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Bleach #36
Bleach―ブリーチ― 36 [Burīchi 36]
時は百十年前の尸魂界、浦原喜助は新たな十二番隊隊長に抜擢された！ 副隊長・猿柿ひよ里の反発も受け止め、隊長として活動を開始する。それから九年後、尸魂界で怪事件発生！！ 始まりはここから、過去篇突入！！
200 pages, Paperback
First published December 4, 2008
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1161 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 137 reviews
August 19, 2023
Definitely one of my favorite volumes. We got to see the Soul Society from over 100 years ago and we got to see how the Vizards came to be. We even got see Urahara back during his Captain years. So many questions we had and didn’t even think about got answered in this volume. It was good to see so many familiar faces from their younger ages compared to current time while others have been the same for over 100 years. This part of the story really helps fill in some gaps involving the Vizards and Aizen. I can’t wait to read what happens in the next volume.
September 23, 2011
This is quite possibly the volume of Bleach I've been waiting for all year, because it contains the first half of one of my most favorite story arcs in Bleach so far: the Turn Back The Pendulum flashback arc that looks back at the history of Soul Society and of certain characters like Urahara, Aizen, Gin, Shinji, and the rest of the Vizards. Normally, whole volumes dedicated to nothing but back story drag on and are immensely boring, but not this one. Until this point, readers haven't gotten a good grasp on the Soul Society politics and events that led to such pivotal things as the birth of the Vizards or Urahara's expulsion from Seireitei, so volume thirty-six is a much needed (and very entertaining) primer on the history of a certain group of characters whose actions may have very well put the entire Bleach series into motion. After the kind of dry thirty-fifth volume, this book is a blessing in disguise.
You can read the rest of my review of this volume over at Nagareboshi Reviews!
You can read the rest of my review of this volume over at Nagareboshi Reviews!
December 5, 2020
The best story in this series maybe because we get so much answers as to what happened 100 years ago in soul society and like we pick with Urahara and meet many people including Gin and see how Shninji was Aizen's vice captain and what happened...and Aizen with his hollowfication experiments and so much more and how he framed Urahara leading to his exile and the actions of Yoruichi and so much more is explained here. This fleshes out the story so well! It makes the next arc even better as you understand the past actions and all leading to the big war of karakura town vs AIZEN! Tite Kubo may have written the best revelation story in bleach till now! Plus looking at young versions of most of these characters was awesome!
April 2, 2017
This volume reminded me how Kubo-sensei is one mangaka who excels in flashback. Whenever he wrote those times long past, they were riveting, heartfelt and poignant.
Here we have another example in the past lives of Vizard. It was extremely heartbreaking and what the readers needed after so much mystery around their arrival.
And Hirako-taichou with long flowing blonde hair was priceless to see!
Here we have another example in the past lives of Vizard. It was extremely heartbreaking and what the readers needed after so much mystery around their arrival.
And Hirako-taichou with long flowing blonde hair was priceless to see!
July 21, 2024
It cannot be known, but it must be known, what lies there is the truth behind the mask.
Welcome in the Soul Society 110 years ago.
Volume 36 shows us the unknown story of Kisuke Urahara, the Vizards, and, what's most important - how long the three treacherous captains where scheming behind the Soul Reapers' backs.
I remember clearly, like it was yesterday, how I reacted when I first saw the Bleach episodes dedicated to the Soul Society's past. I was SHOOKETH TO THE CORE. I did not expect to see the past versions of the Vizards, I couldn't believe my eyes on what was I seeing. My jaw was truly on the floor. I should've known this, I truly should've, because that was the only thing that made sense (because of the Vizards' Zanpakuto swords, for example). After coming out of my initial shock, I cheered like crazy, because these episodes were something incredibly special, not only because they had portrayed the past, but because they had shown so many characters I knew and loved in such an cool, heartwarming, adorable and fun way.
"I want you to get to know me little by little. And I'll try to get to know you too, Ms. Hiyori. Okay?" [Urahara]
I melted every single time all these people interacted with each other and laughed my ass off in all the funny moments. It was like my dreams came true (except for the fact that Ichigo wasn't there)!
"Sorry, Ms. Hiyori. This is an important assignment. You're the only one I can trust to do it." [Urahara]
"I'm counting on you, Ms. Hiyori." [Urahara]
But then the fun part ended and we came to the point of the truth behind the creation of the Vizards. That was the part that broke my heart into pieces. I remember crying my eyes out while watching and I also remember having difficulties calming myself down after the episodes finished. It was quite obvious what had to happen to the Vizards, it was coming from a mile away, but I still reacted like I got stripped away from everything I love. Like the world suddenly ended.
"Shinji!"
"Are you crazy? Draw your sword!"
"Are you crazy? How can I?"
Do you remember the heartbreaking scene in the Lion King when Mufasa died and you couldn't hold back your emotions? (I cannot think of another example for now, but I hope that you know what I mean) It felt like that to me. No matter how many times I'm watching the Lion King I'm crying my eyes out. And no matter how many times I'm watching the past episodes of Bleach I'm crying my eyes out as well. The same situation applies to the manga.
Volume 36 ended in a way that there will be a continuation of the past chapters for sure and I'm NOT looking forward to this, because I already know what happens next. All the fun and games that were shown in the beginning of the past chapters are completely vanished now and only the seriousness (and heartbreak) had been left. But I saw the cover of the next volume and it's definitely not about the past, so it means that we're coming back to the current events. The three treacherous captains are in the Katakura Town where they met the Soul Reapers while Ichigo and the rest of the gang are still stuck in Hueco Mundo. The Winter War will officially start!
Now it's time for a review with the spoilers section, please be aware of it while reading. Thank you for understanding (I normally don't do this, but now I feel the need to)!
The fate's joke.
It's truly a fate's (or more like, the author's, I guess) joke that the two of the three treacherous captains (Aizen and Tousen) replaced the ones that they so viciously betrayed. I was truly convinced that there had to be at least one person who became a captain between Shinji and Aizen and between Kensei and Tousen, but that was totally not the case! Both Aizen and Tousen immediately replaced Shinji and Kensei and acted like the betrayal never happened and it truly makes me sick to my stomach. Well done, fate, well done (how dare you!).
Hisagi's two authorities.
In the past episode Hisagi had shown up as a kid who had been chased by a Hollow and who had been rescued by Kensei and his squad. I remember how hard I cheered up when I realized that the kid is Hisagi and that the tattoo that Hisagi has on his face is the same as the one that Kensei has on his torso. I mean, what an enormous impression Kensei had to make on Hisagi that he had made himself that tattoo?? And then I realized that Hisagi's captain was Tousen - the guy that betrayed Kensei. Both Kensei and Tousen were big figures in Hisagi's life. He had lost his first captain (Tousen) twice (first time when Tousen was revealed as a traitor and second time when he died), but then he had gained his second captain - Kensei, the guy that saved him as a child. I cried of happiness when I saw Kensei back as a captain and I realized who his Assistant Captain must be!
P.S. how cool is it that Kensei's Zanpakuto is Tachikaze (Earth-Severing Wind) while Hisagi's is Kazeshini (Wind of Death)?!
The mysteries behind the Kenpachi of the past and the captain of Squad 10.
Okay, so we know that the captains of the past Gotei 13 looked like this:
Squad 1 - Genryuusai
Squad 2 - Yoruichi
Squad 3 - Rose
Squad 4 - Unohana
Squad 5 - Shinji
Squad 6 - Byakuya's grandpa
Squad 7 - Love
Squad 8 - Kyoraku
Squad 9 - Kensei
Squad 10 - ???
Squad 11 - a Kenpachi ???
