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Blackdragonking13 t1_j1qxw01 wrote

Everyone always talks about how stylish and cool Bleach is, and they’re not wrong, but I’ve always thought an under appreciated element of the series was it’s protagonist.

Of the “Big Three”, Ichigo was the only one who didn’t have a head full of rocks. He was angst-y, but not overly so. He was introspective in a way that you still don’t see often in protagonists of the genre.

Granted there’s a lot of bias from me as I was introduced to the series as a brooding teenager, but I always related to Ichigo more than any other anime character of the time.

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SoCalThrowAway7 t1_j1rdbll wrote

I think he also benefits from his motives, at the end of the day ichigo just wants to protect what’s important to him and have a chill time with his friends and family. He’s not always shouting about becoming the head captain, or the shinigami king. He just wants the strength to protect what’s important to him. He has lapses in self confidence you don’t often see in the genre too.

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InnocentTailor t1_j1rm5tt wrote

Definitely! His goals are more profound than a mere title. It also keeps him relevant for a lot longer in stories because protecting loved ones is a lifelong desire.

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SPorterBridges t1_j1t5g1u wrote

> I think he also benefits from his motives, at the end of the day ichigo just wants to protect what’s important to him and have a chill time with his friends and family.

Generic shounen bad guy: "Do you even know what you are fighting for? Why do you do fight?!"

Generic shounen good guy: "...to protect my friends!"

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Maloth_Warblade t1_j1tt1yf wrote

The direct threat against him and his family is so obvious at times it works though

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Keepitsway t1_j1uo7xb wrote

Generic shounen antagonist defeat cry: "But I'm perfect! I'm the absolute of the absolute! How can this be possible?!"

Generic shounen protagonist response: "Because you didn't love your friends/give up being antagonistic. I hope you become a better version of yourself one day."

Generic shounen antagonist: "Friends? Have I been wrong this whole time?"

Lather. Rinse. Repeat.

5

Quirkyusername420 t1_j1tc352 wrote

I actually disagree with everything you just said. He doesn't just wanna protect his friends and family. Yes that is his characters writing explicitly but he enjoys fighting and kicking ass. He is petty and has a massive ego and it hurts when enemies stomp him. He wants to get back at his enemies, in fact in its most extreme case it gets in the way of protecting his friends( Ichigo telling Orihime to heal Ulquiorra so he could fight him himself). . This side of his character is almost always implicit which is why Kubo is such a talented writer. Remember how Ulquiorra stopped his Getsuga tenshou with his bare hands? He got back at Ulquiorra by stopping Ulquiorra's spear at point blank range in Vasto Lorde form. He did the same thing against Aizen. Remember how Ichigo stopped Aizen's sword wit his hand and what he told him? It's also why he didn't instantly kill Byakuya back in soul society arc. He wanted to get back at him for making fun of his small bankai and also for absolutely destroying him back in human world. If he just wanted to save Rukia he could have just killed Byakuya right there and then. Another instance I can think of right now is his fight against Grimmjow. I think he was actually enjoying that fight so much that he held himself back just to drag the fight. And when Orihime yelled his name he kind of came back to his senses. It reminded him of why he was there so he stops Grimmjows claw and says " sorry Grimmjow, I have to end this".

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APiousCultist t1_j1vbpd1 wrote

> He is petty and has a massive ego and it hurts when enemies stomp him.

I think being upset about being stomped is pretty universal across everyone. Most of the examples you've listed are more a sort of dramatic irony than the character actually turning to camera and shouting "You see what I just did?"

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Sputniki t1_j1rwked wrote

That’s every anime lead though? They always wanna be strong, but even more so, they wanna do the right thing.

If anything having a main character prioritize being strong over doing the right thing - now that would be an actually special character.

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master6494 t1_j1rxh4j wrote

That's just Goku mate.

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Sputniki t1_j1s9tnn wrote

Nah Goku would absolutely do the right thing over getting stronger. His sense of righteousness / defending his loved ones is incredibly strong.

−19

eides-of-march t1_j1schxt wrote

Goku literally doomed 11 universes to erasure because he wanted to fight strong people

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solversavis t1_j1sf5fg wrote

Goku is notoriously selfish for a main protagonist. While Ichigo could be a subversion with his extensive self reflection, Goku could be said to take the opposite extreme. He once gave a senzu bean to his sons would be murderer, never once questioning if maybe that wasn't the right move.

And it definitely wasn't. The murder-suicide on king kai was completely avoidable. Even when his family wished him back he decides to fuck off and train for several years. Dudes a deadbeat dad by any definition. He chose to dies rather than stay with his family.

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THETRILOBSTER t1_j1syewh wrote

>He chose to dies rather than stay with his family.

He said he did that for Earth and his family's protection, since it seemed as though trouble had followed him around for the better part of this life.

But yes, poor Chi Chi. :( That woman may have a stick up her ass but she puts up with so much from that man.

