#some flashback to his previous battles with shinigami

[unohanadaydreams]

Okay finally posting the last of Pernida fight. Truly don't understand how I forgot these in the drafts.

Surely part of this is working smarter and not harder in terms of not wanting to start from absolute scratch on a new Nemuri, but the look on his face makes me think there is absolutely sentiment behind this as well. He looks desperate.

He is putting himself in immense danger by doing this. He's risking following Nemu in death by getting this close. And he does it anyway.

I love my fucking stupid, idiot, moron repressed asshole. He is SO stupid. It is TOO LATE. ITS TOO LATE!!!!

But he's taking back her cerebrum anyway.

What I get out of this is that Nemu essentially had an extra thyroid working overtime to keep her above board? And although this going unchecked once the cerebrum is removed would overwork the heart for sure, it’s more likely to shrivel and restrict the body but I get an explosion is cooler.

The conclusion of this fight is rushed considering the lengthy build up. And instead of going into anything about the Soul King or Pernida, we are left with nothing. Which is so disheartening.

Idk it’s just unfulfilling. It felt like something was building re: Mayuri viewing Pernida like a new kind of being to study to exhaustion but realizing too late that he’s just a Quincy. And he’s already studied them to exhaustion. But still fucked up and got Nemu killed and almost died himself because he refused to RECOGNIZE that. And he refused to recognize this battle for what it is: just trying to get out alive versus a being that has mastered evolution in a way that Mayuri has not scraped. He wasn't being cautious or prepared or observant--he was being reckless & DUMB. (Pernida was out there absorbing Mayuri's brain cells lmao)

Pernida doesn’t seem so stupid that he wouldn’t have realized that Mayuri encouraging him to eat Nemu meant something. He had already evolved pretty far. That said, I do appreciate Nemu's involvement.

I think maybe they just realized this fight was taking a lot of panels more than what they’d anticipated lmao.

I was just really hoping this battle was going to open up some kind of pathway to more on the Soul King or Pernida's backstory of any kind. But no!

Not complaining too much since this was bountiful Mayuri character moments. But also plot my beloved, I miss you.

My guess is that they got the extra thyroid treatment and since they are actual souls and not fake souls, it’s both keeping their cells refreshes enough to ensure they’re not dead but also refreshing too fast for a real soul to live normally? It's matching more what would happen to a body (shriveling and restricting), I guess.

And for Toshiro, who is ALREADY being crushed by immense power from his zanpakuto, I can imagine this would be really affecting.

Otherwise idk how he made them alive again lmao. I’m purely spit balling.

Has he though? We don’t get a lot of time with Ururu and Jinta but they seem more like individuals than Nemu ever did. Although, I guess we don’t know if they were made from scratch like Nemu, only that they were made similarly.

And Pernida was also not made from scratch.

So on this point, maybe he's right?

But it still feels like a major fucking cope lmao.

Over all, this battle is such a tragedy for Mayuri's emotional development. He distances himself from the next Nemuri and you can tell he took this as a lesson to not care or love.

Instead of learning the word moderation, he just swings the other way and treats Nemuri like she's subject number 8. Like Kubo is really batting 1000 with these tragic lessons. Kenpachi & Mayuri will be worse but better for Soul Society for it. And that's really all that matters.

Also Mayuri with bangs in his eyes and sweat dripping down his face and a half-hearted smile on his face LSKDJFPO:WIEJFP:OIAJSD:PLFKJ:SALDKEJFEKLJ

[recurring-polynya]

So you ever try to wrap your brain around Yachiru being Kenpachi's zanpakutō? It seems to violate all known (manga-canon) mechanics.

So, to be honest, that particular plot twist hit the note in my head that says “Yes, this is pleasing and not entirely unexpected to me!” I think it’s the fact that the idea of his zanpakutou being embodied this whole time made more sense than ::gestures vaguely at all of Yachiru:: this.

I don’t exactly remember, but I think I may have been spoiled on this one--I got spoiled on a lot of the Bleach endgame, and that always affects the way a plot twist lands, so please take my opinion with that grain of salt.

I think there were a lot of hints along the way-- that although Yachiru is very, very strong and somewhat bloodthirsty herself, she always seems more interested in seeing Zaraki gets the fights that he wants, and watching them raptly, deeply invested in his happiness. She doesn’t actually act like a child, she acts like someone would expect a child to act-- mischievous and silly, but she does not grow and explore or, most importantly, assert her personhood, the way a real person does. She never seeks to grow stronger, or to fight for herself. She wears the lieutenant’s badge and goes to the meetings, which she neither complains about, nor takes any interest in. A real child would either not put up with this shit, or seek to be taken seriously in this role (try to imagine young Byakuya, for example, being named a lieutenant). Most importantly: She is constantly trying to give him directions and they end up lost every time. We thought it was a running gag, but it was a metaphor.

It also seems to me that the other child characters in Bleach grow and age at times when their powers are developing. We see Rukia, Renji, Gin, Rangiku, and Shuuhei as powerless children, and then they age to teens when their powers develop. Toshirou is definitely seen as a smaller child in his Rukongai flashbacks, and it’s implied that he is currently at in impasse with his powers, having difficulty with the upper levels of his bankai. Even so, though his body is stuck in an adolescent state, he has the faculties and personality of an adult. Yachiru, if I am figuring things correctly, is older than Rukia and Renji. It seems like she must be an enormous outlier in the Bleach universe, and it’s frankly weird that, say, Yamamoto wouldn’t take a greater interest in her (unless he knows exactly what she is, and I suspect that both he and Unohana both do).

Unless I’ve missed something, we hardly know anything about zanpakutou-spirit dynamics within the Bleach manga canon. As far as I know, we only ever see two-- Zangetsu and Zabimaru. I think it’s safe to say that Zangetsu already violates all known normal mechanics. I also want to point out that I was a lot more pissed when Zangetsu turned out to be Yhwach (or whatever that was, please no one explain it to me I don’t want to think about it). It was telescoped well enough, but it poisoned a character who had always been there for Ichigo as a mentor and source of strength and it gave me the same yucky feeling as when they killed off Han Solo-- I do not like this. This does not feel right or enhance the story.

We don’t get a whole lot of Zabimaru either-- they can manifest on their own, and do so in order to bother Renji. They seem to be a fairly simplistic being-- they want to fight and be strong and are impatient with Renji’s (very reasonable) desire to take a minute to think things out.

