Bleach―ブリーチ― 21 [Burīchi 21]

Bleach #21

by Tite Kubo

藍染の反乱から、やっと落ち着きを取り戻した瀞霊廷。傷の癒えた一護達は、ルキアに別れを告げ、現世へ帰還。一護は正式な死神代行を認められて、虚退治におおわらわの毎日！！　そんな一護に急接近する人物が…！？

Genres: Manga, Fantasy, Comics, Graphic Novels, Shonen, Fiction, Action

191 pages, Paperback

First published March 3, 2006

About the author

Noriaki Kubo, known professionally as Tite Kubo ( 久保帯人), is a Japanese manga artist and character designer. His manga series Bleach (2001–2016) had over 130 million copies in circulation as of 2022.

Reviews

[Lauren Lanz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ichigo’s dad?!? I thought he was just a silly guy...

Can’t wait to see Ichigo’s reaction once he makes his way over to the source of the increase in spiritual pressure. And yay for more Uryū lore!

[Sana⁷ · Rating 5 out of 5]

"A Hollow's mask!"
"Right. A Zanpakuto and a Hollow's mask. Do you get it now? I'm a Soul Reaper who crossed over into the realm of the Hollows. Didn't I say I hoped we could be friends?"

In Volume 21 we got a very nice balance between the fun, the seriousness and the suspence, the emotional part and the surprise part. A week had passed since the events of Volume 20. Everyone are trying to move on from the shake up of the utter betrayal that had recently happened. Byakuya had opened himself up to Rukia about Hisana. And the words, that everyone wanted to hear, had been finally said:

"Ichigo Kurosaki, thank you. Rukia, forgive me".

With these words the Byakuya I love and support had showed up.

"Even now I'm causing trouble for you. I'm sorry I cannot repay the love you gave me. The five years I spent with you were like a beautiful dream, lord Byakuya."

Why all we've got from the Byakuya/Hisana story was their end? How did they met? How did they fall in love? What had happened through the five years they had spent together? I NEED MORE 😭 I mean, do you understand the greatness of these two? How big their love had to be that the Byakuya Kuchiki decided to break the law to be with the woman he had fallen for? I think there is no Soul Reaper who valued law more than he did so it's truly shocking that he went against his family and the Soul Society, all because of love. It's so upsetting that he had to lose the woman he cared so deeply for 😔

And then, he had been placed in a truly unfortunate and tough situation where he had to choose between his promise to Hisana and his promise to his parents. He seemed like a utterly cold person who valued the law over his own family, but he had to be bleeding out from the inside, because of the whole situation with Rukia. Ichigo had saved not only Rukia, but Byakuya as well.

"Thank you, Ichigo."
"That's my line. Thanks, Rukia. Because of you the rain has finally stopped."

I will not repeat myself about how much I love Ichigo, Rukia and the dynamic of their relationship. It's one of the most amazing and beautiful things in Bleach. But these words, the talk about the rain stopping, struck me hard while reading the manga. I guess, it's more emotional to me now, because I didn't previously realize the symbolism and the impact of the rain on the story. It's getting more and more clear to me now and the fact that Ichigo said that Rukia made the rain stop means everything to me.

I also have to say that I deeply love the little scenes of them just standing and smiling fondly at each other.

"Shinji Hirako. Nice to meet you."
"Umm, thank you... Shinji, it's backwards."
"Pretty good, huh? One of my talents is reversing things."

After the departure from the Soul Society, our heroes came back to the Karakura Town and the reader might assume that it's gonna be a peaceful time for a while. At first, everything seem to be back to normal. Rukia's no longer there, but Ichigo can still work as a Soul Reaper. A new semester begins in his school so you might think that the story will focus on him trying to find the balance between his duties as a Soul Reaper and his duties as a student.

But Ichigo Kurosaki is an MC and the MC's just cannot get a break (it's a law).

As the cover can tell you, Shinji shows up here. If you don't know who he is, he's one of the Visored (I call them Vizards though), people who use both the Zanpakutos and the the Hollow masks. Since Ichigo can also put on a Hollow mask, and Shinji knows it, he wants Ichigo to join the Vizards. When Ichigo refuses, Shinji should give up. But it seems like he's not a type that takes "no" for an answer ;)

Except for Shinji's arrival, some other unexpected things happen. I will not put any spoilers in here, but the events can be pretty surprising for the people who don't know the story yet. If you think that the best Bleach arc (the Soul Society) ended and there will be nothing interesting anymore, think again. An Arrancar Saga begins now! ☺️



Some other things I need to talk about:

