DESCRIPTION

CAST

MANGA ActionBLEACH
ANIME ActionBLEACH
MUSIC PsychologicalRapport
ANIME ActionBLEACH: Sennen Kessen-hen - Ketsubetsu-tan

REVIEWS

• 

  Horipple

  100/100
  Love requited in full

  The Thousand Year Blood War is a story that I have read before, it’s a story that I have re-read even; that’s why in this analysis I aim to not only comment on elements which make bleach a fantastic story, but also comment on what this adaptation does to enhance it.

  

  The Poems

  In the past few years, a prevailing narrative within the community has been that Tite Kubo is an unskilled writer, and by extension, Bleach is a lackluster story. This was a point I never cared to argue against before, however, revisiting the world of soul reapers and magic swords through this anime has made it clear to me that these preconceptions are unsubstantiated, it just takes a little effort to uncover Kubo’s strengths as a writer.

  The poems are the first little thing that the team behind this anime adaptation uses to show that they truly understand Kubo’s style.

  If you’re a manga reader you might have noticed that every volume begins with a poem which gives a hint to what you are about to see. Not only do these old poems show up to replace the usual episode previews, the care has been taken to include new poems written by Kubo so that each episode can feature one. These poems betray Kubo’s sensibilities and they are the first step to seeing how the writing in Bleach is more like poetry, full of metaphors and symbolism.

  

  The Battle

  One of the most frequent themes of Bleach is that through conflict people can reach an understanding. This is often exemplified through Ichigo and his fights against Aizen, Byakuya, and Ginjo, to name just a few. It’s no surprise that for the final arc of the story this theme would make a return in its most extreme form yet, through the battle between Kenpachi Zaraki and Yachiru Unohana, this is the battle.

  This exchange of sadistic sword swinging and murderous maiming maneuvers is in fact the deepest display of affection that this anime has to offer. This duel plays out with enough passion to make me shudder even now after seeing it happen so many times before. The battle delivers scenes unlike anything I have seen from a shounen anime despite it not looking as flashy as what the competition is offering. In moments like these you learn to appreciate the brilliant direction put on display, the choreography, and the sound design, everything coming together to form one of the most memorable scenes of the genera.

  

  These two characters who are seemingly polar opposites are in fact so perfect for each other that they cannot help but to destroy themselves, the only scars that hurt are the ones they gave each other. The understanding I mentioned earlier reaches its most heightened state in the brief moments before Unohana’s life is taken. The dreamlike image of two skeletons duking it out in battle evokes the meaning of the fight, two people locked in a deadly trance which strips them to their most base forms, unchained from any limit. It’s only after Zaraki awakens that we break away from this imagery.

  All throughout this encounter Unohana has been stronger, more powerful, more agile, but when the battle reaches its climax, they are finally on a level playing field. Their monologues merge into a dialogue, and they achieve a perfect state where they can communicate almost telepathically, simply by exchanging blows. In the end it’s the strength they both sought that gives them their purest moment of bliss and also takes them away from the only person who could match them.

  I used to interpret the passion of this fight as two lovers in a self-destructive dance, now through the anime I can also see a motherly love coming from Unohana, her life culminating in this final trial where she gives all she had to awaken the true Kenpachi.

  

  The Rain

  This is the all-encompassing element of Bleach. Sadness embodied.

  Every crucial moment of this story has been enveloped by the cold mantle of rain; I don’t even have to name them because I’m sure some have already sprung to your mind.

  To see everything but the rain is to see only the happy moments of life, but sadly not us nor the characters in Bleach can escape the rain forever. Its uncomfortable, it might challenge us, but enduring the rain is what makes us grow. When Ichigo is thrown out of the soul society his entire sense of self is thrown into confusion, it’s only after he can face his past marred by the rain that he can reclaim the symbolic manifestations of his identity: his zanpakuto and the combat pass left with Ikumi.

  

  The Fire

  Symbolically, fire can be seen as many different things, destruction, growth, purity, rebirth. I find that all of these meanings are represented perfectly within Yamamoto. He is the fire that defeated Yhwach’s army a thousand years ago, the same fire that nurtured the soul society and its Shinigami, and in the end, the fire that burns out without resistance in the face of an overwhelming force.

