INTRODUCTION | CHARACTERS | THE ORIGINAL TV SERIES | BACKGROUND | MERCHANDISE

In the 21st century, humanity has developed an interplanetary society. Among the lawless and dangerous worlds of the Solar system, a new breed of “cowboy” bounty hunters pursue the outlaws and crime families who strive to make a dishonest buck. The crew of the good ship Bebop are all “cowboys” of some description – Spike Spiegel, Jet Black, Faye Valentine, Ed and Ein the data-dog are set for crime-fighting adventures. Cool and romantic, funny and dangerous, the cowboys of the Bebop take on drug dealers, hackers and terrorist organisations.

The Cowboy Bebop TV series had an unusual beginning, when only 12 of the original 26 episodes were broadcast on TV Tokyo. It was only after the end of the run that the full series was shown uncut on the WOWOW satellite channel, much to the enjoyment of its fans. With music in a jazz style and a look that rivals the pulp shows of old, Cowboy Bebop features a very human drama, set against a future backdrop. With a sophisticated story that knows when to laugh at itself, Cowboy Bebop is entertainment that spans the generations and the sexes.

ON AIR TV Tokyo 3rd April 1998 (12 episodes and one highlights compilation) WOWOW 23rd October 1998-24th April 1999 (All 26 episodes) AWARDS Winner in the Best TV category in the 3rd Kobe Animation Festival Awards. Winner in the Media category in the 2000 Uchusen SF Awards (Japanese Nebula) MUSIC RELEASES (from Victor Entertainment) Original Soundtrack #1 Cowboy Bebop, on sale 21st May 1998 Mini-album Vitaminless, on sale 3rd June 1998 Original Soundtrack #2 No Disc, on sale 21st October 1998 Original Soundtrack #3 Blue, on sale 1st May 1999 Combined sales for the four OST CDs has topped 700,000 copies Remix album Music for Freelance, on sale 2nd June 1999 Sales of the remix album estimated at 70,000 copies LIVE PERFORMANCES Seatbelts Live (16th August 1999 Shibuya, On Air East) NB: Seatbelts are the brass jazz band formed by composer Yoko Kanno to record the show’s opening theme “Tank!” VIDEO RELEASES (available from Bandai Visual) Released on VHS, Laser Disc and DVD in nine chapters (between 18th December 1998 and 25th August 1999), the combined sales for the series hit a massive 600,000 copies. In 1999, both the fourth and fifth DVDs reached the number one spot in the Oricon magazine charts!

Shinichiro Watanabe: Director After joining the Sunrise company, Shinichiro Watanabe worked as in production and storyboards on anime productions including Armor Hunter Merowlink and Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory. His directorial debut was the video anime Macross Plus. Cowboy Bebop was his first TV series as director. Keiko Nobumoto: Writer, Story Editor Keiko Nobumoto became a screenwriter after winning the 3rd Fuji TV Young Scenarist Award. She has written scripts for film, animation, TV and theater, across many genres, and her previous works include Banana Chip Love, Nurse Call, World Apartment Horror, Macross Plus and Running White Tape. Toshihiro Kawamoto: Character Designer From his early work as an inbetweener on Arion, Toshihiro Kawamoto worked as an animator on Double Zeta Gundam, Venus Wars, and Mobile Police Patlabor. After rising to the rank of key animator on Gundam 0080, he has worked on productions including Gundam 0083, Mighty Space Miners, Golden Boy, and 08th MS Team. Kimitoshi Yamane: Mechanical Designer After joining the Artmic studio in 1986, Kimitoshi Yamane’s first work was as Series Mechanical Designer on Bubblegum Crisis. Since then he has provided designs for anime in a broad range of genres, robots, machinery and spaceships for G Gundam, The Vision of Escaflowne, 08th MS Team, among others. Yoko Kanno: Composer and Arranger Yoko Kanno first appeared on the music scene playing keyboards in the group Tetsu 100%, while she was still studying at Waseda University. After the group broke up, she began working as a composer and arranger in TV commercials, and won several music prizes. She has also worked on films, TV, and with Miki Imai and Kyoko Koizumi. Her compositions for anime include Macross Plus, Escaflowne and Brain Powered.

Koichi Yamadera: Spike Spiegel A prolific voice-actor in anime, Hollywood film dubbing, and commercials, Koichi Yamadera started as the modern voice of Disney’s Donald Duck – some of his most recent performances have included Ryuji Kaji in Evangelion, and Mewtwo in the first Pokémon movie. He also plays Caster in the popular TV series Oha-star. September 2001 sees the Japanese release of Koki Mitani’s new film Everybody’s House, for which Yamadera adds to his repertoire by playing the character of Kikuma Aonuma.

	Unsho Ishizuka: Jet Black A Shakespearian actor who has appeared in most of the works of the Bard, Unsho Ishizuka also works in the Japanese dubbing of Hollywood films, commercials and other voice-overs. His better-known anime roles have included Guld in Macross Plus, Bunta Fujiwara in Initial D, and Professor Orchid in Pokémon. When not working, he is a devoted golfer.

Megumi Hayashibara: Faye Valentine After her debut role in the anime TV series Maison Ikkoku, Megumi Hayashibara went onto play leading roles in many smash-hit anime, including Girl-Ranma in Ranma 1/2, Lina Inverse in Slayers, and Rei Ayanami in Evangelion. She has also released a number of albums as a singer, for which she often writes her own lyrics. She also has a monthly column in Newtype magazine “I’d Love to Meet…”, in which she interviews weird and wonderful people from all walks of life.

Aoi Tada: Ed A performer since the tender age of three, Aoi Tada’s resum includes everything from stage plays to commercials. Her past appearances have included the title role in the musical Annie, Kurt in The Sound of Music, and Cynthia in The Goodbye Girl. She also works in dubbing Hollywood movies into Japanese, though Cowboy Bebop was her debut performance in an anime. She is also a regular on Sunrise Radio, a weekly show syndicated on several Japanese stations.

INTRODUCTION | CHARACTERS | THE ORIGINAL TV SERIES | BACKGROUND | MERCHANDISE

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