Please bear with me; it's just that there are a few common misconceptions about Gren that I would like to discuss. And perhaps throw in an opinion or two.

HIS CHEST
First off, many people have called Gren a hermaphrodite, which he is not. The definition of a hermaphrodite is a person who has both male and female sex organs, and the last time I checked Gren didn't have any ovaries. Yes, he has breasts, but they're not a sex organ. His breasts might even have gone away given time, since that's often the case when people's hormones are thrown out of whack by drugs.

I've also seen him referred to on Wikipedia as a transwoman, another thing which he is not. He didn't choose to grow a pair of breasts as part of his identity; again, it was the side-effect of drugs he took while in prison. Said drugs also probably gave him his feminine figure, since the opposite sex hormones can redistribute the body's fat to make it appear more like the other sex.

But then what about his comment "I am both, but I am neither"? It very well may just be his acceptance of his current form. When you look at all the pictures from his youth, he doesn't seem to be trying to be anything but a man. At very most, I would say that he is androgynous or altogether genderless. As for his bout of cross-dressing at the end, I personally think there were two reasons for that: one, he needed a disguise, and two, he wanted Vicious to see what he had done to him. But that is strictly my opinion.

ORIENTATION
As far as his sexuality goes, I'm part of the camp that believes him to be gay, and I've thought that from the moment he sad he wasn't interested in women. He did mention this twice to Faye so I don't think it should be taken lightly. Sure, he never made any advances towards Vicious, but he seemed (to me) to be a person interested more in the emotional than the physical. He wasn't looking for a one night stand, he was looking for a bond much like one forged in battle. Besides, I'm a hopeless romantic and I'd like to think that scene with the music box meant something.

So why didn't they mention it more explicitly then? The real question is did they have to? Gren's sexuality wasn't vital to the storyline, just the fact that he had strong feelings for Vicious. The Powers That Be showed they weren't afraid to include gay people in the show, from the two men that Faye bursts in on in Session 8 to Julius the cross-dressing prostitute who works not too far from Gren. Cowboy Bebop takes place over 50 years in the future and worrying about the whole gay/straight thing is so early 21st century.

THE END
Lastly, some people are confused as to how Gren died; I've seen people say that it was the drug use that killed him, but there's no actual proof of that. In fact, I'm inclined to agree with Spike's statement that Gren suffered internal injuries when Vicious' missile hit his ship because I don't see how Gren's health could decrease so drastically with such perfect timing. Who knows, if Gren had stayed away from Vicious he might have lead a long and healthy life.

That is all.