A new chapter of Bleach is out, so let's talk about it.
Spoilers and hastily wrapped presents after the cut.
Even though I have complained in the past about how the story is going, it is clear that the cards are being laid out on the table in the final arc. We have a much better idea of the powers of the people involved in this struggle. And finally, we're going to find out what exactly Urahara's bankai does.
The author avatar of this story is perplexing and frustrating even when he's just standing there doing nothing at all. It's been many a year since a throwaway comment uttered by Urahara wherein he rebuffed Renji about training Ichigo's friends, saying that his bankai was "not suitable for training others", or something to that effect.
What does that mean, exactly? We still don't know, but we're about to find out.
Given that other captains of similar vintage have powers that flat-out dwarf most of the ones we see on a regular basis, it's not out of the realm of possibility that Urahara's will not only be impressive, but utterly fatal to his enemy Nakk le Varr.
What I would really like to see with Bleach is something a bit less haphazard. Really, the crux of my complaints is that things don't seem to proceed in an orderly fashion, but jump around willy-nilly. Such as this fight between Yoruichi/Urahara and Nakk le Varr being sandwiched around fights involving Ichigo, Hitsugaya, and their respective opponents. The manga has not been an example of textbook storytelling, it is far too chaotic for that.
And yet, the revelations we've seen in the final arc, especially in this chapter with the author avatar releasing his bankai (something I didn't expect to ever happen) have been nothing short of scintillating.
Now if only Ichigo were actually treated like the main character again!
Still, I think we're in for a treat next week...assuming the focus doesn't shift to another fight.
