Ever since Netflix's live-action Cowboy Bebop series was announced, fans have been through a roller coaster of emotions, from great casting announcements to a number of breaks in filming for various reasons. But now, a piece of news has dropped that will invariably lift the moods of anyone who loved the original anime, and it involves possibly the most universally loved aspect of the show: the music.
Yoko Kanno, legendary Japanese composer and the mind behind the Cowboy Bebop anime's iconic jazzy soundtrack, has officially signed on to work on the soundtrack for the Netflix series. This news came from the Netflix Geeked Twitter account via a video showcasing a snippet of the anime's instantly memorable opening theme. But an arguably bigger piece of information came at the end of the tweet when the account cheekily added "Also confirmed...Cowboy Bebop is coming this Fall."
That's right, the wait is almost over. Whether through genuine excitement or morbid curiosity, fans will finally get to see what Netflix has been working on all this time when the series drops in fall 2021. Cowboy Bebop wrapped its first season filming back in March, so it was only a matter of time before a release date was announced (though, to be fair, exact date still hasn't been given), so this may feel like the culmination of a lifetime of patience for some.
The video that is shown in the tweet also helps build some of that anticipation. Prominently featuring "Tank," the song everyone has heard even if they don't know what it's from, it really drives home that this is real. The visuals inspired by the original show's opening sequence help that feeling along as well, made even cooler by the presence of some familiar faces. Cowboy Bebop cast members John Cho, Mustafa Shakir, and Daniella Pineda (who will play Spike Spiegel, Jet Black, and Faye Valentine, respectively) zoom by on the screen jamming to the addictive rhythms and melody of Kanno's immortal theme, teasing a style that will hopefully permeate the whole series.
It's surreal seeing these stars on-screen with that song grooving in the background. For many, the very idea of Netflix's Cowboy Bebop probably seemed like a fever dream, even after seeing news stories following its progress over the years. The idea of adapting a classic anime series as a Western live-action series almost always carries some baggage with it, thanks to past missteps like Ghost in the Shell and Death Note. But it seems as though that hasn't deterred Netflix, who even announced a similar adaptation of '90s anime Yu Yu Hakusho. So maybe that means they've got real confidence in what they're working on.
Of course, that's just speculation, and nobody will know exactly what kind of show Netflix has created until it finally premieres. Luckily, that day is now closer than ever, and with the inclusion of Kanno's incredible musical talents, optimism is back on the rise.
Cowboy Bebop is slated to premiere on Netflix in fall 2021.
Source: Netflix Geeked/Twitter