Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Bleach 555 Review - "The Hero"

Bleach 555 Review - "The Hero"
Written by: ClayDragon



In which nothing much actually happens.

Firstly, it turns out that Ichigo's time with Squad Zero has come to an end, as he appears at the exit wearing a new outfit. Apparently, he isn't going back the way he came, as the pillar he arrived in has disappeared. Instead, Senjumaru summons a huge spiral staircase, and Tenjirō tells Ichigo that it will take him a week to reach the bottom. Instead of Ichigo getting mad about the time the journey would take, he instead accepts it, and states that it'll take him half a day if he hurries.  

Ichibei appears behind him and notes that Ichigo stopped overreacting, and says that he doesn't have to worry about the Quincies, as the invasion started three hours ago. Slightly annoyed, Ichigo dashes down the stairs, leaving the rest of Squad Zero behind. Kirio appears, and throws Ichigo a rice ball for him to eat. As they watch him leave, the members of Squad Zero discuss how Ichigo has matured since he arrived, and how he's become a proper Soul Reaper.

"Where is my fashion advisor?"
As Ichigo heads to the Soul Society, he contacts Urahara, whom he tells to resist until he arrives,  as Ichigo intends to do something about the invasion. He hangs up, and notices that Urahara didn't say anything about the condition of the Soul Society, and resolves to get there even quicker. 

Meanwhile, Shinji and Komamura are confronting Bambietta, who has activated her Vollständig. Shinji just has time to ask what happened before an energy blast fires towards him. As for Bambietta's subordinates, wings have appeared on them, and they realise that Bambietta has activated her Vollständig. They then say that Bambietta's the last person who should use it, and that the fight will only last one second.

"Yeah, maybe I should have mentioned that earlier. Oh well."

To be honest, I was disappointed with this chapter. Nothing much happened, and although some questions were raised, it just didn't interest me. We never saw Ichigo meet the Spirit King, and it seems like his exit from the Squad Zero barracks was rushed. The remaining bit of his adventures there will probably be shown through flashback, but that robs the moment of some of its excitement and urgency.

"Is your refrigerator running?"

What did interest me was that Ōetsu was nowhere to be seen as Ichigo left. Maybe he'll appear later doing something interesting, or maybe he's training Renji. Speaking of which, I would have thought Ichigo would have left Squad Zero at the same time as Rukia, Renji and Byakuya, but apparently that won't be the case. Seeing more of those three would be interesting, as Rukia and Byakuya haven't really been seen since they recovered.

Also, the fact that Bambietta's subordinates got Vollständig-like wings as well was interesting, and it hints to me that they're maybe connected to her somehow. Seeing as they reacted with surprise at the appearance of their wings, it implies that they're very rarely used, and maybe their powers are linked to those of their boss.

Wings just sprouted from your back, you could act a little more surprised.

Finally, it's become apparent that most people see the theft of the Bankais as a waste of time, seeing as how they were recovered so easily. On one hand, it's easy to think that. However, there is one thing that happened: Yhwach still has Yamamoto's Zanka no Tachi. And, due to Yamamoto being deader than dead, it seems very unlikely that Urahara and co will find a way to prevent Yhwach from using it. In fact, it may very well be that the Quincies stole the Bankais in the first place as a distraction so Yhwach could steal Yamamoto's.

Good Things: Ichigo is heading to the battlefield.

                         Shinji and Komamura vs Bambietta is shaping up.

Bad Things:    Lack of momentum.

                         No Rukia, Renji or Byakuya.

                         Major possibility of flashback later.

Manta Rating: 2/5


ClayDragon:
ClayDragon is currently studying Physics at university, and is constantly bewildered by it. The main method of contacting him is his Gmail account at kyleroulston1993@gmail.com. The alternative is his Skype account at kyleroulston1993. When not playing games or reading, he can be found with his head in his hands whilst trying in vain to understand quantum physics. His apathy knows no limits.

9 comments:

  1. I know I'm going to sound irritating, but I called it!
    Seriously, in the previous Chapter Reviews, I joked about the similarities between Ichigo training with the Zero Squad and Gokuu's training with the King of Worlds. And yes, I know it's a used trope and it didn't really rip-off Dragon Ball, but in this chapter, there is seriously a Snake Way in Bleach, presented as a staircase.
    And somehow Kubo managed to screw up such a simple plot element.
    In Dragon Ball, Snake Way took weeks for Gokuu to cross, and after Kaiō's training, Goku could cross Snake Way much faster.
    In Bleach, the staircase was introduced at the last minute, and required Kuwabara- I mean, what's his name, ah, yes, Tenjirō has to tell everyone take it would take a week to cross, in which Ichigo say he can cross faster. Show, don't Tell. Oh, and it was paced better in DB.
    There were more similarities than I thought, now that I actually think about it. The main character is trained by a deity, and has to later fight people of his kind, meanwhile, friends that were once enemies, are also being trained by a deity. Or maybe I'm over-thinking this.
    Oh and on a lighter note, Manga-Panda's hilariously bad translation reaches new stupidity, just look:
    http://www.mangareader.net/bleach/555/9
    "Eat this if you get angry on the way!"
    "If I get angry fighting I'll hide somewhere and eat it!"
    You eat food when you're angry? Yahahaha! Can you just imagine Ichigo getting pissed, and then he eats a rice ball and then becomes all smiles? That's just too funny!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I suppose it is similar to DBZ, although I still think the first appearance of Ulquiorra and Yammy (http://www.mangareader.net/94-644-17/bleach/chapter-190.html) was the biggest reference to DBZ I've ever seen.
      With regards to the similarities to the main characters' situations, I guess they are pretty similar, although I'm not too sure that's a bad thing at the moment. Given how DBZ had a huge influence on almost every Shonen series, it's only natural that they'd either reference it or have a similar plot point or two.
      And I can imagine Ichigo running away from a fight, hiding in some rubble, and eating the rice ball like a squirrel.

      Delete
    2. Just a bit of trivia, I think Toriyama said something about enemies appearing in pairs.
      He said it was easier to reveal more about their character and situation when they are in pairs. So when Vegeta and Nappa appeared, how they talked to each showed what was going on better. You'll notice there were 2 of Pilaf subordinates, Commander Red had Officer Black, Tenshinhan and Chaozu, Piccolo had Piano, Artificial Humans #17 and #18, and later Babidi and Dabura.

      Delete
    3. That's a good point, I never really realised that. I guess it would be easier, considering you can have the two characters interact with each other to reveal more about their personalities.

      Delete
  2. The only good thing about this chapter was the hot babe with the wings.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That's not good at all.
      Did I mention lack of personality?
      Bambietta should turn into a deer. That would be cool.
      http://www.mangareader.net/bleach/555/17
      OMG Bambi's Volkswagen-sorry again Germans, that's not funny anymore- is powerful! What does her random boring cookie-cutter subordinate say?
      "She's stupid."
      Can't wait for next chapter.

      Delete
    2. I hope the subordinates get a bit of development, it wouldn't be very interesting if they were just flat characters.
      I think we've already had a character turn into a deer (http://images3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20090623235741/bleach/en/images/a/a9/Cierva_Release.jpg), although Bambietta would probably suit it better, if only for the obvious pun.

      Delete
  3. I think claydragon gave up on you, he hasn't responded

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Apologies, I've been snowed under with work at the moment. I do try to reply to comments on my articles, but sometimes it does take a while for me to find the time.

      Delete