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NEWS: Netflix Produces Live-Action Cowboy Bebop Series

Maybe to a certain extent (such as Super effectively booting it out of canon) but given elements of have it cropped up in other media you wouldn't know that

GT was extremely popular in Japan, that's why.

Dragon Ball GT had a very divisive response among fans in Japan and worldwide. But how did the series producer handle this divisive response?

In a recently translated interview for a 2005 Dragon Box release in Japan, Dragon Ball GT producer Kozo Morishita admits that while the series had naysayers, he believed they would be more accepting of the series once it was over.

Morishita elaborated with "There were many fans who valued it for the way that it took the 'anything goes' plot progression of the original manga and went even further with it. At the same time, there were those who said it took the 'anything goes' attitude too far. There were fans who wondered 'why are you ruining the original?' and also those who thought that the 'ruined' parts were what made it interesting."

But Morishita took the criticism in stride, "Perhaps Dragon Ball GT pushed away some of those who had been fans from the very beginning of the manga’s run, but it also created many new fans, and maybe Goku has been very important to them too."

Reflecting on the series Morishita admits that the series just didn't have original series creator Akira Toriyama as a security blanket, "Thinking about it now, perhaps Dragon Ball GT appears separate from the sense of security of a 'Akira Toriyama work.' However, I am certain that even fans who were naysayers will be convinced [when] they watch the final episode of Dragon Ball GT."

Speaking of the different regions, what do you believe the Japanese fans want compared to the North America fans?

GT is popular with fans overseas. In Japan, it’s not as popular.

When it aired in Japan, GT's ratings got steadily lower. The highest rated episode is episode 2; the lowest in 21, but the average episode rating per story arc declined from 15.1% for the dragon ball hunt to 13.6% for the Evil Dragons. In contrast, DB's average was 21.2%, and Z's was 20.1%. The fact that it ended at 64 episodes compared to the long runs the DB and DBZ anime had is probably a sign that it didn't go over as well as Toei had hoped. (GT's done better on home release in Japan, possibly because it has no cheaper manga counterpart for people to buy instead like DB and DBZ, and possibly because by the time it was finally released nostalgia had kicked in. It seems like these days, GT is getting the most exposure through DB Heroes, which is pretty popular and prominently features many elements from GT.)

Myself, I hope they succeed. It would be like breaking a curse. And it would be fun to watch. It just faces a high bar to get over within the fandom because of the fandom's "this is part of me, don't mess with it" fears. Comic book movies have succeeded, so maybe this could too. Not replying to anyone in particular, just my two bits.

No, GT was not at all "extremely popular" in Japan.

There are plenty of interviews with the Japanese creators stating how divisive or poorly received it was over there.

Imagine if they made Vicious into some kind of black-wearing hipster with an odd bird pet, and wields a sword in gun fights because he's edgy and nihilistic.

Quote:

The first episode of the new Cowboy Bebop is written by Chris Yost who worked on Thor: The Dark World and Thor: Ragnarok.

Typically, I reserve judgment until I see the finished work. However, I'm making an exception after reading this as there are two issues wrong with the quote.

1) Inexperienced writer