Chapter -108 Turn Back the Pendulum

[http://users.livejournal.com/_debbiechan_/]

Already the chapter thread for Bleach -108 is the most viewed thread in Bleach Asylum's history and at this writing there's only a script, not any scans yet. But the geekery and speculation abounds. Timeline contradictions, the history of Jazz, the structure of Centre 46 and omg what do you think Sousuke-kun could be wearing.

I'm haunting that BA thread. Just some highlights here: I can't believe how many people still think Urahara plopped the hougyoku into Rukia with that gigai he gave her after she lost her powers to Ichigo. For this I fault Kubo-sensei, though--not the readers. That was a big plot point and Kubo muddied it with the giving it of the gigai. I'm grateful to Guildenstern for many things in fandom but mostly for starting this kick-ass thread at BA: Bleach Chapter 175-- Or "How did Rukia get that darned Hougyoku, anyway?"

Kubo cleans up his little artistic mistakes. He had Aizen wearing a captain's robe when introducing himself as a VC to Konamura but the robe was done away with in the tankoubon. Now people are wondering about Tousen wearing captain's robes in the manga when Kenpachi killed the 11th division captain to achieve his rank--if the Kenpachi described in this chapter -108 is Zaraki then how can Tousen be a captain?

I myself got hung up on the whole JAZZ thing right away because I'm a music nerdmo and I live a hop and skip away from New Orleans. It's a 110 years ago in this chapter (When does Bleach start? The manga itself began six years ago and has progressed only a few months in manga time while years have passed in its readership's world) Jazz as a word to describe syncopated music didn't come into use until 1915, although Ragtime, the sort of music we're assuming Shinji that iconoclastic damn cool bastard was referring to in this chapter, started back around 1890. Foul! cried a few dozen music nerdmos on a half dozen forums! Shinji is hearing music that hasn't been invented yet. Spacey told me to give it a rest and  brightredglow  told me the word "jazz" was used for ambiance, that Kubo was at least in the right parking lot of the baseball park, LOL.

Someone at BA observed that time in SS must pass at the same rate as time in the Living World. Holy Moly, I thought--not really, there are tiny indiscrepancies, starting with what Yoruichi explained was a time lapse occurring when Ichigo's gang left the dangai and later, Ishida noted that that it must be spring in Soul Society (he saw a cabbage butterfly) but it was late summer in the Living World.

Sometimes I wonder if Kubo Tite isn't more in the driver's seat that even I give him credit for, and I'm his biggest fangirl. He's really thinking all this stuff out.

And for those of you who hate numerology, sorry, but 108 DOES have a significance in Japanese culture. At the end of the year, a bell is chimed 108 times to finish the old year and welcome the new one. Each ring represents one of 108 earthly temptations a person must overcome to achieve nirvana. Japa mala, prayer beads worn by Buddhists, have 108 beads, and temples have 108 steps, and there's a bunch of other stuff so -108 is an appropriate number for a chapter titled "Turn Back the Pendulum." If you get to pick an arbitrary number for an out of sequence chapter, that is.

Bets are on as to whether Isshin was a member of the Royal Guard (I'm fond of one theory out there that makes Masaki the captain of the Royal Guard and has Isshin wearing her robe for some romantic dramatic reason when he slays Grand Fisher) or the missing 10th division captain of the chapter. I'm going with 10th division caption because that was syneiam 's theory for a while and Syn's always right. XD

I got up at four a.m. today because my little daughter wanted some juice or something but I stayed up to read the BA chapter thread because I'm a crazy fangirl for -108 and I can't wait for PIX, dammit, because I want to see wtf Shinji's made Sousuke-kun wear and how Nanao-chan lookalike Lisa sparks with Shunsui. Warms my heart to imagine those two pervs together, even if I ship Shunsui/Nanao.

Comments

[geckophobe.livejournal.com]

80,000 views! Wow. There certainly is something fascinating about getting in on the prediction game. Even though I've already been pretty spoiled reading all the speculation about that first Shinji pic, I'm not going to read the translated script until there are pictures to go with it! I want the impact of these revelations to hit me all at once. I can't wait!!!

[http://users.livejournal.com/_debbiechan_/]

I'm crazily impatient. I've tried staying away from spoilers on normal weeks and while I can do it, it's hard. These eight weeks are going to be weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.

[r0ck3tsci3ntist.livejournal.com]

Bets are on as to whether Isshin was a member of the Royal Guard (I'm fond of one theory out there that makes Masaki the captain of the Royal Guard and has Isshin wearing her robe for some romantic dramatic reason when he slays Grand Fisher)

*gasp*

*faints from sheer dramatic impact*

[quaedam.livejournal.com]

*faints right alongside you*

[metaphore-art.livejournal.com]

RAW is out! KYAAAAAAAA!!!!!! XDDDDD

...you know, the second I read "captain promoted to royal guard" I was like, "Oh...Isshin." Then I was like, wait...what? It just came completely unbidden and naturally. I guess we'll just have to wait and see how it all entangles.

