Spike Spiegel

Spike Spiegel is the main protagonist of the anime and manga series Cowboy Bebop. He is a bounty hunter on the spaceship Bebop and travels in space with Jet, Faye, Ed, & Ein, and the former friend of main antagonist Vicious.

He is voiced by Koichi Yamedera in the Japanese version and Steven Blum in the English version.

Appearance
Spike is 27 years-old and tall and thin in appearance. He has fluffy dark-green hair and reddish-brown eyes. He has his brown hair in an afro. His outfit consists of an all-blue suit and trousers with a yellow shirt underneath.

Personality
One of the recurring themes surrounding Spike's character is how he views himself and his life. He claims that one eye - his right one, the prosthetic - can only see the present, and the other - the left, his real eye - can only see the past. This is revisited by a close-up on Spike's left eye every time he has a flashback of his life before coming aboard the Bebop. He seems to regard his false death as real in some way, saying that after that day, he had "merely been living a dream". (During Session 25 when Spike has a flashback of the last time he saw Julia, the close-up shows both Spike's eyes, perhaps implying that his future and past are now the same.)

When he is not working, Spike is very laid back, sarcastic, and lively to the dismay of his crew mates. He is typically found either resting on the couch or reading magazines. Spike's philosophy seems to be based on the ancient samurai ideals of immediacy, such as considering oneself as dead and the idea of death as being an awakening from a dream, which are both elements of bushido illustrated in the Hagakure. His pet hates are children, pets, and women with attitudes. Ironically, all the members of the Bebop besides himself and Jet, (Ed, Ein and Faye, respectively) fall into these categories, as discussed in session 9.

Snarky and rough as he is, Spike still has a good heart and is more than willing to help out others without expecting anything in return, which is rather ironic considering his line of work. A good example of this is in session 7, when Victoria Terpsichore offered him a wad of cash, and he only took a single note while saying the rest was for her husband.

Spike's star sign is Cancer, which fits with his inability to let go of the past.

Abilities
Spike makes use of sleight of hand techniques to win card games, pickpocket, and slip things onto other people unnoticed. He is also shown to sneak up on enemies through disguise or quiet movement. He is proficent with weaponry and hand-to-hand combat skills. He is a skilled martial artists and a practitioner of Jeet Kune Do. Spike is also a pilot and flies a converted Asteroid racer called Swordfish 2, Which is armed with four machine guns, missile pylons, and a plasma cannon.

History
Spike was a rising member of the Red Dragon Crime Syndicate, when he worked with his then partner, Vicious. Both were mentored by Mao Yenrai. Badly injured after a shoot-out in the slums on Mars, Spike stumbled to Julia's home, who at that time was Vicious' girlfriend. The pair fell in love while she nursed him back to health. Spike decided to leave the syndicate with Julia. Vicious informed Julia that he will kill Spike, or Spike and Julia would both face death for her betrayal. Spike apparently managed to fake his own death by engaging in a gunfight alone in a church against unidentified opponents, which allowed Red Dragon to forget about him. He waited for Julia so they could escape and be free, but she never arrived.

Some time after his faked death, Spike met the former ISSP cop turned bounty hunter Jet Black, and became partners. Spike moved onto Jet's ship, the Bebop, and the two men worked together for three years before the other crew members joined.

Throughout the series hints and flashbacks of Spike's past are revealed. He comes face to face wiith Vicious once more in the fifth episode, when Vicious lures Spike out of hiding by assassinating Mao Yenrai and kidnapping Faye. They duel each other, but survive the encounter. They meet a second time on Callisto during a botched drug transaction, but Vicious manages to escape.

In the final episode, Spike and Juila reunite and continue their plans to escape the Red Dragons. They fight their way out, but juila is shot and killed. Spike returns to the Bebop for a meal with Jet, and the two share a moment of understanding as Spike relates his life's situation to his partner. As he leaves to settle the score with Vicious, he is confronted by Faye. He tells Faye the story behind his cybernetic eye and the effect it had on his outlook on life. Faye asks why Spike is leaving to throw away his life. Spike answers that he isn't leaving to die, but rather to see if he really is alive. He then departs to confront the past he abandoned three years before. He storms the Red Dragon headquarters, killing many of the members, and then he and Vicious confront each other.

After a brief clash, Spike and Vicious exchange blows simultaneously, and Vicious dies. Spike recalls Juila's final words to him, It's all ... a dream ..." before descending the staircase, where he is confronted by the remainder of the Red Dragons. Mimicking a gun with his fingers, Spike utters a final word, "Bang", smiles, and collapses.

Spike's fate at the end of the series is left open-ended. It is implied that Spike may have died from wounds sustained in his final duel with Vicious and the Red Dragons (the collapse, the fadin star, the angelic choir). However, in an interview, Watanabe stated, "I've never officially said that he died. At this point, I can tell you that I'm not sure if he's alive or dead." He aslo stated that he believes fans would be upset if there was a continuation.