Squad 12 - Urahara
Squad 13 - Ukitake
All the captains were supposed to meet up at the presentation of the new Captain of Squad 12, but the captains Squad 10 and Squad 11 were nowhere to be seen. We know that Squad 11 always has a Kenpachi as the leader and we know that it couldn't have been Zaraki. Who was it then?! And who was the captain of Squad 10 - the company that currently belongs to Hitsugaya? We know from the TYBW who could it be, but was it him already or was it someone else? If someone else then who? I need answers!!
The Shinji/Aizen and Ichigo/Aizen parallels.
"Impressive. How long have you known I was there?"
"Since you were in your mother's womb. Let's go."
We know that Aizen had an eye on Ichigo the whole time and it seems like Shinji had an eye on Aizen. How did Shinji know how dangerous Aizen is if no one else knew is a mystery, but it's impressive how similar these two stories are and how both involve Aizen.
The Maggot's Nest.
"Captain?"
"Yes?"
"You're a scary person."
"So are you."
Okay, so if Shinji knew how dangerous Aizen is, how no one else knew about this and why didn't he tell anyone? We know that The Maggot's Nest already existed. Urahara's squad was responsible of keeping an eye on everyone who had a potential to bring a danger to the Soul Society. Why wasn't Aizen brought there? I know that he had his illusions, but if Shinji knew how dangerous he was, how was he free?
When we're on the topic of the Maggot's Nest, I was truly shocked to see Akon's image on the end of one of the chapters that informed us about him being stuck there. They brought Akon there, Akon, who was a child back then! They saw Akon, who was a child, as a potential danger to the Soul Society! When I see the tweets about how the Soul Reapers weren't really the good guys in Bleach I think I have to agree with it, at least partially. They weren't the good guys, at least not until Ichigo had shown up and changed their ways.
P.S. why did Urahara took Mayuri out?! I understand the need to have someone as smart as him on his team, but Mayuri was INCREDIBLY DANGEROUS and obviously could betray Urahara at any moment, but he still set him free?!
The relationships.
I love all the scenes that were shown before the betrayal happened. There were Urahara and Hiyori, who's relationship didn't start in the best of ways, but you could clearly see how they cared for one another. There were Hiyori and Shinji, who also deeply cared for one another, despite all the bickering and hm, violence :D There were Urahara and Yoruichi where Yoruichi was the one who appointed him as the new Captain and where she was so full of trust in him that didn't try to supervise him in any way, just let him do what he pleased. There were Ukitake and Kaien talking about the potential of Kaien becoming an Assistant Captain (he didn't want it). There were Yoruichi and young Byakuya, completely different than now. There were Kyoraku and little cutie Nanao talking about Lisa. There were Kensei and Mashiro bickering like siblings. And then there were the Vizards (not Vizards back then, obviously) who, despite all being in different Squads, knew one another pretty well and cared for one another what was shown in the betrayal scene. I loved every second of it. I'm so sad the happiness had changed into heartbreak and pain so fast :(
P.S. the image of Lisa surrounded by droplets of blood and falling down when, at the same time, Kyoraku reassured little Nanao that Lisa's strong and that she will come back soon is CRIMINAL.
Some other things I need to talk about:
~ why are the doors of Squad 1st's barracks so big?!
~ Hiyori's such an adorable tsundere and Shinji's such a big baby lmao
~ Shinji being interested in Urahara's situation because Urahara reminded him of himself warmed my heart
~ was Seinosuke Yamada, the Assistant Captain of Squad 4, related to Hanataro or am I imagining things? :o
~ The Gin's introduction scene was brutal.
~ We got to find out the names of Hisagi's childhood friends!
~ What the hell does 69 tattoo mean? I hope not what I think it means!
~ It's truly hilarious to me that Hiyori and Hitsugaya are still kids, while Byakuya and Akon aged up 😂
~ Kyoraku said that Lisa is like a daughter to him and I teared up 😭
~ The fact that none of the Vizards didn't want to hurt Kensei 😥
Welcome in the Soul Society 110 years ago.
Volume 36 shows us the unknown story of Kisuke Urahara, the Vizards, and, what's most important - how long the three treacherous captains where scheming behind the Soul Reapers' backs.
I remember clearly, like it was yesterday, how I reacted when I first saw the Bleach episodes dedicated to the Soul Society's past. I was SHOOKETH TO THE CORE. I did not expect to see the past versions of the Vizards, I couldn't believe my eyes on what was I seeing. My jaw was truly on the floor. I should've known this, I truly should've, because that was the only thing that made sense (because of the Vizards' Zanpakuto swords, for example). After coming out of my initial shock, I cheered like crazy, because these episodes were something incredibly special, not only because they had portrayed the past, but because they had shown so many characters I knew and loved in such an cool, heartwarming, adorable and fun way.
"I want you to get to know me little by little. And I'll try to get to know you too, Ms. Hiyori. Okay?" [Urahara]
I melted every single time all these people interacted with each other and laughed my ass off in all the funny moments. It was like my dreams came true (except for the fact that Ichigo wasn't there)!
"Sorry, Ms. Hiyori. This is an important assignment. You're the only one I can trust to do it." [Urahara]
"I'm counting on you, Ms. Hiyori." [Urahara]
But then the fun part ended and we came to the point of the truth behind the creation of the Vizards. That was the part that broke my heart into pieces. I remember crying my eyes out while watching and I also remember having difficulties calming myself down after the episodes finished. It was quite obvious what had to happen to the Vizards, it was coming from a mile away, but I still reacted like I got stripped away from everything I love. Like the world suddenly ended.
"Shinji!"
"Are you crazy? Draw your sword!"
"Are you crazy? How can I?"
Do you remember the heartbreaking scene in the Lion King when Mufasa died and you couldn't hold back your emotions? (I cannot think of another example for now, but I hope that you know what I mean) It felt like that to me. No matter how many times I'm watching the Lion King I'm crying my eyes out. And no matter how many times I'm watching the past episodes of Bleach I'm crying my eyes out as well. The same situation applies to the manga.
Volume 36 ended in a way that there will be a continuation of the past chapters for sure and I'm NOT looking forward to this, because I already know what happens next. All the fun and games that were shown in the beginning of the past chapters are completely vanished now and only the seriousness (and heartbreak) had been left. But I saw the cover of the next volume and it's definitely not about the past, so it means that we're coming back to the current events. The three treacherous captains are in the Katakura Town where they met the Soul Reapers while Ichigo and the rest of the gang are still stuck in Hueco Mundo. The Winter War will officially start!
Now it's time for a review with the spoilers section, please be aware of it while reading. Thank you for understanding (I normally don't do this, but now I feel the need to)!
The fate's joke.
It's truly a fate's (or more like, the author's, I guess) joke that the two of the three treacherous captains (Aizen and Tousen) replaced the ones that they so viciously betrayed. I was truly convinced that there had to be at least one person who became a captain between Shinji and Aizen and between Kensei and Tousen, but that was totally not the case! Both Aizen and Tousen immediately replaced Shinji and Kensei and acted like the betrayal never happened and it truly makes me sick to my stomach. Well done, fate, well done (how dare you!).
Hisagi's two authorities.
In the past episode Hisagi had shown up as a kid who had been chased by a Hollow and who had been rescued by Kensei and his squad. I remember how hard I cheered up when I realized that the kid is Hisagi and that the tattoo that Hisagi has on his face is the same as the one that Kensei has on his torso. I mean, what an enormous impression Kensei had to make on Hisagi that he had made himself that tattoo?? And then I realized that Hisagi's captain was Tousen - the guy that betrayed Kensei. Both Kensei and Tousen were big figures in Hisagi's life. He had lost his first captain (Tousen) twice (first time when Tousen was revealed as a traitor and second time when he died), but then he had gained his second captain - Kensei, the guy that saved him as a child. I cried of happiness when I saw Kensei back as a captain and I realized who his Assistant Captain must be!
