Keiko Nobumoto, Writer of Cowboy Bebop, Dies at 57
Keiko Nobumoto, the writer of some of the most influential anime, passed away this month after a long battle with esophageal cancer.
Keiko Nobumoto is the writer of Cowboy Bebop, Macross Plus, and some of the other most iconic and influential modern anime classics of the 1990s and 2000s. She passed away on December 1st following a battle with esophageal cancer.
Dai Sato Announces the Loss
The news was confirmed by fellow anime writer Dai Sato in a Facebook post late last week. Nobumoto and Sato worked had worked together on Cowboy Bebop, Wolf’s Rain, and Samurai Champloo.
According to Sato’s post, Nobumoto’s family held a small, private service on December 4th. Sato referred to her as “the person who guided me as a master.”
Keiko Nobumato retired to her home in Hokkaido, Japan last year. It was there she succumbed to the disease after a long battle.
The Work of Keiko Nobumato
Nobumoto was born on March 13, 1964 in Hokkaido, Japan. She worked as a nurse for some time before pursuing a career in animation and screenwriting.
Her writing career finally started in 1989 when shew on the Fuji Television Young Screenplay Prize. After that, she seemingly never stopped being in the top of her field.
Her early career included Tobé! Kujira no Peek, live action World Apartment Horror in 1991, and Hiroshima ni Ichiban Densha ga Hashita in 1993. But she would go on to write some of the most beloved shows in the genre throughout her career.
She had writing credits on beloved favorites like Cowboy Bebop (1998-1999), Wolf’s Rain (2003), and Samurai Champloo (2004). Nobumato was also a production assistant on Akira (1988) and a scenario supervisor on the video game Kingdom Hearts (2002).
Nobumato was also a producer on the 2021 live action Cowboy Bebop adaptation. Love the live action version or hate it, only popular and beloved shows even get to make the attempt.
Nobumato’s Legacy
All of Keiko Nobumato’s work always has a very specific writing style. It was a little funky, very cool, and always deeply entrenched in the humanity of her characters and their stories.
This can perhaps be seen best in the nine episodes of Cowboy Bebop that she personally wrote. This includes “Asteroid Blues”, “My Funny Valentine”, “Jupiter Jazz”, and “The Real Folk Blue”.
It’s never difficult to recognize one of Nobumato’s projects with their comedy and heart. Her writing has easily been some of the best in the industry since her entry into it in the 90’s.
Multiple titles which are somehow beloved by every walk of anime fan. It goes without saying that her unique voice and style will be sorely missed by anime fans.
Which of Keiko Nobumato’s works will you be re-watching to honor her memory? Which of her projects is your favorite? Let us know in the comments!
Ja Ne, Adventurers!