0

czartaylor t1_j1szkp9 wrote

Honestly, the sensu bean to cell is probably the most defensible punt made in DBZ. Because it was returning the favor to cell after he got his perfect form and decided to not kill everyone (even though it was well, well within his power to do so) but give everyone a chance to power up and fight him 1 on 1. The sensu bean was cell's one.

Also Goku was sure Gohan had that one, bean or no. Which he ultimately did have, the only reason it got close is because Gohan out of no where started to channel his inner goku.

It wasn't a good idea at any level, but it's definitely understandable why Goku, a notoriously lenient fighter with a lot of pride and honor, to do it for him. It definitely wasn't as egregious a punt as a) letting cell get his perfect form, b) gohan not killing cell when he had the chance the first time, c) krillin not destroying 18, d) 18 not running when vegeta was busy decimating imperfect cell.

Goku's many, many punts in the buu arc however.....

−1

kerriazes t1_j1tn473 wrote

Perfect Cell not killing everyone, even if capable, is not a reason to owe him anything, what the fuck?

By that logic, everyone on Earth owes everyone on Earth a favor because everyone on Earth is theoretically capable of killing any other person.

Giving Perfect Cell a Senzu bean directly lead to Cell evolving further.

Goku trusting Gohan is not a valid reason to endanger everyone on the planet.

Goku is reckless and thoughtless, and regularly puts everyone else at risk.

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Leshawkcomics t1_j1t3uo6 wrote

I remember that arc. It was one of the trio-de-dangers who insisted goku did that in-universe. No less than 3 times in the arc did they point out that said take is absolute bullshit.

Like, 3 different angels, including the head angel said “The 11 universes were going to die anyway. Goku’s suggestion is the ONLY reason they survived because he convinced God to give them a fighting chance.”

Do… Do people not actually watch the show?

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eides-of-march t1_j1xr4b2 wrote

Reminder that goku did all of this before he was told that all 12 were set to be erased. It doesn’t matter what the end result was if the intention was still there. Either way, there’s plenty of other instances of him being a total asshole ranging from being a deadbeat dad to actually murdering King Kai

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Leshawkcomics t1_j1y3zs8 wrote

His intention was to have a battle.

There is nothing wrong with that.

Also, would you like me to prove you wrong on the deadbeat dad argument?

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SoCalThrowAway7 t1_j1sosfg wrote

Goku gave cell a sensu bean to Cell to heal up so he could watch gohan, his barely teenage son, have a cooler fight that he absolutely did not want to have…

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czartaylor t1_j1sz5j0 wrote

Shout out to when Goku could have killed Majin Buu but refused to do so so someone else could tag in and finish Buu off.

and then failed to do so and Goku had to tag back in.

.....twice.

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Leshawkcomics t1_j1t4gei wrote

If you were in goku’s position, and your teenage son was the only person in the world who stood a chance, would you have him die after watching his world get destroyed because he’s too young to be fighting?

Would you refuse the senzu bean?

Cell has the personality flaws of frieza, piccolo, and vegeta. All think they’re invincible when they’re at 100% power and can be caught off guard. All go full ‘blow up everything instead of finishing the fight’ the moment they think that their opponent might have an edge on them.

Would you refuse the senzu bean if it was your son?

Would you have refused to let gohan fight?

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kerriazes t1_j1tn9s4 wrote

If you trusted Gohan to beat Cell at 100%, the sensible and not reckless thing would be letting Gohan fight Cell who is not at 100%.

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Leshawkcomics t1_j1uq832 wrote

Even knowing that cell range quits when he thinks he might lose?

Because his most obvious personality traits come from people who have done exactly that?

Cause Goku straight up told Gohan several times to finish him off asap for that specific reason cause he knew cell was like that.

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kerriazes t1_j1uu8v4 wrote

None of those points are in support of your argument.

Because those things still happened despite giving Cell a Senzu bean. He still blew himself up after losing to Gohan.

That wouldn't have changed had Goku refrained from healing Cell, except without the Senzu bean, Gohan would have had an easier time of cornering Cell.

Which might have left Gohan with enough energy to do something about it, or hell, even defeat Cell before he gets the chance to even think about blowing himself up.

Which is precisely why Goku is reckless.

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Leshawkcomics t1_j1ux02l wrote

Ah. So it's a matter of not knowing or caring about context.

I.E "Gohan choosing not to finish cell off once he had already powered up"

And don't forget the fact CELL SPECIFICALLY STATED THAT TRYING TO EVEN MOVE HIM WILL BLOW HIM UP FASTER.

Did you not watch the show or read the manga? Gohan easily had the energy to finish cell off and didn't use it.

I repeat he EASILY could have finished cell off at any point once he reached SS2 and didn't due to a twisted bout of sadism.

Goku used the senzu bean to stop cell from doing anything reckless if he was wary and low on energy. Which made cell so confident he STOPPED ATTACKING GOHAN to help push him to super Saiyan 2, thinking that at full power he could easily handle whatever that form could throw at him.