Nobody asked, but I feel like it might be helpful if I unleashed my personal headcanon on Where Zanpakutou Come From. In the Zanpakutou Spirits Arc, the episodes are prefaced with a voiceover that says that zanpakutou are born and die with their shinigami, and I am sorry, anime filler arc, I reject this. One of my favorite Bleach phrases, which seems like it should it could have come from some angsty hurt-comfort fanfic, is “There are no ghosts in Soul Society.” (it actually came from a filler arc episode where Ikkaku, Nanao and Hanatarou get lost in the sewer). But I think there are! When shinigami are killed and reborn in the Living World, presumably, it is as a normal human with no powers. I like to think that some essence of their power and their zanpakutou are left behind, free-floating, nameless, formless, but with some distillation of the principles that guided their shinigami’s life. This ur-zanpakutou attaches itself to a young, spiritually strong person, and becomes intertwined with their soul. They develop a form based on the thoughts and memories and hopes and fears of their shinigami, and their names and specific powers are born of the union of zanpakutou and shinigami. Noble souls often get zanpakutou passed down from previous generations, who take the form of a grandparent, or form that their grandparents zanpakutou had. For kids from the Rukon, I think that most zanpakutou spirits takes the form of a barely remembered mother from the Living World, or a particularly frightening woodcut from a favorite storybook. As an aside, this theory also explains why almost every Rukongonian shinigami we see died as a child-- it’s easier for a free floating zanpakutou spirit to bond with a child’s developing psyche. It’s also a reminder of one more way that Zaraki himself is an outlier.

Zaraki is a really messed-up guy, I think we’re all on the same page there. Like, he just really needs a shit-ton of therapy, I can’t even start. He was a feral murder-child, and I think he saw Unohana as a mother-figure who rejected him. Unlike Ichigo, who needs a wise, experienced mentor to guide him through his warrior journey, Zaraki needs validation that he is a Normal Guy with Normal Murder Thoughts and Feelings, so his subconscious shapes his zanpakutou into another feral murder-child to love him and be his family. Zaraki doesn’t know how little girls act-- pink hair seems good? Stuffy people hate kids, right? It makes perfect sense that Yachiru would go fuck around with Byakuya. Zaraki finds all of Yachiru’s antics hilarious-- the names she makes up for people, the way she climbs all over Ichigo, her general proclivity for going ham. Zaraki is an incredibly simplistic person. My favorite Zaraki parts of Bleach are where you think he is about to get real deep and have some sort of insight, and it turns out to be “I’m gonna stab you, but I’m gonna use both hands” or this entire problem-solving process I’ve pasted in below, which ends in him finding Tousen by letting Tousen stab him. He’s just stupid, bless his heart, and having a murder gremlin for a guiding light just... tracks?

The weirdest thing about Yachiru is that she has her own zanpakutou. I spent about 10 minutes thinking about it, though, and decided that she’s just a recursion, and that the weird feeling I get thinking about her is exactly the way I feel about writing a function that calls itself, and I find that little paradoxical frisson to be kinda cool, actually. The second weirdest thing about Yachiru is that there does not seem to be any connection, thematically, between Yachiru and Nozarashi. After he finally learns his sword’s name, I would have liked to see Zaraki have a trip to his inner world (like Ichigo does, in the midst of battle) where he meets an adult spirit who has qualities of both Yachirus (which he absolutely does not recognize) and that there is some interesting explanation of Nozarashi’s special abilities. To be honest, I couldn’t even remember what they were. Kenpachi has always been one of the strongest Bleach characters and so much about him is just iconic, and then his bankai was just completely bland and unmemorable, with no symbolism whatsoever. Lame.

[ichinoue]

I usually comes across an argument that Orihime being afraid of Ichigo’s hollow mask was a bad thing while Rukia was never afraid of it. Setting aside Rukia being a shinigami, did she ever meet any of Ichigo’s form? Especially his hollow form? I don’t think Rukia did. Man, I need to re read Bleach lol

god that’s such a weak argument, it’s insane how often I’ve seen them pedal it over the years. It’s like they didn’t put any real thought into it, it’s just so…simplistic? Narrow-minded? So many of their arguments are like this because they waste so much time comparing things that aren’t actually comparable due to a little thing called context. As if Rukia, who knows all about hollows and has been trained in combat against them for 200+ years—as if her reaction or response to Ichigo’s hollow should be in any way compared to Orihime, the girl whose experience and understanding of hollows at that point was basically slim to none (the only references she had were H!Sora and the Numb Chandelier one, both of whom tried to kill her and her friends. So, of fucking course she’s going to be wary towards hollows).Not only that, but they wax on and on about this as if Orihime was so horrifically terrified of Ichigo’s mask, as if it were some huge lingering issue that was never resolved, when in reality, if you read the Grimmjow battle chapters, she never once expresses a fear that Ichigo is going to harm her. Instead, she only ever expresses a fear for him, and his well-being, because she doesn’t understand what’s happened to him, doesn’t understand what it means for him to have a mask like that—no one’s ever explained it to her—and as I said, the only references she had to go off of were the Chandelier and her brother…and Kubo made sure to include a flashback of H!Sora to hammer that point home even further: that Orihime was afraid Ichigo would be consumed by his hollow just like her brother was. She was more afraid FOR him than she ever was afraid OF him. That’s the difference.And the thing is….that “conflict” (if you could even consider it that) of her being afraid lasted what? Three chapters? Only to then be resolved when she inevitably calls out to Ichigo and begs him not to get hurt anymore, proving that she still cares about him just as much as she always has and doesn’t see him as some big bad terrible monster? And when it’s all over and he floats up to the pillar and smiles at her, proving that he’s still the same old Ichigo and wasn’t actually consumed by the hollow as she feared—she thinks to herself, “thank goodness, he’s still alright/still Ichigo.” Meaning the conflict of her fear was wrapped up and resolved within the span of just a few chapters. Meaning it was a complete nonissue, that IR’s are still harping on for some reason lmaoIt’s just funny how they’ll go on and on about Orihime’s fear, and yet never mention that she was afraid FOR him, not OF him. And hell, they won’t even touch upon the fact that she still loved and cared about Ichigo regardless even after seeing him with his mask. She was still willing to sacrifice herself by telling him he didn’t have to fight for her anymore and could just leave her behind. She still immediately ran to his side, crying out in concern over his well-being, even after witnessing him become a “monster” who attacked one of their friends in the lust arc. Seriously, she had previous trauma with hollows because of her brother, and yet she saw Ichigo turn into that fucking thing right before her very eyes and still loved and cared about him unconditionally. And then in the final arc when Ichigo transforms, her trauma is again briefly rehashed, only to be immediately resolved when Ichigo says “relax, Inoue. This time, I’m still me.” And then tears of relief swell up in her eyes, because as long as she knows Ichigo is going to be okay and not consumed by his hollow, then she’s not afraid. Reinforcing, once again, that her fear was never that the hollow was going to harm her, but that it was going to harm Ichigo. 

Oh, and as for the last point: Rukia was aware of Ichigo’s mask as she mentions it after Grimmjow invaded Karakura, but unless I’m mistaken I think the only time she actually saw Ichigo with his mask on was here during the brief Ichigo/Yammy battle after the lust arc. 

