Bleach [Bleach]Recommended Reading
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RE: Recommended Reading
Saw this in General Fanfiction:
Reality Ensues
Deep beneath the prison block, two holders of the title Kenpachi duel, and an ancient warrior falls to a mortal wound on the sword of her true successor... sorta. Warning: Spoils recent manga events and doesn't even feel guilty after.
Bleach - Rated: T - English - Humor/Parody - Chapters: 1 - Words: 3,254 - Reviews: 29 - Published: 2-25-13 - R. Unohana & Shunsui K. - Complete
Saw this in General Fanfiction:
Reality Ensues
Deep beneath the prison block, two holders of the title Kenpachi duel, and an ancient warrior falls to a mortal wound on the sword of her true successor... sorta. Warning: Spoils recent manga events and doesn't even feel guilty after.
Bleach - Rated: T - English - Humor/Parody - Chapters: 1 - Words: 3,254 - Reviews: 29 - Published: 2-25-13 - R. Unohana & Shunsui K. - Complete
RE: Recommended Reading
I suppose this might be how he generally does his stories, but The Secret Ingredient is Love doesn't really follow that. I suppose unless you think that Shirou being utterly oblivious to the NTR happening right under his nose is intelligent. You may have noticed I don't much care for NTR. :s
His other stories are typically much better.
I suppose this might be how he generally does his stories, but The Secret Ingredient is Love doesn't really follow that. I suppose unless you think that Shirou being utterly oblivious to the NTR happening right under his nose is intelligent. You may have noticed I don't much care for NTR. :s
His other stories are typically much better.
Sadly, no. I even went browsing on FF.net the other day which is something I haven't done for years but there's fuck all there. Most of them I didn't even bother going further than the summary. But since something is better than nothing:
A Grime Tale of Reapers
Isshin Kurosaki died years ago, and Ichigo has been living with his mother ever since. Life seems normal for him, until one day, he meets Rukia and is thrown into the spiritual world. Under the tutelage of a very shady shopkeeper, Ichigo becomes a shinigami. But things are not as simple as they initially seem… AU retelling of Bleach, major changes to canon plotline. IchiRuki.
Rated: T - English - Adventure/Drama - Chapters: 15 - Words: 112,945 - Reviews: 83 - Favs: 60 - Follows: 85 - Updated: 5-5-13 - Published: 10-2-12 - Ichigo K. Rukia K.
To Fight and Protect
The War was over, but Ichigo's subsequent exile starts a rebellion under the rule of Central 46. Two years later, Aizen escapes, sparking off a chain of events that thrusts Ichigo straight back into the world he had left behind. AU. Full summary inside.
Rated: Fiction T - English - Drama/Friendship - Ichigo K. - Chapters: 9 - Words: 99,501 - Reviews: 247 - Favs: 506 - Follows: 537 - Updated: 04-30-12 - Published: 08-18-11 - id: 7301835
Maybe someone caught a gem that I missed but I don't have much hope for it.
A Grime Tale of Reapers
Isshin Kurosaki died years ago, and Ichigo has been living with his mother ever since. Life seems normal for him, until one day, he meets Rukia and is thrown into the spiritual world. Under the tutelage of a very shady shopkeeper, Ichigo becomes a shinigami. But things are not as simple as they initially seem… AU retelling of Bleach, major changes to canon plotline. IchiRuki.
Rated: T - English - Adventure/Drama - Chapters: 15 - Words: 112,945 - Reviews: 83 - Favs: 60 - Follows: 85 - Updated: 5-5-13 - Published: 10-2-12 - Ichigo K. Rukia K.
To Fight and Protect
The War was over, but Ichigo's subsequent exile starts a rebellion under the rule of Central 46. Two years later, Aizen escapes, sparking off a chain of events that thrusts Ichigo straight back into the world he had left behind. AU. Full summary inside.
Rated: Fiction T - English - Drama/Friendship - Ichigo K. - Chapters: 9 - Words: 99,501 - Reviews: 247 - Favs: 506 - Follows: 537 - Updated: 04-30-12 - Published: 08-18-11 - id: 7301835
Maybe someone caught a gem that I missed but I don't have much hope for it.
I've been wandering myself. Personally I think the Naruto and its 'verse are rather ideal settings for fanfiction whereas Bleach is much less so. I'm not sure where the difference comes from but I feel I could come up with a lot more fanfic ideas for Naruto than I could for Bleach. Though I think interest in fanfiction has declined recently in general.