It was Gohan himself who just kept doing near fatal damage and waiting for cell to regenerate so he can do it again. He wasn't tired. The senzu bean made it easier for him. Pay attention to the actual story, not the abridged series.

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Monski616 t1_j1srpa9 wrote

I love goku but no man, he literally gives cell a sensu bean so cell can beat the shit out of his only son(at the time), then got himself and king Kai suicide bombed.

Then he agitated a god to the point Beerus was gonna destroy his planet.

Oh yeah then he got 11 universes erased from existence just because he wanted to fight strong people.

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InnocentTailor t1_j1sawer wrote

Yeah. He may be a bonehead, but he isn’t selfish. I recall that there are other DB characters that prioritize strength over righteousness: dark mirrors for our hero.

−2

Sputniki t1_j1scdrw wrote

Yep. Faced with getting stronger or saving the planet or the ones he loves, it's an easy decision every time for Goku.

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StarsMine t1_j1sedu4 wrote

Yea, his answer was getting stronger.

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SoCalThrowAway7 t1_j1sow6f wrote

He literally was like “nah I’m not gonna come back to life to protect the planet with you guys, you got it handled, I’m gonna stay dead so I can get stronger here.”

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King-Of-Throwaways t1_j1s7jg5 wrote

If you want anime protagonists who aren’t heroic, maybe look into Evangelion, Chainsaw Man, or Fate Zero. They all subvert or dissect the hero archetype.

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SuspiriaGoose t1_j1sjffi wrote

However, all the ‘he’s half every race ever in the story’ destined chosen one schtick is more than a little tiring and definitely common in shounen.

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AdministrationWaste7 t1_j1t8vnr wrote

I can't think of many shonen that does this. It's a very bleach thing.

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SuspiriaGoose t1_j1tcauj wrote

Naruto and One Piece both have some of this, with Naruto having a demon fox spirit and being the son of the Hokage (which makes his dream of being Hokage a lot less inspiring and charming) and Luffy seemingly related to the Dragon, the guy who hid the One Piece (I did stop reading OP a while ago, but that seemed to be what was being heavily implied then).

Full metal Alchemist has a bit of this with Ed and Al being the son of Hohenheim, but that’s much better handled.

My problem with Bleach is that Ichigo just has alllllll of it. Son of a noble family, son of a special genius Quincy, merged with an experimental hollow created by Aizen, potentially a son of the Soul King as well, a Fullbringer, a Vizard, and probably part demon by the time the Hell arc is halfway through.

That’s irritating and takes away his agency. At a certain point, every other character becomes more interesting than him because they’re not destined to be the Hero ™ .

−4

Sqiddd t1_j1tgds2 wrote

Monkey D. Dragon(Luffy’s father) didn’t hide One Piece. Man’s never seen the One Piece treasure.

As stated in the intro of the very first episode and every episode since, Gold Roger, the Pirate King, hid the One Piece, as he’s the one who found it.

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kane49 t1_j1uay6g wrote

His father and grandfather are two of the strongest people (ok you can argue about dragon) to ever live and some other stuff that i dont want to spoil here.

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SuspiriaGoose t1_j1vmrvr wrote

Sorry, his grandfather,Gol D. Roger. I read it back in 2010, gimme a break. Still from an important bloodline that gives him a massive unearned edge.

0

Sqiddd t1_j1vphgs wrote

They’re not related at all bro. You can stop

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SuspiriaGoose t1_j1w0m2o wrote

So their names being Monkey D. And Gol D. Means nothing? Doubt.

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Sqiddd t1_j1w1cb1 wrote

As far as we know, it’s means something other than being related by blood yes.

Cause I know the series where as you’re speaking out your ass

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SuspiriaGoose t1_j1w6qln wrote

I stopped reading it in 2010 and am only recently picking it up again. I was merely noting that I tire of main characters in these stories being ‘special’ in some way,often related to their heritage. Luffy is far from the worst in that category, so honestly he’s not that bothersome to me on that score, but there is something there and it is a little annoying.

But go off, I guess. If I’m not a super fan, I guess I’m not allowed an opinion. But I did stop reading for a reason.

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Sqiddd t1_j1w8nte wrote

You stopped reading yet spouted shit you have no knowledge of.

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SuspiriaGoose t1_j1w91rz wrote

Hey, I got caught up to where it was at the time. Chapter 665 or something. That’s nothing to sniff at, it took me months. I’m allowed to have an opinion.

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Sqiddd t1_j1waxpx wrote

You made it to chapter 665 and still thought Luffy was Rogers grandson?

I’d start over from chapter 1

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SuspiriaGoose t1_j1wd7wg wrote

I did, actually. I’m rereading the whole thing now, but if the fans are as toxic as you I think I’ll drop it again. Who wants to deal with people like you?

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Sqiddd t1_j1wegd8 wrote

You apparently since you’re still here. That’s not my problem or my fault

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MexusRex t1_j21jwrt wrote

Ichigo’s not a chosen one tho >!he was manufactured to be that way. He’s more Frankenstein’s monster !<

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SuspiriaGoose t1_j222l5j wrote

That’s a variation on the chosen one. Plenty of others are that way as well. See Dune, Harry Potter, Anakin Skywalker, etc.

