Bleach (manga)

Bleach (stylized in all caps) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Tite Kubo. It follows the adventures of teenager Ichigo Kurosaki, who obtains the powers of a Soul Reaper—a death personification similar to a Grim Reaper—from another Soul Reaper, Rukia Kuchiki. He uses his newfound powers to take on the duties of defending humans from evil spirits called Hollows and guiding departed souls to the afterlife, which set him on journeys to various ghostly realms of existence.

Bleach was serialized in Shueisha's [[Shōnen manga|Template:Transliteration manga]] magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump from August 2001 to August 2016, with its chapters collected in 74 Template:Transliteration volumes. The series has spawned a media franchise that includes an anime television series adaptation produced by Pierrot from 2004 to 2012, two original video animations (OVAs), four animated feature films, ten stage musicals, and numerous video games, as well as various types of merchandise. A Japanese live-action film adaptation produced by Warner Bros. premiered in 2018. Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War, a sequel to the anime television series that adapts the manga's final story arc, premiered in 2022.

In North America, the manga was licensed for English release by Viz Media in 2004. It has released the collected volumes and published its chapters in its Shonen Jump magazine from November 2007 until the magazine's final issue in April 2012.

Bleach received the 50th Shogakukan Manga Award for the Template:Transliteration category in 2005. The manga had over 130 million copies in circulation worldwide by 2022, making it one of the best-selling manga in history.

Plot

Template:See also Ichigo Kurosaki is a teenager from Karakura Town who possesses the rare ability to perceive spirits. This gift leads him to encounter Rukia Kuchiki, a warrior from another world who is hunting a Hollow—a monstrous lost soul that preys on both the living and the dead. Rukia serves among the Template:Nihongo, an ancient order tasked with maintaining the balance between worlds. These guardians ferry departed souls to the Template:Nihongo while protecting humanity from Hollows. After sustaining severe injuries while protecting Ichigo from a Hollow, Rukia transfers her powers to him, enabling him to assume her duties while she recuperates within a temporary human body. Stranded in the World of the Living, she mentors Ichigo as he navigates his dual responsibilities as a Substitute Soul Reaper and a high school student. They are joined by spiritually aware allies: Ichigo's classmate Orihime Inoue, his close friend Yasutora "Chad" Sado, and Uryū Ishida, a Quincy survivor with the ability to manipulate spiritual energy.

Rukia is later apprehended by the Soul Society for unlawfully bestowing her powers upon a human and sentenced to execution. Determined to rescue her, Ichigo and his companions seek the aid of Kisuke Urahara, a former Soul Reaper scientist who trains Ichigo to awaken his innate Soul Reaper abilities. Upon infiltrating the Soul Society, tensions escalate among the Thirteen Court Squads when Sousuke Aizen, captain of the fifth company, is seemingly assassinated. Suspicion falls upon Ichigo and his allies, prompting the Soul Reapers to turn against one another. After Ichigo halts the conflict and secures Rukia's freedom, Aizen exposes his deception, revealing his orchestration of Rukia's execution to extract the Template:Nihongo, a powerful artifact concealed within her by Urahara. Aizen flees to Template:Nihongo, the domain of Hollows, alongside his co-conspirators Gin Ichimaru and Kaname Tōsen. In the aftermath, Ichigo is formally recognized as a Substitute Soul Reaper by the Soul Society.

The conflict intensifies as Aizen deploys his elite forces, the Arrancar—humanoid Hollows—against Ichigo and his allies. They are aided by the Vizards, former Soul Reapers who underwent Hollowfication due to Aizen's experiments. When Ulquiorra, one of Aizen's Espada, abducts Orihime, Ichigo and his comrades storm Hueco Mundo to infiltrate Las Noches. Though Ichigo defeats Ulquiorra and retrieves Orihime, Aizen reveals his true objective: sacrificing Karakura Town to forge a key to the Soul King's Palace and overthrow the ruler of the Soul Society. The Soul Reapers, anticipating his assault, relocate the town and engage Aizencs forces. Gin Ichimaru betrays Aizen but is slain, prompting Aizen to transcend into a near-divine state using the Hōgyoku. Ichigo sacrifices his powers to defeat him, resulting in Aizen's imprisonment and Ichigo's reversion to an ordinary human.

