#during NEL arc or season 3

[animentality]

I'm not looking forward to season 3 of Blue Lock.

There will be good moments sprinkled here and there, like Bachira doing his monster thing, Chigiri stealing from Kaiser, Nagi and Reo getting re-married, but the Neo Egoist League Arc is way too long. It's gonna be like 25 full episodes, since the entire arc is over a hundred chapters long, and most of them will be Isagi beefing with Kaiser against players we don't care about.

Plus, all the matches are basically the same. Isagi's team wins every one, and he gets the final goal.

Also he calls Kaiser a bitch.

It's not that I hate Kaiser, I actually love him, I think he's the best character introduced in the NEL arc, it's just that the first arcs of Blue Lock knew not to focus on just one rivalry all the time.

We got new rivalries all throughout the First Selection.

We had an even dispersal of, ok Bachira's a new rival, now here's Kunigami, now here's Chigiri, now here's Nagi and Reo - these were all interesting characters who had space to breathe and develop personal relationships with our MC.

They all had matches where they got to shine as the main play makers. Kunigami got super goals. Bachira outdribbled an entire team on his own. Chigiri had the most epic First Selection moment, when he broke the chains weighing him down. Reo and Nagi were introduced as a demonic duo, and had an entire match to show how good they were together.

Even that side ass character Kuon had an interesting moment...hell, he had two. He fucked up two different games, betrayed his team, and then redeemed himself.

He wasn't even a major character, but he had a singular story to tell, that didn't rely entirely on the specific match he played in, or the goals he scored.

But the Neo Egoist League Arc is like...a rushed mess, that somehow managed to take up 40% of the entire manga at the same time.

It's got the dense, complicated character juggling of the U20 arc, except not good, lol. U20 had high stakes. It was intense, and every character was juggled, sure, but at least they all had their time to shine. That's 22+ characters who had to get some focus, plus the substitutions. I'd say Kaneshiro did a banger job of maintaining the tension, while still moving us around from person to person with consistency. But NEL?

The stakes were immediately lowered by the fact that winning the matches doesn't matter, scoring does.

And it like, cycles through every important character, gives them a single goal, and then proceeds on to the next player who needs to get a goal. Then it neglects that character for another twenty chapters.

There's no even pacing here.

And what's worse is that most of the players on these teams are...not that interesting. Karasu and Otoya, most of the European team members, who basically don't exist... I personally don't like Niko, who just does the same thing Isagi does, or Yukimiya (although at least Yukimiya's backstory is depressingly real, and kinda compelling, even if he himself isn't utilized that well).

I like Hiori, but Nanase and Kurona and Kiyora...I mean, they're kinda just there to give Isagi assists...

They're not quirky and weird and relatable like the freaks of First Selection. They don't get the time and spotlight they need for me to really care.

Like any of these characters could probably be great if the pacing was better, but... it's like the mangaka will just speed through a backstory before one of them passes to Isagi. And then that's it.

The only true spotlight is given to Kaiser or Isagi.

Now Isagi is the MC, so that's alright, although can I just say, he's kind of unlikable during the NEL arc, like, Jesus Christ, was he...awful when he was against Man City...if he hadn't apologized to Yukimiya...hmmm...and after an entire match of calling Nagi and Reo slurs too, lol...but I digress...

And Kaiser is good, he's great, but can you imagine how boring the First Selection arc would've been if it was entirely dedicated to Isagi just beefing with Barou?

Like come on.

It's basically just a glorified training arc, that abandons what made Blue Lock interesting in the first place, which is the high stakes, but then doesn't have the decency to at least still give us the great character drama that we've come to expect from BL.

And that's a shame.

It's also fucking ridiculous for a training arc to be so long.

God.

I hope it ends soon.

Please get back on track.

[my-cuppa-bleach]

Bleach Arcs: Ranked

So, once again, I’m stealing this idea from @incorrctbleach​, because I wanted to rank the general Bleach arcs in the same way they did. (I know I said I was going to do a post about Bankai next, and I’m working on it, but... it’s hard.) I’m just gonna use the arc divisions that they used, so if you wanna see that post, click here.

