Netflix's Cowboy Bebop TV show has finally been given a release date, and it will land on the streaming giant before the end of 2021. Announcing its release date on social media on August 23, Netflix has confirmed that its adaptation on live from the beloved animated series will arrive on November 19. The reveal was accompanied by some first images, showing John Cho's Spike Speigel, Mustafa Shakir's Jet Black and Daniella Pineda's Faye Valentine in their iconic outfits. Take a look at the first images from the Twitter feed below: Little is known about the plot of the series other than a brief synopsis. According to the show's Netflix page, Cowboy Bebop will follow "a motley crew of bounty hunters on the hunt for the galaxy's most dangerous criminals. They will save the world...for a fair price." So it looks like it will follow the animated series to some extent. At this time, however, we don't know if his story will follow its animated equivalent to the lyrics or deviate from it at some point. Cowboy Bebop was developed by André Nemec (Mission Impossible - Ghost Protocol) and Jeff Pinkner (Venom), while its scripts were written by Christopher Yost (Thor: Ragnarok). It will also star Alex Hassell as Vicious, Elena Satine as Julia, and Geoff Stults as Detective Chalmers. The series will consist of 10 one-hour episodes, but it is not yet known if Netflix will green light more installments.
Analysis: Will Cowboy Bebop on Netflix be well received?
(Image credit: Netflix) It seems like a no-brainer to say, but we don't know if the live-action Cowboy Bebop adaptation will be successful. Since the show's announcement in June 2017, fans have been skeptical of a live-action Cowboy Bebop series. Some have argued that, based on other iconic anime productions gone bad with terrible live-action adaptations, Cowboy Bebop should stand alone. Others, meanwhile, lamented the fact that the cast of the show is much older than the way Spike and company are portrayed in Hajime Yatate's original show. However, not all Cowboy Bebop fans hate the series even before it arrives. Some have said that the first images have started to win them over, so there's a chance the anime's fan base will be won over by the time the live-action series premieres on Netflix. Of course, we're hoping to see a trailer or two before Cowboy Bebop releases on November 19. It's unclear when a teaser might arrive, but, with the series less than three months away from launch, we hope we can land online as soon as possible. Although Cowboy Bebop is a hit for Netflix (from either a critics' or a fans' perspective), there's no guarantee the streamer will sign on for other seasons. Netflix has chosen to cancel some of its big new shows, like The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance and The Irregulars in recent years, drawing the ire of those fans as a result. Smart Money says that Cowboy Bebop could be getting a second season (it's a bigger property than some of Netflix's other canceled shows, after all), but its potential success might not warrant a second release. On the other hand, it might not be as successful as Netflix hopes and get a second season anyway, that's the special nature that the streamer works with. Will Cowboy Bebop be well received? The jury is out, but based on the fact that some fans are starting to think it may be good and that general Netflix viewers might accept it, it most likely is.