Months later, Ichigo is drawn into a conflict with Xcution, a group of Fullbringers—humans with supernatural abilities—led by Kugo Ginjo, his predecessor as Substitute Soul Reaper. After Xcution manipulates him into surrendering his Fullbring powers, the Soul Reapers restore his Soul Reaper abilities. Ichigo learns of Ginjo's betrayal, stemming from the Soul Society's surveillance and suppression of Substitute Soul Reapers. Despite this revelation, Ichigo reaffirms his trust in his allies and defeats Ginjo, reclaiming his role as a Substitute Soul Reaper.

The conflict reignites when the Template:Nihongo, an army of Quincies led by Yhwach, declares war on the Soul Society. After subjugating Hueco Mundo, they launch a devastating assault, killing numerous Soul Reapers, including Head-Captain Yamamoto. Uryū joins Yhwach, uncovering the truth behind his mother's death. In the final battle, Ichigo and his allies storm Yhwach's palace, defeating his elite Sternritters. Yhwach attempts to annihilate the Soul Society, but Ichigo, aided by Uryū and the temporarily freed Aizen, ultimately destroys him.

A decade later, Rukia assumes command of the thirteenth company and raises a daughter, Ichika, with her childhood companion Renji Abarai. Ichigo and Orihime marry and have a son, Kazui, who inherits his father's spiritual abilities. Two years afterward, Ichigo participates in the Soul Funeral Ceremony for Captain Jūshirō Ukitake. While assisting lieutenants in Karakura Town to capture Hollows for the ritual, they are ambushed by the Beasts of Hell, led by the resurrected Espada Szayelaporro Granz. Though the lieutenants repel the attack, it is revealed that the ceremony serves as a means to consign deceased captains, including Ukitake, to Hell.

Production

The concept for Bleach originated from Tite Kubo's interest in depicting a Template:Transliteration (Soul Reaper) wearing a kimono, which became the foundational design for the Soul Reapers in the series.<ref name="About 1">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="LA Times">Template:Cite news</ref> An initial concept featured Soul Reapers using guns, leading to the working title "Snipe"; this one-shot was published in Akamaru Jump in 2000.<ref name="SJ 71">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The title was changed last-minute to reflect the introduction of swords, though the initial announcement still used "Snipe."<ref name="SJ 71"/> Subsequent title considerations included "Black"—a reference to the Soul Reapers' attire—which Kubo rejected as too generic. "White" was also considered, but he ultimately chose "Bleach" for its association with the color white and because it was less obvious.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

The series proposal was submitted to Weekly Shōnen Jump after the cancellation of Kubo's previous work, Zombiepowder., and was initially rejected. Manga artist Akira Toriyama later wrote a letter of encouragement to Kubo after reviewing the concept.<ref name="LA Times" /> Bleach was accepted for serialization in 2001 and was originally planned to run for no more than five years.<ref name="LA Times" /> Early story outlines did not include the hierarchical organization of the Soul Society but incorporated certain elements, such as Ichigo's Soul Reaper heritage, which were not introduced until the Arrancar arc.<ref name="About 1" />

Kubo cited diverse influences for Bleach, including manga, music, architecture, film, and foreign languages. His interest in supernatural themes and monsters was inspired by Shigeru Mizuki's GeGeGe no Kitaro, while the focus on weaponry and combat drew from Masami Kurumada's Saint Seiya, a series he enjoyed in his youth.<ref name="About 1" /> Saint SeiyaTemplate:'s use of Greek mythology also influenced BleachTemplate:'s incorporation of mythological elements and themes of the afterlife.<ref name="SJ 71"/> Although Kubo acknowledged cinematic influences on the action and narrative pacing, he did not cite specific films as direct references for fight scenes; he mentioned enjoying Snatch but denied using it as a model.<ref name="SJ 51">Template:Cite journal</ref>

