I think I caught some of that guy’s comments on the early posts. Part of why I’m doing this is because, yeah, it would’ve been terrible to miss out on Bebop because some of the people who like it are douchebags. Another part of why I’m doing this, or a corollary to the first part, maybe, is to spite said douchebags.

Going back to your post, I’ve had this reader who comments on almost every post about Bebop and yet refuses to start watching the show. He sort of wants to, but resists it because of his experience of the show as “belonging” to a bunch of annoying elitists in his locality that well, behave like utter assrats.

Your point goes far to cut through this shit. Cowboy Bebop belongs to no one. It belongs to everyone.

Indeed, Bebop realizes, or the creators realized, that the TV format doesn’t mean you have to shove as much as possible in each episode. There may be 22 minutes in an episode, but you can also look at it as an 11-hour stretch and take your time with things. Every once in a while it gets a little heavy-handed, but most of the time the show gives a good deal of credit to its viewers. We have to be patient, but we’re rewarded for doing so — maybe it’s a credit to the show that I already feel rewarded despite having watched less than half of it.

Glad you enjoyed it. And I’m glad I managed to get to Cowboy Bebop while you’re doing your epic bloggothon thereof.

Sometimes there are no people onscreen, and during many of these scenes the characters don’t bother interjecting via voice-over. There may not even be any music.

A contestable point of perfection, truly. To sidetrack a little, one of the things that makes a great story, anime or otherwise, is the moderation and necessity of presented information. Bebop is notorious with it’s storytelling, and with so much going on in and around the episodic content, it’s a wonder how the writing continually manages both subtlety and expression without blowing up the viewer’s radar. There are numerous points and transitions to catch the viewer in an afterthought, but allowing the mind to wander brings a realization that these small attractions are unique and fleeting; here and gone. Bebop is a composition or fusion of elements, but I think, like jazz, these elements are not stationary, they move and are perhaps unobtainable in still-frame.

Anyway, awesome points, and cheers!

Indeed this is a perfect complement to the efforts I’m making. It’s impossible for me to experience the show for the first time now, but I’ve always wanted to read someone who brings this level of critical faculty to the experience without all kinds of baggage.

I was around 26 when I first saw this show, maybe 27 — and I never brought to bear this kind of appreciation power levels. And yet, I was thrilled that time, and for the next three viewings.

The level of execution in this show can’t be praised enough. I’m glad you’re seeing things that escape even me… and let me tell you I end up rewatching each episode at least thrice while I power through this blogging series which has proven to be the most difficult thing I’ve attempted in WRL.

I look forward to the rest of the posts. May you not take as long as I do in getting these done.

Cheers and enjoy!

Glad to hear it’s a big mashup of things, as my interests, too, are broad.

That tagline…I’d never heard that before. That’s quite a claim, there.