Following the announcement that Netflix will not renew Cowboy Bebop for a season 2, the cast and crew have taken to social media to express their feelings about the disappointing news. The show, an adaption of the legendary anime of the same name, stars John Cho as bounty hunter Spike Spiegel, with Mustafa Shakir and Daniella Pineda completing the crew of the Bebop as Jet Black and Faye Valentine, respectively. The adaption, developed by MCU writer Christopher Yost, arrived on the streaming platform on November 19, receiving a somewhat mixed reception from critics and fans alike.
Cowboy Bebop follows the adventures of Spike and his fellow bounty hunters as they chase eccentric criminal targets across the solar system, often running into trouble (and their pasts) along the way. While Spike, Jet and Faye take centre stage in the live-action adaption, the fourth crew member of the Bebop, Ed, doesn't show up until the very end of the show, one of many detours Netflix takes from the source material. Cowboy Bebop's success is difficult to understate, with the anime often lauded as one of the greatest shows of all time and a gateway for Western anime fans, but its transition to live-action hasn't been easy. Despite Cho recently discussing his Cowboy Bebop season 2 ideas, the harsh reception to the show has sadly led Netflix, for better or worse, to cancel the show less than a month after its release.
Now, several of Cowboy Bebop's stars and crew members have lamented the loss of the show on Twitter. Most notably, writer Javier Grillo-Marxuach aired his disappointment with the news, posting a picture of the show's stars alongside the caption, "I truly loved working on this. it came from a real and pure place of respect and affection. I wish we could make what we planned for a second season..." Mason Alexander Park, who plays Gren on the show, echoed Grillo-Marxuach's sadness by commenting, "A joy to work on this with you," before Grillo-Marxuach commented back by teasing that they "had so much cool sh*t planned for s2." While not actively speaking out on the cancellation, Cho posted a meme expressing his feelings towards the news, with Park again showing their support in the comments. Check out the tweets below:
While no doubt disappointing for all those involved, Cowboy Bebop's cancellation isn't all that surprising. Both viewers and critics agreed that Netflix's interpretation of the source material was wrong, with many of the problems seemingly stemming from character development and pacing issues. While the anime has a loose overarching plot, with each episode having its own story, Netflix instead chose to flesh out its Cowboy Bebop characters and storylines to give the series a more connected feel. Ultimately, this decision didn't work for fans. Despite the news not coming as a shock to many, it seems that the cast and crew were at least hoping for another chance to warm viewers to their version of Cowboy Bebop.
Netflix has a long history of cancelling shows, and Cowboy Bebop is the latest in a long line to fall victim to the streaming services ruthless methods. While no doubt Cowboy Bebop's harsh critical reception has played a part in the show's failure, Netflix has renewed negatively received shows before, as long as the demand for the show is high enough to warrant a continuation of the media. Unfortunately, Cowboy Bebop's problems stem deeper than poor figures alone and are rooted in how Netflix has chosen to handle the adaption during its production. There's always a chance that the show will be picked up to continue elsewhere, but Netflix is usually the first port of call for dead shows to look for a revival. So, at least for now, it looks like Cowboy Bebop is over.
Source: Javier Grillo-Marxuach/Twitter