A Guide to Bleach as Written by a New Fan

Recently I’ve been enjoying the anime series Bleach and I think more people should enjoy it too, so I made this guide of characters and general terms to get you interested. This won’t contain spoilers, otherwise what’s the point in making it to get people to watch it? So on to our first topic ,

Characters (Series 1 and 2 only) l-r

Uryu Ishida – The last of the Quincies, he hates Soul Reapers, Ichigo included. He boasts superior spiritual powers to Ichigo and is a whiz with a needle and thread. His choice of weapon is a bow and arrow.

Rukia Kuchiki – Once a Soul Reaper, she gave her Soul Reaper powers to Ichigo after being gravely injured. Now stuck in a gigai and unable to return to the Soul Society, it falls to her to keep Ichigo in line with his duties. However, being stuck in a gigai could end up causing no end of grief to both Rukia and Ichigo.

Ichigo Kurosaki – The hero of the series. Red-headed Ichigo has always been able to see spirits, but following a run-in with an evil spirit known as a Hollow he must make the decision to become a Soul Reaper in order to save his family. However, taking on this huge responsibility could be more trouble than it’s worth as fighting Hollows is no menial task.

Renji Abarai – The Squad 6 Lieutenant, Renji is a powerful Soul Reaper who’s Zanpakuto proves to be far more powerful than Ichigo could initially imagine. He was Rukia’s childhood friend.

Yasutora ‘Chad’ Sado – The gentle giant. Though only 15, he has the appearance of a 25 yr old and twice the strength. His powers go beyond that of just strength as we discover later on in series 1.

Orihime Inoue – In the first series there is a running joke about the size of her chest in comparison with her friends. Though a little weird (a lot weird) she is strong-willed and her it is this will that releases her dormant powers.

Kon – A mod-soul trapped inside a cuddly lion. He’s pervy and he shouts a lot.

Kisuke ‘Mr Hat-and-Clogs’ Urahara – Owner of a shop that no one visits, Mr Hat-and-Clogs and his team of employees are Rukia’s go-to for spirit related merchandise. Later on, he becomes something of a mentor to Ichigo and despite his laid-back manner, in battle he is one tough customer.

 

General Terms

Soul Reaper – A member of the Soul Society with high spiritual energy. They fight hollows and send lingering spirits to the Soul Society.

Gigai – (Pronounced Gee-Guy) A temporary body for use by a Soul Reaper to regain spiritual energy in the real world.

Zanpakuto –  (Pronounced Zanpaktuo) Sword containing a soul that is earned by a Soul Reaper. Each sword has its own name and special power which can be released by channeling spirit energy.

Soul Society – The Other Side where the souls of the dearly departed are sent to rest.

Hollow – Evil spirit formed when a spirit is either devoured or left in the real world for too long. They devour the souls/spirits of the living and dead.

Kido – Spells used by Soul Reapers. Spell types vary from damage dealing spells to movement restriction spells.

Quincy – Warrior against Hollows. Their methods were criticised by the Soul Reapers.

Mod-Soul – Soul developed for battle.

 

My Favourites

A quick list of my favourite characters and why,

Uryu Ishida – I like his style and he doesn’t miss when trying to be funny. I also like his voice.

Mr Hat-and-Clogs – It’s his voice really and his laid back way of getting things done.

Renji Abarai –  I love Renji. I just do, he’s perfect 🙂 (Well almost)

Sousuke Aizen – I really like his hair – it looked really soft. Plus, aside from Renji he was the best looking (for a cartoon). Yep, I was a fan girl.

Kinpachi and Yachiru – They have to come as a pair because what I really like is when Yachiru calls Kinpachi Kenny, she’s so cute.

 

Well that’s all for now. Hope you found the Bleach Guide From a New Fan useful.

~ by Jess on March 26, 2011.