"Not sure about Ichigo" - Bleach fans' latest online claim catches heat from Naruto, One Piece, and more fandoms

Modified Sep 12, 2024 08:30 GMT

Bleach fans go to war with recent fandoms over X claims (Image via Studio Pierrot).

Bleach fans are no strangers to getting into online discussions with the Naruto, One Piece, and other fandoms, which is why a recent debate X on regarding the series' influence on modern battle shonen was no surprise. This recent claim was that author Tite Kubo and his most seminal work were the main influences of some of the most popular battle shonen in recent years, such as Demon Slayer, Black Clover, and Jujutsu Kaisen.

While the authors of these three series have mentioned Bleach as a major influence for their own work, fans of Naruto and One Piece have shown up to discuss that isn't the case.

It goes without saying that these three series were instrumental in shaping modern battle shonen. However, their fandoms are still debating which one has been the most influential over the years.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for the series.

Bleach fan claims that this series inspired modern battle shonen, Naruto and One Piece fans respond

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A person on X recently claimed that author Tite Kubo's series has been the most influential out of the Big Three when it comes to inspiring the modern generation of popular battle shonen, with an image featuring the protagonists of Black Clover, Jujutsu Kaisen, and Demon Slayer.

Naturally, there were fans of Naruto and One Piece who stated that this was wrong and that their favorite series had a higher degree of influence.

While it is true that the other two series of the Big Three have sold more manga copies than Kubo's and probably have had a greater impact all over the world, it is also true that the authors of Jujutsu Kaisen, Demon Slayer, and Black Clover have stated that the latter was a series that influenced them greatly.

Therefore, there is an argument to be made that both sides of the argument have a point when it comes to this discussion.

This comparison is also made with author Akira Toriyama and how his legendary series, Dragon Ball, influenced the Big Three, thus mirroring that historical impact.

It is hard to make that same comparison since Dragon Ball was a worldwide phenomenon that changed manga and anime forever. However, it is understandable where the fans of Ichigo Kurosaki and his friends are coming from.

Reactions online

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Reactions online were varied, with some people claiming that Ichigo and Bleach as a whole deserved that degree of respect. As mentioned earlier, there were also some fans who claimed that Naruto and One Piece had a greater cultural impact, which makes a lot of sense when considering elements such as sales and the reach they have all over the world.

There were even some people who pointed out that Dragon Ball isn't the father of battle shonen, mentioning the likes of Astro Boy and Mazinger Z, which are two series that started in the early 70s and also paved the way for future titans of the industry.

That goes to show the level of impact and growth the medium has had throughout the years and how it reached this current status.

"This is more respect than Ichigo usually gets. Impressive to say the least," someone said.

"Dragonball Z father of Shounen. Father of Anime belongs to Speed Racer or Astro Boy. They put anime on the map in the west before DBZ," another person said.

"Bleach is not close to being as iconic as One Piece or Naruto. It was good at the beginning," someone else said.

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Edited by Prem Deshpande