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RUS12389 t1_j1t8pra wrote

>destined chosen one

He isn't destined or chosen one though nor was ever stated to be.

−4

SuspiriaGoose t1_j1td2sh wrote

He very much is. By multiple things, even. He was selected by Squad Zero to replace the Soul King should anything happen to him (which is interesting, I’ll give it that, but also means Ichigo is OP as all get out). He was engineered by Aizen and then closely watched and manipulated for his purposes (robbing Ichigo of agency, another least favourite trope of mine). He’s the last scion of Shiba, a cursed Noble family, who are supposed to have a destiny in saving the universe, blah blah blah.

There’s so much.

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RUS12389 t1_j1tea65 wrote

>. He was selected by Squad Zero to replace the Soul King should anything happen to him (which is interesting, I’ll give it that, but also means Ichigo is OP as all get out).

He's not the only one.>!Even Ginjo could act as a replacement, moreover you can even create an artificial replacement like Hikone.!< And he was only selected as emergency battery.

>He was engineered by Aizen and then closely watched and manipulated for his purposes

Don't see how that make's him a chosen one or destined. It's not chosen by destiny or fate. It's just villain watching over him.

>He’s the last scion of Shiba, a cursed Noble family, who are supposed to have a destiny in saving the universe

  1. "last scion of Shiba" Ganju and Kuukaku
  2. "supposed to have a destiny in saving the universe" was never stated anything like that in the manga or novels.

Moreover, in Bleach's universe there already exists child of prophecy, the destined one about whom there were old poems - >!Yhwach. Yhwach is literally a child of SK. There's literally a whole destiny and prophecy about him. He is the closest thing to destined or chosen one in Bleach.!<

Ichigo isn't a reincarnation of somebody, like destined one in shonens. There's no prophecy about him like in other shonens. At least provide a proof where it was stated that he's a chosen one or chosen by destiny or fate or prophecy. It's funny to see people still post this misinformation.

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SuspiriaGoose t1_j1vn2yi wrote

Sorry, man. Ichigo is the special special, and that’s irritating to me. I still love Bleach, but there’s issues with the writing and Ichigo is a big part of them. His motivations are just very typical and he’s the most strong there is.

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RUS12389 t1_j1xci8f wrote

>Ichigo is the special special

There are already 2 people in Bleach like Ichigo who are perfect hybrids and 1 of them can use hybrid powers way better then Ichigo, so not that special.

1

SmashingK t1_j1rjypg wrote

He's also always overly confident when he overpowers but when he doesn't he's such a whiny little git.

His combat abilities peaked when he took on 3 vice captions bare handed very early in the story and then even dropped to having just his speed and one special attack move for the remaining hundreds of episodes lol.

He's a good character but he's not as developed as he should be.

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InnocentTailor t1_j1rm9cb wrote

He was somewhat overconfident in this arc too, but the Big Bad kicked his arse hard.

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SkyezOpen t1_j1rvutc wrote

The last arc was some pretty shit writing to be honest.

3

AdministrationWaste7 t1_j1t8owz wrote

His combat abilities never peak. Dude is essentially limitless. Ichigo is the most "Mary sue" Mc I have ever seen.

This is how literally every story arc of bleach goes.

  • ichigo meets bad guy.
  • ichigo fights said bad guys
  • ichigo wins some but eventually loses to strong bad guy
  • ichigo becomes/inherits power of said bad guys. Usually as a special attack
  • ichigo stomps

Rinse and repeat.

Oh and those fights? "Getsuga tenshou" for days as you said over and over.

Main reason I can't rewatch lol.

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_10032 t1_j1ta8eh wrote

That's how every shounen goes.

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AdministrationWaste7 t1_j1tbsbn wrote

No not really.

Like I guess if DragonBallz is the only shonen you've seen lol.

Like naruto has his own thing and skills. And when he fights people it's about how his skills match up with the baddies. Naruto also very rarely fights alone and most fights have alot of teamwork involved.

Then you have something like hunter x hunter where the main characters don't even fight the big bads half the time let alone beat them and there's usually an alternate win condition involved.

It's never just "omg ichigo is here and his powerlevel is over 9000!"

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3nz3r0 t1_j1tsecl wrote

Doesn't Naruto just spam his rasengan and shadow clone techniques?

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AdministrationWaste7 t1_j1u4olb wrote

Not really.

Those are his signature moves but there's more to the battles than just using them.

The clones for example don't really do anything on their own and are more of a utility. For example he uses clones to power up his rasangan or to avoid attacks midair or to fake out an opponent.

The rasengan is also(typically) a close range attack with charge time. Meaning that in battles naruto has to do alot of things to get close to the opponent to be able to hit someone with them.

