Highlights
- Bleach, despite losing popularity, still delivers amazing battles and art that captivates viewers even now.
- The Thousand-Year Blood War arc, finally being adapted, elevates Bleach to new heights with stellar animation.
- Fillers in Bleach may not always impress, but some, like the Gotei 13 Invasion arc, offer engrossing stories that are worth a watch.
There was a time when Bleach was a part of the big three in the shonen landscape, along with Naruto and One Piece. While the popularity of this series might've waned over time, the show still had its highlights and is a riveting watch even now. The show does a pretty good job of translating Tite Kubo's masterful artwork over to an animated medium, making for a great time as viewers watch these amazing battles unravel in a crisp fashion. With the advent of the Thousand-Year Blood War, more and more people will be glad to see the final arc of Bleach be adapted after the longest time, with the amazing art of the adaptation elevating the source material to new heights.
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Of course, as is the case with any serialized shonen anime, Bleach is filled to the brim with filler episodes that were meant to give Kubo time as he penned more canon chapters of the manga. Fans who want to watch Bleach and stay informed about its filler should take the following information into mind while getting into this legendary shonen anime. It's a boon that the latest adaptation has chosen to air four cours instead of cramming the final arc of Bleach with filler, with most people not minding waiting a total of four years for the entire arc to be adapted with stellar animation without any unnecessary fluff getting in the way.
Updated on April 26, 2023, by Ritwik Mitra: Bleach is a series that serves as one of the biggest what-ifs in shonen history. Despite starting off on a strong note and letting readers enjoy one of the greatest shonen arcs of all time, Kubo failed to make the series evolve in a meaningful manner and recycled concepts until the very end of this series' run. Still, despite the many complaints that fans have regarding this series, there's no denying that Bleach was a success story in many ways, and people need only look at the hype surrounding the adaptation of the Thousand-Year Blood War arc to understand what makes it so special.
Bleach defined an entire generation of anime viewers, with its position among the Big Three with Naruto and One Piece being pretty understandable given the sheer impact that the Soul Society arc had. The original adaptation of Bleach followed a weekly format and was plagued with a ton of filler, some of which was pretty interesting. Unfortunately, a lot of this extra content wasn't anything special and didn't really impress most viewers, with many opting to skip this padded nonsense and focus on canon content instead.
Bleach Statistics Chart
Filler Content | Episodes | Summary |
|---|---|---|
Adventures Of The Karakura Superheroes | 33, 50 | Chronicles the efforts of Don Kanonji to fight hollows in Karakura Town, with the members including Kurosaki's sisters, the children from Urahara's shop, and Kon as a mascot |
The Bount Arc | 64-108 | Introduces the Bount, artificially created beings who are essentially immortal as long as they regularly consume human souls |
Stolen Hogyoku Arc | 128-137 | A collection of stories that explores the Arrancar's relationship with Aizenand also places the limelight on Hitsugaya as well |
Forest Of The Menos | 147-149 | Fleshes out Bleach's lore by taking a look at the deserted landscapes around Hueco Mundo |
The New Captain, Shusuke Amagai | 168-189 | Explores the story of Shusuke Amagai, the captain who replaces Gin Ichimaru only to reveal a sinister side of his own |
Rurichiyo And Kenryu's Feud | 204, 205 | Two characters from the Shusuke Amagai arc, Rurichiyo, and Kenryu, engage in a bitter yet hilarious feud with a wholesome ending |
Exploits Of The Karakura-Raizer Team | 213, 214 | Chronicles the adventures of the Karakura-Raizer Team, a team of superheroes created by Kisuke Urahara to protect Karakura Town from hollows |
A Fun Time At The Beach | 228 | A simple fanservice episode about the major characters of Bleach enjoying some much-needed unwinding time on the beach |
Ikkaku And Yumichika's Adventures | 229 | A funny side story showing a mission Ikkaku and Yumichika are assigned in the human world |
Zanpakuto Unknown Tales Arc | 230-265 | The antagonist of this arc, Muramasa, causes the spirits of everyone's Zanpakuto to rebel against their masters |
A Recap Of The Events In Hueco Mundo | 266 | As stated in the name, this episode recaps everything that has happened since Ichigo and his friends broke into Hueco Mundo |
Ichigo And The Magic Lamp | 287 | A side story where Ichigo dreams about being a totally different person in a world inspired by Middle Eastern styles |
Setting Up The Hell Chapter Movie | 298, 299 | A two-episode story that sets up the events of the movie Bleach: Hell Verse |
One-off Episodes | 303-305, 311-316 | Numerous one-off stories that explore the relationships between different characters in various light-hearted romps |
The Gotei 13 Invasion | 317-342 | Exploring Ichigo's waning powers after beating Aizen, this arc sees the Gotei 13 being infiltrated by various impostors and wreaking havoc |
New-Year Special | 355 | A special episode with Bleach characters celebrating the dawn of the New Year |
Here's an extended look at some of the more notable filler arcs in Bleach. While some people may not appreciate the idea of watching filler, fans who want to spend some time with Bleach's many beloved characters will be well-serviced by these short stories that do a great job of exploring the dynamics between different people in the series.
