Bleach 635: Hooded Enigma

Zach Goodier

http://www.mangapanda.com/bleach/635

The battle between Bazz and Hashwalth is over; meanwhile, Liltotto and Giselle have fallen trying to kill Yhwach, and the Sternlichter are still trying to locate the rest of the intruders. Grimmjow is still in pursuit of Askin, but the battle takes a dangerous turn when Grimmjow is hit with a poison ball and drops to the ground. Kenpachi and Kurotsuchi are also facing off with Pernida, who's abilities continue to confuse, but if there's a pair that can face him, it's those two.

Bleach 623: Against the Judgement

Zach Goodier

http://www.mangapanda.com/bleach/623

Aizen prepares to bring down the palace; however, at the last moment, his restraints stop him. It is at this point that Kyoraku and Kurotsuchi explain the nature of Aizen's restraints, explaining that they are the one of the Soul Society's proudest achievements, since Aizen's power cannot by normal means be contained. However, as the captains boast of their achievement, trouble arrives in the form of 3 Sternritters, who appear to mean business. Can the Soul Reapers afford to keep Aizen restrained, or will they have to find another means to deal with this new threat?

This chapter is very significant, since *SPOILERS* several Sternritters are now joining with the Soul Reapers to get revenge on Juha Bach for abandoning them. I am unsure if Juha Bach is ready for this, or if he even cares, but this is a big twist, since it means many former enemies are banding together to come after him. I don't think they will be able to take him on, as they seem keen on doing, but they can still make a big difference at the right moment if they join in the fight with the Sternlichter. I'm hoping in the next couple of weeks we get a glimpse at what happened to Ichigo after his fall from the palace, because he'll need to get back in this fight soon by the looks of things.

Bleach 603: What the Hell

Zach Goodier

http://www.mangapanda.com/bleach/603

Juha Bach steps forward, forcing Niyama to pause and question what abilities he is faced with, beyond what he already knows of from the previous battles with Yamamoto.  However, it is quickly revealed that what Juha Bach is doing is not stepping forward to fight, but culling the power of his Sternritter back to him.  This doesn't bode well for the Quincy still battling down in the Soul Society, but it also doesn't bode well for Squad 0, as Juha Bach uses his power to resurrect his fallen guards, seemingly more powerful than ever.  

I was either expecting Juha Bach to roll over Squad 0, or pull some other ace from up his sleeve, otherwise Ichigo wouldn't even be needed in this fight.  It is unclear if Squad 0 will be able to maintain the edge over the Sternlichter, or if Ichigo's friends will have to assist in these battles.  Still, if things continue to bode ill for Squad 0, Ichigo and his friends may be the last hope to stop the Vanden

reich.

Bleach 596: Rub-Dolls III

Zach Goodier

http://www.mangapanda.com/bleach/596

Kensei and Rose are now under Kurotsuchi's control, turning Giselle's greatest strength around on her/him.  And, despite Byakuya's objections to using "corpses" of fallen Soul Reapers in combat, Kurotsuchi argues that any true Soul Reaper would be proud to protect the Seretei, even after death.  Still, will their combined power overcome Pepe's "love?" 

I highly doubt Giselle is down and out, and while the above panel from the chapter makes it look like Giselle was cut down, this isn't the first fatal wound we have seen.  Furthermore, we still know very little about Giselle, despite the obvious intrigue surrounding this strange character.  While most Sternritter are abnormal, Giselle has crossed a line in abnormality that hints that there is back-story that we have yet to see.

Bleach 594: Rub-Dolls

Zach Goodier

http://www.mangapanda.com/bleach/594

While Kurotsuchi begins an experiment on the now-paralyzed Hitsuguya, Giselle brings 3 more zombified Soul Reapers to the fight: Rangiku, Rose, and Kensei.  However, Kurotsuchi isn't about to let anything stand in the way of his experiment, and quickly sends the arrancar to keep them occupied while he conducts his mysterious experiment.  Meanwhile, Byakuya has already dispatched several of the Quincy, and soon is reunited with Shuhei Hisagi, but what does this mean for the ongoing battle?

I'm not sure what to think of Giselle having seemingly zombified half the Seretei when nobody was watching, it just makes all these twists feel much more random.  Bambietta made plenty of sense, but how she got around to taking control of 3 captains and a vice-captain, all without anyone noticing, is a little too convenient for my taste.  Plus, Byakuya taking out 3 enemies off-panel brings some mixed reactions from me, as well.  I'm all for moving things along, so not delving into every detail of every fight is a good thing, but it's also somewhat unwelcome to take active characters like Candice and seemingly dispatch them off-panel.  Of course, they might not be dead, and could get up for future fights, but the Quincy have been sure to dispatch anyone who returned to them in defeat, so it seems that their fates are sealed no matter what.

Bleach 592: Marching out the ZOMBIES 3

Zach Goodier

http://readms.com/r/bleach/592/2488/1?t=2&f=0&e=0

Toshiro stand before Kurotsuchi, not as a friend, but as an enemy.  Toshiro attacks Ikkaku and deals him a heavy blow (whether he died or not is still conveniently up the air).  Giselle reveals that by turning the living with blood, they become able to retain the skills they possessed before turning, and require less conscious effort to manipulate.  As a side note, if you haven't noticed, I've been trying to avoid the use of pronouns when it comes to Giselle, since that whole "he/she" thing has rather made me want to avoid pronouns entirely.  Back to the point, the revived arrancar attack, but quickly realize they aren't up to the task of taking on an enemy as strong as Toshiro.  Kurotsuchi decides to step up personally, but can he handle it, and can he somehow manage to save Toshiro from his twisted fate?  