P.S. how cool is it that Kensei's Zanpakuto is Tachikaze (Earth-Severing Wind) while Hisagi's is Kazeshini (Wind of Death)?!
The mysteries behind the Kenpachi of the past and the captain of Squad 10.
Okay, so we know that the captains of the past Gotei 13 looked like this:
Squad 1 - Genryuusai
Squad 2 - Yoruichi
Squad 3 - Rose
Squad 4 - Unohana
Squad 5 - Shinji
Squad 6 - Byakuya's grandpa
Squad 7 - Love
Squad 8 - Kyoraku
Squad 9 - Kensei
Squad 10 - ???
Squad 11 - a Kenpachi ???
Squad 12 - Urahara
Squad 13 - Ukitake
All the captains were supposed to meet up at the presentation of the new Captain of Squad 12, but the captains Squad 10 and Squad 11 were nowhere to be seen. We know that Squad 11 always has a Kenpachi as the leader and we know that it couldn't have been Zaraki. Who was it then?! And who was the captain of Squad 10 - the company that currently belongs to Hitsugaya? We know from the TYBW who could it be, but was it him already or was it someone else? If someone else then who? I need answers!!
The Shinji/Aizen and Ichigo/Aizen parallels.
"Impressive. How long have you known I was there?"
"Since you were in your mother's womb. Let's go."
We know that Aizen had an eye on Ichigo the whole time and it seems like Shinji had an eye on Aizen. How did Shinji know how dangerous Aizen is if no one else knew is a mystery, but it's impressive how similar these two stories are and how both involve Aizen.
The Maggot's Nest.
"Captain?"
"Yes?"
"You're a scary person."
"So are you."
Okay, so if Shinji knew how dangerous Aizen is, how no one else knew about this and why didn't he tell anyone? We know that The Maggot's Nest already existed. Urahara's squad was responsible of keeping an eye on everyone who had a potential to bring a danger to the Soul Society. Why wasn't Aizen brought there? I know that he had his illusions, but if Shinji knew how dangerous he was, how was he free?
When we're on the topic of the Maggot's Nest, I was truly shocked to see Akon's image on the end of one of the chapters that informed us about him being stuck there. They brought Akon there, Akon, who was a child back then! They saw Akon, who was a child, as a potential danger to the Soul Society! When I see the tweets about how the Soul Reapers weren't really the good guys in Bleach I think I have to agree with it, at least partially. They weren't the good guys, at least not until Ichigo had shown up and changed their ways.
P.S. why did Urahara took Mayuri out?! I understand the need to have someone as smart as him on his team, but Mayuri was INCREDIBLY DANGEROUS and obviously could betray Urahara at any moment, but he still set him free?!
The relationships.
I love all the scenes that were shown before the betrayal happened. There were Urahara and Hiyori, who's relationship didn't start in the best of ways, but you could clearly see how they cared for one another. There were Hiyori and Shinji, who also deeply cared for one another, despite all the bickering and hm, violence :D There were Urahara and Yoruichi where Yoruichi was the one who appointed him as the new Captain and where she was so full of trust in him that didn't try to supervise him in any way, just let him do what he pleased. There were Ukitake and Kaien talking about the potential of Kaien becoming an Assistant Captain (he didn't want it). There were Yoruichi and young Byakuya, completely different than now. There were Kyoraku and little cutie Nanao talking about Lisa. There were Kensei and Mashiro bickering like siblings. And then there were the Vizards (not Vizards back then, obviously) who, despite all being in different Squads, knew one another pretty well and cared for one another what was shown in the betrayal scene. I loved every second of it. I'm so sad the happiness had changed into heartbreak and pain so fast :(
P.S. the image of Lisa surrounded by droplets of blood and falling down when, at the same time, Kyoraku reassured little Nanao that Lisa's strong and that she will come back soon is CRIMINAL.
Some other things I need to talk about:
~ why are the doors of Squad 1st's barracks so big?!
~ Hiyori's such an adorable tsundere and Shinji's such a big baby lmao
~ Shinji being interested in Urahara's situation because Urahara reminded him of himself warmed my heart
~ was Seinosuke Yamada, the Assistant Captain of Squad 4, related to Hanataro or am I imagining things? :o
~ The Gin's introduction scene was brutal.
~ We got to find out the names of Hisagi's childhood friends!
~ What the hell does 69 tattoo mean? I hope not what I think it means!
~ It's truly hilarious to me that Hiyori and Hitsugaya are still kids, while Byakuya and Akon aged up 😂
~ Kyoraku said that Lisa is like a daughter to him and I teared up 😭
~ The fact that none of the Vizards didn't want to hurt Kensei 😥
July 28, 2020
Tite Kubo finally stops with the weird power scaling and repetitive battles that drag on for whole volumes with nothing happening. This is all one big flashback arc and while yes there are battles it's mainly just fleshing out the world and the characters we already know and love. Some faces appear in surprise roles, some look completely different, but it's the rare type of volume that instantly makes every prior volume better. Volume 36 adds some much-needed history to the world of Bleach and makes every character in it more three-dimensional. Lots of moral ambiguity added to the series and its themes, and what have been limited characters are revealed to have a long history with some interesting relationships to other characters they've never interacted with in the "present" time.
April 6, 2025
The amount of twists and turns in this volume is insane
May 30, 2020
Given that Manga, and especially Shonen is split up into bigger arcs as composed to volumes I will be analyzing and reviewing this by Arc. I also reread this manga over the span of 2 months, some days reading as much as 100 chapters a day. It would be quite tedious for me to review each 7-8 chapter volume. So this will be copy and pasted throughout all of the 72 manga volumes. That being said, if you're looking at this without having viewed the series...spoiler warning. I don't recap anything, but I also mention things that happen. If you want me to answer the question "Should I pick this up?" Yes. Even if you stop at the end of the Soul Society Arc. It's worth it.
Karakura Town Arc - Chapters 1-56 - Rating: 7/10
(The official page lumps this in with the Soul Society Arc however I feel as if they are two very separate arcs with two very separate themes)
- A fun introduction.
-An interesting premise on the idea of ghosts and demons (Hollows)
-Does a good job of introducing the characters and I especially enjoyed the love for characters like Chad, Orihime and Uryu as these characters would later lose more and more spotlight as the series went on.
-It is a bit of a monster of the week. When it works, like with Chad's introduction story. It works. But Characters like Don Kanonji felt superficial and very gimmicky. Which, fair. I didn't enjoy them as much.
Soul Society Arc - Chapters 57-182 - Rating: 10/10
-The height of Bleach
-Establishes an afterlife seemingly perfectly. Later on revealed to be full of plot holes and never fleshed out but hey! That's not an issue in THIS arc. The fights are top tier, the themes of Ichigo owing a life debt to Rukia and his passion and determination to rise above literally God's army is inspiring and to this day is why I love Ichigo so much. He doesn't have some grandiose plan. He doesn't have a major goal to accomplish. He is a protector by heart, losing his mother has made him sour to failing to protect those he cares about and he'll do anything in his power never to feel that helpless again. Very powerful stuff.
-The twist near the end of this arc is revolutionary and would make waves for the next 200 chapters onward. A perfect ending and set up for the forthcoming arc.
-The only issues I have for this arc would be Ichigo's lightning speed progression. The guy goes from being able to barely defeat a third seat to besting multiple captains in roughly 100 or less chapters. I get that that is the point and him defeating captains was more of a struck of luck, but progression and pacing wise it feels very unearned and a factor of "for the plot he needed to be this strong" It only seems as fast as it is because Ichigo's progression slows drastically down for the rest of the story moving foreword so it's only now that I make that criticism.
