New Episodes of the Final Arc of 'Bleach' Are Headed Your Way

One of the biggest anime shows of the early 2000s was Bleach. Part of the "Big Three" at the time, along with Naruto and One Piece, Bleach followed a high school kid named Ichigo Kurosaki who became a Soul Reaper meant to protect humanity from evil spirits and help them reach the afterlife. Although it was popular as both a manga and an anime, the manga's ending has seen some controversy.

Bleach's manga and anime ended a few years back, but is the story really over? Its creator, Tite Kubo, has been open to continuing Bleach, and new content has come out in 2021 — can fans expect even more new content?

The Bleach manga ended back in 2016 and the anime ended a few years prior in 2012 due to low ratings. However, since the anime ended with the Lost Substitute Shinigami arc, a proper conclusion was never given, and fans had to turn to the manga to see the ending, which many were disappointed by.

Now we know when the anime is coming back. According to Polygon, Tite Kubo announced at Jump Festa in Japan that the Thousand-Year Blood War arc would get an anime adaptation, set to be released in Oct. 2022.

This is not the first time has Bleach has made a comeback. In Aug. 2021 in Japan, the magazine Shonen Jump included a 73-page chapter in the issue for that month.

At the end of the Bleach manga, an army called Wandenreich declares war on Soul Society, aka the afterlife. The group is led by Yhwach, the son of the Soul King, who wants his father dead so he can get rid of death itself. Ichigo and his friends fight alongside the Soul Society but, by the war's end, Yhwach succeeds in killing the Soul King. However, the tables turn when Yhwach goes back to take over the afterlife and Ichigo defeats him.

10 years later, Rukia becomes the captain of the 13th company and has a daughter named Ichika with her friend, Renji Abarai. Ichigo and Orihime also have a child, a son named Kazui. Both kids are training to become Soul Reapers.

While some fans like the manga's ending, many feel like it was rushed and aren't happy with it. This new adaptation of the final arc could be the perfect opportunity to give fans the ending they really want.

Even though fans weren't happy about it, Kubo wanted Bleach to end when it did. According to CBR, the creator explained in an interview with TBS Radio that he had to end it for his health. He had been overworked and had dealt with work-related issues during the 15 years the manga was being made. He mentioned even being hospitalized a few times. In order to put his health first, Kubo decided to end the series.

You can watch Bleach on Crunchyroll, Funimation, and Netflix now.