I finished a long awaited rewatch of Cowboy Bebop and..wow. I've always appreciated this series from a technical standpoint, but it feels good to finally get it. Everyone in this show is so detached from life and trying hard to move on, despite how much shit happens to them.

In the first episode where all that crazy shit happens, Spike and Jet don't really have an emotional reaction to it. They don't express much. They just..accept that it happened and move on. They're used to this kind of stuff.

Everyone has such a sad backstory that they're trying to run away from, when ultimately these backgrounds made them who they are today. We're never presented this idea directly. Just snippets and clips of characters being idle.

It feels really lonely, honestly. Even with all these wacky misadventures, these are still people trying to cope with the regrets they have and such. I feel so emotional thinking about it, and the ending brought me to tears tbh.

But what I got from this series is that you need to pursue what makes you feel..alive, as Spike would put it. Spike essentially lost his life when he went to the Syndicate, and he can never recover it and just spends time fulfilling bounties or just lazing about

Spoilers

Spike lost his chance to live a life he could be pleased with. But still, at his very last push, he kicks some ass. He does what makes him feel alive before dying. It's rather uplifting but still quite bitter.

But we can still find happiness, we can still live a life worth living, we can still..feel alive. We see this entire show of people who don't have that opportunity. Ed however, does have that opportunity and chooses to pursue it.

This is just my interpretation of what the story was trying to communicate. It's a really beautiful series, and I'm glad I finally understood why it's so good. I love it.