What is Bleach? It’s not just a substance turning something white, Bleach is also known as a popular Japanese animation about a 15-year-old boy Kurosaki Ichigo who can see ghosts. Here’s what to expect from Bleach:
The story of Bleach began one day when a Shinigami (death god), named Kuchiki Rukia, ran into Ichigo while chasing a Hollow (an evil spirit). As it would turn out, the Hollow was actually after Ichigo because of his unusually high spirit energy. When Rukia confronted the Hollow, she was wounded in the resulting fight. Thus, she has to temporarily transfer all her powers to Ichigo.
In the beginning, Ichigo was hesitant. In order to protect his family (since the Hollows will continue to go after him), however, he had to sacrifice himself. During the transfer, instead of taking half of Rukia’s powers, Ichigo took nearly all of it. As a result, Rukia had to stay and recovered her powers in the human world.
At first, Ichigo did not know how to control his new found power. After a few fights with Hollows, he began to understand and control his power under his will. Because of his new job as a Shinigami, Ichigo has to find the balance between his new job and his life as a regular Japanese teenager.
Ichigo’s friends, Orihime and Chad, also began to experience their own supernatural powers. As it turns out, by getting close to Ichigo, they received some of his sprit power without them and Ichigo noticing it. With their new found powers, Orihime and Chad decided to help Ichigo on his quest.
Aside from Orihime and Chad, Ichigo has another friend, Ishida. Unlike Orihime and Chad, Ishida already has his own spiritual power because he is a Quincy, a race that was exterminated a long time ago.
As time progresses, the people from Soul Society (the world of the Shinigami) arrive to the real world in order to capture Rukia for overstaying in the human world for too long. Two Shinigami, Byakyua and Renji, managed to capture her.
As for what happens next, you will have to find that out yourself. As you can see, the story line is quite unique. Bleach is not just any regular anime. The storyline is so gripping and suspenseful that people will want to continue watching Bleach one episode after episode.
As a fighting anime, Bleach has plenty of action and gore. If you are a Naruto or Dragon Ball Z fanatic then this would be the right anime for you. With spiritual powers as well as incredible fights, Bleach is a must-see anime.
Some anime may die out and lose its luster, but Bleach is not one of them. Currently Bleach has aired up to 200 episodes and it is continuing without even a hint of slowing down.
Presently in Japan, Bleach is one of the top anime in terms of ratings and quality. It began showing in Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim starting from 2006. So far, the Japanese version is superior to the American counterpart. The voices actually fit in the Japanese version; for the English version, the translators used the wrong voice for the characters in the anime. For example, some of the female characters should have a deeper voice but, instead, they have soft and high-pitched voice in the American version.
For action anime fans, or just any anime fans in general, Bleach is one can’t miss title. Once you start, you will never want to stop. The story is interesting and exciting. Not to mention that the characters developed nicely as well. Bleach is highly recommended; just make sure you wait for the DVD release so that you can watch it with English-subtitled with the original Japanese voices.