-Also, and this will be an issue in most Shonen. There are 13 Captains with 13 Vice Captains and seats that branch all the way to 10 I believe? Regardless, there's a fudge ton of characters that are introduced here and it can get a little jarring at times. Luckily, Kubo does a great job at making their designs and characters unique despite such a large cast.
Hueco Mundo Arc - Chapters 183-423 - Rating 7/10
-This is another arc where personally I would split it up into two separate arcs. But for the sake of this review I will simply refer to the first half of the arc and the later half of the arc. First Half 9/10. Second Half. 5/10.
-The first half of this arc is a great continuation of the last. Ichigo now struggles with his inner demons and it affects his ability to protect the ones he loves. We are also introduced to a deadly unknown new villains. The Arrancars/Espada to this day remain one of my favorite villain factions in all of manga enemies.
-Just so you're aware I would say the first half of this arc ends right around the point of Ichigo vs Grimmjow. Grimmjow is one of the first Arrancar that Ichigo faces. And he's also one of two Espada that he faces three times. The conclusion of that fight shows Ichigo conquering his inner demons. Where Grimmjow is very much fighting to establish himself. Grimmjow has to fight Ichigo to prove to his fallen comrades that he is as good as he says he is. He doesn't care about Aizen, he doesn't care about the rest of the Espada. It is very personal for him. For Ichigo, Orohime is within his grasp of saving and he views this as his "final" battle. It's my favorite fight in all of Bleach.
-However, this is where things start to take a bit of dip in quality in my opinion. We had a goal and we were striving towards that goal. Each character of the original cast coming to repay the debt they made to their friend who had risked her life to save them in the Soul society arc. But somewhere along the way it seems we just had a fighter fest. Captains would face enemies with no themes or character revelations. The Espadas got a little light but nothing that made their fights compelling. You almost just feel bad for the Espada as they were monsters turned into a military force by an unstoppable tyrant. But even that wasn't enough to make half of the fights interesting. Now, that's with knowing the outcome. These fights played little importance in the larger scheme of things. Where at least in the Hueco Mundo fights each match up had the protagonists striving for a goal. Rukia to defeat Aaroneiro to free her former superiors soul. Byakuya to defend Rukia. Renji and Uryu teamwork. Nel to protect Ichigo and get revenge on Nnoitra. Whereas Stark fought Kyoraku.....cause.....and Hitsugaya fought Halibel because Water vs Ice would be cool.
-This leaves me to the end. I won't say it wasn't satisfying that Ichigo was able to defeat Aizen. And yes, I do feel like his new power was earned. 3 months of training. But this was clearly a last minute decision to save Aizen for a later date and the show must go on. I do feel like it wasn't as satisfying as 200+ chapter buildup needed to be.
The Fullbring Arc - Chapters 424-479 - Rating: 8/10
-A very underrated arc. And yes, I acknowledge that rating wise I think the Fullbring arc is superior to the Hueco Mundo arc. That is mostly true. Though I like the first half of the Hueco Mundo Arc more than the Fullbring arc. The end of the HM arc really brought it down for me. The Fullbring Arc is much more concise and is actually the shortest arc in the series and works as a glorified Ichigo getting his powers back arc. But that doesn't mean its bad.
-When I read it originally back when it was coming out in 2010. (Cause I'm Old) It wasn't phenomenal. In fact, I hated it. But wouldn't you? It took just short of a year to get to the point that we were at. But upon rereading it, it gave much deserved love to the characters who hadn't been shown love in quite some time. The original cast. It was a very character focused arc. Ichigo never seemed more human. And despite me hating it before for taking so long, reading weekly can sometimes hurt these mystery based arcs. The twist is heavily foreshadowed and I really appreciated it.
-That being said, the end was super rushed. This was a big bummer for me. The villains this time around were humans. And the ones who had the most exposure and relations with these characters were the original cast who again....were humans. So to have the soul reapers, who have no connection to the fullbringers show up and basically no diff most of the fullbringers felt very forced and fanservicey to me. This very well could have not been Kubo's call. As the community was very vocal about their dislike for this arc as it was going on. But I appreciate it now much more as I appreciate character and story over big sword fights. Lol.
The Thousand Year Blood War Arc - Chapters 424-689 - Rating: 5/10
-And we're finally here. The final and largest arc within the Bleach story. And man...does it not stick the landing.
-That being said, this arc has phenomenal moments. Kenpachi's Shikai and Bankai. Ichigo's double swords. Renji's true Bankai. Rukia's Bankai. And many more. However, they are put together against the most break neck speed arc that I have ever read. Kubo was very ambitious when he introduced 26 new villains. However, most of them got barely any screen time and a lot of them even got off screened by higher level captains. This was unlike the Espada who each got a full double page spread for their Resurrections.
-Yhwach himself was a phenomenal villain but was dealt with swiftly and imo dirty. They did him dirty.
-There was just something off. The mood changed and it was very apparent. The villains had random powers instead of the powers reflecting their personalities or needs. The finale felt so underwhelming.
-Ichigo gets to be the strongest he's ever been....but he doesn't defeat a single person besides the main villain despite being in several fights.
-It isn't a good arc. In fact, I would say it's the worst. Hopefully the anime does a better job with this already mammoth of a story. 260 chapters is no joke.
This gives the story of Bleach an Overall rating of 7.4/10. Which to me is above average. It has it's ups and downs. It's not perfect. But when it's high, it's peak shonen. But when it's low, it's very forgettable.
Karakura Town Arc - Chapters 1-56 - Rating: 7/10
(The official page lumps this in with the Soul Society Arc however I feel as if they are two very separate arcs with two very separate themes)
- A fun introduction.
-An interesting premise on the idea of ghosts and demons (Hollows)
-Does a good job of introducing the characters and I especially enjoyed the love for characters like Chad, Orihime and Uryu as these characters would later lose more and more spotlight as the series went on.
-It is a bit of a monster of the week. When it works, like with Chad's introduction story. It works. But Characters like Don Kanonji felt superficial and very gimmicky. Which, fair. I didn't enjoy them as much.
Soul Society Arc - Chapters 57-182 - Rating: 10/10
-The height of Bleach
-Establishes an afterlife seemingly perfectly. Later on revealed to be full of plot holes and never fleshed out but hey! That's not an issue in THIS arc. The fights are top tier, the themes of Ichigo owing a life debt to Rukia and his passion and determination to rise above literally God's army is inspiring and to this day is why I love Ichigo so much. He doesn't have some grandiose plan. He doesn't have a major goal to accomplish. He is a protector by heart, losing his mother has made him sour to failing to protect those he cares about and he'll do anything in his power never to feel that helpless again. Very powerful stuff.
-The twist near the end of this arc is revolutionary and would make waves for the next 200 chapters onward. A perfect ending and set up for the forthcoming arc.
-The only issues I have for this arc would be Ichigo's lightning speed progression. The guy goes from being able to barely defeat a third seat to besting multiple captains in roughly 100 or less chapters. I get that that is the point and him defeating captains was more of a struck of luck, but progression and pacing wise it feels very unearned and a factor of "for the plot he needed to be this strong" It only seems as fast as it is because Ichigo's progression slows drastically down for the rest of the story moving foreword so it's only now that I make that criticism.
-Also, and this will be an issue in most Shonen. There are 13 Captains with 13 Vice Captains and seats that branch all the way to 10 I believe? Regardless, there's a fudge ton of characters that are introduced here and it can get a little jarring at times. Luckily, Kubo does a great job at making their designs and characters unique despite such a large cast.
