Mitsuru Ishino

Masayoshi

Kensei Muguruma

Nova

Yoruichi Shihouin

Kaname Tousen

Isshin Kurosaki

Tsubaki

Lily

Nemu Kurotsuchi

Karin Kurosaki

Ichigo Kurosaki

Uryuu Ishida

Shuuhei Hisagi

Keigo Asano

Kanou

Kisuke Urahara

Yasutora Sado

Bawabawa

Zonzain

Findorr Calius

Iceringer

Charlotte Chuhlhourne

Hyourinmaru

Love Aikawa

Ichigo Kurosaki is a rather normal high school student apart from the fact he has the ability to see ghosts. This ability never impacted his life in a major way until the day he encounters the Shinigami Kuchiki Rukia, who saves him and his family's lives from a Hollow, a corrupt spirit that devours human souls. 
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Wounded during the fight against the Hollow, Rukia chooses the only option available to defeat the monster and passes her Shinigami powers to Ichigo. Now forced to act as a substitute until Rukia recovers, Ichigo hunts down the Hollows that plague his town. 




___
~~~img220(https://i.imgur.com/iH14cf4.jpg)~~~

***
_Em um breve resumo, poderia simplesmente dizer q ele possui uma ótima história (um enredo bastante trabalhado) com uma pitada de "quebra de ritmo decepcionante".._
***
~~~img220(https://i.imgur.com/9j1dkOy.png)~~~
 _Achei muito bom, a história principal é sensacional, realmente ela faz vc se concentrar nela... porém os Fillers atrapalham muito o desenvolvimento dela.. eles aparecem em momentos cruciais, tirando totalmente sua intonação com os acontecimentos.. O desenvolvimento geral do anime foi bom (ele possui umas cenas chatas e cenas sensacionais, mas isso varia conforme Arco ), e seu final foi legal, mas decepcionante. A evolução e dificuldade enfrentadas pelos personagem são interessantes, a evolução N é muito percebida em certos personagens q já são fortes, mas em outros, elas são bem efetivas.. A trilha sono dele é boa, N se destaca muito mas N é ruim.._
>#PONTOS FORTES
- __Personagens:__ _Cada personagens possui um estilo e um carisma q combina muito com sua pessoa, eles são bem trabalhados e "engraçados" (dentro do possível). Cada personalidade é aproveitada dentro do Anime perfeitamente...._
- __Humor:__ _Ele N lá grande coisa, mas é bem legal, serve mais para quebrar uma expectativa do que para ser propriamente dito como "engraçado" ._
- __Desenvolvimento:__ _Achei isso muito bom nele (tirando os fillers o anime fica com um sequencia muito boa), ele pode ser lento mas na hora q tem q aparecer ele vem com tudo.._

>#PONTOS FRACOS
  - __Fillers:__ _Eles realmente são chatos... chegam a durar quase q 30 EPs seguidos, oq atrapalha no desenrolar da história, e deixa VC com vontade de parar de assistir, pq eles realmente aparacem em horas crucias (antes das grandes lutas). ._
  - ~!__Final:__ _Ele foi bom, mas N esperava q houvesse alguns fatos q fizeram com q ele se desenvolvesse: para a luta contra o Aizen, o Ichigo atinge a sua forma mais forte, ele fica OverPower (nem o capitão geral do seireitei conseguiria bater nele) porém, ele ativa o seu Final getsuga tenshoul, q é quando ele se torna o próprio Getsuga tenshoul, só q, ao ativá-lo, o custo é seu poder de Shinigame, simplesmente ele deixa de ser um Shinigame, ai entra no ultimo arco, q foi bom, o ichigo recebe devolta seu poder de Shinigame, mas N queria q ele tivesse se rebaixado daquele poder OverPower...._!~

Recomendo o Anime, mas é melhor, na minha mera opinião, q vc pule os Fillers, eles só vão te encher... somente um "Fillers" (a sequencia toda) q realmente é interessante, fora isso, eles entram no meio dos arcos, então pule eles.... 


Uma ótima obra com uma pitada de "decepção sequencial"...

Bleach was a show I had disregarded for the longest time, finding it boring. To my surprise, I unexpectedly found myself returning to it and actually enjoying it. It was one of the few shows that introduced me to anime during my early days. However, back in 2008/2009, there were only a limited number of dubbed episodes available, and streaming services weren't as accessible as they are today. Consequently, I put the show off entirely and didn't consider reading the manga either. When the anime concluded in 2012 with little fanfare, I didn't pay much attention. I had only made it so far as the Soul Society arc and had no idea what had happened since. Days turned into years until 2015 when I decided to give Bleach another chance.

As I revisited the show, I scoured the internet to watch the openings, hoping to rekindle that sense of nostalgia. It wasn't until I came across Ranbu no Melody (Opening 13) that my interest truly piqued. I felt compelled to return to the show, if only to experience that opening in its episode. But I didn't just want to watch Bleach; I was determined to dedicate my time and effort to fully immerse myself in it. Was it worth it? Well, to some extent. Bleach follows a standard Shonen plot, with Ichigo, an ordinary high school student, gaining supernatural powers and realizing his duty to protect everyone and everything around him. Along the way, he faces increasingly powerful foes, grows stronger, and confronts challenging adversaries. Bleach strikes a fine balance between comedy and action, often eliciting unexpected laughter from me.

Bleach is separated into larger arcs, that are followed up by smaller ones.

__THE SOUL SOCIETY__
-Human Realm
-Soul Society

__ARRANCAR__
-Human Real
-Hueco Mundo
-Fake Karakura Town

The first season, known as "The Substitute," is set in our world and follows Ichigo's journey into becoming a Soul Reaper. The arc concludes with Ichigo's mission to rescue his friend Rukia, from whom he received his powers illegitimately. This leads to the Soul Society arc, which revolves around the rescue mission for Rukia. While it's widely regarded as the pinnacle of the show by many, it's not necessarily the peak of Bleach for me. Despite the consistent quality of the show, the Soul Society arc stands out because it introduces us to new enemies and a fresh storyline. The arc benefits from its stable pacing and the novelty of exploring a new aspect of the universe. It's a captivating twist of events as Ichigo confronts a series of intriguing antagonists, particularly within the unique setting of the Soul Society.

The Soul Society arc shows us lots, but often explanations are so contrived. The writer Tite Kubo has a knack for his stylistic approach. What's often cool to the eye, is never fully translated well when it comes to dialogue. One moment you might understand a concept about the world, and then the next it's confusing you. The more glaring issue is the placement of the arc because it's as if this was written to be the finale of the entire series. In reality, this isn't the case. The Soul Society arc has it's a fair share of problems, partly because of the way it was adapted. The action fit perfectly in the manga, and it resonated with me. The anime adapted it but drew out scenes to an annoyingly boring degree, partly due to its syndicated run on television. The worst part of it all was the included recaps in the middle of fights. Regardless of how epic the fight was in the manga, the Bleach anime likes to dump exposition in order to fill time for their televised viewing. The transition to the Hueco Mundo arc in the manga was terrible as well, but it happened and this was not some easy fix. But where Bleach lacked in pacing, it made up for in strong sequences. The Hueco Mundo arc comes into play right after in the anime and is adapted so well in the beginning. The pacing happens so fast, and things carry on at a reasonably good pace. It was a breath of fresh air for me. Fights didn't take more than a few episodes to conclude, and it's a real shame the rest of Bleach didn't have that noticeably better pacing when it wasn't waiting on manga chapters. It closely followed the manga without losing anything in translation. 

Now, let's delve into the issue of filler content. Skipping it can make the difference between experiencing "good" Bleach and settling for "okay" Bleach. Often, filler episodes don't significantly impact the main storyline; they're treated as separate entities. However, in the Bleach anime, this isn't always the case. Filler characters sometimes find their way into crucial plot points, detracting from the significance of certain scenes.

