Joint Review of Bleach 489: March of the StarrCross

[alphabeta]

I'm soooooooooooooooooo don't have a clue what to write as an intro to this review so I just wend and googled for some bleach jokes and picked the first one I liked.

Ladies and Gentlemen, Bienvenue to our Joint Review of Bleach 489

Bleach 489: March of the StarrCross

A Joint Review


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Analysis:

March of the Starcross starts with the vice-captains waiting for their captains in SS, Rukia is nervous because of the situation and Renji, as usual,suggest she calm down. When Rukia is about to reply, Kira interrupts them to ask something: he's realized that both the invasion of the rebel army and the disappearance of hollows are connected, but he can't make out how people are vanishing in Rukongai, that's why he asks his comrades if they have investigated outside district 50. Yachiru tells him that Ikkaku and Yumichika did it, and found footsteps which gathered and stopping, made by naked feet and sandals. Kira explains then the situation: after district 50 living standards decline and (here you are, gentlemen, the stupiest thing ever seen in Bleach ) that there are stats of the last 550 years which tell that after district 64 no citizen wears sandals (can SS keep a record of such a trivial? ). By the way,the smartest vice-captain guesses that the footsteps were left by shinigami, and that SS usually sends the 12th squad to deal with this matters. If this time things are different it's because Mayuri is hiding something. Nemu adfirms she believes in her captain, and doesn't care that Kira will report that to Yamamoto, although Mayuri didn't inform her of his actions.

The scene moves to HM, where Nel is astonished viewing the 3 bestia defeated. Kirge makes ichigo know that he already knows who they are,but ichigo isn't worried, since Ivan knew that too and in fact he came after him. The captain of the Iacto Arme reveals that they know who ichigo is because their majesty gave them infos about ichigo, referring to him as if they could use him in war. Thus, other soldiers attack him, and surround him in the air. Ichigo quickly notices that their movements aren't due neither to shunpo, nor to Sonido or Fullbring, but that they can actually use Hirenkyaku, the quincy ability. The soldiers pull their cross out and attack him with spiritron arrows, from which Ichigo escapes (obviously) alive.

Then he asks them if they are reallt quincies, but is blamed by Kirge for not being sure of that. The soldier is right: how could he attack them without even knowing who they were? well,Ichigo and his comrades should be strong enough not to care about these matters,imo . The crazy man creates his bow as well, and his about to attack Ichigo,admitting they are truly quincies.

Somewhere else, a vandenreich receives infos cocnerning Ichigo's fight with Kirge, and informs Buckbeard, who decides to go to invade SS counting on Kirge to keep Ichigo busy. The enemies' leader doesn't seem aware of the reasons for which Ichigo came there,so he probably doesn't know about Urahara and the others being there either. He orders his men to contact the Stern Ritten (in German "Star Knights") nonetheless.

Meanwhile, in SS, Mayuri is admitting to the Captain Commander that he made his subordinates kill OVER 9000 inhabitants (28000 to be exact) to correct the balance of souls, damaged by the hollows' disappearance in chapter 480. The CC doesn't understand why the captain of the divison 12 hasn't asked permission,which would have been obtained thank's to the gravity of the situation and charges him with what's happened (maybe he is referring to Sasakibe's death too). Mayuri clear himself stating that when Uryu came to SS the first time,he did advise the CC of that possibility, but the latter didn't care about that. To conclude, Mayuri tells Yamamoto that the responsible isn't the former but the CC himself, because 1000 years ago he failed to kill that man (Buckbeard, who is in fact shown in the panel below ,the last one).

Impressions:

Fanboy

So lets start fangasms over this chapter
I think that non of us thought that disappearance of people in Rukongai was caused by Mayuri wanting to correct the balance of souls. This was very clever move done by Kubo, it added a lot to Mayuri character. I think that chapter showed us how much of a boss Mayuri really is being able to execute such move as killing 28 000 personas to get things as they should be, acting on his own and doing this without permission from Yamamoto

He even had guts to say in CC face that everything what is happening right now is his fault because he failed to kill enemys lider long time ago. With that line and last page of this chapter Kubo made Mayuri one of most badass capitans in my opinion.. I was like "Oh shit it looks like he will die even before Vanderreich invasion on SS >,>". Before that he was.. well... just Medium-Badass but now he went one league up in my book. But that has to be expected when we are about to enter a war with Quincies- he is the man that killed and experimented on them, he is one of biggest enemies of Quincy if not THE biggest in entire SS. Cant wait for more Boss Moments from Mayuri in upcoming chapters

Second Boss of this chapter was Kirge. He is one of most charizmatic bad guys in my opinion. I dont mean that he is deep or smthn like that.. he have a lot of charizma, he is ruthless and crazy and all of this in cold, calm way. In few panels it was shown that he defeated 3 bestias(owning Quincies grunts like crazy moments before) with a smile on his face and without breaking a sweat... Thats Is what I call build up to a badass fight with Ichigo that is coming our way. I have to admit that I am fan of Hellisng manga/anime/OVAs so with that quincy looking like some nazi from Hellsing I am simply bought.

