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Bleach is arguably the most stylish and striking of the Shonen Big Three, featuring some truly striking panels and moments brought to the screen for its anime adaptation. While Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War is about to launch its big finale, that has only served to more strongly prompt fans to return to its roots for a full-length rewatch. But for modern anime fans, it might be a shock just how much non-canon filler content the original Bleach anime can have.
Much like Naruto and Naruto: Shippuden, Studio Pierrot’s original Bleach anime features a large percentage of filler, roughly 45% of its original 366 episodes. While these are not crucial to the story at hand, one may find some of Bleach’s filler either has its charm, or adds to the world-building experience for those craving a more enriching, anime-original expansion on Tite Kubo’s original series. Below is a comprehensive list of filler episodes for the original Bleach anime, what’s worth watching, and what’s skippable entirely.
Every Filler Episode Of Bleach and Which Are Worth Skipping
|
Episode Title |
Episode # |
Watchability? |
Description |
|
Karakura Superheroes Arc |
(Ep. 33, 50) |
Skippable |
Kon and Ichigo’s friends in the World of the Living team up under Don Kanonji to defend Karakura Town in his absence by taking on superhero identities. |
|
Bount Arc |
(Ep. 64-109) |
Skippable |
Vampiric beings known as Bounts launch an attack on the Soul Society, seeking vengeance for their suffering at the hands of Soul Reapers. |
|
Soul Reaper Strike Force Arc |
(Ep. 128-131) |
Skippable |
Ikkaku, Yumichika, Rangiku, and Toshiro are deployed to the World of the Living to battle an Arrancar capable of cloning. |
|
“Hitsugaya, Karin, and Soccer Ball” |
(Ep. 132) |
Worth Watching |
Ichigo’s sister Karin convinces Toshiro Hitsugaya to join her in a game of soccer for honor. |
|
“Ikkaku: The Hot-Blooded Kendo Tale” |
(Ep. 133) |
Worth Watching |
Ikkaku Madarame teaches a young boy the art of Kendo so that he can win a Kendo tournament. |
|
“The Beautiful Patissier, Yumichika!” |
(Ep. 134) |
Skippable |
Yumichika Ayasegawa aids a deceased chef’s soul in his quest to bake a cake for his still-living mother. |
|
“Kon is Deceived! Rangiku on the Lookout…” |
(Ep. 135) |
Skippable |
Kon’s Soul Candy ends up in the plushie of a girl named Miyuki, whose deceased dog has become a Hollow. |
|
Arrancar Rebellion Arc |
(Ep. 136-137) |
Skippable |
A trio of Arrancar attempt to betray Aizen and steal the Hogyoku in the hopes of obtaining its power for themselves. |
|
Forest of Menos Arc |
(Ep. 147-149) |
Essential |
Ichigo’s group enters an area where low-level Hollows hide from the more powerful Arrancar, where they discover a lost Soul Reaper who’s been alone for a long time. |
|
New Captain Shusuke Amagai Arc |
(Ep. 168-189) |
Skippable |
A new captain, Shusuke Amagai is appointed to run Squad 3, but this man has secret motives for achieving his new position that could bring down the 13 Court Guard Squads. |
|
Kemari Arc |
(Ep. 204-205) |
Skippable |
Ichigo attempts to relieve tensions between Rurichiyo Kasumioji and Ryusei Kenzaki, her retainer, culminating in a Kemari (ancient Japanese sport) tournament. |
|
Karakuraizer Arc |
(Ep. 213-214) |
Skippable |
Kon and Ichigo’s friends in the World of the Living reunite to defend Karakura Town by taking on superhero identities. |
|
“Summer! Sea! Swimsuit Festival!!” |
(Ep. 228) |
Skippable |
Ichigo, his friends, and the Captains of the 13 Court Guard Squads go to the beach to relax, but, of course, there’s never a moment of peace for a Soul Reaper… |
|
“Cry of the Soul? The Rug Soul Reaper is Born!” |
(Ep. 229) |
Skippable |
