Bleach

Bleach was the first ever anime that I watched, and is a great anime to get into. The storyline is great and you genuinely want to know what happens next. What may put some people off is it's size. What I recommend doing is skipping the filler arcs (Bount, Captain Amagai, Zanpaktou) and just watching the main story. The fillers aren't that great and if I was rating just from the fillers then the score would be much lower, and if I rated it just from non-filler then it would be higher. There are some great ideas in here and some epic music. There are also some great characters that are highly likable, but there are also characters who are not so good and you're bound to dislike at least one. Overall, Bleach is great if you get into it, and although it may take a while to catch up, it's defintiely worth it.

If you have never watched this show but have heard of the hype, here is your chance. If you have read the manga that's cool but if your tired of just the manga, then the animated series will hit the spot. I have been watching this series for years in Japanese without subs, and its great. Now all of you who do not understand Japanese will have the opportunity to enjoy it in its Full Glory!!! Get ready to get hooked on the Bleach Bug!

I wonder why Bleach still keeps getting my attention? I have made so many people get hooked on it, I've quit watching it so many times, yet still somehow, I am up to date in with who fights who, where, when and how! I don't usually watch series that take more than 20 episodes; to be honest I cant even remember all the series I've watched and not one of them have I ever re watched, but Bleach... oh so many times have I went back to see those episodes of the past. Bleach got my interest when it had about 150 episodes aired... I spent a week watching it and was caught up to date. I have loved and hated the show and am now going to list 3 pros and 3 con's of it.

pros
1. the characters are well built, you can be sure to find your favorite and the one you dislike the most. there's something for everyone.
2. the story lines are well thought out and it is not too predictable (at least not for me)
3. the animations and the voices are great!!

con's

1. this series rolls in one fight sometimes too much... multiple episodes of the same thing over and over from a different angle can be a bit tiring, specially if you know there's something better coming in. (then again, think this is with every show!)
2. the main character, Ichigo, is way too bland... could say he's too bleached.
3. the fillers... there are way too much fillers for the main arc....

All and all though, Bleach is a great show! It probably will not be taking my #1 spot but it isn't far behind.
It can definatelly be boring past time too though; sometimes the episodes are dull and lifeless and quite honestly, I would have 10 good episodes rather than 7 boring and 3 excellent ones... But that is just my opinion! If you like good fights, humour, a bit of seriousness and witty comments as well as nice twists in the plot, I suggest you sit back and let your mind carry you to Soul Society!

Bleach is a close-to-perfect anime (disregarding the filler and the bits where they explain EVERY LITTLE DETAIL about something)

I have just had a marathon of all the non-filler episodes back to back. All I can say that it has blown me away once more.

I have a few criticisms though. Firstly, Aizen seems to be able to predict everything that happens in the next hundred years (if you go by the story) which gets annoying and implausible. This is why i have given 4/5 for storyline and 4.5/5 for characters.
Secondly, filler. No-one likes it. If you intend to do a similar marathon viewing to what I have done, AVOID FILLER AT ALL COST. You will be bored to tears for 3-4 hours at a time with no character development at all.
Lastly, the characters explaining how they did something 3 times over or saying "I did this" "This is how I did it" "In other words...". That is easily the most annoying thing about the show and often eats up significant time in episodes with new content. Lets be honest here, even though this is a shonen anime, if the younger viewers among us can't understand what happened after one explanation, they have little hope of understanding the themes of the show as a whole.

I must praise the music above all else, as the show develops, so does the music. Fellow reviewers have been stating that it is repetitive but this music really does make the mood for this show for me. Perhaps the use of a little more silence might help but other than that, very good.

Overall, this anime is one that deserves to be watched and is highly enjoyable with complex themes and for the most part, well-crafted story-lines.