BLEACH DVD COLLECTION 7: THE ARRANCAR ARRIVAL
August 14th 2011 00:26
Based on the original Bleach manga by: Tite Kubo
Director: Noriyuki Abe
Screenplay by: Masahi Sogo et al
Producers: Noriko Kobayashi (TV Tokyo), Yukio Yoshimura & Ken Hagino
Starring: Johnny Yong Bosch (Ichigo Kurosaki), Michelle Ruff (Rukia Kuchiki), Jamieson Price (Chad), Derek Stephen Prince (Uryu Ishida), Brian Beacock (Yumichika Ayesagawa), Kate Higgins (Karin Kurosaki), Stephanie Sheh (Orihime Inoue/Isane Kotetsu), Megan Hollingshead (Rangiku Matsumoto), Dan Woren (Byakuya Kuchiki) Wally Wingert (Renji Abarai), Julie Ann Taylor (Lirin), Wendee Lee (Yoruichi/Ururu), Michael McConnohie (Kurodo/Shawlong/Ryuken Ishida), Roger Craig Smith (Shinji Hirako/Noba), Bob Joles (Genryusai Yamamoto), Liam O’Brien (Junshiro Ukitake), Steve Staley (Toshiro Hitsugaya/Shuhei Hisagi), J B Blanc (Sajin Komamura/Nakim), Vic Mignonga (Ikkaku Madarame), David Lodge (Kenpachi Zaraki), Stevie Bloch (Yachiru Kusajishi), Karen Strassman (Soi Fon), Grant George (Izuru Kira), Michael Lindsay (Kisuke Urahara), Quinton Flynn (Kon), Patrick Seitz (Isshin Kurosaki), Paul St Peter (Grand Fisher/Yammy), Beau Billingslea (Edorad), Ezra Weisz (Yylfort), Tony Oliver (Ulquiorra), Cindy Robinson (Chizuru Honsho/Jinta Harakari), David Vincent (Grimmjow), Kirk Thornton (Zennosuke Kurumadani), Yuri Lowenthal (Keigo Asano), Tom Fahn (Mizuiro Kojima), Dorothy Elias-Fahn (Misato Ochi), Janice Kawaye (Yuzu Kuroskai), Michael Sorich (Tessai Tsukabashi), Spike Spencer (Hanataro Yamada/Diroy), Kyle Herbert (Sosuke Aizen) & David Rasner (Kaname Tosen)
English Version produced by: VIZ Media LLC
Released by: Madman Entertainment
Running Time: 300 minutes Rating: M
It seems that this will now be the format in which Bleach will be available from now on, a slimpack of two DVDs rather than the single volumes that were the mainstay for so long here in the land down under. This means that hopefully episodes will be coming out a bit faster than before, considering that as far as I’m aware none of the free to air channels show Bleach nor do any of the pay TV channels show it either. Shame really as it’s a very popular series if responses in both Japan and the US are anything to go by. Maybe it’s all due to Vampire Knight apparently being the hottest thing in manga and anime here…who knows. Suffice it to say with this particular instalment in the Bleach saga both manga and anime series converge, no more filler, the two mediums are in sync with each other. The Bount saga is a thing of the past and our spiky orange haired protagonist and his comrades are faced with new threats and new arrivals in their home town of Karakura…
All that though is about to change big time…first the fact that Grand Fisher is looking to gun for him, the second thing is the appearance of the new transfer student into Ichigo’s class; Shinji Hirako and to top it all off is the eventual appearance of two strange figures in the local park who are intent on tracking down Ichigo. Life hasn’t fallen back into a usual routine is just the calm before the upcoming storm and that said storm looks as if it’s going to be a real killer – I’m talking not just thunder and lightning here but hail stones the size of golf balls kind of effect here. Trust me I know about such storms having experienced one in my earlier days and this is what is about to burst onto Ichigo and his friends…
Interestingly this particular collection is not solely focused on the usual kind of battles that one expects from Bleach but elects to run on a double faceted narrative, sure the battles are all there but the level of the struggle faced by our key protagonist is not solely on physical level, there is also a major struggle brewing within. And if its anything to go by this particular inner struggle is the one which Ichigo needs to win more than anything – as it is the battle that could see him loose everything he’s fought for up to this point. Sure everyone has their inner demons but in Ichigo’s case his particular inner bogeyman is very much a real and almost physical entity that seems bent on taking over his body.
Hollow Ichigo first appeared when Ichigo fought Kenpachi Zaraki during the attempt to rescue Rukia Kuchiki; it seemed as if that entity remained quiescent after that incident, only re-emerging at one more instance when Ichigo confronted Captain Byakuya Kuchiki on Sokyoku Hill. Since then it seems that this inner hollow has been dormant but it’s all been part of its plan, it’s not dormant because Ichigo has gained the upper hand but due to the fact that it’s waiting for the right moment. As this spirit remarks to Ichigo himself as he lies on his bed recovering from wounds inflicted on him, “I’m getting closer to you” hinting that its only a matter of time before the inner hollow wins the struggle.
Talk about a crisis of faith, and all this has to happen when things are hotting up in Karakura-cho. Although there is one interesting point, even though the new transfer student is a bit creepy it seems that he knows something about what Ichigo is going through. He claims to be a Vizard; a soul reaper who has awakened his hollow and gained control over this aspect of his being. The only problem is that it looks like former Soul Reaper captain and now arch traitor Sosuke Aizen has decided to make his move and his dispatched two of his latest minions, the Arrancars Yammy and Ulquiorra to Karakura town to check out the lay of the land. As a man who seems to be keen to create a being who has the abilities of both a soul reaper and a hollow it looks as if the Arrancars created by Aizen fill this bill admirably. They’re but a foretaste of what is to come and their appearance in the world of the living prompts the Seireitei to dispatch and advance guard of soul reapers led by Captain Toshiro Hitsugaya.
As I mentioned earlier things are really heating up…and they’re destined to get even hotter. Filled with loads of action, humour, pathos and those growling guitars that seem to amp up with a major fight scene Bleach DVD Collection 7: The Arrancars Arrival is a must have for any Bleach fan. And if you’re a newcomer to the series then you won’t be disappointed if you like action and landscape altering combat…well worth trying to get your hands on and watching believe me…Bakudo 61 Rikujokoro.
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