M.L.S. Weech's Blog, page 7

He Did What? My Thoughts on Sanderson

Greetings all,

I’ve never kept it secret that Sanderson is my favorite active writer. It gets more complicated for me if you throw Tolstoy, McCaffrey, or Jordan into that mix, but given that they are no long with us, I can use the term active, and not start a debate.

Well, I was at work taking a break when I got an email with this YouTube video link:

Wait, what?

So when he dropped that first stack of papers, I wasn’t very shocked. I was like, “Oh, I remember when he did that with Shadows of Self!” The short version: He said he was struggling with Shadows, so he paid with Bands of Mourning and ended up writing the whole book to make sure that second on worked well.”

I vaguely remember Steelheart also happening in a way similar to that. A flash of inspiration and white space in his time ended in a novel.

After having a few days to think about it, I honestly wonder why I didn’t see it coming (not the one, I saw that ONE extra book coming). My payoff moment was that second pull, and then the following three.

I’ve seen some look at the business side of it. I’ve seen some talk about how cool it is that we’ll have a bunch of Sanderson novels to read (and Cosmere to boot). But every now and then, my brother and I will discuss something that I thought would be good to address.

Are you one of those people who thinks, “Well, great, Brandon! You write five whole books, and we’re still waiting for Stormlight Five, and God knows when you’ll get those other books written”?

I can understand that. My brother might agree with you. He’s probably more patient when those books are Cosmere stories, but every time he releases one of those, he reacts in a manner somewhat like the above.

I think the ephemeral thing I try to point out is either something one “gets” or doesn’t. But I understand it, and I’d like to try and explain it.

I’m working very hard on Discovered (about 27 chapters, 61%, through). I worked hard on Betrayed. Some people look at writing like building a home or making sandwiches or cutting hair. They see it as a mechanical process that one can do and then stop do. This leads to the belief that if one had more time to work, they’d just continue work on whatever home or sandwich or head of hair they had been working on.

That’s just not how it works with Sanderson. It’s not how it works with me either. If I had more time to write, I would get some more work on Discovered done, but I’d probably end up working on Mercer or Perception of War. You see, in this creative process, it’s not just “writing.” The process of writing a specific novel really requires a mindset. And to go into that mindset outside of the time designated (at least for me and perhaps Sanderson) is really hard. But what is pretty easy is letting my imagination run wild. When I’m actively working on a novel, I have to reign that wild horse in, and that takes energy and focus. This is how novels get finished.

Another factor is expectation. When I’m working on Discovered, I’m trying very hard to make sure it’s satisfying based on feedback and anticipation that’s been building since Caught came out. Now I have somewhere around ten loyal readers. Sanderson has somewhere around 20,000. I can’t imagine what it’s like trying to write something 20,000 people have been following for some ten years.

These secret novels of his have no expectation or urgency. They’re completely free and harmless. Sure, I bet he hopes his readers enjoy it. There’s probably some pressure because people will read these and think, “I should be reading another Stormlight book, not some random book.” I imagine Sanderson is aware that people will think that.

What I’m trying to convey is that it isn’t this book or that book. It never was. We authors work very hard, and Brandon isn’t slacking on his deadline at all.

Maybe another analogy would be working out. Let’s say for some reason Sanderson was a body builder, and we all love those (metaphorical) biceps. Then one day he goes, “check out this six pac.” When working out, it’s actually very important not to overwork certain muscles. These secret novels aren’t examples of Sanderson not putting in all the energy he should (or can) on Stormlight or the Cosmere. It’s just him making the most of his energy by working a different (metaphorical) muscle group.

I hold this belief (and if anyone could get this in front of him and ask) because I work the same way. I have far more demands on my time now than I did four years ago. But if I had that same amount of time, maybe Discovered would be out a bit sooner, but it’s far more likely I’d have a full season of Mercer done because I like having multiple projects going in multiple stages to keep me fresh.

So if you’re someone who feels a little angry that “He’s been writing all these other books and will never finish Stormlight,” please take a moment to step back and respect the process one needs to make these wonderful stories. If Sanderson hadn’t done these books, he probably would have done something else, but I doubt very seriously he’d apply much more energy, not because he doesn’t want to, but because it’s just so darn hard to keep creative energy focused on one project. When I was releasing more books per year, it wasn’t that I worked on the longer projects more quickly, it’s that I could work on more projects with that extra time.

Even while typing this blog, I’ve stopped four times because it’s just that hard to focus, at least for me.

