Product Description

The day of Rukia's execution draws ever closer, and to save her, Ichigo and his loyal comrades must navigate the madness of a Soul Society on the brink of collapse. Ichigo and Renji face the most difficult training of their Soul Reaper careers as they struggle to achieve bankai, without which they have no hope against the most powerful captain of the Seireitei--Byakuya Kuchiki. While all the players converge at the site of Rukia's imminent execution, in the background, a group of Soul Reapers slowly uncover an unimaginable betrayal at the hands of one of their own--a betrayal that will shake the Soul Society to its very core.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #18094 in DVD
• Released on: 2009-07-14
• Rating: Unrated
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Animated, Box set, Color, Dubbed, DVD, Full Screen, Special Edition, Subtitled, NTSC
• Original language: Japanese, English
• Subtitled in: English
• Dubbed in: English
• Number of discs: 5
• Running time: 550 minutes

Amazon.com
The third season of the hit fantasy-adventure Bleach marks the conclusion of the story arc that began in "The Substitute" two seasons earlier. Orange-haired, hot-tempered Ichigo Kurosaki and his friends--Chad, Orihime, Ishida, and Master Yoruichi, the talking cat--pass through the inter-dimensional portal linking Earth to the Seireitei, the stronghold of the Soul Society. Although they’ve come to rescue Rukia from execution, the arrival of the teenagers precipitates a deadly civil war within the Soul Society. Amid the growing chaos, Yoruichi reveals she was a princess in the Seireitei before she fled to Earth. When she realizes Ichigo isn't strong enough to survive the impending battles, Yoruichi spirits him away. He must be able to achieve Bankai, the ultimate power over his Zanpak-tô sword, which he learns by dueling with Zangetsu, the spirit of the sword. Despite exhaustion and the wounds he's received, Ichigo fights with grim determination. While Ichigo trains, some of the Soul Society's most formidable officers join the teenagers, including Toshiro, the child-prodigy captain, the fantastically tattooed Renji, and the spiky-haired Kenpachi. Ichigo arrives just in time to save Rukia. Drawing on the grueling training he's just completed, Ichigo fends off the clouds of murderous blades summoned by Rukia's haughty brother Byakuya. During the battle, Ichigo begins to grow a half-mask that resembles the monstrous Hollows. Horrified, he rips it away and renews his attack. But Ichigo has no time to celebrate his narrow victory: he, his friends, Rukia, and the Soul Society Captains have all been used as pawns by an unscrupulous villain. Director Noriyuke Abe once again shifts from dramatic derring-do to broad comedy as he sets the stage for the next story arc. Ichigo's time in the Seireitei made him stronger--but is he strong enough for the adventures that await him? The Limited Edition version includes a model of the mask Ichigo grows during his duel with Byakuya. Elegantly minimal and a dead-on model, it's a premium genuinely worth having. (Rated "Teen," suitable for ages 13 and older: violence, grotesque imagery, alcohol use, risqué humor) --Charles Solomon

Customer Reviews

Details about the Limited Collector's Hollow Mask
There are plenty of well written reviews on this page and the standard box set of season 3 Uncut Bleach page that all articulate very well just how awesome this show is. Season 3 ranks among the best (though later seasons which have aired in Japan are EVEN better, and this sesaon sets the groundwork for the later storyline.)

I am strictly going to talk about the Limited Collector's Hollow Mask which comes with this set, so you can decide if it is worth it the extra money. Someone smarter than me will probably post the picture, or I will if I can figure out how. It still warrants a description though, more than just a visual.

I am not usually one for "collectible knick knack" items found in limited edition sets, like figurines, etc. But this is just really, really cool.

The hollow mask is very high quality, seems like it's some type of material similar to ceramic--but very solidly molded (not delicate.) It is boldly painted, and brilliantly, is it a fragment of the mask (a "broken" mask piece) and comes with a display stand, the base of which is weighted and is the familiar substitute soul reaper badge.

It is not meant for cosplay, and the "broken" Hollow mask (it belongs to a certain character, and figures quite prominently in later seasons) is slightly smaller than the size of the dvd box set. (It comes packaged in its own box, which is shrink-wrapped with the dvd box set.) Again, I am not usually one for collectible items, but as a fan of the show, this was just one of the coolest possible bonus items. The inner anime geek in me is in love with it.

If that's the only way, then I'll just have to do it
Now that they've gotten into the Soul Society and the Seireitei, Ichigo and Co. have ANOTHER problem: rescuing Rukia and escaping with their body parts intact.

Unfortunately, it's not going to be that easy. "Bleach: The Rescue" kicks everything about this brilliant anime up a notch -- lots of blood, sword-fights, a fiery climax at the execution grounds, and some amazing character development. But the best part is that the treacherous conspiracy merely hinted at in prior episodes, which sparks a minor civil war within the Seireitei.

