Title: Bleach Vol 1:Death And The Strawberry
Author: Taito "Tite" Kubo
Publisher: Viz/ Shonen Jump
Copyright: 2004
ISBN: 9781591164418
Pages: 200
Price: $7.95 or €7.50
Rating: 9
Synopsis:
15-year-old Ichigo Kurosaki has a secret: he can see ghosts. He can talk to them too. In fact, he accepts it as normality. What's not normal, however, is when Rukia Kuchiki, a Shinigami (Soul Reaper) floats into his bedroom, huntiong a Hollow. She explains that she's sent by the Soul Society to kill Hollows, evil, soul-eating ghosts, and to protect innocents. At this point, a Hollow attacks, and Rukia is forced to lend Ichigo some of her powers to defend his family. To her suprise, Ichigo accidentally takes all her powers, and is forced to take her place as Soul Reaper... Ichigo reluctantly accepts his new Hollow-slaying duties, but soon learns that the spirit world hides many secrets...
Review:
I love this manga. I really do! It's one of the best I've ever read, and I enjoyed it from first page to last, and as soon as I closed it I couldn't wait for volume two! It's an excellent manga that I encourage you all to read, and here's why:
1.The artwork is excellent; Tite Kubo has a very definite, recognizable style that I love, and his characters are all drawn with care to make them unique. The angular style also adds to the slightly eerie atmosphere that pervades this series, and the characters visibly grow and mature as the series progresses. His artistic talent is evident, as many scenes are just a joy to look at, and treat as art in themselves.
2. The story is fantastic; It's almost pure fantasy, what with the ghostly monsters, samurai, psychic abilities, the big, dramatic fight scenes etc., but it also has a very personal level, as the characters' relationships grow, shift, and change. As a result, though this is classed as Shonen manga, it's appealled a lot to my female friends, who are now hooked! It rambles a bit at the start, but that's enjoyable anyway, and when the story settles down in later volumes, it's even better!
3. The characters are believable and very well developed over the series. Few characters, if any, are one-dimensional, and the main characters all develop and mature over time, as we learn more about their past. Tite Kubo refrains from having strictly good and evil characters, and there's a strong sense of humanity and vulnerability in all his creations, even those who at first seem very cold and strong.
4.Kubo doesn't take himself too seriously. It would be easy for him to get bogged down in po-faced drama and ridiculous hack 'n' slash scenes, but he doesn't. Ichigo and Orihime in particular are always good for a laugh, and a wry, silly sense of humour runs throughout, cleverly diffusing some tense or melodramatic scenes. Sometimes you can't help but laugh out loud!
Maybe I haven't made it clear how great i think this manga is. If you're still in doubt, just go and buy it! You won't regret it. :)
