The 10 Best Cowboy Bebop Episodes, Ranked

Cowboy Bebop is an extremely popular anime that first aired in 1998 and was directed by the legendary Shinichiro Watanabe. The plot centers on a small group of bounty hunters who traverse the galaxy, finding jobs in their ship called the Bebop. However, they consistently struggle with finances, and their difficult pasts regularly cause problems for them.

There are 26 episodes in the entire anime, and a large majority of them are highly regarded by viewers. Let’s go into the details of the top 10 episodes that demonstrate exactly why this anime is so well-known and loved.

TITLE	Cowboy Bebop
RELEASE DATE	Apr 3, 1998 to Apr 24, 1999
STUDIO	Sunrise
MAL RATING (as of April 26, 2026)	8.75 / 10
STREAMING	Crunchyroll, Prime Video, Apple TV

10 Episode 17 Was a Hilarious Psychedelic Detour

Mushroom Samba

The Bebop is stuck, and the crew is starving. Edward, the young hacker of the group, takes Ein and goes out to find something to eat on the desert planet they are stranded on. Instead of finding food, Ed finds a bounty hunter named Domino Walker who is smuggling hallucinogenic mushrooms.

Spike, Jet, and Faye all eat them, and each one of them experiences funny hallucinations. Spike thinks he is walking up a very tall staircase, Jet talks to his bonsai trees, and Faye thinks she is swimming with fish in a bathroom. While an amazing episode, it doesn’t contribute anything to the original storyline other than giving a small, funny break. Shinichiro Watanabe also revealed how this episode originated purely from his own imagination.

9 Episode 5 Set the Tone for the Entire Anime

Ballad of Fallen Angels

This is the first episode where the anime finally starts exploring the overarching plot. In this episode, the viewers learn about Spike’s past with a criminal organization called the Red Dragon Syndicate. A man named Mao Yenrai, who used to be a mentor to Spike, is killed by Vicious, who is also connected to Spike’s past.

Faye gets captured by Vicious, and Spike goes to a large, abandoned church to save her. When Spike arrives at the church, a massive gunfight occurs. This episode proves that there is a serious and dangerous story happening in the background.

8 Episode 8 Delivered a Tragic and Emotional Lesson

Waltz for Venus

Spike meets a young man named Rocco Bonnaro, who sees Spike fight some criminals and is impressed. Rocco asks Spike to teach him how to fight. Spike eventually agrees and gives him a quick lesson. However, Spike soon finds out that Rocco stole a rare and expensive plant called Grey Ash.

Rocco did not steal the plant to get rich. Instead, he stole it because he needed the money to pay for a surgery to cure his sister’s blindness. However, now there are people trying to get the plant back.

This ranks at number eight because it is a sad and effective story that fits into a single episode. It shows that Spike is not just a cold bounty hunter; he actually cares about people and wants to help them.

7 Episode 12 Perfectly Explored the Crew’s Troubled Pasts

Jupiter Jazz (Part 1)

Faye Valentine empties the crew’s safe and runs away from the Bebop. Jet is angry and decides to go look for her. At the same time, Spike hears a rumor that his former lover, Julia, is also where Faye is. Spike leaves the ship immediately to find her, which makes Jet even more frustrated.

On Callisto, Faye meets a saxophone player named Gren. Spike searches for Julia but ends up finding Vicious instead, who is on Callisto to complete a drug deal.

This episode takes the seventh spot because it separates the crew to show how damaged they all are. Faye runs away because she is afraid of getting close to people. Jet is upset because he wants to keep the group together. Spike abandons everything the second he hears Julia’s name.

6 Episode 13 – A Heart-Breaking Conclusion to the Jupiter Jazz Arc

Jupiter Jazz (Part 2)

This episode continues directly from the previous one. Gren also discovers that Vicious is on Callisto, and it is revealed that Gren used to be a soldier who fought in a war alongside Vicious. However, Vicious betrayed Gren and sent him to prison, for which Gren wants revenge.

Vicious eventually escapes in his ship. Spike talks to Gren before he/she dies, and Gren asks Spike to help him load the body into his spaceship so he can drift toward the planet Jupiter. The scene where his ship flies toward Jupiter while sad music plays is one of the most famous moments in the anime. The episode ends with the main characters back together, but they are all quiet and sad about what happened.

5 Episode 18 Revealed Faye’s Mysterious Backstory

Speak Like a Child

A package is delivered to the Bebop addressed to Faye Valentine, whose character still serves as an inspiration for characters to this date. Since Faye owes money to many people, she runs away because she thinks the package is a bill. Spike and Jet open the package and find an old videotape. Because the technology is very old (since the anime is set in the future), they do not have a machine to play it.