Truth is, this chapter was a lot of downtime.  Other than the arrancar getting tossed aside and the partial explanation of Giselle's power, nothing really happened of note.  One thing that bugged me was that "Zombieguya's" attacks look and apparently are more powerful than they ever were now that he's a zombie.  Toshiro was struggling before just to be able to manage an ice wall to stop Bazz-B's attacks, but now just a flick of his wrist and seemingly half the city is covered in ice.  This type of inconsistency, just to make the situation seem more helpless, can be a pet-peeve of mine.  However, that doesn't make the action itself bad, and it does set up for an epic battle between "Zombieguya" and Kurotsuchi, and it's very possible that through this fight, Kurotsuchi will gather more data on Giselle's power, giving him a bigger edge later on.

Bleach 591: Marching out the Zombies 2

Zach Goodier

http://readms.com/r/bleach/591/2477/1

Giselle's zombie army clashes with Kurotsuchi's arrancar zombie squad, but even as the battle begins in earnest, Giselle still has his/her zombified Bambietta to support her already massive number of zombies.  However, Kurotsuchi's arrancar are fully aware, and capable of quickly dispatching the zombie horde.  Just as it seems that victory might be easily attained (if you actually thought that, thought, you must be new here), Giselle unveils her secret weapon.... Captain Hitsuguya!?!?!?

I'm pretty certain the effects of Giselle's zombification must be reversible, or else this is a very bold move on Kubo's part.  Toshiro is a fan-favorite, and killing him off, especially without some final swan song, just doesn't make any sense unless this is somehow reversible.  Considering Captain Kurotsuchi is on the scene, I have almost no doubt that he will be able to devise some method of reversing or blocking Giselle's power, at least to save Hitsuguya.  But even then, we've seen that Giselle is dangerous, not because of any mass of power, but the fact that even fatal wounds are ineffective, and only serve to spread blood to new potential zombies.  How will Kurotsuchi and his arrancar minions be able to put an end to this conflict? ...Well, you know the drill by now, come back next week and we'll hopefully find out.

Bleach 590: March Out the ZOMBIES

Zach Goodier

http://readms.com/r/bleach/590/2469/1

Kurotsuchi has arrived on the battlefield, and his bright armor has both friend and foe blinded.  However, Giselle quickly calls for her zombie army to fight on her behalf.  Can the Soul Society resist a zombie army mainly composed of its' own soldiers?  And what plan does Kurotsuchi have against this threat?  

Kurotsuchi's appearance in battle is definitely overdue, and he wastes no time getting down to business.  However, the problem of Giselle's zombies is placing an entire army between Kurotsuchi and Giselle.  Still, Kurotsuchi's not unprepared, as he calls forward a secret weapon to counter the zombie horde, one of his own diabolical creations.  How did he come by these secret weapons?  Well, we'll have to wait until next week to find out.

Bleach 589: "The Shooting Star Project" [The Old and New Trust]

Zach Goodier

http://readms.com/r/bleach/589/2452/1

Ichigo and his friends prepare to go to the Soul King's Palace to finish what they started, but in the meantime, Urahara works to set up his special canon to send them there, but needs enough energy to send them.  Meanwhile, Ikkaku and Yumichika fight Giselle and her zombie version of Bambietta.  As they soon realize, since Bambietta is already dead, whatever damage they do to her body won't be enough to put her down for good.  Will they be able to defeat this mysterious zombie master?  Only the next chapters will tell.

It's starting to feel like things are moving along at a faster pace now, with Ichigo getting his bearings before he sets out to face what might be his last battle.  But, we still see plenty of action going on as Ichigo's friends struggle to mop-up the forces Juha Bach left behind when he invaded the Palace.  I'm still waiting to see how some of the other characters will appear, and how their appearance will impact the battle.  It could be the eventual appearance of the Fullbring and other Arancar that upsets Juha Bach's plans and tips the scales against him, but it is likely Ichigo that must face him in order to defeat him outright.  Only time will tell, and we will likely still have a lot of that left before we get any answers.  Until next week, we can all just keep guessing.

Bleach 588: The Headless Star 7

Zach Goodier

http://readms.com/r/bleach/588/2441/1

The Soul Palace is invaded, and Ichigo isn't able to currently return to help.  It looks like the task of defending the Soul Palace has fallen to the legendary Squad 0.  Kirinji Tenjirou, the inventor of the Flash Step, and the Divine General of the East, steps up and easily defeats Juha Bach's foot-soldiers, but that doesn't mean he can stop the Quincy King himself.  Both are confident in their ability, but Juha Bach still has Hashwald and Uryuu at his back, while the rest of Squad 0 hasn't appeared yet.  Will they arrive to help the Divine General of the East, or can he really fight this battle on his own?  

However, back in the Soul Society, the battle is far from over, and Ikkaku and Yumichika confront Giselle, who is hiding a shocking secret (cue Admiral Akbar jokes).  However, now they have to fight not only Giselle, but a "zombified" Bambietta, who we all know was defeated a long time ago, and her now dead body is being used as a puppet to fight the Soul Reapers.