Title: Cowboy Bebop
Volume(s): 3
Creator(s): Yutaka Nanten/Hajime Yatate
Format: Unflipped; Right-to-Left
Publisher: Tokyopop
MSRP: $9.95
Genre(s): Sci-fi/Action
Rated: Teen (13+)

If you are into anime then there is a VERY good chance that you've heard of "Cowboy Bebop!" Considered to be one of the best anime's ever created, "Cowboy Bebop" left quite an impression on the anime world when it first came out, and many people still talk about it today. Now the crew of the Bebop are available in a manga series, and the results are quite disappointing to say the least. Like the TV show, the manga does not focus on a deep continuing story, but instead decides to go for the "sitcom" form of story telling, with each chapter not really having anything to do with the previous chapter. Heck, most of the time when you finish a chapter you won't hear anything else about it for the rest of the series. This is the way it was with the TV series, and this is the way it is in the manga too. The whole crew is back for more butt kicking action, including the woman with no past Faye Valentine, computer hacker Amazing Edward, old fuddy duddy Jet, and the chain smoker with the coolest kicks ever Spike Spiegel.

Together they all go out to save the world...as long as the price on the bounty is right that is. Everything in the manga is the same as it is in the TV show, however becoming a manga didn't really do the crew of the Bebop much justice. I'm going to put my foot on the ground and tell you that I am a big "Cowboy Bebop" fan, however I in no way consider it to be the best anime ever (Or even one of the top five to tell you the truth), but I am a big enough fan to know why this manga didn't work. The reason is quite simply because this franchise was born as an anime, and it should have stayed an anime. The animation, the music, the computer graphics, the style, the voices, EVERYTHING in the anime was tuned to perfection in the show, and one of "Cowboy Bebop's" big appeal is the look and feel of the whole world! The fight's in the show were accompanied by great lighting effects, jazzy music, and smooth animation. However the fights don't look nearly as cool when they are presented as black & white stills in a manga, and to tell you the truth not only do the drawings look pretty stiff compared to the TV show, they are HORRIBLY choreographed too, with most of the fights ending in confusion instead of ending cool!

Also, while there were a lot of computer graphics in the show that added depth to the animation and action, in the manga these effects were drawn, and they don't look nearly as good. And without the powerful music to help build tension, the tension building scene's feel empty. In short, the manga is a poor replacement for the TV show. The manga should have complimented the TV show by fleshing out the characters pasts better (Something the TV show did rather poorly in my mind), but it didn't. No, instead it tried to follow the same format as the TV show without all the style and grace the TV show had. Standing alone this manga isn't even great entertainment since you NEED a little bit of background information to fully understand what's going on! As a "Cowboy Bebop" fan it pains me to say this, but the "Cowboy Bebop" manga is a big waste of time. It's nothing more then a gimmick to try and give fans of the TV show more of what they want, but it doesn't even do that very well.

For those of you who've never seen "Cowboy Bebop" before I recommend the TV show over this manga any day of the week.

- -Review By Kevin T. Rodriguez- -