Naruto Chapter 609 - The End Review / Thoughts (ナルト)

                                             Naruto talking trash to Obito

I know it's been a while since my last review, but since this was a pretty important chapter I thought now was as good a time as any to try and start again! Anyway, on to chapter 609 itself!

I have to say this chapter was great, seriously, it's the first time in quite a while a chapter has left me feeling excited and wanting to see what happens next so much. Naruto himself was actually cool and pretty badass with the way he was speaking to Obito and basically telling him straight to his face that he was going to kick his ass. It's not often Naruto does something or behaves in a way that makes me like or respect him, but this time was definitely one of the occasions where he pulled it off and actually had me willing him on to live up to his words.

Another thing I liked about this chapter was that it was one of the few occasions where some kind of strategy was used instead of just either using brute strength to overwhelm someone or else just run head first in to them. Granted it was Kurama's idea to deliberately get Kakashi caught by Obito and be sucked in to the other dimension, but if anything that just goes to show that Kurama isn't just all about his power either, he can be a valuable asset in more ways than one. Some people will no doubt question why Kakashi didn't just Raikiri through Obito when he was sent to the other dimension and had the perfect opportunity to do so, however, who is to say that Kurama gave him that much chakra to begin with? Or even if he did have enough, I doubt he was thinking too clearly at the time what with everything that has been going on recently.

Lastly, of course I can't talk about the chapter without mentioning the end of it, yes, I am of course referring to the fact the Juubi has finally been revived! Ever since the plan was revealed about its' planned revival there have been questions about whether it would actually happen or not, but Kishi has indeed decided on bringing it in to things. Just how on earth anyone or anything is going to be able to stop it is a mystery, most of the guys on the side of the alliance will have used up the majority of their chakra already, and arguably the only one with any chance in the first place was Naruto. Madara obviously wants it to happen so he is going to be happy, Obito has been scheming to bring it back from the start and probably couldn't stop it now even if he wanted, so the only possible way I can think of is with whatever Sasuke and Orochimaru are up to.

Whoever Sasuke is going to meet could have the answer on how to stop it, or indeed whatever was in that scroll Suigetsu gave to him. Right now things are looking bad for the alliance and for the world, but this being Naruto and being a Shounen series we know things will work out in the end. At the moment my money has to be on Sasuke somehow being involved in stopping the Juubi, but please feel free to leave your thoughts on it in the comments below!

So yes, Naruto managed to get a really exciting and enjoyable chapter here with 609, and it makes me happy to see that Kishimoto is still able to write good quality chapters from time to time after fans have had to deal with so many disappointing ones. All I can really say is roll on next week!

Naruto Chapter 604 - Meet Again, And Then..... Review / Thoughts (ナルト)

                            Kakashi and Obito - But What Happened to Rin?


After reading Naruto chapter 604, there is only one question on most peoples' mind right now - Why did Kakashi kill Rin?

Of course there are already plenty of doubts about the whole thing, and with Madara and Zetsu involved that's no real surprise.

Anyway, this was the first chapter in a while that actually brought something to the table that felt fresh. Ever since the reveal of Tobi being Obito things have played out exactly as so many people predicted, and as such the chapters felt almost like they had been read before which meant they were rather boring. However, a lot of people have been curious about how Rin died, and so with this chapter we finally get to see something to care about again.

I personally don't believe for a second that Kakashi did that to Rin for any sinister reasons, and I have my doubts whether he actually did it at all. Madara has clearly wanted to use Obito from the start, but with Obito being so reluctant and constantly talking about his friends, it would come as no surprise if Madara used Zetsu to make something like this happen to make Obito easier to manipulate.

Don't get me wrong, if this had been pre-Kakashi Gaiden a case for Kakashi actually being responsible could have been made. We know back then he would have followed any rule laid out for him, and if killing Rin happened to be vital in a mission succeeding, he may well have done so. After Obito's words and his later death however, it was obvious Kakashi was a changed person, and killing Rin after the promise he made seems out of the question.

What with the way Obito's vision was impaired briefly when he felt the pain in his eye while on the way, it could very easily have been some kind of Genjutsu he was put under without him realising, and then of course the Kakashi and Rin thing would be perfect for breaking his spirit. Another theory I have heard is that it may be a couple of transformed Zetsu clones pretending to be Kakashi and Rin - Again this is more than possible, we know Obito needs a reason to turn down the wrong path, and for Zetsu setting up such a scenario would be extremely easy.

The only other thing that has been predicted is that maybe Rin was being controlled or just generally something forcing her to behave in a way that meant Kakashi had no choice but to kill her. I for one don't believe it, as it's a needlessly more difficult path for Kishi to go down, and the look of shock on Rin's face to me proved it can't be something she wanted or expected from Kakashi.

Overall this was a pretty good chapter, it finally broke away from the very predictable nature of the previous few chapters and finally we have some kind of talking point to go over as well.

Will Aizen Return in Bleach?! (ブリーチ)

                                          Will Aizen ever make his return in Bleach? 


So then,  it's been a long time since my last post, but since I had some free time and a topic in mind I decided to give this a try and see how things go! Of course, the subject of this post is whether Aizen will one day end up returning to Bleach, so time to get started!


Truth be told, I think it's practically a guarantee that Aizen will one day make a return in some way, shape or form. Will I be happy if he does? Considering I am a big fan of his, then yes I would definitely be very happy to see him.

Of course liking him isn't any kind of reason for why I think he will come back, so thankfully Tite Kubo has done a good job of leaving the possibility open all by himself. Think about it - Aizen could have so easily been sealed away forever or killed during his epic scale battle with Ichigo, but instead he was merely captured and locked away by Soul Society. If Kubo had no intention of using Aizen again, why would he have kept him alive? To have him there forever rotting away in some dungeon would make little sense, and it certainly doesn't fit in with the way Kubo thinks or writes.

Another reason for his return could be because Aizen has had the privilege of a massive buildup all throughout the Bleach series, no villain could really match up with all he has done and the massive role he has played in everything. We now have the Stern Ritter / Quincy as villains, and while I personally believe Kubo has done a fantastic job thus far with the arc, there is little doubt that currently the villains need more depth to them. I do not doubt Kubo will reveal and add a lot more to them, afterall, Kubo himself has said this will be the longest arc of the series, so he has plenty of time to get such things sorted. However, there is no denying that for the majority of Bleach fans, the main villain will always be Aizen.

In an interview earlier this year (before the current arc started), Tite Kubo himself commented on how he hopes to see Aizen again someday which says an awful lot coming from the author himself. Obviously what he would have liked at the time and what he will do at a later date can always change, but I do believe Kubo deliberately left Aizen alive so he had that option later down the line. Despite all the trolling Aizen has done (or perhaps because of his trolling), he has gained a considerable fan base, not to mention even people who hate him or the Manga will read just to see what crazy thing he does next.

While there is still plenty of potential for the Quincy storyline, I would be very surprised if Aizen does not get involved in some way. Will it be by being the mastermind behind the Quincy plans, or else helping an overwhelmed Soul Society fight back in the war? Only time will tell, and that's if my prediction is right about him coming back in the first place.

Too many things add up and make sense for Aizen to be involved again, and it's a possibility I can't see Tite Kubo passing up. Of course pretty much every thing I have said here is pure speculation and we may never see Aizen again, but as an Aizen fan, right now I feel pretty confident in the fact we will see everyones' favourite troll again before the series comes to an end.

Bleach Chapter 502 - Falling Soul - Review / Thoughts

Wow.... just wow. Bleach 502, what an incredible chapter, and one that as a Byakuya fan wasn't easy to read!

So showing that the Stern Ritter aren't to be messed with, Kubo did something that at one time fans would have said was impossible - killing one of the main characters in the series. I have been a Byakuya fan for years and so am of course gutted he's been killed off, but it shows Kubo isn't afraid to take risks or to upset the fans anymore.

This is what a REAL war is. Not like the one Kishimoto is writing where nobody dies, and not even like the last war Kubo wrote with Aizen and the Espada, this is the real deal and has been nothing short of amazing.

Seriously, if you dropped Bleach because of the Aizen arc, or even more recently with the Fullbring arc, I strongly urge you to pick the series back up. Needless to say this chapter was fantastic, and yet again Kubo has outdone himself, but also the arc itself could well be the best stuff Kubo has ever done.

