Copyright © 1998 Sunrise, Inc.

COWBOY BEBOP has gotten a lot of press over the last couple of years, both in North America and in Japan, and for good reasons too. A talented and experienced production crew, a cool premise, true style, great music and high production values have brought us an action packed and original show. Check out our previous reviews for some more background into the series (3.4, 4.2 and 4.5). Now under the Bandai Entertainment logo, the first COWBOY BEBOP DVD has been released here in North America.
The five episodes on this first volume concentrate on Spike (martial artist and very talented) and Jet (ex-cop detective and backup for Spike), two bounty hunters in a future of warp gates and colonization of nearby planets. In episode three, "Honky Tonk Women," they meet and eventually join up with Faye, a woman on the run from debt and with a few tricks up her sleeve. These episodes are mostly introduction, with the crew taking on a few bounties to attempt to pay the bills.
The English dub voices are above average, fitting well into their roles and consistent with the characters they portray. And the Japanese cast is filled with veteran voice talent creating an even greater performance. The audio for both tracks are in standard 2.0 channel stereo.
The menus are pretty fancy, and in tune with the style of the series. On my Panasonic A110 at home they ran a bit slow, and I would prefer the language and subtitle options to be on the same menu page, but, other than these nit-picks, I found the menus to be of high quality.
Without directly comparing the original Japanese DVD release (three episodes per volume) with this North American release, I would say that the video quality and transfer is excellent. The colors are vibrant and there is little in the way of noise or moiré patterns. My only complaint would be that the English lettering on the opening and ending credits flickers a little on my setup, but this is of small consequence.
Bonus wise, I am very glad to see Bandai including part of the original "Session 0" interview video on this disk (and apparently for future disks too). "Session 0" was a discounted preview LD/tape released in Japan containing character bios, interviews with the production staff and a couple of music videos. This first DVD includes a look at the main characters (including Ed who will not show up until the next disk), and a music video set to the full version of the opening song "Tank!"
Certainly very high on my wish list for this year, the DVD release of COWBOY BEBOP did not disappoint. The value lacking from previous AnimeVillage.com/Bandai releases (2 episodes per tape) has done a full 180 to become a great deal. The transfer quality is high, the bonus content is there and even the art covers are the same as the Japanese originals. Except for perhaps the minor issue of hard coded subs on the ending credits, I would think even jaded diehard anime fans will appreciate this disk.
Personally, I really enjoy the COWBOY BEBOP series in general (and I even own a few of the original Japanese LDs, as well as the soundtracks). These first five episodes are basically separate episodic stories, but looking at installments like "Ballad of Fallen Angels" introduces us to a greater depth of understanding into the characters while hinting at larger things to come in the future as well. Great action, great style, great music, and all around quality make for a very fun and watchable series. If I were to create a list today of the "must own" anime DVDs, COWBOY BEBOP would be among the ones at the top.

Released in North America by Bandai Entertainment
DVD, English dubbed/Japanese subtitled
125 minutes
Catalog No. 1290
$29.98
Available now in the U.S.
Where to buy