The fight choreography was developed while listening to rock music, which helped Kubo establish a rhythmic flow for panel transitions and perspective shifts.<ref name="About 3"/> He emphasized realistic injury depictions to enhance the visceral impact of combat and evoke empathy from readers.<ref name="PW"/> To break the monotony of illustrating extended action sequences, Kubo frequently inserted comedic interludes.<ref name="About 3">Template:Cite web</ref> Character design served as the primary driver for narrative development. When facing creative challenges or constructing new plotlines, Kubo often introduced large numbers of new characters or consulted earlier volumes for inspiration.<ref name="About 1" /><ref name="PW">Template:Cite web</ref> He expressed a preference for characters whose appearances contrasted with their true natures, reflecting a personal interest in such contradictions.<ref name="SJ66">Template:Cite journal</ref>

The series employed a multilingual naming scheme to differentiate its factions: Soul Reapers use terms from classical Japanese literature, Hollows and Arrancar adopted Spanish names, Fullbringers used English (often referencing rock music), and Quincies utilized German. This linguistic diversity reinforced the international scope of the series' settings and character identities.<ref name="SJ66"/>

Themes and analysis

BleachTemplate:'s plot incorporates the traditional Japanese belief of spirits coexisting with humans and their nature, good or evil, depends on the circumstances.<ref name=Feigenblatt /> An example is Orihime's backstory. She was raised from the age of three by her brother Sora, and prayed for his soul's peace after he died in a car accident.<ref name="ch6">Template:Cite book</ref> As time went on, she prayed less and Sora became jealous and turned into a Hollow and attacked Orihime. Academic Patrick Drazen says this is a reminder to the audience to not abandon the old ways or risk the spirits taking offense and causing problems in the world.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Bleach also incorporates Shinto themes of purification of "evil spirits through charms, scrolls, incantations, and other rituals".<ref name=Feigenblatt /> Christopher A. Born regards Bleach as transmitting Confucian values.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

Von Feigenblatt describes Bleach as being culturally and religiously aware, as it draws upon Christianity and Caribbean Santería.<ref name=Feigenblatt>Template:Cite journal</ref> Spanish terms are prevalent throughout the realm of Hueco Mundo,<ref name=Feigenblatt /> and Quincies have been known to associate with the German language, making Kubo's world of characters diverse in ethnicity and language as well.<ref name="SJ66"/> Feigenblatt notes that the Quincy "are clearly inspired by the Roman Catholic Christian Orders of Knighthood such as the Sovereign Military Order of Malta and the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre whose influence is shown in terms of the uniform worn by the Quincy as well as by the symbolism of the cross".<ref name=Feigenblatt />

Media

Manga

Template:Further Bleach, written and illustrated by Tite Kubo, was serialized for 15 years in Shueisha's [[Shōnen manga|Template:Transliteration manga]] magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump from August 7, 2001,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> to August 22, 2016.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Its 698 individual chaptersTemplate:Efn were collected in 74 Template:Transliteration volumes released between January 5, 2002, and November 4, 2016.<ref name="JP1">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="JP74">Template:Cite web</ref> Shueisha published the first 21 volumes compiled into six omnibus collections under the name Resurrected Souls, to celebrate the series' tenth anniversary.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The first collection was released on August 22, 2011;<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> the last collection was released on January 23, 2012.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

North American licensor Viz Media serialized the first chapters of Bleach in the print magazine Shonen Jump from its November 2007 to April 2012 issues.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The series moved to the digital anthology Weekly Shonen Jump Alpha in January 2012 and Viz Media released it digitally as Shueisha published new chapters in Japan.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The 74 volumes were released from July 6, 2004, to October 2, 2018.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Viz Media also released a hardcover "collector's edition" of the first volume that came with a dust jacket,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> two box sets,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and twenty-five 3-in-1 volumes between June 7, 2011, and March 5, 2019.<ref name="1st 3-in-1 Vol 1">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

A 73-page chapter, titled Template:Nihongo, was published in Weekly Shōnen Jump, to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the manga's debut in the magazine, on August 10, 2021.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> It was published in English by Viz Media's Shonen Jump online magazine and on the Shueisha's Manga Plus online platform. The one-shot ends seemingly on a cliffhanger; the character for "hen" (Template:Lang), used in the Japanese title of the chapter, is usually used to denote the title of a story arc.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The chapter was digitally released as a collected volume on December 3, 2021.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> A full-color version of the chapter was published digitally on September 4, 2023.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Anime