The first arc was brilliant, and I personally loved Turn Back the Pendulum as well, but at this rate neither of them will stand up to this current arc. It's as if Tite Kubo listened to all the complaints from the fans, and then changed and fixed all the things he was previously criticised for.

But yeah, Byakuya not only died, but did so because of As Nodt using Senbonzakura's power against its' owner. That's bloody cruel and such a bad way to go out, not to mention it looks like Rukia and Renji have both been badly injured because they were angry / concerned for Byakuya.

I am actually really worried about who might be next. At the moment it looks like a toss-up between Rukia, Renji and Urahara for who may die next, and needless to say I would be very sad to see any of them go, particularly Urahara or Rukia who are two of my favourite characters in the series.

Oh, and of course I can't talk about this chapter without mentioning the sheer badassery from Kenpachi.

Every time you think he can't be any more of a badass, he comes along and does something that makes you think again! The way he just showed up with a couple of dead Stern Ritter slung over his shoulder/on his blade and asked if the other guy(s) in front of him were in charge, it was just such an incredibly awesome and badass moment, and in all honesty I see Kenpachi being the best hope Soul Society has after Ichigo.

This chapter was very emotional, and I don't blame Renji in the slightest for flipping out over what happened to Byakuya. As Nodt is just plain scary, and it's going to take a heck of a lot to defeat him that's for sure. I am hoping for some craziness from Kenpachi (and Ichigo when he escapes), and also I am curious to see what Shinji does whenever we eventually get to see him.

I honestly can't fault this chapter or this arc at all. If you haven't read it yet, go do so now, Kubo has made sure that Wednesdays are quickly becoming the most exciting day of the week with all the fantastic chapters he is producing.

Naruto Chapter 595 - Chaps - Review / Thoughts

Despite the odd (and quite honestly) awful name, Naruto 595 was actually a pretty good chapter for those who like their Manga to be action packed.

So yes, for fans who love action filled chapters, this is for you. The whole chapter was taken up by the battle between Naruto, Kakashi and Guy vs Tobi, so no complaints can be had in that regard.

Personally I felt this was an ok chapter though, but nothing special. There wasn't too much wrong with the content itself, it was just hard to follow at times because of the chaotic/hectic nature of it all and the fact most panels had a bunch of broken rocks flying about which made it harder to tell what was happening and what the characters were actually doing.

On a different note, Tobi is actually proving to be pretty impressive. For ages people spoke of his lack of offence and how he is probably pretty weak or unable to fight, but now he is showing he can hold his own even in a 3-on-1 against 3 of the strongest ninja of Konoha.

It's true his warping ability is stupidly good, but even his work with the giant fan he carries on his back seems pretty good, and he is doing a fine job in protecting the Gedo Mazo as well. Speaking of which, I am curious to find out just why Kakashi's Kamui failed to work against it.

It was refreshing and a welcome change of pace to see a character use their strongest move and in a way that actually makes sense, it's just a shame that the plan failed for Kakashi for some unknown reason. Judging by his reaction, Kakashi at least has some idea of why it didn't work, so it will probably be explained soon.

At the moment though I don't know how the three of them are hoping to beat Tobi. Despite their best efforts, even Naruto, Kakashi and Guy can't take him down. Kakashi has always been extremely clever and great at coming up with strategies, but even his ideas are failing to work against Tobi.

Tobi has some odd and mysterious powers, and it's going to take something special to finish him off. To be honest, I don't think the current trio of people fighting him will be able to stop him, and I think that either Sasuke or Edo Madara are going to be the one who ultimately stops him (or at least hinders his chances of winning in some way).

But yeah, overall a decent chapter if not hard to follow at times. Tobi continues to be a mystery, and I am just looking forward to hearing an explanation about why Kakashi's Kamui failed, and also to see just what else Tobi has up his sleeve.

Naruto Shippuden Episode 270 - Golden Bonds - Review / Thoughts

So after the break last week, Shippuden returns with episode 270, but was it worth the extra wait?

To be honest, no, not really. I can't say it's a bad episode, but it's no better than average in all honesty. I did like the way all the nameless ninja worked together to try and delay Kinkaku, the attacks looked pretty cool and it did also allow for Darui to pull off a badass double Black Panther attack.

Though the way Kinkaku was defeated wasn't that great, and I could fully understand if someone got annoyed by it. At worst it's trolling, and at best it's very anti-climactic. The episode also had a few inconsistencies, just for an example, it should have been impossible for Darui to hold on to the legendary weapons as long as he did. Just in the last (canon) episode we were told how it was a massive drain on a person's chakra to use them, and rightfully Darui was exhausted.

This week though Darui held on to them throughout the entire fight and never came close to even passing out, let alone losing his life as we were told a person would. The Anime also wrongly claimed that the second Hokage was killed by Kinkaku, when in truth he died in a battle against 20 elite ninja from the cloud village, so he never died just against the one opponent (Kinkaku).

On the plus side though, the Ino-Shika-Cho thing was pretty cool and they did even add the odd bit of humour. Sure it can be argued they didn't deserve to win (as I mentioned earlier), but that aside, their team-up worked well and it was nice seeing some of the Konoha 11 getting a chance to properly participate in the war.

Also interesting of course is that it looks like they will be fighting against not only Kakuzu, but also their former sensei - Asuma. Making people fight against their own friends and relatives is an extremely cruel thing indeed, and it's one of the things that makes the Edo Tensei such a despicable technique. Though with that said, obviously it makes things a lot more interesting for us viewers/readers, so I am happy enough with it!

Overall this episode had some good moments, but it also had its' share of bad too, so I can't say it's really much better than average as a whole. It's still worth checking out though and is a decent way to spend 20+ minutes, just don't go expecting anything special.

*Next week is a filler episode as well "Road to Sakura" and so I may not bother watching or reviewing it, but if you really want me to, leave a comment below and let me know*

Naruto Chapter 594 - The Progenitor - Review / Thoughts

Tobi is Obito theorists rejoice! With Naruto chapter 594, we finally get away from Sasuke and move back to Tobi, and no doubt his words will have made many people think they were right all along!

Now just to be clear, I am NOT one of the Tobi is Obito guys, in fact I have been opposing the idea for years, but that's a different story.

So yes, Naruto 594 is out and has moved on to Tobi once again, though unfortunately the chapter wasn't as good as it could have been. To be perfectly honest, Tobi's hint that he is a person who knows both Guy and Kakashi was the only exciting moment in the chapter.

A lot of it was taken up by the Kyuubi explaining to Guy and Kakashi about things us readers are already aware of, and that did take up a lot of time which is annoying. On the plus side, the Tobi hint was pretty cool as I said and will undoubtedly have people speculating as to just who this guy really is.

From what I can tell, it's either going to be Obito (which I wouldn't understand at all and would mean Kishi would have  an awful lot of explaining to do), or else it will be someone we didn't already know of.

Neither option is that great to be honest, but I would be far happier with the latter. In any case, Naruto said in this chapter that it looks like he really will have to smash the mask from his face, and so I do believe that we will find out his identity one way or another in the very near future.

Tobi did a decent job as the villain here, though his comments were very cliche to say the least. I guess it did allow Naruto to have his moment though and give a little speech about the people who inspired him, and it also allowed him to mention he still has dreams of becoming Hokage which I thought was a nice touch, as for ages it had seemed like his original dream had been forgotten.

Overall this was an ok chapter, Tobi's comment to Kakashi and Guy was by far the most interesting part, and Naruto's dream of being Hokage was a nice touch as well like I said. Unfortunately a lot of it was bogged down by the unnecessary explanation by the Kyuubi though, and as such the chapter did suffer quite a bit which is a shame. So yes, a decent chapter, but far from the best Naruto has ever put out.

Bleach Chapter 501 - Hear.Fear.Hear - Review / Thoughts

Wow, Tite Kubo sure knows how to make a war arc! Chapter 501 of Bleach is another good one, but also be prepared for something that's as creepy as feck too!

Seriously, I felt so damn bad for Byakuya in this chapter. Here we have one of the strongest guys from Soul Society, and already he has had his Bankai stolen and made to feel fear like he has never felt before. As Nodt did compliment him on even remaining sane after being hit by the attack, but damn, it was such a messed up thing to happen.

If this sort of thing happened to Byakuya of all characters (one who beforehand most people would have guessed would be well suited to fighting him), then who knows how the heck anyone is going to be able to stop As Nodt.

