...
Show More
Overall Rating: A+
Synopsis: Ichigo Kurosaki has the unique ability to see ghosts and engages in numerous battles. This is all rather ordinary for him. However, his life takes a significant turn when he meets Rukia Kuchiki, a Shinigami (Death God) and a member of the mysterious Soul Society. When a Hollow, an evil spirit, attacks Ichigo and his family, Rukia attempts to defeat it but gets wounded. To assist him in saving his family, she lends Ichigo some of her powers. But something goes awry, and Ichigo absorbs every last bit of her energy. As a result, Ichigo becomes a temporary Shinigami and teams up with Rukia to handle the hunting of Hollows until Rukia can recover. At least, that was the initial plan...
Before I delved into the manga, I watched the first four episodes of the anime at Stellarcon '06. It was a fansub (this was prior to its airing on Adult Swim), so the translation wasn't perfect. Nevertheless, I instantly fell in love with the characters and the mythology of the series. I promptly began collecting the manga and planning a costume for Ichigo. A few months later, I cosplayed as Ichigo at Heroescon, having read all of the translated manga and watched as much of the anime as I could obtain.
So, what makes this series so special? I believe it lies in the characters. There are numerous of them, and the writer, Tite Kubo, takes the time to provide each one with detailed backgrounds and relationships. I'm already 19 volumes in, and while there is an abundance of action, it's the character development that truly hooks me.
In the first 19 volumes, there are three main groups of characters: humans, the Shinigami, and the Quincies. When humans pass away, their souls transform into either Wholes or Hollows. Wholes are ordinary spirits, but the souls that become Hollows are corrupted and must feed on the souls of the living (similar to spiritual vampires). The Shinigami release Wholes and guide them to cross over to the Soul Society (the spirit world), and they cleanse the Hollows so that they can also cross over. They accomplish this using large swords called zanpakutō.
The Quincies, on the other hand, use bows made of spiritual energy in the form of bows to hunt Hollows, similar to the Shinigami. However, unlike the Shinigami, who purify the souls of the Hollows to maintain the balance of souls between the two worlds, the Quincies destroy them. This endangers the balance of the world, and as a result, the two groups engaged in a war. The Shinigami emerged victorious, and now there is only one Quincy left, Uryū Ishida. Despite his animosity towards the Shinigami, Uryū eventually becomes friends with Ichigo and even accompanies him to the Soul Society.
This merely scratches the surface of the series. I have only watched approximately 50 episodes of the anime, but what I have seen closely follows the manga. I highly recommend exploring this series. It's enjoyable, fascinating, and offers some excellent cosplay opportunities.
For more manga and anime reviews, please visit Hobotaku.
