Faye Valentine

Faye Valentine is one of the main characters from the Cowboy Bebop anime.

Faye was a wanted bounty head and a member of the bounty hunting crew aboard the Bebop.

Appearance
Faye is shown to be an attractive young woman by many of the men she encounters throughout the series, possessing short, dark purple hair,green eyes and a voluptuous, buxom figure. In the Cowboy Bebop manga, while being described a wanted serial killer they are hunting, she states that she fits their preferences as an "Asian Beauty" with "straight black hair". The video tape from her past also suggests that she was from Singapore, where black hair is a common physical trait.

Her outfit, consisting of shorts, white boots, nude thigh-high stockings, a skimpy undershirt with a red overcoat worn loosely, and her pixie bob hairstyle gives the impression that she is an aged homage to the character of Mathilda from the movie The Professional (known as Leon: the Professional in the UK). Just like Mathilda, she has been dealt an unfair hand by the world and is now street-smart and brave because of this. The evidence as well for such a homage can be deepened by the fact that Faye was born in the year 1994, the same year Leon: The Professional was released.

The Beta tape found in Speak Like A Child, suggests that Faye has changed a lot from the innocent girl she used to be. As someone who constantly lives in an environment where she must seize every opportunity to find some money, dressing in the way she does makes people pay more attention to her and also distracts them long enough for her to take advantage of them. She is seen doing this in many instances throughout Cowboy Bebop, with the first being her first appearance in Honky Tonk Women.

Personality
Faye is an opportunistic, grumpy, arrogant, selfish, and lazy character; often seen lying around while the others work on a bounty and spending a lot of her time taking care of her appearance. She presents a long series of bad habits such as pathological gambling, alcoholism, excessive consumption of cigarettes and cigars, unwarranted violence, and forcing work on others. She usually is forgiven for each one. Because of her abrasive personality, she often clashes with her companions.

She behaves very provocatively and often tries to seduce men for her own benefit, but she claims to hate feeling desired and is rarely seen romantically interested in someone.

Faye avoids trusting anyone and is used to never staying too long in the same place because of her creditors. Although she tries to remain strong, in reality she hides a deep emotional vulnerability and often is seen to nourish a great deal of sympathy and empathy for her traveling companions in spite of herself.

Although for the entire duration of the series the distinctive characteristics of Faye are her sarcasm and presumption, her character noticeably develops. In fact, she begins to trust her companions, understand the value of friendship and even learns to love Jet and Ed in her own way. On different occasions, she runs away from the Bebop frightened by her affection for her companions (having become used to the idea of "leaving before being abandoned"), but she always duly returns, the Bebop being the only place she can consider her "home." This attitude, as noted by Jet, seems to stem from a need for attention and is an attempt to prove her companions' affection for her.

Her relationship with Spike is the most complex of the series. Most of the time they do nothing but bicker, but, in moments of danger, Faye has always shown concern for Spike, and Spike has shown some empathy for Faye's situation. Faye has also always taken care of Spike when he was injured, but she still kept a bitter attitude. The affection between them is quite obvious, and many have speculated the possibility that Faye could be in love with Spike. Watanabe has said on the subject, "Sometimes I'm asked the question, 'What does Spike think of Faye?' I think that he likes her quite a bit. But he's not a straightforward person and makes sure not to show it."

Abilities
She's introduced in a gunfight and demonstrates cool under fire throughout the series — at least when things are going according to plan. While she's an Ace Pilot and sharpshooter no matter what, she tends to get a little hysterical in the face of the unexpected — interestingly, this is especially the case when she's forced to act in the interest of others, such as when they're trying to save Ganymede from an incoming missile attack, the similar situation with Vincent's bombs in the movie, and when she's trying to save Whitney from the cops, over his protests.

Trivia

 * Edward sees her as her best buddy next to Ein. Although it takes a while, Faye eventually warms up to her.
 * She gets captured and tied up more than once.