Top Favorite Bleach Characters: the shakedown
WARNING: Spoilers abound. I put bigger spoilers behind cuts, but if you've seen past episode 150, then it's cool.
I recently started watching the anime Bleach. I know I'm a latecomer to the fandom, but even though it's only been a few weeks, I'm already up to episode 148. I found myself a handy episode guide, which told me which episodes were filler. Yeah, I heard the rumors... (I still think nothing beats Naruto as far as fillers go... >.>) I did watch a few fillers, like episode 132. ^_^;;
1. Hitsugaya Toushiro is currently my number one favorite character in Bleach. When I heard Romi Park's voice, I tried everything in my being to resist falling in love with him for that reason alone. Turns out, he's my favorite character type: the "Leo from TMNT" type ~ the mature, wise-beyond-years, cool disposition, intelligent, intuitive, etc... You get the idea. Plus, he's very aesthetically pleasing for a kid. (Just not fair! He makes me feel like a pedophile!)
Shiro-chan is a lot more powerful than I initially expected. Yeah, I knew he was a prodigy and all, but I didn't really know if he could clash swords against say... Ken-chan or not? I saw the Bleach movie, Diamond Dust Rebellion, and I realized that he's got a lot of endurance, too, as well as power. If you haven't seen the movie, don't read this: he took out an entire platoon on his own, while having a HOLE in his stomach after being impaled!!! That's incredible. He was very scary to watch, but very cool, too. ^_^;; I felt like such a fangirl. Like I said, I know he's accomplished for his age and all, but compared to the biggest bad asses in Bleach, I didn't think he was as powerful as Ken-chan and Ichigo, but I think he is now... I definitely foresee him growing up to be the next captain-commander.
2. Zaraki Kenpachi is probably anywhere between my second favorite to my fifth favorite. (I don't really keep favorites beyond the first in one specific spot; it's more like electrons in an electron shell - fuzzy.) I go through withdrawals when I don't see Ken-chan make an appearance. He reminds me of a cross between a dragon and a T-Rex. I personally think that he's very huggable, and I want a plushie of him! I love his personality, and his lieutenant is a delightful accessory.
3. Yoruichi is by far the most interesting of the female characters. She has the most depth to her, the most intelligence, and I love cats. I knew she was a female from the start. I didn't spoil myself much before watching Bleach, but that was one of the few spoilers I had gotten. She's wonderful, she's fun, and she kicks ass! I wish she had more screentime, though...
4. Urahara to me is a cross between Shigure (Fruits Basket) and Jiraya (Naruto). He's a pariah, elusive, and obviously more intelligent and skillful than he appears to be. I love those character types, and he really grew on me, despite his weird outfit, which also grew on me...
5. Ichigo started off as my favorite from the very first episode. I honestly didn't expect to like him as much as I do. He far outshines his human friends in characterization. He's currently in the range of second favorite to fifth favorite, like Ken-chan. (Again, I have fuzzy rankings for favs.) Since he's the main character, I have high expectations. Currently, there isn't much development for him in the arc I'm watching now, but I'm waiting for the big showdown between him and Aizen, whom I detest.
I love Ichigo's father and sisters, too. I also like Kon a lot. I don't like Rukia so much. I think she's boring, but she's not as contrived as Orihime, at least. I tried my best to give Rukia a chance, since she's the lead female. However, I'm at episode 146, and her character has barely developed. She doesn't have enough depth to suit my liking.
Ichigo has a lot of depth, but it's often overshadowed by the writers in favor of fight scenes, rawr-rawr-rawr, and yadda yadda yadda. (You get the idea.) I'm not surprised, and I don't hold it against him. It's a shounen anime, after all.
6. Renji is an adorable goofball, 'nuff said. In terms of TMNT, he's a Michelangelo with Raph's hot-headedness. Maybe it's my imagination, but it seems to me that Renji's not as tough as they made him out to be in the beginning. Maybe it's just a matter of perspective, since we're meeting bigger and badder and more powerful characters as the series progresses. (It wouldn't be a shounen otherwise...) I love Renji a lot, but he's dropped to a definite sixth place because he is starting to fulfill the accessory role - the role that Ishida, Chad, and Orihime were written for.
7. Others: I don't really like any of Ichigo's friends. Chad's interesting to me only because he's an atypical character in anime, being Mexican, after all. Orihime is the big-boobed airhead, and I typically don't like these characters. (Not that I mind big boobs, I just value intelligence.) I like her friend, the karate chick. Ishida is annoying to me, as well as Rukia's brother, Byakuya. They're both the Sasuke (Naruto) type - not a fav. Kon is fun, but there is only so far you can go with him before it gets old.
None of the Vizards or the Arrancar have made an impression me.
I also like Ikkaku a lot, the captain of the eighth squad, whom I'd like to learn more about, and Pretty Boy (Ikkaku's friend) actually doesn't get on my nerves like I thought he would... LOL I also like Ganju, the boar rider. I've grown to like Matsumoto, but there are times when she's annoying. I would normally put her in the "unattainable big boobed" category, like Ganju's sister - the firework nut whose name I can't recall at the moment, Yoruichi, and Tsunade (Naruto), but her personality is too bubbly for that. I can see her actually falling for a guy - like Urd (Ah My Goddess). Like Tsunade, when breasts are THAT big, it adds years, not sexiness. I think the lieutenant looks twice as old as she ought to look.
I hate Aizen and Ichimaru. I don't hate the third dude that went with them, despite that he's a traitor, too. He seems to just be fighting for the wrong side like an idiot or something... Aizen and Ichimaru are traitors, and those are the characters I hate the most. I can't stand betrayals.
