Bleach episode 231 review

We’ve entered into a new era… welcome to Zanpakuto World.

Byakuya gets his tonsils torn out by his Zanpakuto, while the rest of the Soul Reapers are rendered virtually useless by their own Zanpakutos. Everyone’s in a state of panic, and Rukia gets shoved back into the World of the Living. There, Rukia goes face-to-face with her Zanpakuto, who also beats her up. Then it’s up to Orihime to heal Rukia.

Yoruichi, fortunately, has no Zanpakuto to speak of, something that doesn’t make much sense at the moment. Urahara and Ichigo have no problems with their Zanpakutos, which at least gives the Soul Reapers some hope. Otherwise, this has the feeling of the “dark” TYBW, where the Soul Reapers are completely helpless, at the mercy of their foes. Maybe that’s why I didn’t like it too much the first time around.

Best girl of the episode: Rukia (45)

Episode rating: 6/10

Bleach episode 230 review

I distinctly remember hating this arc the first time around. I’m giving it a fair chance this time around, though. I checked out early and never really paid much attention as the episodes went by. This time, I’m going to try to enjoy it as much as I can.

Basically, all the zanpakutos rebel against their holders, and manifest in humanoid form to oppose the Soul Reapers. It’s an interesting concept; not much different is “they aren’t sealing the Bankai; they’re stealing it!” from TYBW. So, in that case, the Soul Reaper has no powers, but they’ve got to figure out a way to win without their zanpakuto. It’s sort of like Q on Star Trek: The Next Generation: “I have no powers!” “Q the liar! Q the misanthrope!”

Best girl of the episode: Rangiku (30) (only one of three girls to reach 30 wins)

Episode rating: 7/10

Bleach episode 229 review

We never get a conclusion to the tentacles on the beach, which is just as good, because now we get an episode about Ikkaku and Mizuho. That’s right, Keigo’s sister is the star of this episode, all happy because Ikkaku comes and stays at her place. But there’s a catch: Ikkaku goes and gets a wig, which makes her hate him because he no longer has a shaved head, and she goes and kicks him and Yumichika out. Wacky antics ensue, until Ikkaku is finally able to save Mizuho’s life from the Hollow.

It’s a filler episode, so what do you expect? At one point, Yumichika says, “This is getting old fast,” which I think is a perfect description of the filler. But hey, we got some humor in here, and an entertaining episode for the moment. Just don’t use superglue the next time you put on a wig, okay?

Best girl of the episode: Mizuho (4)

Episode rating: 7/10

Bleach episode 228 review

Boy, it’s hard to go with one picture of all the great ones I had the choice of for this episode, but ultimately I went with my favorite two Bleach girls. Basically, this is the swimsuit episode of Bleach, literally. The plot of the episode – and remember, I watch it for the plot – was the Bleach girls all choosing what swimsuits they wanted to wear. Soi Fon got stuck with one she considered to be embarrassing because Yoruichi forced it on her. Isane couldn’t pick one because she’s so tall, and Rangiku screwed with Nanao because Nanao has no boobs. It’s all fascinating, deep stuff.

And then comes the beach. Ukitake gets buried in a coffin of sand, Toshiro’s only use is to pull out his zanpakuto to make ice, Orihime’s cooking up something terrible, and then the tentacles come. That’s right, this episode didn’t just give us the swimsuits, it gave us the tentacles too. Nanao – who like Eris, pads her chest – and Isane get captured by the watermelon tentacle monster, one that Unohana herself created for everyone’s enjoyment. You can’t make this stuff up, folks, it’s just genius!

And it might not even be over yet! Tentacle monster is still going at it when this episode gets cut short. Will we get a second episode of it, or will we be forced into some less enjoyable version of filler?

Best girl of the episode: Rangiku (29)

Episode rating: 9/10