So maybe support this Kickstarter of his. Get some new things to read or listen to, and enjoy them for what they are. Stormlight 5 is coming. I’m sure Sanderson will work very hard to finish the third era Mistborn saga and get to work on the second half of the overall Archive. Try not to see this as books you’re reading instead of Stormlight. Instead, see them as books you can read along with Stormlight.

Thanks for reading,

Matt

Book Review: Bleach Volume 67 by Tite Kubo

Spoiler free summary: In Volume 67 of Bleach by Tite Kubo, the assault on Soul Society continues, and the big guns are out in full force. Hyosube, Squad Zero’s Leader, might just force Yhwach to display his power again.

Character: Like I said, whatever middling effort was made to develop characters in this arc is all gone. It’s all about swinging swords now, which isn’t terrible. It’s just not as awesome as it could have been because I don’t care about the characters as much as I could.

Exposition: This was par for the course. The upside to manga is we get to literally show in the the show vs tell range. We’re not immune to certain things (see below), but the visuals do a lot for storytelling.

Worldbuilding: Squad Zero has been around for a few volumes now, but this is when we get to see them in action. The down side is the purpose they serve. Without anything but reputation to work with, we’re left pretty dissatisfied with how that reputation fairs against the “big bad” the author is trying to make more threatening. It’s one thing to watch one of the captains go down because we’ve seen them beat others before, but then they were used as fodder against Aizen. Now these guys come along, and we don’t get any of the fight. It’s like old school WWE, when they’d bring in someone who looks tough, but he’s just another guy the current push character runs over. It lacks power if we’ve never seen those guys throw down and win.

Dialogue: Behold! Look at how awesome my power is! I can do amazing things! See how amazing that is. Yhwach, “Psst.” Character leans in. Yhwach, “I’m the big threat of the fight.” Other guy, “Oh, right! Sorry. Falls down defeated.” I’m not kidding. That’s just about accurate in terms of dialogue here.

Description: Now as bad as the dialogue is sometimes (and it’s much worse when we don’t have any developmental dialogue so to speak), this fight was cool to see on the pages. The power was wicked interesting. So it’s a trade off that maybe doesn’t need to exist, but it felt a little fair to me.

Overall: This volume had one of the better fights, and that says something. I don’t think any volumes compare to the Aizen saga at all, but this one was cool. It also sets the table for some worldbuilding in the next volume.

Thanks for reading,

Matt

Announcing the Week 3 Winner of the 2021 M.L.S. Weech March Book Cover of the Month! Vote For Week 4!

Greetings all,

We’re just about ready to start looking for the 2021 M.L.S. Weech Book Cover of the Year, but to do that, we need one more weekly winner and then one more monthly winner.

As I said, I certainly won’t do a 2022 Book Cover of the Year. The project isn’t generating a level of interest that makes the time and energy investment worth it, but I’m going to try a few other things on YouTube. If you have any ideas, please feel free to let me know.

For now, let’s name the winner fro Week three of the 2021 M.L.S. Weech Book Cover of the Month of March.

House of Sky and Breath by Sarah J. Maas was honestly such a beautiful cover. It had great art. The detail was fantastic. It joins Lost in the Waking Well and the Starless Crown in the 2021 M.L.S Weech Book Cover of the Month of March poll, so you only need one more cover.

You can vote for that cover right here!

I’d appreciate it if you all took a look at my YouTube channel and gave it a like and subscribe. It’s a cool way to support me and these other authors and artists.

Thanks for reading,

Matt

Visits From A Man Named Nobody 70

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He wandered over to the cafeteria and got some food. As he set his tray down and sat down, he considered conceding to his mother’s second request, but he couldn’t bring himself to do it. Instead, he ate mechanically, working to consume time more than calories. He used a knife to cut meat that tore readily enough. He slowly brought each bite to his mouth and chewed his food. After each bite, he took a small sip of his water. 

He managed to make a simple meat, vegetable, and bread meal last 45 minutes. He grabbed up some napkins and a pencil. Then he sat down to work over some formulas he’d been considering. The problem there was that he couldn’t really focus. He frustrated himself for  another 30 minutes trying to get his thoughts in order, but after that, he crumbled the napkins up and threw them away rather than even try to review the nonsense he was scribbling. 

He tried social media videos next. He watched a few informative videos, trading with some that promised guaranteed laughter. He didn’t so much as chuckle, and he couldn’t focus enough on the informative vids to get anything of value. The process of searching for something that might occupy his thoughts was somewhat useful, but he ultimately only spent another 15 minutes on that.