Also of course it looks like it could be the end of Byakuya, which if it turns out to be the case will be a shame as I have always really liked him. It would certainly show that Kubo is taking no prisoners though, and that no character is off-limits in terms of who dies in this arc.

Unlike Naruto which has been hit and miss through it's own war arc, Bleach has consistently been turning out great chapter after great chapter, and Kubo has done a great job in actually making this feel like a real war with real casualties and sacrifice.

This was a really good chapter yet again, though I admit it creeped me out seeing the panels with Rukia (Byakuya's worst fear version of course) and to a lesser extent the bugs crawling all over him. As Nodt is a sadistic person and he must have the creepiest ability yet seen in Bleach.

Whether Byakuya is dead or not is still anyone's guess at this point, but what I do know for sure is that Soul Society needs a plan and fast, and at this rate, it needs to be a plan WITHOUT Ichigo.

Bleach Chapter 500 - Rescuer in The Deep Dark - Review / Thoughts

So here it is, Bleach has finally reached the 500 chapter milestone! Bleach and Tite Kubo have taken some flack before for various reasons, but the series now can't be faulted at all, while Kubo is showing just how excellent Bleach can be with this fantastic arc.

So yes, Bleach is now at 500 chapters, and chapter 500 itself was another fine chapter from what has been an excellent arc. Things have really gone crazy, and this week was no exception. Jidanbou was raging for unknown reasons, Ichigo was desperately trying to escape the prison he was put in, and Kirge gets sliced in half by some unknown person!

I don't know who it is obviously, but Urahara seemed genuinely shocked by whoever it is, and that itself is not only a rarity but is also worrying. This being Urahara I have faith that even if it turns out to be an enemy, he will probably escape with his life, but I would be absolutely gutted if anything bad did end up happening to Urahara.

The two names that I keep seeing mentioned are Grimmjow and Aizen, but of course that's just pure fan speculation. I can't honestly see it being Grimmjow, as there's no way Urahara would have such a reaction unless he had improved/changed significantly since the last time we saw him. Aizen would definitely warrant such a reaction, but in my opinion it won't be him either. While I do definitely think Aizen will make a return, it's probably still too early for him to make an appearance yet, so I wouldn't bet on it being him either.

This chapter certainly threw up some interesting questions, and nobody bar Kubo himself has any idea what the answers will be. What I can say for sure though is that it made for a very enjoyable chapter, and as this is such a landmark I am really pleased for Kubo and for Bleach as a whole. There are a lot of mysteries in this arc, and Kubo has done a fantastic job of keeping things both exciting and interesting.

This was yet another excellent chapter from this excellent arc, and I have to say that if this does ever get animated in some way, I think the quality will easily win over all the people who doubted Bleach and Kubo after the Fullbring arc.

Naruto Chapter 593 - Orochimaru Resurrected - Review / Thoughts

Naruto chapter 593 was not only another interesting chapter, but thanks to the revival of Orochimaru, it also felt very nostalgic.

Of course Sasuke was saying last week how he needed to speak with Orochimaru and how he believed he was still alive, and this week of course proved that Sasuke was right. Suigetsu was really against the idea of bringing Orochimaru back, and was telling Sasuke how he doesn't need him anymore as he could probably do it for himself these days.

Suigetsu was actually pretty amusing in this chapter, and he definitely added the comedic relief from the more serious tones in this chapter when it came to Sasuke and Orochimaru. Seeing Orochimaru back like this was very nostalgic for me and reminded me of the original Naruto series where he was the big shot, and it certainly raised a smile when he spoke of wanting Sasuke's body pretty soon after reappearing after all this time, it's good to see he hasn't changed!

I still don't have a clue who they are going to see, or indeed why Orochimaru is needed for it, but I do admit that I am very happy to have Orochimaru back. For as much as I like Tobi (and despite all the evil acts he has committed), to me there has never been (or will never be) a villain as good as Orochimaru. He isn't my favourite character or anything, but when it comes to sinister villains who you love to hate, for the Naruto series there is nobody quite like Orochimaru.

I am actually glad he came back this way to be honest, as if he had just came back as an Edo Tensei it wouldn't have had half the impact, and most likely Orochimaru would have only ended up being haxed again or else be used as glorified fodder like Sasori was earlier in the war. I don't know what Orochimaru is going to do if he manages to stick around, and of course seeing the reactions of others if they ever found out would certainly be interesting too.

I also wonder now whether Kabuto will still have some role to play. Orochimaru removing his power/influence from him makes me think that Kishi has plans for him down the line, and that there is still hope for Kabuto fans that he won't be killed off afterall.

Although not an awful lot of progress was made storywise from last week, I still really enjoyed this chapter. Orochimaru and Sasuke should be very interesting with whatever is going to happen between them and this mystery man who knows everything, and the Suigetsu segments added some humour as well which was nice.

Definitely a good chapter, and I recommend you check it out now if you haven't already. For the next two weeks as well we will be getting some colour pages (apparently to celebrate the Naruto movie out this month), so there's definitely a lot to look forward to in the coming weeks as well.

Naruto Shippuden Episode 269 - Forbidden Words - Review / Thoughts

After the past couple of lacklustre Shippuden episodes, you could be forgiven for thinking episode 269 would be the same. Thankfully though, as I predicted, once Ginkaku and Kinkaku got to fight things improved a lot.

Gone are the long, tedious (and frequently boring) explanations and talking, and in is a lot of fighting between the Gold and Silver brothers - Kinkaku and Ginkaku and Darui's team.

As I said in previous reviews, I was really looking forward to seeing the fight in the Anime, and it didn't disappoint. Darui once again showed that not only is he a badass, he is also extremely quick on his feet when it comes to battle. His strategy when he was about to be sealed was brilliant, and I really liked seeing him escape like that.

Both Samui and Atsui got sealed very quickly which is a bit of a shame, but I guess it was kind of necessary to show just how the legendary tools worked so that the viewer (and Darui) knew the rules and could have hopes of countering them.

Then of course the end, and OH MAN things just got serious. We know how deadly Naruto used to be when entering any kind of Kyuubi form, and while we don't know just how much power Kinkaku will have from his one, you can bet that it's going to take an awful lot to fight him. No doubt seeing someone other than Naruto in this form will seem strange, but it's also a pretty cool thing to have, plus it is sure to keep fans guessing as to just what is to come next.

Overall I really enjoyed this episode, and to be honest I can't really think of any major faults or problems to mention. Luckily after the past couple of poor episodes things have picked up again, my only gripe now is that for some reason next week is ANOTHER without a Naruto episode. That's twice in a very short space of time, and still without any sign of an hour long episode to make up for it.

Bleach Chapter 499 - Rescuer in the Dark - Review / Thoughts

In my reviews I have frequently praised Bleach during this arc, and with Bleach almost at the milestone of 500 chapters, I am happy to say that Bleach 499 continues the trend of top quality chapters from Tite Kubo.

Alright, I admit to one thing from the start - initially I didn't realise just how much explaining was done in this chapter. A lot of it was taken up by Urahara talking to Ichigo and explaining about the Quincy/Stern Ritter. I only noticed when going over it a second time, though to be honest for once I feel glad, as it helped to add to tension and menace to the Stern Ritter. If anyone can make you believe what they are saying, it's Urahara, and to borrow a wrestling phrase, he put them over well.

That said, Urahara did make the one mistake of thinking Kirge was dead, and as a result it looks like both Chad and Orihime got pretty badly hurt. Also of course, it resulted in Kirge trapping Ichigo at the end of the chapter. Ichigo aside, it looks like the Stern Ritter have little to fear, and with Ichigo gone now it's going to take something special to defeat the Quincy and protect Soul Society.

Urahara did a good job of hyping the Stern Ritter as I said, and the explanations didn't seem drawn out and boring at all like some chapters have in the past. Kubo did a great job with this chapter, and of course the parts that weren't explanations were excellent too.

Overall this was another excellent Bleach chapter, and with Ichigo seemingly taken out of the equation, things are going to get very difficult for Soul Society. For us readers though, it should be very interesting to see how Soul Society try and fight back, especially as Urahara is almost certainly going to get involved personally before too long which in of itself is a rare treat.

Naruto Chapter 592 - Third Force - Review / Thoughts

Wow, what a chapter this was! There is no doubt Naruto 592 was very good, and it also threw up a couple of surprises too!