~ Unohana's scary moments are one of the funniest Bleach scenes and I love every one of them. It's hilarious how a woman who's in charge of a healers squad can make the warriors squad fear for their lives 😂
~ Ishida making new clothes for everyone and having the best eye for a woman style is just too adorable.
~ Komamura's and Hisagi's hope to make things right with their friend, after his utter betrayal, is very foolish, but also very admirable.
~ The expression of Byakuya's face after Ichigo jumped onto his window is priceless 🤣
~ How did Ichigo know where to find Rukia? He never heard the story about Kaien, did he? 🤨
~ The image of Kon masturbating in Ichigo's body was something I was not ready for, something I did not expect to see and something I did not need to see 🫣
~ While Ichigo being concerned for Ishida was cute and wholesome, Orihime being concerned for Ichigo instead of Ishida was worrisome. Girl, stop with your Ichigo obsession, it's tiring as hell.

[richa ⋆.˚★ · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 ⭐
Yayy a new arc, finally. I keep telling myself one more volume and I keep finishing them. Hasn't disappointed even for once. All the panels are so well done and my boi, Ichigo 🍊looks so hot.

[Juho Pohjalainen · Rating 4 out of 5]

As with One Piece, post-climax denouements are some of my favourite parts of the story. We're done with the heavy stuff for now - now let's wrap things up and have some fun before it hits the fan again. And when it does hit the fan, it's not that big of a spray. At first.

[Kirsten · Rating 3 out of 5]

This volume wasn't so good. At first I was thinking it was because nothing really happened, but that's not true -- a LOT happened. The problem is that I really felt there needed to be more of a transition between the Soul Society storyline and the next one. I know these are serial novels and something has to HAPPEN in ever issue, but this one felt particularly like a bombardment.

[Angela Auten · Rating 5 out of 5]

This volume is always gonna be the start to my favorite Bleach season! ^^

[Blake the Book Eater · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m really interested in seeing where this new arc will go! We have some great set up already with one twist i didn’t see coming!

[lana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Everything in this world exists to wear you down.

I am so intrigued by the Quincy lore and Uryu in general. I really hope there’s more to them! Also, Byakuya’s story really did it for me — I was nearly brought to tears. This was so good.

[Ronald · Rating 4 out of 5]

And after a bit o drama the gang returns to the World of the Living. They fight some hollows, an Arrancar and boy things seem to be escalating. Ichigo gets a weird stalker who invites him to join special training. More Arrancars show up and it turns out Ichigo's dad is / was a Soul Reaper / still has his powers. The volume is kind of a catch-up debrief and get you ready for the next story arc.

[James DeSantis · Rating 3 out of 5]

So the soul society arc ends. This is around the time I hopped off the anime train. So what's to come is pretty new to me.

This volume is like a relief after the intense fights we just have. More relax and laid back than the previous 5 or 6 volumes. Some pretty funny gags at school, Ichigo and friends just relaxing, and everything seems to be going back to normal. But just then of course a HUGE hallow shows up and things go bad. A guy comes face to face with Ichigo and offers him to join his team. Ichigo father plays a...interesting role. The quincy's seem to be playing a bigger part afterall.

A solid followup to last arc but nothing mind blowing. A very "bridge" volume. A 3 out of 5.

[Izrezar · Rating 5 out of 5]

soul society arc GOATED

[Deli · Rating 5 out of 5]

WHAT

[Lashaan Balasingam · Rating 3 out of 5]

An inevitable and necessary transition arc that holds several surprises following the aftermath of the Soul Society chaos. There's an underlying father-son plot here that will undoubtedly surprise fans while also presenting us with the next cast of villains.

While I'm usually not a huge fan of these in-between stories, I feel like this one want to calm things down quickly but also get things going just as quickly.

At least the good thing is that it's always exciting and mangaka Tite Kubo can draw!

Oh, and there's, of course, a slightly stronger dose of the usual humour in this one. In the end, it's complicated to really grasp how you should be feeling during the aftermath.

Yours truly,

Lashaan | Blogger and Book Reviewer
Official blog: https://bookidote.com/

[Jeremiah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was gonna be just a simple resting and getting back to a somewhat normal life to finish up the Soul Society arc but I was wrong! This arc had one shocking moment after another! Old enemies made an appearance and possibly some new allies as well. Not to mention things are about to get interesting between Ichigo and his father, but also, Uryu and his father. War is coming and it’s bringing Vizards and Arrancars with it!

[Mel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wow, so much happened in this tiny little volume - a little too much. One minute we were still in the Soul Society, the next Ichigo and the gang (minus Rukia) were back in the world of the living. I felt like I was experiencing whiplash with how fast everything was going.

The twists (especially the one involving Ichigo's dad) were great though, and I feel like we're off to a great start with the next arc. Looking forward to volume 22.