He looked around, realizing he’d been expecting Nobody to show up. There were plenty of places he could have secretly teleported to. And this sort of thing usually warranted at least a letter. Would he want to talk to Nobody if he did show up? His more recent visits have been much more accusatory than helpful. Nobody always had some angle that seemed to be more about forcing Paul to evaluate his motivations than anything else, but he still visited.

Had he grown tired of Paul? Had he finally given up? He thought about it as he wandered back to the waiting area. He watched his feet step on each white tile of the floor. Paul wasn’t sure if he cared whether or not Nobody had lost interest. The race to figure out how he used teleportation was done. The experiment was cancelled. Nobody’s visits might have been helpful when Paul was a kid, but they’d been more annoying as Paul grew older.

“Probably just tell me more about how we don’t have any say in things,” Paul muttered. 

He arrived to the waiting area. The doctor wasn’t there, so Paul sat down and tried to watch some television. It was some sort of soap opera. Five minutes ticked by, and Paul gave up trying to figure out the plot. He stood up, hoping to convince one of the staff members to change the channel, when the doctor stepped in.

Paul smiled and walked over to greet him. “How long until we can take her home?”

Something about the way the doctor’s lips turned downward caused Paul to stop short. 

“We got in, but once we saw the tumor and how it was placed, we realized it wasn’t safe to remove,” the doctor said.

Paul stared at the doctor even as questions ran through is mind. What did he mean safe? It was a tumor; how safe was it to leave it in there? What did it matter how it was placed in the brain?

“We’re planning to talk to the oncologist, but my thoughts are we need to do a round of chemotherapy to bring the size of the tumor down. That will make it easier to remove,” the doctor said.

“You’re leaving a tumor in my mom because it’s not easy to remove? I don’t care how hard it is; I want it out!” Paul’s voice grew louder as he spoke.

“It’s too close to the hippocampus,” the doctor said. “One wrong move, and we could affect her memory. One mistake, and she forgets you and everyone else.”

“Then don’t make any wrong moves!” Paul loomed over the doctor. 

“There are no right moves, Mr. Autumn,” the twig of a man had no problem staring Paul in the eyes. “The tissue has wrapped around the tumor like a sort of blanket. The only way to get to it is to cut the tissue, which would have consequences. That’s why we need to reduce its size so that we can move tissue.”

“What if your blanket just folds over it more?” Even though the doctor didn’t respond to Paul’s height and tone of voice, he still kept shouting.

“Then the chemotherapy might still just kill the tumor anyway.” The louder Paul got, the softer the doctor’s voice became. “It’s not the immediate fix you wanted, but it is the right thing to do. Of course the oncologist will provide more data, and maybe an even better option will present itself, but surgery isn’t an option right now.”

Paul stumbled back like he’d been punched. The room spun, and it was hard for him to keep his breath. “No.” Paul practically gasped the word.

He reached over and grabbed a chair and somehow managed to fall into it. 

“You’re mother is in recovery.” Doctor Feniker remained where he’d been, clearly giving Paul space. “You can go in and be with her, but she’ll probably be sleeping for a while more. I’ll meet with the oncologist, and we’ll present you both with your options. I’m sorry this couldn’t be over as quickly as you’d like, but there’s still hope.”

Hope? In what universe did Paul ever have any real hope?

… to be continued …

Editing Advice: You Can’t Do It All At Once!

Earlier, I talked about the importance of just banging out your story to get the whole story done, and that is critical. If you’re someone who’s finished writing a novel, I’m of the opinion that you’re already in a certain rare area.

But, if you’re like me, and you’re invested in getting that story out into the world, that finished draft is only a draft.

Now is the time to start looking at that puppy. But here’s the oddest thing. As a teacher, I see students do this. They want to agonize over every word they type, as I mentioned in that post. Then, when it comes time to revise, they want to stare at that paper, hoping the mistakes jump up and volunteer themselves.

My time in the military wasn’t an action movie by any standards. But, one usually gets some combat training. Without going into too much detail, my point is simple. You tend to hit targets you aim at.

What does this mean? Well, instead of looking at your manuscript one time, trying to find every error, you should look at your book many times, each for a distinctly different type of mistake.

This is why I do a minimum of six drafts (and that number gets up to 14 depending on how you count a draft). Each time I do a set of revisions, I’m looking for very specific things. It’s much easier to look for a specific issue like lack of description or talking heads than it is to look at a chapter and trying to do it all. In fact, I don’t know that anyone can do it. If you’re an author who asserts you can, I’d honestly be interested to hear about your methodology. Regardless of how many drafts an author may do, I promise it isn’t one.

