Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War Is The Revival Bleach Deserves
Read Time:7 Minute, 6 Second
In 2001, mangaka Tite Kubo began his legendary masterpiece, Bleach. His work inspired and shaped many other manga and anime that followed and its anime adaptation dominated the 2000s as one of the Shonen Big Three. Declining popularity and Kubo’s health struggles, however, led to the anime’s cancellation in 2012 and an early end to the manga in 2016. Over 20 years later, the manga’s final arc has at last been adapted into a new anime series, Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War. And with the special Bleach: No Breaths From Hell manga chapter released in 2021 and rumors of an ongoing arc as recently as May 2024, it seems that Bleach is far from being finished or forgotten.
The Bleach manga ran from 2001 to 2016 and remains one of the best-selling manga of all time. It influenced many works that came after it, most notably Jujutsu Kaisen, Demon Slayer, and Black Clover. The story follows Ichigo Kurosaki, a high school student who becomes a Soul Reaper, tasked with protecting the human and after-world from demons called Hollows. In Bleach, Kubo created a rich tapestry of lore, mysticism, and family bonds. Bleach has an incredible cast of characters, both protagonists and antagonists. Kubo said that he believes villains should be “strong, scary, and cool” and he drew inspiration from Akira Toriyama’s Dragon Ball.
Kubo has a delicately detailed art style and often uses blank backgrounds to draw the reader’s full attention to his characters in moments of great emotion or importance. He deliberately creates unique character designs, often starting with a character’s appearance and working out their personality afterward. Fans especially praise Kubo’s fight scenes and their epic scale. Battles achieve new complexity as characters’ powers grow and they face off against increasingly deadly antagonists. The Bankai are a stunning example of Kubo’s creativity and unrivaled skill. These unique transformations and power-ups are some of the most awe-inspiring moments in both the manga and anime and never fail to impress.
The Bleach anime ran from 2004 for a total of 366 episodes. These included a lot of filler, due to the show frequently catching up with the manga and needing to produce new material to keep fans engaged. Unfortunately, the sheer number of filler episodes left fans unwilling to wade through the bloated and erratically paced storyline. To this day, many new viewers are intimidated by the sheer number of episodes. By 2012, Bleach’s popularity had waned to the point that its animation studio, Pierrot, decided to cancel it. Left with an open and unsatisfactory ending, fans of the anime were frustrated and disappointed not to see the conclusion of their beloved characters’ stories.
Other than the filler episodes, the Bleach anime is generally considered to be a good adaptation of the manga. It remains true to Kubo’s distinctive art style and character design and, with the exception of the additional arcs, it follows the manga’s storyline faithfully. Some fans say that the manga gives more time to supporting characters and that certain characterizations and relationships are portrayed differently. Some of these differences impact the story significantly and may lead to difficulties as the anime follows the manga to its conclusion.
After waiting 10 years for the conclusion of the Bleach anime, fans face a different beast to that which went on hiatus in 2012. Kubo completed the manga’s final arc, Thousand-Year Blood War, between 2012 and 2016. By this time, Kubo was experiencing significant health struggles, both mental and physical, and has said that he only finished the manga because of his fans. Unfortunately, the final arc is judged by many fans as one of the worst of the manga. Fans felt the manga became rushed and riddled with plot holes, leaving many questions unanswered and ultimately providing an unsatisfactory end to an incredible story.
In 2022, the Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War anime adaptation finally aired and was received with delight by fans and critical acclaim. Along with improved animation and production value, it is gloriously free from filler episodes. It has also introduced original content and characters not featured in the manga, which has, so far, provided further background and filled in some gaps in the plot. Tite Kubo is involved with the anime, which offers further reassurance that, while differing from the manga, Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War will stay faithful to the spirit of the series. Fans are optimistic that the anime will provide a fitting conclusion to Bleach – a far cry from the abrupt end in 2012.
So what’s next for Bleach? In 2021, to mark the 20th anniversary of the manga, Tite Kubo released a special one-shot chapter called Bleach: No Breaths From Hell. Fans were thrilled with this fresh update to the manga, which had been dormant since 2016. In May 2024, further hints of an ongoing Hell arc reached us when artwork from an arc called Howl from the Jaws of Hell was displayed in the Bleach Exhibit in Tokyo. This, along with a cryptic comment from Kubo in March 2024, led to renewed hopes that more manga chapters may be on the horizon.
Despite its problems during the original run of both its manga and anime, Bleach remains one of the most influential and ground-breaking series of all time. Tite Kubo’s unrivaled skill in creating unique, compelling characters, incredible battle sequences, and stark, emotionally charged scenes makes his work a true masterpiece. Having recovered from many of his health issues, his contribution to Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War is invaluable, resulting in a show that thrills and enthralls fans. With the hint of more manga chapters to come, it’s safe to say that Bleach is far from done and will never be forgotten.
Have you read the Bleach manga or watched the anime? What are your hopes for Bleach’s future? Let us know all your thoughts and opinions in the comment section below. And don’t forget to subscribe to our free newsletter, PopPulse Digest, for all things collectibles, pop culture, online deals, and more.
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