Yoruichi starts the badly-wounded Ichigo on a special new training regimen -- to rescue Rukia, he must achieve achieve bankai (the ultimate release of a zanpakuto) in three days. In the meantime, Uryu has encountered the most horrendous of Soul Reapers, who is responsible for the death of a loved one, and Captain Hitsugaya is confronted by an old friend who tries to kill him -- accusing him of murdering Captain Aizen.

But the chaos really starts when Rukia's execution day rolls around: mass murder is revealed, captains turn against one another, and Renji fights a devastating battle against the implacable Byakuya. Ichigo appears on the execution hill with devastating new power -- intent on rescuing Rukia and defeating her brother once and for all. But when he seems to be losing, a horrific new change comes over him.

And in the meantime, the conspiracy that's ripping apart the Soul Reapers is revealed -- the identify of the Big Bad and his sidekicks, the reason he wants Rukia dead, and how many people he'll coldly destroy to get what he wants.

"Bleach: The Rescue" is a turning point for the entire series -- everything before it has built to this point, and everything in the future will spring from it. For an action anime, it is also quite heavy on the plot as it sets up the Big Bad: faked murders, real murders, conspiracies, hypnotic tricks, betrayals, a clever triple-cross perpetrated by Gin Ichimaru, and Urahara's hidden motive in helping Rukia.

There's also lots of brilliantly explosive action using ice dragons, black fire, razor-sharp cherry blossoms, exploding Soul Reapers, a giant bone-snake, and a firebird the size of a submarine. The action only serves to underscore the tension that is building throughout the entire season, until it explodes on Sokyoku Hill. It's also got solid dialogue, some quiet moments for Ichigo's pals (hanging out in prison) and some flashbacks to Renji, Rukia, Kira and Momo's days at the Academy.

Fortunately, all this dark stuff is speckled with funny moments like Ichigo's relaxation in a healing spring ("I AM GOING TO DROWN YOU!"), and an entire episode in which the characters unwind and recover after the events of "the rescue."

Our Hero really shows his stuff in this season -- Ichigo puts his life on the line to reach an incredible level of spiritual power, and rescue Rukia no matter what happens. Too bad he turns out to have a freaky dark side (and Johnny Yong Bosch has a brilliant demon cackle). And Uryu inadvertently gets to the bottom of his grandfather's death, and goes to devastating lengths to get revenge for what happened to him.

But most of the characters get to shine in this, although Chad and Orihime are somewhat neglected: the Yoruichi-obsessed Soi Fon, the kindly Ukitake and his best buddy Kyoraku, the happily hyperaggressive Zaraki, boy-genius Hitsugaya, and the fusty and arrogant Head Captain Yamamoto (among many others). We also learn how far Renji will go for Rukia, as well as the true reason why Byakuya has been so cold and seemingly cruel.

As for the limited edition, the big collectible toy bonus that differs from the regular one is apparently... a Hollow mask. Given the storyline here, I presume it's one belonging to a certain orange-haired teen.

"Bleach: The Rescue" is a brilliant arc of action-packed, tightly-wound anime, with a shocking twist at the core of the story. Definitely a must-see -- especially for everything that comes later.

Very good with minor flaws
The episodes themselves, of course, are very good. The 3rd season is excellent, and wraps up the story of Ichigo's quest to save Rukia. However, the product itself, the box, had some issues. First, the first two seasons' box sets had English text on each "page" - quotes from the show. This was cool, and this volume apparently continues this tradition with a slight problem - the text is in Japanese! The target audience of this box set, English-speaking audiences, can not read this text! My second issue is the same issue I have with many products these days, the anti-theft feature. The little magnetic strip which has been adhered to some part of the product, usually hidden so it can not be easily found and removed from the product in a store, first off, has no place in a product purchased on the internet. However, it seems that the anti-theft device is being placed not just by retailers, but by manufacturers now. The magnetic strip was stuck to the inside of one of the "pages" and removal of it peeled away some of the cardboard and ink which it was stuck to, thus ruining the aesthetically pleasing look of the product, and even making it look kind of "beat up" - which is a big problem for someone like me who takes extreme care of his books and DVDs. (to the point of keeping them in book cases with closing doors to keep dust out.)

The bonus item that came with the limited edition, the Ichigo Hollow Mask, is very well made of sturdy material. The base is solid and has a good weight to it. This is not cheaply made like so many similar products, and is definitely worth buying the Limited Edition for if you have a collection of anime figures and collectibles.

So, a 4 out of 5 for this product, but with proper packaging and the abolishment of the magnetic strip that is only an impedance to paying customers, this would have gotten a 5 out of 5.