I can’t stand editing. I feel foolish for some of the mistakes I make. I’m frustrated when I feel like I haven’t developed in a particular area the way I wish I would. But I take solace knowing I’m making the story better. I’ve actually articulated my drafts by title, but I don’t think I’ve ever explained what I do in each draft, so to give you an idea on how many drafts I really do and how I use this technique, I’m going to elaborate on that.

The discovery draft has only one goal: Finish the manuscript. Get it done. Get it typed. If I am struggling to remember something or I know I’m going to need to do something, I’ll leave a note for myself. I’ll be typing and then do something like this (GO BACK AND ELABORATE ON THIS), or (CHECK THE NUMBERS TO MAKE SURE THEY LINE UP!)

All caps in writing isn’t something I do often, so using them as notes to myself, I know I’ll notice.

Once I finish that, I take a break. When I come back, I start my first draft. The first thing I do is go and check for those notes. Whatever I tell myself to do, I go and do it. I’m obedient that way. Then, I go back and read the chapter, looking for areas that lack description. One way I do this is to look for talking heads. Another way I do it is to look for action verbs. Those usually provide great spots for useful adjectives or sense activation. I sometimes have to add chapters or change POV, so I do that. But I don’t do it all at once per chapter. I review the notes. Then I look for description. Then I check to see if the POV lines up.

Then it’s time for another break. The first draft is done. I have to send it off to the Alpha Readers. While I wait, I work on another project to keep my mind fresh. Once I get the feedback, usually about a month later, I apply their notes. I do this by chapter. I apply the notes. Then I look again at description (because I feel this is a weakness of mine) and the visuals of the story.

Then I take another break, sending the book off to Sara for developmental edits. About here, I feel pretty good about the story as a whole. I work on something else during the month (give or take) Sara has it, and jump at it when I get it back. I apply her notes by chapter. Then I start looking at the structure and word usage. Can I trip that down? Can I replace “said” with a descriptive beat.

Then the book is off to beta readers. Rinse and repeat. I apply that feedback. Once I apply the feedback for the chapter, I look again at the word usage and start hunting down adverbs to replace with more clear action verbs.

Then the book is back over to Sara for line edits. Even that has a process. I don’t look for “all the mechanical issues.” I look at punctuation (rule by rule). I look at grammar. And all this is after I review the manuscript for Sara’s notes. Then I read it out loud. If I find another error, I finish the chapter, but then I go back and do it again. I do this until I can read the chapter out loud all the way through without finding an error.

This might seem daunting. Based on my observation of my students and other people, it certainly seems anti-productive. But it actually isn’t. Staring at your book for hours at a time just leaves you with strained eyes and errors you can’t believe you missed. This way is actually much faster. I say again, it’s. much. faster. For starters, each time you finish a look, you feel like you’re moving and accomplishing more, so you’re more motivated and willing to look again. Also, it’s more effective, so you’re not caught off guard by those mistakes you glazed over.

Give it a try and see how your beta or gamma readers (I don’t use gamma readers, but some do) feel about the book when you’re done.

Thanks for reading,

V/R
Matt

Book Review: Bleach Volume 66 by Tite Kubo

Spoiler free summary: In Volume 66 of Bleach by Tite Kubo, things get stranger as the tide turns for the worst. Heroes have become zombified enemies, and Yhwach, the king of Quincies, has made his move toward the Soul Society’s royal palace. Can Squad Zero stop him?

Character: This volume is a continuation of the ramp up we’ve been expecting. There was more lost opportunity here. One would think seeing one of your best friends turned into a zombi would have more of an impact on the characters. I’m not saying there isn’t any reaction, but I think the reaction was pretty lack luster.

Exposition: I don’t think there were any surprises here. The more action-oriented volumes tend to have a quicker pace. Most of the panels were devoted to cool moves and dialogue.

Worldbuilding: This volume teases at some of the more impressive wolrdbuilding that is to come. We don’t get the payoff, but there’s nice foreshadowing here that lets us anticipate what’s to come.

Dialogue: I think there’s a bit more development in this volume than normal, but it’s not that significant. Most of it follows the typical, “Behold my master plan,” and “No one dares take us on,” sort of boasting we expect to see.