Spike and Jet spend a lot of time traveling to different places just to find a proper videotape player. When they finally find one and play the tape, Faye returns to the ship and watches it with them. The tape shows a young teenage version of Faye recording a message for her future self. Young Faye is happy, smiling, and cheering on the adult Faye.

This is the fifth-highest-ranking episode because it is incredibly sad and explains a lot about Faye’s character. Throughout the show, Faye acts selfish and tough. But this episode shows that she used to be a normal, happy girl who is only cynical because of how the world has treated her.

4 Episode 20 – A Chilling and Action-Packed Psychological Thriller

Pierrot Le Fou

Spike is walking at night and accidentally sees an assassin called Mad Pierrot killing a man. Mad Pierrot notices Spike and attacks him, and Spike barely survives the encounter.

The crew finds out that Pierrot was part of a secret government experiment to create the ultimate killer. The experiments made his mind regress to a childlike state, but gave him extreme combat abilities. Pierrot invites Spike to a final fight at an abandoned theme park, where they then have an intense battle.

This ranks at number four because it is the most intense and action-filled episode of this anime. Pierrot is a frightening villain who makes the entire episode feel like a short horror movie.

3 Episode 24 – A Bittersweet Farewell

Hard Luck Woman

Faye travels to Earth to find the places she saw in her old videotape. She finds the location of her old home, but it is completely destroyed and just a pile of rubble. At the same time, Edward meets a man who turns out to be her father. Her father is a cartographer who maps the craters on Earth. He is absent-minded and leaves Ed behind again to continue his work.

Ed decides that she needs to leave the Bebop to follow her father and live her own life. She paints a goodbye message on the deck of the ship, and Ein joins her as well. The episode ends with Spike and Jet sitting alone on the ship, silently eating.

This is the third-highest-ranking episode because it marks the official end of the Bebop crew. The viewer spends 23 episodes watching this group become a family, and this episode separates them as they all go on to do their own thing. The scene where Ed leaves is very emotional, as no one expected the most cheerful person on the ship would just leave. Furthermore, she is chasing after someone who seemingly didn’t care about her.

2 Episode 25 Ignited the Final Conflict

The Real Folk Blues (Part 1)

Things start coming full circle in this episode. Vicious tries to take control of the syndicate. His plan fails at first, and he is scheduled to be executed. The Syndicate decides to hunt down all former members to make sure there are no loose ends, and one of those loose ends is Spike himself.

Spike and Jet are attacked by the Syndicate members. During the chaos, Spike finally reunites with Julia, who is connected to Spike’s past and is the most important person in his life. They meet in a graveyard. At the same time, Vicious escapes his execution and successfully kills the old leaders of the Syndicate.

The viewer finally gets to see Julia, and the threat of the Syndicate becomes real after Vicious becomes the leader. This episode sets the perfect stage for the finale.

1 Episode 26 Provided the Unforgettable Anime Finale

The Real Folk Blues (Part 2)

Julia is shot by the syndicate members and dies in Spike’s arms. Spike goes back to the Bebop one last time. He has a final meal with Jet, and he tells Faye a story about a tiger to explain why he has to leave. Faye tries to stop him, but Spike leaves anyway, causing a sad farewell moment.

Spike fights his way through the massive building, killing many guards. He finally reaches the top floor and fights Vicious. The fight is brutal, and both Spike and Vicious are badly injured. Spike ends up killing Vicious. Spike then walks down the stairs, points his fingers at the remaining guards, says “Bang,” and falls to the ground. The screen fades to white.

It was never confirmed if he died or not, and that’s what makes the ending amazing. Many fans argue that his death would be the perfect end, and many argue that he deserved more days of happiness.

RANK	EPISODE NUMBER	EPISODE NAME
10	Episode 17	Mushroom Samba
9	Episode 5	Ballad of Fallen Angels
8	Episode 8	Waltz for Venus
7	Episode 12	Jupiter Jazz: Part 1
6	Episode 13	Jupiter Jazz: Part 2
5	Episode 18	Speak Like a Child
4	Episode 20	Pierrot le Fou
3	Episode 24	Hard Luck Woman
2	Episode 25	The Real Folk Blues: Part 1
1	Episode 26	The Real Folk Blues: Part 2

The entire Cowboy Bebop anime is a classical masterpiece, but among the 26 episodes of the anime, these 10 episodes stand out among the rest. The anime provides a clear resolution and leaves almost no plot points unresolved.

Which is your favorite Cowboy Bebop episode, and why? Let us know in the comments.

Cowboy Bebop is streaming on Crunchyroll