In 2012, the Bleach series concluded with the thrilling Fullbring arc. However, after approximately eight years, Studio Pierrot made the bold decision to resume the story towards its final conclusion, taking us to the next arc: the Thousand-Year Blood War! The dedication put into this project is truly remarkable, improving in every possible aspect. The animation and visual design are of impressive quality, leaving viewers speechless while still respecting the essence of the original anime in this new project. This new stage of Bleach is a tribute to the creative genius of its creator, Tite Kubo. Bleach has achieved one of the greatest comebacks in anime history, acclaimed by many fans. In this post, we will explore the best parts and aspects of what has been seen in the first two parts of this latest Bleach arc. But first, we will provide a summary of the events that have taken place in these parts. If you haven't watched Bleach from the beginning yet, I recommend you first visit my previous post, where the original anime (with few spoilers) is discussed, and the reasons why it became my favorite are explained.
Summary synopsis of Cour 1:
The arc begins with the awakening of the Quincy King, Yhwach, who initiates his plan to invade and destroy the Shinigamis (Soul Reapers). From the start, the Quincies demonstrate their power by surprise attacking the Soul Society, revealing meticulous preparation of almost a thousand years for the war. Their ability to steal the Bankais of the shinigamis puts them in a desperate situation, desperately seeking a way to counter their powerful enemies.
Meanwhile, Ichigo Kurosaki finds himself in the Hollow World helping his old friend Nel, only to be caught by the Quincy Quilge Opie's ability. As the shinigamis struggle to resist, the Seireitei suffers devastating destruction and great losses, including those of important characters.
Fortunately, the Quincies can only remain in the Soul Society for a limited time, and Aizen's intervention distorts their perception of time, allowing the enemies to retreat and the survival of the shinigamis.
Cour 1 concludes with Ichigo meeting Squad Zero and visiting the king's palace to prepare for the second assault against the Quincies. For this, he must discover the truth about his origins, receive a new Zanpakuto due to the loss of his previous one in battle against Yhwach (in which ended with Haschwalth breaking it), and mourn the loss of a dear companion who accompanied him for a long time. In the end, a scene is shown in which Ichigo's friend, Uryū Ishida, decides to join the side of his blood, which would be the Quincies, leading to a great confrontation between the friendship of these two in the future.
Summary synopsis of Cour 2:
The second part begins with Yhwach naming Ishida as his successor, which draws the attention and anger of the elite group of Quincies, the Sternritters. Meanwhile, Ichigo finds himself in the king's palace preparing for the rematch against Yhwach, and the captains prepare for combat without their Bankais.
Right at the beginning of this second part, Yhwach attacks again by surprise, merging the Soul Society with the world or dimension of shadows, where he had been hidden and planning everything. This maneuver surprises the shinigamis, even losing the advantage of the terrain. However, Urahara Kisuke, based on the information he gathered during his time in the Hollow World, finds a way for the captains and lieutenants with Bankai to regain this ace in the sleeve in the war.
Meanwhile, Ichigo continues with his arduous training, and Rukia, Renji, and Byakuya are sent to the battlefield with new powers acquired during their training.
In this part, we witness new and incredible confrontations, as well as the revelation of new Bankais of the captains and more. Strong fights, new powers acquired, and even sacrifices were made in order to win the war.
Finally, Ichigo arrives on the battlefield, only to realize that he was part of Yhwach's plans, as this opens a window for him to invade the King's Palace. Seeing Ishida by Yhwach's side, Ichigo discovers Ishida's betrayal and immediately heads to the King's Palace, accompanied by Ganju, Yoruichi, and his lifelong friends Orihime and Chad, thanks again to Urahara Kisuke. Meanwhile, the rest of the shinigamis confront and stop the Quincies from reaching Ichigo, and Yhwach and his best soldiers face Squad Zero.
This second part of the arc concludes with incredible confrontations between them, showing the skill and power of Ichibe, leader of Squad Zero, and the uncertainty about the outcome of the confrontation.
Animation:
The animation in this new Bleach project and arc is truly innovative, representing a notable leap compared to its predecessor. The quality of the confrontations is impressive, especially standing in the representation of the Bankais, which now look more serious and visually striking in "Thousand-Year Blood War" (TYBW). This improvement in design contributes to increasing tension during battles and provides a more satisfying visual experience for viewers.