Description: The art is still pretty awesome here. Most fight scenes should be. We do get some scope here as well. Some of the panels looked pretty iconic in the moment. I have to word it that way because this arc has a nasty habit of making something look tragic or awesome and then undercuts it in a future volume.

Overall: Even with the fighting, this volume feels like a set-up volume. We’re watching the undercard or the early night stuff, and we’re about to get into the main fights. That’s not to say that some of the other battles weren’t cool. The Captain Commander fight was pretty epic, and I loved Ken’s fight too. We just know that there are bigger things coming, and this volume alludes to that.

Thanks for reading,

Matt

Presenting the February Book Cover of the Month! and Week 2’s Winner for March

Greetings all,

We’re now just two weeks away from having our final Book Cover of the Month Contest. We’re going to name February’s winner as well as the Week 2 winner for March.

So let’s get to it.

The 2021 M.L.S. Weech February Book Cover of the Month is …

Outcast by Louise Carey. Honestly, this was a very competitive month, and all four covers deserve a ton of credit. But, there has to be a winner. Outcast is our eleventh entry into the Book Cover of the Year bracket, where it will face ten even better covers.

The Week 2 winner for the 2021 M.L.S. Weech March Book Cover of the Month is …

Lost in the Waking Well by John Notlad was a beautiful cover with brilliant text placement. It joins The Starless Crown in the final bracket for March.

You can vote for Week 3’s cover right here.

I’d appreciate it if you stopped by my YouTube channel and gave it a like and subscribe. It really goes a long way to helping me and supporting these authors and artists.

Thanks for reading,

Matt

Visits From A Man Named Nobody 69

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Twenty

March 5, 2038, 8:32 a.m. 

13 Years, 274 Days Ago

Paul sat with his mother on a leather-cushioned bed in a stale examination room. She wore a typical hospital gown. She held her hands together and whispered prayer after prayer as Paul held her in one arm. 

“You want me to go see if I can find the doctor?” Paul asked.

She shook her head, “I understand he’s busy.”

The days leading up to the surgery where a whirlwind of visits to doctors and from friends. One guy came and mowed her lawn. A kind woman Paul had met a few times made seven separate meals and brought them over. His mother still hosted her weekly Bible study group, but she was far more an observer than group leader. 

Paul helped were he could, but he was simply impatient to get to this day, when they would pull the stupid tumor out, and everything could go back to the way it was.

But in order for that to happen, the doctor who told them to be there by 5 a.m. needed to show up. 

His mother separated her hands long enough to reach up and gently pat his face. “I think this is the sort of thing I’d rather not rush a person on.” She gave him a smile, but he noticed the squint of pain in her eyes. 

Paul glared at the door again. Why tell a family to be somewhere just to make them wait hours for a surgery that would save a person’s life? He wanted to go out there and tell someone to let him know what was going on, but he couldn’t bring himself to let his mother go.

He glanced down at her, and the sound of the door opening caused them both to jerk in surprise. 

The man who walked in had to be the thinnest person Paul had ever seen. The lab coat was obviously the smallest size available, but it still looked like it was devouring the man who wore it. Doctor Feniker might have been in his fifties or sixties. Gray hair topped a wrinkled head that seemed too big for the man’s neck and shoulders. 

“Are you ready to have that tumor out of you?” His voice was gentle and raspy. He offered a surprisingly bright smile.

“Yes,” his mother said. 

The doctor looked over her chart. “So far things look to be in order.” He flipped through a few more pages in the thin manila folder in his hands. “We’ll know much more when we go in. If it’s small enough, and it’s safe, we’ll take it out.”

“If!?” Paul moved to stand up, but his mother held him in a surprisingly strong grip. “You’re supposed to take it out!”

“That’s the plan,” Feniker said. “The scans appear to show that it’s safe to remove, but we can’t be certain until we go in.”

“But you made us wait a week! If you weren’t sure, why didn’t you go in the when you first saw it?” Even as Paul fired his questions, his mother gripped his arm.

“Paul,” it was barely more than a whisper from his mom, but it was enough to get him to stop. “I know you’re trying to protect me and care for me, and I love you, but this is frightening enough. I’d like to trust that Doctor Feniker is doing his best and using his best judgment.”

Paul wanted to tell Feniker exactly where he could shove his judgement, but his mother had a point. 

“So let’s get started,” Paul said.

Feniker gave a nod and a smile. “The nurses will be here shortly to take her up to surgery.” He gave Paul’s mom another smile and headed out.

Paul glanced at his PID: 8:36 a.m. “It’ll be alright,” he told his mom. He shut his eyes, holding her and trying to think. 

