As expected, Netflix’s Cowboy Bebop show can’t compete with the original
By Diana Nosa
Episode 4: “Callisto Soul”
At long last, Faye Valentine returns. We start this episode with this purple-haired beauty meeting with the person she believes unfroze her from her cryogenic slumber years ago to steal her financial settlement. She asks for her mother’s whereabouts so she can retrieve what was also stolen from her upon defrosting: her Identikit.
Faye also comes across another revered villain from the 1998 series, Maria Murdock, only this time her concoction turns humans into trees, which I admit makes a lot of sense given her environmentalist bent. Maria is, of course, a valuable bounty that Faye, Jet and Spike must team up to bring down, but the task isn’t easy. Things get more complicated until Faye must sacrifice herself in order to save the planet and her new allies, showing off a depth to her character that goes well beyond has sassiness, which we love but is only a facade.
With both Faye and Maria in the mix, Episode 4 is much more enjoyable than the previous two. It explores the characters in more depth and pushes the story along. And there is one more woman who we can thank for making this episode great: Julia has been given so much more depth on this show; in the anime she was mostly a helpless maiden who only got in the way. But in the Netflix series she’s shows a lot of savvy as she influences Vicious to stage a coup against the Elders in the hopes that she and he could live as they want.
During their discussion, Vicious and Julia mention a woman named Mao who seems to be the key to this coup. Julia does some digging, heading to Ana (Tamara Tunie) to find answers about Mao. All of it solidifies Julia as a force to be reckoned with.
Episode 4 serves as the perfect setup for the events to follow. We now have our main trio of bounty hunters established, as well as an upcoming event in Julia and Vicious’ life that will push them one step further to Spike.
These episodes are improving every time, so I have high hopes for “Darkside Tango.”