Bleach: How to watch the anime and movies of your favorite Soul Reapers
Become an expert soul reaper with this Bleach watch guide
In 2022, the anime franchise Bleach made a triumphant return with a new series known as The Thousand Year Blood War. It serves as a sequel to the original Bleach anime that aired from 2004 to 2012. Both are adapted from Tite Kibo's 2001 manga of the same name, which was published until 2016.
Bleach tells the story of a teenager named Ichigo Kurasaki, who can see ghosts. After meeting a Soul Reaper named Rukia Kuchiki, Ichigo becomes a Soul Reaper himself. As a Soul Reaper, Ichigo is responsible for fighting evil spirits known as Hollows and guiding spirits to the afterlife. As he comes into his powers, he meets others with similar spiritual abilities and becomes embroiled in incidents involving the realm known as The Soul Society.
As an anime franchise, Bleach is known as one of "the big three" alongside One Piece and Naruto, the most popular anime franchises targeted towards young boys and men. It's also known for its intense action scenes, dynamic soundtrack, and supernatural elements.
With part one of The Thousand Year Blood War concluded and part two set to premiere this summer, now is the perfect time to get into the Bleach anime series. In order to know where to begin, check out this guide.
Where to watch the Bleach anime franchise
While Bleach and its sequel The Thousand Year Blood War are available to stream on Hulu, Disney+ only has The Thousand Year Blood War. In addition, streaming is the most cost effective way to watch Bleach, as there are over 300 episodes collected across twelve DVD and Blu-ray sets that are available from Right Stuf. Finally, the Bleach anime movies are available to purchase physically and digitally from Amazon and digitally from Vudu, Google Play, Itunes.
How to watch Bleach in release order
Currently, the anime franchise Bleach has sixteen seasons, one ongoing sequel series, and four anime movies. The watch order by release date for the anime series and movies is as follows:
- Season 1- The Substitute Soul Reaper (Episodes 1-20)
- Season 2- The Entry (Episodes 1-21)
- Season 3- The Rescue (Episodes 1-22)
- Season 4- The Bounty (Episodes 1-22)
- Season 5- The Assault (Episodes 1-15)
- Bleach The Movie: Memories of Nobody
- Season 5- The Assault (Episodes 16-18)
- Season 6- Arrancar The Appearance (Episodes 1-22)
- Season 7- The Arrancar Part 2 (Episodes 1-20)
- Season 8- The Arrancar Part 3 (Episodes 1-2)
- Bleach: Diamond Dust Rebellion
- Season 8- The Arrancar Part 3 (Episodes 3-16)
- Season 9- The New Captain (Episodes 1-22)
- Season 10- The Arrancar Part 4 (Episodes 1-9)
- Bleach: Fade To Black
- Season 10- The Arrancar Part 4 (Episodes 10-16)
- Season 11- Turn Back The Pendulum (Episodes 1-7)
- Season 12- The Arrancar Part 5 (Episodes 1-17)
- Season 13- Zanpakuto The Alternate Tale (Episodes 1-36)
- Season 14- The Arrancar Part 6 (Episodes 1-34)
- Bleach: Hell Verse
- Season 14- The Arrancar Part 6 (Episodes 36-51)
- Season 15- Gotei 13 Invading Army (Episodes 1-26)
- Season 16- The Lost Agent (Episodes 1-24)
- The Thousand Year Blood War Part 1 (Episodes 1-13)
How to watch Bleach in chronological order
The chronological order and the release order for the Bleach anime series are the same. However, because the plot of the Bleach movies are unrelated to the series plot, you can also watch them separately (or not at all), as listed below, and the show will still make sense.
The watch order for the anime series is:
- Season 1- The Substitute Soul Reaper
- Season 2- The Entry
- Season 3- The Rescue
- Season 4- The Bounty
- Season 5- The Assault
- Season 6- Arrancar The Appearance
- Season 7- The Arrancar Part 2
- Season 8- The Arrancar Part 3
- Season 9- The New Captain
- Season 10- The Arrancar Part 4
- Season 11- Turn Back The Pendulum
- Season 12- The Arrancar Part 5
- Season 13- Zanpakuto The Alternate Tale
- Season 14- The Arrancar Part 6
- Season 15- Gotei 13 Invading Army
- Season 16- The Lost Agent
- The Thousand Year Blood War Part 1
The watch order for the anime movies is:
- Bleach The Movie: Memories of Nobody
- Bleach: Diamond Dust Rebellion
- Bleach: Fade To Black
- Bleach: Hell Verse
Do I need to watch the Bleach anime movies?
Do I need to read the Bleach manga before watching the Bleach anime?
The Bleach anime is an adaptation of the manga, though whether it is a faithful one is up to the viewer. There are some changes between the manga and the anime, especially in certain episodes of the sequel series The Thousand Year Blood War. However, it is not necessary to read the manga in order to enjoy and understand the story.
Do I need to watch Bleach before The Thousand Year Blood War?
Since The Thousand Year Blood War adapts the final chapter of the manga and picks up where the previous series left off, it is recommended that you watch the other seasons of Bleach first. If you don't, you'll be confused about the plot and the characters.
What genre is Bleach?
Bleach and its follow up The Thousand Year Blood War are supernatural action-adventure series. The supernatural elements come from the ghosts and spirits featured, as well as the Soul Reapers, which is a unique take on the Grim Reaper. Meanwhile, the action adventure can be seen in the intense fights between Soul Reapers and spirits, Soul Reapers fighting each other, and humans with high spiritual powers.
Other upcoming Bleach projects
Part two of The Thousand Year Blood War anime season is set to premiere July 2023. According to Viz Media, part two is titled The Thousand Year Blood War-The Separation and will continue to adapt the final arc of the manga. As with part one, part two will premiere on Hulu before appearing on Disney+.
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