Cowboy Be-Bop

A Parent's Guide to Anime
Rated: M
Recommended for Mature Audiences

Review by Christa Morse, 1999.07.16

Cowboy Bebop is a TV series in Japan that will be released by AnimeVillage.com, or the anime video distribution subsidiary of Bandai USA. Like most TV series in Japan, Cowboy Bebop ran 1 season and has 26 episodes. Cowboy Bebop features fantastic combinations of computer graphics and traditional animation. The quality greatly surpasses even the highest expectations for TV animation.

Spike Speigel and Jet Black are bounty hunters travelling across space in the ship called Bebop. Although Spike manages to capture criminals with huge bounties, he causes a lot of damage in the process, so he's left with very little money. During his adventures, Spike comes across a variety of characters and surreal landscapes. Some of the travelling companions he picks up are Ein, a genetically enhanced Welsh Corgie(a type of small dog,) Faye Valentine, a woman with a passion for gambling and so forth.

Parent's Guide Rating:

Red (recommended for mature audiences)

There is a substancial amount of graphic violence. There are gun fights in which blood is spilled(it's not a gross amount like Fist of the North Star) and people die. There are also adult elements like organized crime, corporate cover-ups and story elements that kids are unlikely to understand.