Template:Main Bleach was adapted by Pierrot into an anime television series directed by Noriyuki Abe and broadcast for 366 episodes on TV Tokyo from October 2004 to March 2012.<ref name="Anime">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Anime2">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Bleach TV Anime Ending on March 27">Template:Cite news</ref>

In March 2020, it was announced that the manga's final story arc, "Thousand-Year Blood War", would receive an anime adaptation.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In November 2021, it was announced that the new project would be a television series.<ref>Template:Cite tweet</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> It is directed by Tomohisa Taguchi and premiered in October 2022.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Films

Template:Main The series has spawned four animated films: Bleach: Memories of Nobody, released on December 16, 2006;<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Bleach: The DiamondDust Rebellion, released on December 22, 2007;<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Bleach: Fade to Black, released on December 13, 2008;<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and Bleach: Hell Verse, released on December 4, 2010.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> A live-action film adaptation premiered in Japan on July 20, 2018.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Light novels

Tite Kubo and Makoto Matsubara have co-authored three novelizations of the Bleach series, which were published by Shueisha under its Jump J-Books imprint. The first volume, Bleach – Letters From The Other Side: The Death and The Strawberry, was published on December 15, 2004, and re-released as Bleach – Letters From The Other Side: The Death and The Strawberry - New Edition on November 4, 2009.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The second, Bleach: The Honey Dish Rhapsody, was published on November 30, 2006.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The third, Bleach: The Death Save the Strawberry, was published on September 4, 2012.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> A two-volume novelization of the series co-authored by Ryōgo Narita, titled Bleach: Spirits Are Forever With You was released on June 4, 2012.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

After the series ended in 2016, a series of novels were released by Shueisha.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The first novel, Bleach: We Do Knot Always Love You, was written by Matsubara and published on December 27, 2016. The second, Bleach: Can't Fear Your Own World, is a serialized novel written by Narita and was released bi-weekly from April 28, 2017.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Three volumes were released from August 4, 2017, to December 4, 2018.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Viz Media published the three volumes of Bleach: Can't Fear Your Own World between July 7, 2020,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and April 20, 2021.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Shueisha published four novelizations based on the Bleach movies. The first volume, Bleach: Memories of Nobody, was published on December 18, 2006.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The second, Bleach: The DiamondDust Rebellion, Another Hyōrinmaru, was published on December 22, 2007.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The third, Bleach: Fade to Black, I Call Your Name, was published on December 15, 2008.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The fourth volume, Bleach: Hell Chapter, was published on December 6, 2010.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Video games

Template:Further A number of video games based on the Bleach series have been released, primarily though not exclusively fighting games. The first video game to be released from the Bleach series was Bleach: Heat the Soul, which debuted on March 24, 2005, for the Sony PlayStation Portable.<ref name="HTSRelease">Template:Cite web</ref> Currently, the majority of the games have only been released in Japan, though Sega has localized the first three Nintendo DS games and the first Wii game for North America.<ref name="DS2ndDetails">Template:Cite web</ref> So far, all dedicated Bleach games released for Sony's consoles have been developed and published by SCEI, whereas the games for Nintendo consoles are developed and published by Sega, and the Nintendo DS games are developed by Treasure Co. Ltd.<ref name="FateRelease">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="BladeRelease">Template:Cite web</ref> Two mobile games had also been released in 2014 (Bleach: Bankai Battle) and 2015 (Bleach: Brave Souls) for the series, which are available for iOS and Android.<ref name="Bankai Battle">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Brave Souls">Template:Cite web</ref> In 2017, Line announced the release of a game exclusive for their communication app called Bleach: Paradise Lost.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In July 2023, a console video game titled Bleach: Soul Resonance, published by Nuverse, was announced.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In July 2024, a video game titled Bleach: Rebirth of Souls was announced. It was released by Bandai Namco Entertainment for the PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows (via Steam), and Xbox Series X/S on March 21, 2025.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Trading card game