My main gripe arose when a particular character revealed themselves to be a Soul Reaper during a pivotal moment. The reaction of the filler characters present dampened the impact of the reveal. Having read the manga alongside watching the show, I was eagerly anticipating these moments. But seeing these filler characters shoehorned into the main plot was disappointing. While I could overlook it, it added to the list of issues I had with the Bleach anime. The decision to integrate them into one of the battles further exacerbated the problem. I would have preferred if they were entirely forgotten rather than wasting screen time on their inclusion, regardless of continuity.

Some may dismiss this as nitpicking, but for me, it was distracting and detracted from the immersion. Referencing an arc I hadn't seen prior only compounded the frustration, especially knowing these characters exist in the main story.

Moving on, the Hueco Mundo arc introduces visually striking antagonists like Ulquiorra and Grimmjow. While the setting is captivating, the arc overstays its welcome. The repetitive pattern of fights, exposition, and plot progression becomes tiresome to watch. I had hoped the anime would address the pacing issues from the manga, but unfortunately, it falls short in this regard. It's a missed opportunity, considering how evident these pacing problems were in the original material.

Conversely, the Fullbringer arc, though often labeled as the most filler-like, diverges significantly from the typical Bleach formula. Despite being canon, it offers a refreshing departure from the usual narrative structure. Exploring emotionally heavy themes, it provides insights into Ichigo's character, even as his ultimate goal remains unclear. While some may find fault with the development of Fullbringer characters and their relevance to Bleach's world, I found the arc enjoyable for its compelling moments and thematic depth.

Bleach truly shines in its characters and their distinct designs. The diverse cast of twenty-plus characters each leaves a memorable impression, except perhaps for Don Kanoji, who's a bit hit or miss. The fantastic character interactions and conflicts in the Bleach anime make it worth watching. Now that both the anime and manga have concluded, let's delve deeper into some aspects of Bleach.

__Should You Skip the Fillers?__
Yes, you should skip them. But there's one thing you should do: finish Bleach and catch up on the manga. If you want more, you can come back to the filler episodes and entertain yourself there without having it interfere with the main plot.

__Should I Read the Manga Instead?__
I'd say yes if you don't have the time. But if you come to love the Bleach manga, then watch the show. The anime has great openings, and the emotional segments are portrayed to a better degree since it has more cinematic flair. The manga is good, but it suffers from pacing issues, like in the Hueco Mundo arc, which consists mainly of fights for several volumes. I honestly couldn't imagine reading this arc during a chapter release in Shonen Jump. Good lord, there's a whole lot of nothing for entire volumes.

__Then Does the Manga Surpass the Anime?__
Only marginally, by 0.5 of a star, because of its more faithful execution of the main story, which is a given. The manga lacks filler, making it a breeze to get through the dry arcs. Hopefully, they can do some story fixes with the new adaptation of the Thousand-Year Blood War, but I won't hold my breath.

__Is the Show Itself Worth Watching Then?__
Bleach is a blast; it's fun, regardless of the smaller problems. It's one of the preferred former "Big Three" that I was so glad to be watching. The show helps to illustrate the awesome action sequences and some of the emotional moments.

__What Are the Best Arcs of Bleach Then?__

Thousand-Year Blood War, but I'm willing to debate that after the atrocious ending.
Soul Society is about as equal as the Hueco Mundo (for me at least).
Fullbringer, but again, I'm also willing to debate this one. It can be interchanged depending on how I feel.
I Can't Complete It, Isn't It Like 300+ Episodes?
As I said, you can skip the fillers, thus reducing the show's length and making it more digestible. Believe it or not, the actual show is comprised of 49% filler, so don't feel bad about skipping. But if you seriously don't have the time, yes, read the manga; it's good. But come back to the show to see the scenes animated. Seriously, the show does improve some of those parts because it has the music and visuals to really bring the scenes to life. So don't avoid the anime entirely. If there's one thing perfect about Bleach, it's the openings. There are no bad ones.

__Closing Thoughts__
Now that's over with, I can conclude with my thoughts. Bleach is a great show, but the problems lie in two places: the filler and the source material. A certain female gets stabbed, not once, but numerous times through the chest. Yet, she somehow survives every single time that happens. It wasn't two standard parts either; this happens at very dramatic parts in which you're supposed to feel emotionally invested. When characters are resurrected by Kubo, it's hard to feel like there are stakes. If you want an emotional buildup, just write the characters' deaths properly and be done with it. Don't cater to the fanbase's popularity; it never works, and this is a clear example of fan-pandering that's kept certain characters alive. Bleach has some horribly bad "ass-pull" moments that become more apparent the further along you go. The stakes seem to lower with every new arc, as every "good guy" seems to survive regardless of how they died. All too often, people who should die, just don't, and it's ironically more painful keeping them alive. There's always that sense that they'll just return in the next arc, which leads to some underwhelming tension. This is more the fault of Kubo, who just couldn't be bothered to make a story that shakes up the formula. The final manga arc more than makes up for this to a point, but it feels like petty wish-fulfillment than a genuine attempt to tell a good high-stakes story. There are still many moments in which I felt compelled to put Bleach down and never return again, and finishing it just broke me mentally. I had invested hours upon hours of reading, watching, and fanboying over Bleach only for Kubo to tarnish all my respect for the series within the span of one chapter.

The newest arc, despite feeling great at the beginning, fell back into the Bleach formula. Good guy faces off with a bad guy who shows up, bad guy gets killed but reveals his true power, and then we see the hero's new Bankai; it's the same tired story structure that stretches itself over an entire arc, AGAIN. I will say this, recalling previous characters from past arcs was nice, if a bit fanservicey. Using surviving antagonists was cool too; I just wish Kubo would've used them in an Avengers-style final battle. I could write a whole review of the manga, but I thought it would be more appropriate to put here in my anime review. Bleach is returning, so I'll probably be watching it to see what direction they take it, but I'm past the point of caring about how it's handled the characters. Bleach is worth watching as the character dynamics feel fully realized in an animated format. It's just a shame that Kubo can't seem to write meaningful story arcs because there are some great scenarios that get mishandled that keep it from being anything special.

Clearly this is a case of style over substance

At the start of this year, I began a re-watch of bleach for a few reasons. First off the last arc in the manga was being animated and I wanted to remember all the content. Another reason was for the pure nostalgia of watching one of my favorite shows as a kid. Finally, and I think this turned out to be the most important: I wanted to discover if the show I cherished as a kid could still impact me as an adult who had a much more diverse spread of shows under their belt. I can say now that in that last point I was wrong, it impacted me a lot **more**.
 
I'll try and space out this review in a few sections, there will be spoilers and I'll go into detail on a few parts. I want to address the flaws in the show first before I can talk about the better parts of the show. 

*Note: I did not watch any filler content for the sake of I couldn't be bothered and I wanted to finish this rematch before the new anime aired*


~~~*The struggles of being a 2000's era shounen*~~~
Bleach struggles a lot from purely an adaption level. There are times where the story is paced very well and things flow into each other very nicely (i.e Soul Society) and times where the pacing accelerates to the point where the watcher is almost lost (i.e End of Fullbringer Arc). This doesn't affect the show too much but it's worth noting as the difference between the good pacing and poor pacing is noticeable much more to me than in other shows. 

Like most shounen shows (even in this age), Bleach suffers from what I like to call "Right-Arrow Syndrome" which is essentially when the show forces you to skip illegal levels of recap and empty space in order to get to the new content in the episode. I might be biased but I don't really mind this too much as shounen anime is nothing new to me but with bleach, it's a bit different. Usually, I'd just skip 5-7 minutes into the episode to get to the new stuff but with bleach, because 99% of the openings are bangers I had to watch the opening and then skip the recap, small but worth noting. 