[soyouareandrewdobson]

Alex ze Pirate Mini Review 3: About pacing and terrible dark revelations played as jokes.

And here we are at the second part of the arc, which was titled “Abandoned”. And just as a word in advance: While “Underappreciated” was mostly defined by the shitty behavior Sam experiences by his crew and how Dobson crossed comedic lines to the point Alex and her crew come off more as abusive than “funny” in the way they treat Sam or interact with their environment, this one is defined by another major issue Dobson has in his bigger stories overall: Pacing.

 See, the right pacing in a story is really one of the most important basics a creator kinda has to grasp. He or she needs to know primarily the following things in relation to pacing, when planning out a story: What are major events/storypoints/key scenes I want to work towards to, what happens inbetween these points and at which speed do I get from point A to B, C etc.

Cause the truth is, a lot of stories out there follow certain tropes or expectations, particularly when they are part of a certain genre, so people more or less have ideas when a certain “point” is hit, what the next point, if not even the endpoint is going to be down the line. And people also kinda want to reach the endpoint of a story, particularly if they expect doing so will finally give the protagonists they care for (and the audience itself) some sort of satisfying conclusion.

The one thing you can now do however, which can in the worst scenario totally kill an audiences/readers enjoyment of the story and even break your creation apart, is get the pacing wrong. For example by unnecessarily dragging out your story instead of just getting to the point, especially when people just want to reach the next major beat, resulting in increased annoyance by them. This can e.g. be seen in a lot of fanfics when writers create damn arcs within their own shit, or (to give a professionally published work of fiction as example) the manga Bleach, when instead of fighting Aizen and his two major supporters directly, the “war” against him was unnecessarily dragged out by having e.g. a pointless flashback sequence that barely shed new light on certain characters and gave EVERY damn main and sub captain of the Shinigami a shot at some random villain/minion Tite Kubo created on the spot but no one cared about really, just to make the story arc run longer.

Obviously, the opposite can also be the case, where people just rush too fast from one point to the other instead of giving the audience time to even properly comprehend or explain what happened and why it happened. Which can get additionally frustrated, when by rushing through plot points the work of fiction gets overloaded with concepts and ideas that may on first glance look interesting, but don’t have any real payoff in the big picture of things, making it come off as pretentious in some cases and pointless overall. Like the movie Southland Tales, which deserves to be burned off the surface of the planet.

 The “best” case scenario when pacing a story, is to know when you need to slow things down (give characters and the readers e.g. moments to breath and emotionally comprehend a situation they are in, giving also insight into a characters emotional state or personality) and when to speed things up (e.g. when there is a big battle, to know which moments are meant to focus on, but also when to be “faster”, giving really the impression that time is of the essence, that high stakes in a short amount of time are given and to hit a key event at the right moment to get a satisfying reaction from your audience)

 And now, after giving a glance on my general opinion on pacing, in order to avoid me commiting the cardinal sin of dragging things out, lets just get to Dobson’s actual artwork.

  As you can see, the chapter starts off again with the island, but this time now with Sam not part of the picture and its consequences (no one cleaning up the place in the morning). This is not really a bad thing to start the chapter of, primarily because it creates a nice contrast to the beginning of the first part.

Page 3 to 5 however…

Lets just say I get what Dobson tries to show here, but I think is exaggerated to a degree that kinda hurts the narrative; the fact that without Sam, shit does not quite get done.

The problem is the execution of the idea. See, instead of putting the fact Sam is missing into the forefront, the fact stuff has not been done is. Stuff the crew should be able to handle after a very short time of adjustment easily. I will admit, Talus suspecting they were robbed but then asked if he had also looked into the cabinets, is kinda funny. I mean, it fits the character (and sometimes people in real life) to be so adjusted to seeing a certain situation as routine every day, that when it is slighty changed they may initially assume the worst but in reality just one convenient step of the routine was left out. Less forgivable I think is the fact that seeing how Sam did the clothes the day prior, I have to wonder how dirty those guys are that already everything is left in piles of dirt to the point they have only the following alternative as wardrobe.

Halloween costumes.

…. Ok, why is there Halloween, and likely a modern day variant of its celebration, in a comic set in a fictional world compared to ours, in a time period it would not exactly exist anyway? Christ on a pogo stick, consistency is all I ask for. Oh and of course NOW they realize Sam is gone. Because they finally put together that their daily luxuries they took for granted are no longer available.

Hey now, Talus. You all are guilty of being terrible friends. In fact yu are so terrible, you would make Twilight Sparkle vomit at the sight of yours. Also, why of all characters are you wearing a costume? Unlike those two bitches, you still had clean clothes on a few pages ago. Speaking of bitches, Atea in the middle panel looks readyto be edited in a cumshot video. Just saying for all those “creative” editors out there.

 YAY! Lets get our slave back so he can do all the stuff we care about but do not want to do.

Seriously, if Dobson tries to convince us they want to get him back because they care for him as a person, he fails miserably. Both by the choice of wording in this page, where Atea and Talus react angrier about the fact that without Sam things don’t work smoothly, rather than concern about his well being, as well as any behavior expressed in the previous chapter. These people are not reacting like friends in worry, they act like spoiled brats. Especially Talus who could still get his stupid burgers if he, as the cook of the crew, would just do his job. All he has to do is additionally open a few cabinets. Also, where in the heck is Uncle Peggy? Oh just go to the next pages so we are getting this over with.

Oh great, the lolcat pirates are back. Because they were so hilarious the first time. And look, they got defeated again. And what is their contribution to the story? To give information on where Sam may have gone.

And it is here now where I have to stop and come back to the pacing issue. Cause the last ten pages here? They are a good example of what I meant with rushed pacing and how it ruins things.

Once more I need to say, I get it. I get the major points Dobson wants to get across. That a) Sam is gone that b) without him things are not all that good for the crew anymore c) they decide they want to find him d) they get information of where he is by going after the one feline that can provide a potential hint. Four major story points Dobson wants to get across. And he is free to get them across. But the way he does it, is just way too fast. Neither the characters, nor the reader really gets time to comprehend that Sam is gone and what that means aside of the surface level loss of luxury Alex and Co are now experiencing. The emotional weight of Sam’s “loss” is pushed aside for the sake of cruising through the plot defined by its surface premise, as fast as possible. And considering that the meat of this story is supposed to be how much Sam means to the others as a person as well as his personal tragedy, intend and execution, thanks to this pacing, does not compute.

Pacing and overall structure are way off and fail to engage us in addition to just killing any suspense in what is going to happen next or surprise us in an interesting fashion. In other words, I am not entertained by this story. It is not funny, it is not sad, it is not “adventurous”.

