A little vignette has dropped, giving us a sneaky peek at the actors in their roles and the backdrop.
So, naturally, I have to take a look and give a review. So, without any more blabbering…
So, on October 19, 2021, this dropped on Twitter.
As I am not one to repeat myself, I am not going to revisit my critique of the costumes. You can find that gem here.
I am also not going to comment on the age of Spike. That’s here.
Warning, I am picking it apart, heavily.
The song choices…
Tank! is the intro, not the song played in the episodes. It did eventually change when Vicious was introduced in a flashback and with the fight scenes, but beyond the intro is pushing it. The theme song is iconic and recognizable. I feel like they are leaning too much on it for popularity and nostalgia.
The Acting…
Yes, there was always the problem of Jet making a plan or announcing something and no one paying attention. This is consistency.
Yes, there were episodes with a LOT of humor and some WOULD say a departure from the grittiness of the show, but that was how they would balance it out.
You would get them into a tough spot in a few episodes, resolve it, and then they were tracking down a lobster that went rancid on their ship. It was a break, not the main feel of the show.
Cho’s facial expressions during the fighting did NOT scream Spike. Spike had a lackadaisical way of fighting. He “was water”. He ebbed and flowed all while keeping an aloof attitude unless Vicious was involved. His performance was meh. He ACTED like Spike with the noodles and his reaction to his flashback. He also ignored Jet’s instructions, but he really was not Spike.
Faye… she ACTED like Faye. Some would say this is a gotcha moment for me, but I will argue and say there is a difference between ACTING the part and BEING the part. She ACTED the part.
Jet, I will give it to him. The lines he did have, he did well with, but the “That’s not the bounty” exchange fell flat. It didn’t seem like there was enough frustration in his voice. Jet would have been a little frustrated. I didn’t feel that.
Again, he ACTED like Jet.
The overall feel…
I did NOT like the whole comic book feel. That is NOT was Cowboy Bebop was. It was jarring for me to watch that, honestly.
There was no flow to the fight scene. It was not a typical Spike fight scene.
The segway into the Vicious flashback had no obvious trigger. It just happened. It snapped me out of whatever feel they were going for and made me go, “Oh, it’s Vicious.”
Everything had a Manga-meets-Dick Tracey feel to it. They seemed to have dialed up the camp and comic feel, even though it’s a manga, and leaned into the comedy more.
I don’t want a Dick Tracey feel to my Cowboy Bebop. I want Cowboy Bebop.
This gets
One out of five espresso shots.
Until next time, Space Cowboy
Anissa “Maddy” Walker
House of Geek 