nausicaa83: (<cowboy bebop> flying machines)
Today we are going to talk of something special, my very first, and favourite anime of all time: Cowboy Bebop. That's because today the blu ray boxset arrived, and it's fantastic, and I've waited for it ever since they invented the blu ray. But first, a little history!



Back in December 2001, a few months after my sister left us, I had to undergo my first, and very painful surgery. For three months my movements had to be almost completely limited, and I was stuck at home, in pain, and bored out of my mind. My mom kept me company every minute she could, but being a very Catholic woman, every day at 6 pm she would leave the house for Mass, and I would be stuck on the couch watching the tv and waiting for her. So, one day around 6 pm I'm stuck on the couch channel surfing, and I end up on this japanese cartoon, where these two characters are in an elevator talking to each other, and one of them is describing a dream he had with Charlie Parker in it. My parents were huge jazz fans, so my mind went "is he talking about Charlie 'Bird' Parker? I must see this!", and twenty minutes later, I was hooked. It turns out it was the third episode of the show, and they were actually reruns, one episode a day every day. Two days later they aired Ballad of Fallen Angels, and it completely blew my mind. After that, everyday I'd watch the new episode, and then enthusiastically narrate it to my mom. I'd gone from grumpy and in pain to singularly and cheerfully obsessed with this wonderful story. We watched the final episode together, because even God had to wait for that. :D And then I found out about geocities websites, anime music videos, fandom, all because of that show.



So that's what it means to me. Now, what it's all about! Cowboy Bebop is a 1998 anime from Sunrise, set in 2071, following the adventures of a bounty hunter crew and their spaceship, the Bebop. It homages many different cinema genres, from western to pulp fiction, from horror to science fiction. The music, composed by Yoko Kanno, deserves its own essay: Kanno formed a blues and jazz band, the Seatbelts, to perform the magnificent soundtrack, which covers almost every genre, reinventing and recreating them. The music is a vital part of the series, basically a main character in itself. Here's the opening:



And here's a bonus picture with the first edition dvds. Look at my pretties:



It's a masterpiece, and one of the most influential works of art that have ever crossed my path. I'm not kidding when I say I would be a very different person today if I hadn't watched it that fateful February. ^^

So now I know how I'm going to spend my evenings for the next couple of weeks! \o/
nausicaa83: (<cowboy bebop> lazy)
The health updates are getting boring, so in short: still sick, getting better, stuck at home, bored out of my mind.

Now that that's out of the way, fandom news! I started a Cowboy Bebop marathon the other night: that was my first anime (I've seen episodes of other anime during my childhood, sure, but Cowboy Bebop was the first one that I actually tuned in to watch, that I religiously followed), and still my favourite. Let's take a trip down memory lane! It was February 2002, and two months prior I had had some very serious, very painful back surgery. I was stuck in bed for four months. I could slowly move from the bed to the bathroom, and then to the couch, but it took me hours, and it was very debilitating. Needless to say, it was really boring. At 6pm everyday Mom would pop out to go to church, and in one of those occasions, while flipping the channels on the tv, I happened on a anime episode, where one of the main characters was talking of having a prophetic dream with Charlie Parker. My parents loved jazz music and I grew up on it, so I got intrigued. It was the third episode, Honky Tonk Women. Two days later, with Ballad of Fallen Angels, I fell deeply, crazily in love with the show.

I've listened to the soundtrack millions of times since, but it's been years since my last marathon. Needless to say, it's fantastic. I'm rediscovering it completely, with the eyes of an adult, and at the same time falling head over heels in love with it all over again. Plus now I get even more references than before (especially since I watched almost all John Woo movies since then).

In other news, I'm very angry and disappointed with Person of Interest. I'm not going to rant here, because I've already done it on several other journals and on tumblr, but even after such a poorly written first half of the season I still wasn't expecting them to pull the worst trope in the book. I might even consider dropping the show if it doesn't pick up in the next couple of episodes, that's how angry I am.

So, I decided to turn to the classics to feel better, and started watching Twin Peaks. I just finished the pilot (I timed it so that it would end in time for my second aerosol of the day), and was really intrigued. It's weird because I already knew the theme song, I recognized how much it has been quoted ever since, and yet it's my first time ever watching it. Yep, I have no idea who killed Laura Palmer. It's great. :D
nausicaa83: (<sherlock> violin)
day one • a song
day two • a picture
day three • a book/ebook/fanfic
day four • a website
day five • a youtube clip

Couldn't decide, so you get two clips! Aren't you lucky. :D

First one is a beautiful, moving, and quite frankly technically jaw-dropping video about global warming. I chose it because today it was freaking 25° C here in Venice (that's 77° F), and I had to take off my jacket, and roll up my sleeves and I was still sweating like crazy. This kind of weird weather obviously means we'll have some kind of whiplash next week, with cold icy winds from Russia or something, and trees and plants that are already putting out flowers will wither and die. It's like watching a train wreck in slow-motion.



The second one is a stunning song from the Cowboy Bebop soundtrack, one of my personal favourites. Cowboy Bebop was my first anime, and I was absolutely head over heels in love with it. It's still my favourite anime ever, no contest. It's been a while since I last listened to the soundtrack (except for Blue, because that song is never ever going to leave my iPod ever, and it's also the perfect Reichenbach song, and I think I need a moment now), and then someone on tumblr made me notice that this wonderful singer is called Tulivu-Donna Cumberbatch. A funny coincidence that put a huge smile on my face and made me dig out my CB cds and listen to them all over again. :D



And that's it for this week's meme. ^^
nausicaa83: (<sherlock> violin)
day one • a song
day two • a picture
day three • a book/ebook/fanfic
day four • a website
day five • a youtube clip

Couldn't decide, so you get two clips! Aren't you lucky. :D

First one is a beautiful, moving, and quite frankly technically jaw-dropping video about global warming. I chose it because today it was freaking 25° C here in Venice (that's 77° F), and I had to take off my jacket, and roll up my sleeves and I was still sweating like crazy. This kind of weird weather obviously means we'll have some kind of whiplash next week, with cold icy winds from Russia or something, and trees and plants that are already putting out flowers will wither and die. It's like watching a train wreck in slow-motion.



The second one is a stunning song from the Cowboy Bebop soundtrack, one of my personal favourites. Cowboy Bebop was my first anime, and I was absolutely head over heels in love with it. It's still my favourite anime ever, no contest. It's been a while since I last listened to the soundtrack (except for Blue, because that song is never ever going to leave my iPod ever, and it's also the perfect Reichenbach song, and I think I need a moment now), and then someone on tumblr made me notice that this wonderful singer is called Tulivu-Donna Cumberbatch. A funny coincidence that put a huge smile on my face and made me dig out my CB cds and listen to them all over again. :D



And that's it for this week's meme. ^^

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