Book Review: Bleach, Vol 70 by Tite Kubo

 

Bleach, Vol 70       

Author: Tite Kubo

Publisher: Viz Media

American release date: July 4, 2017

Format/Genre/Length: Paperback/Manga/Supernatural/200 pages

Overall Personal Rating: ★★★★★

 

Bazz B has worked hard to get close to Yhwach in order to kill him. But he never expected Jugo to succeed where he himself failed. When Jugo tells Yhwach there must be a mistake, the Quincy tells him that he has seen Jugo’s power, which is the same as his own – the power to share power. And now, years later,  Jugo is trying to prevent Bazz from killing Yhwach, which was the goal all along. What’s up with that?

Grimmjow takes off after one of the Quincies, leaving Ichigo and the others behind, wondering where he went. But Grimmjow ends up poisoned for his troubles. Meanwhile, Kurotsuchi and Kenpachi find themselves face-to-face with an extremely weird Quincy (coming from Kurotsuchi, that’s saying something!). Kurotsuchi attempts to keep Kenpachi from being too impetuous, but that is easier said than done. While the two captains debate how to handle this fellow, Ikkaku, Yumichika, and Nemu discuss just why they can’t interfere with their captains. Namely because they would be severely chewed out for doing so.  They seem uneasy at the idea that Kurotsuchi is about to release his rather poisonous bankai. The Quincy shows itself to be more than they realized… and so does Nemu.

Not a lot of Ichigo et al in this volume, but I suspect his time is coming soon. Only four more volumes to go! This one has more to do with Bazz B and Jugo, but mainly it’s the Kurotsuchi/Kenpachi show, which is well worth the price of admission! Watching the odd Captain of the 12^th Squad is fascinating, as he hasn’t been seen as much in these books as some of the others. But he is really brilliant, in his own quirky way, and it’s a pleasure to watch him in action… albeit, from a distance.

The volume ends on a cliffhanger, naturally. Can’t wait to see how that turns out in the next one!

 

Book Review: Bleach, Vol 45 by Tite Kubo

 

Bleach, Vol 45      

Author: Tite Kubo

Publisher: Viz Media

American release date: August 7, 2012

Format/Genre/Length: Paperback/Manga/Supernatural/192 pages

Overall Personal Rating: ★★★★★

 

Shinji’s sword has an unusual shape… and Aizen has no idea what it can do. But he’s about to find out. Apparently Shinji’s sword changes up to down, front to back, right to left, left to right. Aizen doesn’t seem particularly concerned, but maybe he should look behind him, because here comes Ichigo!

Aizen just loves to taunt people, and he wastes no time trying to chip away at Ichigo’s ego. But the Thirteen Court Guard captains quickly step up and assure Ichigo they will protect him. Aizen turns his attention to Hitsugaya, hitting him where it hurts—Hinamori. But Shunsui takes advantage of Aizen’s preoccupation with the diminutive captain to sneak up on him. Meanwhile, on the sidelines, Gin thinks how clueless they all are regarding Aizen’s powers.

Ichigo is being careful not to witness Aizen’s shikai. But the others, having seen it, are vulnerable to it. Which makes their actions inexplicable to Ichigo, who wonders what they’re doing when they result in one of them being wounded by another one! The Captain General now steps into the fray, determined to take down Aizen himself… even if he dies doing so.

And now it’s everyone against Aizen, with Tosen gone and Gin just standing by. (Wonder why that is?) Will they really be able to take him down? Will the battle for Karakura Town really be over? Or is this just the prelude to something else? I suspect Aizen still has a few tricks up his sleeve, and it won’t be as easy as they hope. Another great volume, look forward to the next!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Book Review: Bleach, Vol 39 by Tite Kubo

 

Bleach, Vol 39       

Author: Tite Kubo

Publisher: Viz Media

American release date: April 3, 2012

Format/Genre/Length: Paperback/Manga/Supernatural/192 pages

Overall Personal Rating: ★★★★★

 

Omaeda thinks he’s rather handily won his battle against the fraccione but suddenly he’s in over his head. Yet when he sees Sai Fon in trouble, it’s Omaeda to the rescue! How can that guy she’s fighting be her equal? But in reality Sai Fon has everything well in hand.

Matsumoto is facing three opponents. They start to argue amongst themselves as to who should sit out the battle, in order to even the odds, but Matsumoto shows them she is more than up to the challenge they present! However, she is surprised by the arrival of Hinamori. And even from his own battle, Hitsugaya is perturbed  by her presence as well, momentarily distracted by his concern for her.

Shunsui decides it’s time to get serious with his Espada opponent, who wants to know why Shunsui has not even drawn his second sword. Naturally he explains why that isn’t necessary. Looks like he’ll have to use both, though, after all. Meanwhile, Ukitake refuses to fight a child, to the child’s dismay.

Matsumoto and Hinamori’s three opponents have combined in a horrible manner to become one horrible opponent, taking out both Matsumoto and Hinamori. Luckily, Hisagi is there to continue the fight and keep them safe. While he does that, Kira sees to his companions’ wounds. Iba enters the fray as well, but the beast is strong, so Captain General Yamamoto himself takes to the field!

And back in Hueco Mundo, the fight continues…

If you don’t like battles, then this part of the Bleach arc is sure to disappoint, but in all honesty, each battle is well done and interesting, as well as necessary. Personally, I could never find them boring. I think they bring out aspects of each combatant’s personality, and we get to see more of them than we generally do. I mean, they’re Soul Reapers, surely you want to understand what makes them so special to Soul Society.

