A still esteemed member of the Shonen Big Three manga, Tite Kubo's Bleach is one of the most popular franchises in recent history. This supernatural series eventually earned an anime adaptation thanks to its massive fan following and record-breaking sales figures. Studio Pierrot stepped up to the task — initially aiming to stay as faithful to the source material as possible.

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However, Pierrot's original plans fell through somewhere along the way. By the manga and the anime's respective conclusions, Bleach's story had two different interpretations. Although these differences aren't exactly considered drastic, they're noticeable enough to raise a few important questions about narrative flow and character development.

Updated on November 29th, 2022 by Ajay Aravind: Bleach's Thousand-Year Blood War received the green light for an anime adaptation in 2020, four years after the manga had officially ended. The first episode was released on October 11th, 2022, reinvigorating the stagnant fandom and bringing Bleach back under the anime spotlight. While the final arc has just begun airing, fans have already noticed several deviations from the manga.

15 Kukaku Shiba Doesn't Have A Prosthetic Arm In The Manga

Kukaku Shiba in Bleach

One of the features that helped Bleach stand out among its contemporaries was the series' unique character designs. Tite Kubo went to great lengths to ensure that everyone looked distinct and authentic. That said, the mangaka used the same facial features for Kaien Shiba and Ichigo Kurosaki as a Chekov's Gun, a plot device that only bears fruit much later.

Kaien's sister Kukaku was one of the most visually striking characters in all of Bleach, in part due to her amputated arm. In the anime, Kukaku used a prosthetic limb to make her life easier. However, she completely lacks that artificial limb in the original manga, an unfortunate choice because Kukaku has always been a popular hero.

14 The Manga Lacks The Bount Arc

Bount Arc in Bleach

Most Bleach fans agree that the Soul Society arc was the series at its best. Viewers loved this storyline for its fantastic fight scenes, sophisticated storytelling, and pivotal character moments. Studio Pierrot pulled out all of the stops when it came time to animate this storyline, giving fans some of the best segments of television in anime history.

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After the epic arc concluded, Pierrot followed up with the ever-divisive Bount arc, making up the entirety of Bleach's fourth season. There are fans who appreciate the Bount arc's attempts at filling the gap left behind by the Soul Society arc. There are also plenty of viewers who feel that this arc derailed the anime, largely because of its notoriously incomplete ending.

13 The Anime Severely Reduced Isshin's Role Early On

Isshin Kurosaki in Bleach

Another major difference between the anime and the manga adaptations of Bleach is Isshin Kurosaki's role in the story. Anime-only watchers may have a different perspective about Ichigo's father than what Kubo intended. In the TV series, Isshin is more of a goofy comic relief character until his Shinigami origins are disclosed at some point during the Arrancar arc.

However, Isshin's manga version plays a much more pivotal role from the very first chapter. He's always going to be a wellspring of cringeworthy Dad Jokes, but he also serves as a mentor to Ichigo and his sisters when necessary. Isshin also isn't as clueless as the anime initially depicts his character.

12 Supporting Cast Members Get More Love In The Manga

Bleach Cast

On the subject of Bleach's supporting cast, it's worth mentioning that Ichigo's close friends and family members play significant roles in the manga storylines. Fascinating characters like Yasutora Sado and Uryu Ishida don't get to shine as much in the anime. In fact, even Ichigo's potential love interests and budding relationships were fleshed out better in the manga.

To be fair, several other anime adaptations are guilty of this omission — Gohan was supposed to take over Goku's role as DBZ's main protagonist, while Zoro is a somewhat aimless character in One Piece.

11 'IchiHime' Gets Shipped More In The Manga

Orihime in Bleach

There has been lots of controversy surrounding the official pairing of Ichigo Kurosaki and Orihime Inoue, also known as 'Ichihime.' This is because the anime pairs the protagonist with Rukia far more frequently than Orihime, leading a section of the fandom to start shipping 'IchiRuki,' instead.

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Claiming that they had been misled, these fans essentially revolted on Twitter and other social media when the manga's final chapter showed Ichigo married to Orihime. In comparison, Ichigo and Orihime start developing a close bond within the first few chapters of the manga.

10 Shusuke Amagai is An Anime Only Character

Shusuke Amagai doesn't wear a shirt in Bleach

A few characters from the anime don't even appear in the manga in any way, shape, or form. For example, the infamous Shusuke Amagai exists only in The New Captain Shusuke Amagai arc. An anime-only fan might assume that this character is a big deal in the manga, given that he's the primary antagonist of Season 9.

Much like the Bounts, however, Shusuke Amagai has no place in Tite Kubo's original narrative. This villain ultimately became one of Bleach's most popular characters, so it can be argued that the studio's decision to craft a filler arc around him wasn't entirely baseless.

9 The Zanpukto Rebellion Arc Is Exclusive To The Anime

Muramasa in Bleach

Season 13 is yet another example of Bleach's many fillers. To be honest, there are so many extraneous episodes that they often leak into the canonical storyline, confusing the audience. Despite the fandom's longstanding complaint about filler arcs, they can occasionally serve as fun breaks from the main story.

That said, the Zanpakuto Rebellion arc doesn't fall into this category. It centers around a bizarre character named Muramasa, a rogue Zanpakuto spirit who goes on a rampage for ambiguous reasons. Not all fans take exception with this arc, but there's no doubt that it overstayed its welcome.