I'm so excited for these chapters now. We've been waiting all the way through the dreaded Hueco Mundo arc for insights into these mysteries - it feels like ages. This is the Bleach I've always loved. Intricately, awesomely, mind-blowingly complex!

[http://users.livejournal.com/_debbiechan_/]

I saw the raw! I saw the raw! LOVE MADE MY DAY! AND CAPTAIN KENSEI! And Lisa in her short skirt! And Shinji looks marvelous, marvelous, marvelous in his captain duds. The panels are paced so well and everything fits--everyone looks just right (Aizen just a little skinnier, just a little goofier, I'm not even disappointed that Shinji's division isn't wearing plaid).

Soooooo.... Kenpachi may NOT be Zaraki after all.

And Urahara. <3 And Aizen's dark look. I'm loving all the genius drama. I'm so loving Bleach now.

[sincere]

I think Lisa as Nanao's predecessor is like the best thing. ever. Kyouraku loves the meganeko. XD And Ukitake's hair looks so cute. I want to pet it.

Hiyori as 12th division lieutenant is -- so incredibly weird. XD Is she science-minded?!

Aizen is already full of plotting, and may recognize Urahara as a rival/equal/means to an ends? You always win, sir. (And Shinji rebukes him for speaking out of turn amongst captains. XD Ahahaha.)

It's possible that the Captain "Kenpachi" of the 11th referred to in this chapter is not Zaraki, although I'm only skimming very fast so I might be missing the more complex details. But we know that "Kenpachi" is the name given to the strongest man in each generation.

[incandescens]

I'm honestly not sure whether that's Lisa, or whether that's Nanao and something happened to change her from short-skirted long-haired rudeness to full-uniform different-hairstyle extreme law-abidingness. Because that would be kind of cute too.

Though if it is Lisa, does Shunsui have a glasses fetish or something? :)

[kohi-no-tora.livejournal.com]

Hiyori as 12th division lieutenant

Ah, so that is 12th Division. I couldn't tell if that was a extra stroke or a blurred part of the division symbol in the scan that I saw.

That does some serious damage to my theory of Tessai being Urahara's lieutenant, though it's not yet a fatal blow. It depends on how much earlier than Urahara when Hiyori life Soul Society.

[nehalenia.livejournal.com]

Whoa! What a way to start the day?

So, does it seem to anyone else that Aizen can somehow see Shinji's face? Shinji mentions it while waiting for the door to open "... it's not like you can even see my face", and then later, when Shinji's making faces at Hiyori, Aizen responds as if he can see him. Of course, Hiyori said Shinji was making faces at her, but still, I thought Shinji saying that might be significant.

I'm going to have to go back and study up on all the Vizard now. I don't know all their names. Have they all been accounted for now except for Hachi? Another thing interesting about the Vizard as a group is how they all came from a strict heirarchy -- the Gotei 13 -- yet there seems to be no remnant of that whatsoever.

Oh, and now we know that Ishida and Renji are wearing... something.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_debbiechan_/]

That was a fan-colored picture so we're not sure yet but it does look like the artist did catch a fold of fabric there at Ishida's neckline (yes, yes, WE ARE STILL PREOCCUPIED WITH ISHIDA'S STATE OF UNDRESS HERE!)

Mashiro is unaccounted for--the green-haired tantrum-throwing Visored. She may be the promoted 12th captain--she was implied to be very strong in earlier chapters.

OMG, Shinji's faces. Hiyori did say "he's making those faces again" so that's probably how Aizen knew. OMG, he cracked me up. I'm so in love with Shinji again--funny how you saw him as taking you away from Ishida but I must've beenn on an Ishida high when encountering him because I fell for him right away. As Q and I have discussed before, Shinji is like the anti-Ishida--Ishida is all earnestness and purity whereas Shini is like this decadent postmodern sarcastic iconoclastic mess. Of course the first thing I had to do was SLASH THEM. XD

[grass-angel.livejournal.com]

*jumps onto this thread which at least has something on the fact Renji and Ishida are wearing something*
Although... it was a bit simpler than Ishida having a fabric fold. We saw Renji and his chest and we couldn't see his tattoos.

[andrew-jp.livejournal.com]

FREAKIN' ONE HUNDRED AND EIGHT.

Bleach is full of Buddhist symbols, so it was only a matter of time before that damn number popped up. I'm only surprised it took so long.