He glanced at the door. He studied whatever he could set his eyes on. He look at the gray counter that ended with a sink. He looked at the blood pressure machine across the room from him. He looked back at the door.

“How are you feeling?” He asked his mother.

“A little scared, I admit.” She still held her hands clasped firmly together. He studied them before reaching his own hand over to place them over hers.

“It’ll be OK,” he said again.

“I know,” she whispered. 

He looked over a the door again. Where were they? Were they going to make them wait another three or so hours before they came to take her to surgery? 

Footsteps came, causing Paul to perk up at the sound, but they just continued past the room. 

“Peace be to you.” Paul looked down at his mother, who was speaking with her eyes closed. “My peace I give to you. I do not give as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not be afraid.”

Paul let out a breath of air. He looked at the door. He looked back to his mother.

The door came open again. Paul was about to shout at them for taking an eternity, but as he brought up his arm to point an accusing finger at them, he noticed his PID: 8:37 a.m. Two men in blue scrubs rolled a gurney into the room. 

They were of equal height and had black hair. One was a little on the heavier side. The heavier one looked at Paul’s mother. “Let’s get you over to surgery.”

His mother nodded her head. Paul stood up to give her room. She got up from the examination table and sat on the gurney. Paul was by her side the moment her legs got up into the rolling bed. 

“I’ll be in the waiting room,” Paul said. “As soon as you get back, I”ll come see you.”

“Make sure you get some food while you wait,” she said. “You haven’t eaten yet.”

“I’ll be fine,” he argued.

“You think starving yourself will somehow make the doctor better at his job?” She cocked an eyebrow at him. “Get some food. Maybe say a prayer for your mom.”

He looked away. For the past week, people have been praying with and around his mother. They asked him to join them each time, and he’d politely refused. He didn’t begrudge them their faith, but he certainly didn’t share it. 

… to be continued …

A 3-Star Review For Betrayed!

Greetings all,

I love it when I get to share reviews. I was pleased to find this three-star review for Betrayed on Amazon the other day.

This review brought up a major struggle I had with the book. The pace of the events left me in this strange position. I needed to keep thing moving within the timeline of actual events, but that made it very difficult to delve into the characters the way I wanted. I had always planned to give other characters time in the limelight, and I do the same in Discovered. However, that made it challenging to give characters the attention I wanted.

So this is a fair review that identifies something I felt conflicted over. I’m still proud of Betrayed, and I know there are those who loved it, but I can completely understand that it might be the least emotionally impactful story. Discovered will be (by far) the longest book. We meet several new characters, two of whom have POV chapters. Kira gets her turn after Dom had his in the previous book. I hope this doesn’t mean that Dom’s story will be diminished. I’m very excited to get this First Draft done and to Alpha Readers, who I hope will help me make sure the conclusion is as satisfying as it can be.

Thanks for reading,

Matt

Book Review: Bleach Volume 65 by Tite Kubo

Spoiler free summary: In Volume 65 of Bleach by Tite Kubo, Kenpachi is fighting for his life, and Ichigo has just made it to the battle. His opponents, while odd, wield an even stranger power, and it could mean the end for the Soul Society.

Character: The stage is fairly established by this point. On one hand, all the wonderful opportunities for character development are gone. On the other hand, the ones that were there were (for the most part) wasted. However, now that the big push has started and the final objective has been revealed, we can sit back and enjoy the action. For those of you who only read/watch Bleach for that, then you’ve been getting what you want since the beginning. For guys like me, I feel like the fights that were happening weren’t as great as they could have been if we cared more about the characters or the consequences of those fights.

Exposition: This is pretty standard with regard to what it has been. We get a bit more information, but we’re really just learning about abilities and watching things unfold at this point.

Worldbuilding: This has other news in regard to the Soul King, which is probably the coolest worldbuilding aspect of this second saga. We also see how that fits in with the Quincies plans.

Dialogue: Again we have more of the people boasting and such, but that’s par for the course. There is some dialogue I remember that gives us a bit more insight. We also learn about the Quncies leader based on some of his conversation, so this volume might be a little stronger than others.

Description: This volume’s art was a bit more impressive in a manner of speaking because it had much more in the way of scope. There was so much going on. Depicting that munch chaos must have been a feat for the artist to accomplish.

Overall: I remembered this particular fight (or at least these opponents), so it’s pretty memorable. There are some pretty epic moments coming up, and this volume sort of kicks off that whole sequence.

Thanks for reading,

Matt