Bleach fans, it is time to sharpen your Zanpakutos. Today marks the 13th birthday of Tite Kubo's anime, and fans are taking to Twitter (and the Soul Society) to celebrate.
The history of Bleach is a long one, but fans of the supernatural shonen series will be familiar with its highlights. The series began back in August 2001 when Weekly Shonen Jump began to publish Kubo's series. The manga became a quick hit with fans thanks to its action sequences and supernatural flair. By 2004, Studio Pierrot has secured rights to adapt Bleach into an anime, and that series debuted 13 years ago from this day.
Bleach's anime started out with the help of some impressive industry veterans. Noriyuki Abe was tapped to direct the series while Masashi Sogo wrote its first leg. TV Tokyo aired the series in Japan while Viz Media helped U.S. channels like AdulT Swim air the series abroad.
Over the years, Bleach went on to gather 366 episodes and 16 total season. The anime ended earlier than expected as TV Tokyo chose to end its broadcasting agreement with Pierrot over Bleach. The anime had accrued too many filler episodes to keep its audience intact, but the show's first episode remains one of shonen's best premieres to date.
"The Day I Became A Shinigami" follows Ichigo Kurosaki as the high school student is introduced. The orange-headed hero is seen trying to protect a young spirit from a Hollow, a corrupted soul which feeds off others like it. When the Hollow comes to attack his family, Ichigo encounters a Soul Reaper by the name of Rukia Kuchiki. The pair talk for a moment before Ichigo steals Rukia's powers in a fit of desperation to stop the Hollow for killing his sister. The action turns Ichigo into one powerful Substitute Soul Reaper, and it kicks off a chain event that would go on to define the series.
It's been 13 years since that pilot first debuted, and anime fans are feeling emotional over the occasion. After all, Bleach is considered one of the big shonen titles that got audiences into anime in the first place, so you can find some of the show's most touching tributes below: