4/5 Like an ivy vine
  by E. A Solinas (MD USA)
After four volumes of sneaking and one-on-one fights, the battle against the Bounts has finally started up... at least for the moment. "Bleach Volume 19" unveils some interesting backstory for the treacherous Soul Reaper and some rather obvious plot twists (wow, didn't see THAT rebellion coming!), as well as a glimpse of the Bounts' leader Jin Kariya's Machievellian personality. It feels like a warm-up.

While Rukia and the modsouls go hunting for Uryu, Ichigo stays behind to fight a very nasty match with Udogawa and his snake doll Frida. But before the fight is over, Udogawa suddenly turns on Jin Kariya with a dirty trick, intending to become the Bounts' new leader -- and Ichigo is shocked by the arrival of a traitorous Soul Reaper with a light-deflecting zanpakuto, Maki Ichinose.

Cue flashback: Ichinose was devastated when Zaraki defeated and killed his captain, and became captain of Squad Eleven instead. Wandering the world away from the Soul Society in disgust, Ichinose found a new leader to obsess on and idolize when he met Jin Kariya.

After the destruction of the mansion, the gang gathers at Urahara's to recover: Yoruichi fills them in on new findings about the Quincy and the Bounts from the Soul Society, and Ichigo starts freaking out over Kariya's devastating strength. While Ganju and Renji try to snap Ichigo out of his funk, Yoshino escapes and goes back to Kariya, determined to end his plans -- only to discover that the Bount leader has a long-term plan that involves her.

"Bleach Volume 19" does a pretty solid job of mingling action and exposition. While there's plenty of sword-fighting and some interesting foreshadowing (what's up with the grandfather clock?), the scriptwriters focus a lot on answering some questions -- the downsides of the Bounts' endless lives, Maki Ichinose's bizarre loyalty to Kariya, and a rather shocking twist at the end about Kariya's plans for Yoshino.

Along the way, there's some rather silly sword fights (fear the rainbow sword!), explosions of overfanged snakes, and a climactic duel between Kariya and Yoshino in a charred ruin. But after the escape from the Bount mansion, the story slows down and becomes more comedic for awhile, both in the dialogue ("Why were you riding that boar?... WHERE on Earth did you find it?!") and action (Kon's little dip in a warm bath -- "my squeaker is getting squashed!"). In fact, it gets TOO slow and TOO comedic sometimes.

Aside from all the information about Bounts, we also discover what the deal is with Maki Ichinose -- and frankly knowing more about him makes him even less likable. He turns out to be a born follower (Zaraki contemptuously compares him to an "ivy vine" who can't stand on his own) who blindly worships anyone whom he follows. And he can't cope with the harsh reality that Zaraki was well within his rights, and that his late captain has only himself to blame for being killed -- he accepted, after all.

And there's a distinctly bittersweet edge to Yoshino's battle against Kariya, since it seems that there's no way she can win (and Goethe becomes much more like a person -- "then we're going to die together?"). Unfortunately Ichigo's blink-and-you'll-miss-it funk seems like an excuse to eat time, rather than any real worries about whether he'll lose against Kariya.

"Bleach Volume 19" lays out some new exposition on the Bounts and their pet Soul Reaper, mingled with a healthy dose of action and comedy. Worth watching, though it has some definite flaws -- especially since there are obviously big developments in the works.