  Yamamoto’s demise was tragic, his mental fortitude flickering akin to a candle in the wind. He was far from perfect as someone like Mayuri would point out but he was the beacon which guided the Gotei 13, and now that his fire is gone it’s time for a new leader to rise from the ashes of war. Kyoraku’s promotion to head captain was something cleverly foreshadowed by the opening of this anime, and the direction of the anime works towards showing how intertwined his fate is with his old teacher.

  In many ways his opposite, Kyoraku is forced to mature quickly, and pick up the mantle left by his predecessor, but that’s all I can say for now. The future will definitely test Kyoraku again and I will definitely be there to talk about it.

  

  The Conclusion

  In many ways I feel like the anime is filled with these small gestures of affection towards the original work. The poems, the battle, the rain, the fire. Every tiny thing converges to create a product which pays respect to the source material while also elevating it with a stellar directorial style and solid animation and music.

  I’ve been a fan of bleach for so long that I wasn’t sure if the anime could ever surpass my expectations, but I found that it managed to do much more than that, it has returned to me in equal all of the love which I’ve been pouring into it. I don’t have to live in fear of lost happiness because I know, Bleach has come back.

  
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• 

  lylac

  90/100
  The Glorious Return of The Strawberry

  ₜₕₑ ₛₜᵣₐ᭙᥇ₑᵣᵣꪗ ᵣₑₜᵤᵣₙₛ _Bleach_ has a distinctive appeal that lies in its poetic and emotive narrative, its stylish battles, unique character designs and truly fascinating lore infused with all kinds of symbolism. The _Thousand Year Blood War_ arc portrays the compelling story of a never-ending dispute between 2 races determined to let their ideals prevail no matter the circumstances nor the consequences. 2 old leaders with a thousand year long history that resent each other to the heart, and also 2 of the younger generation who may have the opportunity to initiate dialogue, this time for good, and change things for the better. The anime adaptation certainly does justice to the original source and does not fail to show _Bleach_ at its best, as it entertains and embodies every aspect that makes it so beloved. The production and direction of the anime adaptation is outstanding. I love every single detail such as the newly written poems by Kubo at the end of each episode, the iconic title cards, the transitions between scenes and the brilliantly choreographed battles; everything that makes bleach feel unique is cleverly assembled to deliver a great experience to the spectator. The anime feels more like a passion project; the understanding and love of the production team for Kubo's original work is depicted in each scene and even in the smallest of details. Although, the pace and animation quality fluctuate especially in the first 2 to 4 episodes, from episode 5 onwards significant improvement is noticeable, there is consistency in the animation quality, and a new height is reached at episode 6: _The Fire_ A true masterpiece, a brilliantly directed episode with movie quality production that continued to evoke all kinds of emotions within me, even after my second rewatch. It is the long awaited battle between Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto and “Yhwach” the Quincy King, that many avid fans have longed for to see on the screens, it surely lives up to the hype. ༺❁༻ _Born in the dark_ If people thought _The Fire_ would be the highlight of the season they were wrong. It is followed by Episode 7: _Born in the dark_, another production masterpiece and absolute spectacle to the eye. It is the final battle of a brutal first invasion by the enemy army, a frenetic and emotional fight between Ichigo Kurosaki who lusts for revenge and the invader leader, Yhwach, who does not hesitate to bring down his opponent leaving him conflicted and completely hopeless. ༺❁༻ _The battle_ One of my favourite moments in the Thousand Year Blood War is adapted in both episodes 9: _The drop_ and episode 10: _The battle_. It is another long awaited moment beloved by many including myself, of 2 simple yet elaborate characters. Both seem polar opposites but in reality share the same twisted pleasure they experience during a fight to the death. An _“Ode to Battle”_ by Tite Kubo filled with imagery and symbolism, beautifully adapted into a frenzied but also romantic battle between the strongest. A blissful but yet tragic end to my favourite character in _Bleach_, _The first Kenpachi_, Yachiru Unohana. ༺❁༻ _Nothing but the Rain_ _June Truth & The Blade is Me_ somehow feel like the perfect closure to what has been the start of a brutal war. The anime delivers a beautiful flashback that made me shed tears. It is a captivating story to find oneself, a never told truth from the past that Ichigo Kurosaki needed to hear from his father to finally escape the rain, a recurring theme in _Bleach_ that symbolises pure sadness. He is now able to choose the right path and unlock his true potential, his determination will never waver. ༺❁༻ __The scenery__ One thing I really appreciate are the new added scenes never seen before in the manga. We get to see an epic flashback from a 1000 years ago of the first battle between Shinigami and Quincy, as well as a close up reveal of the original _Gotei 13 Squad Captains_. It is such a pleasant surprise and honestly, Kubo is a master of the pen, his character designs are second to none. The creative direction and especially the music production are wonderful. Remixing the OG OSTs was a brilliant move by Shiro Sagisu. The colour palettes chosen for each episode fit beautifully the tone of the events being displayed on the screen. You can really notice the change in atmosphere between each location and get totally immersed in the plot. The world of the living's night sky, Hueco Mundo's eerie darkness, the imperial Soul Society (Seireitei), the ethereal Reiryoku, the mysterious white castle that is Silbern, and even the Garganta, all these locations look truly otherworldly and seem to not belong in the same anime. ___The Conclusion___ The studio has promised better quality for the second cour of the final arc in 2023... I really cannot get more excited! I am very grateful to the staff and Tite Kubo for their hard work, artistic vision and determination to deliver this long awaited and beautiful project that has far surpassed my expectations and has reminded me of how much I love _Bleach_. ༺❁༻
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• 

