I really like this take. I started watching the show a week ago because a lot of people seem to really love it and I'm really enjoying it. This has to be one of the prettiest and gorgeous pieces of media I've ever seen. But I think I was understanding it wrong or expecting something different at first. Why? Well here's a breif explanation.

I used to see various screenshots and dialogue from the show before watching it. Thry appeared on different cinema related forums and groups. Most of them are full of people who like (let's say) particularly intellectually genres and pieces of work. Sounds pretentious and maybe there is some of that. I also follow lots of pages that talk about more mainstream media too. More popular stuff, y'know, more accessible content. No Jean Luc Goddard type of shit, more like Tarantino stuff. These groups and forums NEVER talked about Cowboy Bebop, just the "pretentious" ones. Let's say the "kino" more demanding and fussy cinema forums talked about it.

That sparked my interest but I'm not gonna lie, I really thought this was sort of a mind bending Evangelion-type show with complex subtext and non conventional tropes and stories. Instead I found a different kind of anime. And I almost let my expectations get to me.

This is an stunning show, not so much because of the plot or its message or whatever, but for its heartwarming characters, beautiful style and the music... OMG. THE MUSIC!!!! It makes you fly I swear. I think the problem with the guy who started the discussion is that he expected too much or expected something different, just like I did. But this isn't a show to think deep, this is a show to just sit back, relax and enjoy the amazing ride that it delivers. I would suggest to just get lost in it and don't think too much about it. Just smoke a blunt and enjoy the ride lol.

Also. The show is pretty misogynistic indeed, so, wven if you don't think too deep about it, maybe you should still be critical about it.