Additionally, there is a notable respect towards the original manga work. Thanks to a greater acceptance of anime nowadays, several impressive scenes have been shown during fights that could have been censored in the past. This meticulous approach demonstrates the care and dedication that the production team has put into the project, resulting in a masterpiece acclaimed by many fans. Despite the changes, the essence of Bleach remains intact, adding additional value to this exciting continuation.
Soundtracks, openings, and endings:
The soundtracks, openings, and endings in the new Bleach arc are a clear example of the affection and respect that the production team has for the original version. They adapted some classic soundtracks to the new series, resulting in an interesting and beautiful experience when listening to them in a more modern version. Some of these themes are, for example, "Number One", "On the Precipice of Death", and even "Treachery"!! These and more, combined with other new ones that are equally good and up to par. This is no surprise because the composer of these themes remains none other than Shiro Sagisu himself, who continues to use his great ability to create new iconic themes like those of Hirako Shinji, which are very characteristic and totally go with said character. An incredible genius is what this composer always does with the character, both the theme of the classic anime ("Escalation") and that of TYBW ("Everything I Lost").
Number One Theme:
But not only the soundtrack but also the openings and endings stood out in the anime. In all of them, a great artistic art of how they want to show what the story will be about is appreciated. It can be seen that they have not lost their touch since in the classic anime several openings had a certain characteristic art like the first opening ("Asterisk", by ORANGE RANGE), or the opening 13 (Ranbu no Melody, by SID). The opening that I liked the most from TYBW would say it was the second one (STARS, by w.o.d.), I found it interesting and even funny the way they want to communicate certain things from the main plot. On the other hand, I also have to highlight the beautiful melody provided by the first ending of TYBW (Saihate, by SennaRin). From there, the others that are still good would be "Scar" by Tatsuya Kitani, and "Endroll" by Yoh Kamiyama.
Bleach TYBW opening 2:
If this were not enough, you can see the great passion they put into Bleach that even after completing each Cour they release special videos like the great song by Tatsuya Kitani called "Eien" which is an official music video where it summarizes everything that happened in Bleach with a great art too that combines and matches with the colors blue and red. A masterpiece. You also have to appreciate this last artist since he worked on three themes in this work, since in the first episode another theme of his was also witnessed which was "Rapport" for the rewind of everything that happened before the TYBW arc. In addition to this, you can also appreciate a complete version of the ending by SennaRin (the one above), and for Cour 2 you can also appreciate another special video in which you hear the ending Endroll while each episode of that part is relived.
A great job is shown in this area indeed!!
Bankais:
Bleach ended in 2012 without having adapted the entire manga, leaving some gaps and mysteries unresolved that are now finally being revealed. One of these elements is the Bankais of several characters, which had not been shown in the original anime. Now, we can finally witness the Bankais of the captains Retsu Unohana, Hirako Shinji, Rojuro Otoribashi, and the impressive Bankai of Genryūsai Yamamoto, the commander captain of the 13 squads of the Seireitei.
Not only that, we have also had the opportunity to witness the long-awaited Bankai of Rukia Kuchiki, which many would describe as one of the most beautiful moments of the anime.
Additionally, we have seen the complete Bankai of Abarai Renji, as well as the surprising Bankai of Senjumaru Shutara, a new character introduced in this arc. The latter was an artistic and visual masterpiece, providing great satisfaction for the viewers!
Highlighted and memorable moments to date:
Speaking of other highlights, the complete story of Ichigo's origins and powers is finally revealed, helping to fill in some gaps in the plot since 2012, making many things now fit perfectly.
As for memorable moments, the incredible fight between Yamamoto and Yhwach was a highlight, demonstrating exceptional quality in animation. Another notable confrontation was Zaraki Kenpachi against Gremmy, where Kenpachi developed his Shikai impressively.
And speaking of Zaraki Kenpachi, it is important to mention his confrontation with Retsu Unohana, also known as Yachiru Unohana, where it is revealed that she was actually the first Kenpachi. This confrontation had a shocking and significant conclusion in the story.
On the other hand, there was also a fantastic visual demonstration of Hirako Shinji's Bankai where they made everything fit perfectly - quality, design, music, scenery, suspense, and visuals! Similarly, another comparable moment where everything fits was Senjumaru Shutara's.
