User blog comment:Godisme/Die Standing/@comment-5609314-20121011220824/@comment-1248963-20121012053612

I'm going to partially agree but mostly disagree with you. Yes, some people's opinions towards the manga right now -I'm not calling names- is so incredibly hostile they make me wonder if they still enjoy it -and if they don't, why keep reading is beyond me-. I have mostly liked this arc, with a few exceptions here and there -like how Urahara has had a blade to his face for THREE freaking months and we still don't know who wields it- but I think, particularly talking about this chapter, that it's normal that everyone is unhappy with it.

It's not Yamamoto dying, or good guys dying in general. It's not because it's unpredictable -on the contrary, everyone was sure that Yamamoto would die in this arc- For me, it's the pace. I'm already sick of so many pointless battles that basically develop nothing but stress the point "OMGthebadguysareSOFREAKINGSTRONG!" which is the oldest shonen trope in history. And these villains are so overpowered I really wish they get killed by a nuclear bomb NAO. They make Aizen look like a fool, and he was already annoyingly overpowered.

Moreover, it's just going too fast. This arc started in March! It's been barely 20-ish chapters and Soul Society is already in ruins and Yamamoto died? And the Zero Squad is coming out any minute? How is this going to last 3 years at this rate? Not to mention, if Zero Squad does come out, the chances of the other Shinigami getting some moment to shine (mostly, the Bankai fest we've all wanted) will become nothing but a distant dream.

Which brings another point of discomfort (for me, at least) the stupid Bankai stealing. It's the cheapest plot device to weaken the main characters, avoid drawing Bankais (which, let's be honest is one of the things we like the most) and overpower the villains to the point of destroying Soul Society in 20 chapters. Shinigami aren't even /trying/ to figure out new strategies, they just watch in awe as their Bankai is taken away and then they get screwed with a single slash.

And that makes my final point -gosh, this has become so damn long-. As I said in my previous post, Yamamoto (the strongest character in Bleach) being one-shotted like that brings the bar too high. Unless Ichigo becomes god or something like that, I can't imagine a logic way in which he'll become strong enough to defeat Juhabach without pulling a Getsuga ShonenTrope!