Oh, and Sajin Komamura needs love!
I recently started watching the anime Bleach. I know I'm a latecomer to the fandom, but even though it's only been a few weeks, I'm already up to episode 148. I found myself a handy episode guide, which told me which episodes were filler. Yeah, I heard the rumors... (I still think nothing beats Naruto as far as fillers go... >.>) I did watch a few fillers, like episode 132. ^_^;;
1. Hitsugaya Toushiro is currently my number one favorite character in Bleach. When I heard Romi Park's voice, I tried everything in my being to resist falling in love with him for that reason alone. Turns out, he's my favorite character type: the "Leo from TMNT" type ~ the mature, wise-beyond-years, cool disposition, intelligent, intuitive, etc... You get the idea. Plus, he's very aesthetically pleasing for a kid. (Just not fair! He makes me feel like a pedophile!)
Shiro-chan is a lot more powerful than I initially expected. Yeah, I knew he was a prodigy and all, but I didn't really know if he could clash swords against say... Ken-chan or not? I saw the Bleach movie, Diamond Dust Rebellion, and I realized that he's got a lot of endurance, too, as well as power. If you haven't seen the movie, don't read this: he took out an entire platoon on his own, while having a HOLE in his stomach after being impaled!!! That's incredible. He was very scary to watch, but very cool, too. ^_^;; I felt like such a fangirl. Like I said, I know he's accomplished for his age and all, but compared to the biggest bad asses in Bleach, I didn't think he was as powerful as Ken-chan and Ichigo, but I think he is now... I definitely foresee him growing up to be the next captain-commander.
2. Zaraki Kenpachi is probably anywhere between my second favorite to my fifth favorite. (I don't really keep favorites beyond the first in one specific spot; it's more like electrons in an electron shell - fuzzy.) I go through withdrawals when I don't see Ken-chan make an appearance. He reminds me of a cross between a dragon and a T-Rex. I personally think that he's very huggable, and I want a plushie of him! I love his personality, and his lieutenant is a delightful accessory.
3. Yoruichi is by far the most interesting of the female characters. She has the most depth to her, the most intelligence, and I love cats. I knew she was a female from the start. I didn't spoil myself much before watching Bleach, but that was one of the few spoilers I had gotten. She's wonderful, she's fun, and she kicks ass! I wish she had more screentime, though...
4. Urahara to me is a cross between Shigure (Fruits Basket) and Jiraya (Naruto). He's a pariah, elusive, and obviously more intelligent and skillful than he appears to be. I love those character types, and he really grew on me, despite his weird outfit, which also grew on me...
5. Ichigo started off as my favorite from the very first episode. I honestly didn't expect to like him as much as I do. He far outshines his human friends in characterization. He's currently in the range of second favorite to fifth favorite, like Ken-chan. (Again, I have fuzzy rankings for favs.) Since he's the main character, I have high expectations. Currently, there isn't much development for him in the arc I'm watching now, but I'm waiting for the big showdown between him and Aizen, whom I detest.
I love Ichigo's father and sisters, too. I also like Kon a lot. I don't like Rukia so much. I think she's boring, but she's not as contrived as Orihime, at least. I tried my best to give Rukia a chance, since she's the lead female. However, I'm at episode 146, and her character has barely developed. She doesn't have enough depth to suit my liking.
Ichigo has a lot of depth, but it's often overshadowed by the writers in favor of fight scenes, rawr-rawr-rawr, and yadda yadda yadda. (You get the idea.) I'm not surprised, and I don't hold it against him. It's a shounen anime, after all.
6. Renji is an adorable goofball, 'nuff said. In terms of TMNT, he's a Michelangelo with Raph's hot-headedness. Maybe it's my imagination, but it seems to me that Renji's not as tough as they made him out to be in the beginning. Maybe it's just a matter of perspective, since we're meeting bigger and badder and more powerful characters as the series progresses. (It wouldn't be a shounen otherwise...) I love Renji a lot, but he's dropped to a definite sixth place because he is starting to fulfill the accessory role - the role that Ishida, Chad, and Orihime were written for.
7. Others: I don't really like any of Ichigo's friends. Chad's interesting to me only because he's an atypical character in anime, being Mexican, after all. Orihime is the big-boobed airhead, and I typically don't like these characters. (Not that I mind big boobs, I just value intelligence.) I like her friend, the karate chick. Ishida is annoying to me, as well as Rukia's brother, Byakuya. They're both the Sasuke (Naruto) type - not a fav. Kon is fun, but there is only so far you can go with him before it gets old.
None of the Vizards or the Arrancar have made an impression me.
I also like Ikkaku a lot, the captain of the eighth squad, whom I'd like to learn more about, and Pretty Boy (Ikkaku's friend) actually doesn't get on my nerves like I thought he would... LOL I also like Ganju, the boar rider. I've grown to like Matsumoto, but there are times when she's annoying. I would normally put her in the "unattainable big boobed" category, like Ganju's sister - the firework nut whose name I can't recall at the moment, Yoruichi, and Tsunade (Naruto), but her personality is too bubbly for that. I can see her actually falling for a guy - like Urd (Ah My Goddess). Like Tsunade, when breasts are THAT big, it adds years, not sexiness. I think the lieutenant looks twice as old as she ought to look.
I hate Aizen and Ichimaru. I don't hate the third dude that went with them, despite that he's a traitor, too. He seems to just be fighting for the wrong side like an idiot or something... Aizen and Ichimaru are traitors, and those are the characters I hate the most. I can't stand betrayals.
Oh, and Sajin Komamura needs love!