Anyway, did some looking around and found these:
The First Guardian
What if Kurosaki Ichigo was a lot more curious as a child? What if this led to him having an inquisitive mind? Just how much would this change the course of history? Let's find out, shall we? - Slightly AU. Rated M for sexual content and my dirty mouth.
Rated: Fiction M - English - Romance/Humor - Ichigo K. & Rukia K. - Chapters: 12 - Words: 89,555 - Reviews: 502 - Favs: 1,079 - Follows: 1,047 - Updated: 04-24-12 - Published: 10-16-11
Downfall
In an alternate universe, three traitors have set into motion a plot that will shake the world to its core. Captain Sosuke Aizen and the Thirteen Court Guard Squads stand against Hueco Mundo, awaiting an enemy with genocide as its goal.
Rated: Fiction T - English - Adventure/Drama - S. Aizen - Chapters: 28 - Words: 142,309 - Reviews: 225 - Favs: 240 - Follows: 232 - Updated: 03-03-12 - Published: 09-08-10
Anabiosis
Because not all reunions are easy. Ichigo and Rukia have a conversation, and broken edges are smoothed down again.
Rated: Fiction K - English - Romance - Ichigo K. & Rukia K. - Words: 2,234 - Reviews: 25 - Favs: 88 - Follows: 10 - Published: 02-28-12 - Status: Complete
Shattered Realms
Aizen's defeat has left a tense peace between Arrancars and Soul Reapers. The resulting isolation has lasted for 200 years, only to be broken by a covert expedition from the Soul Society that has vanished. A small group is sent out to find out what happened only to find themselves facing the affects of the past while old heroes struggle w/their own pasts. Written w/Eduard Kassel
Rated: Fiction M - English - Drama/Adventure - Ichigo K. & Rukia K. - Chapters: 11 - Words: 242,041 - Reviews: 65 - Favs: 56 - Follows: 57 - Updated: 04-20-13 - Published: 10-13-11
Not Quite As Planned
Ichigo was a bit slow to pull Zangetsu out as his Inner World crumbled. The result ends up not quite as Urahara had intended.
Rated: Fiction M - English - Adventure - Ichigo K. - Chapters: 23 - Words: 61,753 - Reviews: 629 - Favs: 1,227 - Follows: 722 - Updated: 06-13-12 - Published: 10-13-11 - Status: Complete
The Protector's Temptation
On the eve of his 17th birthday, a powerless Ichigo is given a chance to regain his powers once again, but with a completely different twist. AU from after the Winter War. Chapter 21 Revised. Please check the note for more details.
Rated: Fiction M - English - Adventure/Supernatural - Ichigo K. & Kyoka Suigetsu - Chapters: 23 - Words: 98,018 - Reviews: 1,012 - Favs: 1,185 - Follows: 1,111 - Updated: 05-09-13 - Published: 07-16-12
Anyway, did some looking around and found these:
The First Guardian
What if Kurosaki Ichigo was a lot more curious as a child? What if this led to him having an inquisitive mind? Just how much would this change the course of history? Let's find out, shall we? - Slightly AU. Rated M for sexual content and my dirty mouth.
Rated: Fiction M - English - Romance/Humor - Ichigo K. & Rukia K. - Chapters: 12 - Words: 89,555 - Reviews: 502 - Favs: 1,079 - Follows: 1,047 - Updated: 04-24-12 - Published: 10-16-11
Downfall
In an alternate universe, three traitors have set into motion a plot that will shake the world to its core. Captain Sosuke Aizen and the Thirteen Court Guard Squads stand against Hueco Mundo, awaiting an enemy with genocide as its goal.
Rated: Fiction T - English - Adventure/Drama - S. Aizen - Chapters: 28 - Words: 142,309 - Reviews: 225 - Favs: 240 - Follows: 232 - Updated: 03-03-12 - Published: 09-08-10
Anabiosis
Because not all reunions are easy. Ichigo and Rukia have a conversation, and broken edges are smoothed down again.
Rated: Fiction K - English - Romance - Ichigo K. & Rukia K. - Words: 2,234 - Reviews: 25 - Favs: 88 - Follows: 10 - Published: 02-28-12 - Status: Complete
Shattered Realms
Aizen's defeat has left a tense peace between Arrancars and Soul Reapers. The resulting isolation has lasted for 200 years, only to be broken by a covert expedition from the Soul Society that has vanished. A small group is sent out to find out what happened only to find themselves facing the affects of the past while old heroes struggle w/their own pasts. Written w/Eduard Kassel
Rated: Fiction M - English - Drama/Adventure - Ichigo K. & Rukia K. - Chapters: 11 - Words: 242,041 - Reviews: 65 - Favs: 56 - Follows: 57 - Updated: 04-20-13 - Published: 10-13-11
Not Quite As Planned
Ichigo was a bit slow to pull Zangetsu out as his Inner World crumbled. The result ends up not quite as Urahara had intended.
