Cowboy Bebop Session #2: Stray Dog Strut

One of the cutest dogs on the planet, a Corgi named Ein. Director Mamoru Oshii gave us Basset Hounds for Ghost In The Shell. Director Shinichiro Watanabe gives us the Corgi for Cowboy Bebop.

The adventure continues for our two fearless bounty hunters trying to make their way in the world. Cowboy Bebop returns with its second installment Session #2, Stray Dog Strut. Let it be said again that the opening theme song, Tank! [by Yoko Kanno, performed by the Seat Belts], is pure jazz-pumping genius. Furthermore, the opening credits are very retro in vibe as well as being much more artistic in execution than a lot of opening anime sequences tend to be.

Spike and Jet zero in on their latest target Abdul Hakim. Apparently there is a television network called Big Shots for Bounty Hunters. You can get the lowdown on the latest bounties just by tuning in. The latest is as follows:

Abdul Hakim = Peking Duck

I see a pattern developing whereby a bounty also means a preoccupation with food. Spike certainly has a healthy appetite. He should too. The poor fellow is a beanpole. Now granted he can fight karate-style with the best of them but he needs a good meal. There is indubitably a direct correlation between a solid bounty and a solid meal in their reality. These boys need sustenance. Survival is quite frankly a matter of the next big job. I'm reminded of Firefly frequently from elements like this within the series.

It turns out Hakim's package is a briefcase [what Alfred Hitchcock popularized as the MacGuffin or McGuffin], but there is something actually inside it in the form of a Welsh Corgi named Ein. He'll turn out to be Ein, the data dog, the latest character to be revealed in the series.

The details in the scenery are akin to a less grim, more colorized version of Blade Runner.

There's a big chase and Ein makes a jump for it off a bridge with his cute little legs. Spike swoops down with his Swordfish and manages to catch his fall. Like that would happen without killing the poor dog. Look, I understand this is animation and I have to suspend belief at least a little bit, but our little Corgi cutie would have been dog splat. I had a hard time buying that brief sequence. In the end, Spike and Jet pick up their third regular cast member in the form of a canine. He is one damn cute dog. A friend of mine has a Welsh Corgi named Mary and she's the sweetest dog ya ever did meet. I'm not sure if that's the temperment normally but she's a gem. I can't say she's as smart as a data dog though, but definitely as cute. Granted, my Scottish Terrier, Maisie, has proven to be as equally perfect as dogs go. She is the sweetest dog and in four short months strolls around our home as a trusted family member who will not urinate on the floor.

This is a great sequence where this group of geniuses try to lure in Ein with a high frequency dog sound. I love how the lead guy demonstrates what a complete bunglehead he really is in this scene when he indicates he can't actually hear the sound himself. It's pure dead funny too.

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Not a rousing entry of excitement, but more like a strut.
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Stray Dog Strut: C+

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Characters:

Spike Spiegel

Jet Black

Ein