Ichigo has come face-to-face with Quilge Opie in Bleach Thousand Year Blood War Episode 3, and as the first proper battle in the newest season, you know it is going to be something! Let’s get right to the review!
Bleach Thousand Year Blood War Episode 3 Overview
What is there to be said about Bleach that hasn’t been said before? It is one of the most popular anime in the west of Japan of all time and is considered a part of the Big Three, a trio of anime widely recognised as having been a part of popularising the medium of anime. The show is back after a hiatus of nine years, as its first run ended in 2013. The newest season of the show is being developed by Studio Pierrot, the studio behind the original series, as well as other giants such as Naruto and Tokyo Ghoul.
The final arc of Bleach is directed by Tomohisa Taguchi, who has been involved in the productions of Persona 4 The Animation and Twin Star Exorcists, and the series is based on a manga written by Tite Kubo. This episode is also referred to in original Japanese as Bleach Sennen Kessen-hen Episode 3 (Bleach Sennen Kessen hen Episode 3) and Bleach TYBW Episode 3. Click here to read the review of the previous episode!
– Bleach Sennen Kessen hen Episode 3 Review does not contain spoilers –
Bleach Thousand Year Blood War Episode 3 Review- The First Face-Off
Ah, there really is nothing in anime better than a good fight. We all win when there’s good against bad and an unstoppable force against an immovable object. Bleach has always had great fights and has made a name out of having some fantastic confrontations. With the new animation style and the increased quality of this new season, the prospect of every new fight brings a lot of anticipation. This time, it was Ichigo vs Opie that had all the excitement of the fans, and how could it not? It was Ichigo, our boy hero, taking down an honest-to-god Sternritter.
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True to form, the fight between the two was at the forefront of Bleach Thousand Year Blood War Episode 3, and it was fantastic. Setting aside the animation and brilliant sound design, which were always going to be good, it did a great job in introducing all of the Quincy’s strengths and (lack of) weaknesses and making it a part of the narrative that Ichigo had walked into a fight this dangerous without knowing anything about his opponents, same as the audience. That is the natural way of doing things which has been done in anime for ages, and Bleach is no different. In fact, some would say Bleach is a little too familiar with this kind of storytelling.
For decades now, Bleach has been facing complaints of samey-ness in its arcs. The critics often point to the fact that the show finds ways to create enemies with different numbered values for our group of main characters to systematically take down while providing multiple different matchups. First of all, how is that a bad thing? Bleach has a unique formula with which its writer knows how to write well and translates into some phenomenal moments. Second of all, this isn’t even the same thing! The Sterritters have alphabets, not numbers! The last statement was only semi-joking, by the way.
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The difference between the previous times and this one is that even if Ichigo isn’t familiar with what is happening around him, everyone else is. Quincies are a humongous threat not only because they are supposed to be extinct but also because the show has subtly built them up for so long. Each new episode brings us closer to who the Quincy King is and his past, and the show maintains the anticipation very well with its fast pace and smart storytelling. This episode featured their past through Uryu, who is an endlessly fascinating character in this arc, being the last true Quincy.
Finally, the fight. What else could one say about it, except it was great? Opie is a great character to build a fight like this around because he is strong without being too overwhelming while still being talkative and prideful enough to be convincingly acting as an info dump without destroying the flow of the show. The Soul Reapers also saw more importance this time around, with some of them even having a few lines of dialogue. One would have never imagined them being this low-key three episodes into the series, but here we are. The ending of the episode did put us somewhere we are going to see them put in some work, whether they like it or not.
Verdict
Bleach Thousand Year Blood War Episode 3 was fast-paced, pretty, engaging, and highly entertaining with its fight scenes and world-building. This is a show that makes you look forward to a Monday.
Click here to read the review of the next episode!