Rated: Fiction M - English - Adventure - Ichigo K. - Chapters: 23 - Words: 61,753 - Reviews: 629 - Favs: 1,227 - Follows: 722 - Updated: 06-13-12 - Published: 10-13-11 - Status: Complete
The Protector's Temptation
On the eve of his 17th birthday, a powerless Ichigo is given a chance to regain his powers once again, but with a completely different twist. AU from after the Winter War. Chapter 21 Revised. Please check the note for more details.
Rated: Fiction M - English - Adventure/Supernatural - Ichigo K. & Kyoka Suigetsu - Chapters: 23 - Words: 98,018 - Reviews: 1,012 - Favs: 1,185 - Follows: 1,111 - Updated: 05-09-13 - Published: 07-16-12
Bleach has kind of a different problem than Naruto did back in the day. Stuff was bad in Naruto no doubt, but interesting stuff kept coming up and a majority of the problems with the series could be localized entirely to the period of time after the time skip, which was enough of a separation that kept things distinct.
With Bleach, the big problems started mostly in the middle of a very important arc where making a lot of changes would be supremely difficult (Or rather, require too much creativity on the writers part), namely the arrancar arc, which really infected things to the core. To shake things up you practically had to start from scratch in that arc, and even then thanks to the SS arc having no real resolution and Aizen being the main player things would be difficult.
Then came the following arcs with the same problems reiterated over and over again, lacking villains, the absurd retcons, dumb plots, and people honestly just started to stop caring. Not helped by Ichigo devolving into the blandest of bland shonen leads, the core cast never getting any time to shine ever, and the shinigami simultaneously getting too much spotlight and not evolving enough as they did so making them start becoming blander too.
And that's before we get into the bloated cast size in conjunction with the minimal amount of faction disparity. In Naruto, it's rather easy to just pull enemies out of nowhere, you have multiple various established nations with (admittedly superficial) combat differences established, as well as your various rouge nins, alliances that allow for competition between the nations without massive repercussions, and enemy groups with ambiguous goals.
In Bleach you have SS, Aizen's Hollow group, and very little to work with otherwise. The potential for world building isn't nearly as robust, with groups too small to be a threat to something massive like SS (Xcution for example), or just rouge elements like your random hollows or the Vizards that largely play by themselves. It's a very black and white good guys and bad guys scenario for the main factions and anything else has to be either pulled out of your ass like the Quincies in general, and are usually dealt with before they can become major factors.
It's part of why the multiple SS's theory is so appealing from an idea standpoint, that would allow for huge amounts of world building potential. However it would also bloat and already all to bloated cast, and then require absurd amounts of OCs to make it even begin to work, which requires huge amounts of effort from the writer to be even slightly good. As well as requiring a lot of world traveling to allow for some intermingling between said factions and all sort of other factors.
Throw in the fact that you can't really do anything with some of the more major players because of the way powers work (And the lack of reveals for said powers) as well as the rather major power disparity between characters. How many fics never got started because the writer wanted to do something with Shunsui but would need to know his bankai or make it up entirely in order to make it work and would require something strong enough to be a threat to him without destroying everyone else before he could even show up? Or plain never would have gotten to him because Ichigo and a bunch of other matchups would have to be dealt with first.
With Naruto, you could tweak things around rather easily within the same framework and make things work better. With Bleach? You have to do major overhauls to get anywhere, partly because of the much more linear plot framework and partly because all the characters people give a shit about are so disjointed and not really connected with each other that trying to give all of them spotlight takes so much effort.
With Naruto you could mess up and alter team formations to get interesting changes. With Bleach you have what? Maybe different captain/vice pairs, but because of the massive disparity in power between the two those REALLY aren't relevant in the long run. And even that's completely irrelevant to the home team and the main character.
There's just a lot of differences there that make Bleach not nearly as appealing to write for. Which is part of why I've been largely doing massive amounts of work in the techniques thread to hopefully build some interest in other areas in any way possible. Hell I even made the matchups thread to add interesting potential battles to the table, like Chad vs. Komamura and the like.
With Bleach, the big problems started mostly in the middle of a very important arc where making a lot of changes would be supremely difficult (Or rather, require too much creativity on the writers part), namely the arrancar arc, which really infected things to the core. To shake things up you practically had to start from scratch in that arc, and even then thanks to the SS arc having no real resolution and Aizen being the main player things would be difficult.
