Bleach- also known as "Blah"
Intro:
Basic story starter. "____ is your typical high school student but one day his life is changed forever when he meets a "mysterious" girl who gives him the power to defend and save humanity. In the process he is practically dragged into her world and has no choice but to interfere." Does this sound cliche to you? No duh.
Story: Above Average --> Disappointing --> Nonexistent
Plot like most long running shounen follow the arc-based-plot. Okay.. I have to admit it the first quarter of the plot was good. Ichigo's introduction to the world of Shinigami's was quite amusing and entertaining. The Soul Society arc was imaginative and great in terms of fighting, suspense, dialogue and plot. But somehow in the end it turned out just about average. Along the way Kubo decided to throw in more cliches and glitches: the mystifying sensei, the damesel in distress, random super main character power ups, multiple transformations and the ever popular "Half-Demon-Half-Human" trope. Please don't tell me "well yeah... its a shounen." Let me say this, Shounens can be unique and special, take FMA and Death Note for example. Not all of them have to follow the "norm". Nevertheless the arc was again above average. Unfortunately it was the peek of the series. And this is where Kubo should have ended the series.
Everything after the the SS arc was honestly a waste of paper and ink. Kubo must havebeen thinking, "since, the SS arc did so great, why don`t I do it again but with a different premise..." Thanks Kubo. If you read past the SS arc, you know that Rukia gets captured right... well this time its Orhime's turn. The damsel in distress situation, how times have you seen that? This formula for this arc follows: Insane Powerful Villain Apears--->Ichigo gets owned---> Train--->Insane Power Up/Transformation--->Ichigo Owns--->Cycle Repeats
Boss battle after boss battle. Team A/Hero A vs. Villain A/Team Villain A. Another thing that is just pure idiocy is the fact that at the end of some chapters, we see someone seemingly "defeat" Aizen. But no, at the beginning of the next chapter he comes back unscathed and defeats that individual. Kubo does this for 3-4 chapters.. seriously talk about wasting your time. The ending of the Aizen arc is predictable and unsatisfying. "The Main Character Loses his powers in the end." I had someone ask me "Do you think he'll get his powers back?" "......." was all I said.
Characters/Development:
There is no major character development at all. If you count the "I want to protect friends and family" or "I want to be stronger to blah blah blah.." as development then your talking about the typical character development you would expect from this type of shounen. To be blunt most of the characters are one-dimensional and quite forgettable. Ichigo, the hotblooded, brave, strong, stubborn, hero. Yawn. Orhime, the useless heroine, Mary Sue and damsel. Chad, the strong yet gentle type. Ishida, the smart, tactical "rival". Azien, the god modding final boss. Yawn. And off course characters for fan service (Matsumoto, Hitsugaya, Hisagi.. etc). The only memorable, uniques ones are Kon, Grimmjaw, Ururu, Kisuke, Karin, and Chizuru. Too many characters does not equal good Kubo, especially when you completely forget about them (cough Nell, Kon, Grimmjaw..etc). Like what happened to everyone after the fight with Aizen? Characters are definitely not the strong point.
Art:
Looks decent. Although the environments are pretty bland and lifeless. Artwork changes overtime to a more mature look for the characters. Plus one for Kubo.
Enjoyment:
Mediocre. I keep telling myself it will get better, but I'm not sure anymore.
Overall:
My score would have been higher if the series ended at the SS arc with all the lose ends tied up. Right now, Kubo is miliking this cow for its worth.
