They're two entirely different types of anime, and I love them both dearly. Most people who like one seem to enjoy the other, too.
That said, Cowboy Bebop is my preference. It's my favourite anime ever.
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I would have to agree with the two previous posts. First and foremost, Bebop and Champloo are two very different series. Bebop is without doubt, superior anime. This series was able to cross over many genres of anime, sci-fi, comedy, etc. Versus Champloo, with the exception of the hip hop soundtrack, was another anime concerning bushi (both samurai and non-samurai) getting into the occasional duels sprinkled with a little comedy. I, if you can't tell, prefer Cowboy Bebop, but very much so enjoyed Samurai Champloo. I sort of agree with the Champloo was trying to capture Bebop gold, but sort of don't. I don't think that was Watanabe-san's entire intent when making Champloo. However, given his success with Bebop, it's hard not to mention Champloo nowadays without mentioning Bebop. Just like when Bebop came out, many people (including me) were amazed and fans of Macross Plus and couldn't wait to see what the director had coming up next, thankfully it was Cowboy Bebop. I can't really think of a Cowboy Bebop vs. Samurai Champloo, two very different animals.
shareI hear people say how they like Bebop more than Champloo all the time, but for me, I prefer the latter. I have no idea why. Maybe it's the atmosphere of modern hip-hop culture being thrown back in time and combining things that feel so similar in style, yet are actually entirely different. I guess it's just the underlying concept of Champloo that appeals to me moreso. Champloo is about looking at the road ahead, while Bebop is about looking back.
I think we're the green thingy!
I thoroughly enjoyed both although I'd have to say I liked Champloo more. I like that Champloo was constantly working towards a final goal but with various adventures along the way that help to develop the characters and plot. Bebop didn't seem to have a final goal other than Spike facing his past but we didn't know about that from the start. I really like how the music set the mood for every episode of Bebop though. And there was a lot of character development there too. I don't know. It's hard to compare. At least we know that everyone was still alive at the end of Champloo.
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I'm not sure why people like Cowboy Bebop so much. I thought it was good, but it wasn't "great."
Samurai Champloo, on the other hand, was excellent! I liked the characters and the different stories. The art was some of the best I've seen and the music was a fine touch, as well.
I'm not sure why people like Cowboy Bebop so much. I thought it was good, but it wasn't "great."Exactly! To be honest I thought it was pretty dull when I watched it - the characters, storyline, and everything else wasn't really that appealing to me. Alot of the episodes I found to be fairly boring and many of them were very similar. At many points I found myself drifting off because the story wasn't really going anywhere. But don't get the wrong idea, I still liked it and it's still an above average anime, but in the "fun" factor it's got nothing on Champloo.
Champloo Hands down. Cowboy bebop is good but overrated in my opinion. Just my two cents.
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My 2 favorite anime series: both really excellent, both really fun. I'd hate to compare them, but I'd have to say Samurai Champloo is just a little more enjoyable to me. I love its historic time period, along with the bright colors and humorous characters, and even with its serious storylines it's just much more upbeat.
No doubt in my mind that Cowboy Bebop is cooler, though.
I also like the point Trixilver made. The CB characters cannot move forward because they are (literally) consumed by their past. (Well Spike anyway..) In SC, past obstacles are dealt with and overcome, freeing the characters for their futures. An evolution from CB, I guess.
“Life's pretty good, and why wouldn't it be? I'm a pirate, after all.”
Cowboy Bebop.
Champloo was a very fun series, easy to follow, and with it's lovely ending, certainly a crowd pleaser. But, I felt as though it just wasn't as... Crisp? Not really sure how to describe it, but there were so many parts to Bebop that were just spot on.
Bebop was also more clever, while Champloo was more slapstick. Don't get me wrong, I love slapstick, and it generally makes me laugh more than quips... But I always feel that there is something to be said about wit. It's memorable.
My biggest issue with Champloo, comparitively to Bebop, was the background of the story. Besides some character development, the actual plot didn't happen until the last 5 episodes. The whole part about Fuu's father being Christian wasn't mentionned until very late. The diary episode also really bothered me. I hate recaps. And, how they made an excuse for going to Edo AFTER they went. That bothered me, too.
