Netflix’s live-action Cowboy Bebop show is not a one-for-one remake of the anime as it makes a lot of chances to help itself stand out. Whether these changes were good or not will depend on the viewer. Some fans have welcomed them while a majority haven’t.

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It’s safe to say, based on reviews, that Cowboy Bebop isn’t going to be winning any best of 2021 awards anytime soon. The show does take a lot of direct inspiration from the anime, but it also diverts paths frequently. Let’s go through some of the bigger changes Netflix's Cowboy Bebop made to the anime.

There will be spoilers for both versions and the film.

10 Jet Has A Kid

Spike and Twinkle Maria’s Eco-terrorists from Cowboy Bebop Live-Action

In the anime, Jet had an episode that dived into his long-lost love and an episode where he helps raise an old friend’s daughter. Jet is never married with a kid, though, unlike the live-action version.

In Netflix's show, Kimmie is Jet's estranged daughter which he is struggling to stay close to because he was in prison for five years. One of his ex-best friends from the force, Chalmers, took up the mantle of raising Kimmie along with remarrying Jet’s wife.

9 Meeting Faye

Faye from Cowboy Bebop Live-Action

Faye appears in the first episode of the live-action show which, like the anime, is about Asimov stealing Red Eye. Faye’s introductory episode in the anime happens later and involves taking over a casino. There is a casino scene in the intro to the Netflix show but these two ideas are not connected.

In the live-action show, Faye doesn’t join the team until episode four when she is almost turned into a tree by Twinkle Maria and her environmental terrorists. That’s also different from the anime as Twinkle Maria threatened to turn people into crazed animals instead.

8 Spike Is Fearless

Spike from Cowboy Bebop Live-Action

Spike is mostly the same in the anime and the live-action show. He doesn’t have a giant grudge against women and dogs but that is minor. The most significant difference is his real name: Fearless.

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After he leaves the syndicate and fakes his death, he takes on the new mantle of Spike Spiegel. In the anime, Spike has always been his name. Changing the name to Fearless was probably a way to link him closer to Vicious’ namesake.

7 Dr. Londes

Spike from Cowboy Bebop Live-Action

One of the last episodes of the anime has the Bebop crew go after a cult leader known as Dr. Londes. He is using a new gaming headset to brainwash people into believing his message. Faye is already gone from the crew at the beginning of the episode too.

In the live-action version, Spike goes to Dr. Londes’ office alone, gets strapped to a chair, and experiences a time loop. Dr. Londes is also revealed to just be an AI and is not tied to a comatose boy like in the anime.

6 Dog Star Swing

Spike vs Hakim from Cowboy Bebop Live-Action

This is the third episode of the live-action show and involves a similar plot to the anime. A bounty head named Hakim is stealing dogs. That’s close enough to the anime episode wherein Spike and Jet track down Hakim which then leads them to Ein.

While Ein is also in the live-action version, the show's Hakim is a much gentler villain who likes dogs. He is killed by the ISSP before Spike and Jet can collect the bounty. At least they got Ein out of the ordeal.

5 The Crew’s Relationships

Jet from Cowboy Bebop Live-Action

The first few episodes of the live-action show have the crew on pins and needles. However, halfway through the show, everyone is extremely close. The weirdest dynamic change is with Faye.

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Faye was always an outsider with Jet and Spike in the anime but now she acts like they are all a close family. Yes, she still complains and has a harsh word to say now and again. However, the trio’s relationship is more friendly throughout the live-action show. That is, until the end.

4 The Teddy Bomber

The Teddy Bomber from Cowboy Bebop Live-Action

The episode with the Teddy Bomber happens much later in the anime whereas it happens in the second episode on Netflix. In this live-action version, the terrorist is blowing up buildings just for the fun of it. He’s also terribly scarred and is even missing a hand.

In the anime, he’s just an old man that wants to teach the world a lesson about creating giant monoliths. Cowboy Andy is also sorely missing from the live-action version.

3 Mad Pierrot And Ein

Mad Pierrot from Cowboy Bebop Live-Action

Mad Pierrot‘s character is almost spot on between the anime and the live-action version. However, there are three big differences. Firstly, Vicious breaks Mad Pierrot free of being experimented on so that he can hire him to kill Spike.

Secondly, instead of cats, Pierrot is now afraid of dogs. Lastly, Ein is tied to Pierrot. It’s never explicitly explained how, but his memories were uploaded into Ein. This causes Ein to project Pierrot toward the end of the episode. It is odd, to say the least.

2 Blue Crow Waltz

Vicious from Cowboy Bebop Live-Action

This is one of the fully unique episodes of the live-action show without much ties to the anime at all. It’s an entire backstory on what Spike and Vicious were like in the Syndicate. It also shows that Vicious fell in love with Julia first before Spike whisked her away.

These details are vague at best in the anime. Spike’s backstory is seen more through montages instead of fully drawn-out scenes. This is one thing that is better in the live-action version.

1 Julia, Vicious, And The End

Julia from Cowboy Bebop Live-Action

Julia is teased throughout the anime and is built up to be a big reveal before she is gunned down. In the live-action show, she is shown in the first episode. She is married to Vicious, which is a huge change from the anime.

Julia is a lot timider in the live-action show too because of Vicious abusing her. That is until she turns at the end of the live-action version and is shown to be power-hungry. Vicious too is different in Netflix's series. He’s a lot weaker than his cold and collected anime counterpart.

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