~~~*Aizen was disappointing*~~~
First, let me preface, Aizen was a decent villain until the last part of the Arrancar arc, where he becomes no more relevant than a normal hollow. Aizen is a villain that you hate from start to end, for the pure fact that nothing seems to faze him no matter how much the characters we grow to care about try. To me Aizen never had a motive worth caring about, he was simply a good villain to give Ichigo a reason to grow and become strong. This isn't just for Aizen, even Ginjo to a point never really had a motive that mattered, their purposes were simply to be obstacles for Ichigo to overcome (along with other stuff which I'll get to later). 

~~~*Orihime was flat for 90% of the show*~~~ 

Orihime is a character that I could never put my hand on just right. She does a lot in terms of her actions and growth, but my god this is a dramatic case of "actions over words" because for every physical thing she does in the show she says "Kurosaki-Kun" twice. It's a real shame because she has a lot of development silently but none of that is actually shown until the Fullbringer Arc. She triples her vocabulary in three episodes of that arc than the previous 300 episodes. I think she ends up being a great side character and the fact that she, along with Chad and Uryu are able to stay relevant throughout the entirety of the anime is something that needs to be addressed alongside this.

Now I wanna talk about what Bleach does well, and what it does really well because this show has a lot.

~~~*When the Spanish Guitar Starts Strumming I start Sweating*~~~

Bleach's music was in a league of its own. From the openings to the battle OST's the music was standout to any shounen shows airing at the same time. The scratchy guitar makes your spine tingle, to Ichigo's battle theme which varied in hype depending on the stage of the fight. There are so many notable sounds in Bleach that enhance the quality of the show. The way that they use music to direct a fight was a treat to watch, although the slower-paced episodes definitely did not keep up. There's a moment in Soul Society where Ichigo has just finished defeating Byakuya and Aizen shows up. His theme starts playing softly and it goes into one of the most hype set up moments where Ichigo gets a direct hit on Aizen, only for him to be stopped with a finger. At that same exact moment the music cuts-dead. This sense of chills you get completely changes your perspective on the gap between Aizen and Ichigo and raises the stakes of the show. 

Addressing the title, the Espada/Arrancar Arc introduced Spanish guitar into the OST, which was without a doubt **the single greatest directional choice to be made in a show**. The thematic tone that is set from watching someone lose all hope in their life to the sound of the soft guitar is something that sticks with me, at this point, it's a Pavlov. The fact that they were able to integrate this into the show so well was something that I didn't fully realize until near the end of the Fullbringer arc. There was a big gap in the time that we heard the guitar (end of Arrancar arc to the end of fullbringer arc) but as soon as I heard it, goosebumps ran down my entire body. 


Lastly, I'll end by saying Bleach's openings and endings are incredible with a notable discography that includes many favorites. In addition, the visual themes that are presented are a treat to watch.

~~~*Where Bleach sets itself apart*~~~

Every shounen show has that first "real" arc. The first one to have stakes with all the main cast. It's the arc that pulls you in for the long run. Naruto has the Mist-Village Arc, One Piece had Arlong Park (although this you can argue is not the first), and so on and so forth. I think I can say in Bleach's case, "**The Soul Society Arc is the best first arc in any shounen new age and old age.**" The arc is set up so that you have one storyline merge into another one like on a highway. The way that they use Rukia as a ramp to connect the climax of the Soul Society Arc to the Arrancar arc is something that I am amazed by. It sets up all the major characters and storylines all in one arc with high stakes and hype battles. I don't think there were many flaws in this arc if any. You can say that Ichigo had a way too big of a power spike in this arc but I think you're going down the wrong can of worms if you want to address any form of power scaling in bleach. 

This mostly brings me to the end of the review, in short 2000's shounen format is not the most enjoyable to watch and bleach has amazing music and a banger first arc to set up the show. There is one thing I want to address and it's the one thing that surprised me the most in this re-watch: **Ichigo**.

~~~*Ichigo*~~~

I never once thought of Ichigo as a protagonist who had any real depth to him. I always saw him as just a monotone teenage protagonist who just wanted to "protect his friends". This isn't necessarily false, but it's a drastic oversimplification of his character. One of my biggest misconceptions, even upon rewatching, was that Ichigo was able to work through his trauma of losing his mom upon his first encounter with Grand Fisher in the first few episodes of Bleach. His change of attitude was not that he was over it, but that **he wouldn't let it happen to anyone else**. This is supported by the fact that there is a clear change in his attitude towards his shinigami "responsibilities" . Ichigo has abandonment trauma and he projects that onto everyone he cares for with an obsession of being someone who needs to protect people to feel valued. This is highlighted beautifully in the Fullbringer arc, where Ichigo loses everything he values most and breaks as a result. The clear change in attitude when he has power vs when he feels vulnerable and useless is almost exaggerated in this arc. Ichigo even addresses the fact that his protectionism is because of his guilt from not being able to save his mom, and being responsible (in his mind) for her death, although this is done subtly. I've heard that Ichigo's character falls flat here but this is an anime-only review so I won't entertain any of those ideas. Ichigo was not the boring straight-headed protagonist I thought he was. He was a 17 year old with trauma who had to work through his grief through trial and hardship. 

That brings me to the end of this review, the last arc's anime adaptation is only a month from now and so if you are feeling nostalgic I'd recommend watching this again, and not to find some deeper meaning in the show, but just to enjoy it.

"When the Spanish Guitar Starts Strumming, I Start Sweating"

I first watched Bleach in January 2009. The reason is actually because I wanted to see why Bleach was one of the highest rated animes ever and I began to see why. Bleach had me excited for every episode even the filler ones that are only in the anime and not in the manga. Bleach has no shortage of handsome male characters and beautiful female characters. I believe that Bleach is one of the most well done shonens ever! Bleach has one of the best soundtracks that I have ever heard in an anime series. Bleach was one of those animes where I didn't want some of the villains to die because I sympathized with them and some villains such as Loly that I wish got a really painful death. The main character of Bleach is a teenage high schooler named Ichigo Kurosaki. I always felt that Ichigo was that really cool guy in class that everyone would want to be friends with. Ichigo starts off as a citizen who can see ghost. He encounters the shinigami Rukia that reveals to him that he is a shinigami. The supporting characters in Bleach include the cheerful schoolgirl Orihime. She had a terrible home life and was bullied at school when she was a little child, lost her big brother who was like a father to her, but still smiles and finds joy in life. Orihime is in love with Ichigo but Ichigo does not even realize it at all, Uryu Ishida who is also in Ichigo and Orihime's class, he's a genius, an expert tailor, and a quincy. Chad who is also in their class, Rukia a young shinigami that reveals to Ichigo his shinigami powers, and Renji a young male shinigami who knew Rukia since childhood and was a former outcast in the soul society. Renji and Rukia are from the soul society the world were shinigami live and were spirits live until they are reborn in the Human World. Rukia's adopted brother Byakuya is a shinigami that is the captain of the 6th Division of Gotei 13. Byakuya was married to Rukia's older sister Hisana who is dead. After Hisana's death, Byakuya adopts Rukia as his sister. Many clans in the soul society have great respect for him. In the series Rukia helps mentor and train Ichigo to become a stronger shinigami. The villains of Bleach come in groups. The name of the groups were Arrancars which are Hollows with powers of shinigamis due to taking off their masks, Squad 13, and the Espadas that served Aizen. The espadas are the main villains of the Bleach series and are Ichigo's main foes. The main antagonist Yhwach is the enemy of Ichigo and the shinigamis. Quincies are the mortal enemies of shinigamis. Towards the end of the series Uryu becomes an antagonist by joining Yhwach. Uryu actually isn't joining him because Uryu was trying to trick Yhwach into believing that he has joined him so that Uryu can kill Yhwach so that Uryu can avenge his mother. Towards the end of the series ichigo becomes really powerful and transforms into his final form. If anyone is a fan of shonen, action, and mythology then they will enjoy Bleach.

Bleach has become one of the most popular anime around, and is commonly if not always, compared to Naruto. Hated by many, loved by many, this anime will be watched by virtually everyone who dives into the anime world.

Story: The story, or perhaps setting to be more accurate, is quite unique. Shinigami, or Soul Reapers, that have their own special society watch over the souls in the living world. Each Shinigami carries a unique sword(soul slayer) or Zanpaktou that has its own unique name and abilities based on the wielder's style and personality. Alongside them are the Hollow, and two subgroups later to be known as the Vaizard and Arrancar. It is this unique setting that gives Bleach the power to create so many characters under such a captivating environments, and this I believe, is one of the story's strong points. In terms of plot, it isn't very strong. The whole 'rescue a friend' is seen in pretty much every anime, and the whole 'I need to get stronger to protect my friends' is equally overdone. But I personally enjoy watching series with this type of theme, so I can't mark it down because of such overdone plot devices. But Bleach also comprises by adding a few twists into a seemingly transparent storyline, and it is here that I again am impressed. Bleach isn't just about mindless violence, its about friends striving to help each other, looking out for each other and improving themselves. Theres a bit of romance tossed in too, so thats a bit of a plus. The great setting and positive themes of friendship and perseverance made me give this an : 8/10

Characters: Bleach has a huge number of characters, some of them developed fairly well, otherwise poorly. But it is the huge cast of such unique and usually admirable individuals that makes this anime so captivating. You just hold your breath everytime someone pops into release their soul slayer or release their Bankai. It's because of all these characters and their own unique swords and abilities that makes the fights in this anime worth watching. You just can't wait to see what the characters are capable of. In terms of character development, I would say that it isn't bad, especially in terms of Ichigo who starts off as a badass that can take down most hollows with ease. In time, (particularly the current arc) he realizes how insignificant he really is, and tries his hardest to get stronger. The same is similar for the other characters such as Chad. Although most of the character development is in terms of strength and not so much in personality, I still rate the characters high for their largely unique cast: 8/10

Sound: This I find, is one of Bleach's strongest qualities. The soundtracks really intensify the battles and make even the smallest things seem cool. Thats that Bleach is good at - making things seem cool, and the soundtrack is a key and necessary component. But it isn't just the action scenes. It makes the sad and thoughtful moments come alive, in addition to the mysterious and tense situations Bleach presents. It's also accompanied by some of the best opening and closings I've seen in anime, in terms of both music and visuals. They greatly depict the story and the songs set the mood beautifully. 10/10

Art/Animation: I have little to say here. The art is quite good for the most parts, and I loved the coloring in the first few arcs, particularly the bright glowly/misty colors. Most of the fights are animated very smoothly with a variety of scenes and angles and such. Its on par with most anime these days: 8/10

Overall: Bleach is one of my favorite anime, being one of the first I ever watched. I know most people consider it over rated, repetitive and predictable, but hey, it presents some epic fights and follows them through nicely. Most of the fights are a good length (couple episodes) and I'm a fan of swords and people who power up, so what can I say, this anime is gold to me. If you're the type that doesn't care too much about a complicated story or deep compelling characters and you just want to see some epic fights, Bleach is right for you. This deserves an 8/10 overall (bogged down with fillers too much, although I didn't take that into account while rating. Fillers aren't part of the show, just don't watch them =/ ), but I personally love it and rated it a 9/10 on my list.

15 year-old teenager named Kurosaki Ichigo has the ability to see the undead/ghosts/spirits. The journey begins here 

Though plagued with filler found despicable by many, along with the hurdles of battles that appears to be irrelevant for the plot's progression. Indeed it shows the obvious flaws of the lack of development (albeit not wasted) for characters such as Uryu, Sado, or Orihime, or the introduction of an oversaturated cast of characters in which one's such as the Vizards lost their spotlight immediately after flashes of great potential, we must not ignore the fact that it is still a series that explores the growth Ichigo Kurosaki, from how he had been the little boy who had saw himself as a pushover who had caused the death of his beloved mother, to someone who has discovered solace and acceptance through the guide of his friends, family, and his Old Man "Zangetsu". It is also a series which explores strength in overcoming the fears that poisons one's mind that hinders one's self, going along with the common themes of friendship and debt (Shinigami Agent Arc), to more "philosophical" subjects such as the meaning of justice and morality (Soul Society Arc), the evolution of becoming human/overcoming our primitive natures and irrational fears (Arrancar Arc), and growth over the looming fears of uselessness and the loss of one's heroism (Fullbringer Arc). With these central themes found within each arc lies short, sub-arcs which not only emphasize the collective themes of each arc, but also the development of each character, a major or minor one. These may include from the main character's (Ichigo) failure to accept the sides which are considered "good" and "bad" within him, leading to a strained relationship with Zangetsu (White Ichigo some of you may call), Sosuke Aizen and his cynical ideals for perfection through destruction and chaos, Nnoitra loathing for respect and peace from his unrequited effort to power, reflected from his "aspect of death" which is despair, Tousen and his twisted, unreasonable, blind view of "justice" through "justified vengeance", contradicting to his lover's wish, the state of the Gotei 13 during the Soul Society arc, carrying questions on the fairness of Rukia's fate in execution, divided through factions desiring order, yet an unquestionable abuse of law, or the one's who desire a fair, civil solution, Hisagi and his strength through humility and the "fear of the blade", Kenpachi and his lust for fulfillment, Byakuya Kuchiki and his divide over "what makes his PRIDE", Nelliel and her desire for rationality through the "humane mind" she has regained which she once lost. II'd even argue that some fillers are worth mentioning, such as the Zanpakuto Rebellion Filler Arc exploring the importance of the Zanpakuto and its user being "one" to achieve a heightened sense of oneself, since the Zanpakuto Spirit after all is a part of a Shinigami's soul. Or how about the Bount Filler Arc, although despised, I see it rather as misunderstood, for it demonstrates the flawed logic of the Soul Society's "Law and Order" in which they are willing to create sacrificial lambs from their own mistakes to "right a wrong", something that Jin Kagiya despised, further emphasizing the themes found during the Soul Society Arc. These are simply few of what makes Bleach and what makes it great.

Understanding Bleach Through The Perspectives Of War And Of The Individual

Pros:
Bleach has an amazing power system. The transformations (Zanpakto/Bankai) are seriously some of the coolest things in any show I've ever watched. I think out of the Big 3, bleach has the best transformations because they are just visually stunning. I think that Bleach wins in the character design department. The fits that the cast wears are just so clean. Another aspect that I loved about Bleach was the OST. In my opinion, it has one of the most unique OSTs in any show I've ever watched.  In the soundtrack, you can hear lots of Spanish-inspired music which is also another thing that I loved about this series. I cannot stress how much I loved the spanish guitar tracks in this show. The Spanish language influence along with the music gave this show a unique taste that sets it apart from any other shonen anime. Even the names in the show (Arrancar, Hueco Mundo, Espada, Cero, Menos Grade, Just to name a few) sets this show apart from the big three in a good way. 
img(https://i.imgur.com/UgPLmRa.jpg)
img(https://i.imgur.com/QiVFDqD.jpg)  

Cons:
 My problem with this show is that it tended to get VERY boring. I think I got bored because the show liked to follow side characters that weren't developed all that much throughout the show. It felt like I was watching one tedious never ending fight after the other. (Especially the Arrancar arc). With that said, the show peaks WAYYY too early (Soul society arc). Having the best arc be one of the first ones sets the expectations too high. Even then, the soul society arc wasn't amazing enough to carry the rest of the show. Another complaint of mine is that they had two rescue arcs pretty much back to back, and the whole vibe of the show started to get repetitive. As stated earlier, the side characters in this show weren't fleshed out enough. I felt like I couldn't care less about what happened to anyone except for Ichigo and Rukia. I feel like they introduced too many characters too quickly without giving them a proper backstory which would make the side characters more interesting. 

