Once upon a time, three anime towered above the rest. They were backed by some of the best manga stories at the time. These were the “Holy Shonen Trinity”: Naruto, One Piece, and Bleach. Each of them had wowed fans for a long time, and two remain landmark series to this day. But the third series had a stumbling block, leading to its anime being canceled before the series was complete. Thankfully, the manga continued, and fans have been begging for the final arc to be adapted into anime form. Their prayers are about to be fulfilled as Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War is about to debut in Japan.
To say that this was a long time coming would be an understatement, as this has been asked for since the anime’s original cancelation. But even though it’s back, fans still have questions. The first question was how good it would look with a modern anime style. That answer was given through trailers that showed Studio Pierrot going all out for the anime. The second question was about length, as in how long Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War would be from start to finish.
At first, we didn’t get a complete answer, only that it would be in four “blocks” of programming. Now, that answer has been given in full just before the premiere. In total, the anime will be 52 episodes long. That means the four blocks will feature 13 episodes a piece, more than enough to keep fans satisfied for some time while the animation team is working on the others.
One of the reasons fans should be excited about this is that the manga’s creator, Tite Kubo. He noted that his final arc was some of his best work because he wasn’t “bound’ to the anime. Previously, he couldn’t go “full force” like he desired because Kubo was told the anime would have to render what he drew/wrote. So he held back at the time. But now, his whole story can be shown without issue or restriction, and fans are eager to see what the anime will showcase that it couldn’t before.
The return of Ichigo Kurosaki and his friends is highly-anticipated. They’ll be up against their most formidable challenge yet as the villainous Yhwach will rise to try and destroy the Soul Society and take over the world. Considering the scale of his power, the battles to bring him down will be intense, especially since Ichigo will have to count on a former foe to help bring his new one down.
The anime realm is on fire right now and doesn’t show any signs of slowing. Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War is one salvo in a full-on barrage of new and returning anime that will keep fans satisfied for some time.
Source: ComicBook.com