Meanwhile in bleach getsuga tenshou is a ranged attack which is either too weak to hurt the opponent or powered up enough to do a ton of damage on hit depending on the situation.

Fights in bleach devolve to standing around talking. Literally pointless "basic attacks" that dont further any sort of strategy and then a power up killer move(bankai, etc etc).

If you don't believe me just go watch montages between the two shows. Like there is a reason why bleach got canceled and naruto has another 100+ episode spinoff/sequel after it completed.

You don't watch bleach for the fights(cuz they are mediocre) you watch it for the cool character designs/concepts, the story and "hype" moments.

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batinex t1_j1uhupb wrote

Bleach was cancelled because kubo was sick and anime got ton of fillers. Bleach fight can look great, see Yamamoto vs ywach

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AdministrationWaste7 t1_j1ummh2 wrote

Bleach got canceled because of low ratings.

> Bleach fight can look great, see Yamamoto vs ywach

Yep new anime looks great. Doesn't change anything on what I said.

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batinex t1_j1v2kzl wrote

Bleach got cancelled because of low ratings because there were only fillers because kubo was sick

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iamthatguy54 t1_j1t2nmn wrote

It's underappreciated because he's a reactionary character.

It makes him relatable in that his goal to protect his friends is very personal, but it also makes him...well, less compelling to follow because he has no 'goal' to follow or something to strive for if his family isn't being threatened. His goals are like...have a nice life and find a good job, which is good for a slice of life, not for an action shonen lol

Love Ichigo.

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albedo2343 t1_j1yic9s wrote

so what your saying is he has an "ideal" not an "ambition".

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crazypandaex t1_j1t9fkd wrote

If you're talking about the big three I'm assuming Bleach, Naruto, and One piece. Look at their childhood. Ichigo grew fairly normal compared to Naruto and Luffy. Also Luffy might be on the spectrum. It make sense for each one of these characters being certain way.

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MexusRex t1_j21jgpn wrote

The tone for the era was set by Dragonball and Goku is literally brain damaged.

1

stormatombd t1_j1s3ccv wrote

Ichigo are most greedy shonen main char, he have 4 power from all arc in series.. Holy shit

−8

TheFinalDecision t1_j1rx8j0 wrote

Its a shitty protag, Luffy is funny and Naruto, at least, makes some jokes. This Ichigo is always angry and hitting his male friends. Just a big stereotype.

−14

AdministrationWaste7 t1_j1rilye wrote

> Of the “Big Three”, Ichigo was the only one who didn’t have a head full of rocks.

Clearly you haven't seen naruto who is a pretty witty guy in combat.

−18

adams215 t1_j1sfdwc wrote

The trope of the MC having room temp IQ except for when they are in fights where they are some fighting genius gets tiring. Not saying they aren't entertaining to watch. If they weren't I wouldn't watch those shows. But sometimes you get tired of seeing the different variations of Goku clones.

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AdministrationWaste7 t1_j1t7a16 wrote

I never said naruto was some high iq genius but ok.

Op praised ichigo for not "having rocks for brains" unlike the other big three. which frankly idk where he got that idea from considering Ichigo doesn't really do anything but spam his "special moves" and bleaches fights don't really have any choreography to speak of(until recently) that would highlight any form of intelligence unlike say naruto where there is actually some of that lol

1

czartaylor t1_j1t316p wrote

That's a trope for a reason - explanation for the otherwise clueless reader.

There has to be at least one dumb character to explain universe magic mechanics to so the reader can understand them. And it's just most convenient for it to be the main character because well, they're pretty much always around so when you introduce new variants or mechanics, someone has to have it explained.

−1

AdministrationWaste7 t1_j1t80x1 wrote

Where do people get the idea that naruto is dumb?

Like I guess socially he's kinda clue less sometimes.

But naruto isn't dumb he just isn't talented. That's literally his whole shtick. He's a social outcast who has to work harder than anyone else to prove himself.

−2

czartaylor t1_j1td5nb wrote

>Where do people get the idea that naruto is dumb?

From the entire original series?

Naruto is unintelligent in the first series. He's well behind the curve on his classmates, he requires basic concepts to everyone else to be explained to him repeatedly, he has no strategic mind whatsoever (when most of his peers already have some), and it's even mentioned a couple of times he sucks at pretty much everything besides 'here's a bunch of chakra'. It's mentioned several times that his testing scores are atrocious. He's also just socially clueless.

He's markedly more intelligent in Shippuden, or at the very least his ego's gone down so he listens to his intellectual betters. But even then, he's still just kind of average. It's really not until the pain fight when he starts showing real intelligence.

4

crazypandaex t1_j1t9npk wrote

Also make sense for him to be socially clueless because of lack of parents growing up. Same goes for Luffy and Goku.

