Tick tick tick… It’s almost here: the premiere of season one of the live-action version of the anime series Cowboy Bebop. And now we have a full-length trailer that leans harder into the sci-fi elements of the series. It stars John Cho (Star Trek) as a Bruce Lee-inspired bounty hunter named Spike Spiegel, Mustafa Shakir (Luke Cage) as the show’s larger than life cyborg and former investigator Jet Black, Geoff Stults (Stargirl) as Jet’s former partner Chalmers, and Daniella Pineda (Jurassic World: Dominion) as bounty hunter Faye Valentine. And a corgi (his name is Ein). Imagine what Firefly would look like if directed by Quentin Tarantino, and you have Netflix’s 10-episode live-action series Cowboy Bebop.
Check out another great trailer:
It has the style and the throwback vibe of The Man from U.N.C.L.E. as well as a cool soundtrack, and comic book-style scene-change pan slides with the characters participating in the movement. Running for 26 episodes between 1999 and 2001, the original future noir anime series Cowboy Bebop arrived as an instant classic for the medium that many have called the greatest anime of all time, a Japanese sci-fi Western three years before Firefly. Set in the year 2171, the bounty hunter crew of the spaceship Bebop chases an ex-gang member who holds a vest which gives the wearer unlimited luck. Original anime composer Yoko Kanno (Ghost in the Shell) is back with the soundtrack for the live-action series (the opening credits again uses her song called “Tank!” and it’s performed by the band Shītoberutsu aka Seatbelts.
Supporting cast includes Lucy Currey (Westside) as Judy, Alex Hassell (Torchwood) as Vicious, Rachel House (Thor: Ragnarok) as Mao, Hoa Xuande (Hungry Ghosts) as Lin, Mason Alexander Park (The Sandman) as Gren, Elena Satine (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.) as Julia, Ann Truong (Romper Stomper) as Shin, and Tamara Tunie (24) as Ana.
Cowboy Bebop arrives on Netflix November 19, 2021.
C.J. Bunce / Editor / borg