Right, as I said, this chapter was brilliant. Madara was badass as always, some contemplation from Sasuke, plus even some Naruto vs Tobi action!

Speaking of Tobi, I think this was one of (if not the only) time we actually see him making a handseal. The way he was talking was very interesting, and it of course leads me to believe he is about to try and recreate the Juubi just by using parts of the Kyuubi chakra that he got from Kinkaku and Ginkaku. I have no idea how strong it would be, though it certainly won't be as strong as if he had been able to take the Kyuubi from Naruto himself.

That actually leads me to the next thing, that being Madara. He commented on how he is bored now of the Kage, and to be honest it's easy to see why he would be. This whole time has basically been him toying with them, and he has had no difficulties despite it being 5-on-1. For him it must be extremely boring, as he is insanely powerful, and being a prideful person he probably thinks that such a lack of power in comparison to his own is nothing short of a waste of time. Obviously the Kage don't look as if they are about to just let him walk away and go after the Kyuubi as he said he would, but if it were up to him I definitely think he would just stop the battle with the 5 people he considers unworthy.

And finally, we move on to Sasuke. At last Suigetsu and Jugo have found him, and despite Sasuke's rather cold and dismissive attitude towards them both, Suigetsu didn't seem to mind at all, and even gave him the scroll at last. Suigetsu himself seemed extremely excited about what he had found and was telling Sasuke how by using it Hawk could rule the world.

We still don't know what's in the scroll, but Sasuke's comment about it involving "The human who knows everything" was very interesting indeed, and the only person I can think of that fits the bill is the Sage of Six Paths. I do believe there's an outside chance of it being one of his sons, or even less likely, Hashirama Senju, but for now I would just have to say Rikudo Sennin since it makes the most sense.

I also found it odd (but awesome) how Sasuke seems to believe Orochimaru isn't gone afterall, and more than that, he wants to actually speak with him. Sasuke showed clear contempt and hatred for Orochimaru, but for some reason he clearly needs him for something. Just how Sasuke plans on doing this is anyone's guess, but I certainly look forward to seeing what he does do.

What with Tobi's jutsu, Madara getting bored, and of course Orochimaru and the scroll for Sasuke, this chapter was not only brilliant, but also very intriguing. I am sure this chapter will have got many fans discussing the various unresolved things here and coming up with their own theories, and if you do have some, please feel free to share them in the comment section below!

As for this chapter though? Quite honestly it's one of the very best in terms of pure interest and curiosity, and is an absolute must read for any Naruto fan. I really can't wait to find out what happens next, and fingers crossed the next chapter can be as great as this one was.

Naruto Shippuden Episode 268 - Battleground! - Review / Thoughts

For fans hoping for an awesome episode full of awesome battles, prepare to be disappointed. I can tell you before I go any further that the only good thing in this episode was Darui who you see above.

After last week's episode dragging so horribly, there was at least the promise of something good this week judging from the preview, but sadly it was very misleading.

For the most part this episode dragged just as horribly as the one from last week, and was once again really dull and boring as a result. There were more long tedious explanations, and the only thing in terms of fighting was some incredibly generic stuff with fodder throwing kunai at the Zetsus, and also a bit of incredibly basic Taijutsu that didn't accomplish much if anything.

I did enjoy the meeting between Hizashi and Hiashi though admittedly, and I do wish they had more time. I did find it strange though that Choza was talking with Asuma (and I think) Dan and set it up like they were going to battle, only for Choza to just end up fighting with some Zetsus the next time that area is revisited.

Darui was the best part of the episode though, for someone who doesn't say much and who until now hasn't done much, he sure is impressive and a very cool character. His Black Lightning looks so awesome, and the Anime team did a good job of showing his Black Panther technique here too. Darui really could be the surprise package of this war, and if he keeps up like this then there will always be something to look forward to in the coming episodes.

But as a whole this episode was once again pretty boring and frustrating, and I just wish that more action could be seen and a lot less talking which is slowing things down far too much. I have learned my lesson about trying to predict how good an episode will be just from an episode preview, so I will just say that when we do get to see Kinkaku and Ginkaku fight, as long as the Anime team don't screw up, it shall be a very good episode.

Bleach Chapter 498 - The Black Rescuer - Review / Thoughts

Yes, here's a slightly late review of Bleach chapter 498. Unfortunately I never found time to read or review the chapter yesterday, but thanks to Urahara being awesome, it was definitely worth the wait.

In this chapter it was mainly focused on Ichigo's battle with Kirge, and with Soul Society desperately trying to get in contact with Ichigo.

I was glad to see things move back to that fight to be honest, as while I certainly have enjoyed the Soul Society invasion, Ichigo vs Kirge felt a bit neglected recently. Ichigo went to show what a badass he is, and I love how he is just kicking Kirge's ass. Kirge is an asshole anyway, and his arrogance annoys me to no end, so it's great to see Ichigo doing so well against him.

Ichigo hit the nail on the head when he spoke about the Quincy being afraid once they found an opponent who couldn't have their Bankai stolen, and it does lead me to believe that the Quincy may not be as strong as expected. Don't get me wrong, they are clearly strong opponents, but it does show that they are also relying heavily upon the fact they can prevent the captains from using their Bankai.

Oh, and there was a lot of panel time for Urahara which is always a huge positive in my book. Urahara is my favourite character in Bleach, and I am going to avoid talking about the reasons why as I would end up on some long unrelated to the chapter tangent. But yes, plenty of action for him, and the way he blasted Kirge was badass.

Badass is the most accurate word to describe Urahara, and although it does look like Kirge has been defeated by him, it wouldn't surprise me if there was still a bit more to come from him. As far as my own taste goes, I don't care who or what Urahara is fighting, as a proper Urahara fight is something I have been desperate for for a very long time. This arc is the perfect chance to give him a good long fight, as well as plenty of other characters for that matter.

I loved the Urahara parts of this chapter as you probably gathered, and I also really enjoyed seeing Ichigo fight and Soul Society scrambling to try and find them both. To repeat what Akon himself said, Ichigo is such an unpredictable man, and so it's always going to be interesting seeing just what he does next. This was yet another great chapter to add to what has been a fantastic arc, and I highly recommend you check this chapter out.

Naruto Chapter 591 - Risk - Review / Thoughts

So, Naruto chapter 591 was a mixture of badass and emotional. We see more of Madara and what becomes of him, plus a reunion between Dan and Tsunade for the more emotional aspect, but how was the chapter as a whole?

Let me start by saying that they also resolved the Sasuke and Itachi thing, with a quick shot at the start of the chapter with Itachi disappearing, as well as the other Edo Tensei summons.

More importantly, Dan finally got to be of some use which was good to see. I don't have strong feelings about his character either way, but it was good to see there was an actual reason for him being summoned rather than Kishi doing it for no reason whatsoever. He of course saves Tsunade from Madara, and the reunion was nicely done and was a bit emotional.

The best part of the chapter was for me (you guessed it) Madara Uchiha. I am sooooo glad he is staying around, he has been the most interesting part of Naruto for ages, so I am thankful Kishi has decided to let his reign of terror continue. A lot of fans did speculate that he would find a way of breaking free from Edo Tensei, and I wouldn't be surprised (nor blame anyone) if they got mad over an Uchiha just ignoring the rules / using hax again to get away with something most characters couldn't.

I am of course very happy to see him stick around, and I can't even imagine what it's going to take to defeat someone as ridiculously strong as him, especially now as he has all the benefits of Edo Tensei but with none of the flaws it brings.

Naruto is going to be very interesting from here on out, as now we have a near invincible Madara raising havoc, Tobi is still off dealing with Naruto, and we are still yet to see what Suigetsu's scroll will do or indeed what role Sasuke will play in the war now Itachi is gone.

Overall this was a pretty enjoyable chapter, as it had a good mix of badass (with Madara) and emotion (with Tsunade and Dan).

Naruto Manga Reaching Its' Climax Says Masashi Kishimoto

In a recent article from the Asahi Shimbun newspaper, Naruto creator Masashi Kishimoto has said that the Naruto Manga is now reaching its' climax.


Kishimoto added, "How the story will end has already been set in my mind, so the story is just 'racing headlong in that direction.'"


Of course with the type of arc this has been and with all the recent happenings, there was always a good chance this would be the last and that Naruto would be near the end. As for actual times, none have been given, but it does appear as if the end is finally in sight for the series.






