Shonen series are no strangers to the world of cinema, with franchises such as Dragon Ball, One Piece, My Hero Academia, and Naruto acting as a few examples of anime franchises that decided to tell new stories on the big screen. With Bleach set to make a comeback this fall with the arrival of the Thousand Year Blood War anime adaptation, it would seem that the Soul Society is bound for hell before these new episodes arrive, as Bleach: Hell Verse is slated to return to the big screens this summer.
Like Dragon Ball and One Piece movies, Bleach films are a tricky situation in that they might not be considered a part of the main canon, with Hell Verse specifically being even more tricky in that the return of the manga by Tite Kubo in the pages of Weekly Shonen Jump introduced a new wrinkle to the underworld. Bleach: Hell Verse was originally released in 2010, telling a story of a number of powerful beings from the underworld attempting to escape by using Ichigo as their key, but with Kubo laying out some new dynamics to who is currently bouncing around the fiery plains, it definitely continues to throw the continuity into question for the fourth film.
While this has yet to be officially confirmed, the likes of Fathom Events, Atom, and AMC Theaters have created websites to act as placeholders for the upcoming return of Bleach to the silver screen, with the movie apparently set to return on August 25th of this summer:
Bleach The Movie: Hell Verse (Anniversary Edition) theatrical placeholder listing – August 25, 2022https://t.co/mJOEds8Qjdhttps://t.co/i75OiNuzF5https://t.co/cx61oR6YHS pic.twitter.com/aPaJao17Hn
If you don’t want to wait to re-watch the fourth feature-length film in the Bleach series, the movie is currently streaming on Netflix, with the streaming service offering the following official description of the Soul Society’s battle against the forces of Hell:
“When a group of vicious Sinners plots to escape from this eternal prison in Hell, they discover that Substitute Soul Reaper Ichigo is the key to their freedom. The Sinners launch an attack and in the process kidnap Ichigo’s younger sister.”
With the anime series returning, Kubo has yet to reveal if he will continue the story of the Soul Society via new chapters of Bleach, though it certainly seems like an opportune time for the franchise to make a big comeback within the pages of Weekly Shonen Jump.
Will you be jumping into theaters to catch Bleach: Hell Verse? Feel free to let us know in the comments or hit me up directly on Twitter @EVComedy to talk all things comics, anime, and the world of the Soul Society.
