Bleach 4 by Tite Kubo: B

From the back cover:
A new reality-show craze is sweeping the nation, garnering legions of screaming fans. But this program comes with a supernatural twist—the host, a media-savvy spiritualist, travels to local hotspots and performs exorcisms, live on national TV! Surly Soul Reaper Ichigo Kurosaki has his doubts about this primetime prima donna, and his assumptions are about to be put to the test—the show is heading straight for his neighborhood. What effect will this unprovoked media presence have on the fragile balance between Earth and the spirit world?

Review:
Remember that meat of the story I thought we’d be progressing to about now? At first, this volume disappointed me, because it seemed that all we’d get was this mini-arc of little significance. Ichigo fights a Hollow at the taping of the flamboyant spiritualist’s show. Wow, surprise. But it eventually became apparent there are some repercussions from this event that will further the story along, so it wasn’t just filler after all.

Speaking of filler, I liked the first chapter about Kon’s search for a more loving owner than Ichigo. I also realized I like every one of the major and supporting characters, with the possible exception of Ichigo’s dad. Rukia continues to be an interesting combination of competent and girly, Ichigo’s sister Karin is possibly figuring some things out, Chad’s love of cute things is awesome, Tatsuki is also really beginning to grow on me as a character (I just love her character design) and Ishida is already a welcome addition.