Then came the following arcs with the same problems reiterated over and over again, lacking villains, the absurd retcons, dumb plots, and people honestly just started to stop caring. Not helped by Ichigo devolving into the blandest of bland shonen leads, the core cast never getting any time to shine ever, and the shinigami simultaneously getting too much spotlight and not evolving enough as they did so making them start becoming blander too.
And that's before we get into the bloated cast size in conjunction with the minimal amount of faction disparity. In Naruto, it's rather easy to just pull enemies out of nowhere, you have multiple various established nations with (admittedly superficial) combat differences established, as well as your various rouge nins, alliances that allow for competition between the nations without massive repercussions, and enemy groups with ambiguous goals.
In Bleach you have SS, Aizen's Hollow group, and very little to work with otherwise. The potential for world building isn't nearly as robust, with groups too small to be a threat to something massive like SS (Xcution for example), or just rouge elements like your random hollows or the Vizards that largely play by themselves. It's a very black and white good guys and bad guys scenario for the main factions and anything else has to be either pulled out of your ass like the Quincies in general, and are usually dealt with before they can become major factors.
It's part of why the multiple SS's theory is so appealing from an idea standpoint, that would allow for huge amounts of world building potential. However it would also bloat and already all to bloated cast, and then require absurd amounts of OCs to make it even begin to work, which requires huge amounts of effort from the writer to be even slightly good. As well as requiring a lot of world traveling to allow for some intermingling between said factions and all sort of other factors.
Throw in the fact that you can't really do anything with some of the more major players because of the way powers work (And the lack of reveals for said powers) as well as the rather major power disparity between characters. How many fics never got started because the writer wanted to do something with Shunsui but would need to know his bankai or make it up entirely in order to make it work and would require something strong enough to be a threat to him without destroying everyone else before he could even show up? Or plain never would have gotten to him because Ichigo and a bunch of other matchups would have to be dealt with first.
With Naruto, you could tweak things around rather easily within the same framework and make things work better. With Bleach? You have to do major overhauls to get anywhere, partly because of the much more linear plot framework and partly because all the characters people give a shit about are so disjointed and not really connected with each other that trying to give all of them spotlight takes so much effort.
With Naruto you could mess up and alter team formations to get interesting changes. With Bleach you have what? Maybe different captain/vice pairs, but because of the massive disparity in power between the two those REALLY aren't relevant in the long run. And even that's completely irrelevant to the home team and the main character.
There's just a lot of differences there that make Bleach not nearly as appealing to write for. Which is part of why I've been largely doing massive amounts of work in the techniques thread to hopefully build some interest in other areas in any way possible. Hell I even made the matchups thread to add interesting potential battles to the table, like Chad vs. Komamura and the like.
I did have to laugh at the random Byakuya thing in the middle. That was funny and weird. The random Ulquiorra thing was shit though. I mean, come on, really?
Too much wangst for my taste. It was alright though even though it was ridiculously obvious that this was written by a woman (noticed after the first scene change but was blindingly obvious midway through; knew for sure once I saw the writer's nom de guerre.)
Edit: Not that I have anything against women authors. I hate male authors that go too much into the angst too but guy authors tend not to wallow and revel in it as much.
Too much wangst for my taste. It was alright though even though it was ridiculously obvious that this was written by a woman (noticed after the first scene change but was blindingly obvious midway through; knew for sure once I saw the writer's nom de guerre.)
Edit: Not that I have anything against women authors. I hate male authors that go too much into the angst too but guy authors tend not to wallow and revel in it as much.
I probably would have swung it that, from the outside, Ichigo would turn into exactly the same kind of person as Aizen:
One day, his friends wake up, and suddenly Ichigo has OMIGAWDHAX powers and confusing, inscrutable goals, also he thinks Arrancar are awesome.
But I'd subvert the worn-out "becoming that which you fight" trope by having Ichigo being the same kind of idiot protagonist he always was.
One day, his friends wake up, and suddenly Ichigo has OMIGAWDHAX powers and confusing, inscrutable goals, also he thinks Arrancar are awesome.
But I'd subvert the worn-out "becoming that which you fight" trope by having Ichigo being the same kind of idiot protagonist he always was.
There was a sadly-dead fic I read long ago that took place shortly and during the beginning of Bleach that had Neliel (fully-grown) staying in the human world, and friends with Ichigo. He thought she was nothing more than an ordinary spirit, and doesn't talk much to his human friends anymore. If anyone could find it I would appreciate it.