Warning: Contains spoilers for Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War, part 3, episode #7.While Bleach: Thousand Year Blood War has made a lot of changes to the manga, there hasn’t been anything very substantial yet. The anime expanded on the manga’s underdeveloped lore, and also expanded the fights and created entirely new fights, but even with these and other additions, the manga’s overall plot remained largely unchanged.
Bleach: Thousand Year Blood WarThe changes to the manga have largely been for spectacle so far, but that may have finally changed. Bleach: Thousand Year Blood War part 3, episode 33 was another episode packed with original content, and in a surprise twist, Bleach: Thousand Year Blood War completely changed the story with the death of an important character. The twist is probably more complicated than it seems, but of all the changes made to the manga, this is easily the biggest and most dramatic one yet.
Bleach: Bloody Thousand-Year War Kills Renji in Surprising Manga Twist
In Bleach: Thousand Year Blood War part 3, episode #7, Renji’s group in Warhelt was suddenly ambushed by Uryu, triggering a fight between Renji and Uryu that, as with other fights, was completely original to the manga. Renji’s reluctance to fight Uryu caused him to hold back and allowed Uryu to win the fight, ending it by shooting an arrow straight into Renji’s chest; Uryu’s victory was expected, but Tite Kubo posted new art of Renji to Xsomething he only does when a character dies, i.e. Bleach: Thousand Year Blood War drastically changed the manga by killing Renji.
As surprising as Renji’s death was, it’s exactly what the anime needed. As big as the anime’s changes to the manga have been so far, they’ve only expanded on what was left undeveloped in the manga without making any substantial changes to the narrative, which may be disappointing for those hoping for bigger departures from the manga. Because of this, Bleach: Thousand Year Blood War Apparently killing Renji proves that people can expect the anime to make bigger changes to the mangaand whatever they are, it will be great to see.
Is Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War really willing to make such a big change to the manga?
Why Renji might still be alive in Bleach: A Thousand Year Blood War
Renji’s death in Thousand Year Blood War It’s as big a turnaround as people could have asked for, but it’s hard to say whether it will last. Not only was Tite Kubo’s illustration of Renji made less serious by Kubo also drawing the art of Isane and Hisagi, two characters who probably won’t be dead, but Renji’s death would completely change Bleachfrom the Echoing Jaws of Hell arc, mainly for getting rid of Renji and Rukia’s daughter, Ichika. Renji is unlikely to be dead because of the future Bleach storiesand if he is dead, he will be revived at some point.
Renji’s death may not be permanent and it’s easy to see why. Renji was part Bleach for almost all of history; he is one of the characters who helps make Bleach an anime as iconic, with a twist as big as it would be, Renji surviving his fight with Uryu in Bleach: Thousand Year Blood War is necessary to help maintain its identity as an anime. Future episodes of Bleach: Thousand Year Blood War will certainly clarify Renji’s current status, but whether he’s dead or alive doesn’t stop this from being one of the anime’s biggest moments so far.
Bleach: Thousand Year Blood War releases new episodes on Saturdays on Hulu.
Sources: Tite Kubo Officer X account, Tite Kubo Officer X account.