Cowboy Bebop Illustrations - The Wind -

Excuse me while I turn into a rabid fangirl the likes of which I haven't been since I was a child, flail excitedly until I pass out, and then make happy little noises from the afterlife.

Yes, I enjoyed this artbook that much. It features superb translations into English - at least I assume so, since all the sentences flow properly and there are no weird grammatical issues - and a plethora of insight into many different aspects of the art process. Readers get to see Toshihiro Kawamoto's creative process from the initial character designs all the way through some of the final media created to advertise the Cowboy Bebop movie. And, most fascinatingly, we get to see a glimpse into his head when it comes to certain artistic decisions, elements of character design, etc. I especially enjoyed his retrospective thoughts on certain designs, how he'd change them now, and how he felt when creating them.

I can enjoy some of my favourite images with even more context to their creations and existences, and that brings me joy. So, I had to let this artbook be my first read of 2022. Maybe the joy will bleed over, and I won't have quite as much of a reading funk as I did for the majority of 2020 and 2021...?

Either way, I highly recommend this to fans of Cowboy Bebop... if you can manage to get your hands on a copy.