Love and loss seem to be the biggest motivators for Spike. I can't pin down what happened with him, but it's pretty clear he lost someone important in his life. 'Ballad of Fallen Angels' confirmed my suspicions even if I don't know the endgame yet. It also confirmed my suspicions that this Cowboy Bepop is very much a masterpiece. I haven't gone past the midway point of the series before starting this feature, but of the episodes I saw, I was most amazed by 'Ballad of Fallen Angels'
The dark brooding protagonists an all too common, unintentional, trope nowadays. From Batman to the ever-growing list of haunted anti-heroes corrupting cable television, it can become a dull schtick pretty quickly. Spike, like all members of the Bepop, are deep down sad characters. They're all haunted by their past. The carefree persona Spike carries himself by daily is a facade to escape the things that keep him up at night. He is dominated by his past (possibly failures?) and he just can't escape it. This is how you craft a "brooding" character.
I should note that this episode is truly beautiful from an animation standpoint as well as thematically. It starts with a bright sunny day as the darkness of Vicious (what an appropriate name). A blood orange sky (I know, I know) paints the warmth of a new day, but also bears a certain uneasiness to it. As the episode goes on, Vicious begins taking center stage, and the color palette changes from warm to cold. The lighting gets darker. Spike's past creeps up and threatens to overtake him.
Some of the dialogue is a little too melodramatic as the episode is absolutely drenched in melodrama. It's hands down the most moody session of the series thus far. But that's sorta why I love it too. It's diving into the past of Spike and it's not a pretty picture. As Spike and Vicious discuss fallen angels turning into demons, I sort of roll my eyes, but I also can't help but appreciate how boldfaced its themes are (even if it's arguably too boldfaced). Cowboy Bepop remains true to itself. Or maybe the lines just sound better in Japanese. I'll probably seek out the subtitled version at some point in the near future.
In my other post about 'Gateway Shuffle' I discussed the loud and operatic feel of Murdock as a villain. Murdock is a a 90 degree shift from Vicious as a villain. Almost a grim reaper feel to Vicious, he's an embodiment of death. Our introduction to Vicious follows an explosion of a ship leaving a mob tête-à-tête as they formed a cease-fire, eerily slithering out of the shadows. That's what Vicious does. With his mammoth sized black bird at his side, this man destroys progress in the present.
Faye gets captured but it's not a damsel in distress. She's a femme fatale, but she's her own destructive intuition as well. When Spike goes to meet Vicious, it's only by circumstance that he's saving her too. The characterization of Faye is going to be a highlight of the series for me, I just know it.
The final shootout has some clear homages to John Woo and Brian De Palma (many smarter people than I have noticed it but I REALLY LOVE IT). It's fluid in its delivery of action and the geography of the fight stuff is beyond functional. From the openness to the aisles of the church, to the narrow corridors of the stairways, the fight opens big and closes large. It keeps the brevity of the situation while maintaining a tightly construed narrative corresponding to the themes of the episode.
As Vicious and Spike finish their climactic fight (what a spectacle!) we're shown glimpses of their past together. They smile in shootouts together. There's a mysterious blonde woman. More imagery from the opening of the series. What does it all mean? I'm not sure. But I think I'll get answers sooner or later with Cowboy Bepop. 'til next time,
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