But, in all honesty, those are my only complaints. Besides the music, but I personally just don't like that genre. Jazz, on the other hand, I adore. Haha, unfair advantage to Bebop! ^.^
One point for SC's side. I found the characters much easier to become attached to. Obviously's CB's characters were spectacular and quirky and memorable... But there was more character interaction in SC (WHICH I LOVE) and, therefore, it was way easier to fall in love with them.
Yaddayadda. That's it. I love both, though. So fun and enjoyable. MUST SEES for anime enthusiasts.
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I think Samurai Champloo is better.
Bebop is sort of boring. It has 8 good episodes, but the rest don't really draw me in.
With Samurai Champloo, even the "bad" episodes are funny and interesting.
Hm... I just finished watching Champloo tonight. Up until now Bebop has been my favorite anime, so this question is pretty relevant for me atm.
I love both animes, but I tend to favor Bebop. As a previous poster said, it is more "crisp," and I know why - the writing.
Watanabe himself has said that he didn't really know what he was doing with the "samurai that smells like sunflowers" at the beginning of the series. This is not to say that writing "by ear" is automatically a detriment, but it certainly was for this series in my opinion. Several of the episodes that should have been strongest were left slightly weaker because they didn't have a good idea of where they were going at the time, and this results in a less impactful payoff at the end. (for example, the diary episode could have been incredible, but you can tell they still hadn't decided who the samurai should be and this makes writing that episode much much more difficult)
Secondly, there is more time spent on individual character development in Bebop, whereas champloo tends to avoid it for the most part. While there ARE some great character development episodes, the team is almost always together and we don't learn nearly as much about them individually as we did of Spike, Jet, and Faye. The ending for Fuu should have been very very powerful, but it was only "just" powerful because of this, sadly.
The other major reason why Bebop is better is simply Yoko Kanno's soundtrack. While I like the music for Champloo, there is just no way it can compare in emotive quality to that of Bebop's. In the final episodes, there were periods where I was thinking that a particular scene would have been so much better if they had just dropped the hip-hop for a bit longer than usual and thrown some more melody in. There's nothing wrong with the hip-hop focus, you just need to know where it shouldn't be.
Overall, Champloo comes fourth for me in my list of favorite anime. It's still a great series and I can't wait to see what else Watanabe does in the future.
I loved champloo but bebop was even better
shareI loved them both but I don't know which I liked best - I jsut finished SC for the first time and I think I may watch CB again to compare.
I think the clever thing in CB is the way the music worked for each episode/character and for SC it was the symbolism - it was just used so well! (*spoilers* A good example I think is the episode with sara: the lone pinwheel stops and she realises her son is dead and she's being used - there are many other examples of this but I cannot think of any...)
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As so many before me, I too liked both series' a great deal. That being said, I liked Samurai Champloo better. Also as mentioned in earlier posts, I thought Cowboy Bebop was a really good anime but I feel it is overrated. Most descriptions I see of it make it out to be Heaven's gift to mankind. I can respect if they feel this way about it (I know I do about FLCL...well, gift to me anyway ), but I can't agree with it
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I prefer Champloo's main characters because Mugen and Jin are two of the most bad ass characters ever, plus they can be pretty hilarious. Bebop's main characters have those qualities too, but not as much. I prefer Champloo's comedy, which is probably because comedy was a bigger part of the show compared to Bebop. I thought Bebop's storylines were constructed better probably because Bebop had a more serious tone and I think one of the most appealing things about Bebop is the side characters. They're what made all the sub-plots so good.
I love both of the soundtracks and listen to them away from their respective shows a lot. I liked the action better in Champloo. Watching Bebop, I was amazed by how smooth and detailed all the character's movements were, especially in fights and Champloo did it even better, much better. Just take a look at how Mugen fights. It's astounding seeing all the little moves he does in each fight. Anyway, they're both great shows, but I think I'd give the edge to Bebop. I named all these things Champloo did better than Bebop, but Bebop was just a little more well-rounded with its qualities.
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