Template:Main Two collectible card games (CCG) based on the Bleach series have been made, one in the Japanese market and a different one in North America. Bleach Soul Card Battle, produced by Bandai, was introduced in Japan at the Jump Festa in 2004.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Twenty named sets were released for the series.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> After Bleach Soul Card Battle, Bandai introduced three more series. Bleach The Card Gum, which contains 14 sets, was released in early September 2007.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The next series, Bleach Clear Collection, which contains six sets, was released in July 2008.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The last series, Bleach Clear Soul Plate, which consists of three sets, was published in December 2009.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Bleach TCG was introduced in the United States by Score Entertainment in May 2007,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> but ceased publication April 2009, just before the planned launch of its seventh expansion, Bleach Infiltration.<ref name="TCG RIP">Template:Cite web</ref> This cancellation was attributed to the 2007–09 recession, which has heavily affected TCG sales.<ref name="TCG RIP" /> Designed by Aik Tongtharadol, the TCG is a two-player game in which each player starts with at least 61 cards: a "Guardian" card, a 60-card "main deck", and an optional 20-card "side deck". A player loses if his or her power, as dictated by the Guardian card, is reduced to zero, or if he or she is unable to draw or discard a card from his or her deck.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The cards for the game have been released in named sets with each set released in three formats: a 72-card pre-constructed box set containing a starter deck and two booster packs, a 10-card booster pack, and a 12-pack booster box.

Musicals

Template:Main Bleach has been adapted into a series of rock musicals, jointly produced by Pierrot and Nelke Planning. There have been five musicals produced which covered portions of the Substitute and Soul Society arcs, as well as five additional performances known as "Live Bankai Shows" and "Rock Musical Bleach Shinsei", which did not follow the Bleach plotline. The initial performance run of the Bleach musical was from August 17–28, 2005, at the Space Zero Tokyo center in Shinjuku.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

The musicals are directed by Takuya Hiramitsu, with script adaptation by Naoshi Okumura and music composed by playwright Shoichi Tama. The songs are completely original and not taken from the anime soundtrack. Key actors in the series include Tatsuya Isaka, who plays Ichigo Kurosaki, Miki Satō, who plays Rukia Kuchiki, and Eiji Moriyama, who plays Renji Abarai.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In 2016, another musical was produced to celebrate Bleach 15th anniversary. The musical was directed and written by Tsutsumi Yasuyuki with Dream5's Akira Takano and Chihiro Kai as Ichigo Kurosaki and Rukia Kuchiki respectively. The musical debuted on July 28, 2016, in AiiA 2.5 Theater Tokyo.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Other media

The first Bleach artbook, All Colour But The Black, was released in Japan, the United States, and Europe. The artbook compiles a selection of color spreads from the first 19 volumes of the series, in addition to some original art and author commentary.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The second artbook, Template:Nihongo, was released on August 3, 2007. In addition to character guides and articles on other fictional aspects of the series, it compiles the various short comics, Template:Nihongo, that were published in V Jump. The Template:Transliteration-style panels are similar to those included in the main series, but reveal more of the daily lives of characters.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Color Bleach+: Bleach Official Bootleg was released in English by Viz Media on August 10, 2010.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In December 2018, another artbook, titled Bleach JET was released, which contains a massive 700 artworks from the series' 15 years tenure.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Seven databooks have also been released about the series. The first two, Bleach: Official Character Book SOULs. and Bleach: Official Animation Book VIBEs., were released on February 3, 2006.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Bleach: Official Character Book SOULs. was later released in English by Viz Media on November 18, 2008.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The third book, Bleach: Official Character Book 2: MASKED, was released on August 4, 2010. This book covers details about characters that appear 100 years prior to the story, such as former captains and lieutenants, along with the Arrancars and Visoreds. Although it was released on the same day as volume 46, Back From Blind, the book only covers material up to volume 37, Beauty Is So Solitary.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The English version was released by Viz Media on March 6, 2012.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> A fourth book, Bleach: Official Invitation Book The Hell Verse, was given to the first one million movie-goers of Bleach: Hell Verse on December 4, 2010. It contains character sketches, promotional posters, and the one-off Hell manga special.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> A fifth book Bleach: Official Character Book 3: UNMASKED, was released on June 3, 2011, the same day as the volume 50 of the series. However it only covers material up to volume 48, God is Dead.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On June 4, 2012, a sixth book was released under the name Bleach: The Rebooted Souls. This free booklet was distributed with Bleach manga volume 55, with the aim to provide information to readers about the manga's final arc, The Thousand-Year Blood War.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The seventh book, BLEACH 13 BLADEs., was released on August 4, 2015, and it is focused solely on the Soul Reapers and the 13 Court Squads.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Shueisha published a special book Bleach: JCCover Postcard Book MAILs., which was released on December 4, 2013. It features cover pages as postcards up to volume 60 with poems on the back.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Reception