Personally, I would suggest to actually use the “premise” of those ten pages and turn them at least into two independent chapters of this story overall, to give the premise actually some meat on the bone. The first chapter being a multipager with the crew realizing Sam is gone first BEFORE realizing that without him their luxuries are gone (putting also emphasize this way on the fact they care for Sam also more as a person instead of just the things he does for them) and then once they realize he is missing, deciding to go after him. Only to realize that when they want to prepare themselves for the task (getting their gear together as well as lunch e.g.) that everything is dirty or damaged because Sam normally takes care of it. Leading to a sequence of them having to experience doing Sam’s work for once, making them already there indirectly in part realize what he all does they took for granted.

The second chapter would then be them on the sea, trying to think of where to look at and eventually stumbling upon the cat pirates. Only instead of defeating them easily this time and getting the information, expectations are subverted and the cats actually fight back first, leading to a more hilarious confrontation where Alex and her crew can actually also show how they can be funny and badass, instead of Dobson just always “talking” and trying to convince us they are cool. And look, I do not expect a multi chapter One Piece like battle against the cat captain who turns out to be a master of Scratch Jutzu or something the moment he sniffs catnip. But please, give me something in this story. Some conflict, some diversion, something for characters to actually do that shows they can be badass, funny and awesome. Something that is as cartoony as Dobson likes to claim Alex ze Pirate is, but has never shown in its entirety.

Instead we get to this page, where of all characters Talus is the one who finally seems to realize how he and others took Sam for granted.

 And again, even this page is a good example of terrible pacing. Cause this realization, now shoved in within this and the next page? It would mean so much more if it happened in parts somewhere else in this story before or after, slowly to everyone stepwise. Cause then it would actually feel like a “development” of a chain of thoughts and internal realizations. Instead it is half heartedly thrown in all at once in those pages, to get the point across that NOW Sam’s “friends” finally realize, they took him always for granted.

Congratulations on realizing that you are the real scum in this story. What do you expect from me now? To give you hugs and feel pity for you like you are characters in Steven Universe, all because you had an epiphany? You do not deserve mine or any readers sympathy, just because NOW you feel bad for your terrible behavior. Cause if I did, it would just feel rewarding in a certain manner. And you do not deserve a reward. You have to make things up first or at the very least put in some sort of effort to show me, that you are not just feeling bad, but are willing to change for the better. Otherwise you are in the future still just the same toxic abusers you were two pages ago.

... man, that really felt like me already venting at Steven Universe.

Anyway, we have reached the town where Sam is from…

And it looks NOTHING at all like the artwork from Legends implied parts of the town to look like

Where are the badly drawn docks? The houses that imply this is not just a small village on the beach but an actual small town? The twon square where they sell underaged boys as slaves? Jesus Christ, what is the orphanage going to look li-

Nevermind. The orphanage is crushed. And all the people that lived in it are dead.

... WHAT THE HECK IS WRONG WITH YOU, DOBSON! This is genuinely a sick joke here. Look, I am all for black and dark comedy myself, but this feels cruel. I need to remind you, Alex ze Pirate in Dobson’s eyes was also meant to be a comic for all ages. Meaning something also little kids should be able to read and enjoy. Pushing aside how much of that would be bullshit by the shitton of sexist and sex jokes in other strips of the comic alone, this here is not the kind of joke I would like to see a little kid being exposed to when reading any form of story.

Look, I am not saying you can’t make fun about death. But Death is also a major part of life, which many of us are already being exposed to at an early age. And I think it is important that when we talk about death as a subject in a story for kids, we should actually address it in a “mature” manner the kid may understand. That death, as in the genuine loss of a life and not e.g. an awesome interpretation of the Grim Reaper as written by Terry Pratchett, is tragic. That it means permanently losing someone you or someone else loves. That when talking about it, we should talk about it in a serene manner. And there have been great kids stories who tackled the subject directly or indirectly. A Land Before Time for example, the loss of Littlefoots mother and how he “copes” with it while the majority of the plot still focuses on an adventure to find the Great Valley… that is great. But this thing here that Dobson does? To create a shocking revelation and then sell it as a joke based on the fact that Alex, Atea and Talus react with jawdrops to it? It is not handling the death of those children with any form of gravitas in a story that supposedly is meant to be emotional and play with your heartstrings. And yes, we know nothing about those kids, they are essentially non entities to further the plot. But in context of the story, you have to consider, those kids that are “unimportant” to the reader? For the character of Sam, those people were family. At page 14, we as readers start to realize what Sam finding this locket and going back to his hometown only to find out everyone he knew is dead must mean for him. We, people with even an ounce of empathy and understanding how tragedies should be in part written realize, that shit just hit the fan for Sam and that the story should genuinely focus on how Sam would deal with such a tragedy. But does Dobson treat this revelation with any grace or dignity? NOPE!

It is just a bunch of information dropped on us randomly by an old guy who (I guess similar to Dobson) does not even care that kids died. They are just a plotdevice. Oh and also most of those kids died of an infectious disease where most people die of dehydration after literally shitting non stop. Just to add additional gravity and dignity to the loss of prepubescent lives that should count as Sam’s siblings.

You know, I have to change my opinion on Alex. She is not the worst abuser of Sam. The worst person to ever abuse Sam is Andrew Dobson himself. Cause at least Alex did not kill his extended “family”. And to think this “children comic” was written by the same guy who made a “So you are a Cartoonist” strip where he talked about how kids media can tell more mature comics with more gravitas than live action stuff and novels meant for people that aren’t just children, young adults or mentally stucked manchildren. Dobson, after this page you have no right to call your stuff “appropriate for children” or mature anymore.

I am genuinely furious at this page right now as that I can go on. So here, have the last page of this chapter so I can wrap this up and enjoy some good forms of fiction…

Well Atea, everyone he knew from this village and potentially cared about died in an house collapsing with no one having removed the remains still and he is going on a cemetery. UNLIKE DOBSON WHEN WRITING THIS, USE YOUR BRAIN YOU INSULT TO LESBIANS!

[muwitch]

Why the Fullbringer Arc is an important plot milestone - 2

the continuation of this post and I’m bak on my bullshit~ remember my brain will jump to things

also CFYOW spoilers

so part 2/?

key figures and themes of the arc

So last time I said that ppl disliked the majority of new characters because, as opposing to the ones we grew familiar with, the arc was differently paced and so we didn’t have time at large to form some sort of solid connection to them.

And here the magic happens, because we do not have time to get attached to the characters and they seem to be faded against the background of all the others.

But apart from COMPARISON Fullbringers are quite an independent unit that focuses not on how much reiatsu you have, but on skill

In the Can't fear your own world novel the origin of Fullbringer power is revealed and it’s shown how actually universally badass those powers are, take Tsukishima for example, who grows a tree in a second to ward off lightning, simply adding himself to the past. Atomic.

For living people even just getting close to the level of those with whom they fought (three captains and three leutenants) and not dying in the first moment (except u Giriko) is a great achievement. For people who are not Ichigo Kurosaki with a family tree rivaling GoT of course. 

