Bleach 28 by Tite Kubo: B

From the back cover:
Ichigo, Chad and Uryu are determined to rescue Orihime from Aizen’s vile machinations. But though the Arrancars’ fortress is in sight, the would-be heroes must first pass Tres Cifras—the land of the disgraced Arrancars, who see destroying Ichigo and his friends as a way to redeem their honor!

Review:
There were times as I read this volume that I stopped and thought, “You know, this is completely ridiculous.” Like when Aizen, after making sure that his Espadas (the highest-ranked of the Arrancar) have had their tea, announces that Hueco Mundo has been invaded by Ichigo and friends. He basically tells them it’s no big deal, and to go back to their palaces and wait for the enemy to come to them. If they’d fight en masse, they could wipe the floor with Ichigo-tachi in, like, 2 minutes, so this is obviously advised only so that we can have a nice long arc in which the Espadas are defeated one at a time.

There were also, however, times when I thought, “Ooh, this is cool.” The Espadas look pretty nifty, and because there’s all this special energy in the air, Uryuu’s badass new skills are even more impressive. (Also, I was reminded anew of his similarities to Wesley Wyndam-Pryce.) There’s the dramatic appearance of a couple more friends, as well, but really the best moments are between Orihime and Ulquiorra, her Arrancar captor who I’d swear has begun to admire her quiet bravery. I want to see more of them than I do anything else at this point.

I might be more peeved about the ridiculous moments if I were actually buying and collecting Bleach, but since I’m not, I can simply like it for the things it does get right.

Review copy provided by the publisher.