Tite Kubo’s Bleach is one of the most popular franchises in recent memory. After years of anticipation from Bleach fans, the series’ last chapter, The Thousand-Year Blood War, is finally getting its long-awaited anime adaptation, and with it a slew of new Bankai. The manga version of Bleach finished in 2016, and while the finale was contentious for a variety of reasons, fans wanted to see the last arc animated.
However, the series which has become one of the biggest series currently had to go through many changes in the anime that didn’t feature in the manga. The anime adaptation of Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War was approved in 2020, four years after the manga’s conclusion. While the final arc is still in its early stages, fans have already discovered significant differences from the manga. Here are the 5 biggest changes that the Series made that were not present in the source.
1. Past of Genryusai Yamamoto and his Squad
Fans of Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War were introduced to a glimpse into the background of Gotei 13’s Head Captain, Genryusai Yamamoto, in episode 7. Yamamoto battled against the Quincy Emperor, Yhwach, one thousand years before the events of the series. The battle was never depicted in the manga, and the only information available was that it allegedly drove Quincy to extinction. Instead of showing a teenage Yamamoto fighting Yhwach, the anime presents the original captains of the Gotei 13, ten brand-new characters who were only briefly referenced in the manga.
2. Senjumaru Shutara’s Bankai
When Bleach Chapters 592-601 were released in 2016, the Squad Zero were easily vanquished by Ywach’s elite guardians. The Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War anime not only showed Squad Zero’s astronomical powers, which threatened the Soul Society’s existence, but it also had a Bankai release not seen in the manga. Every other Guard, except Hyosube, slit their throats to activate the ‘blood oath contract’ and release Senjumaru Shutara’s true potential.
3. Shinji Hirako’s Bankai New Abilities
Shinji Hirako first showed his Bankai in Ryogo Narita’s Bleach: Can’t Fear Your World. Shinji’s Bankai, according to the novel, can flip his opponents’ notions of friends and opponents. In other words, it enhances the effect of his Shikai: Sakanade, which is confined to a sense of direction. Shinji’s opponents are turned against each other and eventually kill themselves once activated. This Bankai, however, does not appear in the Bleach manga. However, Shinji’s Bankai was first seen in anime form in the current Bleach TYBW part 2 anime.
4. Uryu Ishida’s Role
Uryu vanished into the background after Ichigo’s departure to Hueco, only to reappearance as a member of the Wandenreich. Uryu’s role as both Ichigo’s competitor and Yhwach’s successor is one of the key driving forces of the Thousand-Year Blood War narrative, therefore his slipping into the background disappointed the audience. However, after Ichigo’s departure, the anime expands on Uryu’s actions by having him explore Hueco Mundo’s mysterious invaders in his family archives and grandfather’s journal.
5. Squad Zero’s Death
Squad Zero, commonly known as The Royal Guards, was abruptly written from the screenplay. When the combat scenes in the Soul Society transitioned to the subsequent battle scenes in the Soul Palace, Tenjiro Kirinji, Kirio Hikifune, Senjumaru Shuatara, and Ouetsu Nimaiya lay motionless, with no conclusive explanation as to how they were defeated. However, the Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War anime not only highlighted Squad Zero’s astronomical powers but also revealed how they eliminated themselves rather than being completely vanquished by the enemy.
