As expected, Netflix’s Cowboy Bebop show can’t compete with the original
By Diana Nosa
Episode 9: “Blue Crow Waltz”
Being so close to the end, we were overdue for a story detailing the lives of Spike, Julia and Vicious. In “Blue Crow Waltz,” we learn that Vicious wasn’t favored by his boss, Stax, who was in charge of overseeing him in place of his father. Stax viewed the young Vicious as impulsive, immature, and not worthy of acknowledgement by the Syndicate. Though Vicious is all of these things and more, we see that Spike has a soft spot for his friend. We also see how they both came to know Julia and how they became entranced by this gentle spirit in a way that spelled disaster for all three of them.
Episode 9 continued to impress me. We not only saw the savageness of Vicious but also the savageness of Spike as he makes love to his best friend’s girlfriend. And after Vicious makes a mess of things, Stax tasks Spike with killing his friend, an order that comes from Vicious’ own father.
Needless to say, Spike, though close, isn’t able to bring himself to do this, and instead slays the men who betrayed the Syndicate in hopes to improve Vicious’ bad reputation. But this only makes Vicious look worse in his father’s eyes. It also demonstrates that Netflix understands that Spike Spiegel’s nature is that he is driven but kind.
If there’s a problem with this episode, it’s that we don’t get enough information about Spike apart from his relationships with Julia and Vicious. Although granted, this could just be another way that the 2021 series wanted to stay faithful to the 1998 anime.
All in all, Episode 9 was yet another acceptable standalone episode that, in regards to Vicious, expanded upon what we initially knew from the original anime. And with the tenth and final episode just ahead, we hope to see how all of these events that transpired between Spike, Julia and Vicious will pay off in the big finale.
There are a few loose ends to tie up. I’m extremely excited but a little worried about how it will end. Will Cowboy Bebop stick the landing, or will it lose its footing at the finish line?