Bleach has had a pretty long run as far as Shonen anime go — the manga series started in 2001, whereas the anime adaptation began three years later in 2004. Its popularity made it one of the Shonen Big Three, a position it held together with One Piece and Naruto. The Bleach manga, written by Tite Kubo, completed its serialization in 2016, but the anime was canceled after the Fullbringer arc in 2012. Fans were naturally devastated, and many of them hoped that Bleach would eventually animate the Thousand-Year Blood War arc.

Ten years after the last episode aired, the anime finally made its way back to the fandom's TV screens. The Thousand-Year Blood War arc was divided into four cours of 13 episodes each, presumably for staggered release. The first two cours, titled The Blood Warfare and The Separation, have already finished airing, while the third cour is expected in 2024. Fans can't wait to see the rest of the Thousand-Year Blood War arc animated, even if they have to wait a couple more years.

Updated on October 19, 2023, by Ajay Aravind: The return of the Bleach anime after several years is nothing less than a resurrection, as it had technically been canceled right before the final arc. Luckily for the fandom, the anime has finally returned with the Thousand-Year Blood War arc — with 52 episodes adapting over 200 manga chapters. As such, we've updated this feature with some more information.

Manga Spoilers Below

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The Origins Of The Thousand-Year Blood War

The first three major Bleach sagas had three different enemies. Ichigo Kurosaki is initially put to the test in Soul Society, where he bested numerous Shinigami and proved that even humans are capable of challenging the strongest Soul Reapers. The next saga introduced the Arrancar, overpowered and sapient versions of the Hollows that Soul Society had been battling for centuries. The third saga brought the Fullbringers into the picture, but this storyline was roundly criticized for its pointless diversions and meandering character arcs. And finally, the last saga highlighted just how powerful (and villainous) the Quincies of the world could be, provided they had the right leader to show them the way.

The Thousand-Year Blood War is a phrase that must be taken literally. It signifies the millennium that Yhwach spent in what can only be described as "suspended animation" — hovering between life and death as his body and mind slowly regained their former powers and abilities. The reason for this harks back to the first major conflict between Yhwach's Lichtreich, a group of Quincy warriors, and the first Gotei 13 of Soul Society. While the manga didn't cover this battle, the anime decided to show brief glimpses of the Kubo-approved fight (as well as individual character designs and personalities for all the then-Captains). Fans loved this little extra touch, and there are a few more anime-only inclusions that they're certain to love. The battle ended with absolute victory for the Gotei 13, with Yhwach utterly defeated. He eventually became known as "the Sealed King," with prophecies stating that he would awaken after 999 years.

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First Cour: The Blood Warfare

• Air Date: October 11, 2022
• Number of Episodes: 13
• Streaming: Hulu (with a subscription)

As the Thousand-Year Blood War arc's first cour, The Blood Warfare spent a few episodes establishing the groundwork for what was to come. It began with the mysterious mass disappearance of Hollows from Hueco Mundo, an event that necessarily required an extremely strong force behind it. Mayuri correctly surmised that the Quincy were involved, explaining to Yamamoto Genryusai that this would have never happened if he had finished Yhwach off the first time. Yamamoto soon came to terms with his own mistakes when his beloved Vice-Captain, Chojiro Sasakibe, was killed in an encounter with a masked group calling themselves the Wandenreich (the successors of Yhwach's former Lichtreich).

The Sternritter of the Wandenreich launched a full-scale invasion of Soul Society when Ichigo goes off to Hueco Mundo, allowing them to take on the Shinigami without the protagonist's interference. Numerous battles were fought, and nearly all of them were won by the Sternritter. Captains Kuchiki Byakuya, Komamura Sajin, Hitsugaya Toshiro, and Suì-Fēng each lost their Bankai to their respective opponents. Byakuya received near-fatal injuries, but consequently recovered after the healing efforts of Squad Zero's Tenjiro Kirinji. Meanwhile, Kenpachi managed to defeat three Sternritter before being crushed by the Sternritter masquerading as Yhwach. He would later gain his true powers after fighting, defeating, and killing Unohana Retsu in the Mugen.

