By Alison L. Roberts

"They spread to the stars, taking with them the now confused concepts of freedom, violence, illegality and love, where new rules and a new generation of outlaws came into being. People referred to them as Cowboy Bebops. . ."

The cover of the first U.S. volume from Bandai.

One day Shinichiro Watanabe, the acclaimed director of Gundam 0083 and Macross Plus, saw a television program about bounty hunters, and it sparked an idea. A simple idea, actually: an action adventure, with some comedy thrown in. About bounty hunters and their prey. About those on the fringes of society. About the risks some people take for their idea of freedom, despite the inevitable costs.

During the creative process, the idea took on a life of its own. Watanabe and a "dream team" of anime's most-respected artists, collaborating as the "Bones" group, took what could have been a simple potboiler and metamorphosed it into something unlike any other anime or live-action TV show. They took the idea and made it into what is arguably the most-talked-about anime of the year 2000: Cowboy Bebop.

Spike gets an eye-full.

Bebop's path to its fans, in both Japan and the United States, was rather unusual and a true testament to the series' emotional and artistic impact.

Only 12 out of the series' 26 episodes were shown during its initial TV Tokyo run (April - June 1998), due to mature themes, questionable activities and violence. The second episode, "Stray Dog Strut" was the first broadcast episode, followed by "Honky Tonk Women," "Heavy Metal Queen," "Waltz for Venus," "Jamming with Edward," "Ganymede Elegy," " Toys in the Attic," "Jupiter Jazz (Parts 1 and 2)," "Bohemian Rhapsody," "My Funny Valentine," "Speak Like a Child" and a compilation-style episode. The rest of the episodes were only available on video, until the series was picked up and aired in its entirety on the Japanese satellite channel WOWOW (October 1998 - April 1999).

Lesser shows might have been lost in the shuffle, but Cowboy Bebop featured the talents behind such favorites as Macross Plus and Escaflowne. In addition to Watanabe, the creative team included Masahiko Minami and Kazuhiko Ikeguchi (producers), Keiko Nobumoto (screenplay), Hajime Yadate (original work), Toshihiro Kawamoto (character design), Kimitoshi Yamane (mecha designer) and Yoko Kanno (music). The masterwork they created didn't just stand out in one or two areas. Cowboy Bebop seamlessly and innovatively works on so many levels that it shines impressively as a whole.