File:Otakuthon 2014- Bleach (14850595510).jpg

Fans dressed as characters from Bleach in 2014

Sales

Bleach had over 90Template:Nbspmillion Template:Transliteration copies in circulation in Japan by 2017;<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> over 120 million Template:Transliteration copies in circulation worldwide by 2018;<ref name="movieannouncement">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="moviedate">Template:Cite tweet</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and over 130 million copies in circulation worldwide by 2022, making it one of the best-selling manga series of all time.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> During 2008, volume 34 of the manga sold 874,153 copies in Japan, becoming the 12th best-selling comic series of the year. Volumes 33 and 35 have also ranked 17 and 18, respectively.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In total, the manga has sold 3,161,825 copies in Japan during 2008, becoming the year's fifth best-selling series.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In the first half of 2009, Bleach ranked as the second best-selling manga in Japan, having sold 3.5 million copies.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Having sold 927,610 copies, volume 36 ranked seventh, volume 37 was eighth with 907,714 copies sold, and volume 38 at 10th with 822,238 copies.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

North American sales of the manga have also been high, with Template:Transliteration volumes having sold over 1.2Template:Nbspmillion copies by 2007.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Volume 16 placed in the top ten best-selling graphic novels of December 2006 and volume 17 was the best-selling manga volume for the month of February 2007.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In a 2010 interview, Gonzalo Ferreyra, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Viz, listed Bleach as one of six Viz titles that continue to exceed expectations in spite of the harshening manga market.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> By 2022, the manga had over 2.7Template:Nbspmillion Template:Transliteration volumes in circulation in the United States.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Critical reception

Deb Aoki from About.com named the series the "Best Continuing Shōnen Manga of 2007", along with Eyeshield 21, praising the "compelling stories, dazzling action sequences and great character development".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> She also placed the title on her list of "Top 10 Shōnen Manga Must-Reads".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The artwork and the character designs received a positive response from IGN's A.E. Sparrow. He also commented on the series' ability to handle multiple minor character plotlines simultaneously, which he considered a point of appeal, in response to fans' claims concerning a "lack of a story" in Bleach.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Leroy Douresseaux from Comic Book Bin agreed with Sparrow in the number of storylines, but also praised the fighting scenes finding them comparable to the ones of popular films.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Contrarily, Mania reviewer Jarred Pine criticized the series as being plagued with stereotypes from the genre. He felt it was a rough start for the series with unimpressive battles, overused gags, and a poor introduction for central character Ichigo that caused him to come across "as a frowning punk" whose one good trait is his desire to protect. Despite this, Pine notes that he loved the series, particularly its quirky, lovable characters.<ref name="pine">Template:Cite web</ref> Jason Thompson said he was no longer able to take Bleach seriously after it introduced villains Ulquiorra and Yammy in a scene precisely mirroring Vegeta and Nappa's arrival in Dragon Ball Z, but acknowledged it was likely intended as a deliberate homage. He also said Kubo was able to avoid the worst artistic failings typical in series which indulge in superpowered combat, but that the battle scenes were still sometimes difficult to follow.<ref name="Thompson">Template:Cite news</ref>

Accolades

In 2005, Bleach was awarded the 50th Shogakukan Manga Award in the Template:Transliteration category.<ref name="ShogakukanAward">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The English version of the manga was nominated for the "best manga" and "best theme" awards at the 2006 and 2007 American Anime Awards, but did not win in either category.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In November 2014, readers of Media Factory's Da Vinci magazine voted Bleach the 16th greatest Weekly Shōnen Jump manga series of all time.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On TV Asahi's Manga Sōsenkyo 2021 poll, in which 150,000 people voted for their top 100 manga series, Bleach ranked 23rd.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

See also

• Burn the Witch, another manga series created by Kubo and set in the Bleach universe
• Loituma Girl

External links

• Template:Official website Template:In lang
• Template:Official website Template:In lang
• Template:Official website
• Template:Official website
• Template:Anime News Network