BLEACH: THE BROKEN CODA (MANGA VOLUME 7)

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BLEACH: THE BROKEN CODA (MANGA VOLUME 7)

May 3rd 2010 19:46

Category: Graphic Novels/Comics

“Take the power of Justice! The armour and headband of Justice!! Protect yourself!!”

Kisuke Urahara; explaining how to put on martial arts protection gear.

Publisher: VIZ Media LLC
Story & Art by: Tite Kubo
English Adaptation: Lance Caselman
Translation: Joe Yamazaki
Touch up Art & Lettering: Dave Lanphear
Design: Sean Lee
Cost: AU$12.95/US$7.95

The musical metaphor continues with this particular volume of Bleach, a coda apparently is an independent elaborate passage after the conclusion of a movement according to my sources. So a broken coda was evidently be a passage that had its duration cut drastically short by something external to it, if we were to follow with a musical interpretation it could be when some obnoxious twit answers a mobile phone in the midst of a musical concert and proceeds to talk loudly over the music in response to the call. These things happen, despite messages for people to turn off their phones at such events. And as you read through the drama that unfolds within the pages of this volume you come to realise that there is a very clear and concise delineation of a coda, that an elaborate passage has been very much interrupted by an external influence.

By now you are no doubt tearing your hair out (assuming you don’t shave your head) and are wondering just what the heck the Green Lantern is waffling on about here?! All in good time my reader, these things must be revealed in the fullness of the story rather than being sprung upon you all at once like a cuckoo popping out of a clock. Bleach is all very much a story about a young man thrust into the world of life and death on a very literal plane and the trials and tribulations that come with it. One could say if you were the type of individual who likes to have things pigeonholed a fusion of the Sixth Sense and the old television series Samurai with a little bit of high school drama throw into the mix.

Ichigo Kurosaki is a kid, who from an early age has been able to see the spirits of the departed; this means he is also able to see other spiritual entities such as Soul Reapers and Hollows. Hollows are a spirit that feed upon the souls of the deceased and usually have a hole in their form that marks the loss of their spiritual centre, soul reapers are beings whose duty it is to guide the souls of the deceased into the Soul Society and reap hollows. One night Ichigo encounters the soul reaper Rukia Kuchiki and as result finds his life irrevocably changed due to what expires as hollow attacks his family seeking to devour their souls. In order help him Rukia transfers her powers to him so that he can more effectively pull this off – which he does in suitably dramatic fashion. This is an act though that will have unforeseen consequences, although no doubt neither Rukia or Ichigo would have been aware of that having more immediate concerns at the time in question.
Transfer of powers from a soul reaper to another person is a criminal offence, one that warrant’s Rukia’s arrest and transportation back to the Soul Society, coupled with the fact that she has not returned to the Soul Society she is effectively in deep trouble. Central 46, the governing body of the Soul Society, has ordered her capture and retrieval handing the responsibility to members of Squad Six. The captain and assistant captain of Squad 6 make their way to the world of the living in order to carry out the mission, they swiftly track down the missing soul reaper and this is where things begin to get a bit complicated.
Ideally the best situation for the two soul reapers would be to take Rukia into custody with little or no hassle and then head back to Soul Society. Unfortunately for Byakuya Kuchiki and Renji Abarai that isn’t the case as their efforts are thwarted first through the intervention of Uryu Ishida and then our plucky protagonist Ichigo Kurosaki, still they manage to complete their mission and as Ichigo lies bleeding to death on the street in the pouring rain he sees Rukia go willingly with her two captors to her fate… Byakuya Kuchiki, aristocratic captain of the Sixth Squad and elder brother of Rukia is convinced by his younger sister that he has mortally wounded Ichigo and that there is no way he can further attempt to hamper their efforts.
You could be forgiven for thinking that it was the end of Ichigo ‘Strawberry’ Kurosaki, that as a result of the two devastating attacks from Byakuya Kuchiki is out for the count for good. Certainly the good captain feels that he has put an end to Ichigo’s running around with his sister’s stolen powers – the only problem is that he doesn’t have all the facts before him and neither does Ichigo. He also believes that he is about to shuffle off from this mortal coil, the loss of blood and his lack of sensation indicates that he has but moments…but then something happens, someone interrupts his impending passing. Kisuke Urahara, owner of Urahara Shoten, appears as if out of nowhere and saves the life of our spiky haired protagonist.
Now where is the story going to go on from here? Shonen manga typically follows a formula where the hero has to undergo numerous trials and tribulations in order to grow stronger and be able to fulfil his driving objective, this is one such point one would surmise in this story. But in actual fact even though it would be easy to pigeon hole the drama into this category in actual fact this is more a chapter of self discovery for Ichigo, discovering his own inner strength as well as being made more aware of the kind of world he has found himself thrust into by his own decisions and choice. There is far more to being a soul reaper than just running around and disposing of hollows along with performing the act of Konso – soul funeral on souls. And it seems that the owner of Urahara Shoten knows quite a considerable amount of information in regard to soul reapers and the Soul Society, if anything this volume answers some questions only to pose more.
Still it’s what you would expect in one of the more popular manga series running around at the moment, an ongoing storyline that is only revealed piece by piece as the narrative progresses. You don’t want it all dumped on you in one big heap as you’d probably forget it all in the next instalment, much better to enjoy the onion peeling approach, letting the storyteller peel back layer after layer as things progress. In a serialised tale you appreciate the story much more with this approach and it also allows you to appreciate certain foreshadowing or side stories that appear and eventually assist in character and plot development. Frankly I feel that Bleach is one of the greatest manga’s available and Tite Kubo is a superb artist and writer, he’s really hit the nail on the head with this work…

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