Main Cast:
Ichigo: A very simple MC. But simple is not bad, especially in this case. Ichigo is the perfect embodiment of trust and determination and I think he portrayed that role very well. What I loved about Ichigo is that he could be cold and firey which is something you only see one or the other when it comes to shonen MCs. 

Chad: Wish Chad played a bigger role he was alright though. Felt like he got pushed aside most of the show (which I thought was supposed to be part of his character arc. Him being a burden) but he never pushed through. I felt like he was pretty useless which sucks because he was such a unique person and its not very often you see a latino character get to be part of the main cast. So I was pretty disappointed that he wasn't included more. 

Orihime: Frustrated me a lot during the Arrancar arc but I understand that she is supposed to be the embodiment of purity and kindness so she always going to choose kindness. I thought she made Ulquiorras conclusion very beautiful though. 

Ishida: Boring Character. He was introduced early on and I always thought he was gonna be like the Sasuke of the show but he was a pretty big disappointment. Every time he was on screen I felt like the show got boring. 

Rukia: Best female character in the show. I found that every time she and Ichigo were on screen, I enjoyed bleach the most. I like how she always keeps Ichigo in check through the show. A great duo.  

Villains:
There are some strong villains in Bleach but not enough. Ulquiorra is the most complete and well-written villain in the show (so far). I feel like I could relate him to Meruem from HxH (just in the way that he viewed the weaknesses of humans but then grows to build indifferent views). The only reason I don't put Aizen above Ulquiorra is that I wasn't a huge fan of Aizen's conclusion in the Arrancar arc, but I'm sure we'll see him again when bleach returns so I'm not gonna be too harsh on that topic. Ultimately I feel like most of the Villains in bleach aren't memorable enough and only a few can the audience sympathize with. Being able to understand a villain and sympathize with them is one sign of a very well-written antagonist.  

Thoughts:

I think bleach has lots of potential to do well in the future and I will watch the 1000 year Blood war arc when that comes out. I will say that bleach lacks in lots of areas where One Piece and Naruto exceed. I don't love comparing shows but if we are talking about the big three, I think bleach is inferior to Naruto and One piece just because I don't think it exceeds in any areas compared to the other two. I think Bleach is a pretty enjoyable show if you like battle shonen with a decent plot. There were plenty of moments during this show where I was hyped up and at the edge of my seat but there are also parts where the show put me to sleep.

___This isn't exactly a review. It is more like thoughts on each of the arc with a really small section of final summary. Also I haven't read the manga. I haven't wrote a review of any other anime ever. Also spoiler for the anime are here.___

___The link to the website I used to know which all episodes to skip:-___
https://www.animefillerguide.com/2019/06/bleach-filler-list.html

~~~___Overall:-___~~~
I enjoyed bleach a lot more then I thought I would. There was only one reason as to why I decided to watch show in the first place, the reason being the upcoming arc. Blood war I think. To me Bleach was the third kid in Shonen. One of the big three but just there. Since I thought Naruto(a show that I didn't complete) was good but seemed way way too long I didn't have much hope on Bleach. Also the other two early Shonen anime that I had watched recently Inuyasha(I think it is Shonen but not sure) and well Shaman King 2021(story felt early Shonen) being slow and way to long lead to me to not think much of Bleach when I started watching it. But I was surprised to find a hyped infected(remember I didn't watch any filler) action and actual adventure anime with some really fun characters and a story that is just wow like just wow but this in a good way.

~~~___The Substitute Arc:-___
~~~This was the first arc in the anime and it was good. With the full knowledge of knowing where the show is headed it seems small but it still made me hyped to see where the show was going to go. The character introduced in the arc all effected the story in one way or another and none of the episodes felt wasted but the arc to follow would not just top it but utterly crush it.

~~~___The Soul Society Saga:-___~~~
This from what I heard of is commonly regarded as the best arc in the show and I full heartedly agree. This arc can be summarized in one word hype. Something hype was bound to happen and it was just awesome. Sure the fights may not seem cool in 2021 but it was still hype then and now. And lets not forget the ending. Aizen might just be one my favorite villains in Shonen. The way he seems like everything is calculated that he is above all and the framing of the show just made it seem more like it. Although the Arrancar saga does have more Aizen and he is better in it this was the arc that gave us that. We also saw the political situation in Soul Society which was really interesting to learn and made at the very least a little bit of sense. The captains were all great and also not to forget the captains that fought Ichigo. A special mention to Byakuya Kuchki(forget the spelling) who might be the most interesting character in the arc with him not being as interesting in any of the upcoming arcs. The big difference between this arc and the Arrancar arc is the length. This arc not only had hype but also hype at a consistent rate which can't be said about the Arrancar Saga.

~~~___Arrancar Saga:-___~~~
Here I am only including the arc till the battle in Kurakura Town. So that battle will be a separate arc. Out of the non-filler arc this was my least favorite arc. Mainly because it did everything the Soul Society Saga did but worse. For example the Espadas. For most of the arc we don't see most of them. The Fallen Espada is cool concept but handeled poorly. They were given character at the end of most of their lives but for most it was too little to late. This mini arc the only one enemy that was interesting was the one Rukia was fighting. This the true for most of the saga. Not only did it do worse but it was trying to hard to be more like Soul Society. Bot arcs being with a women(Rukia in Soul Society and Inoue in this) being taken and our heroes have to go rescue them. They begin with attempting sneak into the palace but ultimately they just punch's their way through. They all get split-up fight some of the best in the area your Fallen Espada/Lieutenants then defeats them while Ichigo, Rukia and others fight the big guys like your Espada/Captains. Later a major plot twist happens revealing to us that this was all Aizens plans to begin with. Another thing that is done worse here is the political system. Hueco Mund is just not as interesting as Soul Society. Also this Saga which follows Soul Societies rough sketch dosn't end here. There is another arc that is in between this and the Saga where Inchigo and the captains fights Aizen his top 3 Espada and is Shinigami allies.

~~~___The Past arc:-___~~~
This is a really short arc between the Arrancar Saga and the Battle in Kurakura Town Saga. This arc explores what really happened to some of my favorites characters like Urahara and Yoruichi along with the answering the question who the f*** are the Visored all those years along. The answers given are satisfactory and further builds upon these characters and gives u the answers to why they do the things they are doing. Also Aizen is here. This arc serves as a good break between the previous saga and the upcoming one.

~~~___The Battle for Karakura Town Saga:-___~~~
This is the that puts Bleach back on track. It is hype for the most part there were still some battle that I just didn't care about like the previous saga(Arrancar Saga) but it was still hype. Aizen was given further development but an unexpectedly Tousen, Harribel (Espada No.3), Starrk(Espada No.1) and Espada No.2 all made the Espada side more well better as till now the only interesting ones were Grimmjow(Espada No.6), Ulquiorra(Espada No.4) and the scientist Espada. Along with this Gin was made into the role of a sympathetic hero. Within the span of one episode a single character was made from a villain whose motives were unknown to a sympathetic hero who sacrificed everything his life and his morels to kill an evil that was just higher than him. The battle that took place was also amzing with the Captains give a lot more background throughout the battles. The ending to this Saga felt like a fitting conclusion. Sure there were still some questions felt but if it ended now it would end still on a high note with most question answered and Aizen the big bad of the show taken out. But the next arc made sure that this show would still end on a high note rather than an anime that should have ended sooner.