  UltraGay

  1/100
  just your classic Bleach review

  Before we start with the actual review, there is important stuff to clear up.
  Me and Bleach were never good friends, so my Review can be a little harsh.
  I didn't read the manga, so I can't compare these, but it doesn't matter. (is what I thought) And because some Bleach fans don't know how to properly rate stuff, I need to keep the perfect balance when it comes to scoring.

  Without further ado, let's start with one of the main characters in this series.
  Rukia was shown for a total of 4 episodes out of 13.
  That is something roughly between 1-2 minutes screen time. Which most she spent doing nothing. She said something while she was K.Od
  from not fighting anyone or anything. That basically sums up what she "the main character" was doing while her brother "the sidecharacter" was
  actually fighting.

  Now listen carefully, i ... shit ... you ... not. Throughout the whole anime, I didn't even notice they took Rukia with them. Like legit, they took her in that ball thing, I didn't even notice. She was in the water healing with them, but I was only looking at the boys for fan service purposes. When you think ok that's stupid no it gets even more quirky. I open up YT and get this as a recommendation

  
  Then three questions come into my mind. 1. Why didn't I read the manga, so I could shit on this way more? 2. Why wasn't this animated? 3. Why doesn't anilist allow negative scoring? Through "reliable sources" I got insight on the manga and can leave this statement uncommented: The bleach anime censors, changes or leaves stuff out which is fairly cringe. While it got better on the censor part, I'm not satisfied with the other two and probably never will.

  Next we get into some story. This might be spoiler so watch yourself.
  There is this russian girl and I always forget her name. I think I will just call her Urahara, but that is the guy's name, so Unohana ? Doshana? Arohara something-hana it was. Her whole existence was pointless. She only lived to get devoured by the guy with the spiky hair, Jinpachi ? Whatever his name was. I thought her glow up was pretty cool, and I think in the manga it would probably be way more emotional than the anime, but what do I know. Maybe she gets the ichigo treatment (Plotarmor for no reason and then getting healed by the fake Nami whatever her name was.) but probably not.

  Let's not forget this memorable moment as well. When I saw this, I couldn't help but feel a little bad. It reminded me of the time I read berserk, a true masterpiece compared to bleach, which is a truly bad anime. Sometimes the skeletons still appear in my nightmares, but that's to be expected from the immersive, flawless 3d animation. My only question is why didn't they warn me before so I could buy 3d glasses, it would've enchanted the experience tenfold.

  Another part that I want to mention is Ichigos parent's backstory. Yeah, I know it's boring and no one really cares about him, but for some reason he gets the most screen time, so I thought why not make an exception. Me and everyone who didn't read the manga easily predicted him to be Half-Hallow. When you saw his father fighting the black guy which is called white for some reason, you could easily predict that he had intercourse with it.

  So far I only said bad things or to be more precise only the hard truth.
  Let me say one good thing, then. The grandpa guy was cool, Ryujinjakka or what his name was. The fight was cool, his flashbacks were cool.
  His bankai was also cool. The fight all in all was the highlight of the anime.

  With that I would like to thank you all and have a wonderful day

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