The Lunkhead and The Psycho Without Style:
A Closer Look at the Cowboy Bebop Movie
WARNING: This article contains TV ENDING SPOILERS and MOVIE SPOILERS!!
[Editor's Note: Note that the last session in the the TV series - The Real Folk Blues II - has no bearing on this essay.]
Spike Spiegel is a fuzzy-haired, laid-back, suave, careless bounty hunter. Vincent Volaju is a fuzzy-haired, relaxed, suave and very trigger-happy Titan veteran. My theory, starts right there. I believe that Vincent is Spike himself in a way; only that he is the embodiment of the repressed, more animalistic and fundamental desires that flood Spike’s heart, much like Jack / The Narrator and Tyler Durden in Fight Club. I’ve always believed that Spike was Vincent, as if he had another him walking around; only the other him is all that he has brought under restraint, or pushed away.
SPIKE:
We share the same soul… That’s why I need to see him, one last time.
It starts with similarities in physical traits. The way they move, unless it is absolutely necessary, is pretty relaxed; as if they are taking a leisurely stroll in a park. Their moves in fights are quite similar, even though their technique may be a bit different . They do not run unless it’s absolutely positively necessary. Their talent with a gun is almost without equal. They both have fuzzy hair that hangs on their heads like a bush, and what’s more, their eyes carry a similar gaze; though Vincent’s is much more psychotic than Spike’s.
Their clothing is another prominent point. Vincent’s outfit, just like Spike’s, is dominated by darker shades, if not outright black. Another peculiar aspect is that their shoes, and the cuts of their pants, are the exact same; just of different colours. The trench coat that Vincent always wears brings him closer to Spike in terms of appearance on a more personal level; Spike’s trench coat only makes an appearance when he has to deal with his past / Vicious. Dealing with Vicious, in turn, normally involves Spike revisiting the shrine of Julia that’s in his mind, a mirror of how Vincent’s “work” is relate to Elektra. Both Spike and Vincent shield themselves from the world even more than they normally do when what they’re doing involves the one woman that they’ve found – when it is things they guard fiercely, even from themselves, both play it up close and personal.
The scene on the train points out their similarity very well. Though they both mock each other to get the frustration building up, they both carry the same expression; they’re having the time of their lives in those few, short minutes. They even seem to mock each other on the subject matter:
VINCENT:
Pull the trigger.
SPIKE:
What?
VINCENT:
Go ahead. What’s the matter? Lose your nerve?
SPIKE:
If I kill you I’ll also blow the bounty away.
But their mockery is beyond just trading words - they are, in fact, speaking about the excitement of their situation. This is what their lives are about, the binary choice of to shoot-not to shoot, the choice that sum up what they live for.
However, the scene also puts the subtle differences between their faces, and so their attitude, on display. Vincent is visibly focused, determined, almost as if he was born for that precise moment and does not want to miss it. This is because Vincent is more of an extrovert; he does speak of his feelings, quite as often as he can. Spike’s gaze is relaxed, indifferent - it’s just another bounty to him. But on the inside, his posture, his smile, his eyebrows show that he is as focused as Vincent is. This reveals their other contradiction, as Spike is an introvert, he rarely speaks of his feelings openly.
Their eyes are significant, but with regards to another aspect of them: when Vincent speaks to Faye, who is tied up and on the floor, his eyes lose their focus, and carry this lonely, sad look. His gaze goes soft, goes warm like the autumn rain. When Spike talked to Faye (ironic, isn’t it, they both speak to Faye openly?) on The Real Folk Blues Part II, his eyes were cold, hardened, like the razorblade winds of winter.
Their similarities also make themselves known with regards to the same woman, i.e. in their reactions to Elektra. But in order to examine that, I must first go over their respective reactions to Faye, a woman that signifies their differences by reflecting on their interactions with Elektra. Spike’s interactions with Faye differ depending on the situation.
