THE UNSEEN WORLD

There are many things in Knockin' on Heaven's Door that can't be seen by the unaided eye. Most obvious are the nanomachine-induced butterflies and the nanomachines/antinanomachines themselves. Though cash appears at one point in the movie, money tends to be unseen and transferred electronically. Furthermore, the fact that the movie emphasizes the traditional meaning of Halloween and discusses the afterlife should underline the thematic relevance of the unseen world. What you can't see not only can hurt you, but it very likely represents a reality "more real" or more important than the one in which you're currently living. This theme should come as no surprise to those who have seen the TV series--in particular, the episodes where Spike ruminates on his dreamlike life, or Session 23 ("Brain Scratch," which immediately follows KOHD). I have also been building up to it in my previous examinations of Spike, Vincent, and the use of butterflies.

Though there are some specific religious elements and images in the series (including but not limited to the Catholic church in Session 5, the Star of David in Session 23, the nun in Session 24, and the cross upon Vicious is hung in Session 25), I don't consider Cowboy Bebop a religious series in even a broad sense; like many other anime series and movies, it uses elements of Judeo-Christian religion as literary symbols and references without explicitly promoting, criticizing, or otherwise dealing with said theology. However, while it is not a religious series, it is definitely a spiritual one, and the movie only emphasizes this aspect of the anime. In the end, Cowboy Bebop is not about bounty hunting and making ends meet; it's about living life not only for today and tomorrow, but for the life that follows this one. For Spike and for Vincent, this life is merely a dream, and they each wake up from that dream when they die. Where they go Cowboy Bebop doesn't say, but at the very least the anime causes us fans to think while we're being entertained: are we living in the real world?