The late 1990s saw a huge surge of anime coming to the United States thanks to the success of series such as Pokémon, Sailor Moon, and Gundam. One of the most impactful series, however, was Cowboy Bebop, which ran in Japan from 1998-1999 before arriving in North America via Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim block in 2001.

The story focused on bounty hunter Spike Spiegel and his partner Jet Black in the future of 2071, who are later joined by the con artist Fay Valentine, hacker Edward Wong, and the genetically enhanced corgi dog Ein. Each character’s story arc gets a focus throughout the series, though the main plot follows Spike as he battles against his rival and former partner Vicious, who harbors a grudge against Spike.

Cowboy Bebop was Shinichiro Watanabe’s directorial debut, who mixed several genres in the series, balancing classic detective and noir tropes with action and comedy. A film, Cowboy Bebop: The Movie released in 2001 in Japan and two years later in the US.

The series received critical acclaim in every market it was released in, and the English dub was also widely praised for the voice acting involved. It picked up multiple Anime Grand Prix awards in Japan when it launched, and has been listed as one of the single best anime series of all-time by publications in both Japan and in America.

Now, fans of the series have the opportunity to buy an animation cel from a pivotal moment in the series. Hake’s is selling the Cowboy Bebop “The Real Folk Blues: Part 2” Spike Spiegel production animation cel in their premier Auction #245. The 9” x 10-1/2” 12-field cel shows Spike in the final episode of the series which saw a wounded Spike confronted by armed members of the Red Dragon Syndicate after his final battle with Vicious. He points his finger at them and says the series’ final line, “Bang” before he collapses. The cel is from the climactic end sequence just before Spike extends his finger.

The Spike Spiegel animation cel is part of Hake’s 1,592-lot auction. It is now open for bidding at hakes.com and will close on Tuesday and Wednesday, November 18-19, 2025.