Bleach Ep. 11: The Legendary Quincy

After an episode of nonstop comedy, an air of menace slowly comes back into the series when a mysterious stalker with an axe to grind appears. But comedy is still the main focus at this point.

Bleach can be very predictable at times, but only within its own strange rules. New viewers will find themselves surprised often in the early going before it settles into its normal pattern of weirdness, especially in the “canon” storyline. That is to say, the non-filler main storyline.  Filler is the dreaded way of keeping an anime adaptation of a manga going while waiting for the original author to produce new content.

While the previous installment of Bleach introduced what seemed to be a filler character, Don Kanonji, it turns out there is fallout from the epically silly events. Very silly fallout, of course.

Teenagers fear being summoned to the principle’s office and the entire group finds themselves there.  Being lectured to by the gym teacher who appears to be in a steroid induced rage, they are in it deep. You see, due to Ichigo and Rukia being seen on national TV causing trouble the school has been embarrassed.

Showing there are limits to friendship, everyone correctly dumps the blame on Ichigo. Attempts to get out of being lumped into the punishment are played strictly for laughs with Rukia being particularly amusing. Her ploy works all too well and there is an impression she has done this kind of thing before.

What would Bleach be without random Hollow problems? When the latest alert goes off, the group take notice of Rukia and Ichigo running off. Orihime is watching very closely and speculates about their relationship to the ire of the boys. But someone else is watching too as the sinister music plays…

There are a lot of good character moments in episode 11 and Rukia gets the best ones. From being bad cop/bad cop all by herself (wait, shouldn’t good cop be in there?) to her rant against her cellphone, the diminutive Soul Reaper is a bundle of annoyed energy. Those bits and the fake sob story she employed earlier are great fun.

I do believe I wrote that an air of menace is to be found and so it arrives. Though our hero’s do not know it, they have been followed all episode by a strange figure wearing a long jacket and glasses. Finally catching Ichigo and Rukia by themselves, he emerges from the night to reveal himself.

He is Uryu Ishida and has supernatural powers himself. They are nearly as impressive as his acid dripping condescension which is most impressive. His mockery culminates in a statement of hatred towards the substitute Soul Reaper. Just like that, Ichigo has a new menace to deal with and it turns out to be a classmate – though he doesn’t remember him. And just what is a Quincy – what Ishida calls himself?

For once, Ichigo decides to check things out before going into conflict. Just one little problem: he has already forgotten Ishida’s name. Fortunately for him, Orihime knows Ishida, since they are in the same handcrafts club. Handcrafts club?! I am not sure if that is more or less menacing to know.

The scene that follows is a hilarious spoof of fighting animes, when we are shown Ishida’s fearsome sewing skills. Like every other character in the series, there is something off kilter about the boy. But you have to admit, he is good with a needle and thread.

After school, Ichigo and Rukia split up to pursue different leads on the new threat because we all know it is better to divide your forces when confronting an enemy. Ichigo counter stalks Ishida and Rukia heads to Uruhara’s for intel. Veering off into slapstick comedy to break the mood, we are presented with Jinto bullying Ururu again. It isn’t very funny, in my opinion.

This short sequence is, however. But then again, I like utterly random silliness when it is played straight. That is probably a result of watching too many Pink Panther movies growing up.

As the mystery of the Quincies begins to unfold, it looks like Ichigo and Rukia will have their hands full…

Thoughts

The Legendary Quincy is a classic setup episode without any real action in it. That said, it is still a lot of fun as the sense of mystery is back after the previous story. Here is where Bleach’s universe begins to open up more with hints of being more complicated than previously shown.

Ishida is an interesting character, a calm and collected nerd who is incredibly arrogant. His powers are an interesting contrast to that of the Soul Reapers and he is positioned to be Ichigo’s perfect foe.

The voice work on the English dub rings wrong once again, with Ishida’s voice sounding too old and too monotone. Despite his air of maturity, the character is still young and the Japanese voice actor nails that perfectly. I will concede he is a complex character and difficult to portray.

Bleach Ep. 10: Assault on Trip at Sacred Ground

After the somber events of the prior episodes, Bleach takes a breather and veers into a nearly pure comedy episode. A new character that may be the most despised in the series makes his entrance. But is he an idiot or an awesome idiot?

In some circles, there is no way more impressive to make in an entrance than parachuting into the scene. Fortunately, I do not belong to such circles. But Don Kanonji surely does.

