Tamal Kundu
The Netflix live-action adaptation of the namesake TV anime (1998-1999) and the 2001 anime film ‘Cowboy Bebop: Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door,’ ‘Cowboy Bebop’ proudly embraces its campy heritage. In episode 4, the series reintroduces Faye Valentine (Daniella Pineda), as she comes seeking the help of Spike Spiegel (John Cho) and Jet Black (Mustafa Shakir). A family of eco-terrorists goes around Jupiter’s moon Callisto turning people into trees. Vicious (Alex Hassell) and Julia (Elena Satine) plan a coup against the Elders, and the latter reaches out to Ana to arrange a meeting between Vicious and fellow Syndicate capo Mao Yenrai. Here is everything you need to know about the ending of ‘Cowboy Bebop’ episode 4. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Cowboy Bebop Episode 4 Recap
Episode 4, titled ‘Callisto Soul,’ begins as Faye arrives on Callisto looking for a man named Mark Manley, hoping to get enough information from him so she can track down a woman named Whitney Haggis Matsumoto. But just as she is confronting Mark, a family of eco-terrorists shows up at the gathering. They grab the CEO of the company tasked with the development of Callisto, intending to abduct her so they can send a message. They also drag Mark out of the crowd to make an example out of him.
However, things don’t go according to the plan, and the three siblings end up turning the CEO into a tree with a terraforming device. Confounded by their own incompetency, they take Faye’s ship and leave, but not before shooting her in the shoulder.
Spike and Jet are happened to be on Callisto when Faye finds them. Initially, they dismiss Faye’s story as preposterous, but then the media starts reporting it. Spike and Jet take her back to Bebop, where she meets Ein.
Meanwhile, Vicious tells Julia that he has been gathering soldiers and firepower so that he can bring the Elders down. She suggests that they should orchestrate a coup instead and advises him to reach out to the other capos and form an alliance with them against the Elders. Later, Julia visits Ana to request her to organize a meeting with Mao.
Cowboy Bebop Episode 4 Ending: What Do the Eco-Terrorists Want? Are Harrison and Maria Dead?
The eco-terrorist family — mother Maria, daughter Harrison, and the two sons — wants to preserve Callisto as it is after terraforming, ignoring that the very purpose of terraforming is to make a planet habitable for humans.
As a mother, Maria is overbearing, cruel, and abusive. Harrison, being the most intelligent of her children, is often at the receiving end of her sadistic attention, and it has left the younger woman deeply traumatized. Maria’s sociopathic personality has not only turned her into a megalomaniac eco-terrorist but also affected her relationship with her family.
Throughout the episode, with Spike, Jet, and Faye chasing them, Maria keeps pushing Harrison to be ruthless. After they are defeated and face the prospect of incarceration, Harrison snaps after she learns that she and her mother might have to spend the rest of their lives stuck inside a cell together. It’s so terrifying for her that she activates a terraforming device, turning both herself and her mother into trees. For all intent and purpose, Maria and Harrison are dead as the process seems to be irreversible.
What Happened to Faye? Is She Dead?
Faye was in cryogenic sleep until scammers prematurely woke her up to steal her settlement money and left her amnesiac. Faye Valentine isn’t even her real name. It was given to her by Mark, the man responsible for waking her up. He then handed her identikit to Whitney and then convinced Faye that she was Whitney’s daughter.
This episode’s theme seems to be a perverse version of motherhood. Faye has been swindled out of identity and settlement money by a woman claiming to be her mother. Throughout the episode, she tries to find a way to entrap the other woman. Ultimately, she isn’t successful.
By the time Faye finds Mark again, the eco-terrorists have turned him into a tree. She manages to recover Mark’s phone and contacts Whitney while doing a very poor imitation of Mark. It initially seems to work. But when she spots Maria’s missile armed with the terraforming device heading toward where Spike and Jet are, she not only sacrifices her chance of getting Whitney but also risks her own life to protect her new friends.
No, Faye doesn’t die in the fourth episode of ‘Cowboy Bebop.’ After she destroys the missile with her own spaceship, she loses consciousness. She later wakes up on Bebop to see Spike is there. Since leaving the cryogenic state with amnesia, her ship had been part of her life. Its destruction marks a new beginning for her. As the episode ends, Spike welcomes her into Bebop’s crew.
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