12. The Bount Invasion arc

This arc is... Okay, I really did try to understand this arc when I was watching it, but it’s so hard to understand because it doesn’t make sense. I had no idea why they were out for revenge on Soul Society, all the characters were flat, and their abilities were horrid. Honestly, everything about this arc makes me angry. Not to mention, it ruined Ishida’s character for me for a very long time. He was represented really badly in this arc and I couldn’t bring myself to fall in love with him again until the anime returned to the Hueco Mundo arc. Plus, it dragged on for forever. I can’t really explain beyond that, and I don’t think I have to because I imagine most people hate this arc.

11. The Lost Substitute Shinigami arc

Otherwise known as the Fullbring arc. So, I don’t really hate any arc like I hate the Bount arc, but this arc fell the flattest in terms of story, to me. Again, the antagonists were extremely flat, and I didn’t have any sort of emotional response toward any of them. Not hate, not interest, not a sense of liking; they were all just... blah. I mean, Riruka was alright, I guess, but compared to the plethora of rich characters we’d gotten before the Fullbring arc, every single Fullbringer was a let down. I will say that seeing Ichigo deal with his lack of powers and the breakdown he had at the end was great, but the lack of beloved characters was a shame, as well. Their return in the end is the sole reason this arc isn’t at the bottom of the list, to be honest... Plus, it isn’t a total waste of time like the Bount arc.

10. The New Captain Shūsuke Amagai arc

I’m gonna be real, this arc wasn’t that bad. Sure, Rurichiyo was a little annoying at times, but her scenes with Ichigo were quite sweet. And, sure, Amagai’s reason for wanting to kill Yama was a bit... over-dramatic, but he was also a really neat character. Not to mention, we got to know a little more about Kira through this arc, and I came to love him as a result of that. Is it annoying that it interrupted the Arrancar era? Yeah. Did the final battle not really make sense because the fight with Aizen should’ve prepared Ichigo for anything, especially someone like Amagai? 100%. Was it aggravating that this arc took up multiple seasons and wasn’t clearly fitted into the timeline of the anime? For sure. But, it wasn’t that bad. 

9. The Agent of the Shinigami arc

Here’s the thing: you think this is horrible that this is so low on the list because it’s the first arc, however, that just means the caliber and quality of the series just kept getting better and better, to the point that I’m comfortable having this arc this low on my list. Of course, it was amazing. We got to know Rukia and see her relationship with Ichigo develop, plus the end of the arc was so brilliant with Renji and Byakuya. I don’t have anything bad to say about this arc. I mean, it isn’t as action-packed as the rest of the series, I suppose, but it’s the first arc! Honestly, it’s kind of a comfort arc, for me. It’s nice to think about the simpler days with Ichigo and Rukia. 

8. The Arrancar: The Arrival arc

There was a lot to love in this arc. Grimmjow was introduced, Shinji was introduced (with the other Visoreds), Ichigo began to come to terms with his Hollow abilities, other Shinigami came to The World of the Living, and, most importantly, we finally got back to the Aizen storyline. To be honest, the arcs that take place in The World of the Living aren’t ever as interesting to me as the ones that take place elsewhere (save for one specific arc that I’ll get to later). I think because the resources--like Reishi--are limited, it makes for a slightly duller viewing experience. Which, of course, is fine because you need the slower periods of time to offset the extremely intense periods of time. Everybody was focused on training during this arc, anyway, so it’s understandable. This arc was a good setup for the rest of the Arrancar era, but that’s about it. It’s still amazing, though.

7. The Goeti 13 Invading Army arc

I really wish this could be higher up on the list, but alas, this is where I shall put it. There was a lot to love with this arc, as well. Seeing characters fight against themselves or versions of their comrades was always interesting to watch. One of my absolute favorite sections of this arc belongs to Nozomi and Kon. I will forever be bitter that they didn’t end up together. And, how about that Hollowfied Ichigo in the end? Rukia protecting him from the (admittedly terrible and cringy) antagonist was everything. It’s very similar to the Zanpakutō Unknown Tales arc, and I love that one as well, so it makes sense that this would be amazing to me.

6. The Zanpakutō Unknown Tales arc

Gosh, I loved this arc so much. I absolutely adored everybody’s Zanpakutō spirits. I mean, how could you not? One of my favorites, and this was one of the biggest “WHAT” moments for me during the final arc, was Nanao’s. Their story was absolutely beautiful. I’m also gonna go ahead and say that the Sword Beasts part of this arc was not that bad, either. I rather enjoyed all the individual stories with everybody’s Zanpakutō spirits. Anyway, added on to all of that, the plot with Muramasa and Kōga was terribly sad. I actually felt bad for both of them by the end of it all. I don’t want to gush forever, but this arc was amazing.

