Review for Bleach: Series 7 Part 2 (2 Discs) (UK) (Review)
Saturday, 8th October 2011, 17:56

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Introduction
That was fast! Normally we have to wait interminably long for subsequent instalments of shonen anime such as Bleach and Naruto, especially in these financially straitened times. Distributors want to keep apace with their fanbase's ability to buy the product, as well as avoiding overstretching their resources, and with Viz at the head of the English language region release chain, when they slow down, everyone else has to as well. But the second half of season 7 of Bleach follows hot on the heels of the first part, so close in time actually that I haven't even forgotten what happened in the previous collection. Normally I have to re-read my old review, and stick in the final episodes of the previous set just to refresh my memory. This can only be a good thing, although it seems that there is no Season 8 yet in Manga's schedules, at least not in the remainder of 2011.

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 Kurosaki. 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.

Previously on Bleach, Ichigo and his friends had returned from the Soul Society, and were trying to rebuild their lives in the real world. Except that Ichigo is now pretty much a full time Soul Reaper and has to leave his mortal body in the less than capable hands of Kon from time to time, to go off and defeat a few Hollows. His friends too have their own newly acquired spiritual abilities to deal with, and an assumed responsibility to develop them to protect the world. All except Uryu Ishida who had lost his Quincy abilities. But then Captain Sosuke Aizen, who had betrayed the Soul Society and fled with his conspirators at the end of the Soul Society Arc, decided to put his plan into effect…

He starts by taking the strongest Hollows, indeed the strongest of the Menos Grande, and begins removing their masks, and equipping them with the Zanpakuto swords and abilities of the Soul Reapers. These are the Arrancars, and they soon come to the living world to wreak havoc. At the same time, it turns out that there is an outlaw group of Soul Reapers, shinigami that have embraced their Hollow natures and strengths, have donned the masks of Hollows and have called themselves Visoreds. They've come to the living world to recruit Ichigo, who's been having trouble controlling his Hollow half. Coincidentally, Uryu Ishida's father has appeared, offering him the chance to regain his Quincy abilities, with the proviso that he disassociates himself with Ichigo and the Soul Reapers.

As we left Season 6, the Arrancar threat was increasing, so Ichigo was in full time training with the Visoreds, Uryu was also in training, and the majority of the Soul Reapers were now in the Living World, trying to protect Karakura City from the threat that Aizen and his allies pose. With a ten-episode stretch of filler out of the way, it was time to get back to the main storyline, and rather than waiting for the winter deadline, Aizen pushed matters ahead, by sending a squad of elite Arrancars to the living world to face off against the Soul Reapers. But that was just a feint, his true target was Orihime Inoue, and as we begin Season 7 Part 2, Ichigo and his friends have to deal with the aftermath of her disappearance, while she faces Aizen and the Arrancars alone in Hueco Mundo. Manga Entertainment presents the next ten episodes, 142-151 of Bleach across two discs.

Picture
From Season 6 onwards, Bleach went native PAL. It's a more common sight in anime mastered in Australia now, and gone are the days of ghosting, judder, lower resolution and conversion artefacts, and in comes a 4% PAL speed up. 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. I must say that in this sixth series, the character designs are showing a greater degree of inconsistency, which is a tad disappointing. 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. Bleach looks really splendid now, all except the end credit text scroll, which didn't survive the transfer to PAL as well as the animation did.

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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