Hueco Mundo Arc - Chapters 183-423 - Rating 7/10
-This is another arc where personally I would split it up into two separate arcs. But for the sake of this review I will simply refer to the first half of the arc and the later half of the arc. First Half 9/10. Second Half. 5/10.
-The first half of this arc is a great continuation of the last. Ichigo now struggles with his inner demons and it affects his ability to protect the ones he loves. We are also introduced to a deadly unknown new villains. The Arrancars/Espada to this day remain one of my favorite villain factions in all of manga enemies.
-Just so you're aware I would say the first half of this arc ends right around the point of Ichigo vs Grimmjow. Grimmjow is one of the first Arrancar that Ichigo faces. And he's also one of two Espada that he faces three times. The conclusion of that fight shows Ichigo conquering his inner demons. Where Grimmjow is very much fighting to establish himself. Grimmjow has to fight Ichigo to prove to his fallen comrades that he is as good as he says he is. He doesn't care about Aizen, he doesn't care about the rest of the Espada. It is very personal for him. For Ichigo, Orohime is within his grasp of saving and he views this as his "final" battle. It's my favorite fight in all of Bleach.
-However, this is where things start to take a bit of dip in quality in my opinion. We had a goal and we were striving towards that goal. Each character of the original cast coming to repay the debt they made to their friend who had risked her life to save them in the Soul society arc. But somewhere along the way it seems we just had a fighter fest. Captains would face enemies with no themes or character revelations. The Espadas got a little light but nothing that made their fights compelling. You almost just feel bad for the Espada as they were monsters turned into a military force by an unstoppable tyrant. But even that wasn't enough to make half of the fights interesting. Now, that's with knowing the outcome. These fights played little importance in the larger scheme of things. Where at least in the Hueco Mundo fights each match up had the protagonists striving for a goal. Rukia to defeat Aaroneiro to free her former superiors soul. Byakuya to defend Rukia. Renji and Uryu teamwork. Nel to protect Ichigo and get revenge on Nnoitra. Whereas Stark fought Kyoraku.....cause.....and Hitsugaya fought Halibel because Water vs Ice would be cool.
-This leaves me to the end. I won't say it wasn't satisfying that Ichigo was able to defeat Aizen. And yes, I do feel like his new power was earned. 3 months of training. But this was clearly a last minute decision to save Aizen for a later date and the show must go on. I do feel like it wasn't as satisfying as 200+ chapter buildup needed to be.
The Fullbring Arc - Chapters 424-479 - Rating: 8/10
-A very underrated arc. And yes, I acknowledge that rating wise I think the Fullbring arc is superior to the Hueco Mundo arc. That is mostly true. Though I like the first half of the Hueco Mundo Arc more than the Fullbring arc. The end of the HM arc really brought it down for me. The Fullbring Arc is much more concise and is actually the shortest arc in the series and works as a glorified Ichigo getting his powers back arc. But that doesn't mean its bad.
-When I read it originally back when it was coming out in 2010. (Cause I'm Old) It wasn't phenomenal. In fact, I hated it. But wouldn't you? It took just short of a year to get to the point that we were at. But upon rereading it, it gave much deserved love to the characters who hadn't been shown love in quite some time. The original cast. It was a very character focused arc. Ichigo never seemed more human. And despite me hating it before for taking so long, reading weekly can sometimes hurt these mystery based arcs. The twist is heavily foreshadowed and I really appreciated it.
-That being said, the end was super rushed. This was a big bummer for me. The villains this time around were humans. And the ones who had the most exposure and relations with these characters were the original cast who again....were humans. So to have the soul reapers, who have no connection to the fullbringers show up and basically no diff most of the fullbringers felt very forced and fanservicey to me. This very well could have not been Kubo's call. As the community was very vocal about their dislike for this arc as it was going on. But I appreciate it now much more as I appreciate character and story over big sword fights. Lol.
The Thousand Year Blood War Arc - Chapters 424-689 - Rating: 5/10
-And we're finally here. The final and largest arc within the Bleach story. And man...does it not stick the landing.
-That being said, this arc has phenomenal moments. Kenpachi's Shikai and Bankai. Ichigo's double swords. Renji's true Bankai. Rukia's Bankai. And many more. However, they are put together against the most break neck speed arc that I have ever read. Kubo was very ambitious when he introduced 26 new villains. However, most of them got barely any screen time and a lot of them even got off screened by higher level captains. This was unlike the Espada who each got a full double page spread for their Resurrections.
-Yhwach himself was a phenomenal villain but was dealt with swiftly and imo dirty. They did him dirty.
-There was just something off. The mood changed and it was very apparent. The villains had random powers instead of the powers reflecting their personalities or needs. The finale felt so underwhelming.
-Ichigo gets to be the strongest he's ever been....but he doesn't defeat a single person besides the main villain despite being in several fights.
-It isn't a good arc. In fact, I would say it's the worst. Hopefully the anime does a better job with this already mammoth of a story. 260 chapters is no joke.
This gives the story of Bleach an Overall rating of 7.4/10. Which to me is above average. It has it's ups and downs. It's not perfect. But when it's high, it's peak shonen. But when it's low, it's very forgettable.
March 31, 2025
Urahara is definitely one of my favourite characters so seeing him back when he was a captain here was very fun. Also very cool to see Mayuri (one of the most underrated characters in the entirety of bleach) here and how Urahara used to work with him. Interesting to see a younger aizen at the start of his plan and Shinji also looking cold.
June 24, 2023
Title: "My Only Criticism is that I wish the Pendulum Only Needed One Swing!"
Turn Back the Pendulum is a mini-arc in Bleach that sees us go back in time 110 years to gain answers, not just about our main antagonist Aizen, but for many other characters too. We see the creations of the Vizards (or Visoreds, depending on where you're reading from); Urahara's banishment; the beginnings of Aizen's plans for the Hogyoku; and much, much more. And whilst as a youngster I was somewhat skeptical and annoyed that Bleach had taken this massive step backwards at the time - I have come to reflect fondly on Turn Back the Pendulum as an adult. It's actually one of my favourite parts of the entirety of Bleach. So, let's dive in explore this Volume of the Bleach - Volume 36 - Turn Back the Pendulum!
Turn Back the Pendulum was controversial when it was first launched because of the fact it happened quite suddenly and out of nowhere during the Fake Karakura Town Arc and Ichigo's ascent up to the top of the dome to save Orihime. A lot of people were worried that this would detract from the story and possibly fall into one of the many pitfalls you often see within Shounen Manga especially when it comes to flashbacks: the first being that it would simply be a recap like arc in which we see a lot of things we have already seen and learn a lot of things we already know or that at the end of this one or more of the mentioned characters would suddenly get a new power or strength that they didn't have previously before one hit KOing the big bad. Y'know, the usual Naruto type thing.
However, Turn Back the Pendulum doesn't seem to do that. Instead, I think Kubo made a genius decision to write an almost Anime Filler Arc-esque storyline that could used to give him breathing room to prep for the huge showdowns about to kick off in Fake Karakura and with Ichigo versus Ulquiorra. But what's even more genius is that the story has some sort of impact on the current day storyline as multiple characters are given depth and breadth that they desperately needed. It's like filler but good. Hard to do but done well.
So, the story begins with Kisuke Urahara being promoted to the captaincy of Squad 12 and the Vizards', now revealed to be former officers of the Gotei 13, reaction to this new addition to their number. Shinji Hirako, the Vizards' leader and Captain of 5th Division, takes on the duotagonist role with Kisuke as their stories seem to run in tandem. Kisuke setting up 12th Division as we know it now under Mayuri and Shinji working towards finding out the answers to a greater mystery as multiple people have been disappearing from the poorer districts of Soul Society.