Yes, I admit there isn’t a lot of Ichigo lately, but hey, he’s not the only Soul Reaper out there, just because he’s the main character. Don’t worry, he’ll be back. In the meantime, enjoy watching the others in action. And seeing the old man do battle is priceless. I’ve always enjoyed the relationship between him and Shunsui and Ukitake, the light banter and the give-and-take. Did you know they were the first graduates of the Soul Academy and the first captains?

Very interesting volume of Bleach, but there’s more to come. And at some point, you know Aizen et al will come out of their fiery time-out and get back into the game. Can’t wait!

Book Review: Bleach, Vol 38 by Tite Kubo

 

Bleach, Vol 38      

Author: Tite Kubo

Publisher: Viz Media

American release date: February 7, 2012

Format/Genre/Length: Paperback/Manga/Supernatural/200 pages

Overall Personal Rating: ★★★★★

 

The battle of the lieutenants versus the Fracciones continues. Kira is unimpressed by his opponent’s steel wings. It’s time to show this guy what Kira’s Wabisuke can do. Hisagi’s opponent is Findorr, who keeps dumbing down his skills in order to match Hisagi’s level, which he finds infuriating… and not necessary. Also, Hisagi is beyond tired of the way Findorr keeps saying Exacta. Time to end this thing.

To the Soul Reapers’ dismay, one of the four pillars collapses. Have they lost a comrade? Yumichika wishes to rush to his friend’s side, but Hisage stops him.  Ikkaku is not down for the count, as his opponent, Poww, learns. But Poww isn’t done either, and he is a very big boy, even bigger than Captain Komamura. But the captain has a trick or two up his own sleeve.

Iba berates Ikkaku for his loss and accuses him of holding back and deliberately losing. Of course, Ikkaku doesn’t take the accusation well. Meanwhile, as King Berrigan prepares to send in the next group, to replace those who have been defeated, he is confronted by more of the Soul Reapers, and the battle begins anew! Old man Yamamoto exhorts them to “Defend this ground with all your might! Even if your flesh is torn from your bones, the enemy must not enter!” To which, Shunsui’s response to Ukitake is “Oh dear, it makes me tense to be around old man Yama when he’s like this….”

This volume of Bleach continues the battles from the previous book and then some. Definitely action-packed! One thing I like about Bleach is that it’s not an automatic win for the good guys, ever, and sometimes they do lose. And sometimes they do stupid things. That only goes to show how well Tite Kubo draws his characters, fleshes them out until they become real people.  I love that he infuses his writing with a great deal of humor, such as Shunsui’s comment above, and the banter between Matsumoto and the three female Fracciones she faces, as well as the relationship between Sai Fon and Omaeda. I guess my only real complaint is his tendency to draw most of his women with exaggerated busts, which I find unnecessary. But in all fairness, I am probably not the target demographic he is aiming for.

Another great volume of Bleach, even with no sign of Ichigo. But you’ll remember we left him rescuing Orihime so it’s just a matter of time until we return to that. Looking forward to the next one!

 

Book Review: Bleach, Vol 37 by Tite Kubo

 

Bleach, Vol 37       

Author: Tite Kubo

Publisher: Viz Media

American release date: December 6, 2011

Format/Genre/Length: Paperback/Manga/Supernatural/216 pages

Overall Personal Rating: ★★★★★

 

The unimaginable has happened to the Soul Reapers of Soul Society! They have a traitor in their midst. Traitors, even. None other than Aizen, Tosen, and Ichimaru. Shinji is not surprised, having been suspicious of Aizen from the start, which is why he made him his assistant captain. To keep an eye on him. But Aizen realized that and set Shinji up in a way he could not have foreseen.

 

Before Aizen and his cohorts can finish off Shinji and the others, Kisuke Uruhara and Tessai arrive. Kisuke is confused at what he sees, recognizing hollowfication when he sees it. Tessai tries to attack Aizen and his pals, but they manage to slip away and Kisuke tells him they need to focus on Shinji and his people for now. Good thing he has something prepared for this –  none other than the Hogyoku!

 

When Kisuke and Tessai are unexpectedly arrested, things are not looking good. The Council has determined to destroy Shinji and the others, as being Hollows, and send Kiskue into permanent exile in the World of the Living, but the arrival of a deus ex machine changes things, hopefully for the better.

 

Back in the present, the Soul Reapers realize that Aizen et al know about the fake Karakura Town, and have made their own plans. The Old Man Captain has anticipated them and has set four trusted Soul Reapers at the four corners of the infrastructure of the fake town – Ikkaku, Yumichika, Kira, and Hisagi. To keep Aizen at bay, the old man surrounds the traitors with a huge wall of fire. It’ll take them time to get out of this in order to aid their subordinates.

 

Let the battles begin!

 

Watching the past, and seeing what happened to Shinji and the others, is just heartbreaking. Makes you want to see Aizen suffer greatly for what he did, the heartless, gutless coward. Good thing they have Kisuke on their side, and he is nothing if not brilliant. Still, makes you wonder about what might have been.

 

I love the battles between the lieutenants and the Fraccions, each memorable in its own way. I laughed at Ikkaku’s comment that he thought he heard Yumichika laugh, but surely not in the middle of a battle.

 

The scenes with Alquiorra and Orihime are great. He informs her that Aizen no longer needs her and that she will die there, but she insists that her friends will save her. He scoffs, but she tells him, “My heart is already with them.” And of course Ichigo proves her correct by his arrival.

 

The battles have already begun, but these are powerful enemies. Can these four handle them, or will the captains need to step in? Another great volume, looking forward to the next one!