Book Review: Bleach Volume 57 by Tite Kubo

PERSONAL NOTE: My new graphic novel Hazel is out right now, and I’d be honored if you considered picking up a copy!

The cover for this volume was taken from its Amazon buy page for review purposes under Fair Use doctrine.

Spoiler free summary: In Volume 57 of Bleach by Tite Kubo, Ichigo is trapped in Hueco Mundo, leaving the Vandenreich free to attack Soul Society. Luckily, the captains are there to defend, but can they win?

Character: So this doesn’t have arc so much as it increases our fear for our teammates. There are a few captains that (with the exception of Aizen) seemed unbeatable, and this new cast of enemies brings us a new level of worry for the cast. There is some arc in that these characters, all used to being the most powerful guys around, now have to deal with the humbling truth, and that’s somewhat interesting, but it’s more of a shock factor.

Exposition: Given that this is a “fight” manga, there really isn’t much more to it (nor should there be). These manga are like the rewards for patiently enjoying the story that comes before. I remember two fights, which is a good sign, but I don’t really remember much more than the two captains (who shall remain nameless) who fight in this chapter. This means that we didn’t have too much exposition if any.

Worldbuilding: This volume also serves to establish the new power levels given the Vandenreich. Obviously, they need to be a threat, and there’s really only one way to establish that. However, as we see those power rankings play out, we learn about how they work.

Dialogue: This is what one comes to expect of the combination of Bleach and fight scenes. There’s a lot of, “My power is so great!” followed by, “Oh, really?” Insert awesome power move. Rinse. Repeat. Now that probably wouldn’t cut it in a full novel, but in manga or animated action, it works. I think anime will evolve, but there will always be room for this level of dialogue. So it’s not quality, but it is what’s expected.

Description: The art continues to improve as the story evolves. The fight scenes are not quite to the quality of Demon Slayer, but I really believe that’s the best manga ever (I said it. @ me if you want.) So it’s a little unfair to judge anything against that standard. However, this is still very cool.

Overall: Honestly, fans of Bleach have been waiting for this volume. Bleach is mostly about fights (much like Naruto). While a lot of the other arcs center around the action, some of the other (and, probably, better) manga have more story progression rather than action with a slice of justification via dialogue. But if you like Bleach, what you’re looking for is the fight, and it’s good to see the volumes finally get down to it.

Thanks for reading,

Matt