There is another important motive associated with fullbringers, which I mentioned above, and this is LONELINESS. And it's served so brilliantly that I'm going to die now.

If you look and read carefully, it becomes clear that even the fullbringers gathered together are unusually, exasperately lonely. (See the cover? They reach out but never do truly connect) This is the curse of their power. This is their main weakness. This is their unusual humanity and kinship with the Hollows.

This is also why, but that’s my guess, their whole presentation is very lacking, to show how they fall out of everyday life and proper sozialising, so even we, as readers, cannot properly connect to them. Same reach out, but not hold symbolism. Or I am giving too much credit, we just don’t know?

Even the one who has assembled the whole group, Ginjo, is an even lonelier person who has terrible trust issues, who survived betrayal and persecution, and everything that he once believed in was set upside down. And even knowing what kind of person he is, fullbringers, driven by loneliness, followed him. (Though, we must admit, he weilds his words well and rolls +20 on persuation)

Because, although for a short time, he helped them to bear the burden of this loneliness.

Needless to say, the entire initial situation with OG fullbringers happened not only bc of some noble meddling, but also due to the fact that Ginjo gathered people to TAKE POWER FROM THEM SO THEY COULD LIVE A NORMAL LIFE

Ironically enough, each Fullbringer posesses a piece of SOUL KING, which is the source of their power and lures Hollows to pregnant mothers, which is such an important piece of information it makes me mad it was only explained in CFYOW. 

Although it is understandable why Kubo chose not to focus on it during the arc. My take is he planned to show the importance of Fullbringers and their origins during TYBW, but we all know it didn’t happen.

Another common theme that follows from the previous two is PTSD, which unites the characters and key figures of the arc, and the paths of experiencing trauma constitute another conflict, where Ichigo overcomes it through friends and the return of strength and motivation, as opposed to Ginjo, who choses destuctive way to handle his own trauma.

In short flashbacks shown during “Pray for Predators” chapters, we can also clearly see PSTD practically in every person’s past. Each of Fullbringers go about it differenly, most proactive being probably Riruka and most reactive being Tsukishima and Ginjo. Which is also symbolically shown that people, who can go own with their lives and finally integrate into society stay alive. Those, who cannot, go to SS and are set into new path by more drastic measures.

I will surely attribute to the pluses how Kubo shows Ichigo's PTSD, literally in 3-4 chapters showing how he cannot, like Remarque's hero, settle in peacetime, because he constantly catches triggers, for example with his substitute badge.

Through Ichigo’s thoughts is shown how he merged with his position as a substitute shinigami and constantly thinks in categories that are not very applicable to his normal life, which he seemed to have dreamed of for 16 years And now he actually got it, but absolutely does not know what to do with it.

Kubo skillfully fuels PTSD and Ichigo's anxiety which is why he is being swayed by Ginjo's words correctly spoken at the right time.

 Example: Karin speaks of his brother, they say he always fought to protect  Ginjo fuels Ichigo’s doubt , saying he must act to protect his family

Accordingly, the theme approaches the climax for a push into the plot at the time of the attack on Ishida, Ichigo gets a punch in the gut twice: first from Ishida himself, who, with his unwillingness to tell things, pokes Ichigo into his helplessness and excludes him from the circle of trust, which IS the last blow 

And then from Ishida's father, who by his behavior shows that Ichigo's efficiency now amounts to zero, so much so that he cannot even protect Orihime while she walks home, which is why he runs away in frustrated feelings, realizing the message. So this intro is absolutely veritable and ingenious.

And so that you understand how desperate Ichigo is, if not yet, then here is a panel where FATTEST visual forshadowing happens. And here is an absolutely genius moment to understand that Ichigo is not a child but a teenager with all that it implies

He may be battle-hardened, but this is a 17-year-old living boy with trust issues, and if we remember that through his manager's lips we are given a direct hint that Ichigo is still immature in a way, so the meaning of this arc as a stage of Ishigo's psychological maturation becomes clearer.

Just look at the face he has when Ginjo promises to return his powers (not to mention the hysterics after that) Is this a healthy person's face?

And here my hands are literally itching to start talking about Ginjo, because to give an antihero who, in addition, will have a much closer dynamics with Ichi than Urahara, plus for the duration of the arc  will act as a mentor and father figure, this is just genius. Don’t @ me.

But the next plus, which will then bring us further, and this is THE Forshadowing 

Everywhere, just everywhere, starting from the very first pages.

And Kubo still confuses us in the course of the narrative, but my god, when you re-read, Easter eggs are crammed almost in every chapter and I think its beautiful. Both verbal (Ginjo is such a bad actor that he has to change his memory badumts) and visual

The plus that I mentioned earlier is 100% more lively dynamics between Ginjo and Ichi, because both are people and in fact, there is much more than it may seem at first, that brings both together. And the friendly connection that they establish with each other in this arc still not 100% false placeholder. (Which is easily spotted by the way Ginjo adresses Ichigo through the arc especially last chapters). 

And at the same time, they are in many ways the antonyms of each other, in age, color scheme, design, even names and also in what gives them motivation, in how they react to this or that event. For example, Ichigo is quite an emotional guy and puts his soul into everything, so to speak, then Ginjo, for example

Plus, the latter is not only skillful manipulator, but also embittered. And through such contrast, with generally the same input data, Kubo shows us that there is always a different path, leading to the topic choice, and where each specific one can lead a character.

Which absolutely doesn’t stop Ichigo from familirizing himself right off the bat and the two of them have comedy gold moments from the start. It is more lively, than being set against 300+ y.o. Urahara (whom I love as a character).

And, cross my heart Isshin is a great character, but he’s got that father of the year award, and Urahara can only give like a little itsy bitsy of information at a time only if it benefits him or a bigger picture, so the mentor’s role goes to Ginjo, which is well earned as he is technically the First Substitute. 

Ginjo is a mentor, a guide, and the main antagonist of the arc, which in itself is an unexpected and interesting combination within the framework of  Bleach. Here is a living example, in the moment of training he can go so far as to help Ichigo overcome his psychological barrier by simply and cruelly breaking him.

Which he does in the most painful way, through the trauma and inability of Ichigo to protect his loved ones. And from the reaction of the latter, childish and naive, his immaturity can be clearly seen (see the previous points). Although we do not know this yet, Ginjo is constantly trying to teach Ichigo one lesson that he himself learned the hard way. 

Combining this with such an important praise for a teenager and faith in Ighigo’s powers, which Ichigo was deprived of for 17 months as soon as he lost his powers as a shinigami ( all relatives are trying to isolate him from this, no one believes that he can and is able to stand up for him). This is another plus of the arc, namely the whole depth of the betrayal that Ichigo experiences when the cards are revealed.