And whilst these stories are great and interesting, the real selling point for this whole arc is the character moments and interactions between the likes of Kisuke and a young Mayuri who becomes his assistant, as well as Aizen and Shinji's strange mental chess game as both men seem to be wary of one and other even though they are Lieutenant and Captain of the same squad. It's filled with great stuff from all sorts of characters and some great little lore nuggets to add to the already comprehensive and expansive world.
It of course culminates in two ground breaking moments that change the Bleach Landscape forever in the form of:
1. The creation of the Vizards by Aizen and Kaname Tousen's treachery using the imperfect Hogyoku.
2. Kisuke Urahara's banishment from Soul Society in his attempts to save the Vizards and thus beginning his journey to being the know-it-all Candy Shop owner we know and love in the modern timeline.
So, even though we have been taken away from the modern timeline and the current day battle the story we are told instead only serves to add to the current situation and raise the stakes for when we finally return to the future.
But whilst I love this story, I am not blind to the problems that come up thanks to this. There are numerous strange plot holes born from this tale, including but not limited to Urahara's apparent forgetfulness when it comes to the Vizards and who they are. The fact that Isshin apparently knows nothing about the Vizards, who they are and some other things to do with the order of events that have been previously stated before. There's loads, even going so far back as to how Uryuu doesn't know they exist considering his great spiritual detection abilities.
It's also kind of annoying that the Volume called Turn Back the Pendulum doesn't have all the Turn Back the Pendulum chapters. But, hey, that's just me being fussy.
All in all, Turn Back the Pendulum is - in my opinion - Bleach's story telling at its best until similar arcs like Everything But the Rain during the Thousand Year Blood War. Hell, maybe I just like Bleach flashbacks. Who knows.
Turn Back the Pendulum is a mini-arc in Bleach that sees us go back in time 110 years to gain answers, not just about our main antagonist Aizen, but for many other characters too. We see the creations of the Vizards (or Visoreds, depending on where you're reading from); Urahara's banishment; the beginnings of Aizen's plans for the Hogyoku; and much, much more. And whilst as a youngster I was somewhat skeptical and annoyed that Bleach had taken this massive step backwards at the time - I have come to reflect fondly on Turn Back the Pendulum as an adult. It's actually one of my favourite parts of the entirety of Bleach. So, let's dive in explore this Volume of the Bleach - Volume 36 - Turn Back the Pendulum!
Turn Back the Pendulum was controversial when it was first launched because of the fact it happened quite suddenly and out of nowhere during the Fake Karakura Town Arc and Ichigo's ascent up to the top of the dome to save Orihime. A lot of people were worried that this would detract from the story and possibly fall into one of the many pitfalls you often see within Shounen Manga especially when it comes to flashbacks: the first being that it would simply be a recap like arc in which we see a lot of things we have already seen and learn a lot of things we already know or that at the end of this one or more of the mentioned characters would suddenly get a new power or strength that they didn't have previously before one hit KOing the big bad. Y'know, the usual Naruto type thing.
However, Turn Back the Pendulum doesn't seem to do that. Instead, I think Kubo made a genius decision to write an almost Anime Filler Arc-esque storyline that could used to give him breathing room to prep for the huge showdowns about to kick off in Fake Karakura and with Ichigo versus Ulquiorra. But what's even more genius is that the story has some sort of impact on the current day storyline as multiple characters are given depth and breadth that they desperately needed. It's like filler but good. Hard to do but done well.
So, the story begins with Kisuke Urahara being promoted to the captaincy of Squad 12 and the Vizards', now revealed to be former officers of the Gotei 13, reaction to this new addition to their number. Shinji Hirako, the Vizards' leader and Captain of 5th Division, takes on the duotagonist role with Kisuke as their stories seem to run in tandem. Kisuke setting up 12th Division as we know it now under Mayuri and Shinji working towards finding out the answers to a greater mystery as multiple people have been disappearing from the poorer districts of Soul Society.
And whilst these stories are great and interesting, the real selling point for this whole arc is the character moments and interactions between the likes of Kisuke and a young Mayuri who becomes his assistant, as well as Aizen and Shinji's strange mental chess game as both men seem to be wary of one and other even though they are Lieutenant and Captain of the same squad. It's filled with great stuff from all sorts of characters and some great little lore nuggets to add to the already comprehensive and expansive world.
It of course culminates in two ground breaking moments that change the Bleach Landscape forever in the form of:
1. The creation of the Vizards by Aizen and Kaname Tousen's treachery using the imperfect Hogyoku.
2. Kisuke Urahara's banishment from Soul Society in his attempts to save the Vizards and thus beginning his journey to being the know-it-all Candy Shop owner we know and love in the modern timeline.
So, even though we have been taken away from the modern timeline and the current day battle the story we are told instead only serves to add to the current situation and raise the stakes for when we finally return to the future.
But whilst I love this story, I am not blind to the problems that come up thanks to this. There are numerous strange plot holes born from this tale, including but not limited to Urahara's apparent forgetfulness when it comes to the Vizards and who they are. The fact that Isshin apparently knows nothing about the Vizards, who they are and some other things to do with the order of events that have been previously stated before. There's loads, even going so far back as to how Uryuu doesn't know they exist considering his great spiritual detection abilities.
It's also kind of annoying that the Volume called Turn Back the Pendulum doesn't have all the Turn Back the Pendulum chapters. But, hey, that's just me being fussy.
All in all, Turn Back the Pendulum is - in my opinion - Bleach's story telling at its best until similar arcs like Everything But the Rain during the Thousand Year Blood War. Hell, maybe I just like Bleach flashbacks. Who knows.
March 20, 2020
Mangaka Tite Kubo does the unpredictable and dramatically shifts the narrative to the past and revisits the Soul Society at a time where grand schemes were brewing and tragedy strikes the Soul Reapers.
Unlike the past couple of volumes, this time around the story is much more grounded in exploring the history of various key characters that haven't had the chance to shine too much so far in the series. It's amazing to see them young and learning, while also ambitious and dedicated to their duties.
Although it might seem like it all comes out of the blue and a bit destabilizing to shift the story onto new characters, this story arc is very welcome in my books to finally unveil some of the chemistry that used to exist between certain characters. It also teases us to the origin of certain powers that are taken for granted in the real-time events.
Yours truly,
Lashaan | Blogger and Book Reviewer
Official blog: https://bookidote.com/
Unlike the past couple of volumes, this time around the story is much more grounded in exploring the history of various key characters that haven't had the chance to shine too much so far in the series. It's amazing to see them young and learning, while also ambitious and dedicated to their duties.
Although it might seem like it all comes out of the blue and a bit destabilizing to shift the story onto new characters, this story arc is very welcome in my books to finally unveil some of the chemistry that used to exist between certain characters. It also teases us to the origin of certain powers that are taken for granted in the real-time events.
Yours truly,
Lashaan | Blogger and Book Reviewer
Official blog: https://bookidote.com/
July 16, 2021
THIS IS MY FAVORITE MINI ARC!! i already watched it in the anime but the manga always has a certain charm to it AAAA I LOVE THE CHARACTERS SO MUCH
i kind of want to buy this volume and the next so i can reread it over and over again
i kind of want to buy this volume and the next so i can reread it over and over again
September 14, 2015
Gin :3 Tohle arc je super, mám ráda flashbacky do minulosti. A Hiyori x Urahara jsou hodně hodně vtipní.
April 26, 2016
why can't i give this more stars
April 13, 2019
I loved this volume! Going back to the past and learning more about some of my favourite characters is the best!
