Cowboy Bebop creator Dai Sato is one of the most well-known and respected names in the anime circuit. Sato is a Japanese screenwriter and musician. He’s been involved in many popular animes and games that came out in the last three decades. Other than Cowboy Bebop, his other works include Eureka Seven, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, Wolf’s Rain, etc. His life and work need to be examined in detail, to truly appreciate this genius.
Life of Dai Sato
Dai Sato was born in 1969 in Shimane, Japan. He signed a deal with “Sold Out” at the age of 19 and began his career in broadcast composition and lyric writing. Mr. Sato’s interests subsequently drifted toward the gaming sector. At the age of 23, he met Satoshi Tajiri, the game designer behind Pocket Monsters, and went to work for Game Freak.
Once his contract expired the following year, Sato continued his writing. At the same time, he also expanded his musical horizons into Techno and Club music. Shortly after, Dai Sato and Kengo Watanabe co-founded Frogman Records, a Techno music label. This label company soon evolved into a planning company, his strong suit, and was named as Frognation. In 2007, Mr. Sato left Frognation and launched his new company – Story Riders. He currently serves as its President.
Dai Sato’s Works
Cowboy Bebop and Rise to Fame
Cowboy Bebop was Shinichirō Watanabe’s first project as a solo director. Watanabe, alongwith Dai Sato, weaved magic in this anime. Cowboy Bebop was met with universal acclaim from the moment it first aired. Some of the reviewers even hailed Cowboy Bebop as a “landmark” anime “that will be remembered long after many others have been forgotten”, and went on to call it “one of the greatest anime titles ever”. Rather unknown names in the industry soon turned into household names.
Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex
In 2004, he worked on Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex’s screenplay. This anime took Dai Sato’s popularity to another level. It was another anime that debuted with rave reviews. The characters are all interesting and entertaining to watch. The relationships between these characters give substance to the show. Considering the time when this anime came out, the animation is brilliant. The futuristic world portrayed is believable, and the plot raises some serious questions about the use and misuse of technologies, including those that enhance the human body.
Other works of Dai Sato
Other than Cowboy Bebop (1998), Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex (2002), Mr. Sato’s other notable works include Wolf’s Rain (2003), Samurai Champloo (2004), Psalms of Planets: Eureka Seven (2005), Ergo Proxy (2006), FREEDOM (2006-2008), Eden of the East (2009), Halo Legends: The Package (2010), Tekken: Blood Vengeance (2011), Lupin III: A Woman Called Fujiko Mine (2012) and many more.
In addition to Anime projects, in 2014 Mr. Sato wrote the screen play for his first Japanese TV drama, titled No Con Kid. TV-Tokyo aired the series. The plot traces the development of video games from 1983 to 2013. Then, in 2015, Sato authored Yami no Bansousha : Partner In Darkness, a 5-episode mystery/suspense drama that aired on WOWOW network.
Mr. Sato is still working on several video game projects. He worked on the game Ace Combat 3: Electrosphere in the year 2000. He was acknowledged for his work on Pokemon Ranger: Shadows of Almia. Dai Sato wrote the story for Scared Rider Xechs in 2010. He penned the screenplay for Resident Evil: Revelations. He also worked on Capcom’s Lost Planet spinoff E.X.Troopers, which was released on Sony PS3 and Nintendo 3DS. Sato also worked on Square Enix’s Figure Heads in 2016.
Going by all the projects he has been involved in, there’s no doubt that this man is a genius. And we are fortunate to be alive in an era where we get to witness his work. To those of you who are yet to see some of his works, please find time to do that. You are seriously missing out on some good stuff.