*Credit to Anime News Network for the info*

Naruto Shippuden Episode 267 - The Brilliant Military Advisor of the Hidden Leaf - Review / Thoughts

So after taking a break last week, Shippuden is back this week with episode 267, but has it been worth the extra wait?

To be perfectly honest, no it hasn't. This episode was extremely slow paced, and almost the whole thing was spent talking strategy.

Don't get me wrong, it's obvious that strategy is needed in a war, but there was certainly no need to have to show all the viewers this. It's not like anything major or surprising was planned out, all the needless details used would have been far better being off screen, as I doubt too many fans find spending 20 minutes hearing battle strategy all that entertaining.

I guess it was kind of entertaining hearing the conversation between the former Kage who had been revived with Edo Tensei, but aside from that, this episode was so slow and so boring you could be forgiven for mistaking it for filler. Quite honestly, it was like a canon filler episode pretty much.

I know it's setting up for next week, and the next episode does look like it could be pretty awesome, but that doesn't change the fact that getting through this episode is some task. It's not as if this episode is super horrible or terrible, it's just so unnecessarily slow that it drags terribly, leaving the viewer to keep watching in the hopes of just something, anything at all to actually happen, but it never does.

There's no way I could honestly recommend this episode to someone, if you're a diehard Naruto fan who must watch all the episodes then you might be ok with it, but for the most part you wouldn't be missing out in any way if you completely skipped this episode. My advice would be to maybe watch the part with the Edo Kage, and the (roughly) one minute scene with Kabuto right at the start of the episode, and then skip the rest. Hopefully next week shall make up for this rather lacklustre and disappointing episode.

Bleach Chapter 497 - Kill The Shadow 2 - Review / Thoughts

Bleach 497 continues where the last chapter left off, and once again the Captains are in a mess trying to come up with a way of actually fighting the Stern Ritter without Bankai, and once again the chapter is decent but not anything special.

This week (and last week) are more like setup chapters, basically letting everyone know how disadvantaged the Shinigami are currently and how much of a threat the Stern Ritter are. Soul Society is in a mess at the moment, and to be honest without Hitsugaya's quick thinking of getting Matsumoto to send a message to all the other captains, almost certainly a lot more of their Bankai would have been stolen.

Renji was a bit of an idiot for being about to use Bankai even though he was warned not to, so it's just as well Byakuya was there to stop him. I do understand to some extent though because it's clear that panic and frustration are starting to set in, and nobody has any idea what to do.

Ichigo being called back though will most likely change things. We know that for some reason his Bankai can't be stolen, and it wouldn't surprise me if the reason they want him back isn't so that he can necessarily help in the fight (for the moment anyway), but is instead for maybe Mayuri doing some research in to what is preventing his from being stolen so that they might be able to use it for the other captains.

Even Kyoraku seems to be having a tough time against the Stern Ritter, and being slashed like that hardly increases his chances of winning. I can definitely see a fair few casualties during this war, with Kira and Sasakibe being the first couple of what is likely to be many. This again does beg the question of just what Soul Society can do to try and defend themselves, but I guess we will find out in the upcoming chapters.

Overall this was a decent enough chapter, the past two weeks have certainly done a pretty good job of setting things up, but admittedly I am hoping for something a bit more epic and / or action packed in the next chapter.

Naruto Chapter 590 - I Will Always Love You - Review / Thoughts

"I will always love you".  Oh Itachi, he sures does know how to make his fans happy! So yes, after a week with no new chapter, this week Naruto is back with chapter 590, and it's fantastic.

I have always been a fan of these emotional chapters, and this is no exception. It was really good finally seeing the full picture of what really happened during (and just before) the Uchiha massacre. It once again helped to portray Sarutobi as a good guy and the most reasonable of all the Konoha higher ups, and it also made Danzo once again seem like the villain.

It also showed a bit more of Shisui too which is always a good thing, and to be honest I felt really bad for Itachi while reading the chapter. For the longest time most sympathy has gone towards Sasuke for all the crap he has been through, but this week also showed just how much Itachi had to suffer as well and just how much it hurt and how much he regretted having to do such horrible things.

Kishimoto also gave fans what they wanted, and that is a true message from Itachi to Sasuke about how he will love him no matter what happens. This is the chance for Kishi to change Sasuke if he wants, and I know a lot of people would be happy to see that happen. I personally still hope that he holds a grudge against the two Konoha elders who, along with Danzo, were behind the massacre and who were basically undermining Sarutobi's wishes. They both deserve to die as Danzo did in all honesty, as for them to both continue living seems like a bit of a slap in the face considering the roles they played in things.

But yeah, the chapter was brilliant. It shed some light on how things really went down at the massacre, and the last panel (the pic above) and the one with Itachi crying about having to kill his own parents (who understood why he was doing it, which to be honest I thought was a wonderful thing for Kishi to add) especially were very sad and emotional.

Overall this was a very emotional chapter and a brilliant one at that. If I have one gripe, it's that it does look like Madara will be gone for good now Edo Tensei is over, but other than that, this was a brilliant chapter and one of Kishimotos' best in a while.

Bleach Chapter 496 - Kill The Shadow - Review / Thoughts

Bleach chapter 496 is out nice and early today, and after the recent chapters being so good this is of course good news. However, for one of the only times during this arc, I felt the chapter was somewhat of a letdown.

It just seemed to rush by in no time, no sooner had I started than it came to an end. Of course technically it was the same length as any other week, but I just went through the pages really quick hoping something would happen, but sadly very little did. The recent weeks have all had excellent chapters, but this one was definitely lacking in terms of awesome or shocking moments.

I won't deny that the Bankai of the captains being stolen was pretty cool, but that aside there really isn't anything to talk about either in regards to content or something that I particularly enjoyed. As I said, the Bankai thing was pretty good, and I did enjoy the panel with the pic I used above, but as a whole I just don't think the chapter was anything special, and in fact was pretty average.

With that said though, next week could well be very good as the captains try and figure out what to do without their Bankai. Also, Kubo has been churning out excellent chapter after excellent chapter of late, so I can more than forgive the odd chapter like this, and heck, it's still average even now, certainly not bad.

As a whole then I will wrap this review up by saying it's a pretty average chapter, but one you should still read since it is pretty much setting up for next week which could well be another brilliant chapter for Kubo.

Naruto Shippuden Episode 266 - The First and Last Opponent - Review / Thoughts

After last week's disappointing episode, I wasn't sure what to expect with Shippuden 266. Thankfully this week's episode was a major improvement over the last one, and as such was actually pretty good.

This episode covered 2 whole chapters worth of the Manga for those interested, and there was no kind of filler shown in the episode as far as I remember. We got to see the Seven Swordsmen showing off their skills and their individual blade techniques which was pretty awesome, plus of course Kakashi vs Zabuza and Haku was continued too.

That fight very closely mirrored the original fight between them, and I can see that's definitely going to be a love or hate type situation for a lot of people. I can't remember how I felt at the time of first reading it in the Manga as it's been quite a while, but I thought the idea of it being this way was actually quite a nice touch as it didn't drag things out unnecessarily, and it was also giving somewhat of a nod to the original Naruto series which is good for the long time fans of the show.

The episode itself was a major step up from last week too. The animation and characters actually looked fine throughout, and the music choices were pretty good as well. It was a little disappointing that Kakashi only used Raikiri considering all the techniques he has, but I guess that's to be expected nowadays.

One thing that does disappoint and annoy me though is what looks like a missed opportunity for the next episode. Kakashi got really pissed off at the end of this episode, and for me it was probably the best moment in it, and so of course we expect to see him kick some serious ass soon. Unfortunately judging by the episode preview though, they will be skipping the fight with the Seven Swordsmen once again.

For Anime only viewers, Kakashi and his squad vs the Swordsmen was skipped entirely after what you saw in this episode, and so me (and countless other fans) had assumed and desperately hoped that this would be included in the Anime instead. Naruto is always looking for filler episodes and ways to buy time, so it would only be logical to add a nice filler episode or two showing a pissed off Kakashi taking them on. If they do skip it I will be very unhappy, and unfortunately it does seem to be the case.

But back to this episode, overall while it had nothing special, it was still a pretty enjoyable episode all the same and well worth watching. The upcoming material should be pretty awesome as well depending on how the Anime team handle it, so there will hopefully be some good stuff ahead even if they skip Kakashi's rampage once again.