October 31, 2022
Loved this look back at the past. So many dynamics flipped on their heads and I’m super interested in how things became how there are in the present day
January 14, 2023
Left me emotionally devastated!
January 30, 2024
THIS BACKSTORY IS ABSOLUTELY INSANE OMG
July 23, 2021
و اینم از جلد سی و ششم مجموعه مانگایbleach.....
این جلد اتفاقات غیر منتظره زیادی داشت که میتونم بگم بین همه جلد ها بیشترین غافلگیری رو برای مخاطب داره و کشش داستان باز هم بیشتر شد و وارد آرک جدیدی به نام حمله ایزن به شهر کاراکو شد که فکر کنم آرک خوبی از اب در بیاد و صحنه های مبارزه زیادی داشته باشه....
طرح جلدش رو خیلی دوست ندارم چون که این شخصیت که روی جلد هست خیلی حضور پررنگی نداره ....
آرت خیلی خوبی داشت که مشکل فضا سازی حل شده بود و چندین صفحه رنگی هم داشت...
اولش میخواستم به این جلد نمره چهار رو بدم اما به خاطر موضوعات غافلگیر کننده ای که داشت بهش نمره پنج رو دادم....
امیدوارم حتما این مانگا رو بخونین...
این جلد اتفاقات غیر منتظره زیادی داشت که میتونم بگم بین همه جلد ها بیشترین غافلگیری رو برای مخاطب داره و کشش داستان باز هم بیشتر شد و وارد آرک جدیدی به نام حمله ایزن به شهر کاراکو شد که فکر کنم آرک خوبی از اب در بیاد و صحنه های مبارزه زیادی داشته باشه....
طرح جلدش رو خیلی دوست ندارم چون که این شخصیت که روی جلد هست خیلی حضور پررنگی نداره ....
آرت خیلی خوبی داشت که مشکل فضا سازی حل شده بود و چندین صفحه رنگی هم داشت...
اولش میخواستم به این جلد نمره چهار رو بدم اما به خاطر موضوعات غافلگیر کننده ای که داشت بهش نمره پنج رو دادم....
امیدوارم حتما این مانگا رو بخونین...
September 13, 2023
Ho impiegato giorni a leggere questo volume e mi dispiace aver perso il ritmo perché tutto il background di quanto accaduto più di cento anni prima l'ho trovato molto interessante — in questi giorni ho avuto un sacco di impegni e di grazia se sono riuscita a leggere uno o due capitoli alla sera.
Quindi niente, felicissima di aver concluso questo volume (tra l'altro la copertina è stupenda) e non vedo l'ora di proseguire, perché quanto accaduto in passato mi ha proprio destabilizzata. In positivo, ovviamente.
Quindi niente, felicissima di aver concluso questo volume (tra l'altro la copertina è stupenda) e non vedo l'ora di proseguire, perché quanto accaduto in passato mi ha proprio destabilizzata. In positivo, ovviamente.
September 10, 2025
Locurote máximo este tomo. Es un regalo divino poder ver al Gotei 13 de hace 100 años. Me vería 25 capítulos de anime solo de eso.
Byakuya teenager 🥹🥹🥹 no puc con lo irascible que era y ahora es una estatua 😂
Byakuya teenager 🥹🥹🥹 no puc con lo irascible que era y ahora es una estatua 😂
August 14, 2014
This volume really revolves around the past of our beloved characters who's history has been kept a secret. I really loved it, because it filled in a lot of gaps, and builds, or at least shows the reader an incident that reveals the hidden hatred and want for revenge (possibly) that will soon come in the World of the Living.
The thing I didn't exactly like was how fast characters came and went, and with someone like me, who has a horrible memory with names and such, I kept forgetting who was who. While trying to memorize the names of the new characters, I was also trying to relate the names and faces to characters I already know of to get a better understanding of those character's pasts, but I kept mistaking new characters for old ones.
For example, (you will not understand this if you haven't read this volume yet), when the assistant captain was called 'Lisa', I seriously thought that could have been a cute nickname for Nanao in the past because they look the same and act the same, but then I found out they're not the same person...
I had misinterpretations like that all throughout the volume. -_- *Sigh*
Some of the things in this volume completely shocked me, especially the rankings of some people I didn't even know we're in the Seiretei back then. Gosh it's kind of scary!
During the story, I realized how happy I was that there was just one full volume of the past without any interruptions of the present, because it really helped me understand the things I had been questioning since the beginning. I'm finally starting to see how Shinji and gang became Visoreds... Hm... :)
I also realized that the captains must have been pretty relaxed back then too, because in the present an assistant captain never talked disrespectfully to their captain, or any captain because they either have the common sense and manners to, or they're scared of them. In the past, assistant captains were back talking their captains left and right and some got pretty pissed off but never did anything.
Ha, change in generation for the better.
Well, I assume from seeing the preview there is going to be a mixture of the present and past in the next volume, but that's okay because I finally got my historic volume. :3
Okay that sounded weird...
The thing I didn't exactly like was how fast characters came and went, and with someone like me, who has a horrible memory with names and such, I kept forgetting who was who. While trying to memorize the names of the new characters, I was also trying to relate the names and faces to characters I already know of to get a better understanding of those character's pasts, but I kept mistaking new characters for old ones.
For example, (you will not understand this if you haven't read this volume yet), when the assistant captain was called 'Lisa', I seriously thought that could have been a cute nickname for Nanao in the past because they look the same and act the same, but then I found out they're not the same person...
I had misinterpretations like that all throughout the volume. -_- *Sigh*
Some of the things in this volume completely shocked me, especially the rankings of some people I didn't even know we're in the Seiretei back then. Gosh it's kind of scary!
During the story, I realized how happy I was that there was just one full volume of the past without any interruptions of the present, because it really helped me understand the things I had been questioning since the beginning. I'm finally starting to see how Shinji and gang became Visoreds... Hm... :)
I also realized that the captains must have been pretty relaxed back then too, because in the present an assistant captain never talked disrespectfully to their captain, or any captain because they either have the common sense and manners to, or they're scared of them. In the past, assistant captains were back talking their captains left and right and some got pretty pissed off but never did anything.
Ha, change in generation for the better.
Well, I assume from seeing the preview there is going to be a mixture of the present and past in the next volume, but that's okay because I finally got my historic volume. :3
Okay that sounded weird...
August 25, 2019
Bleach, Vol. 36 continues and collects nine chapters of a side-story or prequel story of the on-going manga series.
A hundred and ten years before the start of the series, the Vizards were originally Soul Reapers in the Soul Society. Sōsuke Aizen, a Squad Five Lieutenant at the time, learns from his captain Shinji Hirako that Kisuke Urahara is about to become Squad Twelve Captain with the support of Squad Two Captain Yoruichi Shihōin.
Despite the animosity towards him by his Lieutenant Hiyori Sarugaki, Kisuke manages to win her respect as he recruits an imprisoned Mayuri Kurotsuchi to help turn Squad Twelve into the science-based division it currently is. A few years later, several Soul Reapers began to mysteriously disappear and Squad Nine under Captain Kensei Muguruma and his lieutenant Mashiro Kuna soon investigate.
Soon after, a group consisting of Shinji Hirako, Soul Reaper captains Rōjūrō "Rose" Otoribashi and Love Aikawa, Squad Eight Lieutenant Yadomaru Lisa, and Hachigen Ushōda of Kidō Corps, are dispatched. Despite Genryusai Shigekuni Yamamoto refusing his request to visit the site, Urahara sends Hiyori Sarugaki to investigate in his stead. However, the Shinji's group finds Hyori attacked by a hollowified Kensei Muguruma and Mashiro Kuna. They subdue the Hollows, including Hyori, but are suddenly incapacitated by Kaname Tōsen with the exception of Shinji as Aizen appears.