~~~___The Lost Agent Arc:-___~~~
I really new to the anime community. So I wasn't there when this show ended. Therefore watching this arc made no sense. I am assuming here that this arc made most people not want another arc. Why???? I don't know. This was a really great arc. That answered some question I had about the combat pass into a really unexpected and intriguing ways that I never thought of. Turning an object that was there to a more prominent position. The Xcution was not as interesting of a bad as much as arc before but was still interesting and served their purpose really well. This is personally my second least favorite arc. But this arc was still a great one. And the Deja vu they pulled to bring Ichigo back to the story was really well ddone and earned. This arc makes me excited about the future of Bleach.

~~~___Final Summary:-___~~~
Bleach is a really well thought-out character who are also hot with a great story. Arc after arc the story keeps its heads held high and I can't wait to see what the next Blood War Arc is gonna do

The forgotten but Hype Infected third child of Shonen

~~~__BLEACH REVIEW__
__---SPOILER ALERT---__~~~

__-PREFACTION__
In this review there aren't filler arcs or filler episodes in general, since I just watched only a dozen of them.
I decided to do this review on the occasion of the new animated saga that  will airing in October, so I decided to rewatch Bleach (having seen it like 2 years ago) and these are my final considerations.

__-ARCS__
img520(https://listfist.com/wp-content/uploads/bleach-characters.jpg)
I will start by describing and rating all the main canon arc I have seen, the first is:

_SOUL SOCIETY ARC:_
It is divided into 2 main parts: the first, in the world of humans, where Ichigo acquires shinigami powers for the first time, and the second, in the Soul Society, where ichigo and his friends go to save rukia.
I found the first part quite nice and quiet, in fact, after acquiring the powers, Ichigo and Rukia seem to have fun in the world of humans, killing some occasional hollows and having a good time with their friends, but the whole thing is not destined to last, because Rukia must return to the Soul Society.
This is where Renji and Captain Byakuya first appear, in my opinion this is where things start to get interesting,  the Captain easily defeats Ichigo and brings his "sister" back to the Soul Society.
From here on the second arc begins, after regaining his powers, Ichigo and his friends (thanks to Urahara) will go to the SS to save Rukia facing a thousand dangers and fights.
Personally I found this saga really beautiful, especially the second part, where we will get to know the world of the SS in general and with the main characters of the saga, all accompanied by different fights, including those with the captains.
The ending is rather unexpected (for those unfamiliar with Bleach), so let's get to know the real enemies who, by escaping from SS, give the input to the new arcs of the series.
In this saga Ichigo is really strong, without even using the power of hollow he manages to defeat 2 powerful captains. We do not know why, but in the following saga, even with the power of the hollow, Ichigo is incredibly _nerfed_ and the captains become very strong, this fact was rather irritating, at least for me.

_HUECO MUNDO ARC:_
In the second arc, the Espada make their appearance, causing several fights in the human world, and as the SS prepares for the winter fight against them and Aizen, Orihime is kidnapped.
Ichigo and friends must then go to Hueco Mundo to rescue Orihime this time. So, after another training session, they head to Hueco Mundo (thanks again to Urahara).
This arc is also full of fights, some not really necessary I gotta say, which only serve to unnecessarily lengthen the arc.
After the final battle against Ulquiorra, which marked the end of the arc, the protagonists suddenly realize that they have no clue how to go back from the Hueco Mundo (-_-), while Aizen and the remaining Espada headed to Karakura Town to activate the power of Hogyoku.
I also found this arc very beautiful and interesting, too bad that Ichigo is nerfed (or the captains have become very strong), the levels of power in fact are completely different from the first arc. There are a lot of interesting characters and battles in this Arc too, but I'll talk about that later.
The OSTs of Hueco Mundo are also beautiful and the setting in general reflects very well the territory of the hollows in my opinion.
Also nice to use Spanish terminologies and names for this arc, in the new arc maybe we would have OST and German terms (?).

_FAKE KARAKURA TOWN ARC:_
From here begins the arc of the real war, with the Espada and Aizen against the captains and ex-captains, this saga is also full of fights, some really to waste time, like those to protect the pillars of the fake town.
In this arc we get to know the strongest Espada, including the king of the Hueco Mundo and the Primera, I must say that at the end of this arc the numbers of the Espada were placed  random, in fact, Ulquiorra was much stronger of the third and first Espada, also other members had higher positions than they should have.
In this arc we will also discover the real power of Aizen and the first commander of the SS brigades, which even surpasses that of Aizen, a pity that in the end he loses anyway.
At the end of the first part of this arc we see a victorious Aizen who goes with Gin to destroy Karakura Town, and only Ichigo is left to stop him.
After another training session (3 months), Ichigo suddenly becomes very strong only because he has acquired his final technique, so he decides to challenge Aizen in the final battle by defeating him thanks to Urahara.
I also liked this arc very much, with many interesting fights and powers, with the revelation of the character of Aizen and Gin. The thing that irritated me was the sudden change of power of Ichigo after a few months of training. Before training, with the hollow form did not scratch Aizen, after instead he manages to stop Aizen's sword awakened with his bare hand, yet they decided to make him lose all his powers with his "final move", completely unnecessary, in fact he could very well defeat Aizen without using it.
I guess the loss of powers set the stage for the start of the next and final animated arc.

_FULLBRINGER ARC:_
The latest animated arc currently available in the bleach series. This arc the first time I saw bleach did not impress me much, in fact I did not remember it well. I must say, however, that rewatching was the right choice.
In this arc they make the appearance of spiritual powers called Fullbrings which change from person to person. These powers also have names, making them real _Jojo's Stands_. All this arc revolves around Ichigo who is betrayed by the fullbringers who, once having made him awaken his powers, steal him and strengthen themselves.
At that moment it is revealed that the SS has infused a sword with a lot of spiritual energy to return the shinigami powers to Ichigo once again, and from there, after a few fights, it turns out that the SS has always controlled Ichigo via the his badge, ath the end Ichigo decides to stay on the side of the SS and kills the other shinigami substitute.
As I said, I re-evaluated this arc during the rewatch, very nice, a bit random at the beginning, but then it proves to be a good arc in my opinion.

__-ZAMPAKUTO__
img500(https://c4.wallpaperflare.com/wallpaper/591/759/734/bleach-kurosaki-ichigo-mugetsu-final-getsuga-tenshou-wallpaper-preview.jpg)
One thing that certainly characterizes the anime are the Zampakuto, or the swords of the shinigami, which change shape and powers according to the user. There are Zampakuto with really strong ability, such as the Aizen sword.
Personally, I really liked how they introduced and continued this power over the course of the series, not to mention the form of the bankai, where the sword becomes even more powerful.
Surely there is a good power and combat system on this show, even thinking about the spiritual energy of the more powerful characters.

__-CHARACTERS__
img700(https://c4.wallpaperflare.com/wallpaper/397/522/343/kurosaki-ichigo-mugetsu-urahara-kisuke-ichimaru-gin-wallpaper-preview.jpg)
There are many interesting characters in this series, here is a list of my favorites:

- Kenpachi Zaraki: a madman
- Kisuke Urahara: best character
- Sōsuke Aizen: best villain
- Shunsui Kyōraku: a lazy mf
- Ulquiorra Schiffer: good and smart character
- Gin Ichimaru: good character and nice backstory
- Shinji Hirako: best OST
- Mayuri Kurotsuchi: sick mf
- Retsu Unohana: healer on steroids 

__-OST__
I've seen a lot of reviews who liked the bleach openings, and I absolutely agree with them, but in my opinion one thing even better than the openings are the amazing OSTs.
In particular, the Hueco Mundo OSTs and some other OSTs that I will now insert have really impressed me:

youtube(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6w2rVMHH7Us)

youtube(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bVnQO9XaKB0)

youtube(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1uLPjiITqqY)

youtube(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5uS0Um9YzA)

youtube(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q2aM5btBLVU)

__-COMEDY__
A particular feature of the show is the presence of many comic scenes during the episodes. Now, I have to admit that I like them, but these scenes are also used very often during fights, sometimes causing him to lose the tense atmosphere that was created.

