The buzz on the Internet has been rising for several months, recently amplified by the first American critics who saw the series in preview, for the most part negative – as much to specify immediately that one is far from sharing their opinion. Why so much noise for “Cowboy Bebop”, launched this Friday on Netflix, will wonder the uninitiated? Because it is adapted from a cult animated series – and a feature film – of the same name, signed by the renowned Japanese director Shin’ichirô Watanabe, and because, suddenly, this adaptation in real images is eagerly awaited, not to say watched around the corner.
Broadcast from 1998, the animated series of 26 episodes was an immediate hit in Japan and then all over the world, before giving rise to adaptations in animated feature films, video games and manga which also enjoyed worldwide success. “Cowboy Bebop” tale, in the distant future where anyone can fly to the far reaches of the galaxy, the adventures of three bounty hunters – “cowboys” in the lingo of the time – Spike Spiegel, Jet Black and Faye Valentine, who stalk, aboard their spaceship the Bebop, criminals from planet to planet. From the point of view of atmosphere and graphics, the series mixes opposing styles, between science fiction, western and black films of the 60s, against a background of jazz hits. What characterizes the series best is its “coolness”, even if it is peppered with violence.
A visual success
So, what does its adaptation in real images give? She dazzled us. First by its loyalty to the original series, because everything is there: the scenarios, the style, the sets, the atmosphere, the jazz, to the characters who look like their animated models. Located on the edge of Tarantino films, westerns and science fiction sagas, “Cowboy Bebop” – a hyper graphic series from its credits between “James Bond”, Mannix and the world of manga – pays tribute at the same time to “Fifties” and “sixties” with its jazz and blues soundtrack, its American cars or its old Fiat …
There is even a nod to Jean-Luc Godard’s “Pierrot le fou”. The whole with delirious stories, devoted to a different bonus per episode, while distilling in common thread, via flashbacks or digressions, references to the past of the protagonists and its repercussions on what they live.
To bring these extraordinary characters to life, the producers have hired impeccable actors, each in their own way. John Cho wreaks havoc as a super cool martial arts champion bounty hunter in a suit and tie, a devastatingly disillusioned Spike who sows death wherever he goes. Mustafa Shakir, all in biceps, artificially repaired body and frank humor of the collar, breaks the house in the role of Jet, the pilot of the Bebop. And Daniella Pineda hits the screen with her cynical yet touching portrayal of Faye Valentine, the sexy purple-haired death-dancer who has lost all memory of her past after being cryogenized.
But beyond this perfect cast, what impresses the most in “Cowboy Bebop” is the care taken with the sets and accessories, whether they are futuristic or not. Because it is precisely in this area that the animated series was deemed unsuitable, as it mixes genres, styles and atmospheres. Netflix has put in the big means, it shows, and this is what contributes to the visual success of the series: the special effects – scenes in space, gadgets, ships… – are eye-catching, just like the Both exterior and studio sets, of very high quality, making credible the most improbable sequences where 1959 Cadillacs are parked in front of very techno spacecraft. Put together, all these elements make this adaptation a top level entertainment.
EDITOR’S RATING: 4.5 / 5
« Cowboy Bebop », American series by André Nemec and Jeff Pinkner (2021), with John Cho, Mustafa Shakir, Daniella Pineda, Alex Hassell, Elena Satine… 10 episodes of 45 minutes to 1 hour
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