*Just a quick note: Naruto will not be on next week, as there is a Pokemon special on instead. The next episode of Shippuden will be shown in 2 weeks' time*

Bleach Chapter 495 - Bleeding Guitar Blues - Review / Thoughts

Initially I was unsure of what to think about Bleach chapter 495, but after going back through it, I realised how awesome a lot of it was. The captains mean business and came across great, plus it sets up well for some fantastic battles between Shinigami and Quincy.

It's surprising how quickly my opinion has changed on whether the Shinigami have any hope of beating the Quincy as well. Before now I have commented on how I just can't see them winning, but after reading this chapter, Kubo has honestly made me believe they could actually do it.

It's not that they pulled of something spectacular or showed anything new, but the Shinigami themselves seem to be pretty sure of themselves, and Kubo did a good job of making each and every captain have the aura of a badass. Even aside from the awesome panel with Byakuya telling Renji that he shouldn't hold back, guys like Komamura (and Rose especially), weren't taking any crap from the Stern Ritter.

They just seemed to have somewhat of an air of confidence around them, and from that alone it has completely opened me up to the idea of the Shinigami being far stronger than previously thought, plus having a real chance of winning. Rose was an absolute badass and so awesome in this chapter too. I have never had a strong opinion of him either way, but I won't deny that he had the joint best part of this chapter, heck, maybe the best.

Him and Byakuya both got to be really cool with their little speeches, and I honestly can't wait to see Rose kick some ass, and also hopefully see just how much Renji has improved since the Aizen arc. Actually, truth be told I am extremely excited to see how much stronger a lot of the captains have become, and of course that includes seeing some new Bankais as well!

The sheer awesomeness of Rose and Byakuya alone is enough to make me like this chapter in all honesty, and the fact it has already set up a clash between members of the Gotei 13 and the Stern Ritter leaves me incredibly excited at the mere prospect. Overall this was just slightly worse than the past couple of chapters, but all round still very good and one you should definitely check out.

Naruto Chapter 589 - The Edo Tensei Jutsu, Released - Review / Thoughts

Oh damn, what a chapter this was! After all this waiting, Naruto 589 finally deals with the Edo Tensei, plus Madara once again shows why he is the most badass character in the Manga.

Well, not including Hashirama since we haven't got to see him, but Madara is definitely the most badass atm.

I love these Madara chapters though, they are always fantastic and never disappoint. Perfect Susanoo already has me massively impressed, and he has only made it do one thing so far (albeit slicing a mountain in half, which of course is pretty damn amazing). Perfect Susanoo is the most interesting technique in a long time, and to me certainly seems to be the most powerful as well, so the Kage can thank their lucky stars Itachi was around to save the day by undoing Edo Tensei.

Though that does bring me to a different point, as I felt so bad for Sasuke in this chapter. It's like he finally came to realise that Itachi would never change, and that all he could do was accept what his brother was doing. It was good to see he still hasn't forgiven Konoha to be honest, as otherwise it would have been a pretty lacklustre end to the Manga as far as Sasuke goes.

I personally would now like to see Sasuke arrive at the other battlefield and cause some major damage, and thinking about it, it could be one of the few outcomes that would make the loss of Madara (if he is forced to go, which would be a big shame and I am hoping won't happen) more tolerable. It has been Madara vs the Kage that has kept me interested in the war arc in all honesty, as Tobi's stuff has been long and drawn out, as has Sasuke and Itachi's sections.

What would be pretty awesome would be if /when Madara is taken out of things, Sasuke showed up to fight the Kage himself. Since he has an EMS of his own, there is a chance he could have his own Perfect Susanoo (which would be beyond amazing, plus would be a fair power up to rival Naruto's Kyuubi powers) and start destroying things then.

Aside from whether he gets to kill anyone or not, that would also set up nicely for Naruto to arrive to save the day. It would also be almost like Madara vs Hashirama in the sense that it would be two eternal rivals fighting it out, both of them with insane powers and going all out, and I could even see maybe a new VotE style path of destruction from the two colliding, thus setting a new legend for the future.

Of course Tobi still has his role to play though, and the above was just a possible scenario somewhere down the road. But back to the present chapter, all I can really say is that once again the chapter was fantastic, I honestly can't wait for the next one, and lastly that I am really hoping Madara finds a way of staying for a while longer to conclude his battle.

Bleach Chapter 489 – March of The Starcross – Review / Thoughts

This week I have to say that without a doubt, Bleach 489 was the standout chapter between this and Naruto. Whereas Naruto was firmly rooted in past events, Bleach was very much in the present, as well as setting up something brilliant for the future chapters.
 
Last week we got to see what looked like the beginning of Ichigo vs Kirge, but Ichigo instead starts off against a few other Quincy instead as you can see in the picture above. It doesn’t take long for Ichigo to realise that the people who before were only known to him as the Vandenreich were in fact Quincy. Kirge even comments on the fact that he invaded without even being 100% sure of who they were, not that it makes a difference to Ichigo as we all know by now.

Rather than Ichigo fighting, this chapter was more focused on the strange events that have been taking place in Soul Society, and who’s to blame for it. To begin with we just see Rukia pacing the floor in Soul Society where she is waiting for the captain’s meeting, with Renji telling her to calm down and take it easy, only for Kira to appear and interrupt. He tells them that something is bothering him, and explains how he used to think all the Vandenreich / Quincy stuff was connected with the disappearances from Rukongai, but now he realises that’s not the case.

Kira begins to explain his thoughts on the matters, and asks a question as well. When Yachiru answers, it confirms things for him, and he asks Nemu what Mayuri is hiding (having concluded that there was something odd about the way things had been done and investigated by his group). Nemu says Mayuri never told her anything about the disappearances, with Kira saying he will just have to report it to Yamamoto himself. Later in the chapter, we see Yamamoto confront Mayuri about it and asks him what’s going on. Mayuri tells him that it’s true he was behind the disappearances, as he had some Shinigami go in to Rukongai and kill the people to keep the balance between spirits and people even. Yamamoto asks why he didn’t ask for permission, saying that under the current circumstances it would have been approved anyway.

Mayuri says that if things had got worse, his unit would have been held responsible for it, hence why he went ahead and did it anyway. Yamamoto responds by saying that if they had reported things sooner, then maybe things wouldn’t have become so serious in the first place. Without hesitation, Mayuri tells Yamamoto he is wrong. He then says how right back when Ishida first invaded Soul Society along with Ichigo etc he warned him of what could one day happen, but that Yamamoto claimed his fears were baseless and denied it.

Mayuri then says Yamamoto is the one to blame because he didn’t lill “that man“  1000 years ago. Meanwhile, with Ichigo distracted by his battle with Kirge and the other Quincy, the king declares that now is the perfect chance to invade Soul Society, and so they head off to do just that.

But yes, that was the main content of the chapter. As you can tell, things are getting very serious with potential consequences being unthinkable. The dischord in Soul Society just reminded me of something Kubo said in the interview he did shortly before the arc came out, that being that Soul Society would be devastated like never before (or something along those lines).

I mean, while I know the Quincy invasion is going to have a huge impact on everything, maybe a part of what will make things so devastating and like nothing they have ever seen before will be that Soul Society will become full of rifts between the Gotei 13. With this chapter we can already see that Mayuri is unhappy with Yamamoto, and Yamamoto doesn’t seem too happy with Mayuri either. Of course we have no idea who “That man” is / was, but he could even come back to play some huge role, whether that be what happened in the past or even if he is still alive and active somehow today.

I was expecting this to be an action and battle filled chapter, but instead we were given something that is playing far more with the distrust and psychological aspect of things, and as a fan of that sort of thing then I enjoyed it a lot. Kubo really has done a spectacular job with this arc, and I can’t commend him enough for it. Kubo gets a lot of stick from people for all his trolling and “asspulls” that seemed to be brought up for every arc, but this time I can’t imagine there are too many fans who would criticise what he has done in this war arc.

This was a pretty awesome chapter, despite not being what I (and I suspect many others were expecting), and I really can see next week being fantastic, especially if the Quincy do indeed reach Soul Society by then.

Bleach Chapter 488 – Bond Behind Blast – Review / Thoughts

I have to say this was a pretty good chapter. This week I definitely have to say that Bleach was better than Naruto, so needless to say I was pretty happy with chapter 488.
 
