The original Bleach anime was canceled in the early 2010s after a drop in popularity, only to return in October 2022 with the shiny new “Thousand-Year Blood War” arc, which will span four cours in total. The first was a smashing success, putting Bleach back on the map with stellar modern animation, vastly improved pacing, and intense action scenes with high stakes.
The Summer 2023 anime season will see the exciting series continue, and new and returning fans alike have a lot to keep track of. Bleach is a lengthy shonen anime with many moving parts and countless characters, so it’s a perfect time to review what happened in recent storylines — and how those events will lead directly into the “Thousand-Year Blood War” arc’s next phase.
Bleach‘s Quincy Empire Wages War on the Unprepared Soul Society
The “Thousand-Year Blood War” arc introduced the Wandenreich, the hidden empire of Quincy that is led by the immensely powerful king Yhwach, the father of all Quincy. They were badly defeated by Captain Yamamoto’s brutal team centuries ago, but now the Quincy have gained the upper hand and dealt a major blow to Bleach‘s Soul Reapers. The anime’s first cour saw Yhwach lead his elite troops, the Sternritter, directly into the Seireitei and slaughter the Soul Reapers there — including Yamamoto himself, who died at Yhwach’s hands. Several Sternritter also stole a few Captains’ Bankai abilities with their bizarre medallion artifacts.
The surviving Captains accepted Shunsui Kyoraku as their new commander-in-chief. Meanwhile, they must shake off their complacency and prepare to fight for their lives when the war inevitably resumes in the anime’s second cour. The Soul Reapers also met the eccentric but talented members of the royal guard — aka Squad 0 — though aside from training Ichigo Kurosaki and Renji Abarai, it’s unclear how much the royal guard will actually help the Court Guard squads in the Thousand-Year Blood War’s next great battle.
Ichigo Kurosaki Learned the Truth of His Quincy Mother
Bleach TYBW’s first cour also saw protagonist Ichigo Kurosaki lose to Yhwach and Jugram Haschwalth in the Soul Society, and his zanpakuto was broken. To reforge it, Ichigo must learn the extent of his powers and his family’s lineage, and he was sent back to Karakura Town to uncover the truth.
Ichigo’s father, Isshin, explained everything in a lengthy flashback sequence depicting a younger Captain Isshin Shiba and a teenage Quincy girl named Masaki Kurosaki. Together, the pair defeated Aizen’s experimental Hollow — but that Hollow poisoned Masaki with its essence, forcing Isshin to sacrifice his Soul Reaper powers to save her. When they had their first child together, Ichigo, all those powers from both sides manifested within him.
Ichigo now knows the original “old man Zangetsu” is the last remains of Masaki’s protective Quincy powers, while his inner Hollow is his true zanpakuto. Accepting this truth and finally overcoming his grief about his mother’s untimely death, Ichigo bade farewell to Quincy-Zangetsu and forged a new, even better zanpakuto — the last sword he may ever need to defeat his enemies.
Uryu Ishida’s Dilemma Between His Friends & The Wandenreich
Ichigo’s good friend Uryu Ishida is loyal to his allies and embodies many shonen values about honesty, teamwork and trust, but even he cannot easily ignore the temptation to rejoin his people at last. Uryu is proud to be a Quincy, which caused a rift between him and his father Ryuken, and now the son knows the full truth of his tribe. Uryu even declined to help his friends fight the Wandenreich’s troops in Hueco Mundo and didn’t help defend the Soul Society either, suggesting he is through defending the Soul Reapers and their human allies.
The “Thousand-Year Blood War” arc’s first cour ended with a cliffhanger concerning Uryu’s dilemma, but new trailers for the second cour show him accepting his new place in the Quincy empire by Yhwach’s and Jugram’s side. It’s not yet clear whether Ichigo knows of this or what Uryu’s friends might think about this betrayal. No doubt Uryu’s shaky loyalties will play a major role in the upcoming season, and Bleach will finally reveal what kind of person Uryu Ishida really is — and what he stands for as both a shonen warrior and a Quincy.
