4 stars for the start of the next big story for Ichigo and the crew.
Directed by Noriyuki Abe, this series comprises episodes 317 – 329 and forms the start of the Gotei 13 Invading Army arc.
After all of the excitement of the Arrancar army and the battles against Aizen, things are beginning to get back to normal for the 13 Court Guard Squads and the Seireitei as they clear up the aftermath and finally fall back into some sort of routine.
However, while Rangiku and Nanao are returning to Soul Society through the Precipice World (the route used by Soul Reapers to move between the World of the Living and the Soul Society), they notice that things seem even creepier than usual. After experiencing a time delay of several days, they begin to suspect that all is not well. Upon further investigation, several of the Soul Reapers go missing altogether while traversing the Precipice World. Unfortunately Ichigo is the prime suspect, after his Substitute Soul Reaper Combat Pass is lost while travelling with Rukia and found by an investigation team.
Back in the World of the Living, Kon (in the form of Ichigo’s body) finds a naked young woman lying in the street. Worried for her safety, he covers her up and takes her back to the Kurosaki Clinic, where he attempts to find out who she is. Nozomi is magnificently uncommunicative and for the most part totally ungrateful for any help offered to her.
As more details of the situation are revealed, Squad 12, The Department of Research and Development, are increasingly implicated and the replacement of the squad captains with Reigai who answer to Kagerōza Inaba (another member of squad 12) seems to seal the deal.
However, nothing is ever as it seems and the 13 Court Guard Squads in Soul Society and Ichigo, Orihime, Uryu, Chad and Urahara in the World of the Living must work out what is happening in time to prevent a hostile takeover.
It’s nice to get back to a proper story arc and this new story-line is quite exciting. There is plenty of good fight action, especially with the captains facing off against themselves and each other, with lots of intrigue and mysteries to be solved and the usual healthy dose of violence and peril.
A must own for Bleach fans and an interesting start to a new arc, highly recommended.
“You originals suck. That’s the lesson from this fight. You outdated older models need to be replace with newer, more efficient versions like us.”
Bleach Series 15 Part 1 is available to buy on DVD from 25th May 2015.
| Director | Noriyuki Abe |
| Genre | Anime, Fantasy, Adventure |
Available to buy on :  | |