Maybe the quincy arc would go completely differently, if Ichigo felt Ishida's betrayal or reacted to the truth about his mother in a different way. Did Ginjo not temper/prepare Ichigo in the way he did, did he involuntary not strengthen Ichi internally... Who knows how Bleach would end in general.

 This is to the question of the importance of this arc yes 

P.S  Strengthening the body also benefited Ichigo.Friendly reminder that he fights in his physical body for the entire arc except the end.

And the training episode immediately appears in a different light, right? 

And in my next hot take I will focus on another really important thing which is salvation and my own bitterness of why didn’t Kubo explore the whole SS thing and now we have to fee ourselves

[shi-daisy]

I've noticed that you're not very fond of Renji or the Kuchiki characters in general. Can I ask why? (No offense, just curious)

No offense here, anon. I'm more than happy to answer.

I'll start with Rukia since she's the easiest to explain. Rukia was one of my favorite characters up until the Hueco Mundo Arc. You see at first she was a dynamic girl, a little helpless but that was understandable since she had no powers, she was funny, kind and I really felt for her during the first arcs. Then Kubo just replaced her with another character. Rukia got more closed off, agressive, punch happy and tried to make Ichigo apologize about something that wasn't his fault. I didn't hate her, as she still had some of her best traits but this shift made her go from one of my faves to a neutral character. Worst off it's when she marries Renji after he left her for years and almost slashed her to bits, and the novel, oh that damn post canon novel gave me rabies. She's embarrassed by being called Abarai? I could buy this from Orihime, or Momo, hell I'd even buy it from Riruka, but Rukia? No, that's not her. Instead of forgiving Byakuya and Renji in a heartbeat, Rukia's character would've been better off if she told them both to sit on a prickly cactus and stay the hell away from her, then left with Ichigo and Co. to the human world at the end of the Rescue arc. Instead she forgives those two, who have been nothing but shitty to her and takes to hero worshipping Byakuya. No, that's the worst thing she could've done and to top it off she marries one of them and has his kid. That dude hit you once and you not only marry him but have his kid?! Gurl, that literally begging for trouble right there. I just felt disgusted with the way Kubo handled Rukia. I don't hate her but I don't love her as much as everyone else in the fandom does.

Renji And Byakuya though? Those two I absolutely despise.

During the first arc these two come to the human world to arrest Rukia, who need I remind you was completely powerless, and what's the first thing Renji does? Swing a goddamn sword at her. He literally just tried to slash her with his sword. Does Byakuya interfiere? Tells him to maybe tone it down a bit? Nope, he does fucking nothing. Renji keeps trying to hit her, with a grin on his face, and later on even chokes her. It's not until Uryu, who's a freaking Quincy, steps in that the whole aggression stops.

I know people defend this with 'oh Kubo meant for them to seem as villians at the time' but I think you can't come back from trying to slash your bestie/future wife or from letting my sister be slashed to bits.

But ok, if it was just that, I'd be willing to let it slide so as long as the two apologize and Rukia gave em a 'reason you suck speech' or something similar. Well next time we see Renji he's taunting Rukia in prison. He backs out and says it's a joke later but it was still scumy of him to do that. During that same scene Rukia says she knows she'll get killed and pinnapple dumbass tells her Byakuya would intervine, but she shoots him down by saying that he'd likely just kill her himself and has never once cared for her from the moment he adopted her. Like, what? This asshat hasn't even looked her in the eye in 40 years? I know in shinigami time that's like 4 years maybe but it's still a long time to be emotionality neglected.

After his fight with Ichigo we get Renji And Rukia's backstory and instead of growing sympathetic towards him, I hated him more. So he and Rukia grow up together with some friends in the poorest place in Soul Society, and after their friends death they join the academy to get better housing and food. That's good so far, only the two are separate because Renji has more potential and Rukia is average at best. He gets new friends and keeps moving forward. Rukia was alone and stuck. Sad but ok maybe they'll make up after graduation. Nope, because the Kuchiki clan wants to adopt Rukia, remove her from the academy and now she'll live as a Noble. It's clear in that scene that Rukia does not want this, that she'll take any excuse to not accept, does Renji tell her to stay with him, or to choose what she wants? Of course not, the idiot congratulates her, makes a light-hearted joke about it and then sulks when Rukia sadly thanks him and leaves. Then he suddenly decides to stay away from Rukia for... bullshit reasons. Like I get Kubo tried to paint it as a I have to stay away so the Kuchiki won't get mad at her, but Rukia didn't ask for that, she was lonely, even more so without Renji, and he didn't even attempt to communicate with her or just check in? She obviously didn't want that and he didn't either, but no, I'm apparently supposed to be heartbroken that they were speareted. Then when he sees her again, his childhood bestie, the woman he loves, his future wife and mother of his child, what happens? He tried to slash her with a sword when she was depowered. See how his backstory made the previous scene worst. Honestly I was glad he chose to help Ichigo not let Rukia get killed but damn, it shouldn't have taken this long!

After that we get the whole Renji vs Byakuya thing. Renji goes down like a chump, assists in the final battle for a bit and that's it. No apologies for the past, or for what he did when he arrested her, or the things he said to her in prison, zero apologies from Renji Abarai. This doesn't work, especially if Kubo wanted to marry these two off by the end of the series. Renji needed to apologize directly, we needed to see it play out, not just be told he did it offscreen. This left me hating Renji for the reminder of the show. He was now more friendly and even a bit of a comic relief but his first impression muddled that for me. On the Fullbringer Arc he refused to fight Jackie because a man who hits a woman is trash but... didn't you just do that to the chick you're in love with like two years prior? Did he forget? Was that an admission of guilt or something? I dunno. It felt like a last ditch attempt from Kubo to make him more likeable but to me it fell flat. By the end I was fully disinterested in Renji, wheather he lived, died, married Rukia, Byakuya, whoever the hell, I just didn't care for him at all. It did bug me that he took Uryu's spot in the final chapter cover. Uryu deserved better than Mr hypocrite taking his limelight. Renji would've been better as one off villian, Kubo should've given his backstory to another character and have them with Rukia instead. I'll never get over the fact that this dude spent his first appearance being the most unlikeable jerk, physically assaulting the woman he loves, talking shit like a cocky dumbass, almost killing two of the main characters, and taking the girl he loved to her death; only to be married to said girl in the end, with a daughter and on best terms with the people he fucked over. I ain't a fan of him.

Byakuya it's another character who I wanted to smack against the concrete, repeatedly. First appearance? Lets his lieutenant throw his sister around like a ragdoll, almost kills an innocent human, and basically acts like everyone's beneath him? Good, I already hate him. Next time we see him, he shows no emotion towards Rukia's sentence, he's still hell-bent on stopping the human squad from rescuing her, almost lets Renji die after he loses to Ichigo (honestly I was down for Renji bitting it but c'mon this dude is your employee and you don't care if he dies? Big yikes) Keeps messing up every attempt from the others to rescue Rukia. Almost kills Renji in a fight, then goes to fight Ichigo and here's where he became irredeemable for me. During his fight with Ichigo, he says he'll beat Ichigo and then kill Rukia himself. That's when I wanted Ichigo to chop him into sashimi. You can't say something like that and expect anyone to forgive you. He loses against Ichigo and at the very least honors his word to not kill Rukia. Okay then he defends Rukia from the real baddies. Nice, I still hate him. When he's being healed he tells Rukia that he adopted her because his wife was Rukia's actual sister, and he promised he'd keep Rukia safe if he ever found her.

