Bleach Creator Inks New Art of Byakuya Kuchiki
Thanks to the Thousand-Year Blood War, Bleach is on top of the world and its creator is in top form.
This year will see the return of the Soul Society taking on the Wandenreich as Bleach's Thousand-Year Blood War will unleash its third batch of episodes. At present, the supernatural shonen series might be white hot in the anime world, but it remains missing in action in the pages of Weekly Shonen Jump. Despite this fact, creator Tite Kubo is still taking the opportunity to revisit the shonen universe by creating new art of old favorites that have become big parts of the anime world.
Byakuya was one of the biggest antagonists to Ichigo Kurosaki in the early days of Bleach, helping to kidnap his sister Rukia and getting the ball rolling on the replacement Soul Reaper taking on the Soul Society. While Byakuya has been surpassed by many of the characters that sprang from the mind of Tite Kubo, he remains a powerhouse. During the Thousand-Year Blood War, Rukia's brother has been a major ally in fighting against the Sternritter and it will be interesting to see what his role will be in the remaining half of the latest anime series. As Yhwach's power continues to grow in the anime adaptation, it will take all hands on deck for what's to come.
Tite Kubo's Take on Bleach's Byakuya
The last time that Kubo worked on the world of the Soul Society was Bleach: Breathes From Hell, which saw Ichigo and company years after the Blood War's conclusion. The one-shot special ended on quite a cliffhanger, meaning it is possible that Bleach's manga could continue in the future. Based on the popularity of the latest season, the chance that Bleach will make a comeback seems like a strong possibility.
New Byakuya art from Kubo 🔥 pic.twitter.com/Zi1srzaxUn
— buried (@buried2x_) April 22, 2024
Studio Pierrot, the studio responsible for Bleach, recently made the news as the production house stated that they were changing their approach to anime. Rather than creating a weekly release schedule for some of their heavy hitters like Bleach and Naruto, Pierrot has decided to take on a more seasonal approach to their productions. Thanks to Demon Slayer specifically, the anime studio is aiming for more quality over quantity and this can be seen in the Thousand-Year Blood War.
Who has been your favorite member of the Soul Society who isn't a substitute Soul Reaper? Follow along with Team Anime on ComicBook.com on all the latest Soul Society updates and hit me up directly @EVComedy to talk all things comics, anime, and the world of the Shinigami.