He also dresses so flashily that pimps from the 1970’s would consider him garish. The idea of someone like him hurtling out of the sky toward me is enough to cause nightmares, but the audience assembled adore him. So who is this mysterious mustachioed man and what is he doing filming a show in Karakura Town?

Well, Don Kanonji is the most popular exorcist on television in Japan, watched and beloved by millions. That includes Ichigo’s friends and family, much to his horror. Poor Orihime initially fails to score points with the boy by repeating the exorcist’s catch phrase, “Bohahaha” – this due to some trauma involving spirits in his past.

But that does not prevent him from being dragged along with his family to the open set filming at an abandoned hospital. Which leads to my wondering just how the title of the episode fits. Is it a mistranslation or am I missing an aspect of Japanese culture?

Anyway, it is an abandoned hospital and all of Ichigo’s friends are there, including an especially annoying Rukia attempting to blend in with the humans. Annoying to Ichigo that is and quite amusing to the rest of us. But it would not be Bleach without something going wrong of a spiritual nature.

There is a ghastly howl coming from the hospital that Ichigo and Rukia can hear.  So can Chad, Karin, Tatsuki, and Orihime. Yet nobody else in the crowd can hear it. Hmm.

A further education on how Hollows come into being is given by Rukia, complete with full illustrations. One of the better running gags in the series, in my opinion, is her artwork. At this point, Rukia was slowly becoming one of my favorite fictional characters and part of it was due to the glimpses of her child like side from time to time.

So with the lengthy exposition out of the way, it is time for epic level idiocy on the part of our new hero, Don Kanonji! Yes, with the aid of his cane he sets very bad things in motion to the cheers of the assembled crowd.

Oh did I mention he really can see spirits and has some power for a lowly human? Either that or his fabulous get up conveys special abilities to him. Make your own jokes here; there are too many possibilities.

Comedy gold follows as Ichigo’s attempt to intervene goes poorly. If it was not for the unexpected appearance by Urahara, the substitute Soul Reaper would be on the sidelines for the rest of the episode. Kanonji isn’t the only one with a magic cane as “Hat and Clogs” demonstrates in a clever bit.

Freed to remind the viewers he is the hero of the show, Ichigo hauls the TV star into the hospital to do battle with the spirit unleashed. Filled to overflowing in confidence and bravado, Don Kanonji keeps trying to get Ichigo to leave. Yes, the man is a complete idiot. But he does have a compelling and unexpected motivation which involves the 25% of the country who watches him.

25%?! Okay, I should not blink, given reality TV’s hold on American audiences…

The battle is joined and if you ever wondered if Ichigo’s oversized sword could be a liability in battle, you will get your answer in a most satisfying way. We also find out Kanonji is not just an idiot, but a genuinely brave idiot. Lessons are learned, sort of, a new friendship is made, sort of, and the episode provides some needed information, sort of.

So is Don Kanonji an idiot? The answer is a resounding yes. Is he an awesome idiot? That is up to the individual viewer to decide, but I like the vainglorious fool. Oddly enough, he is one of my favorite characters in the series and even gets a major moment in the big plot many years later.

That said (or typed as may be), this is not one of the better episodes of the series. It is not a bad episode, merely fluff without any real substance. People may complain about filler arcs, but this straight from the source material is true filler. At least it is amusing.

Bleach Ep. 9: Unbeatable Enemy

The conclusion to the Memories in the Rain mini-arc finds Ichigo face to face with a nightmare from his past and reveals just a little more of Rukia’s. Can Ichigo save his sisters from the fate that befell their late mother or will his anger lead to yet another tragedy?

I’ve always enjoyed the creativity of the individual episode title shots. Blink and you may miss them. Part of the fun of Bleach is the ever changing opening and closing sequences along with the different music themes.

With the cliffhanger of the previous episode yet to be resolved, things start with Ichigo rescuing Yuzu but unable to do the same for Karin. Back up arrives in the form of Rukia and the Soul Reaper sent to retrieve her.

One of the things about anime that alternately cracks me up and annoys me is the exposition that is shoe horned into fights. Both sides suddenly stop until the dialogue is concluded, then go back to fighting. It is like having Lex Luthor explain everything every other moment in a battle with Superman – but without kryptonite to keep him weakened. Call it the pro-wrestling effect, which is what it reminds me of.

So we get an entire conversation from Rukia, the Soul Reaper, and Ichigo while the Hollow just stands there and watches. Maybe he is enjoying the fact that he is a legend who is notorious amongst the Soul Reapers and has a name, the Grand Fisher. In the end it doesn’t matter as the stunning revelation that this Hollow is the one who killed Ichigo’s mother drives Kurosaki into a berserk rage.

The following fight does not go well.

Rukia backs up Ichigo with spell casting, which is delivered in a pretty display only to have little effect. It goes worse for the Soul Reaper who sacrifices himself to save Karin. There is no sense of fun in this particular fight, only well rendered grim desperation.

Oh and it is revealed that Soul Reapers are mortal and can be killed. That is an interesting little tidbit to go along with the fact that the Grand Fisher has killed multiple Soul Reaper’s over the past decades. Ichigo is completely out matched.

So of course the teen decides to take on the Hollow solo. The rain begins to fall, one of the themes associated with Ichigo throughout the series. Meanwhile, Kon finds it difficult to maintain acting like the boy as he and Isshin wait out the rain at a temple.

It isn’t just his own personal grief driving the substitute Soul Reaper. As he is fighting, images and thoughts of how hard it was for his sisters to loose their mother fuel his anger even higher. There is a relentless sense of loss underlying every moment of the episode.

For the first time, Ichigo takes serious wounds in Bleach. Watching in horror, Rukia wants to intervene in this private battle of vengeance, but flashes back to her life in Soul Society when a mysterious superior lectured her on how some fights are about honor.

Because of what happened then, she decides to hold herself back though it is killing her not to help. All she can do is hope he does not die.

Then things in the fight get worse as Ichigo finds his resolve shaken by an unexpected turn of events.

Thoughts

Memories in the Rain is a sad exploration of what motivates young Ichigo Kurosaki and the visuals of the episode are dark, dreary, and despairing. In some ways, he comes off as almost an anti-hero because of his anger and dour disposition. But here we are shown a  good reason for it and it adds some depth to the character.

The tantalizing snippets of Rukia’s past add to her character too. More mysteries lie with this woman, it is clear.

It strikes me that even the humor is muted in this episode, something unusual for the series so far.

BEWARE HERE BE SPOILERS!

 

 

 

 

The use of a copy of Ichigo’s mother by the Grand Fisher had to be one of the creepier moments. That creature is so disgusting in concept that it amplified the wrongness of her being used to counter the boy.

The idea that her last thoughts were absorbed and copied by the Hollow is interesting, because it implies that souls are actually devoured by these creatures. When her last thoughts prove to be more powerful than the Grand Fisher can control, it is a wonderful bit of dramatic irony. He is undone by a previous victim of his.

Masaki Kurosaki’s last thoughts were of her family and especially of her son, Ichigo. It is a touching moment when he hears how she felt about him and a pivotal one for Ichigo. With her love and approval empowering him, the boy manages to wound his opponent badly.

The lack of resolution to the battle and the Grand Fisher’s escape might bother those who tune in for the fights, but it was high drama. Not being able to avenge your own mother’s death is yet another thing to add to Ichigo’s adolescent frustrations.

Orihime’s thoughts about reaching Ichigo’s heart are repeated near the end of the episode. Her kind sweetness and growing devotion to the boy are gently handled in poetic fashion.

Notice the attention paid to the full moon in Bleach. This is another theme associated with Ichigo, one that becomes clearer much later on. People may slam Tite Kubo as a hack writer, but he is not as bad as they think. It may not be deep material, but it isn’t shallow. I enjoy the symbolism he slips in from time to time.

Well written is how I would describe the father and son scene between Isshin and Ichigo at the end. Unexpected seriousness and good advice from the usually manic parent is well executed, with the impression that this is the real man without his clown mask on. It is also clear that he isn’t over the loss of Masaki.

Rukia’s expression looks like something close to adoration there, doesn’t it? The Soul Reaper left while saying he wouldn’t want to “break up such a serious couple” earlier and the lines were not delivered in a sarcastic tone. Ichigo may be oblivious, but it appears he now has two girls interested in him.

The imagery of the final shot jumped out at me. Here is the full moon out with the rain having stopped. Ichigo and Rukia are looking at each other, with her in a higher position, nearly unattainable.  To what heights will Kurosaki have to ascend to reach her?