Summary
Netflix’s live-actionCowboy Bebopwas one of its worst anime adaptations, but it could have avoided that distinction completely by following a different story from the same franchise.Cowboy Bebopis one of the most lauded and beloved animes of all time, as it featured a rich, emotional story, beautiful animation, and some of the most endearing characters ever put to screen. It seemed like the perfect anime for a live-action adaptation, and Netflix recognized that potential, but its attempt at putting the series into live-action had some major problems.
Cowboy Bebopwas a major failure for Netflix, and it ended up being one of its worst live-action animes. It started out strong and reached the heights of Netflix’s viewership, but that audience quickly dwindled and it joined the unenviable list ofNetflix shows that were canceled after one season. It was so bad that successful anime adaptations have used it as a road map of what not to do, like howOne Piececompared itself toCowboy Bebop’s failures. Despite its issues, though, there was a very simply way Netflix’sCowboy Bebopcould have worked.
Cowboy Bebop: 5 Similarities To The Anime (& 5 Differences)
As Cowboy Bebop fans binge the Netflix series, there are several qualities that follow the anime and others that feel drastically different.
The Live-Action Cowboy Bebop Adaptation Didn’t Live Up To The Original Anime
Netflix’sCowboy Bebopadaptation had some very big shoes to fill after the success of the original anime, and it failed to fill them. There were a few big problems with the show that caused that, from stylistic choices to its changes to the source material.Perhaps the biggest reason Netflix’sCowboy Bebopfailed, however, is that it didn’t capture the essence of what made the anime so great. One of the best parts of the show was that half ofCowboy Bebop’s 26 episodesfocused solely on the Bebop crew’s strange, oddball adventures.
Netflix tried too hard to focus on the overarching plot without first giving audiences a reason to fall in love with the Bebop crew.
The originalCowboy Bebopwas part fun, carefree adventure, and part heartbreaking tragedy. It had devastating moments sprinkled in, and a legendarily philosophic overarching plot, but those had so much punch because they were broken up by mishaps like Spike’s forgotten food coming to life and attacking the crew. Netflix tried too hard to focus on the overarching plot without first giving audiences a reason to fall in love with the Bebop crew. What makes that mistake even worse is that there was a much more straightforwardCowboy Bebopstory that would have perfectly fit the storytelling style Netflix’s adaptation ended up with.
Netflix failed to adapt the anime, but it could have had much more success withCowboy Bebop: The Movie. Choosing to adapt the movie would have gone a long way in solving the biggest problems facing the live-action adaptation.Being a feature-length film,Cowboy Bebop: The Moviehad a concise, straightforward plot that didn’t rely on side adventures. That would have fit much better with the storytelling style Netflix ended up using, and it would have been easier to put into live-action. The adaptation wouldn’t have had to balanceCowboy Bebop’s humor with its tragedy, yet the movie still provided a compelling story.
If Netflix had decided to adapt the movie instead, it would have had to reach a much lower bar, and any shortcomings it had wouldn’t have felt nearly as massive
One of the reasons Netflix’sCowboy Bebopfelt like such a letdown is because the original anime was such iconic television.The adaptation had enormous shoes to fill, and there was essentially no way it could live up toCowboy Bebop’s legacy.Cowboy Bebop: The Movie, on the other hand, did not have such a legacy, as it simply wasn’t as good as the anime. If Netflix had decided to adapt the movie instead, it would have had to reach a much lower bar, and any shortcomings it had wouldn’t have felt nearly as massive.
Cowboy Bebop: The Movie
Cast
A terrorist explosion releases a deadly virus on the masses, and it’s up to the bounty-hunting Bebop crew to catch the cold-blooded culprit.
Another major critique Netflix’sCowboy Bebopreceived was how much it added to Julia and Vicious' story. Since the anime was only 13 hours long, the adaptation had to introduce new elements to stretch out the overarching story it was focusing on. The movie, however, didn’t have the same issue.It was already feature-length, meaning a Netflix adaptation wouldn’t have had to stretch anything further than it could go, and could have simply adapted what was already there.
There’s 1 Other Reason Using The Cowboy Bebop Movie Would Have Worked
While there are plenty of story-related reasonsCowboy Bebop: The Moviewas a better choice for Netflix to adapt, there’s also a major real world opportunity they passed up.Cowboy Bebop: The Movieis notoriously difficult to watch, as it’s rarely on streaming services, and even physical copies of it only work on Japanese DVD players.It has been on CrunchyRoll in the past, and it’s now available to watch on YouTube, but when Netflix’sCowboy Bebopcame out, there was almost no way to see the movie. The fact that it’s so hard to find is annoying for fans, but it could have helped Netflix tremendously.
When Cowboy Bebop: The Movie is Set in the Series' Timeline
The anime series Cowboy Bebop has a movie as well, although that movie’s quite difficult to find these days, but when is that movie set?
One of the problems inherent in Netflix’s recent push to adapt anime is that it generally also gets the streaming rights to the original anime. That was the case forDeath Note, and also forCowboy Bebop. The problem that this creates is that it inherently draws attention away from the adaptation, as the original is just as easy to watch.Cowboy Bebop: The Movie’s obscurity would have solved that problem, especially if Netflix didn’t get the streaming rights to it. The adaptation could have taken an obscure movie and given fans a chance to see it, albeit in a different form.
There were plenty of ways a live-actionCowboy Bebopcould have worked, and the fact that it didn’t is a huge missed opportunity. Even if Netflix didn’t decide to useCowboy Bebop: The Movie, there was a simple path to creating a good adaptation. All it had to do was follow the anime’s format, realize that there was a reason thatCowboy Bebopis such an acclaimed series, and add to it in ways that didn’t undermine the core of the show. Netflix’sCowboy Bebopcould have been a great live-action adaptation, and simply choosing the movie over the anime would have ensured it was well-received.
Cowboy Bebop
Cowboy Bebop is a live-action Netflix adaptation of the hit Anime series of the same name. The adaptation was developed by Christopher Yost and stars John Cho, Mustafa Shakir, and Daniella Pineda. The Sci-Fi series once again follows bounty hunter Spike Spiegel as he and his crew chase down criminals across the galaxy.
