Bleach is unique among anime adaptations of a long-running and popular shonen manga because it changed so much of the source material. Although the main beats of Ichigo Kurosaki’s adventures as a Substitue Soul Reaper are generally the same as the manga’s, the Bleach anime changed and added a lot more than fans expected or wanted.

This hasn’t stopped with the adaptation of Bleach’s final arc, Thousand-Year Blood War. If anything, Bleach’s latest season has some of its franchise’s biggest adaptational changes yet. This isn’t a bad thing, since the manga arc it was based on was incredibly polarizing. Some of these changes and fixes were predictable, while others surprised even the most experienced Bleach veteran.

10

There’s Noticeably Less Comedy in Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War

The Anime’s Latest Episodes Toned Down the Gags and Fanservice

Like any shonen manga and anime, Bleach was full of lighthearted jokes and fanservice. The anime-only episodes and filler arcs went a step further by giving all the characters slice-of-life adventures. Fans appreciated these moments since they gave the anime some much-needed levity while also making all the characters more endearing than they already were.

Thousand-Year Blood War’s manga was no exception, but its anime adaptation significantly reduced the amount of laughs and jokes. Given the final battle’s severity and stakes, this only made sense. That’s not to say that Bleach’s final arc was completely devoid of humor and fun, but it was a lot darker and more serious than the original anime was.

9

The Bleach Anime Features Expanded Fights & Brand-New Battles

Both Heroes & Villains Unleashed New Abilities and Powers

If there’s one thing Bleach never lacked in, it was fights. Given its nature as a battle manga, this should come as a surprise. Part of Bleach’s appeal came from seeing what each fighter’s abilities were. But due to the cast’s sheer size, not every Bleach character got to show off their weapon. Worse, some never even fought at all due to the story’s time constraint.

Thousand-Year Blood War lived up to fans’ expectations when it animated fights that were previously concluded offscreen. Characters who never clashed before were pitted against one another. These new fights also allowed characters to reveal their anime-only powers. Notable examples include Captain Shinji Hirako’s and Captain Senjumaru Shutara’s Bankai, and the Sternritters’ Vollstandig.

8

The World of the Living Is Acknowledged More

Karakura Town Was an Afterthought in the Manga’s Final Arc

When Bleach began, Ichigo Kurosaki being a part of both the world of the living and Soul Society played a big part in the story. He had to balance his everyday life as an ordinary teenager in Karakura Town with his duties as a substitute Soul Reaper. But when the final arc began, everyone and everything in Karakura Town was left in the backburner.

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Although the payoff has yet to be seen, Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War began addressing this oversight the moment it started. The anime would occasionally cut to Karakura Town’s residents and show how worried they were about Ichigo and his friends. Ichigo’s classmates and neighbors may not be fighting the Quincies, but it’s nice to see them be part of his story again.

7

More of Soul Society’s History & World-Building Has Been Revealed

Fans’ Biggest Questions Were Finally Answered

Bleach’s world is a deep one, but the original manga and anime didn’t dwell too much on its setting’s past and lore. This wasn’t that big of a problem, since the story was obviously more concerned about the present. However, this left fans having more questions than they did answers. It didn’t help that Bleach’s filler arcs and films picked up the canon material’s slack.

Fans got everything they wanted and more from Thousand-Year Blood War. The anime went as far as revealing the original Gotei 13, to even showing how the Soul Reapers and Quincies became mortal enemies in painstaking detail. The final arc’s upcoming conclusion is set to reveal even more about Bleach’s world, and fans couldn’t be happier.

6

Previously Overlooked Characters Finally Get Their Due

Both Heroes and Villains Enjoyed New Flashbacks and Humanizing Moments

Bleach having one of the biggest character rosters in the history of shonen fiction was both a blessing and a curse. There were tons of cool and interesting characters to follow, but not everyone got their fair share of the spotlight. When the final arc began, many of Bleach’s side characters were pushed even further into the background before they were forgotten or killed off.

Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War made up for the manga’s shortcomings by giving many side characters more scenes, or even an entire episode. For example, Captain Jushiro Ukitake’s never-before-seen life story was finally shown in the anime. The Bleach anime may not have changed these characters’ fates, but the new scenes made their deaths more meaningful and emotional.