7 One-Off Fillers (Multiple)
Focus On Side Characters
There's no denying that the characters of Bleach are a joy to witness in many ways. However, it's a huge ask for viewers to spend a ton of time with them on completely useless arcs that do nothing to progress the story or contribute to any character's development in any way. This becomes harder when viewers are stuck watching side characters that have absolutely no impact on the plot outside of these anime-original stories.
The only respite that most people have here is that most of these boring fillers are funny enough to warrant one watch and don't really stick around for too long. The most they'll go on for is five days in a row before the anime comes back to its senses and shows everyone what they want to see — the main plot. Of course, people who only want to watch meaningful episodes in the show can skip these filler episodes entirely, with the following filler arcs being ones that actually have a consistent plot and recurring characters.
That being said, some of these one-off fillers can be pretty entertaining, especially if players are invested in the various character relationships in Bleach. They aren't the best parts of the series by a country mile, but they don't pretend to be — these stories mainly exist just for characters to interact in funny ways. The fact that these mini-stories only last a single episode makes them more bearable for certain viewers, especially for those who don't mind engaging with the side characters for twenty minutes.
6 Forest Of The Menos Arc
The Forgettable One
- Episodes: 147-149
The Forest of the Menos arc is one of the more unique arcs in the series. Concept sketches of this forest are present in Tite Kubo's volumes, and this arc takes a short yet interesting look at an area under Hueco Mundo's deserted landscape.
It's a simple yet interesting arc that fleshes out the world of Bleach even more. The fact that this filler arc only lasts three episodes would also be a source of joy for fans who don't want to invest themselves in a long-winded narrative that is ultimately forgotten in the grand scheme of things.
5 The Bount Arc
Possibly The Worst Filler Arc
- Episodes: 64-108
After the incredible Soul Society arc, Bleach embarked upon its first set of major fillers in the form of the Bount arc. Most people consider this to be one of the worst filler arcs in Bleach, mainly due to how much of a downer it is after Ichigo's amazing journey throughout Soul Society to rescue Rukia.
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Ichigo's plan to relax after the events of the Soul Society arc is dashed when three strangers abduct his friends and force him through a twisted game. It's soon revealed that this event was a precursor for the introduction of the Bount, an artificially created race with Hollow-like powers. While they pose a massive threat early on, they eventually get pushed into Soul Society and realize that they're way out of their depth when the Shinigami completely decimate them.
4 Stolen Hogyoku Arc
Aizen Becoming The Leader Of The Arrancar
- Episodes: 128-137
The Stolen Hogyoku arc is a bit of a mixed bag. The arc features many one-off episodes while also exploring the side of the Arrancar and how a lot of them aren't really happy with Aizen becoming their leader. It has some interesting moments, but poor pacing and the ham-fisted nature of its inclusion severely take it down a notch.
A definite highlight of this arc is Hitsugaya, who gets his time to shine and does so brilliantly. There's a reason why this character is one of the most popular shinigami in the entire series. As long as viewers don't mind the slower sections of this filler arc, they'll find this unique piece of filler content to be well worth watching.
3 The New Captain Shusuke Amagai Arc
Shusuke Amagai Gets The Spotlight
- Episodes: 168-189
Shusuke Amagai was a character who could've been a memorable figure in his own right. In fact, the first few episodes of this filler arc definitely show a ton of promise, but the pacing falls off severely after a while and makes it really hard to get through the rest of the story.
That being said, the final few fights are pretty great and worth a watch. It's just a shame that the new characters introduced in this filler arc are simply too boring to warrant the extended screen time they get. To make matters worse, characters from this arc make an appearance in later filler episodes as well, and those can also be pretty unwatchable at times. The slow pacing of this filler arc is what makes it so hard to get through, even if the payoff comes in the form of some epic battles.
2 Zanpakuto Unknown Tales Arc
Zanpakuto's Rebellion
- Episodes: 230-265
Bleach saved its better filler arcs for the latter half of its run. The idea of every Shinigami's Zanpakuto rebelling against their master is a unique prospect that is explored quite brilliantly in the Zanpakuto Unknown Tales arc. It helps that the antagonist at the heart of it all, Muramasa, is also a pretty engaging character in his own right.
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As is the case with most filler arcs, the story goes down a rather predictable route before ending with Ichigo taking care of the big baddie once and for all. This is to be expected given the limitations of most filler stories, and props should be given to the Zanpakuto Unknown Tales arc for excelling even with these limitations.
1 The Gotei 13 Invasion Arc
One Of The Best Filler Arcs
- Episodes: 317-342
Most people are split on whether this arc or Muramasa's rebellion is the best filler story in Bleach. It's a testament to the high quality of both stories that this debate still doesn't have a clear answer to this day.
The idea of impostors posing as Shinigami captains and wreaking havoc within Soul Society is quite engrossing, and this arc does a great job of adapting such a story, given Ichigo's waning powers after his fight against Aizen. That being said, this arc does have some fights that take too long to complete, but that's a minor gripe in an otherwise great experience.
