The official Japanese Twitter account and website for the Bleach anime series have released a new visual commemorating the series’ 20th anniversary.
The new visual spotlights protagonist Ichigo Kurosaki and the six enemies he’s fought over the history of the anime, which consist of Byakuya Kuchiki, Grimmow Jaegerjaquez, Ulquiorra Cifer, Sousuke Aizen, Kugo Ginjo, and Yhwach.
Aniplex also posted a special video featuring the visual on its YouTube channel, which includes the song “Number One – Bankai” by series music composer Shiro Sagisu and quotes from Ichigo’s six enemies.
A previous key visual was released this past March in promotion of a special event in Yokohama.
The latest third cour of Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War titled The Conflict is scheduled to air in Japan on October 5, 2024. Hulu, Disney+, bilibili, iQIYI, and Prime Video are among the platforms that are streaming the anime series worldwide, outside of Japan.
The first Bleach TV anime series aired from October 5, 2004 to March 27, 2012. Bleach Thousand-Year Blood War then broadcasted its first cour from October 11, 2022 to December 27, 2022. The second cour, Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War – The Separation, aired in Japan on July 8, 2023 until September 30, 2023.
Thousand-Year Blood War is the first Bleach TV anime since the 2004 anime adaptation and adapts the final arc of the supernatural action manga series by Tite Kubo.
Kubo’s original manga series ran in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump magazine from August 7, 2001 to August 22, 2016 and was collected into 74 total tankobon volumes. A special one-shot was released in 2021. The franchise has inspired four anime films, a 2018 live-action film adaptation, a trading card game, various video games, and a stage musical.
VIZ Media releases the manga in English and describes the Thousand-Year Blood War story arc as:
When new Soul Reapers and a new enemy appear in his hometown of Karakura, Ichigo jumps back into the battlefield with his Zanpakuto to help those in need. Meanwhile, the Soul Society is observing a sudden surge in the number of Hollows being destroyed in the World of the Living. They also receive separate reports of residents in the Rukon District having gone missing. Finally, the Seireitei, home of the Soul Reapers, comes under attack by a group calling themselves the Wandenreich.
Led by Yhwach, the father of all Quincies, the Wandenreich declare war against the Soul Reapers with the following message: “Five days from now, the Soul Society will be annihilated by the Wandenreich.”
Source: Bleach Anime Official Japanese Twitter, Official Anime Website
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