Owing to its predecessor’s immense popularity, Bleach: The Thousand-Year Blood War took the entire internet by storm. Despite consisting of over 300 episodes, Bleach was the first among the Big Three to be concluded, which left the fandom anticipating its return. Naturally, the fandom was worried about their beloved franchise’s success after an anxious eight-year wait filled with doubts and suspicions.
However, Tite Kubo didn’t let down Bleach‘s fans’ high expectations of the long-awaited prequel. Although the staff did encounter several obstacles, The Thousand-Year Blood War Arc became an instant hit thanks to Kubo’s splendid narrative. Interestingly, our beloved protagonist’s voice actor once opened up about their initial struggles behind The Thousand-Year Blood War‘s production and the revelation is truly surprising.
Ichigo Kurosaki’s VA Reflects on the Struggles Behind Bleach: The Thousand-Year Blood War
From thrilling action scenes to splendid world-building, Tite Kubo‘s Bleach rightfully earned its place in the Big Three of shonen anime. The series’ iconic catchphrase, ‘Bankai,’ has become a global sensation, continuing to resonate with fans and create buzz online.
The fascinating work of Japanese voice actors behind each Bleach character has brought them to life and enthralled fans for many years. Surprisingly, Masakazu Morita, the voice actor behind Ichigo Kurosaki, once disclosed his struggles while working on The Thousand-Year Blood War Arc.
Besides the optimistic expectations from fans, the Bleach production team was under a lot of distress because of the anxious eight-year delay. Morita has continued to enthrall viewers for years with his splendid work behind Ichigo’s voice and his iconic catchphrase, Bankai, is worldwide recognized. Surprisingly, a talented voice actor like Morita also had to overcome many challenges during the production of The Thousand-Year Blood War Arc.
Morita revealed he didn’t struggle with voicing Ichigo back in classic Bleach; however, the voice actor couldn’t cope with Kurosaki’s personality in The Thousand-Year Blood War Arc. Luckily, Tite Kubo was always there to lend a helping hand to Ichigo’s voice actor, a support Morita deeply appreciated. In an interview, Morita revealed:
But this is a mental training, so I had difficulties with how to exactly get it right. But Kubo-Sensei comes to the recording each time, so I asked him questions such as ‘What’s the situation in this scene?’ or ‘Why is Ichigo sensing so much weight?’ or ‘Why is he sweating so much in this ‘special place’?’ Kubo-Sensei filled me in on these facts and therefore I was able to carry this out properly.
Translated the latest interview given by Masakazu Morita, in case anyone’s interested.
byu/scheneizel inbleach
Morita addressed that Ichigo’s mental training put the voice actor under some stress to portray our beloved protagonist’s emotions on screen. He also shares that during the production, Morita would often find himself alone struggling.
This led the voice actor to uncover an unexpected similarity between himself and Ichigo, deepening his connection to the character. Regardless, thanks to Kubo’s support, Morita was able to connect with Ichigo’s character and bring a new life to our beloved protagonist.
Tite Kubo Never Intended for This Character to Survive: A Surprising Twist in Bleach
Tite Kubo’s Bleach earned its spot in the Big Three of shonen anime thanks to the mangaka’s breathtaking narrative. Throughout the series, Kubo introduced readers to a captivating Bleach universe filled with enthralling characters. Not to forget that several antagonists, such as Aizen, Gin Ichimaru, Coyote Starrk, and many more, left a lasting impression among viewers.
Surprisingly, Kubo planned a tragic fate for an iconic character, which later turned out to be Ichigo’s arch-nemesis. The mangaka revealed that he never intended Grimmjow to survive this long and had to change his tragic fate. However, after designing the Espada 6 Kubo wanted to add more depth to his character, which led to Grimmjow becoming one of the most recognizable antagonists in the community.
Bleach is available for streaming on Crunchyroll