There was a fight with the three Fraccion loyal to Harribel – Sun-Sun, Mila Rose and Appaci in this chapter, and Nel was doing her best to hype them up to Ichigo. Speaking of Nel, she was pretty funny in this chapter as she was riding on Ichigo’s back and doing stuff like covering Ichigo’s eyes so he can’t see where he’s going etc. But there was also some serious stuff in the form of the battle I mentioned above, and also with Soul Society preparing for war with the Vandereich.

This chapter confirmed what everyone knew already, that being that the Vandenreich are in fact Quincy. Mayuri confirms it during a meeting between the Gotei 13 and Yamamoto where they are relaying all the info they have on the Vandenreich and preparing to go to war with them. Yamamoto asks if they have found where the Vandenreich (who from this point on I shall refer to as Quincy since it’s been confirmed now) are located, but he is told that they still don’t know yet. Yamamoto tells them to start preparations for war immediately since they were given the 5 day deadline, with Yamamoto saying that they can’t trust people as despicable as the Quincy to even live up to their word, and that they could strike at any time.

Elsewhere, the trio (who Nel referred to as Tres Bestia) finally stop arguing amongst themselves, and instead start fighting and defeating some of the Quincy soldiers. Nel tells Ichigo that they are really powerful and scary, and tells him that he doesn’t even need to do anything as Tres Bestia will probably wipe out the entire army themselves in no time. Of course Ichigo still continues on anyway, while one of the Quincy runs up to the captain and says they are really strong and that they should retreat for now. The Quincy who said it is then just mercilessly killed, and the Quincy captain tells the Fraccion that he has a proposal for them.
He says that they are strong and that it’s wonderful, as they would be perfect pawns for “his majesty”.

He says it’s why he doesn’t want to kill them, and suggests that they surrender instead and become pawns, where at least they would be reunited with Harribel. He then says that there could be no greater joy for them than what he just said, but the Fraccion refuse to listen, telling him not to underestimate them, with them then trying to attack the captain. The Quincy captain says it’s a shame they don’t want to negotiate with him.

Ichigo meanwhile hears a loud explosion, and Nel says it’s probably from the 3 devils and that she won’t make fun of Ichigo if he decides to go back. Just after she finishes saying it however, we get to see the Quincy captain standing on top of a rock or a hill (or something like that anyway) with the three bloody (and presumably) dead bodies of Sun-Sun, Mila Rose and Appaci at his feet. He then notices Ichigo, and comments that now with a Shinigami having arrived that it has been a really busy day for guests.

So yes, that was pretty much the content in the chapter, and it all tied together pretty well. We had the classic mix of seriousness and light hearted scenes / panels which has always been one of my favourite things about Bleach as a whole, and of course it was nice getting 100% proof and confirmation that the Vandenreich are members of the Quincy afterall.

No doubt fans of Sun-Sun, Mila Rose and Appaci will be pissed off that they were wiped out so quickly and effortlessly, but I guess Kubo is doing it just to build up some hype and add some feats to the Quincy before they go up against the Gotei 13 and Soul Society.

Speaking of which, of course it was very interesting to see Ichigo being noticed by the Quincy captain, as it means there could very well be a fight between the two of them in the next chapter. Obviously it’s no guarantee as the captain could have other plans, but if it does go ahead it should be awesome, especially if / when Urahara eventually catches up to Ichigo as well. There is still a lot to come and a lot to expect from this arc and the upcoming chapters, and admittedly this chapter didn’t advance things too much, but overall it was still an enjoyable chapter and one that I really liked reading.

Bleach Chapter 487 – Breathe But Blind – Review / Thoughts

Just as promised in the previous chapter, this week with Bleach 487 we got to see both Ichigo and Urahara, and even some colour panels like the one above! But aside from the awesome colour pictures of Urahara, how was the chapter itself?
 
My first impression of it wasn’t that great to be honest, compared to previous weeks it just didn’t seem as good. Upon reading through it again though my opinion of it is a bit more favourable. I loved the colour panels with Urahara and Ichigo as you probably guessed, and was more than happy with them. Urahara was his usual silly self at times which always makes me laugh, and in what was a mostly serious chapter this kind of humour is a welcome distraction.

In this chapter we do get to see Ichigo, Urahara and Nel etc go to Hueco Mundo like they had planned in the last one. When they get there, the first thing they notice is that they are surrounded by the dead bodies of Arrancar who had been killed during the Vandenreich’s invasion.  The group soon notices that there are a group of Vandenreich gathering yet more Arrancar just as the king had previously requested. The Arrancar are seen being dragged away, and when Ichigo asks what will happen to them, Pesche answers that they will be taken to a camp and be divided in to two groups – one that will end up becoming abducted and held prisoner, and another where they will all be killed immediately.

Without hesitation, Ichigo stands up and says he is going off to save them too, despite Pesche telling him to wait and saying Dodonchakka wasn’t amongst the ones captured. Ichigo replies by saying that it doesn’t matter, and that he will still save Dodonchakka but that in the meantime he might as well save these captured Arrancar as well.  Urahara jokingly comments about how he wonders if Ichigo realises that not too long ago these people were his enemies, but Chad comments on the fact that they all know it doesn’t make a difference, as with the type of person Ichigo is he always wants to save people. Everyone else then begins to follow after Ichigo who had rushed ahead while they were talking.

We then see the supervisor/captain of the Vandenreich’s hunting team – Kirge Opie – who is watching as all the captured Arrancar are made to line up in front of him. A couple of the hooded Arrancar debate amongst themselves whether to go through with their plan or not, with it pretty much being agreed they would soon after. The person in charge then tells all the Arrancar that, starting from the right hand side, he was going to stab them all to death. He then asks if they absolutely wish to live, and to become their comrade, and that if they did, then they are to bow down in front of him and lick his boots.

One of the Arrancar asks that if he agrees to it right away, will they spare his life. He is then stabbed right through the chest, with the captain saying that anyone who fails to understand what he just said will end up the same, and that there is an admission test they all must pass. It’s so illogical even a couple of the other Vandenreich nearby are commenting on whether the captain had any real intentions of taking any of the Arrancar alive in the first place. Just as the captain is about to stab another Arrancar, his attack is knocked back by a sword, which is then pointed in his face.

The captain doesn’t even flinch, and comments that it’s weird they have their swords, as they were supposedly all removed from them.  Then the cloaks are flung off by the Arrancar, who proudly proclaim themselves as aides of Aizen-sama, with them turning out to be Loly and Menoly. Despite their claims that they were superior, both Menoly and Loly are slashed and taken down in almost an instant by the captain. The other Vandenreich nearby asks if they should kill them both, but are told to instead keep them alive, but just give them a severe beating. He then comments to himself about Aizen, thinking that he must not have been worth much if he had such lowly people working for him, though at the same time remembering that even the much stronger Harribel was still no match for the Vandenreich king.

With his back turned, something is suddenly thrown at him, though he catches it without taking any damage all the same. As he turns around, he asks his attackers what they are. They reply by saying that despite badmouthing Harribel-sama, he doesn’t know who they are and refer to him as a useless underling. The people who attacked him turn out to be Apacci, Sun-Sun and Mila Rose.

So yes, that was the content of the chapter, and overall it was a pretty dark one. The Vandenreich of course are extremely oppressive and treating the Arrancar like crap. Anyone who is put in front of them is either cut down on the spot or else taken prisoner, so Kubo is actually doing a great job of making them come across as true villains and complete assholes.

Despite the claim at the end of the last chapter, there was no kind of fighting with either Ichigo or Urahara, so we will unfortunately have to wait a bit longer for that. This chapter did also show the return of more than a few familiar faces, though I personally am not particularly fond of any of the returning characters. But that said, with all the Arrancar members making returns recently, it does mean there is a pretty damn good chance that before long we will end up seeing Grimmjow return as well, and I know myself and plenty of other people will be genuinely delighted with that.

One thing that did piss me off (though in a good way if you get my point) was the way the captain of the hunting team badmouthed Aizen. Now I know Aizen acted like a jerk and trolled countless people, and for that some people dislike him, but I always liked him because he made for a great villain. He was someone who you could love to hate basically. The way he was basically being called weak or inferior by that piece of trash Vandenreich captain really annoyed me though, and made me wish so much that Aizen were free so he could go there, kick his ass, and have him begging for mercy.

