Review : Cowboy Bebop.

For those of your not familiar with the cowboy bebop, it's a story about a crazy crew of bounty hunters, set in a futuristic setting. Spike, the cool slick smoking main character, with Bruce Lee like moves. Jet the bald ex-cop with a cybernetic arm. Faye Valentine, sly card shark and always in the same skimpy clothes. Ed, some crazy hacker girl with gangly arms and her best friend Ein, a little, but very intelligent dog. Together they cruise around space catching a variety of criminals.

This manga of the same name as the anime, doesn't follow the same story at all. The crew are together from the start and it is more a collection of short stories of 'bounty' adventures. Not that isn't entertaining, but it just seems like an expander to the cowboy bebop anime, which is cool if your a big fan and have seen the anime first, like me, but perhaps not so good if you've never seen or heard of it and have just gone out and bought the manga.

Volume one of the manga contains four stories.

1. It's showtime.
A short and funny skit about the three bounty hunters all ending up in the same restaurant but after different people.

2. We will rock you.
Spike gets himself sent to the slammer in attempt to get the bounty on a criminal that has already been locked up.

3. Cheap trick.
A rich male millionaire challenges female bounty hunters to catch him, Faye pretty much solo's this one without the rest of the teams help.

4. Black diamond.
Faye stumbles upon an illegal chip hidden in a playing card, corrupt police place a bounty on her and Jet steps in to settle an old score with one of his ex-workers.

The art of cowboy bebop is alright, it's not particularly fantastic, but it does its job well enough that you won't stop and pause and think "That's badly drawn", which is the most important thing. The stories are interesting and always contain a bit of action. I can't say how the later volumes will pan out, but it does not really seem like the manga will touch on the main storyline of the anime. It is a pity in a way, but I guess it means you can watch the anime and read the manga and not feel like your doubling up.