Last thing that was great this week- THE Art
Me simply loooooves what Kubo is doing every week with his drawings. Some people might say- "hate meh meh meh its so low on content meh hate meh meh" but its how Bleach aways was and how it will stay. It was once again far better than simply "good". Kirges design, some of Mayuris new ugly mug and lot of Hellsing-Nazi vibe as I said before that we get with few pages of drawing put a "Kirgesmile" on my face(+glasses)
Sooo pumped up for Kirge with Ichigo

Hater

As the hater my job is to point out the bad things about the chapters, the defects, but with this chapter, well, it was definitively not easy. Still I must say Kira’s deductions are really weak, they’re based on mere assumptions and sandals statistics , though in the end he was right. On the other hand Ichigo is almost sleepwalking, he is absent and incapable of understanding what's goin’on around him as we can see from the surprised look on his face when he realizes his German fellows are actually quincies, what other evidence did he need to get that? Kirge’s speech was going nowhere, what’s the point with the brutal interruption? Let him finish the phrase, he won’t tell anything special except repeating he is a Quincy for the hundredth time. I’m really sorry for old man yama, no wait, I'm really disappointed, he is totally losing his cool: he once was a badass but now he is miserable, just a scared old man facing the consequences of his mistakes while he can’t even face Mayuri. One last thing: Mayuri, is just my opinion but you should reconsider a new look, this one is not as good as the old ones

Predictions:

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand, this is how our review ends this time. I hope you enjoyed it, and see ya all next week!

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Section List

mattiaildivino	Plot (Analysis)
Mrlazsa	Hater (Impressions)
vagabond87	Fanboy (Impressions)
alphabeta	Intro/Outro, Predictions
~Coffee~	Banner

[mattiaildivino]

already? do we already review the alst chapter? the new one is about to come out...

[alphabeta]

already? do we already review the alst chapter? the new one is about to come out...

there's no WSJ this week.

---------- Post added at 08:59 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:49 PM ----------

mattia, can you get lasza into this thread? I'll take care of Otaku, but apperatnly lasza doesn't see me as an authority so he doesn't do what I tell him

[mattiaildivino]

Lol okay,maybe he isn't so present in this forum in these days. I'll talk to him tomorrow at school (if I see him).
right,no chapter this week,I hope it will come out nonetheless,since the golden week has always been in the last week of april

[OtakuModeEngage]

All right, i'm game for the next chapter

[mattiaildivino]

I will do the analysis,but I can share it with someone else,if he wishes. if Lazsa joins,he will do the impressions,imo.

[alphabeta]

I will do the analysis,but I can share it with someone else,if he wishes. if Lazsa joins,he will do the impressions,imo.

right, analysis and impressions are now divided into other sub-sections.

wait, I'll update the OP.

---------- Post added at 05:52 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:50 PM ----------

Right, about the Fanboy/Hater sub-section of the impressions. I wanted to try out such an experiment so we'll go with this format for now. Just as the name suggest, two different people will write the two sections. One person, the "fanboy" will praise the chapter. Likewise, the "hater" will bash the review.

[mattiaildivino]

I ask all of you to write a short part.short reviews are the best,and the easiest to read.
on a side note,captain alpha,stop calling him Lasza,it's Lazsa. they have got 2 different meanings .

[Mrlazsa]

as mattia already said i could the impressions, and since we're trying this new thing of the double pov i think i could do the hater ( not that i hate bleach,otherwise i wouldn't be here , but i tend to be critical so it kinda fits me)

[mattiaildivino]

there's a dude who'd like to review as well,may I tell him he can come here?

[alphabeta]

I ask all of you to write a short part.short reviews are the best,and the easiest to read.
on a side note,captain alpha,stop calling him Lasza,it's Lazsa. they have got 2 different meanings .

I'll try to remeber that. Whatever, do you guys have any nicknames that are easier to rember? Maybe RL names?

as mattia already said i could the impressions, and since we're trying this new thing of the double pov i think i could do the hater ( not that i hate bleach,otherwise i wouldn't be here , but i tend to be critical so it kinda fits me)

Awesome

there's a dude who'd like to review as well,may I tell him he can come here?

Name?

[mattiaildivino]

I'll try to remeber that. Whatever, do you guys have any nicknames that are easier to rember? Maybe RL names?

Mat,Matt or Mattia. likewise you can call him Laz.

Name?

vagabond87,but I've already contacted him,he should be with us ,although I'm not sure if he is already ready

[vagabond87]

Me here. Me dunno what to do
Srsly what you guys want me to do? How I can help?

[OtakuModeEngage]

Haha, I knew it would be overcrowded in here

---------- Post added at 05:26 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:25 PM ----------

Well I'll take any position you give me Alpha

[mattiaildivino]

first of all,we have to choose a leader. I dare say that I'm the best one,since I'm the one who is in this forum from the longest time and because my amount of posts is almost twice the amount of yours . then,as the leader,I abdicate and choose Alpha as the new leader