by Mike Favila, Editor 

Watching Cowboy Bebop: The Complete Series was much like visiting with an old friend.  I hadn’t seen these episodes in so long, but it was easy to just sit down and pick it up all over again.  Even though I loved the series when I was first introduced to it, for some reason or another I haven’t had the time to sit down and rewatch the series again.  When I heard that Funimation was putting together a remastered version on BD, it seemed like a great opportunity to catch up and see if the series had aged well.

For those that have never seen it before, Cowboy Bebop: The Complete Series is essentially a space western.  Spike and Jet are two capable bounty hunters, always looking for their next paycheck.  While they go through their adventures, they meet and accidentally befriend a great supporting cast.  This includes Faye Valentine, a wily and sexy thief that can’t seem to keep gambling her money away, and Edward, a brilliant but highly intelligent young boy.  With that description, it sounds like a rehash of any buddy cop ensemble.  That being said, trying to sum up these stories using a convenient synopsis does Cowboy Bebop: The Complete Series injustice.  While these characters are archetypes we’ve seen before (the formerly violent loner with a sense of humor, a femme fatale, a cute dog, an idiot savant child) in a setting that we’ve seen before (space cowboys in a grimy, imperfect future). And yet, the whole world is cohesive as a unique, new experience. I don’t care if I’ve seen this before.  I’ve never seen it like THIS before.

Audio & Video

Presented in its original aspect ratio, the video for Cowboy Bebop: The Complete Series is a definite improvement over the previous DVD release.  The music is still as vibrant as before, weaving in and out seamlessly with the anime.  The music sounds like a hodgepodge of genres, encompassing free form jazz to an unreleased Bruce Lee soundtrack.  It makes sense that director Shinichirō Watanabe worked as a music supervisor for Michiko and Hatchin, one of my more favorite new releases.

I’m a little disappointed that you can’t have subtitles along with the English, but I assume their intent is for you to focus on the actual English audio, rather than relying on just reading the captions.  While I understand, it doesn’t stop me from wishing I could read them at the same time.

Packaging

For the true fan who has been waiting many years for this release, it might be worth it to get this Funimation edition of Cowboy Bebop: The Complete Series.  It includes an excellently bound art book.  It has 52 pages, includes all the cover art from the previous DVD releases character designs and stills. Additionally there are five standalone art prints, including one oil embossed signature from Shinichiro Watanabe. Everything is packaged in an oversized, sturdy cardboard case.

I gotta award Funimation bonus points for the discs looking like mini LPs, which may be a soon forgotten relic for the newer kids. This is an understated, but cool touch.  The Amazon version has a a few more physical extras (like a 140 page black and white art book), but as far as the video goes, everything is included.

Special Features

The extra features in Cowboy Bebop: The Complete Series are a lot of fun. I really enjoyed Memo From The Bebop:  The Dub Sessions Remastered. It’s really interesting to hear the English voice actors talk about their first experience with Bebop.  They repeatedly note how floored they were with the material and how excited they were to be a part of it. It’s nice that they all speak of each other with mutual respect.

That rapport continues in Dinner Aboard The Bebop, where they talk so comfortably with each other and seamlessly segue from one subject to another. They talk over each other and laugh, just like old friends. The special feature could have been boring but it’s actually quite fascinating, especially as a longtime fan. The audio is a little hard to hear sometimes, and the shots could be a little tighter, but I think that would have been more intrusive. Clocking in at over an hour, it’s truly a fanboy’s dream. The two music videos are also a nice bonus.

Overall

There’s been a number of notable series that have been released since Cowboy Bebop: The Complete Series came out so many years ago, but this landmark series is still an excellent gateway drug. The jokes are still funny, the characters are sympathetic and fly off the screen, and the storyline is both haunting and memorable.  Usually when a piece of art is this iconic, going back to view it is often a disappointment. The shimmer that was there when you first experienced it was really a byproduct of who you were at the time, and what you had been exposed to before. Cowboy Bebop: The Complete Series does not fall into that category. It’s still a unique and romantic body of work.

I wholeheartedly recommend Cowboy Bebop: The Complete Series to both the diehard fan and the casual newcomer.  Even if this is a double dip and you already own the DVD series, it is still a worthwhile purchase. Even better, take the time to buy this for someone who didn’t know what they were missing.  They’ll thank you for it.

Rating:
ComicsOnline.com gives Cowboy Bebop: The Complete Series 5 out of 5 jazzy soundtracks!

Shoot your guns with us at  ComicsOnline.com and and say hi on our Facebook, Twitter, Blip, Instagram, and iTunes for more Blu-ray reviews and everything geek pop culture!