Likewise, there were other moments in which they evoked many emotions and feelings from fans like Rukia's confrontation against As Nodt, since in the end and by showing her Bankai, she demonstrates that she finally reached the level of a captain and all the path she has taken is finally recognized by her brother Byakuya.
Finally, the confrontation between Squad Zero and Yhwach along with his best soldiers was quite impressive where each side was giving everything it had and when it seemed that one side had the advantage, the other found a way to turn everything around. Surely the second arc ended in suspense to know how this confrontation will end!
Quincies:
In addition to the plot and the quality of the anime, the new characters that the shinigamis face are a highlight of this arc. These enemies present a wide variety of personalities that add an additional level of entertainment to the series.
Characters:
Bleach has experienced notable growth and stands out for its wide range of characters. The series skillfully handles this diversity, resulting in a large number of characters that are entertaining and impactful every time they appear on screen. These characters can be divided into five main groups: Humans (with and without powers), Shinigamis, Visored, Hollows/Arrancars/Espadas, and Quincies.
Bleach TYBW maintains the magic that has always been in the anime!
Bleach TYBW maintains the magic that has always characterized the anime. From the first post of this Bleach blog, we have highlighted how the series has been able to develop its plot gradually and constantly improve. There is a perfect balance in revealing essential parts and mysteries of the plot, an aspect that continues to be perfected in this latest arc.
With each episode, the puzzle of this great story continues to be completed, and the recent revelation of Ichigo's origins in this arc is proof of the excellent work done by Tite Kubo in telling this story.
Although there is still much to see, Bleach always reserves surprises for its viewers. In the remaining parts of the arc, we definitely expect to see more revelations and exciting twists in the plot.
What's next?
There is still more to see, Bleach always keeps an ace up its sleeve, here is a summary of things that will definitely be shown in the remaining parts.
The full power of the 5 war potentials or special war threats:
Some characters have already shown part of their power and have had their battles, but others have not yet entered into action. For example, Aizen remains locked with overwhelming power, and Urahara Kisuke has collaborated with his intelligence but has not yet shown his Bankai. Ichigo Kurosaki has not yet shown his full potential, including his new powers with his new Zanpakuto and Bankai. Zaraki Kenpachi has also proven to be a powerful and terrifying character, and the audience is eager to see his Bankai one day. However, Ichibe seems to be the only one who has shown his full potential at the end of Cour 2. The resolution of his confrontation with Yhwach is expected in part 3.
Presence of other characters on the battlefield:
For the moment, only small appearances of other characters who have not yet fought in this arc have been seen. First, there are the rest of the Visoreds where there is also a former captain (Love Aikawa) of the squads with his Bankai. On the other hand, in an episode of the first Cour and in the latest advances of Bleach, the return of the Xcution can be seen, which is the group that uses Fullbring. Similarly, in the trailer for the third part, you can see the Espadas Grimmjow and Nel (adult form). Likewise, it is still believed that Yoruichi Shihōin's full potential is missing. Finally, we have the captains Jūshirō Ukitake and Shunsui Kyōraku who from the beginning could say that everyone wants to see their Bankais revealed just like Urahara's.
In addition to the above, we can expect more incredible moments in the series, unexpected plot twists, and other events and mysteries to be revealed like the complete reason why Ishida decided to join Yhwach in this war.
Conclusion:
In summary, Bleach TYBW has revived the magic and excitement that have always characterized the series. With impressive animation, notable respect for the original material, and the addition of exciting new elements, this arc has been acclaimed by fans as one of the greatest comebacks in anime history. From the revelation of the Bankais to the exciting battles and memorable moments, each episode has left us eager for more. With even more to discover in the upcoming parts, such as the full power of key characters and the presence of others on the battlefield, we can expect even more plot twists and epic moments to come. In short, Bleach TYBW continues to hold its place as one of the most exciting and beloved series in the anime world. We can't wait to see what else is in store!
Therefore, the eagerly awaited part of Cour 3 of Bleach TYBW is confirmed for 2024. Fans will be thrilled to know that there is still more to come!
Here's the latest trailer to date along with another special music video played again by SennaRin herself. The song is called "Reaper"!!!
Bleach Thousand-Year Blood War Part 3 trailer:
"Reaper", SennaRin:
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