32 - Bleach (Agent of the Shinigami arc) by Tite Kubo
Continuing on our arc-by-arc breakdowns of our personal favourite battle shonen, we’re onto Samu’s all-timer: Bleach by Tite Kubo. Much like with Rurouni Kenshin we’re focusing on the first arc (Agent of the Shinigami) for this episode. Check it out to get a glimpse into Enzo’s first proper experience with any of the Big 3!
Timestamps:
0:00 Introduction - Samu’s journey with his favourite manga
6:27 Enzo’s experience with the Big 3 and expectations for Bleach specifically
8:32 Comparing the first arcs of the Big 3
9:05 Ichigo as a main character - not having an obvious goal, a more human motivation
14:35 Bleach’s ‘cool factor’
15:17 Tite Kubo’s efficient artwork, critiques of the lack of backgrounds, prioritising panel flow
20:49 Bleach has the best chapter title pages in manga, period
21:34 A series that feels like it’s made to be in black and white - it’s meant to be a manga?
23:51 The volume poem’s - Orihime’s being the highlight of this arc
24:46 Spoiler discussion begins
24:58 Orihime’s character - Samu’s love for her, her mistreatment by fans, her tragic backstory
29:21 June 17th, Grand Fisher/Masaki Storyline and Ichigo’s guilt and white knight complex
33:30 Rukia’s character, her dynamic with Ichigo + a fight to protect life or to preserve honour
36:49 Isshin Kurosaki - Enzo’s least favourite character so far
39:52 The hit-or-miss humour (Kon and Don Kanoji), exceptions that are actually funny
41:10 Chad - Enzo’s favourite character so far
45:56 Uryu Ishida, the Quinces - the rival to Ichigo and the Shinigami
48:09 Byakuya and Renji’s arrival - when Bleach truly ‘begins’; set-up for Soul Society arc
52:36 Kisuke Urahara as a mentor/training figure
55:48 What currently running Jump series is the most direct descendent of Bleach?
1:01:02 Samu’s Recommendation: Yu Yu Hakusho (Spirit Detective arc) by Yoshihiro Togashi
1:02:26 Enzo’s Recommendation: Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba by Kyoharu Gotougehi
1:05:18 Overview and final scores
My Taste is Better Than Yours
Welcome to My Taste is Better Than Yours, the manga podcast with Samu and Guardian Enzo! Who are we? Two anime bloggers (Samu former, Enzo current - at https://lostinanime.com) who love manga.
We'll discuss some of our favourite manga series and let you decide which one of us has the better taste. Throughout this podcast we’ll be covering series we've both already read or follow, as well as series one of us recommends to the other to compare our opinions. From time-to-time we’ll also cover some general manga-related topics and discussions.
- No. of episodes: 33
- Latest episode: 2025-05-05
- Leisure Animation & Manga
Where can you listen?