This tankōbon is written and illustrated by Tite Kubo. It takes a pause in the upcoming battle in Karakura Town and takes the reader to a story that happened in Soul Society one hundred and ten years ago. It is very interesting to see how Soul Society was like back then and the beginning of Sōsuke Aizen as a merely lieutenant and the starts of his plan that is happening in the present timeline.
All in all, Bleach, Vol. 36 is a wonderful continuation to a series that seems intriguing and I cannot wait to read more.
A hundred and ten years before the start of the series, the Vizards were originally Soul Reapers in the Soul Society. Sōsuke Aizen, a Squad Five Lieutenant at the time, learns from his captain Shinji Hirako that Kisuke Urahara is about to become Squad Twelve Captain with the support of Squad Two Captain Yoruichi Shihōin.
Despite the animosity towards him by his Lieutenant Hiyori Sarugaki, Kisuke manages to win her respect as he recruits an imprisoned Mayuri Kurotsuchi to help turn Squad Twelve into the science-based division it currently is. A few years later, several Soul Reapers began to mysteriously disappear and Squad Nine under Captain Kensei Muguruma and his lieutenant Mashiro Kuna soon investigate.
Soon after, a group consisting of Shinji Hirako, Soul Reaper captains Rōjūrō "Rose" Otoribashi and Love Aikawa, Squad Eight Lieutenant Yadomaru Lisa, and Hachigen Ushōda of Kidō Corps, are dispatched. Despite Genryusai Shigekuni Yamamoto refusing his request to visit the site, Urahara sends Hiyori Sarugaki to investigate in his stead. However, the Shinji's group finds Hyori attacked by a hollowified Kensei Muguruma and Mashiro Kuna. They subdue the Hollows, including Hyori, but are suddenly incapacitated by Kaname Tōsen with the exception of Shinji as Aizen appears.
This tankōbon is written and illustrated by Tite Kubo. It takes a pause in the upcoming battle in Karakura Town and takes the reader to a story that happened in Soul Society one hundred and ten years ago. It is very interesting to see how Soul Society was like back then and the beginning of Sōsuke Aizen as a merely lieutenant and the starts of his plan that is happening in the present timeline.
All in all, Bleach, Vol. 36 is a wonderful continuation to a series that seems intriguing and I cannot wait to read more.
November 2, 2012
I can admit when I’m wrong. I was definitely wrong about Bleach 36 being nothing more than 3 seconds of plot and endless fight scenes as I predicted in my review of #35. This reminds me of when the series was young. The fight scenes feel organic and don’t take away from the plot. This was entirely plot driven and interesting.
Where it left of in 35 was Aizen and his men going to Earth to wreck havoc and the Soul Reapers trying to stop them. Instead of picking up there, 36 takes a century-long detour into the past and we see a lot of the arrancars when they were still Soul Reapers and some of the other Soul Reapers when young (i.e. Byakuya as a boy).
Urahara is a brand new captain but doesn’t really know how to be one nor is his team happy to have him. There are hints of secret organizations within the society. We see the beginnings of Aizen’s long plan. There is also a secret prison for the truly dangerous former Soul Reapers and from there Urahara recruits Mayuri. To make things worse, people have started disappearing leaving nothing but their uniforms behind.
This is the sort of volume that doesn’t make me long for the good old days. I really enjoyed Bleach in the beginning but for far too long it’s been mostly fight scenes with a mind-boggling large cast with too little characterization and plot. I know this brief burst of storytelling probably won’t last but it’s enjoyable in the short term.
Where it left of in 35 was Aizen and his men going to Earth to wreck havoc and the Soul Reapers trying to stop them. Instead of picking up there, 36 takes a century-long detour into the past and we see a lot of the arrancars when they were still Soul Reapers and some of the other Soul Reapers when young (i.e. Byakuya as a boy).
Urahara is a brand new captain but doesn’t really know how to be one nor is his team happy to have him. There are hints of secret organizations within the society. We see the beginnings of Aizen’s long plan. There is also a secret prison for the truly dangerous former Soul Reapers and from there Urahara recruits Mayuri. To make things worse, people have started disappearing leaving nothing but their uniforms behind.
This is the sort of volume that doesn’t make me long for the good old days. I really enjoyed Bleach in the beginning but for far too long it’s been mostly fight scenes with a mind-boggling large cast with too little characterization and plot. I know this brief burst of storytelling probably won’t last but it’s enjoyable in the short term.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 7, 2018
I have watched about 200 episodes of the anime, and I would say I am a fan. I have decided to read the manga, by starting at volume 36, since i’m really far into the series, and I was happy to see the detailed drawings and the multiple plots going on in the book, which is the same as the anime. When I was reading, I compared it to the anime and it is true to the manga, they did not try to cut corners with the story. The characters were the same as in the anime.
In volume 36: Turn Back The Pendulum. It is a flashback of the old soul society, Where we follow two separate plots, Kisuke Urahara is the new captain of squad 12, and Shinji Hirako as he investigates the suspicious behavior of his 2nd in command Sosuke Aizen. After the induction ceremony for Urahara, he goes to meet his new squad, but Hiyori Sarugaki, the assistant captain of squad 12 doesn’t accept her new captain. She goes on a tangent on how squad 2 are murderers and that Urahara is not fit to run squad 12. Urahara is unfazed by the insults Hiyori throws at him and explains to her that he wanted to be apart of squad 12. Hiyori gets fed up with Urahara so she runs out of the squad 12 barracks.
There is more that is explained in the anime which i found helpful to me understanding what exactly was going on as the manga had very little to it. Overall this volume is good as I found out about things that I didn’t understand in the anime
In volume 36: Turn Back The Pendulum. It is a flashback of the old soul society, Where we follow two separate plots, Kisuke Urahara is the new captain of squad 12, and Shinji Hirako as he investigates the suspicious behavior of his 2nd in command Sosuke Aizen. After the induction ceremony for Urahara, he goes to meet his new squad, but Hiyori Sarugaki, the assistant captain of squad 12 doesn’t accept her new captain. She goes on a tangent on how squad 2 are murderers and that Urahara is not fit to run squad 12. Urahara is unfazed by the insults Hiyori throws at him and explains to her that he wanted to be apart of squad 12. Hiyori gets fed up with Urahara so she runs out of the squad 12 barracks.
There is more that is explained in the anime which i found helpful to me understanding what exactly was going on as the manga had very little to it. Overall this volume is good as I found out about things that I didn’t understand in the anime
April 11, 2022
A basically go into the past to find out how everyone ended up as a captain, why people betrayed others, and so on. It's a fine volume, with some really cool reveals. I have to say though, doing this at a odd time in the middle of a big fight, is weird. I wonder how long this "flashback" is going to go for before getting back to current time.
May 30, 2021
Flashbacks are normally a snore... BUT NOT THIS VOLUME!! Get ready for all the Urahara, Vizards, origin stories, and dynamic backstory development that you can handle!
The 13 squads looked very different 100 years ago...
The 13 squads looked very different 100 years ago...
July 24, 2022
This one was really hard to get into. I'm not a big fan of flashbacks that are long, let alone a whole volume of them. Then the popularity poll results were atrocious! Nnoitra being above Nel, Yoruichi, and Kon? Everyone who voted needs to get SLAPPED.
January 30, 2024
i fuckimg love flash back arcs and this one is SO good, absolutely crazy with the link with the vizards, seeing kisuke as a captain and aizen, gin and tosen working on their plan 100+ years before it even came into act!!! and toshiro getting #1 on the popularity poll that’s my man
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