Bleach Thousand-Year Blood War Part 2: The Separation aired its last two episodes on September 30, 2023. One of the big three of the Shonen genre, the anime closed out the season with a bang by releasing Episode 12 and Episode 13 simultaneously, making it a one-hour special.
Prior to the release of the last arc of Bleach, mangaka Tite Kubo mentioned that he would include a new fighting sequence in Bleach Thousand-Year Blood War: Part 2 that wasn’t in the manga. Upon the animation team’s request, Kubo added the scene featuring a Squad Zero member and even contributed multiple illustration pages to depict the movements of the characters more realistically.
Also Read: Ichigo Voice Actor Reveals the Thousand-Year Blood War Episode That Completes Bleach
The anime-exclusive action was seen in Episode 13, titled Black, when Senjumara Shutara unleashed her never-seen-before Bankai to the amazement of Bleach fans.
Senjumara Shutara’s Bankai powers in Bleach Thousand-Year Blood War
A slender woman with six long, golden skeletal artificial arms attached to her back, Senjumara Shutara specializes in research similar to Mayuri Kurotsuchi. She is also a menacing character like Kurotsuchi who appears to be eccentric but can shift attitudes when necessary. This was seen when Ywach stepped foot in the Soul King Palace, a place suspended above Soul Society, allowing his Sternritters to attack the Royal Court Guards.
Senjumara Shutara debuted her Bankai, Shatatsu Karagara Shigarami no Tsuji, in the animated version of the Bleach Thousand-Year Blood War. One of the strongest power releases in the series, it took the combined sacrifices of Squad Zero, excluding Ichibe Hyosube, to fuel the powers within The Great Weaver. The moment occurs at the 12:47 minute mark in Episode 13.
While her comrades lay bloodied, Senjumara Shutara stepped forward to challenge Gerard Valkyrie, Jugram Haschwalth, Pernida Parnkgjas, and other Quincies. Shatatsu Karagara Shigarami no Tsuji Bankai included six different modes and she used each of them to delay the Sternritters from meeting Ywach, who was engaged in combat with Hysosube elsewhere.
The Great Weaver’s fondly remembered techniques include Itsukase Tokaba: Yakenohara, which she used to send thick dark-red waves of fire to stop Haschwalth in his tracks, and Yotsukase Tokaba: Itetsuku Shitone, which Shutara used to bind the all-powerful Valkyrie in a freezing-cold arctic environment.
Tite Kubo managed the voice acting cast for Bleach Thousand-Year Blood War
Ensuring that each scene in an animated fighting sequence goes according to plan, without original manga illustrations, is certainly difficult. Tite Kubo had to draw five to six pages and direct the animation team to create the surreal battle between Senjumara Shutara and the Sternritters. That wasn’t his only role in bringing the manga characters come to life though.
Kubo acted as the final approver for the voice-casting of Bleach Thousand-Year Blood War. He listened to a few lines by the original voice actors from a decade ago and immediately recognized their anime characters, as revealed during an exclusive interview with VIZ:
“For Thousand-Year Blood War, I’ve been joining the recording sessions through remote calls. For the returning characters, I’d be asked to listen to a couple of their lines and give my thoughts. But most of the time it’s me just going off, saying, “Yes, that’s the voice I remember.” The VAs remember their voices a lot better than me.”
Kubo deviating from the manga to include new scenes in the anime is a rare occasion. Most of the time, it is the opposite, with scenes being cut from the anime. Bungo Stray Dogs is an anime in which character personalities were never fully explored and certain exchanges from the manga were either shortened or struck out.
Given the fact that Bleach is back after a whole decade due to the fan reception, Kubo is making sure that Bleach Thousand-Year Blood War followers get plenty of action.
Also Read: Multiple Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War Fight Scenes Wouldn’t Have Been Possible Without Tite Kubo
Source: VIZ
