Bleach (ブリーチ Burīchi, Romanized as BLEACH in Japan) is a Japanese shōnen manga series written and illustrated by Tite Kubo. Bleach follows the adventures of Ichigo Kurosaki after he accidentally obtains the power of a Soul Reaper—a Japanese death personification similar to theGrim Reaper—from Rukia Kuchiki. Gaining these abilities forces him to take on the duties of defending humans from evil spirits and guiding departed souls to the afterlife.
Bleach has been continuously serialized in the Japanese manga anthology Weekly Shōnen Jumpsince August 2001, and has been collected in 42 tankōbon volumes as of October 2009. Since its publication, Bleach has spawned a substantial media franchise. The manga has been adapted into an animated television series produced by Studio Pierrot which is still ongoing in Japan as it adapts the story from the manga. The series has also spawned two original video animations(OVAs), three animated feature films, seven rock musicals, and numerous video games, as well as prompted the release of many types of Bleach-related merchandise.
Viz Media licensed the manga for English-language publication in the United States and Canada and has released 28 volumes as of September 2009. In addition, it has been publishing the chapters in Shonen Jump since November 2007. On March 15, 2006, Viz obtained foreign television and home video distribution rights to the Bleach anime. Cartoon Network began airingBleach as part of its Adult Swim block on September 9, 2006, in the United States. The first film,Bleach: Memories of Nobody was released in North America on Region 1 DVD by Viz on October 14, 2008, with the second film Bleach: The DiamondDust Rebellion released in North America on Region 1 by Viz on September 15, 2009.
Compilation volumes of the manga have sold over 50 million copies in Japan and reached the top of manga sales charts in the United States. The anime adaptation has been similarly received, rating as the 7th most popular anime television series in Japan in 2006, and in the top ten anime for the US from 2006 to 2008. The series received the Shogakukan Manga Award for the shōnendemographic in 2005, and is among the best-selling manga properties in both Japan and the United States.Anime
The episodes of the Bleach anime series are directed by Noriyuki Abe and produced by TV Tokyo, Dentsu, and Studio Pierrot.[17] The episodes have aired since October 5, 2004 on TV Tokyo in Japan.[18] Viz Media obtained the foreign television, home video, and merchandising rights to the Bleach anime from TV Tokyo Corporation and Shueisha on March 15, 2006.[19] Subsequently, Viz Media contracted Studiopolis to create the English adaptation of the anime,[citation needed] and has licensed its individual Bleach merchandising rights to several different companies.[20] The English adaptation of the Bleach anime premiered on Canada's YTV channel in the Bionix programming block on September 8, 2006. Cartoon Network began airing Bleach the following evening as part of its Adult Swim block.[21] Adult Swim stopped broadcasting new episodes of the English adaptation on October 20, 2007 after airing the first 52 episodes of the series. It was replaced with another Viz Media series, Death Note, to provide Studiopolis more time to dub additional episodes of the series. The series returned from hiatus on March 2, 2008[22] and went back on haitus after the 167th episode on November 22, 2009. In the UK, Bleach premiered on AnimeCentral on September 13, 2007, with new episodes airing weekly.
As of August 2009, 49 DVD compilations have been released by Aniplex in Japan.[23][24] 22 DVD compilations of the English adaptation of the anime have been released by Viz Media,[25][26] and 3 DVD collection boxes have been released that contain the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd seasons of the anime.[27][28] On July 29, 2009, Aniplex released a "TV Animation Bleach 5th Anniversary Box" which includes 15 DVDs and 3 bonus discs.[29]
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