not. A little more knowledge of the past is gained, but nothing really changes. Spike dodges death again; I wouldn't think much about such a typical heroic escape, if it wasn't for the spoiled ending. In a previous episode, when Spike was thrown through the window to his seeming doom, and left a grenade behind to kill Vicious, I thought maybe this was the ending of the story, and the rest of the show was just flashbacks.
I'm enjoying the show, its really easy to just watch 3 or 4 episodes in a row. Some of what I'm seeing is just anime tropes, or storytelling tropes, but I think a substantial bit feels original. Wasn't this show contemporary to Babylon 5? It feels like that show sometimes, not in content but in feel, a mix of old and new.
The originality of this show is making me look back at Firefly with increasing... something not good. Some things are a direct copy, and the rest just feels like a copy. I'm sure I'll sort it all out and make peace with it later, but right now its hard not see Firefly in a diminishing light.
Later... more random thoughts... it make so much sense that the pirate crew are bounty hunters rather than cargo haulers. Of course there's the Han Solo angle, what with smuggling stuff past the empire, and constant shootouts in seedy bars. Still, bounty hunters makes more sense. I also like that everyone has their own sub-ship, allows for fast story movement as needed. The Serenity is cool and all, but its good for the story for characters to come and go as needed. I do like that both main ships are utilitarian and somewhat shapeless.
I just realized something (a proverbial Fridge Logic moment) about that last episode. Why was Vicious buying the illicit cargo from Gren? Sure, Gren fits the mood of the story just right, the long lost comrade who demands an explanation for past wrongs (and rights). But how did he get his hands on goods that were so important that the red dragon mob sends a top operator like Vicious. Gren is just some musician in a seedy city on a depressed planet with little activity.
2017.07.15
Done. Just like all the spoilers have been saying for years.... Spike dies at the end. I knew that but it was far more important to me to know the how and why of it, than the what of it. The karmic balance of it is well and undeniably established from the beginning, that this is how it had to end. I am impressed that the makers of this show decided to have such a final ending to it, instead of lengthening what may have been a successful franchise, for at least a few years.
Now I am free to start looking things up about it, like when it was made. In the context of anime, 1997 means nothing to me, other than I had seen Akira by this time, so basically I knew nothing about anime then and little more now. What I do know is that this is how Firefly, and its movie, should have ended. They copied so much, but missed the tragic flaw of its hero.
I guess they could have still ended the show with Julia dead, Vicious dead, Spike near death, who recovers and walks away from his inheritance of the criminal Syndicate. The crew of the Bebop are on the run again, taking odd jobs as the adventure continues. Except we've already seen a few dozen episodes of that. How many more times do we have to see that before we become bored, and we turn against the show in boredom? Endings are good. Strong endings are memorable.
Reading the wiki... there's a movie!? It must be a one-off, some side adventure that can enjoyed but dismissed as side project. Yep: "takes place between episodes 22 and 23 of the original TV series, just before the characters went their separate ways". Cowboy Bebop: Knockin' on Heaven's Door - I want to see it. Speaking of strange old song quotes, what's with the show ending on "you've got to carry that weight"? There's so much reference to music of the mid 20th century and prior, and then suddenly we jump to the Beatles? If that's what that even means, maybe I am ignorant of an older reference.
Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door is available on Netflix DVD. No streaming on Netflix, Hulu or Amazon Prime. Reading a bit more, it seems like the movie is worth watching, but its not essential. I'll still see it, when I get a chance.
Seeing more comments online about the show... a lot of people consider this series one of if not the best anime series of all time. Could I give this show 5 (out of 5) stars? Almost. The character of Vicious is conspicously flat for a show that takes time to develop even a cliched and empty character like Edward. At least you get some insight into Ed's (lack of a) home life and why he's obsessed with technology. Vicious is just crazed for power and depravity like only a screen villain can be.
I also can't give it a max rating because of the way physics is rudely manhandled in this show and several times outright pushed down the stairs when it wasn't looking. I know some of the tropes are treasured anime staples (somehow swords still matter in any way whatsoever, dodging bullets, non damaging falls from height or other sudden inertial change, etc.), but they are still jarring and kick you out of the story for a while.
There's some references to interviews by the creator on whether Spike is truly dead at the end or not, and that he maintains its up to the viewer. I really didn't see any ambiguity in it, but if other people do... that says more about the viewer than the art.
2017.07.17
The day after I missed this show and the characters, sad that there is no more (after that movie). Today I didn't hardly think of it at all. Its a bit of a fast fade, but as usual I watched it too fast.