(The size/distance-from-earth ratio of both the moon and the sun are both approximately 108, which is why they both appear to be the same size and is supposedly the original source of the number's significance.)

Perhaps the final number of significant characters in this series will be 108? 108 stars, just like Suikoden/Outlaws of the Marsh...

[http://users.livejournal.com/_debbiechan_/]

Yeah. I was only reminded of it when someone mentioned Death Note ending on chapter 108. At this point I think it's not a big deal, just a stylistic trill. I think there's a whole lot more going on with Orihime's five lifetimes and Tower five, but... hey, that's me. *shrugs*

[spartydragon.livejournal.com]

HOA'FAHGA'AGU!!! Aww man... everyone was so dorky! XD *luffs*


Hmmm... maybe SS has a different callendar than the living world - that might make up for the time descrepency. *scratches head*

[http://users.livejournal.com/_debbiechan_/]

I like the idea of fluidity between dimensions. Time not being fixed. That accounts for Love's 60's hairstyle before the 1960s and cabbage butterflies in the summer. XD

[mezzo-marinaio.livejournal.com]

...OMG, the 108 chimes! O_O But of course!

I can't believe I forgot about that... and I actually took Buddhism lessons for a year! I am the fail. >_<

I like this a lot - though now I cannot help wondering how Kubo means to connect the 108 number significance to the plot... mmmmh. *ponders*

[http://users.livejournal.com/_debbiechan_/]

I don't think it has to be connected directly to the plot--it's just one of those poetic resonance sort of things. It signifies change, clearing out the old, bringing in the new, the pendulum swinging all that. I love Kubo's little poetic touches.

[escarboucle.livejournal.com]

I actually have a few malas, all with 108 beads of course (and one that I made myself and made it bless by the lama XD).

I absolutely adore this chapter, there is so much already! I cannot wait for the next chapter (with a coloured page too XD).

Also, my theory is not Isshin being from the 10th, it's that captains were promoted to the royal guards (which has just been proven right, so I'm allowing myself to be a bit smug about that XD).

[http://users.livejournal.com/_debbiechan_/]

ah, right, I knew you called that one. I'll have to check our chat records but I think you were predicting Isshin as captain of the 10th too. Did you get your mala blessed when you were one of those little girl goddesses in the temple?

BE SMUG! SYN HAS BLEACH "I CALLED IT" RECORD SUPREME!

[akiahara.livejournal.com]

i have positively nothing intelligent to say.

kubo is amazing.

it makes my brain tingle.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_debbiechan_/]

My brain tingles, my heart glows, all my body parts do a happy dance!

[annieroo2.livejournal.com]

Ok so some of you all here are into the numbers of Bleach,so maybe ya'll can answer my question.

Do the - (negative) chapters correspond to the number of years pre-canon? For instance -108 takes place 108 years before Rukia stabs Ichigo. And Hitsugaya's flashback -12 (? I think) is 12 years pre-canon. It doesn't seem to work for the Academy flashback for Renji/Kira/Momo though because that one was called -17 and hasn't it been 40+ years since they graduated?

I just wondered since Kubo really seems to have a thing for numbers if these negative chapters number had more significance than just random. Does anyone know? Thanks in advance.

[escarboucle.livejournal.com]

No, it doesn't work that way. ^^' I think though that they do follow an order (-17 happens further in the past than -15 and 5 years happened in between).

We have yet to find Kubo's formula XD

[furato.livejournal.com]

Definitely not -years because -17 is >49 years pre-canon (49 years ago is when Rukia was adopted).

A wild guess would be... the number of flashback episodes Kubo has in planning >:D

[http://users.livejournal.com/_debbiechan_/]

the number of flashback episodes Kubo has in planning >:D

Don't know whether to be horrified or ecstatic.

[starvinbohemian.livejournal.com]

My new theory regarding the Vaizards is that Old Man Yamaji had a hand in making them if only to give himself an excuse to banish the lot of them. I can't imagine that he was cool with such a dorky laid back Gotei 13. Shinji was probably bothering him all the time with his whippersnapper outfits and music. XD

[rukia-princess.livejournal.com]

I'm pretty stoked on this new chpater with the back story. I have been DYING to see the story behind Urahara's exile and the vizards... which leaves to believe the rumor about Urahara being a vizard himself. Squee! I can't wait for the next update, good job Kubo for keeping us engrossed instead of stressed at what Ichigo & Company will do next. :D

[wdboldstar.livejournal.com]

I am hoping that Isshin is the 10th or 11th squad captain or a Royal Guard, Masaki is the outgoing 12th squad captain, and that she, Isshin, and Urahara all become Vaizards along with the others.

That would be the most awesome thing ever.