Netflix's upcoming live-action Cowboy Bebop continues to generate a wide variety of reactions, but at the very least, Japanese fans are impressed with the voice acting in the Japanese dub of the series.
News and culture site Sora News 24 collected reactions from Japanese viewers, and in general, fans in the country seem to have had a slightly more positive reaction to Netflix's recently released Lost Session promo video than they did to the first photos from the series or its opening title sequence. "It looks awesome! A different vibe than the anime, but it’s still Bebop!," wrote one commenter. Another wrote, "If I’m being totally honest, I wanted a younger actor for Spike, but John Cho is looking good here, " in one of several comments that were focused on Spike's age. The laid-back bounty hunter is played by Star Trek and Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle's John Cho, who is currently 49 years old. While the reception to the Lost Session was slightly kinder, a number of Japanese fans were still pessimistic about the remake. "This looks like it’d be really rough to sit through," one viewer wrote.
While reactions to the series itself remain mixed, near unanimous praise was directed at the show's Japanese dub, which features many members of the original 1998 anime's voice cast reprising their roles. "I looooooved the part where [Faye Valentine's voice actor] Megumi Hayashibara says ‘Nani yetten no!?’ [‘What the heck are you doing?’]," wrote one fan. In another comment about Spike's age, a viewer noted "I feel like [Spike's voice actor Koichi] Yamadera is playing Spike older, to match his on-screen appearance. He’s a real pro.” Taiten Kusunoki also received praise for stepping into the role of Jet Black, the oldest and most responsible member of the crew. Kusunoki takes the place of Black's original voice actor, Unsho Ishizuka, who passed away in 2018.
The Lost Session was released by Netflix on Oct. 19. The short movie tells an original story and is intended to give viewers are preview of the show's style, tone and character dynamics. The full live-action series will be available for streaming on Nov. 19.
Fans looking for more Cowboy Bebop before the live-action remake's premiere can rewatch the original 1998 anime series on Funimation or Netflix. All 26 episodes of the original anime, available in both dubbed and subbed varieties, are currently available on Funimation, while the series will return to Netflix on Oct. 21.
Source: Sora News 24