Don’t get me wrong here, I am not angry with or criticising Kubo, in a way this is actually praising him. With Aizen he had almost that cool guy feel to him despite being a villain, someone who was just so powerful and hax that you could almost like him for it, but with the Vandenreich they are just being portrayed as purely loathsome and hateful pieces of trash. I have no problem with this, and being a villain is all about getting people to hate you, so in actual fact by getting me to hate them and get so angry with them is actually Kubo doing exactly what he set out to do, and I commend him for his writing.

But yes, it was an enjoyable enough chapter. It wasn’t the best in the world and far from my favourite, but with the colour panels, the few comedy moments, and the possibility of seeing more Arrancar return in the future, it certainly had its’ good points too.

Bleach Chapter 486 – The Crimson Cremation - Review / Thoughts

With chapter 486 I feel Kubo did a great job of placing emotion in to Sasakibe’s funeral, while also possibly hinting at some big stuff happening down the line.
 
As you probably guessed, this chapter has the funeral of Sasakibe in it. I want to praise Tite Kubo though, because considering what an incredibly minor role the character played in the series, it still felt emotional because of the way Kubo wrote it. Byakuya is with Renji and gives a little speech about the kind of man Sasakibe was, and basically it went a long way to showing how loyal and dedicated he was to working with Yamamoto. Yamamoto himself, in a rare turn, is shown to be upset over it too. When he has his back turned to everyone else, it’s clear Sasakibe’s death has made an impact on him, with even Byakuya commenting on how he doesn’t know how Yamamoto must be feeling at the moment.

Moving on, we also found out a little more about what has been happening with Hueco Mundo. As well as Nel’s return, in this chapter we also see that her friend Pesche has come to the human world as well. It’s explained that after the deaths of Starrk and Baraggan, Harribel became the new leader. However, Hueco Mundo was invaded during this time and she was dragged away, while Dondochakka was also kidnapped. Elsewhere, we get to see a bit more from the Vandenreich king, who is seen talking with one of his men. The white haired guy is looking at Ivan’s medallion and comments on how it seems like Ivan couldn’t capture Ichigo’s Bankai. The king then says that it seems like they will need to use a special way to get him, and then orders that the hunting unit of Hueco Mundo is sent out to bring him a few more “idiots” to use.

Back in the human world, everything has clearly been explained to Ishida, Chad and Orihime. Chad immediately knows that this means Ichigo will want to go to Hueco Mundo to rescue the prisoners and says as much, but then Ishida tells them that this time he won’t be joining them. He doesn’t give any reason, but Ichigo doesn’t make a big deal out of it and seems happy enough, saying that he won’t need Ishida’s help anyway. Then, Urahara appears at the window and asks if he should arrange the trip to Hueco Mundo. The chapter ends with a guy in Hueco Mundo ordering some unseen people to keep moving and not to stop. Though with that said, the writing underneath flat out says that next time Urahara and Ichigo will be attacking the enemy army.

This was a really good chapter, and Kubo has delivered once again. The Sasakibe part was awesome as I said, and I loved the Ishida / Ichigo part too. This is a great way of hinting at a possible turn from Ishida, or at the very least having thoughts or doubts about certain things. Since Ishida has helped and backed Ichigo in practically every situation he has ever been in, it does raise questions as to why he is opting out this time. Of course we can guess because he is a Quincy he will play a big role somewhere down the line, and as an Ishida fan I welcome this possibility. I have been wanting more panel time and more of a main role for him for ages, and if he does end up siding with the Quincy it will be very interesting indeed.

I am also extremely excited to hear that Urahara and Ichigo will be fighting in the next chapter. Considering how rare it is for Urahara to physically get involved, this should be a real treat and a real epic moment. It also goes to show how serious things must be if Urahara is willing to get involved again, only previously doing so during the Aizen arc.

I am very excited by a lot of possibilities with this arc in all honesty, Kubo has done a brilliant job thus far and I can forsee that will continue since it is to be the last Bleach arc. A lot of major events are going to happen over the coming chapters, and I can’t wait to see them unfold. With this arc so far, Tite Kubo is showing Kishimoto just how a war should be written.

Bleach Chapter 485 – Foundation Stones - Review / Thoughts

Let’s see, what can you expect from Bleach chapter 485?  A character’s death? Check. Two characters returning to the story? Check. More info on the Vandenreich? Check.  Kubo has really outdone himself this week, and between this and Naruto the Shonen Jump Manga is doing one hell of a great job to make up for the sadness of the Anime coming to an end.
 
The chapter actually starts out pretty grim in tone, we find out that Sasakibe really has died from the wound inflicted upon him by the Vandenreich, and Yuki is informed that he is to go back to Soul Society immediately to attend the funeral. Ishida speculates that the reason Soul Society called to inform someone as low down the ranks as Yuki about what has been happening recently is because they know Ichigo is with him, and that it’s a good indirect way of keeping him informed too. Ichigo is clearly upset and can’t rest properly, so he decides to go out and patrol Karakura just to try and clear his mind. Then from out of nowhere, Nel comes falling from the sky and crashes straight in to Ichigo.

I am delighted to see Nel again, and she is back in her child form for those wondering. Ichigo is rightly surprised and asks about why it has taken all this time for her to come and see him, but then we move on to the palace of the Vandenreich where the king is asking for the reports to be given to him.

I am going to cut to the chase here to keep the review brief and fluid. The king of the Vandenreich is a ruthless S.O.B. The guy he was talking to, Luders Friegen, the same person who’s arm was hacked off by him in the last episode, was lying on the floor in agony. He is panting away and trying to get up off the floor, only to be told by the king that he can stay on the floor if he wants. As Friegen is seemingly about to accept, the king says if he won’t be sitting then he doesn’t need his legs anymore and that he will hack those off too. Friegen is obviously terrified and makes some comment about never lying on the floor while talking to the king as it would be so disrespectful. Friegen then gets up and speaks to the king about the plan to take down Soul Society in 5 days, and comments that in the near future Soul Society will lose it’s balance of souls with the human world.

The king then asks him if he is some sort of prophet. Friegen isn’t sure what he means, but the king repeats himself. Friegen hesitates and says he isn’t, only to be asked why he is talking about the future then, and that the king only wants to talk about now. As soon as he finishes saying that, the king slaughters the guy with one fell swoop, and then starts speaking with Ivan. He tells Ivan that he has no reason to praise him, though he has nothing to blame him for either since he at least slowed down Ichigo. Ivan thanks the king, only to be told that his job is now over and that he would serve as a foundation stone to build peace. Again, as soon as he finishes his comment, the king cuts down Ivan without a shred of mercy.

One of the hooded Vandenreich ask if it was really ok to do that, saying that Arrancars are excellent soldiers because they don’t need to be taught how to fight. The king however says he doesn’t care, as he can easily get as many Arrancars as he likes. Then we get to see a full page of just Harribel chained up somewhere (as you can see from the picture at the top of this page), and one of the hooded Vandenreich comment on the fact that they have already taken over Hueco Mundo, while the king says it’s just another foundation stone to invading Soul Society.

Wow, what an incredible chapter this was! So much revealed, plus the return of both Nel and Harribel just like Kubo spoke of in the recent interview! I am delighted to see them both return, though naturally I feel bad for Harribel being held prisoner by the Vandenreich. Speaking of whom, it was nice to see Ivan confirmed as an Arrancar and proving my earlier guess about him right. The way some of the Vandenreich were speaking, it again hints at the fact they are Quincy too. But having taken over Hueco Mundo is an amazing feat, and if they really can create as many Arrancar as they like, I think Soul Society is going to be in an awful lot of trouble very soon. An army of Vandenreich and Arrancar could finally be the thing that takes down Soul Society, and I really can’t wait to see how things turn out during the war!

The king of the Vandenreich really is merciless and I genuinely wouldn’t put anything past him, I can’t wait to find out what’s in store with him either. And of course, for all the people who have made jokes about Kubo never killing off characters, they can now keep quiet for a while at least since Kubo has done just that in getting rid of Sasakibe. Granted he is hardly a big name or an important character, but I get the feeling his death will be the first of many during this arc, and it wouldn’t surprise me if we end up seeing some of the most popular characters losing their lives at some stage.

Anyway, an absolutely fantastic chapter that reintroduced a couple of awesome characters and also answered some of the questions posed in earlier chapters. And of course, as always, feel free to leave a comment below on your thoughts and predictions for this and future chapters!