In gunfights and otherwise dangerous situations, they have each other’s back. In their day-to-day lives, we see Spike playing around – taunting her, mocking her, engaging in pun wars and the like. One of the only times Spike shows his concern for Faye openly is on Brain Scratch, when she wakes up to find that he has watched over her as she slept. The attraction between them remains one-sided because Faye does love Spike, but Spike never allows her, never lets her in because of his love for Julia. However, this is different when it comes to Elektra, as there seems to be nothing keeping Spike from openly flirting with her. Spike trusts Elektra from the first second, even proposes a date – even if it was meant to be a joke, it is uncharacteristic behavior for him.
Furthermore, the Bebop crew presumably only knew that he once loved a woman named Julia very deeply, so deeply and profoundly that he was never able to let it go. But while he keeps it from them, Spike shares his true emotions with Elektra, and speaks to her as if he was speaking to Julia herself. This also becomes apparent in his confrontation with Vincent, when he shouts at Elektra to stay away, even if he most probably believed he was dying at the moment.
This ties Vincent to Spike, Faye and Elektra. Vincent’s treatment of Faye is quite intriguing: he saves her life when he knows that she may very well find a way out of her predicament and come after him, even if only to get payback. Then, was it out of concern (or care) that he gave her his blood to make sure she survived? I’d say yes. The other instance comes when Vincent reveals his thoughts and feelings to Faye, the questioning of his own sanity. Just like Spike, he only needs two questions to be asked in order to let loose and speak freely: what are you doing? Why are you doing it? A possible third is: Are you out of your mind?
Although Vincent makes a move on Faye, Spike never does – he holds himself back on account of Julia. This does show Elektra to be a replacement of sorts for Julia. Spike took the blonde femme fatale for dead, or forever away from him, and hence sees what he saw in Julia in Elektra, albeit through Vincent’s eyes. Faye serves as a decent snack, so to speak, for Vincent; the next best thing since Julia - the next best thing, that is, for both the lunkhead and the psycho without style. Because, after all, Vincent’s true love (if you’ll pardon that lame expression) is Elektra, whereas Spike’s is Julia. I believe that had Julia encountered Vincent, he would have treated her just as Spike would have.
Similar to this, how Spike and Vincent see the world also mark a prominent similarity between them. Vincent believes that he is in purgatory, a place of pain and suffering. He also states that he can’t be sure if the war and the experiment on Titan was real or a nightmare; just like how he can’t be sure if the world he is in is real or a dream. He claims to know for certain that he has died, although he doesn’t know exactly when he died. Vincent is struggling to find the door that will lead him out (of the dream, or whatever it is), which relates to Spike. Spike has died at least four times that we know of at this point: after the accident that gave him his artificial eye, the fall from the train, when he died getting out of the Red Dragon Syndicate, on Ballad of Fallen Angels, and on Pierrot Le Fou. He would later revel to Faye that because of his eyes (one real, one fake) he wasn’t sure if he was alive or not, that he considered himself to be dead since he couldn’t really differentiate the real world from the dream. He coped by pushing his split awareness away, not dwelling on it and adopting his famous philosophy:
SPIKE:
If it works, it works.
Whereas Spike pushed it away, Vincent made the question (dream or real) into a conscious struggle, and thus Vincent becomes Spike’s denial. Spike takes things as they are and doesn’t show any real care for any of it being a dream or not – he’s a broke bounty hunter in either case. Vincent, in contrast, doesn’t push aside or ignore the question, but dwells on it. He is fully aware of the fact that he doesn’t know reality from the dream, and instead of letting go and going with the flow, he focuses on it.
In the end, Vincent comes to the realization that the door out of his dilemma was never there. He realizes that everything was real, all along. Interesting enough, so does Spike: when he collapses after killing Vicious, I believe he realized how funny, how ironic it all was that the dream he was trying to wake up from turned out to be reality itself. Vincent, in turn, expresses bitter regret and states that only the days he spent with Elektra seem real to him. This recalls the passing of Julia, her last words to Spike: “It’s all a dream,” and in a way it is. It always was.
Side-note: The title comes from a statement of a Bebop-lover friend of mine, who, on the subject of who made a better antagonist, Vincent or Vicious, stated: “Honey, there’s a difference between being just a psychopath (Vincent) and being a psychopath with style (Vicious).”
[by Sarp Esin].