Ikkaku and Yumichika are again sent to the World of the Living, staying with Ichigo’s friend Keigo. Ikkaku dons a wig for the duration of the episode. |
|
Zanpakuto Rebellion Arc |
(Ep. 230-265) |
Worth Watching |
A Zanpakuto spirit known as Muramasa frees the spirits within the Soul Reapers’ Zanpakuto, leading them in a rebellion against their former masters. Muramasa, however, has ulterior motives… |
|
“Ichigo vs. Ulquiorra, Resume” |
(Ep. 266) |
Skippable |
This is primarily a recap episode, covering the events of the Hueco Mundo and Arrancar arcs as the story finally returns to canon content after more than a season of filler. |
|
“Side Story! Ichigo and the Magic Lamp” |
(Ep. 287) |
Skippable |
A dream episode casting Ichigo and friends in the tale of Aladdin and the magic lamp, with Rukia as the genie. Intended as a 10 year anniversary celebration for the manga. |
|
“Film! Festival! Soul Reaper Film Festival!” |
(Ep. 298) |
Skippable |
The Soul Reapers work together to create a film to submit to the Seireitei International Film Festival, casting Rukia in the lead role as Maid Cop. |
|
“Theatre Opening Commemoration! The Hell Verse: Prologue” |
(Ep. 299) |
Skippable |
A special prologue to the fourth Bleach film, Hell Verse, featuring Szayelaporro Granz and Aaroniero Arruruerie in Hell. Recommended for those intending to watch the film. |
|
“Real World and Shinigami! The New Year Special!” |
(Ep. 303) |
Skippable |
The Soul Reapers celebrate the new year with a Karuta tournament. |
|
“”Another Side Story! This Time’s Enemy Is a Monster!?” |
(Ep. 304) |
Skippable |
Another dream episode, in which Ichigo and friends become classic monsters and battle against monster hunters. |
|
“Delusion Roars! Hisagi, Towards the Hot Springs Inn!” |
(Ep. 305) |
Skippable |
Shuhei Hisagi goes on a mission with Rangiku Matsumoto, and mistakenly believes she’s developed a crush on him. |
|
“The Soul Detective: Karakuraizer Takes Off Again!” |
(Ep. 311) |
Skippable |
Kon and Ichigo’s friends in the World of the Living take up their superhero identities once more to battle an Arrancar. |
|
“Inauguration! The Brand New 2nd Division Captain!” |
(Ep. 312) |
Skippable |
Lieutenant Marechiyo Omaeda pretends to be Captain of Squad 2, receiving praise and rewards for accidentally saving a child from a Hollow. |
|
“The Man Who Risks His Life in the 11th Division!” |
(Ep. 313) |
Skippable |
Ichigo meets Squad 11 member Siezo Harugasaki, whose personality seems like a poor fit for the battle-crazed squad. |
|
“Kon Saw It! The Secret of a Beautiful Office Lady” |
(Ep. 314) |
Skippable |
Kon follows a beautiful woman he sees who tries to kill herself. After saving her life, she reveals she can see spirit beings. |
|
“Yachiru’s Friend! The Soul Reaper of Justice Appears!” |
(Ep. 315) |
Skippable |
Yachiru meets an old friend of hers by the name of Masayoshi. |
|
“Toshirō Hitsugaya’s Holiday!” |
(Ep. 316) |
Skippable |
Toshiro pays a visit to the World of the Living, where he meets a woman whom he encountered on his first assignment there. |
|
Invading Army Arc |
(Ep. 317-342) |
Worth Watching |
The Soul Reapers battle against Mod Soul duplicates of themselves in a plot designed to bring about the fall of the Soul Society. |
|
“Soul Reapers at War! New Year in Seireitei Special!” |
(Ep. 355) |
Skippable |
The Soul Reapers once again celebrate the new year, this time with kite-flying contests and a celebratory dance. |
When added all together, Bleach has 165 filler episodes, close to half of the anime’s episode count. Calling that egregious would be an understatement, and what made them even worse was that, because of how long Bleach’s canon arcs were, the filler episodes would often cause the main story to abruptly stop for months.
Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War will come to an end by 2026, and here’s a breakdown of where all the main characters end up after the finale.
For anyone who watched Bleach as it aired, that practice undoubtedly made the experience worse than it needed to be, and with how often the content was tedious stories that detracted from the established canon, it was almost always impossible to justify.
Which Bleach Filler Arcs & Episodes Standout From The Pack
While most of Bleach’s filler content adds very little to the series, there are some filler episodes and arcs that stand out. Episode #132, “Hitsugaya, Karin, and Soccer Ball”, for example, is a surprisingly good episode for how well Toshiro and Karin play off each other and for being one of the few times Karin gets any meaningful character work.
If any filler should be watched, however, it’s the Zanpakuto Rebellion arc. Unlike the other long filler arcs of the anime, the conflict in the Zanpakuto Rebellion arc doesn’t clash with the established lore, only enhancing it, and having a chance to see everyone’s Zanpakuto spirits and their personalities gave the arc a great hook, especially since those aspects and others would later be incorporated into canon.
Add in some great animation and fight scenes, and the arc perfectly shows that while most of Bleach’s filler wasn’t worth watching, there were definitely some gems every so often.
Which Bleach Filler Episodes You Should Skip
As noted above, the Bount arc is considered one of the worst filler arcs in the original Bleach anime because of how awkwardly it disrupts the flow from the Soul Society arc to the Arrancar arc.
At 45 episodes long, the arc also painfully drags on, and anyone familiar with the manga will be dying to get to the next canonical episode. The Bount also just don’t make much sense within the lore of Bleach, as their association with immortality goes against the entire premise of Soul Reapers.
A common refrain from Bleach fans is for new viewers to skip all filler episodes on their first watch through, and only then return and watch filler if they’re dying for more Bleach content.
Bleach’s Return Largely Handles Filler the Right Way
Studio Pierrot brought Bleach back in a big way for its final arc, Thousand-Year Blood War. Instead of the old days of oversaturated filler to keep a perpetual weekly release schedule, Bleach suddenly had only canon episodes, at worst expanding fights and key character moments to fix the pacing issues present in the original manga release.
The result is one of the most acclaimed anime returns in the modern era, including top-tier animation fitting of the Shonen Big Three, all with the heavy involvement of its creator, Tite Kubo. It indicates an excellent commitment from Pierrot to the new seasonal model, and while that means longer wait times between smaller cours of episodes, the undeniable polish, improved color grading, and cinematic presentation make Bleach’s comeback one for the books.
- Release Date
-
2004 – 2012-00-00
- Network
-
TV Tokyo, TV Osaka, TV Aichi, TVh, TVQ, TSC, BS TV Tokyo
- Showrunner
-
Tite Kubo
- Directors
-
Mitsutaka Noshitani, Junya Koshida, Hodaka Kuramoto, Yasuto Nishikata, Hiroaki Nishimura, Kazunori Mizuno, Akira Shimizu, Rokou Ogiwara, Kazunobu Shimizu, Akane Inoue, Hikaru Murata, Tomoko Hiramuki, Kazuo Nogami, Taiji Kawanishi, Shigeki Hatakeyama, Eiko Nishi, Takushi Kimura, Koji Aritomi, Ogura Shirakawa, Kiyomu Fukuda, Yukio Okazaki, Mitsue Yamazaki, Yasuhiro Matsumura, Eitarou Ano
- Writers
-
Masahiro Okubo, Masashi Sogo, Kenta Shimoyama, Genki Yoshimura, Kazuyuki Fudeyasu, Rika Nakase, Michiko Yokote, Natsuko Takahashi, Kento Shimoyama
-
Masakazu Morita
Ichigo Kurosaki (voice)
-
Fumiko Orikasa
Rukia Kuchiki
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Hannah Diffey
Almontather Rassoul
