Every year new anime shows are produced. Every year we as anime fans find ourselves loving what has been dubbed as Anime Legends. This series is one of those anime legends but is so much more as it has changed the face of anime. This series is none other then Cowboy Bebop. Cowboy Bebop was ahead of its time in 1997 when it first debuted. The animation and the plot is a stand-alone complex story. Fast-forward to 2014 Cowboy Bebop is still ahead of its time . Cowboy Bebop is one of the most influential anime series to ever be produced and viewed by anime fans.
The story of Cowboy Bebop is complex and simple due to the plot. The plot is set up as a stand-alone complex. A stand-alone complex is when the episodes have self- contained stories placed within them. At the time that Cowboy Bebop was released in 1997 the anime world was set in the idea that the story had to be linear. The idea for a standing alone complex with only the main characters remaining the same was a new concept. The plot is both complex and simple due to how it is an episodic stand-alone series. The simple component is that each episode is a story self-contained and as a result it does not have to flow into the next episode. The complex part of the plot during these self -contained episodes is character development needs to occur. The character development in each of these self -contained stories has to carry over to the next episode. The character development in Cowboy Bebop is the tie that holds the episodes together. As a fan of the show this ability is executed perfectly as each of the main characters in the episodes grow as the show progresses. When watching the self- contained episodes the gravitation to the simple parts of the plot is the episode story is equally balanced with complex parts of the plot, which is the growing development of the characters. Overall the show has both simple and complicated plot points that contrast each other and allow a fan to view the anime in a simple or complex fashion.
The series has other attractions to why it has exceeded being an Anime Legend. The cast of reoccurring main characters is one of those reasons. The 4 main characters are very different and complex. Spike is described as being a cool hero with a dark past. Jet on the other hand is a bounty hunter looking for his next bounty. Faye is a beautiful female looking to break hearts and separate fools from their money. Finally, there is Ed and Ein, a hacker and a Corgi Welsh who are there for the ride. As an anime fan these characters are not your typical group that would come together. Yet, as the show progresses the development of the characters is shows that they need each other. The characters foil each other and act as a safety net for one another and they would most likely not be traveling space if it weren’t for each other. This idea of characters foiling each other is not a new idea but the idea that these characters are preventing one another from being lost in space is. As a result Cowboy Bebop, released in 1997, charted new concepts of character development that depend on the growth of each of its characters. In charting new ground, Sunrise, the production company, took a gamble that has paid off 16 years later. The anime is being rereleased as a Blu-ray and is still viewed as one of the most influential animes to ever be created.
You can purchase Cowboy Bebop here.
