quick path
Jet's words describe every character on Bebop Jet has always been Bebop's resident philosopher
Cowboy bebop is considered by many to be one of the best anime series of all time and one of the reasons is because of how well structured the story is. Each character goes through their own journey in the series, but these individual storylines are interconnected by strong themes surrounding running away from your past and finally facing it. . In fact, these themes are all nicely summed up by Jet Black in the penultimate episode, with a powerful quote.
In episode 25 of Cowboy Bebop, Jet says: “Everything has a beginning and an end. Life is just a cycle of beginnings and endings. There are endings that we do not want, but they are inevitable, we must face them. That's what humans are all about.” Of course, the quote is an accurate assessment of life; There will always be endings – to relationships, jobs, good times and bad times. No matter how much one runs and tries to avoid this truth, it remains true.
In some ways, it fits with the classic philosophy of Stoicism, which advises you to face both the good and the bad with a calm head, knowing that one day both will end. end.
Jet's words describe every character on Bebop
This quote from Jet not only summarizes the themes of the series, but also applies to each character aboard the Bebop and their own journeys throughout the series. For example, Spike is avoiding his past with Julia and Vicious. No matter how much Spike tried to put that time behind him, a confrontation with Vicious was inevitable. Spike never wanted this; he's trying to live a new life, but that old life never ended, and one day it will. He avoided it for a very long time, but eventually, as Jet said, he would have to face Vicious and put an end to it once and for all.
As for Faye, she always finds a way to avoid debt. She does this by always being on the move and never staying in one place for too long, meaning she faces a constant cycle of endings and beginnings as she tries to find new identities and new life. Faye's desperation to avoid her debts puts her in all sorts of dangerous situations, but even that ultimately doesn't save her from having to face them. Faye also stays away from a past she knows little about, until she has a chance to learn about herself. In a way, watching videos of young Faye was the end of her period of amnesia.
Jet himself is not spared from this either; he faced the end of his career with ISSP, but remained willing to leverage his relationships from that era when necessary. He left to avoid corruption within ISSP, but as it turns out, that cycle hasn't really ended. Jet finally had to face the truth about his time at ISSP: that his teammates were traitors. To truly let this go, Jet must face his former partner and, like Spike, accept this ending.
Even Edward falls into this category, albeit to a lesser extent. Ed's time on Bebop was spent being forgotten by her father, but even that forgotten time ended when the crew encountered Ed's father, a cartographer for the destroyed Earth of Cowboy Bebop, and the two finally reunite. It was the end of Ed's solo life and the beginning of a new era of returning to her father, proving that these endings are not always a bad thing, or even a bad one. difficult things.
Jet has always been Bebop's resident philosopher
This quote isn't the only time Jet says a bit, but it's arguably one of the best quotes in the series, and no other line truly encapsulates the entire theme of the series like this one. say this. Jet is a character uniquely positioned to pay attention to these topics due to being around the longest and gets to see the remaining three characters board the ship and go through their respective journeys from start to finish.
It's no coincidence that this quote appears at the end of the series, as it is directly based on Jet's observations of Faye, Spike, himself, and even Ed throughout the story. Cowboy bebop is a show that knows itself very well and what it wants to say, and requires truly skilled writing ability to be able to incorporate such a summary of the series within the show itself.
