Bleach: Sennen Kessen-hen - Soukoku-tan Episode 4 Discussion

IchiGOAT ain’t going down that easily

orihime and Chad along with ganju were just standing there when ishida arrived they could have tried to stop ishida so that ichigo can deal with yhwach.

the animations were good.

Alright guys, calm down. I'm here. I have finally emerged from my slumber to rate the new Bleach TYBW episode.

3.5/5

I think a lot of the moments were too drawn out and much of the episode could have been told in 2/3rds the time. Uryu's vollstandig ability reminds me of Jirobo's shikai (he was the first shinigami the crew met in soul society). It's a little lame looking if I'm being honest. Also a lot of jarring inconsistencies with the art. It was like two different styles were smacked together. When high animation began, the art completely changed, then when it ended, same thing. Art change.

I don't like how the episode began with a minute and a half recap. A lot of people complained that last episode began abruptly with Ukitake proclaiming he will stabilize the worlds. What was in this week's recap could have been cut from last week's episode, allowing last week's episode to begin in a more organic fashion. I'm not too hung up on this because I read the manga but it still came to mind. If the rumors are true and we are getting 14 episodes this cour vs 13, then I don't mind the more drawn out scenes and recaps as much. That's still yet to be 100% confirmed though.

It's easy to pick out what I don't like because I have already read the manga and enjoyed the series. I still really enjoy this adaptation and I do like a lot of the new additions. I really like how Ishida was carefully explaining his ambition and intent to Ichigo.

orihime and Chad along with ganju were just standing there when ishida arrived they could have tried to stop ishida so that ichigo can deal with yhwach.

the animations were good.

Nah... Uryu's betrayal of his own friends and especially Ichigo is quite idiotic if I do say so myself. BOTH of their mothers died due to Yhwach's auswählen and BOTH of their fathers are alive and well. Hell, they even know each other and are in the same line of work.

Other than that, this episode is amazing as always!
The spotlight is now between Uryu and Ichigo. Their fight sequence was beautifully animated, I particularly love how the fight initially stated in the building before Ichigo took the fight outside in midair. Despite Uryu's spam-like attacks, Ichigo has dealt with attacks with a more insane proportions, deflecting those arrows were nothing if not for Ichigo holding back.

Ichigo could've stuck down and incapacitated Ishida after the latter was taken aback when he saw that Ichigo was innately capable of utilizing blut, something only a Quincy should usually have. Even AFTER Uryu unleashes his vollständig which looks absolutely immaculate by the way, he was really only able to slightly put a bit of pressure on Ichigo who is still in his default shikai form all this time, WITHOUT bankai or his hollow visor mask.

The real showcase of their power is shown when Uryu and Ichigo unleash their most powerful attack against one another. Vollständig + Sternenstaub vs Non-Bankai, Non-Hollow Visor Getsuga Jujisho. And oh boy is the difference in power incomparable. The Getsuga Jujisho quite literally eats through Uryu's attack and pieces through it before continuously blasting across the sky past the horizon. As Uryu himself said, Ichigo is just too naive and too kind for his own good that he'd go so far as to hold back and restrain himself from directly attacking Uryu which ultimately leads to Ichigo's Skyfall.

They never really gave us a good explanation to why Ishida became Yhwach's successor or whatever. Ishida always felt weak and he is the most indifferent character in the anime. Also, Yhawch was 100% correct. Ichigo is naive and that's making him look bad. Ichigo be like "The world is ending and I'm running out of time, but lets just let Ishida live because Ishida". Instead of cutting him in two pieces instantly 😑.

The Schutzstaffel finally appear, since episode 1... Were they just like, hiding in the rubble the last two episodes? They REALLY need to write these guys into the story better.

Overall, the episode was good, but the story is just not being executed well enough.

A lot of what's happened these past few episodes plays out like it's happening due to obligation; to force set ups for the remainder of the season so that the story plays out like it did in the manga. Which if that be the case then oh boy, the criticism is going to be crazy.

TYBW had a lot of great moments in the manga, but the arc is muddled with so many moments that are just detrimental to the overall story, rushed be damned.
I was really hoping with this season and next for the rewrites and additions desperately needed to either a.) completely rework the story so that it makes more sense within the context of the arc so far and Bleach as a whole, or at the very least b.) make whatever additions flesh out the arc well enough so that what plays out in the manga makes more sense for people watching the anime.

The last four episodes kind of have me convinced that the studio is going with option b, and if so, they really gotta do better. I hope the big fights this season are as entertaining as they were in the manga if nothing else.

i never liked Uruyu and so this episode carried no weight for me. also i'm just wondering why everyone is just standing around doing nothing and even Ichigo is half-assing. lots of words words words with no weight at all. no gravitas. utterly disappointing episode.

CFYOW isn't cannon, it's basically dragon ball gt / boruto. Only a few things were done by Kubo in the novels.

@StateofOhayo Tourists and bandwagonners honestly should've been gatekept from TYBW back in 2022. They have a very shallow understanding of Bleach and struggle follow its story and characters yet they still feel the need to express themselves, be it appreciation or "utter disappointment".

"also i'm just wondering why everyone is just standing around doing nothing" Did you even watch the episode or what? In the manga they were effectively sidelined while Ichigo and Uryu were clashing, here they WERE doing something even if it weren't much. What did you expect Orihime and co. to accomplish against nigh-godly characters who utterly outclass them by orders of magnitude? Rukia and Renji received royal training which put them on the level of a high-tier Sternritter. Orihime and co. knew damn well they weren't going into the Soul Palace to stand their ground against Yhwach's personal Schuztstaffel, but they went with Ichigo anyway because they're his friends and because of thematic reasons.

"Ichigo is half-assing" No shit he is. He's not trying to kill his friend, he's trying to understand him. After ~400 episodes you don't know what kind of character Ichigo is?

Can both of you remind me again who genocided the Quincies?

Also, objectively a lot DID happen in this episode if you have any idea what the context is. Yhwach and the Mimihagi were "arm-wrestling" for the linchpin of the universe, lol. Yhwach just absorbed the Soul King. The Shinigami have lost.

All of the questions I'm reading in this thread get answered in the story eventually. Just keep watching. Any writer worth their salt does not spoonfeed you narrative details immediately after it makes you ponder.

Ichigo and Uryu make a counterpoint in this episode, like Naruto and Sasuke, but Uryu is not a good rival for Icihgo, unlike Naruto and Sasuke.

@TheBladeIsMe


It's the Shinigami

You're welcome by the way 😎 I'll be happy if you have more questions about Bleach.