Bleach: TYBW premiere has fans shouting 'Bankai' in celebration of Ichigo and co's return

The premiere of Bleach: TYBW over the weekend has fans absolutely raving over the first episode’s events and animation. In fact, nearly every aspect of the first episode is being praised by fans in some corner of the internet.

While fans are certainly excited to see Bleach: TYBW’s arrival, the first episode was actually leaked a day earlier internationally than streaming license holder Disney intended. Nevertheless, fans watched the leaked episode everywhere they could since its unintentional release, resulting in many having seen the first episode before intended to, outside of Japan.

Follow along as this article fully breaks down fans’ reactions to Bleach: TYBW, as well as briefly discusses the unfortunate leak the series’ first episode saw.

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Bleach: TYBW’s first episode sets series’ plot well via reintroduction of Karakura Town squad

Fan reaction and the leak

The first episode of Bleach: TYBW was unintentionally leaked in the early morning hours of Sunday, October 9. Many New Zealand and Thailand Disney+ subscribers reported seeing the episode as both available to view and download roughly 24 hours before the episode’s intended streaming platform release.

United States fans via Hulu and non-Japanese international fans via Disney+ were intended to be waiting roughly one day beyond the series’ Japanese premiere. However, the New Zealand and Thailand leaks allowed subscribers in those countries to download the first episode, complete with subtitles for English and several other globally popular languages.

As a result, many fans began scouring the internet for any third-party, anime episode hosting sites which had the episode uploaded with subtitles. This led to many fans seeing the episode’s premiere on Sunday, October 9 rather than Disney’s intended non-Japanese first-viewing day of Monday, October 10.

Indeed, many not only sought out the episode, but found it in incredibly high-quality as well. Soon after, fans took to Twitter to share news of the episode’s availability, while praising various aspects of its production.

Particular highlights for many, unsurprisingly, were the debuts of Ichigo Kurosaki, Uryu Ishida, Orihime Inoue, and Sado “Chad” Yasutora. Even amongst these fan-favorites, Ichigo however stole the show with his return, quite literally overflowing with his classic, last-minute savior style.

The appearance of Ichigo’s freshly renovated Bankai form and transformation also particularly (and unsurprisingly) stole the show for many fans. Although every member of the Karakura Town squad is beloved by fans, it’s quite clear that for many, none other than Ichigo Kurosaki is the highlight of the group, let alone the rest of the show’s cast.

Fans are also praising the overall cinematography and art direction, as well as character designs which are consistent with author and illustrator Tite Kubo’s original manga. They also praised the inkling introductions of the Sternritter, especially Ichigo’s interaction with one of their ranks coming at the final stages of the episode.

Fans celebrated the anime’s arrival by sharing some of their favorite clips from the original series. One user in particular, who posted a tweet celebrating the imminent official arrival of the series, attached a video showcasing the Visored’s departing to confront Aizen during the Fake Karakura Town arc.

Others instead posted the clip reel which comes at the end of Bleach: TYBW’s first episode, featuring memorable scenes from the series’ original adaptation. Without a doubt, nearly every aspect of Bleach: TYBW’s premiere episode is being praised by fans, even parts which recycle previously animated material.

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