Spike Spiegel is a fuzzy-haired, laid-back, suave, careless bounty hunter. Vincent Volaju is a fuzzy-haired, relaxed, suave and very trigger-happy Titan veteran. My theory, starts right there. I believe that Vincent is Spike himself in a way; only that he is the embodiment of the repressed, more animalistic and fundamental desires that flood Spike’s heart, much like Jack / The Narrator and Tyler Durden in Fight Club. I’ve always believed that Spike was Vincent, as if he had another him walking around; only the other him is all that he has brought under restraint, or pushed away.
SPIKE:
We share the same soul… That’s why I need to see him, one last time.
It starts with similarities in physical traits. The way they move, unless it is absolutely necessary, is pretty relaxed; as if they are taking a leisurely stroll in a park. Their moves in fights are quite similar, even though their technique may be a bit different . They do not run unless it’s absolutely positively necessary. Their talent with a gun is almost without equal. They both have fuzzy hair that hangs on their heads like a bush, and what’s more, their eyes carry a similar gaze; though Vincent’s is much more psychotic than Spike’s.
Their clothing is another prominent point. Vincent’s outfit, just like Spike’s, is dominated by darker shades, if not outright black. Another peculiar aspect is that their shoes, and the cuts of their pants, are the exact same; just of different colours. The trench coat that Vincent always wears brings him closer to Spike in terms of appearance on a more personal level; Spike’s trench coat only makes an appearance when he has to deal with his past / Vicious. Dealing with Vicious, in turn, normally involves Spike revisiting the shrine of Julia that’s in his mind, a mirror of how Vincent’s “work” is relate to Elektra. Both Spike and Vincent shield themselves from the world even more than they normally do when what they’re doing involves the one woman that they’ve found – when it is things they guard fiercely, even from themselves, both play it up close and personal.
The scene on the train points out their similarity very well. Though they both mock each other to get the frustration building up, they both carry the same expression; they’re having the time of their lives in those few, short minutes. They even seem to mock each other on the subject matter:
VINCENT:
Pull the trigger.
SPIKE:
What?
VINCENT:
Go ahead. What’s the matter? Lose your nerve?
SPIKE:
If I kill you I’ll also blow the bounty away.
But their mockery is beyond just trading words - they are, in fact, speaking about the excitement of their situation. This is what their lives are about, the binary choice of to shoot-not to shoot, the choice that sum up what they live for.
However, the scene also puts the subtle differences between their faces, and so their attitude, on display. Vincent is visibly focused, determined, almost as if he was born for that precise moment and does not want to miss it. This is because Vincent is more of an extrovert; he does speak of his feelings, quite as often as he can. Spike’s gaze is relaxed, indifferent - it’s just another bounty to him. But on the inside, his posture, his smile, his eyebrows show that he is as focused as Vincent is. This reveals their other contradiction, as Spike is an introvert, he rarely speaks of his feelings openly.
Their eyes are significant, but with regards to another aspect of them: when Vincent speaks to Faye, who is tied up and on the floor, his eyes lose their focus, and carry this lonely, sad look. His gaze goes soft, goes warm like the autumn rain. When Spike talked to Faye (ironic, isn’t it, they both speak to Faye openly?) on The Real Folk Blues Part II, his eyes were cold, hardened, like the razorblade winds of winter.
Their similarities also make themselves known with regards to the same woman, i.e. in their reactions to Elektra. But in order to examine that, I must first go over their respective reactions to Faye, a woman that signifies their differences by reflecting on their interactions with Elektra. Spike’s interactions with Faye differ depending on the situation.
In gunfights and otherwise dangerous situations, they have each other’s back. In their day-to-day lives, we see Spike playing around – taunting her, mocking her, engaging in pun wars and the like. One of the only times Spike shows his concern for Faye openly is on Brain Scratch, when she wakes up to find that he has watched over her as she slept. The attraction between them remains one-sided because Faye does love Spike, but Spike never allows her, never lets her in because of his love for Julia. However, this is different when it comes to Elektra, as there seems to be nothing keeping Spike from openly flirting with her. Spike trusts Elektra from the first second, even proposes a date – even if it was meant to be a joke, it is uncharacteristic behavior for him.