2

mrhelmand t1_j1rviqu wrote

Been really enjoying the series so far, bit annoyed there's going to be this long break but hey, waited a decade for more Bleach content, I'll cope with a few months

60

bahandi t1_j1s9tpx wrote

Thankfully I’ve decided to rewatch most of the series since I’ve forgotten the story line. Hoping the series isn’t dropped by Disney before I get to TYBW

7

I_Am_Clippy t1_j1ss0i6 wrote

I want to do a rewatch, and haven’t watched in over a decade since I was a teenager. I know I’ve probably missed a lot since then, and I remember being a ton of fillers — is there a list of must watch episodes without the fillers anywhere?

2

bahandi t1_j1stfa7 wrote

Yeah. I just constantly Google “Bleach Fillers”. Lol. The first two hits give a really good breakdown of the fillers and one of them even ranks the filler arcs.

I’m debating on whether or not I want to watch the fillers or just come back to them as some have suggested.

3

crane476 t1_j1thurt wrote

Im almost done with my own rewatch of the series and the only filler arcs I watched were "anime canon", those being the Bount arc and the Gotei 13 Invasion arc. Basically, it means the filler arc is integrated into the story and potentially shown in flashbacks during otherwise canon scenes. Annoying, but I powered through. Those two arcs aren't particularly terrible, but they aren't great either. The other filler arcs, like the New Captain Shusuke Amagai arc or the Zanpakuto Rebellion arc occur at random points in the series and can be skipped and rewatched at any time. When the series was airing I always hated when they did that. One second Ichigo is in Hueco Mundo fighting for his life, the next he's back in the human world acting like nothing happened. At least with the Bount and Gotei 13 Invasion arcs if you were an anime only watcher you'd have no idea it was filler since they're treated as part of the main story and even referenced in canon scenes.

3

DarianF t1_j1r5zk0 wrote

Fuck that's so long away. Part 1 was so good.

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Mr_Piddles t1_j1raj26 wrote

It’s only seven months. Not even a year.

23

Worthyness t1_j1t1mk9 wrote

considering wit took 10+ years to get to this season, I can wait another 7 months

8

PJTikoko t1_j1stzp8 wrote

In the manga the first half of the arc was great but the second half was historically bad.

Hope they’re changing how it went during the break.

1

Bobwise392 t1_j1s5wuf wrote

I hope the anime ends better than the manga did. The ending was super rushed and didn’t even get to see certain bankais that were teased.

20

RateOfPenetration t1_j1tdd1a wrote

based on the pacing of the chapters I definitely think we'll see some extended fights that weren't shown on page.

1

Godsfallen t1_j1s83ov wrote

Do I have to have finished the OG anime run to understand what’s goin on in this? I always get stuck on the Bount arc

13

SwifttShot t1_j1s968z wrote

Bount arc is filler and can be skipped, same with some of the other ones later on but yeah you might be a bit confused if you haven’t watched everything that occurred before

43

SuspiriaGoose t1_j1sjov2 wrote

Do not watch the filler arcs. Look up a guide and skip the filler episodes.

7

lildudefromXdastreet t1_j1seekv wrote

Why are you watching the bount arc? You realize it's filler right?

6

Godsfallen t1_j1sfudq wrote

Cause, like most people, if I’m sitting down to watch a show I’m going to watch all the seasons of a show. I’m not just gonna go “eh, I’ll skip this season”

0

SaintOfSwords69 t1_j1sg6bu wrote

While that’s a good approach for most things, it’s absolutely a terrible approach when it comes to anime.

30

ElNido t1_j1sr73o wrote

Yeah, I used to watch filler before finally understanding what it was - empty plotlines that will never connect to the main one. Naruto was terrible about this, because the show tried to make it seem like the filler would someday matter or payoff. After a filler episode or filler arc, characters would be like "visit us someday!!", and "I hope to see you Naruto when you become Hokage!!" and Naruto would be all "Yeah! That'll be great! Believe it!"

Never heard from or seen again.

6

lildudefromXdastreet t1_j1shj6y wrote

Well most shows don't include entire seasons worth of what is essentially fanfic which is almost literally meant to keep children occupied while the story continues in manga form....just skip it dude

23

hazychestnutz t1_j1sfzsd wrote

Bleach has TONS of filler though. Not necessary for the main story at all

18

mikharv31 t1_j1t92vi wrote

But they did have some good filler the zanpakto revolt was excellent

1

SeamusDubh t1_j1tte8g wrote

It was 45% filler which just beats Naruto's 41%.

1

Starfish_Hero t1_j1sp6g5 wrote

Filler episodes aren’t canon material. People aren’t saying to skip it because it’s bad (though it is), you simply do not need to know anything that happens in a filler arc because it’s entirely inconsequential to the plot.

6

THETRILOBSTER t1_j1sz5ea wrote

I'm with you dude. If I'm gonna watch an anime series, imma watch the whole damn thing. I get filler arcs aren't always the best content but Bleach has decent filler. I actually enjoyed the Bount arc and I've seen lots of people say the same. Stick with it. Bleach is great.

