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One Piece is a masterclass in long-term storytelling and worldbuilding into which its author, Eiichiro Oda, imbues a genuine sense of emotional vulnerability, leading to an enormous amount of sentiment and heart being conveyed to the reader through its characters and use of narrative; this series is so good at making you want to cry.

One Piece also has some of the best art I've ever experienced in manga: while not being the most technically impressive, Oda draws with a unique and expressive artstyle while also possessing a seemingly instinctual, Toriyama-esque understanding of how to guide the reader's eye through a page.

While I do have numerous ... problems with One Piece, the series is so especially good at doing the things it's good at doing that it all but makes up for it, leaving One Piece as a strong contender for my favourite animanga of all time.

(...emphasis on the "manga" part there, Toei's anime adaptation is genuinely terrible and I'm praying for WIT's upcoming remake to be able to turn it around).

On its surface, Bleach plays unreservedly into the tropes and themes of the battle shonen genre, while also carrying an underlying tone of deep melancholy, introspection and loneliness throughout. Despite being a series that is perhaps easily read in a superficial way, Kubo always invites you to dig deeper into the series' themes and characters, and the substance is there for those willing to do so. And without spoiling too much, the journey undergone by main protagonist Ichigo is also fairly unique for the shonen genre in a way I really appreciate.

Unfortunately, the story loses a lot of its momentum for me during the ... final major arc, however the good moments within that arc are still as good as the good moments from the rest of the series.

While it's heights are not quite as high for me as those of One Piece or Naruto, Bleach's overall quality in both narrative and presentation is, in my opinion, more consistent.

While Bleach may not be a series for everyone, if it is for you, you will likely find something special.