5

Emperor Yhwach & the Wandenreich Are More Villainous

The Wandenreich’s Tyranny Was Emphasized More in the Anime

Although the Wandenreich were clearly the villains of the manga’s final arc, fans at the time struggled to dislike the Quincies because of their justified rage. The Quincies attacked Soul Society as vengeance for the Soul Reapers’ genocide of their race centuries ago. It didn’t help that the Wandenreich weren’t the first Bleach villains to call out Soul Society’s hypocrisy.

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Thanks to anime-only flashbacks and more exposition, Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War emphasized that the Wandenreich were a totalitarian and imperialist force that was impossible to reason with. As such, Soul Society’s extreme and inhuman response to the Quincies made more sense. As imperfect as Soul Society was, the Wandenreich were worse.

4

The Quincies Are More Sympathetic

The Anime Made a Clearer Distinction Between Ordinary Quincies and the Wandenreich

Due in large part to the fact Uyru Ishida was the only prominent Quincy in both the Bleach manga and anime, the Quincies barely received any representation. The final arc introduced the Wandenreich, but all the Quincies in Emperor Yhwach’s army were villainous by association. It was difficult not to make the sweeping generalization that all Quincies, minus the Ishida family, were evil.

Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War’s anime addressed this by showing Quincies who were not tied to the Wandenreich. As it turns out, Yhwach’s army forcibly absorbed Quincy clans into his empire. Those who defied him were either exiled like the Ishidas, or wiped out like Bazz-B’s tribe. This humanized the Quincies, and showed how they were not as monolithic as they originally seemed.

3

Uryu Ishida’s Backstory & Character Were Significantly Rewritten

There’s a Lot More to Uryu Ishida Than Anyone Realized

Uryu Ishida was undeniably one of the most important characters in Bleach, but not much was known about him as a person. For the most part, Uryu’s characterization in the Bleach manga and anime revolved around him being Ichigo’s best friend and foil. His legacy of being one of the last living Quincies on Earth was really more of a quirk than anything bigger.

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Not only was Uryu’s heritage made a major plot point in Thousand-Year Blood War’s expanded anime, so was his participation in the final war. The anime gave Ishida’s supposed betrayal more time, thus making his actions more believable. This was a massive improvement over the Bleach manga, where Ishida’s backstory and betrayal felt more like an odd surprise.

2

Rukia Kuchiki Isn’t as Prominent as She Used to Be

Rukia Kuchiki Was Demoted to a Side Character

Rukia Kuchiki is just as synonymous with Bleach as Ichigo. Not only was she the catalyst for the entire manga, she was a protagonist in her own right. The anime doubled down on this by giving her more screen time and even using her to promote Bleach. But by Thousand-Year Blood War, Rukia was basically a glorified side character.

Believe it or not, this was actually accurate to the manga. By the time the Wandenreich invaded Soul Society, Rukia’s arc was pretty much done. There wasn’t much for her to do besides get stronger. Rukia’s reduced presence in Bleach’s final arc may have been faithful to the source material, but it was still a disappointment to Bleach’s longtime fans.

1

Ichigo Kurosaki & Orihime Inoue Are the Romantic Endgame

The Anime’s Original Romantic Endgame Was Ichigo Kurosaki and Rukia Kuchiki

One of the most infamous changes the Bleach anime made to the manga regards its main romantic ship. In the Bleach manga, Ichigo Kuorsaki’s and Orihime Inoue’s romance was undeniable and inevitable. In the anime, Ichigo was more often paired up with Rukia. For one reason or another, the anime rewrote Ichigo’s romantic subplot and all but erased Orihime’s role in it all.

Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War finally repaired this strange creative change, and restored Ichigo’s and Orihime’s romance. Those who’ve read the manga were happy to see this romantic pairing get the justice it deserved. However, those who only watched Bleach’s anime were confused and even angry that Ichio’s budding love with Rukia got retconned.

Bleach is now available to read, watch and own physically and digitally.

Bleach

Release Date

2004 – 2022

Network

TV Tokyo, TV Osaka, TV Aichi, TVh, TVQ, TSC, BS TV Tokyo

Showrunner

Tite Kubo

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  Masakazu Morita

  Ichigo Kurosaki (voice)

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  Fumiko Orikasa

  Rukia Kuchiki