__-FINAL THOUGHTS__
The first time I saw this anime I found it good, but it didn't particularly impress me, instead I must say that, rewatching it, I appreciated it much more, noticing things I hadn't saw before.
A lot of things, from the story to the good characters have a positive mention from me.
I definitely recommend watching this anime (skipping the filler arcs), also to prepare for the vision of the new arc that will be released in October.

✨  BLEACH ✨ 

Déjà mon avis sur l'œuvre :

- > J'ai découvert bleach sur la 17 ( en France ) c'était l'arc contre les arancars et sa a été le plus gros kiff de ma life je me souvient quand j'étais petit rentrer et de suite regarder . Plus tard j'ai donc regarder l'intégralité actuel de l'anime et c'est devenu un de mes coups de cœur en termes de mange et d'anime et encore aujourd'hui il est l'un de mes animes préfère. Et en plus sans Bleach on aurai peut être jamais eu Gojo comme on le connait aujourd'hui !

◈ • ══─━━── • ──━━─══ • ◈

 les CaraDesings - > Alors ! Que dire autre qu'ils sont géniaux ? Kubo a cette chose que personne ne pourra lui retirer tout ses personnages ont des CaraDesings originaux et vraiment stylé , passant par Ichigo et toutes ses formes qui sentent le flow a des kilomètres . 
La dégaine de Kisuke par exemple personne ne pouvait dire que se vieux vendeur de bonbon puait le flow ! Franchement de plus sans lui pas de Gojo Satoru alors que déjà il a la classe imaginer que grâce a lui tu a le roi Gojo !

Et ne parlons pas du goat Aizen qui passe d'un petit intello qui plait qu'à sa vice capitaine a un mec qui a son propre club de fan girl et boy qui se réunissent tout les dimanches pour parler de lui !
Et les personnages secondaires que l'on ne voit pas beaucoup non plus on un CaraDesing au petit oignon du genre Shinji quoi qu'on en dise il a le style avec sa petite chemise et son Berret

Les personnages -> Déjà ils ont tous plus ou moins une grandes importance  mais tous sont top ! Bien que certains mérite des claques genre Horime qui hurle le nom de Ichigo tout le temps . Mais sinon les évolutions sont Goastesque en passant du changement total de Ichigo d'un gamin immature au mec sur de lui et daron d'aujourd'hui , tout ses entraînements ses moments de doute on les a vécu avec lui ce qui rend le perso tellement attachant et humain .

Après bon Aizen qui est pour moi l'antagoniste parfait de l'anime , il a manipuler le monde entier sans que personne ne puisse réellement prouver ce qu'il avait en tête . Alors pour sa c'est qualité , de plus tu apprends tout au long de l'œuvre qu'il est responsable de l'intégralité des évènements ( jusqu'à la guère sanglante ) que Ichigo va vivre et qu'il avait tout prévu ! Et on ne parle pas assez de la puissance de ses capacités rien que son sabre et tellement puissant et stylé ! Enfin bref c'est sa pour tous .

( Les ost / opening / ending ) -> 

gros gros gros banger tout du long chaque OST est une masterclass principalement celle des arancars qui sont des musiques que j'écoute souvent quand je joue a lol par exemple ou pendant les transports .

Mais celle de Ichigo aussi c'est l'une des meilleures que j'ai entendu franchement aller écouter !

◈ • ══─━━── • ──━━─══ • ◈

Donc je n'ai malheureusement pas le manga en papier ! Mais je compte me me procurer .. cependant j'ai lu l'intégralité des scans et je recommande a ceux hésitant pour découvrir bleach de le faire avant la hype !

RÉSUMÉ MANGA / CARADESING / PERSONNAGE / ( OST - OPENING - ENDING )

Kurosaki Ichigo.
Hair Color: Orange.
Eye Color: Brown.
Occupation: High School Student and Substitute Shinigami.

~~~***__This Review Contains Spoilers__~~~

I love Bleach, it was among the first few anime I've watched, it was my first battle shounen, it was my first long running series, it was what made me fall in love with the anime medium, and after rewatching it, I came to the conclusion that Bleach is way better than I thought, it has a lot of Style and has many other great things that I cannot longer feel in most modern shounen.

Not to say that Bleach is a masterpiece or it doesn't have any flaws, it does have a lot of them for sure, but even with all of that, there was a reason why Bleach stood highly among the Big 3, and It's still so highly regarded that the upcoming TYBW anime that will be releasing soon has managed to rekindle the fire of many old Bleach fans, hell I'd even argue that it also caught the attention of other curious fans.

Now, into the juice, I'll do my best to explain why I think Bleach excels in many aspects that not many modern shounen has been able to replicate.

1.

Bleach has a lot of Style, it has a huge identity and it's so damn catchy: The openings, the soundtrack, the drip, the aesthethics, the costumes and the character design is top notch. Shikai and Bankai designs are great, full of personality and often Iconic. The sound design is marvelous, the soundtrack (while sometimes overused and misplaced) is great, the animation quality while dated, still looks great and even better than the average modern anime quality. In many of it's fights Bleach really knew how to make them engaging with great fighting choreography and a mixture of greatly directed scenes that could perfectly convey the emotion displayed on the screen. 

2.

Bleach knows how to toy with emotions, it's very cliché on the genre, but in many battle shounen anime emotions often take a huge part in the power system, and sometimes it can be a bit irritating to see anime relying on the power of emotions (like Friendship is power) to overcome a villain. But Bleach goes with it with a different approach that actually makes sense and gives a lot of immersion with the characters. Characters (specially Ichigo) would experience many emotions through a fight, be it despair, fear, anger, pity, determination, pride, and much, much more, and the way these emotions affect the overall performance in a battle is done in a way that feels relatable. Emotions take a huge toll in many real life activities, from doubts affecting your decisions, fear making you take desperate actions, and only those that manage to shift their emotions into determination manage to overcome their burdens and trials, and that's exactly how Bleach works, mostly, for Ichigo, as he's a human mixed with tons of strange and offputting things in his life, he'll experience fear like a normal human being, but if he calms down and fills himself with determination, he'll do his best to overcome what stands on his way. Many of us fall before we can achieve or goals, and Ichigo does fall a lot, sometimes catastrophically, in order to grow stronger, and while the way he grows stronger is unusual in comparison to other shounen in which the MC trains a lot, Ichigo learns from his battles as he progresses, why? because desperate situations calls for desperate measures. 

3.

To add more to Point 2, Bleach's Villains and Antagonists have a lot to do with the emotional display on Bleach, mostly because they go in hand with a lot of psychological aspects that will decide a battle. Bleach's baddies definitely leave a big impact on it's characters, especially for Ichigo, which is the one that has gone through a lot of crazy things that often breaks his spirit, like that one time Tsukishima and Ginjo in the Fullbring arc manages to completely destroy his spirit.

~~~img480(https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/921853307801178173/1014719564455620718/unknown.png)
img480(https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/921853307801178173/1015326065226424320/unknown.png)
img480(https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/921853307801178173/1015327877568417853/unknown.png)~~~

Aizen and other baddies also have a lot of impact in Ichigo's motivations and struggles, and sometimes it's not even the villains, his friends (especially Tatsuki) have a huge role in Ichigo's life.