Furthermore, the Bebop crew presumably only knew that he once loved a woman named Julia very deeply, so deeply and profoundly that he was never able to let it go. But while he keeps it from them, Spike shares his true emotions with Elektra, and speaks to her as if he was speaking to Julia herself. This also becomes apparent in his confrontation with Vincent, when he shouts at Elektra to stay away, even if he most probably believed he was dying at the moment.
This ties Vincent to Spike, Faye and Elektra. Vincent’s treatment of Faye is quite intriguing: he saves her life when he knows that she may very well find a way out of her predicament and come after him, even if only to get payback. Then, was it out of concern (or care) that he gave her his blood to make sure she survived? I’d say yes. The other instance comes when Vincent reveals his thoughts and feelings to Faye, the questioning of his own sanity. Just like Spike, he only needs two questions to be asked in order to let loose and speak freely: what are you doing? Why are you doing it? A possible third is: Are you out of your mind?
- The theory of Vincent being Spike’s restrained / repressed side also becomes apparent when he gets on top of Faye and cuts open her top, exposing her breasts. He looks like he’s about to have his way with her, and if that guy didn’t show up when he did, he very well might have. The fact of the matter is that neither Vincent, nor Spike, have satisfied their need for sex in quite a while. Faye is walking around, and her choice of minimal clothing leaves little to the imagination. Furthermore, it is also a fact that she hasn’t had some in a while either. It’s human biology; it’s obvious.
Although Vincent makes a move on Faye, Spike never does – he holds himself back on account of Julia. This does show Elektra to be a replacement of sorts for Julia. Spike took the blonde femme fatale for dead, or forever away from him, and hence sees what he saw in Julia in Elektra, albeit through Vincent’s eyes. Faye serves as a decent snack, so to speak, for Vincent; the next best thing since Julia - the next best thing, that is, for both the lunkhead and the psycho without style. Because, after all, Vincent’s true love (if you’ll pardon that lame expression) is Elektra, whereas Spike’s is Julia. I believe that had Julia encountered Vincent, he would have treated her just as Spike would have.
Similar to this, how Spike and Vincent see the world also mark a prominent similarity between them. Vincent believes that he is in purgatory, a place of pain and suffering. He also states that he can’t be sure if the war and the experiment on Titan was real or a nightmare; just like how he can’t be sure if the world he is in is real or a dream. He claims to know for certain that he has died, although he doesn’t know exactly when he died. Vincent is struggling to find the door that will lead him out (of the dream, or whatever it is), which relates to Spike. Spike has died at least four times that we know of at this point: after the accident that gave him his artificial eye, the fall from the train, when he died getting out of the Red Dragon Syndicate, on Ballad of Fallen Angels, and on Pierrot Le Fou. He would later revel to Faye that because of his eyes (one real, one fake) he wasn’t sure if he was alive or not, that he considered himself to be dead since he couldn’t really differentiate the real world from the dream. He coped by pushing his split awareness away, not dwelling on it and adopting his famous philosophy:
SPIKE:
If it works, it works.
Whereas Spike pushed it away, Vincent made the question (dream or real) into a conscious struggle, and thus Vincent becomes Spike’s denial. Spike takes things as they are and doesn’t show any real care for any of it being a dream or not – he’s a broke bounty hunter in either case. Vincent, in contrast, doesn’t push aside or ignore the question, but dwells on it. He is fully aware of the fact that he doesn’t know reality from the dream, and instead of letting go and going with the flow, he focuses on it.
In the end, Vincent comes to the realization that the door out of his dilemma was never there. He realizes that everything was real, all along. Interesting enough, so does Spike: when he collapses after killing Vicious, I believe he realized how funny, how ironic it all was that the dream he was trying to wake up from turned out to be reality itself. Vincent, in turn, expresses bitter regret and states that only the days he spent with Elektra seem real to him. This recalls the passing of Julia, her last words to Spike: “It’s all a dream,” and in a way it is. It always was.
Side-note: The title comes from a statement of a Bebop-lover friend of mine, who, on the subject of who made a better antagonist, Vincent or Vicious, stated: “Honey, there’s a difference between being just a psychopath (Vincent) and being a psychopath with style (Vicious).”
[by Sarp Esin].
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