All throughout the flashback I only felt sympathy for Hisana. Being put in the poorest place in Rukon, having to leave your baby sister to survive, marrying a guy who you love only for his family to hate you because you're not Noble, then getting terminally ill and not being able to help your lost sibling, all of that is horrible and broke my heart. More so when you realize that Byakuya didn't keep his promise to protect Rukia because it would break the law. He can stick his laws where the sun don't shine Rukia almost got killed unfairly because of him, Ichigo and his friends would've died unfairly because of him, he doesn't deserve any forgiveness. At least the dude had the spine to apologize on screen but that still just the bare minimum. I wanted to see him make up for all the shit he caused, maybe try and help change the law so a mistake like this dosen't happen again, just something productive. Well no, he's still the same cold and unlikable jerk we first met, only now he seems to treat Rukia better. This should've been a start, not the default. When he almost died in the final arc I thought it was a fitting end, he's humbled down, he apologizes to Rukia and Renji for losing, he leaves everything in Ichigo's hands, which mirrors how he was opposing him on the first arc but it's now fully on his side, it was the best way to salvage this unlikeable prick. But no, he dosen't die. He lives and its back to the grind again. Worst of all it's how he appears during Rukia's big fight and she uses her Bankai, he's there to mansplain and sour the fight and ugh I hated that chapter. Then he says he's proud of Rukia and it's meant to be a heartwarming moment, to me however it was vomit inducing. You're proud now? Two years ago you almost killed her! You ignored her and neglected her for decades and this is supposed to be cute?! No, his pride is worth less than dirt when he treated her this badly before. Heck if he had won back at the beginning Rukia wouldn't even be there. You almost killed her two years before, and now you're proud? Miss me with that nonsense.

The ending was especially jarring for me not just because Renji got with Rukia but also because they, along with Byakuya did nothing to fix the system that almost led to Rukia's unfair death. None of them did anything and if there's one thing I would love to see if Bleach ever got a sequel,would be Ichika yelling at the three of them for their ineptitude. They let the Sokyoku get rebuilt, they didn't do a smidge to change the system even though they're two captains and a lieutenant, and still live in prefect rich peep paradise when Rukon is still as shitty as it was when Renji and Rukia lived there.

Sorry for the long answer, I just wanted to let everything out as in most discussions people are baffled by the fact that I don't like these three characters all that much. Hope this answers your question anon!

[darisu-chan]

They Deserved Better (No Ships Edition)

So, it’s been a year since Bleach ended. I remember coming back from work feeling depressed af because of my crappy job, and I got home excited, thinking I was going to see something incredible, but no. Kubo fucking trolled me with his shitty ending. I’m still sorta angry about it. So I decided to make this post about things that should have happened or should’ve been explained, no ships edition.

1. Yhwach VS The Six of Hearts

Okay, I know I’m not the only one who expected more of that final battle. What we got sucked, to put it simply. I had envisioned something more hardcore. What I wanted to see was all of Ichigo’s friends joining him in battle. Chad should’ve been there, along with Orihime and Rukia. Just Renji there with Aizen was terrible. Picture this: Ichigo and co. go follow Yhwach. They have a plan: they will keep attacking and try to find his weak point. Orihime is on the back, protecting them with her shield. Ichigo is in the middle, fighting actively against Yhwach. Rukia, Renji and Chad fight on the sides. However, they keep losing. Aizen helps them like in the manga. They start falling one by one until only Ichigo and Rukia are left. Rukia activates her bankai, and manages to freeze Yhwach for a short period of time. She falls. Yhwach starts unfreezing himself, and then Ishida appears like in the manga. Together they defeat Yhwach. The six are victorious. There’s a heartfelt apology from Ishida, and then everyone saying there’s nothing to forgive and that they’re always gonna be friends. This also helps complete Urahara’s speech of leaving everything to Ichigo and Rukia. Rukia freezing Yhwach gives Ishida enough time to arrive.

2. What’s with the new Soul King?

Aizen would’ve totally tried to become Soul King, but got stopped by Kyouraku. Now, they need a new SK, and I think maybe they’d use Ukitake. He gets to say goodbye to everyone, and instead of dying, he becomes SK. This isn’t ideal, but at least it solves a plot hole (the novels don’t count).

3. Isshin meets Rangiku and Hitsugaya once again.

I feel like they needed closure after the flashback. I think Isshin would’ve been happy to see them again. Also, imagine Hitsugaya’s surprise when he realizes Ichigo is his former captain’s son. I imagine there would be a lot of emotions involved. We needed Isshin telling Hitsugaya he’s proud of him for becoming captain. We needed some Rangiku and Isshin shenanigans as well.

4. Shiba Family Reunion

We missed big time Ichigo talking with Kukkaku and Ganju, as cousins. And Isshin interacting with his niece and nephew. I’d totally laugh at Ganju’s expression when he realizes Ichigo of all people is his cousin. A talk about Kaien would’ve been nice too. Which brings us too...

5. Rukia and Ichigo coming clean.

Rukia told Ichigo that when he was ready, she’d listen to his story. I feel that after everything, Ichigo speaking about his mother to Rukia would’ve given him some closure. It was one of the things which remained opened. With the realization he’s a Shiba, Rukia could’ve talked about Kaien and her role in his death. That would’ve made the two Memories in the Rain arcs come full circle.

6. Ichigo telling his sisters and friends he’s a shinigami.

I think this was long overdue and we never saw this happening or even given mentions of it. Karin totally knew, but it’s one thing finding out, than Ichigo telling her himself. Keigo, Mizuiru and Tatsuki always suspected too, but I think it would’ve been better if Ichigo told them himself as well. 

7. Kon.

Look, I don’t care if we saw Kon briefly at the end. He should’ve been there, just as a nod to the very first arc. Kon was very important in that first arc, more than Chad, Orihime and Ishida. He should’ve appeared again. I don’t care how, but he should’ve been there with Rukia and Ichigo. Where was he?

8. Yoruichi’s, Urahara’s, Grimjow’s, Nel’s, and Kira’s fates.

Kubo should’ve dedicated at least a panel to show what happened to them. I still don’t even know if Kira’s alive. Last time we saw him, he was fighting with a gaping hole in his body. Is he alive? What happened to him? If he died, how did Rangiku, Hisagi, Hinamori and Renji, his closest friends, react to his death? What about Rose?