[William Bainbridge · Rating 4 out of 5]

With the gang returning to the regular world and a new arc slowly starting i fully expected this half filler volume to be a 3 or lower but ichigos dad reveal caught me fully off guard and was cold af, did more than enough to bump it up to a 4.

[Els - cygny · Rating 5 out of 5]

I doubt I could give these volumes less than 5 stars, I love Bleach too much for that. This might have gotten 4 stars if not for Byakuya's scene at the beginning and the shocking revelations at the end.

Be prepared to me giving all the stars all the time 😅

[Subham · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was quite good, they come back home and we see the fallout and so much revelation happens. A good bye to rukia and coming home and then they are attacked by new hollows. Ichigo is attacked by his new classmate HIRAKO SHINJI and turns out he is a VAIZAADO like Ichigo aka shinigami-hollow and then Kon and Uryuu are attacked by ARANKARU aka Hollows who gained Shinigami powers and then we get revelations about Uryuu's and Ichigo's dad and that they are (spoiler) quincy and shinigami and this alone makes this volume the best and the new threat of these ARANKARU's is awesome and seems we are moving in a great direction!

[Vendea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hihihihi, Shinji na scéně.

[Ben Truong · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bleach, Vol. 21 continues where the previous tankōbon left off and contains the next nine chapters (179–187) of the on-going manga series.

As the Soul Reapers are being healed, Byakuya Kuchiki confesses to Rukia Kuchiki that he adopted her as the dying wish of her sister, his wife Hisana Kuchiki, and apologizes for being unable to act on her behalf because of his promise to his family to uphold the law from that point on.

As Ichigo Kurosaki and his friends return to the human world, Rukia decides to remain in the Soul Society. As the fall semester begins, Ichigo meets a new student named Shinji Hirako, who reveals that he is a Visard, a Soul Reaper who has obtained Hollow powers. With his powers gone, Uryū Ishida is attacked by a Hollow and is rescued by his father, Ryūken Ishida who decides to train him to recover his lost powers.

Kon, who is in Ichigo's body, is attacked by the hollow Grand Fisher who was transformed into an Arrancar, a humanized Hollow with Soul Reaper-like powers. Grand Fisher attacks Kon, believing that he is really attacking Ichigo, before Ichigo's father Isshin Kurosaki arrives to the Modsoul's defense. As Grand Fisher draws his zanpakutō to enter a stronger form, Isshin reveals himself as a former Soul reaper as he easily kills Grand Fisher in a single attack.

This tankōbon is written and illustrated by Tite Kubo. It ends the Soul Society arc rather well, while introducing interesting tidbits for future story arc and characters. The Visard is introduced with Shinji Kirako and could explain what has happened to Ichigo Kurosaki during his battle with Byakuya Kuchiki. The Arrancar is also introduced and the revelation of Isshin Kurosaki being a former Soul Reaper is rather interesting as well.

All in all, Bleach, Vol. 21 is a wonderful continuation to a series that seems intriguing and I cannot wait to read more.

[K · Rating 3 out of 5]

We starting a new arc. Very filler. But also I really hope ichigo can defeat the hollow inside bc if he can’t and he becomes the villain like eren in aot, I won’t be able to mentally handle it. The scene with the hollow coming out of the sky was beautifully drawn

[Jucko · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Bleachet még anno, amikor bejött az A+, még animeként ismertem meg, és már akkor imádtam. Akkor is gondoltam rá, hogy el kéne olvasni a kapcsolódó mangát, de akkor még egy futó sorozat volt, és közben aztán szépen el is sikkadt a dolog. Most viszont nem bántam meg, hogy újra előkerült, mert Ichigo még most is sikeresen lenyűgözött. Az elmúlt két-három nap során kiderült, hogy nem véletlen volt, hogy annyira szerettem a sztorit. Egyszerre pörgős és akciódús, a karakterek egyszerre dilisek és viccesek, de nagyon szerethetőek. (Don Kanonji kivételével. Őt nagyon rühellem)

[Ayesha ( ˙▿˙ ) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yes! We finally meet Shinji! :D

[mari ✮⋆˙⟡ ⋆ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Daddy? I mean, daddy? I mean, WHAT.

[Nehemiah Bekele · Rating 5 out of 5]

I do be missing out on shinji's theme:(

[Heather Martens · Rating 5 out of 5]

ALL THE LEAD UP TO THIS VOLUME WAS WORTH IT

[Omar Villafane · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a twist of events. Mind opening first arc 🗡️🤩

[fxtiko · Rating 5 out of 5]

daddy kurosaki

[Mason Riley · Rating 5 out of 5]

re-starting Bleach at a new arc and it's immediately emotional and action packed. sickkkkkk

[Agnese Rosengren · Rating 5 out of 5]

Questo nuovo arco narrativo parte già col botto, madò ✨✨