5. The Arrancar: The Hueco Mundo arc

Okay, listen. Don’t kill me. I know this is everyone’s favorite arc, and I totally understand why. I don’t have any issues with it, myself. I just don’t happen to enjoy it as much as the next four arcs. It made my top five, though. That’s good, right? No, but honestly, this arc was flawless. Every single fight was perfectly executed, even the fights with the Espada I didn’t care about. The whole arc--everything from meeting Nel to the captains showing up--was extremely entertaining. To be honest, I think all the fillers that interrupted this arc is why it’s number five and not number one. If I had been more immersed in the arc, I probably would’ve enjoyed it even more, but it was pretty damn enjoyable as is. I dunno what else to say. Nel = the cutest cute to ever cute. Grimmjow = daddy. Ulquiorra = eternal sadness for me. RIP UlquiHime. 

4. The Past arc

I. Love. This. Arc. I wanted more of it. An eternal supply. A seperate series, I don’t care. I’m in love with Shinji, Urahara is my boo, Yoruichi and Soi Fon give me life, and learning how everybody knew each other was bomb as fuck. I cannot tell you how lit I was right after this arc when you see Shinji and the Visoreds walk out of their base to kick Aizen’s ass (which didn’t go very well, but I digress). After seeing all the shit that Aizen put them through, I was hollering, it was so fucking epic. It’s crazy to think that Hiyori and Yoruichi served together or that Aizen was Shinji’s lieutenant or that Mayuri served under Kisuke or that Urahara, Yoruichi, and the Visoreds were captains way before some of my favorite captains were captains. It’s just so cool to see how everything came together for them.

3. The Quincy Blood War arc

I’m not gonna lie... the beginning was slow. Like... boring, almost. And the final fight ended way too abruptly. And I didn’t get the ending I wanted (not just because of the pairings, but because of the fact that I didn’t see how everyone was doing after the ten year timeskip). But everything in between made it so worth while. The battles! Oh my goodness, I need them animated right now. All of them were so good! Namely Kenpachi’s and Unohana’s, the battle Yoruichi and Urahara fought together, and the one Byakuya and Tōshirō fought together. And almost every single character developed a crazy amount. I was so impressed with Renji and Rukia, they were insane. There were so many revelations and bombshells in this arc, as well, and all of them had me shook. I loved it. As far as the final pairings go, no I don’t agree with them, but if Renji and Rukia’s daughter grows up to marry Orihime and Ichigo’s son, all will be forgiven. Love, love, love this arc. I’d also like to add that I want to kill that Haschwalth myself for hurting Bazz-B. 

2. The Soul Society Arc

This was a hard one to place, guys. In the end, it was just perfect. Especially now that I know the Shinigami better after finishing the series. This is yet another arc where the battles were on point. Poor Ichigo fought so many people, but by the end of it all, all of Soul Society respected him and learned to depend on him. Not to make this about ships, but Ichigo coming to save Rukia killed me. I’d die that death a thousand times. Other than that, I just enjoyed meeting all the new characters and learning about them. This arc was very intense, but also serene in a way... weird, but beautiful.

1. The Fake Karakura Town arc

Is this a weird arc to have as my top arc? Hopefully not. I just can’t get over how good it was. For me to be able to see everybody fighting their own individual battles? That was like a dream. And that’s strange because, to be honest, I didn’t really like the top three Espada (although Baraggan’s abilities were the shit). Oh my goodness, and the Visoreds rolling up, ready to throw down and kick some serious ass got me so excited? By the way, when I say “The Fake Karakura Town arc,” I’m including the piece where Aizen and Gin invade Soul Society. Which means I’m including the Ichigo vs. Aizen fight. Which also means I’m including Ichigo and Rukia’s goodbye. So... yeah. All of that. That’s why this is my favorite arc. 

Anyway, let me know if you agree or disagree or, hell, make your own list and tag me! I can’t stop talking about this show. I... I have a problem. I really do.

I promise the Bankai post is coming, I just need to plan it out a little better and get it down on “paper,” so to speak, properly. Thanks for reading!