Bleach Officially Returns November 2026 With Sequel To Thousand-Year Blood War Arc

Bleach is arguably one of the most iconic manga and anime series of all time, with the original show airing from 2004 to 2012 and consisting of a whopping 366 episodes. Of course, the franchise has continued since then, with the Thousand-Year Blood War, an adaptation of the manga’s final arc, set to conclude this October.

While the end may be on the horizon, it’s never truly over, is it? Sure enough, Bleach will return in an entirely new format in November 2026 with an unexpected sequel to the Thousand-Year Blood War arc. Better yet, it has the direct approval and involvement of original creator Tite Kubo.

Set following the events of Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War, Bleach Mirrors High is a mobile game featuring original character designs by creator Tite Kubo. Its pre-registration is now available alongside an impressive teaser trailer, with the game offically going live in November. Mirrors High includes a fresh cast of characters who join the likes of Ichigo Kurosaki and Rukia Kuchiki alongside the original Japanese anime cast.

“Take your place as the protagonist, begin your journey as a Soul Reaper, and step into battle to experience the story as the Soul Reaper you’ve always wanted to be!” The official game synopsis reads.

Through deep avatar customization, you can build your own character. You’ll be able to choose your appearance and style, shape your Zanpakutō, and really make the character truly yours. As far as gameplay is concerned, you’ll engage in three-character team battles that make use of strategic action cards, counters, and special moves like Soul Drive attacks. Will it be any good? Time will tell. What we do know is that it is an official sequel to the Thousand-Year Blood War, so hardcore fans will probably not want to miss out.

Following a short delay, Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War – The Calamity episode #49 is now coming October 19 at 8:30 AM PT, followed by episode #50 on October 26 at the same time. The final episodes will then stream for Hulu for audiences in the U.S., while Netflix will air the episodes for the rest of the world.

Bleach has been slowly making its way toward this final showdown since its original anime debuted way back in 2004, so it’ll be really interesting to see how this finale is handled. After that, we can look forward to the next chapter in the form of Mirror’s High.

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

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  Masakazu Morita

  Ichigo Kurosaki (voice)

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  Fumiko Orikasa

  Rukia Kuchiki