8 The Gotei 13 Invading Army Doesn't Appear In The Manga

Kageroza Inaba and Yamamoto from Bleach

The Gotei 13 Invading Army arc is by far the most pointless set of filler episodes in Bleach. As with its predecessors, some viewers genuinely enjoyed this arc, whereas many more were simply unable to tolerate the anime's penultimate season.

In fact, there's a vocal majority of fans who felt that the Gotei 13 Invading Army arc destroyed the final dregs of goodwill remaining in the show. It includes nonsensical concepts that straight-up shatter the overarching narrative framework, like Yamamoto's battle against Inaba Kageroza. To the relief of many and the chagrin of others, this arc only appears in the anime adaptation.

7 The Anime Ends Abruptly And Without Any Explanation

Last Episode of Bleach

Technically speaking, both the manga and the anime had rushed endings. However, while the manga screeched to a halt because Tite Kubo hurriedly put down his pen, the anime was canceled long before it could catch up. The final episode of Bleach is called "Changing History, Unchanging Heart," a final that is relatively more open-ended than the manga.

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It suggests that the creative team behind the anime hoped to return someday. On a positive note, the Thousand-Year Blood War arc involves many of the same voice-actors, including the celebrated Masakazu Morita, who voices Ichigo Kurosaki.

6 The Manga Is Much Gorier Than The Anime

Bleach manga scene

There are countless narrative differences between the manga and anime adaptations of Bleach. One of the most commonly discussed deviations is the lack of gore in the anime. Everything, from the amount of blood shown on screen to gruesome battle sequences to the depiction of certain characters' deaths, has been toned down from the source material.

Television censorship guidelines and regulations. are largely responsible for this change, which is something most fans can understand. Still, it's strange to see someone swing their blade through an opponent and cause nothing more than a scratch.

5 *Battles Are Somewhat Longer And More Detailed In The Anime

Aizen fuses with the Hogokyu in Bleach.

Kubo's artistic flair shines brightest in the manga, where he portrays each battle with incredible artistry and tons of chiaroscuro, a visual effect that mixes light and shadow to create a striking impact. Kenpachi and Unohana's battle is particularly noteworthy in this respect, even if readers had no idea what Minazuki actually does.

On the contrary, Shinji's duel with Aizen in the anime version of the Fake Karakura Town arc is elongated and expanded beyond its manga roots. The fandom generally doesn't criticize these creative choices, as it grants their favorite characters more screentime than they're supposed to get.

4 *The Overall Narrative Pacing Is Faster In The Anime

Bleach: A closeup of Ichigo Kurosaki's face with a white bandage under his right eye.

Manga character arcs and storylines don't last very long, but fans wait much longer to see their outcomes. This is because they usually take place gradually over several weeks. Anime episodes, on the other hand, concentrate large sections of the source material into a single episode, making it easy for the audience to follow the narrative.

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The Thousand-Year Blood War arc is supposed to have 52 episodes, to be released in cours of 13 episodes each. This will cover the final arc's 206 chapters, so around 4 chapters will be incorporated into every episode. Faster narrative pacing is on par for the course when it comes to anime adaptations, though.

3 *Yuzu Can Perceive Spiritual Entities In The Manga

Yuzu and Karin Kurosaki from Bleach.

Ichigo and his younger sister Karin were born with relatively high levels of Spiritual Awareness, allowing them to perceive the existence of ghosts and other ethereal entities. In fact, Ichigo is initially able to see Rukia because of this ability, although he quickly gains a whole new range of powers soon after their meeting.

Karin's twin sister, Yuzu, doesn't have this ability in the anime, but she's capable of sensing spirits in the manga. That said, Yuzu can only view them as indistinct outlines, rather than clear shapes. Given that both Karin and Yuzu are Masaki Kurosaki's children, it doesn't make sense for one of them to have no powers, whatsoever.

2 *Byakuya Is Relatively More Perceptive In The Manga

Byakuya fights Ichigo in Bleach

Byakuya will always be a beloved Bleach character, although fans despised him all through the Soul Society arc. As a Shinigami Captain, he's clearly smart enough to recognize obvious patterns and changes in the world around him. This is shown during his fight atop the Sokyoku Hill, where he comments on the resemblance between Ichigo Kurosaki and Kaien Shiba.

Byakuya doesn't so much as mention Kaien's name in the anime, even though it's painfully obvious that he's basically Ichigo with black hair. Thankfully, the anime adaptation doesn't undercut this Captain more than necessary.

1 *The Anime Adaptation Of The Thousand-Year Blood War Is Far More Dynamic

Bleach the Original Gotei 13

Although Kubo's penmanship is unquestionably peerless, the Thousand-Year Blood War arc remained painfully black-and-white for six years. The first episode of the final arc set a fire under the fandom, ensuring Bleach's meteoric rise through the rankings on MyAnimeList.

This is because the Thousand-Year Blood War uses a radically different animation style than earlier arcs, incorporating deeper colors and smoother movement patterns. Yamamoto's battle with Yhwach in Episode 6 is especially notable for its dynamic imagery — the old man's Bankai produces a firestorm that almost feels palpable.

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