I almost let this go 'cause I'm fairly burned out on the subject, but what the heck...
He could very well be dead. Or alive. I believe the ending is meant to be ambiguous, and statements by Shinichiro Watanabe pretty much bear that out. From the first time I saw it I felt he was alive.
As far as whether those men there at the end would help Spike - those weren't necessarily Vicous' men standing there. With Vicious gone, Spike would be the heir apparent of the leadership of the Red Dragon. It's not spelled out in the show, but in the first volume of the show's Anime Guide, it does say that Mao Yenrai was grooming Spike to be his successor. With Vicious out of the way, it was Spike's party. In fact, as he's coming down the stairs, the guys LOWER their weapons. If they had been loyal to Vicious, I think they would have shot him right then and there.
I'm also convinced the movie was a dream, and probably takes place after the events of Real Folk Blues - I say that because of that odd scene after Spike is shot and hurled from the monorail, that blurry image of Jet from Spike's POV lying on the couch telling him he almost didn't make it. Then "he's dead. He was dead from the beginning. Just like you, Spike." Who was he talking about, and what did he mean, "almost didn't make it?" That's a subject for debate whether he was talking about Vicious or Vincent. Not a debate I'm at all interested in, I just throw that out there for y'all to have fun with it. ;D
I find it telling that the film starts with Spike lying on the couch with Jet trying to get him up. Spike just rolls over. Then the very end of the movie, he's still on that couch. Nothing showing him getting up from the couch or lying back down.
Either way, it's a cool story and a very cool movie. We make of it what we will. :)
Great show too! It's my gateway into anime and opened a whole world of awesome stories!
Sapphire and Steel have been assigned
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