−1

hazychestnutz t1_j1scflf wrote

Not really, of course it’s always best, but I haven’t watched any of the original either and just watched this recap video on YouTube and I’m doing fine understanding it.

https://youtu.be/1d0CQSMW3PA

5

PJTikoko t1_j1st9y0 wrote

Just skip the bount arc it isn’t important, it’s filler.

2

AdministrationWaste7 t1_j1t91uk wrote

Yes it's a straight continuation.

That said the old anime is painful to watch. It drags and there's alot of filler.

I suggest the manga or reading/watching a summary.

1

ShiCaiza t1_j1rb18l wrote

omg last 2 ep so good story so good

9

ThinkThankThonk t1_j1ryp6k wrote

Never really was into Bleach (and have no desire to start up another shonen from the beginning these days) but have absorbed some plot over the years via social osmosis... randomly put on the new series and had a great time. Animation is top notch and it's not difficult to follow until like ep 6 when I finally needed to Google a thing or two, but by then was already hooked.

8

Chubuwee t1_j1sc745 wrote

Let me know if you find a YouTuber or video that recaps the series well

These long-ass animes got out of hand but they’re great ! Just so time consuming as an adult with so much great media out there

2

SuspiriaGoose t1_j1sjz1f wrote

Honestly, just read the comic. For other shows that’s not as feasible, but Bleach is a breeze to read, not that text-dense at all and full of striking art that you can consume quickly. It will take a week to read the whole thing, and it is a well-drawn, well-paced Manga to binge.

6

Jeffy29 t1_j1sdufk wrote

Just finished the last episode of the first season. Am I in my thirties now and I shouldn't be so emotionally invested in children's anime? Yes. Do I care about it when Number One hits? Not for a goddamn second!

The adaptation is genuinely fantastic, and the animation is incredible, and since the audience is much older than when the original show aired the adaptation has aged with them, the show is much more graphic (if the plots demands it) than the original. It almost works on its own and I wish I could recommend it to others but, to enjoy it properly you need to have seen the previous series to appreciate everything. And I have hard time recommending original series to anyone without knowing they are prepared to skip all the fillers and prepared to deal with constant skipping as the original series can sometimes have 6+ minutes of recap which is terrible for binge-watching.

I hope when things are done, they'll take a look at the original series. I genuinely think the show could be recut into a ~100-episode abridged series if you leave out all the filler, cut out some of the pointless gags inserted to fill time, the terrible mid-episode break, and some repeating shots that are inserted there purely to fill time. It's hilarious how "filler" episodes have better pacing than some of the canon episodes because they spread it over 3 episodes purely for more time. I think the material is there, they just need to let someone put it together.

7

kansasgaymer t1_j1szpjy wrote

To be fair, Shonen anime is aimed at teenagers and young adults. I think you are unintentionally perpetuating a common misconception about anime when you say it’s for children. I think it’s one of the reasons why so many Americans automatically think cartoons and anime are the exact same when anime is far more nuanced than that.

9

Jeffy29 t1_j1t0x6k wrote

I was being more facetious. I rewatched the entire series over the past month or so before the new one and I did not expect to enjoy it as much as back then, but I totally did! My only complaint was the poor pacing at times which wasn't due to the story but more the production demanding certain episodes to be stretched to meet the quota.

0

kansasgaymer t1_j1t25ij wrote

Yes the pacing is absolutely terrible. It’s the same issue I have with One Piece and Naruto. I find a number of long-running anime run into this issue. Toriko was another one that fell apart (towards the end).

3

ZazuePoot t1_j1tgxx0 wrote

Wait, I’m OOTL. Is there a new adaptation of Bleach? Tell me more

3

Jeffy29 t1_j1tjr2g wrote

Not exactly. Thousand Year Blood War is the last arc of the manga that was never adapted in the original anime (because manga wasn’t finished and the TV station chose to end the series instead of making yet another filler). TYBW picks up right where original anime ended, but it is also in many ways is also a new take on Bleach.

The animation style has changed a lot, instead of hand drawn they are I think using mix of digital and hand drawn (to great effect I might add, the show has some of the best animated scenes in the entire series). The story is much darker and grimmer because the manga was too, but animation embraces it, it’s noticeably more graphic than the original series. The characters are bit older and there is (slightly) less immature humor. Though production studio still shows lot of respect to the old series, one way is by use of the old iconic soundtracks in key moments of the show. Overall it’s a much better paced and produced show that will feel perfect for old fans of the show who have grown up since the original series.

3

ZazuePoot t1_j1xdf12 wrote

That’s awesome, thank you for the info! I stopped watching after the Espada/Aizen arc. Should I watch further than that to be caught up with this?

1

Jeffy29 t1_j1xgto6 wrote

Yes, after the Arrancar (Aizen) arc there is a rather short "Lost Substitute Shinigami" arc (20 or so episodes) that's manga cannon and is the ending of the original show. After the Arrancar arc they inserted filler arc but the ending leads to the same result as the canon, so it can be skipped. You can use the filler list to know what to skip, basically, Arrancar arc ends at 310, and a new one starts at 342. The show is on Hulu/Disney+ and they are numbered correctly.

