Well, this is more like it! Bleach finally uses some strategy, and on top of that, it’s got the perfect set-up for characters: Chad, Nova, Matsumoto and even Ururu versus the old man. The beauty of things is that each of them isn’t a walking steam-engine (both in terms of raw power as intelligence), so each party has to use some kind of plan in order to win. The combination with some very effective comedy made this a worthwile episode.
First of all, the old man has the most creative doll I’ve seen yet. Come to think of it, it’s the first doll that didn’t annoy the hell out of me. Anyway, his doll is a small whale, which can travel through dimensions and which can create another dimension inside his stomach. Nova’s power matches so well with this.
Second of all: Ururu. Probably the strongest member of the Bleach-cast. And thank god the creators show this in a very creative way. ^^; It’s just awesome to see a little girl fighting like that. I kept waiting for a chance to see her really in action. Even though she didn’t last long, it was awesome.
Third of all: Matsumoto. I especially loved it when Chad was underestimating her a bit. She really showed him that she deserves her place as a vice-chief. ^^ Her overall joking mood really brightened up the episode.
Fourth of all: Nova. He was so cute when Matsumoto thanked him and he got embarrassed. ^^; He also really had the chance to show the other what he’s worth, as, in comparison to the other modified souls, there were no “important” characters which needed all the attention and screentime they could get (*coughInouecoughIchigocouch*). The result was awesome.
Fifth of all: Chad. I really like his backstory. It’s too bad that he hasn’t gotten too much development lately. Thank goodness this episode changed this a bit. I like the way that he wants to protect, and finally he has some more flashbacks of his past. Finally he gets his own struggles again. Ururu and the others really helped him in this.
Another thing that I loved is that at the climax of the episode, the animators suddenly decided to go very creative creative. I really mean it when I say that the climax was incredibly animated. It was great to see such messy art, especially the old man looked really freaky in this, I couldn’t help but love it.
Overall, Bleach needs to have more episodes like this, in which characters actually think, instead of just fire a bunch of spirit power at each other. It had a great bland of comedy and action, although I’m not too sure about the way the episode ended. Somehow, I’m again fearing for the next episode.