All the points I've talked about are things I just can't seem to find in most modern shounen. Those that I initially thought that had identity and charm quickly loses it over time and becomes a chore to get through, they become hard to immerse in the stakes of the battle because I don't see those mental struggles in the characters anymore. Bleach on the other hand, has surprised me by slamming an "Oh Shit" situations when I less expect it, like when Ichigo faces Ulquiorra in Hueco Mundo and his Hollow taking over into what would be a hype moment, but it's actually something horrifying:

~~~img480(https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/921853307801178173/996580582987403455/unknown.png)
img480(https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/921853307801178173/1008552239310315710/unknown.png)~~~

The immersion in these scenes is so damn good because of the build up and the pay off. 

And these are the reasons as to why I love Bleach so much, sure, the dumb shounen comedy is still there, although sometimes Bleach manages to caught me off guard with subtle comedy and it's not always invasive, it's very serious when it has to be. Sure, characters would often explain their enemies that their abilities do, yes, Bleach does sometimes drag a lot, yes, filler is misplaced between important arcs (like the Zampakuto rebellion arc, which was still good, but it was misplaced between the Ichigo vs Ulquiorra fight). And what not, I'll even admit that Bleach also made me scratch my head with a few strange moments, after all Bleach does have a lot of flaws, but even taking all of that in consideration, its style and many of it's highest highs will overshadow that.

In the end Bleach is a work filled with passion, one that I hold dearly because I found in it memorable characters, great soundtrack, great fights, stunning powers, stunning scenes, and much more.

Score of arcs:

Soul Society Arc: 8/10
Arrancar Arc: 7/10
Fullbring Arc 7/10

Zampakuto Rebellion Arc: 6.5/10 

Overall 7.5/10.

Why Bleach falls off after Soul Society despite all the BAN KAI! Also the example why people hate filler

Story - 2
The narrative of Bleach is, in summary, a failure. The pacing of this show is god awful; and I even skipped the filler. The arcs were very generic and predictable, nothing noteworthy really. Now what is noteworthy, is how terrible the powerscaling in the show is. No show that I have seen has worse powerscaling than Bleach does. Without spoiling, mc beats a character in one arc, then he gets a big shounen power up, loses to someone in the next arc, and then the person that he beat in the previous arc shitstomps the person he lost to (without a big shounen power-up, mind you), this is not a one-time occurrence, it's frequent and happened not with just that one character but with multiple. People that lost to other people besides Ichigo also had similar things happen with them.

Art/animation - 3
I know the show is older, and maybe I've been spoiled on more modern animation but it really is below average. Especially for a battle shounen. Older shounens, like the other 2 in the big three and dragon ball perhaps managed to deliver more appealing fight scenes than Bleach, i cannot say that I enjoyed watching a single one of them. As for the art itself, some of it was cool; but a lot of the character designs like for captains and arrancar were just copy and paste. Some characters had good designs and others had terrible designs. I would go further into that but that's spoiler territory right there

Sound - 7
the openings are all pretty good, and there were a few bangers, same can be said about the OST. The OST had a few standout songs like Treachery, but it still wasn't anything crazy. The sound effects themselves were about average or maybe a little above, they weren't standout.

Characters - 6
i found myself really enjoying a lot of the characters, but that's the key word; enjoying. I do not think a majority of the characters were well written, especially the main cast. All of the particularly charismatic characters were side characters or Chad (but he didn't do much and he wasn't particularly well written either). Back to why I claim that the characters were not well written; development was not handled with care and a lot of it felt rushed, and characters acted in ways that seemed really weird or forced. A score of 6 is simultaneously very generous for Bleach's characters but also a little bit of a letdown because some characters were genuinely cool and charismatic fellas that would've shined in a series with a better narrative.

enjoyment - 2
I never understood what people meant by "that show put me to sleep" as I've never almost fallen asleep to a movie or show unless I was severely sleep deprived. However, watching this show i know what those people meant. That said, there were points where I found myself enjoying the show, and some of the characters, especially Urahara and Gin. But all of that aside, during my viewing of Bleach, I have never wanted to drop a show more, it was an absolute slog to get through; the only thing that kept me going was my desire to see the Thousand Year Blood War arc which looks amazing based on the production value. I also wouldn't particularly mind one episode of high-budget Bleach a week.

I've never wanted to drop a show more....

Spanning 366 episodes, Bleach is regarded as one of the big shonen shows out there, sitting at the same table as One Piece, Naruto and Dragonball. Watching it in 2024, however, I can tell you that Bleach aged like milk.

First of all, I could sit here and talk about fillers all day, but we've all seen the memes. Bleach is *at least* 45% filler, but even that is a generous number. If you remove all the useless shonen tropes like pointless flashbacks, repetitive shouts, long running scenes, still shots, slow camera panning and reused frames, you'll soon realize that Bleach is more like 70% filler.

Bleach also has a serious issue with bystanders that *constantly* interrupt fights and serious moments so they can do their comedy routine. And it's not even good comedy. It's children's comedy. Manzai is a very popular (and exhausting) type of comedy where the "funny man" does goofy things while the "straight man" gets angry and reprimands them. Alright, now crank that up to the maximum, shove it in the middle of life-or-death situations, and make it as long and obnoxious as possible. That's Bleach's comedy. The thing is, Bleach knows how to create funny moments, but it does so at the worst possible times as the story progresses.

Speaking of progress, that's one of the weird things about Bleach. Instead of getting better as the series goes on (like the other three big shonen series), Bleach does the opposite. One quick search and you'll see that the community generally agrees that Bleach was awesome in the first few arcs but had a drastic decline in quality and pacing as the story progressed. Even my friend who recommended it to me said that he skipped almost all of it.  Putting Bleach on the same category as Dragonball, One Piece and Naruto is almost disrespectful. How can I recommend a series that only has one or two good arcs and then say: "By the way, it gets really bad towards the end."

-- Minor Spoilers Ahead --

Another big issue that Bleach has are the power levels. The power levels are all over the place and it's not even funny. Ichigo always gets his ass kicked by every new enemy, only to be saved by someone he defeated previously. Now the person who is supposedly weaker than Ichigo proceeds to defeat the villain who is supposedly stronger than Ichigo. This happens because Bleach is a kid's show where the protagonist befriends all of his enemies, even the ones that do unspeakably evil things. No matter how edgy Bleach tries to be with its dark imagery, at the end of the day it's just a kid's show. The constant bickering in the middle of fights is no different than children fighting in the playground to decide who gets to be the Red Power Ranger, and in the end we see everyone holding hands and singing a song together.

Bleach looks particularly ugly when you compare it to the flashy and action-packed modern shonen shows we've been getting recently, but it also looks ugly when you compare it to the other big shonen shows of the 2000s. The action, pacing, story and even the training arcs are completely messed up. Honestly, I basically just watched 366 episodes of a show I detest for the sole purpose of watching the sequel, which people say is really good.

The sad thing about Bleach is that it had such a strong identity. The captains are cool as hell, the overall theme is unique, the setting had a lot of potential, and the Soul Society arc was amazingly good. I loved everything about Bleach at first. Hell, even the way the characters hold their swords when they're not fighting tells you something about their character. Even some of the lines that characters say are so powerful that they'll stick with you for a while. The creativity and attention to detail here was great, and I hate using the past tense here.

Honestly, I don't even think that this is the case of a bad anime adaptation. For example, you've probably heard someone somewhere say: "Bleach is good but the ending was kinda scuffed." And no, it's not like a beloved character dies or anything. The "ending" is bad because the author decided to introduce the weirdest and most nonsensical magic system ever created. Everything that made Bleach great is suddenly replaced by elements that genuinely make you forget that you're watching Bleach. Hueco Mundo's arc was bad in terms of pacing and power levels, but the last arc is especially insulting. Bleach's antagonists stopped being cool and memorable after the Soul Society arc (save for a few exceptions), but the last arc manages to be even worse in that regard. We even get a discount Aizen that fails to capture even 1% of what made the original a good villain.

In conclusion, I unfortunately can't recommend Bleach. It's simply not worth it. It doesn't hold up well today and only serves as an example of how to ruin something that had everything to be great. This review may sound overly negative, but it's just an honest warning.

Bleach Series Watch Order

Origin & Soul Society Arc

Hueco Mundo Arc

Fake Karakura Town Arc

Substitute Soul Reaper Arc