Review for Bleach: Series 4 Part 3 (3 Discs) (UK) (Review)
Tuesday, 1st June 2010, 15:26

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Introduction
Another four-month delay, and the next volume of Bleach arrives on UK shores. It certainly isn't getting the rabid attention that another certain shonen property gets, which is a little surprising as at the time of writing Crunchyroll are putting together a petition to convince the Japanese studios that it would be worth their while to get Bleach streaming to the world via their website. After a while, all these Shonen Jump anime tend to blur into one, for me at any rate, so in case you're wondering Bleach is the edgier, grittier one about sword wielding soul reapers, and while the main character may not wear an orange shell suit, he does have orange hair.

You'd think that a teenager's life would be complicated enough if he could speak to ghosts. But that was only the beginning for Ichigo Kurasaki. When he literally bumped into a Shinigami named Rukia Kuchiki, he was introduced to a whole new world. The Shinigami's mission is to guide forlorn spirits known as Wholes to the Soul Society, and protect them and the living from Hollows, perverted spirits that have become monsters that prey on other souls, living or dead. They are not supposed to let the living know about this supernatural world, but not only does Ichigo see Rukia, circumstances force her to give him her powers, and train him to be a Shinigami while she regains her strength. Through their adventures, Ichigo learns that his classmates Orihime and Chad are similarly bestowed with spiritual abilities. He also meets Uryu Ishida, the last Quincy, heir to a tribe of spiritual warriors from the human world that once sought out and destroyed Hollows, before the Shinigami in turn eradicated them for disrupting the balance.

If you're wondering what happened in the previous volume, then you're in the same boat as me, almost. After this many months, and so many other DVDs, I can barely recall what happened myself. I do remember that there is this tribe of soul sucking Bounts (who are categorically not vampires. Not Vampires!), they are seeking more power, and have started sucking on the living instead of the dearly departed to maintain their youthful immortality. For that power, they need the last Quincy, Uryu Ishida, except that his Quincy powers have been in remission since the rescue Rukia arc. So instead, the Bount leader, Kariya, sacrificed one of his own, Yoshino (who Uryu had been sort of sweet on) to call forth a swarm of technologically advanced dolls. The Bounts fight with dolls at their side, animated lifeless objects with personalities that they wield in the same way that the Shinigami wield their Zanpakuto swords. So as we begin this volume, the Bounts are in hiding, their soul sucking mosquitoes are preying on the population, the Soul Society are sending more Soul Reapers to assess the situation, Ichigo and his friends have to regroup and come up with another plan, while Uryu has a bit of a manly moment of solitude after his loss (i.e. he sulks). Blimey, I remembered more than I thought!

The final twelve episodes of Season 4 are presented on three discs courtesy of Manga Entertainment.

Picture
Bleach gets a 4:3 transfer that, other than the usual NTSC-PAL conversion issues, is unproblematic. The image is clear enough, the colours strong and vibrant, and the picture is as sharp as you would expect. It's a fun, colourful animation, heavy on the primary colours, and the character and world designs have universal appeal. Given that it is a long running show, you wouldn't expect a great deal of detail and frippery, but though the animation is simple, it's also very dynamic, especially in the action sequences.

Sound
You get a choice of DD 2.0 English or Japanese with a sole translated subtitle track to accompany them. The dialogue is clear, the show has some nice music, and it is all presented as vibrantly and competently as you would expect from stereo soundtracks. I've also noticed that while there is only the single subtitle track, the on screen text continues to be translated, which is an improvement over the first season.

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