2

ZazuePoot t1_j1xkqbl wrote

Yassss thank you so much for answering my questions, you’re awesome 🤗

1

thedylandmg t1_j1sauue wrote

It has all been so worth the wait.

6

TargaryenR t1_j1spj1i wrote

I hope the animators get the rest they need.

6

TractorLoving t1_j1sieih wrote

Wait bleach is still running?

I thought the manga was finished?

2

lackadaisical_play t1_j1slvux wrote

this is adaptation of the last arc. it was never animated as the anime was dropped before it reached this arc.

5

TractorLoving t1_j1u7d5i wrote

Right so the manga is complete?

I might read it

2

LimLovesDonuts t1_j27wckg wrote

But I wouldn’t really recommend the last arc in the manga though. There are problems likely related to the author’s health at the end of the manga serialisation.

The anime version is supposed to be the superior version now that the original author is onboard with the anime to either change or add things that weren’t in the original.

2

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1

PYJX t1_j1sicm1 wrote

Do you need to watch the original to understand this?

1

Amazing-Steak t1_j1svc96 wrote

always curious when people ask this question: what makes you interested in starting in the middle/end of a story instead of at the beginning of it?

8

zurnout t1_j1sw6cy wrote

Because the series is old and has hundreds of episodes, not all of them worth watching

−1

Amazing-Steak t1_j1sx2u7 wrote

that's fair, it's overwhelming to start but if you're not interested in the beginning of a story, why would you be interested in the end?

4

PYJX t1_j1ujv0x wrote

I support your comment. If the new story is interesting, can always go back to watch the beginning. That's how prequels and sequels should work.

Feel bad for people that feel like they can't start something because of an arbitrary limitation they make up themselves.

−3

havocssbm t1_j1vcv4x wrote

This isn't a sequel it's the end of the original story.

1

PJTikoko t1_j1stooj wrote

I hope they do a an AOT S3 and do an upgrade change to the writing of the show.

The last half of the blood war arc in the manga was horrifically bad and the ending was so bad it was an all time pants shit.

1

Levis0202 t1_j1tu0rq wrote

Well I’m now glad I’m waiting to binge watch it all when it’s done

1

saudimajix t1_j1txlzx wrote

I agree and will wait to see it on anything but Disney+

1

Adv4EthclModeration t1_j1ukgem wrote

I just want to know if they will bring back the 3 mod souls from the filler arc that they shoehorned into the vizard/arrancar arc. I always thought that was a strange decision.

1

parkingthekar t1_j1vas93 wrote

If people are this hyped about Bleach again, I gotta re-read the manga. I remember just hoping if this week’s chapter was finally the end because it felt like the story went to shit and powers didnt make any sense anymore. It made me really sad because I loved Bleach and grew up reading and watching it. So I guess I’ll give it another read and possibly watch the new anime

1

121jigawatts t1_j1vc6iy wrote

always nice to see anime creep up here

1

Denlim_Wolf t1_j1s6zcb wrote

I know this anima has been around for a while, but has it already been 1,000 years?

0

xnolmtsx t1_j1sr1ce wrote

It’s not what it was In terms of looks but it’s definitely interesting to see where the production takes it.

Glad they didn’t just discontinue it permanently.

And here’s to hoping they don’t screw it up.

Ban..Kai!

−1

Iwanttowrshipbreasts t1_j1tndgy wrote

Man I was excited for more bleach, but I’m kind of sad that this is the direction they went. I don’t dislike it, but it doesn’t capture any of the magic that the early seasons did and it comes across as mostly fan service.

I’ve never read the manga, but the soul society/aizen arv if bleach is amazing…I was hoping for something like that.

−1

tinasnow-poty t1_j1v158g wrote

How can you say it’s fan service if you’ve not read the manga? 😭 you have no idea if it’s accurate or not

1

Iwanttowrshipbreasts t1_j1ycnit wrote

It’s fan service as far as the anime goes? It seems like a pretty reasonable statement to make since we’re discussing the anime

1

Baldspooks t1_j1sbysv wrote

Can I watch the new bleach if I never watched the original?

−4

avelineaurora t1_j1seqr0 wrote

No. I mean, you could, but I would not recommend it. It's not a reboot or new series but the final storyline of the original manga. Going into it blind with no attachment to any of the characters and history would lose a shitton of weight. You can cut out a lot of the original series though, it has a high amount of filler and the actual episode count isn't nearly so daunting (for a battle shonen, anyway).

9

SuspiriaGoose t1_j1sk1y2 wrote

Read the comic first, that’s easier than watching the show.

5

kane49 t1_j1ubkj6 wrote

bruh are you just trying to trigger people by calling it a comic ?

2

OneGoodRib t1_j1w6qfv wrote

Hey, the people who downvoted this guy: Why? Why are you downvoting someone for asking if something is watchable with little to no context? What's the point of downvoting someone for jut trying to find out if he can understand something that's been posted here?

2