REVIEW: ‘BLEACH: Thousand-Year Blood War’ Episode 44 — “Perfect Crimson”

There are a few things Bleach does better than taking an already ridiculous situation (complimentary) and somehow making it even more ridiculous. BLEACH: Thousand-Year Blood War Episode 44, “The Perfect Crimson,” is perhaps the purest distillation of that philosophy yet, delivering what is easily my favorite episode of BLEACH: Thousand-Year Blood War – The Calamity so far. 

The battle between the last major forces of the Gotei 13 and Gerard Valkyrie (Tsuyoshi Koyama / Dave B. Mitchell), the unkillable Heart of the Soul King, reaches its absolutely bonkers apex, and the result is all killer, no filler. This is Bleach operating at maximum power: flashy, stylish, completely unhinged, and somehow still deeply rooted in the characters who have brought the series this far.

The true heart of BLEACH: Thousand-Year Blood War Episode 44 is Kenpachi Zaraki (Fumihiko Tachiki / Patrick Seitz), whose journey throughout the main story finally reaches its long-awaited culmination. After unleashing his Shikai once again but failing to defeat Gerard with it, Kenpachi receives an unexpected assist from the long-missing Yachiru (Hisayo Mochizuki / Dina Sherman), who finally reveals the truth behind the connection he has spent his entire life desperately searching for.

BLEACH: Thousand-Year Blood War Episode 44 is firing on all cylinders.

The power of his Zanpakuto has been with him all along, physically manifested through Yachiru because Kenpachi’s spiritual power is simply that enormous. And then she says the word every Bleach fan never thought they’d hear for Kenny: Bankai.

What follows is one of the most spectacular transformations and power showcases in the entire series – and that’s saying something. Kenpachi’s Bankai turns him into a red-skinned, devilish, absolutely crazed berserker, which is pretty much the only possible form his ultimate power could have taken.

This is a man whose entire fighting philosophy has always been about swinging his sword until the other guy falls down, while taking as much pleasure as possible in whatever punishment he himself receives along the way. His Bankai doesn’t simply make him stronger; it visually manifests everything Kenpachi has always been.

And damn, does it look incredible. The ensuing beatdown of Gerard is an absolutely stunning sequence of flashy yet fluid, easy-to-follow animation that makes full use of the cinematic presentation that has become one of this final adaptation’s defining strengths.

Kenpachi takes center stage in “Perfect Crimson.”

Kenpachi tears through Gerard with terrifying force, but when Gerard just grows even more monstrous, Toshiro Hitsugaya (Romi Park / Steve Staley) brings out a surprise transformation of his own. Add Byakuya Kuchiki (Ryōtarō Okiayu / Dan Woren) to the equation, and you have a wonderful wish fulfillment moment: three of the most popular captains in Bleach throwing everything they have at an enemy who simply refuses to stay dead.

Yes, Gerard’s endless cycle of being seemingly killed only to come back even stronger can be frustrating, and I completely understand anyone who feels like the character is essentially an excuse to keep extending this series/ climax and keep certain characters busy. But within the context of what The Perfect Crimson is trying to accomplish, I think it works.

Gerard is effectively an unstoppable god fighting characters who have hit the absolute limits of their own abilities. Having an enemy who is practically impossible to put down gives BLEACH: Thousand-Year Blood War Episode 44 an excuse to showcase these captains at their most powerful, and Bleach has never been shy about prioritizing spectacle when said spectacle is this damn good.

The spectacle is everything in Thousand-Year Blood War Episode 44.

Even Captain Ukitake continues to hang on by a thread, with his sacrifice stretched out significantly longer than the source material. I appreciate that the anime continues emphasizing the importance of what he’s doing, though: he is currently the only thing holding the Three Worlds together, and the entire structure of reality is barely staying intact. 

And, as always, Shiro Sagisu’s score is doing a tremendous amount of heavy lifting. The new and remixed tracks from the legendary composer give every transformation, clash, and seemingly impossible comeback an appropriately grandiose sense of scale. Bleach has always understood that sometimes the correct response to an absurdly powerful character doing something absurdly awesome is to simply BLAST THE MUSIC.

The final scene, with Ichigo (Masakazu Morita / >Johnny Yong Bosch) bringing the hurt to Yhwach (Takayuki Sugô / Richard Epcar) in a new badass form of his own, is another fantastic burst of hype. Structurally, however, it feels a little strange to end BLEACH: Thousand-Year Blood War Episode 44 there, when Ichigo and Orihime (Yuki Matsuoka / Stephanie Sheh) have been completely absent until those final minutes.

It almost feels like the opening scene of the next episode was moved backward to provide more of a cliffhanger. Still, seeing Ichigo’s new form in action is more than enough to make it work.

“Perfect Crimson” is the series at its most Bleach.

“The Perfect Crimson” is Bleach at its absolute most Bleach. The style, the music, the character designs and their transformations, the impossible powers and the sheer audacity of it all are exactly why this series has remained so beloved for so long.

This is as flashy and hype as the series can possibly get, which is saying something for a show that has been chasing the ultimate cool factor for more than two decades. If this final cour of Thousand-Year Blood War is truly the end for the series, it’s going out in fittingly awesome fashion. BLEACH: Thousand-Year Blood War Episode 44 is easily my favorite of the season so far.

BLEACH: Thousand-Year Blood War Episode 44 is streaming now on Hulu and Disney+ with new episodes every Sunday. 

Previous Episode | Next Episode