Hello.
Bleach
NICE! That was a surprisingly emotional chapter. Mayuri has really grown on me over these past few years and this (supposedly final fight) from him was the icing on the cake. The image of Nemu (naked and all) embracing her dad/creator was pretty great. It is nice, really nice not only seeing Mayuri get some emotional attachment towards someone, but to also see him feel vindicated for all the years of hard research he has done. Sure, he is a bit evil and kinda creepy, but his goal of surpassing Urahara is surprisingly resonant.
The revelation that everyone’s favourite little shorty is not only alive, but back on the good side was good. Oh and that stupid music guy is also alive, but he is dumb (can’t believe that was nearly two years ago; this arc has gone on for a long time), so he will probably “die” somehow. It is kind of funny how everything in Bleach seems to come at the cost of lifespan. It is a common idea in many Shonen manga. You can’t have something without giving something up, so let’s just make them give up some of their lifespan that the manga wouldn’t last long enough to cover anyway! It is kind of silly and to be honest, I wouldn’t really mind if these magic cures came at zero cost. Not everything has to follow FMA’s equivalent exchange principle.
Some of the best things in life, like this totally great blog post, are free!
Shunsui is starting to get serious. Well, seriously goofy at least. I hope he recks sniper dude. Not sure why, but seeing that smug bastard put down would be quite satisfying.
One Piece
This was one of those in-between arc transition chapters. Well, kind of. The strange thing about the Dressrosa arc is that we have been transitioning away from it for a long time. Yes, Doflamingo was only recently beaten, but this arc has been showing off other global players for quite some time. One Piece has always integrated a little bit of global impact into every arc, but this is the first time where the happenings of the arc felt really connected to the larger picture. This is still a transition chapter because now we are going to move into a new arc, but unlike previous arcs, the impact of Dressrosa will stick around for a long time. (Well, the fight at Marineford had massive impact on the world as a whole, but the Straw Hats weren’t anywhere near as involved then).
This all became very obvious when Doflamingo gave his speech. He may have been a crazy, evil asshole, but I suppose there are bigger fish in the sea and he was keeping them all at bay. The marines are going to have their hands full now (well, it looks like they will have a hard time just getting Dofa to jail). As for the rest of the chapter, well, it was fantastic. I have always liked One Piece’s transition chapters, sometimes even more than the core arc chapters, simply because I get to see the characters goof around and be funny.
We got to see Lucci and Spandam again! Nice. CP-0 seems interesting. I am surprised they were willing to hire a useless person like Spandam and a defeated person like Lucci, but Lucci was really strong, so it makes sense. I love Fujitora’s “I won’t go back and apologize until I have done my duty” though I wish he wasn’t so keen on catching the Straw Hats.
Doflamingo’s little proclamation was wonderful. It really speaks wonders about a character’s ambition and charisma when they can give a speech like that, tied up the way he was. Ending it with “give me a newspaper everyday” was a nice touch.
Bartolomeo and his crew are hilarious. I love their ship. It shows true love towards Luffy. Heck, the entire crew is blinded by Luffy. That is amazing. It is always nice seeing the bounty upgrade. This time around, it was even funnier because of Usopp’s massive raise (3rd place in the Straw Hats!). The new pictures are great, with perhaps the exception of Sanji. Speaking of Sanji, why does the government want him alive? Is it because of what happened with Big Mom or is there some other reason (some people suspect he is a prince or of some other important lineage). We will see, I guess. Oh and Chopper’s bounty had me in stitches. One Piece is such a funny manga.
lmao God Usopp
Toxic Muffin 