Personally, I like the slice of life approach of the earlier episodes, the characters coming together and engaging in some pretty neat battle scenes and adventures. The characters were likeable and fun to watch and the stand-alone plot of each episode was often heart-rendering, funny or outright enjoyable. However, I agree that the long-term plot of the show was a bit beh, the final showdown, the antagonist; it all felt a little weak (but Spike’s final scene was damn good). I liked how they all went their seperate ways, no happy ending bullshit and I like that it was done well. Cowboy Bebop was a good show and deserves all the credit it receives.
The soundtrack suited the show, I was never into the music personally, but it did justice to the content.