Anime Debut
Episode 21, “Enter! The World of the Shinigami”
Bleach Thousand Year Blood Warpart four is coming in the near future, and author Tite Kubo has promised the biggest amount of new anime original content for this part. Fans have been treated to many amazing new scenes and battles that weren’t included in the original manga thanks to the new anime. So fans are expecting part four ofBleach Thousand Year Blood Warto deliver many corrections and fixes to the original manga that they have been waiting for for years.
One of which isn’t necessarily something that was missing from the manga, but rather a posterior inclusion thanks to a beloved novel. Let’s explore whetherShūhei Hisagi’s Bankaiwill be featured in the anime.
Anime Original Additions Thus Far
Expanding on Greatness
The Thousand Year Blood War anime has enhanced and fixed many of the issues in the original Manga by animating severalbrand new scenes that weren’t in the original source. All of these have been extremely positively received by audiences. By looking at some of these additions, it’s possible to determine some of what part four might include among these new scenes that the author is hinting at. Part one of the anime included several new scenes for Uryuu Ishida, greatly fleshing out his involvement in the arc, and his seeming betrayal of his friends.
The anime also added a brand-new epic flashback showing the first generation of the 13 Court Guard Squads fighting the Quincy from 1000 years ago. One smaller but key addition was a new piece of dialogue between Kensei Muguruma and Shūhei Hisagi, where the captain speaks to the lieutenant about training to achieve his Bankai. This dialogue wasn’t in the original manga, and it is incredibly important as it is a hint of what’s possible in part four.
Part two had a key moment that showedShinji Hirako’s Bankai: Sakashima Yokoshima Happōfusagari, an area of effect ability that targets enemies and allies alike, turning them all against each other, forcing them to mindlessly kill each other while Shinji is protected by his ability. The key thing to note about this reveal in the anime is that Shinji’s Bankai was shown only in the light novelBleach Can’t Fear Your Own World. This light novel expands on the established canon of Bleach and shows several abilities that weren’t present in the original manga.
The ending of part two also completely rewrote thebattle between Squad Zero and the Quincy Royal Guard, showcasing both of the sides powers as well asSenjumaru Shutara’s Bankai: Shatatsu Karagara Shigarami no Tsuji. Just like Shinji’s, this power wasn’t shown in the original manga, but unlike him, it wasn’t shown either in the light novel, meaning that it was completely new to the anime. This proves that the anime has given characters more to do and shown their full power more than once already.
Shūhei Hisagi’s Bankai and Why It Could Appear in the anime
Can’t Fear Your Own World Animated
The fact that the anime fully shows Shinji Hirako’s Bankai, which was created for the Can’t Fear Your Own World light novel, proves that the light novel might be closer to the official canon and anime than it seems. By showcasing elements of the light novel, it proves that there is enough room for the anime to expand on the Bleach world and characters by pulling from the expanded universe.The anime has made a great effort to fully show the Bankaiof Shinji, Senjumaru, Sasakibe and Unohana, which were all either not shown in the manga or were very ambiguous and unexplained.
Another key hint at the potential reveal of Hisagi’s Bankai is his new dialogue with his captain. By following the literary principle of Checkov’s Gun, it is easy to assume that this dialogue is included because the anime staff and author Tite Kubo genuinely plan to showcase this lesser-known Bankai. If the author is correct, the final part of the Thousand Year Blood War will be greatly expanded even more than ever before, which means that there is more than enough opportunity to include this new addition, just as happened in the previous three parts.
He who fears not the blade he wields has no right to wield that blade.
Shūhei Hisagi’s Bankai isFushi no Kōjō, it traps Hisagi and his enemy and chains them together by tying a noose around both of their necks with Kazeshini’s chains. Any injury they sustain is instantly healed and instead depleted from a shared pool of spiritual pressure that they both consume, completely equalizing the battlefield andallowing Hisagi to fight extremely powerful enemies on his own. Since this power has been massively positively received by readers, many fans are anxiously expecting it to be featured in the anime. For the many reasons mentioned before, this epic Bankai will likely be shown in the anime just like it happened with the others.
Bleach
Cast
Based on Tite Kubo’s battle shonen manga, Bleach centers around Ichigo, a high school student who is dragged into the world of Soul Reapers. The original anime ended in 2012, but it was revived in 2022.