9. What’s going on in Hueco Mundo?

We needed to see if Harribel was freed from her imprisonment. Also, wouldn’t it have been great if SS and HM came to an understandment? With new leadership from both sides comes new relationships. Ichigo and Nel could’ve been great ambassadors for each side. Things not moving forward didn’t make sense, and left us with a sense of despair. 

10. Hisagi’s Bankai.

We were robbed. Hisagi was robbed. We needed to see it. Hisagi needed to prove himself. Hell, he should’ve rescued his captain and friends. It would’ve been awesome.

11. A Hinamori and Hitsugaya conversation.

After Hitsugaya’s ultimate form, and after everything that happened between them in previous arcs, I feel that they needed to talk. Their relationship was given a lot of importance in SS and even in the Arrancar arc, but we never got closure from them. I’m not speaking in a romantic way, just in general. Hitsugaya even became stronger because of her, as hinted in chapter 423. Also, Yukio hinted at that in his battle against Hitsugaya, but we saw nothing about it again.

12. Whatever happened to Yukio and Rukia.

We saw them briefly, and then nothing else. I know they weren’t very important, but still, they were reintroduced at the end, and then Kubo promptly forgot about them again. He just got me curious to what they are up to these days, along with the surviving fullbringers.

13. Ichigo’s Powers.

There’s something that still isn’t clear. Did Ichigo lose his powers at the end or not? Yhwach took his Hollow and Quincy powers, which essentially made up his Shinigami powers too. So why was he still able to use his powers to defeat Yhwach? After his sword broke again, revealng Zangetsu’s main form, did it keep working? Did he slowly lose his powers again like when he used Mugetsu? The last chapter sort of made me conclude he lost them altogether, and became a normal human. Yet, in the RR novel apparently he went and could see them just fine. So what’s the truth? Did he or didn’t he lose his powers?

14. Ichigo continued being a Shinigami.

This isn’t about ships or anything, this is about Ichigo and his journey, the hero’s journey. By all means, he should’ve stayed as a Shinigami, not only because narrative-wise it makes the most sense, he enjoyed being a Shinigami and was miserable as a normal human in the Fullbring Arc. You cannot end Ichigo with being “happy” as a human, when in the previous arc we knew he was very unhappy and risked it all to become one again. If that had happened in the first few arcs, then maybe I could give you that ending, but this happened in the arc previous to the last one. It doesn’t make sense not having Ichigo still be a Shinigami. It even makes more sense if, after high school or after college, he moved to SS. His family would’ve understood. Ichigo never expressed a desire to be a doctor, not even once. His ending doesn’t add up no matter how you try to justify it.

15. Ishida not becoming a doctor.

Again, no matter how you look at it, Ishida becoming a doctor makes as much sense as Ichigo becoming one. They don’t precisely follow the same patterns as their parents. Ishida didn’t want to be a doctor. His true passion was sewing. He should’ve been a fashion designer or literally anything else but a doctor. Perhaps he wouldn’t want to be a Quincy after the war, I give you that, but becoming a doctor isn’t justified.

16. Ishida having a heart-to-heart with Ryuken.

Ryuken was a very shitty dad towards his son. Now we know he hated Quincies after what happened to his wife, and how his dad died. However, he still needed to apologize to his own son who was driven to do rash actions thanks to Ryuken’s lack of explanations. Even their last interaction was cold. I know Ryuken isn’t like Isshin, who is much warmer, but still, even Byakuya, who was a bastard to Rukia, apologized to her at the end of the SS arc. Ryuken should’ve apologized. Period.

17. Chad’s career.

It’s been said before but I’m going to say it again, Chad should’ve been a professional boxer due to his promise of using his fists to protect, not to get money. He felt pride of his roots because of his abuelo. He should’ve honored that promise, which is an important part of Mexican values, and even Japanese values. What he did isn’t honorable. Besides, he was a gently person through out Bleach. I think Chad was better of as a teacher. I can picture him teaching box at a gym, showing people how to protect themselves. Maybe working with children.

18. Orihime actually having a career. 

Orihime was robbed through out the series. She started as a fun character who happened to like the MC, but was more than that. She was introduced as a quirky but intelligent girl, kind and compassionate. Her powers were never truly developed, and it was her time to shine, she didn’t accomplish anything worthwhile. Lastly, her character was reduced to being “the girl who loves the MC”, and that’s it. Even in the end, her only “price” was marrying Ichigo. There was nothing else for her. What the hell? I know many fans like to quote her “five lifetimes” speech, but you always miss an integral part. She says that if she could live five lifetimes, she’d like to become a teacher, an astronaut, or a baker. How is it she didn’t study any of them? Because of lack of funds, as the novel says? With her grades, she could’ve gotten a scholarship. These are just excuses because maybe WSJ and others don’t want to admit that the only thing Orihime accomplished was marrying Ichigo. Fuck that. She should’ve gotten to study anything she wanted. Hell, Orihime would’ve been a much better doctor than Ichigo and Ishida with her powers. She was tender enough to be a teacher.

19. The SS not rebuilding the Sokyoku.

I don’t know what was going on with Kubo when he wrote that, but it was a massive fuck you yo the SS Arc. It’s like nothing changed at all, which was not the path we had been taking with the manga. Things were already changing in the SS. Even Rukia thought so in the Fullbring Arc, saying it was Ichigo who had changed the SS, he managed to change a system that had existed for thousands of years. Rebuilding the Sokyoku totally symbolizes that things are back to the way they used to be before Bleach started. Ichigo’s journey meant nothing at all. Not only did he stay a normal human, but the system that almost killed Rukia applies today. I’m sorry, but that doesn’t make sense either. Imagine how Rukia feels? She was almost executed! The SS shouldn’t have rebuilt it. If anything, they should have started changing many things, including how the souls at Rukongai are treated. One would think that knowing many of the captains and lieutenants used to live there, they would try to make things better. They were on their way to changing, they shoudln’t have reverted.

20. Kazui shouldn’t have defeated Yhwach.

For me, that was the biggest fuck you in the entire manga. Yhwach was the man that killed Yamamoto, the Captain Commander of the Gotei 13 and the most powerful Shinigami. Yhwach killed many Shinigami. Yhwach consumed most Quincies. Yhwach was the guy who could travel between time and space. You’re telling a little boy defeated him with just one touch? I mean, maybe Yhwach disappeared because Kazui was an anomaly that wasn’t meant to exist. Stil, maybe they should’ve defeated Yhwach in some other way. I don’t know, maybe by using Ishida’s powers which were said to be the only ones that could defeat Yhwach? Why Kazui? No, it should’ve been Ishida in his own arc. Also, it’s a little weird that was the happiest day in Ichigo’s, Ishida’s and Renji’s lives. I can think of many other circumstances that could’ve brought them ultimate happiness but that day.