As astrophysicist Dr Adam Frank says, the characters in "Cowboy Bebop" are irrepressibly cool From Spike Spiegel lighting a cigarette to Faye Valentine floating silently in zero gravity, the vision of animation studio Sunrise combines 50 years of cinematic chic into one show

This is one of the advantages of animation Casting is driven by the willingness of the artists rather than by onerous contract negotiations at the convenience of the actors So when Netflix announced that it would produce a live-action "Cowboy Bebop" show, I knew I had to temper my expectations

Netflix does not have the best history in live-action anime adaptations; the term "Netflix adaptation" has become a meme in itself Nevertheless, the casting of "Cowboy Bebop" proved to be a challenge, as people have different perceptions of anime characters [For example, if I drew a simple smiley face, growing up in America, I might think it was white If I drew the same smiley face in Mongolia, the locals would picture it as Mongolian My point here is not about race, but that our own life experiences can merge and change how a depicted character looks in the real world

I think the casting of John Cho was a great decision He is a great actor with a great love for the source material

But let's not forget that Spike Spiegel, as I mentioned at the beginning, is impossibly cool In the cartoon, he is 6 feet tall, with long, lanky legs and broad shoulders There are only a few actors who could nail this look, probably Benedict Cumberbatch or Tom Hiddleston Keanu Reeves once tried for this role in a live-action film, but it never materialized Also, before anyone accuses me of whitewashing Spiegel's image, let me say that the world of "Cowboy Bebop" is set in a future with an expanding universe in which many different races appear Furthermore, the name Spiegel comes from German Jews

Cho does not fit this description at all But again, this is just my characterization of him I believe other viewers see him as the perfect person, and I urge you not to spoil their excitement with this column

Daniel Pineda will play Faye Valentine Again, this is a difficult role In the animated film, Faye is 170 cm tall, but her model-like physique gives her an unrealistic pin-up presence Yes, the animators at Sunrise gave her almost impossible proportions and somehow managed to make her shiny vinyl clothes look completely ridiculous

Sunrise also sought to make Faye a seductive woman with her good looks and sex appeal This extended not only to her looks, but also to the way she walked, the way she dressed, and her flirtatious "smizing" of others

Looking at the images, it is not clear if Pineda nails the same charm I can see why Pineda's attire is so subdued in comparison If she had worn the skimpy clothes seen in the cartoon, I am sure there would have been an uproar

The casting of Mustafa Shakir as Jet Black is perfect From the beard to the robotic arm, Shakir seems to most perfectly embody the original character Watching Shakir on shows like Marvel's "Luke Cage," one feels that he does a good job of portraying Jett's aging demeanor and mannerisms

One concern is the set design This was also an issue with Netflix's The Witcher In The Witcher, it was obvious that the cast was filming on a set, with fake plaster walls surrounding them In the days of standard definition, a more plastic-like material would have worked, but in 4K, the textural sheen of certain materials cannot be overlooked [For example, "Game of Thrones For this show, the showrunners were able to shoot more in actual real-world locations, giving each scene of the indoor castle sit-down a final layer of realism

From the images above, Bebop looks like an interactive room at Universal Studios I worry that the rust and other deformities on the spaceship will look like paint and spoil the immersion

I know it's hard not to sound like a condescending malcontent, but I have so much respect for the original that my mind immediately jumps to where things go wrong rather than where things succeed Showrunners Andre Nemec and Jeff Pinkner are in a tough position Expectations for this film adaptation are tremendously high, and any blunders will be magnified by social media

Luckily for them, the initial reaction on Twitter and Reddit has been positive Of course, as with the final season of "Game of Thrones," it all comes down to execution I still plan to watch Netflix's "Cowboy Bebop," but if it disappoints, it will rank with "Death Note" and "Dragon Ball Evolution" as an unlucky anime adaptation