7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Mala suerte!, August 19, 2008
This review is from: Bleach, Vol. 24 (Paperback)
The gang in "Bleach" never get any peace -- when last we heard from them, they were being swarmed by some extremely nasty arrancar sent to destroy anyone with special powers.
And the fights continue in the twenty-fourth volume of Tite Kubo's "Bleach," which picks up mere seconds after the last one ended. It's got loads of smoke, swords, blood, psychotic minions, crazy sisters and a multi-chapter string of powerful fights with various spiritual releases. Kubo keys down the tension after Ichigo's duel with Grimmjow, but the intensity never really goes away.
As Ikkaku's fight ends, a bunch of others are just getting nasty -- Rangiku is badly injured, and Renji and Hitsugaya are desperately fighting opponents that they cannot possibly win against -- even in bankai form. But then a call comes through, telling the various Soul Reapers some welcome news -- the limit on their powers has been lifted, and now they're fighting with a strength that the arrancar didn't imagine.
Meanwhile, our grumpy hero Ichigo turns out to be fighting the most powerful in the group: the sixth Espada, Grimmjow, who is so wild and fight-crazy he makes Zaraki look mellow. Ichigo has something else to worry about -- the Hollow self inside of him is growing ever closer every time he uses his ultimate bankai attack. And even if he survives, that terrible presence will overwhelm him soon... unless he seeks help from a very unlikely source.
The twenty-fourth "Bleach" volume is the first time we've seen the arrancar truly fighting Soul Reapers, rather than just a brief skirmish with Urahara. And a bunch of our heroes get pretty badly hurt before they have a chance to really lash out. Even Urahara's little minion Ururu goes into "genocide mode" and attacks Renji's opponent, only to be gored on one of "Del Toro's" horns. It's pretty shocking.
The fights are pretty straightforward -- everybody shows off their true form/bankai, blood is spilled, and then the Soul Reapers get to demonstrate their true power. Ichigo's fight is the weakest of the bunch because he does little but slash at Grimmjow and get punched in return, but there's an element of real tension in the Soul Reapers' duels -- especially since we learn that they're barely strong enough to fight the weaker arrancar.
The story gets much more relaxed after the battle is over, and all the characters head off to lick their wounds. We get some funny stuff about Keigo's crazy sister (who has a thing for bald dudes) and Rangiku squashing her breasts against poor Hitsugaya's head, as well as Orihime's continuing repressed jealousy.
Ichigo has been having trouble for a few volumes now, what with his inner Hollow and his guilt over not being able to protect his friends. But rather than mope about it, our hero actually does something about it. And we get to see the background of Ikkaku and Yumichika -- how they met Zaraki for the first time and how Ikkaku became so utterly devoted to the man. And Tosen is revealed as an ends-justify-the-means fanatic.
The twenty-fourth volume of "Bleach" has a straightforward series of one-on-one battles, and ends with the promise of some very interesting developments for Ichigo.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
It just keeps getting better!, August 27, 2008
This review is from: Bleach, Vol. 24 (Paperback)
Feel free to judge this book by its cover, because, as always, Tite Kubo has given us an amazing pic! If you can look at this amazing (and slightly terrifying) picture of Grimmjow and not want to pick this volume up, then you are missing something in your life.
The battles in this volume are great, and the details and plot twists don't disappoint. I love a certain turning point in Hitsugaya, Rangiku, and Renji's battles, and Ichigo gets his chance to be the angsty hero, without overdoing it. The only reason I was able to put it down was so I could stare at the cover some more. If there's something Tite Kubo is REALLY good at, it's at providing great covers. Time after time, they just stay awesome.
Once again, the art and story in this are wonderful, a perfect edition to an already great series. Buy this book. Buy all the other ones too. And all the ones that come after it.
And Grimmjow is teh sexy. (There. I'm allowed one small squee, aren't I? He's asking for it!)
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