Bleach Fillers Blacklist

12:21 AM / Posted by Unknown / comments (0)

Innocent non-manga-reading Bleach watchers tend to give up the series after Soul Society arc, because "the Bounts are boring and it gets bad." However, I want to save them from non-canon material by listing the filler episodes that they can skip without missing vital plot.
Here's a quick run down of filler episodes:

Bounts arc - episodes 64 - 109

Random - episodes 132 - 137

Forest of Menos miniarc - episodes 147 - 150

Amagai arc - episodes 168 - 189

Random - episodes 204 - 205, 213 - 214, 227 - 229

Zanpakutou arc - episodes 230 - present


Skip these episodes and watch all canon material! Bleach will be a lot more enjoyable =].
Note that I compiled these filler lists from episode titles, so maybe skim the first and the last episode of each filler. This is because the producer wants people to think its the actual thing, so they transition into and out of the fillers. Sometimes, these translations could include cool cliffhangers and such, so just in case watch the ends of these filler arcs.

For those fans who aren't sure if they want to miss out on anime-original plot and character interactions, I will do my best to give a summary of each filler arc and a rating for its watchability.

Bount arc (64 - 109)- Introduces a new class called Bounts, who are humans that consume human souls to extend their lives. Because of this, they have lived for centuries. After taking the souls of living humans, Bounts are empowered to command Dolls, which are unique to the owners. We learned they finally emerged for revenge against Soul Society.
- Personally, I would recommend skipping this entire arc. Not only does its mediocrity span two season, but it also generates a lot of power level inconsistency. The Bounts race is interesting for a few episodes, but definitely not worth wasting 40 episodes of your time on. I rate it 3/10 for watchability for dragging on too long.

Forest of Menos arc (147 - 150) - After Ichigo and company's infiltration of Heuco Mundo, they fall under the desert, which is revealed to house a whole quartz forest. This place is packed with Hollows of all power levels, and we learn that Aizen was not the first Shinigami to come to Heuco Mundo. Ashido Kanou, a Shinigami, was stranded here during an assault on some Hollows which had invaded the Soul Society.
- This is not a full filler arc, as it only spans 4 episodes. The producers did a good job transitioning into and out of it. Unless you want pure canon-Bleach, you won't even notice that this was a filler. Watchability rating of 5/10 because there's nothing good and nothing bad.

Amagai arc (168 - 189) - Introduces the new Shinigami captain of the 3rd squad, Shuusuke Amagai. Also, dives into the mystery surrounding the Kasumiouji Clan, a noble family of Soul Society.
- I highly recommend skipping this arc. Not only did they do a bad job of transitioning Ichigo from Heuco Mundo pointlessly back to Soul Society, but it is also filled with crappy new characters with bad character designs. I give a watchability rating of 2/10.

Zanpakutou arc (230 - present) - The Shinigamis' Zanpakutou souls obtained "free will" from a villain called Muramasa and are rebelling against their owners. The Shinigami must defeat them in a battle to free them from Muramasa's grasp.
- This arc is still ongoing, and its looking favorable at the moment. To view my previously posted thoughts, click on the picture below. I rate this filler arc 7/10 for watchability.



Random (132 - 137, 204 - 205, 213 - 214, 227 - 229) - These are random fillers episodes that have no over arching plot, but do provide comedy and fan service. Some are commendable (beach episode) and others are meh. I place the watchability of these filler episodes at 5/10. Watch them if you are bored, or want more of your favorite character's screen time.

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Naruto 467

1:38 AM / Posted by Unknown / comments (0)

We find out that Madara's phasing ability is even faster than Raikage's Raiton Jutsu as he was able to dodge Raikage's surprise assault effortlessly (also note that Sasuke was untouched, so this jutsu affects anyone he touches). In addition, Madara reveals that he can warp people near him into another dimension. He warped Karin and Sasuke out of danger and ordered Karin to heal Sasuke. The Kages are pissed that Sasuke managed to escape but Madara makes them listen to his demands: he wants to become one with everything because his duel with Shodai Hokage severely stunted his powers. How does he intend to do so?

Madara explains that the Rikudo Sage is famous because he defeated the legendary Juubi (Ten-Tails). The beast was so strong that Rikudo Sage had to seal it into his own body. However as he neared his end his seal became unstable. Rikudo Sage was forced to dilute the Juubi's power by separating him to the nine Bjious that we know today. Madara reveals that his goal is to collect the nine Bijous and revive the Juubi. Then he aims to take the Juubi's legendary power to actvivate the Mugen Tsukiyomi, which can project the Sharingan onto the moon then influence the whole world with his illusion. This is the so called Moon's Eye Plan.

Madara proceeds to ask the Kages to hand over Naruto and Kirabi, but they refuse. As a reseult, Madara declares the onset of the 4th Ninja War.

I really liked this chapter, because it pulls everything together. Also, we haven't seen this thing called "plot" in a long time between Naruto and Bleach. This development caught me off guard =P. But I look forward to what is going to happen!

By the way, I do not care whatsoever what Sakura wants to say to Naruto >_>.

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Bleach 377

4:24 PM / Posted by Unknown / comments (0)

Ok, finally.
The Visoreds has been revealed for a long time now and this week we finally get to see a former Captain's Bankai. The candidate was Kensei and his Bankai, Tekken Tachikaze, tranformed his switch blade Shikai into two iron-knuckles with blades. His arms also gets wrapped in bandages and forms an arch behind his back. Not only does it augment his strength, but it also acts as an armor. I has a bit disappointed with this Bankai. Hopefully, it has some cool skills to make up for its lackluster design.

After Kensei engages Wonderweiss, we switch back to Aizen. Shinji tells everyone to stay calm, but Aizen manages to provoke Hiyori. Hiyori rushes ahead reckless and then gets sliced in half by Gin! LOL Gin is so fricken cool. =D
I am a bit confused tho: Bleach never kills off nonvillaneous characters, yet here we have Hiyori cut cleanly in two. Somehow in the back of my mind, I feel like Hiyori is not going to die. But hopefully she does, and causes Shinji to go berserk - aka Bankai + Hollowfication =D =D

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