The return of everyone’s favorite afterlife collector! When it seemed like Bleach would never end, the makers stunned fans by revealing Season 17. This season would adapt the Thousand-Year Blood Arc from Tite Kubo’s manga.
There are a total of 366 episodes in the 16 seasons of the shonen series Bleach, which first aired on television on October 5, 2004, due to Studio Pierrot. Fan demand for further episodes to adapt to the rest of Tite Kubo’s manga series has remained steady since the series finale on March 27, 2012.
Leaks suggest that Studio MAPPA will animate the upcoming season of Bleach, which is welcome news since it has taken over a decade for the producers to deliver on what fans have been asking for.
What follows is a complete summary of Bleach: The Thousand-Year Blood Arc.
Bleach: Thousand Year-Blood War Official Announcement
To celebrate Bleach’s 20th anniversary, creator Tite Kubo and the animators behind the series confirmed its renewal for Season 17 in the March 2020 issue of Weekly Shonen Jump.
The anime will end with the conclusion of the Thousand-Year Blood War arc from the manga series, as reported by a Japanese magazine. Also, it was made clear that there would be no cuts made to the uncensored anime version.
In addition, Shonen Jump announced the following season and accompanying OVA episode, Burn the Witch, with a video posted on YouTube.
Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War is finally here! ⚔️ pic.twitter.com/7NXLiO82HB
— VIZ (@VIZMedia) December 18, 2021
Bleach: Thousand Year-Blood War Release Date
The teaser is the official confirmation that the anime adaptation of Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War will premiere in October 2022, therefore it is probable that fans all over the world will be able to view the new episodes starting in that month. More promotional hoopla for the final season may be expected in the months leading up to its release since this is one of the most anticipated upcoming anime series this year.
Soon, both Funimation and Crunchyroll will reveal the precise day on which their respective streaming services will be available. Once the official update is live, we will revise this page to reflect the new date.
A New Chapter In The Bleach Anime Legacy
Bleach’s next manga arc, Thousand-Year Blood War, will be adapted into an anime beginning in March 2020.
Then, in November 2021, Crunchyroll revealed that the hit franchise will be making an appearance at the then-upcoming Jump Festa 2022 event in Japan — prompting anticipation that Bleach’s reappearance in the Thousand Year Blood War was on the horizon.
Thankfully, on Day One of the Jump Festa 2022 events in December, the first trailer for the new anime arc was posted online — see below.
Per Aniplex Japan, translated via DeepL, The Thousand Year Blood War will center on “Ichigo Kurosaki, who became an “Acting Shinigami” after acquiring the power of a Shinigami through a chance encounter, is caught up in the upheaval of the Soul Society, a place where the souls of those who have died in this world gather, and has grown up together with his friends through fierce battles.”
“Then something strange happens in Karakura-Cho, where Ichigo lives. A new Shinigami and a new enemy appear. And there are voices calling for help. Ichigo picks up his zanpakuto again and sets off for the battlefield. Meanwhile, in the Corpse Realm, the sudden and continuous disappearance of hollows in this world is observed, and the residents of Ryutonmachi, where the souls that have been led here live, disappear.” – Thousand Year Blood War preview, via Aniplex YouTube.
“The identity of the bandit army is that of the Unseen Reich, led by the founder of the Quincy, Juhabach. The “Unseen Empire” declares war on the Shinigami. Five days later, the mortal world is annihilated by the “Unseen Empire”. For a thousand years, the Shinigami have carried the fate of the dead on their shoulders. Their karma and hidden truths are finally unraveled. Everything comes to an end. Ichigo Kurosaki’s final battle begins.” – Thousand Year Blood War preview, via Aniplex YouTube.
Where to watch Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War?
In October 2022, Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War will premiere on TV Tokyo, and viewers outside of Japan will be able to watch the full series on Crunchyroll. It’s unlikely that Netflix will carry the next anime.
This has generated quite a stir among fans for many reasons. The most recent anime to be licensed by Disney+ is Summer Time Rendering, however, it has been confined to the Japanese market since its first release. For the last 18 weeks, the anime series has been running in Japan, but many fans outside of Japan still don’t have access to the program because of the delay in releasing all 25 episodes globally.
