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Like me, I bet many of you have given up on Naruto anime because of copious fillers and slow pacing (further exacerbated by the fillers >_>). However, the anime has finally gotten back on track in the past couple weeks, and I have begun to watch it again.
They did a decent job animating Kakashi Gaiden, the tale of how Kakashi got his Sharingan, in episodes 119-120. In the following weeks, we witnessed the showdown between Sasuke and Deidara, which was animated in above Naruto-average quality, yet still not as impressive as when Naruto and Sasuke fought couple hundred episodes 
ago. The latest episode (125) this week, titled Disappearance, the anime covered the aftermath of Sasuke vs Deidara fight including the converging paths between Konoha, Hebi, and Akatsuki as well as the introduction of Pain, Konan, and Madara. I was excited to finally hear their voices and their colored anime appearance. Madara did not disappoint, he was cool as hell with his cloak and non-Tobi-comical voice. Pain sounded decent, but he looked too pale and angular. Konan looked great, but sounded like a middle-aged woman, maybe this is what they intended but I'm not a big fan.
The point of this post is not to commend Naruto anime, because it has fallen far too below standard, but rather to show those of you who lost faith that it's trying... =P
Personally, I am excited for what is coming in the following months. I foresee after a week or two of transition material, Shippuuden will head into some great landmarks in the manga such as Jiraiya vs Pain, and Sasuke vs Itachi. BUT, this is assuming they won't drag out the transition or going into another filler. Oh my god if they do the latter, I just won't know anymore...
=D
Similar to Grimmjow's defeat and Nnoitra's death, we see some of Barragan's history before his final breath. This was very interesting, because it revealed how Aizen took over Hueco Mundo: by dethroning its current king and making him his underling. Of course, someone with as much pride as the king of Hueco Mundo cannot swallow this, and Barragan's final act thus was an appropriate attempt to take Aizen's life.
Seeing Aizen and Gin back in captain clothing was nostalgic and pleasing. Also, we saw more of Kyoka Suigetsu in action. This part sort of confused me though. I was under the impression that Kyoka Suigetsu's Shikai creates a powerful illusion on all who witness its release. However, when Aizen muttered "Break, Kyoka Suigetsu," he managed to wipe out all of Barragan's army. Was this just an illusion to get Barragan to obey him or does Kyoka Suigetsu have a side ability of raping everything in sight on Aizen's whim?
Several things I want to note:
The captains and Visoreds were unphased at Barragan's betrayal against Aizen.
Aizen's coolness caused the axe to disentigrate. =P
Barragan's power is inconsistent: rots away buildings but fail to rot his crown; rot leaves the bone like in Soifon's arm's case, yet it rotted away all of Barragan's own body, which is a skeleton.
Someone thought Barragan's release form seems weaker than his normal form and I agree. Barragan managed to break a captain's arm in an instance in normal form, yet couldn't hurt a vice-captain with his most powerful ability in released form.
Sasuke attacks Raikage head on with a swift sword slash, but Darui wards him off with a soaking/electrocuting combo. Shii casts genjutsu so that Raikage and Darui could approach Sasuke for a finishing blow, but Sasuke's Sharingan sees through this, which allows Juugo and Suigetsu to make it in time to defend against the Kumogakure team's assault.
Here, we get our first glimpse at Raikage's combative strength as he was able to break Suigetsu's demon sword with pure strength. Furthermore, the torque from his impact was so great that it convulsed Suigetsu's arms into slush. Juugo decides to take things into his hands by fully transforming into killer-mode. Since he no longer is doing partial transformation, his personality changes to that of bloodlust again.
More banter that I have little interest in among the remaining Kages ...
This week's chapter made me realize that all the newly introduced guardians to the Kages are not cannonfodder for the main characters like Sasuke. They are all qualified Jounin that are on the same level as Kakashi and Yamamoto. This is also unfortunate because it means we'll have to sit through all of the guardians' fights before we see some legit Kage action. (I doubt the Tsuchikage is gonna do much more than whine about his hip, but hopefully he can redeem himself through some interesting and unique jutsu)
Lasty, Juugo's killer-mode doesn't seem very intimidating. Judging from his appearance, it seems this transformation is more centered on speed than lifetaking capabilities. Anyways, the jetpacks on his back are cool, but I wish they did more with his hands/arms.