#5-Black Dog
Serenade (Episode 16)
Jet Black, the black dog who bites and never lets
go. If any episodes of the series were not
as strong as others, it was mostly from Jet’s side. That certainly isn’t the case with Black Dog
Serenade, Jet’s big time to be the star of the show. The film noir flashbacks are great thanks to
Jet’s sense of style and Yoko Kanno’s tunes.
And the battle on the prison vessel is a no hold barred slug fest
between Jet and the man who apparently blew his arm off. This episode closed out an important chapter
in Jet’s life and did so in a tragic yet satisfying way that only Cowboy Bebop
is capable of doing.
#4-Toys in the
Attic (Episode 11)
For all it’s dark and gritty storytelling, Cowboy Bebop
knew how to have fun too. Case in point,
Toys in the Attic should feel eerie and suspenseful, and it is…but it’s also a
very clever Alien parody as only Bebop could spin it. I mean yeah, you know everyone’s going to
live cause it’s only Episode 11 and there’s more than half a show to go. That doesn’t stop the episode from being an
entertaining and funny horror romp as Spike has to contend with a creature of
unknown origin with any weapon he can coble together. Plus it’s all worth it for the hilarious
ending involving Ed and “more pudding”.
#3-The Real Folk
Blues Part 2 (Episode 26)
As far as finales go, Cowboy Bebop pretty much set the
standard (along with the standard for series premieres but we’ll get to that in
a second). The Real Folk Blues Part 2
accomplishes so much in its 23-25minute runtime that most shows would struggle
with. Spike faces his worst defeat and
also his greatest victory. Jet and Faye
both have tear jerking final goodbyes with the man they’ve called friend and
more. Spike and Vicious’ second duel
somehow manages to be just as good as their first. And then theres the final fate of Spike
himself, something that director Shinichiro Watanabe has been oddly coy about. Is he alive or dead, the world may never
know. But when “Blue”, the final track
of the series, starts playing, you get all the feels that remind you, whether
Spike lived or not, Cowboy Bebop has finished…on the most beautiful note it
possibly could.
#2-Asteroid Blues
(Episode 1)
Nowadays in the Anime community, you have The Three
Episode Rule: basically if you’re not hooked by Episode 3 then you wont stick
around for the rest. Luckilly, one of
Cowboy Bebops strengths is it WILL have you hooked by the end of Asteroid
Blues. In my mind, this is one of the
most perfect first episode pilots ever conceived in any medium. The introduction of the coolness that is
Spike Spiegel is flawless and he steals every moment of screentime by just
being that damn cool. Asteroid Blues
could just be a thirty minute mini movie and id be content. The action, the music, every single frame is
a thing of beauty. Honestly, if youre
not hooked by the end of Asteroid Blues, you should just not watch the rest of
Bebop cause this is the perfect primer of things to come.
#1-Ballad of
Fallen Angels (Episode 5)
Much like Asteroid Blues above, this isn’t the first time
this legendary Cowboy Bebop episode has appeared on a Top 5 list. I cant help but include it whenever I
can. The episode is beyond perfect. Great pacing, the sense that something big is
about to happen, the cryptic but still intriguing dialogue. And then there’s that epic build up that
begins when “Rain” starts playing during Spikes march to meet Vicious. When the music stops BOOM we get one of the
best gun fights in all of Anime, leading to a climax containing an image of
sword and gun ready at the hands of Vicious and Spike respectively. I said Bebop had a nearly flawless set of
episodes for its run…but this will always be the high point of the entire
series for me. If there is one episode
of this show you ever watch (besides Asteroid Blues) make sure it’s this one.
See you Space Cowboy…Bang
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