Arguably the best part of The Blood Warfare was Yamamoto's fight against Royd Loyd, where the old man's Bankai is seen for the first time. Fans had been in awe of the Captain-Commander ever since they saw him release his Shikai in the Soul Society arc, but his Zanka no Tachi took everything to the next level. This Bankai was so dangerous that only Yhwach was capable of "handling it," which is why Royd didn't even attempt to steal Zanka no Tachi. Yamamoto won the fight, proving just why he had been the Captain-Commander for over 1,000 years. Unfortunately, the real Yhwach promptly stole his Bankai before nonchalantly destroying the old man with a single strike of his reishi sword.

The Blood Warfare included a lot of new details about Ichigo's past, consequently revealing what fans had guessed ages ago: that his mother Masaki Kurosaki had Quincy blood running through her veins. This new discovery helped Ichigo Kurosaki come to terms with his complex identity, allowing him to reforge his previously single-bladed Zanpakuto into two distinct Zangetsus. One of them would represent his Quincy side, while the other would symbolize the Shinigami and Hollow aspects of his being.

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Second Cour: The Separation

• Air Date: July 8, 2023
• Episodes: 13
• Streaming: Hulu (with a subscription)

The Separation is the second cour of Bleach's Thousand-Year Blood War arc. It began with a training montage for some of the main characters, namely Ichigo, Rukia, and Renji. In the Wandenreich, Yhwach inexplicably proclaimed Ishida Uryu to be his successor, granting him the same alphabetical epithet "A". The Second Wandenreich Invasion occurred in the second episode of this cour — the Shinigami would have likely suffered a grievous fate had Kisuke Urahara not solved the stolen Bankai problem. With the Bankais now immune to theft, the Shinigami could go all-out against their formidable enemies.

Hitsugaya and Matsumoto failed to compensate for Bazz-B's devastating fire powers, but Suì-Fēng snatched victory from BG9. Hirako Shinji unveiled his Bankai for the first time in both the manga and the anime, using Sakashima Yokoshima Happo Fusagari to eviscerate a group of attacking Soldat. Meanwhile, Komamura returned from his trip with a newfound ability called the Humanization Technique. Transforming himself into a man, Komamura revealed the true strength of his Bankai: Kokujo Tengen Myo'o: Dangai Joue. This was enough to defeat Bambietta Basterbine, one of the strongest and most trigger-happy members of the Wandenreich, but Komamura paid the price by losing every ounce of his sentience.

Renji got the chance to showcase his real Bankai, now named So'o Zabimaru. Even Masc De Masculine's Vollständig had no effect on Renji, who casually vaporized the Sternritter with his Zaga Teppo ability. While this battle was genuinely thrilling, fans were more excited to see Rukia's Bankai during her battle with Äs Nödt. "The Fear" came dangerously close to destroying Rukia, but Byakuya's words of encouragement helped her to overcome her fears. Her Hakka no Togame promptly froze Äs Nödt's monstrous body solid, proving that Rukia was a fighter on par with the best in Soul Society.

There's a lot more that happened in The Separation, including Kenpachi Zaraki's battle with Gremmy. Now capable of releasing his Shikai, Kenpachi gleefully attacked the self-titled "strongest Sternritter" until the latter was forced into a corner. Gremmy was subsequently killed by his own hubris, as he arrogantly imagined that he could be as strong as Kenpachi. Some past events involving Yhwach and Ichibe Hyosube, the leader of Squad Zero, were also showcased — and the cour ends at the midpoint of their present-day fight.

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The Third and Fourth Cours Of The Thousand-Year Blood War Arc

Fans know that the third cour of the Thousand-Year Blood War arc will be titled The Conflict, but the name of the fourth cour is yet to be revealed. Based on the events in the manga, it can be assumed that the third and fourth cours will contain several major events.

• Yhwach's battle with Ichibe,
• The surprise return of Aizen
• Yhwach's absorption of the Soul King
• The clash between Haschwalth and Uryu
• Urahara and Yoruichi's fight with Askin Nakk Le Vaar
• Mayuri and Nemu's team-up against Pernida Parnkgjas
• Shunsui Kyoraku's Bankai
• Ichigo's first proper fight with Yhwach
• The unexpected final team-up