At long last, Bleach is finally getting the sequel fans have been waiting a decade for. It’s been ten years since Bleach ended its legendary 15-year run, and despite Tite Kubo setting up a new story arc involving Hell and the anime teasing an adaptation of Can’t Fear Your Own World, there has yet to be a proper continuation of Bleach’s story, even with there being plenty of room to further explore the world.
Bleach is more than ready for a full-fledged sequel, and after ten years, it’s finally happening. In 2025, it was announced that a new Bleach mobile game, Bleach: Mirrors High, was in development, and at Anime Expo 2026, it was revealed that Bleach: Mirrors High is an original story taking place after the Thousand-Year Blood War arc. The full extent of the story has yet to be revealed, but the fact that it exists at all is still nothing but exciting.
What To Expect From Bleach’s New Story
At the time of writing, not much has been revealed about Bleach: Mirrors High, but there’s still plenty to go over. As previously stated, the game takes place sometime after the Thousand-Year Blood War and before the epilogue, seeing as how the returning characters still have their designs. Ichigo and other characters will be working with new characters Shirin Migishima and Shirane Sanari, but the role of the new characters and the threat they’re dealing with has yet to be revealed.
Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War Part 4 Announces Streaming Platform And Release Date
After a successful theatrical run, The Calamity arrives on streaming this July to conclude Ichigo’s story.
All of that is basic fare for a video game, especially a mobile game, but there might be far more to it than that. According to Bleach creator Tite Kubo, who was heavily involved in production, the story of Mirrors High is “partly related to the main scenario of the manga”, so that means that fans might be able to consider it canon to the franchise. That would make it the first genuine sequel to Bleach in the absence of Bleach’s Hell arc, and that alone will make the game worth playing.
The Bleach Franchise Has Never Been Bigger Than It Is Now
Bleach finally getting a true sequel is great to see, and it highlights just how big the franchise has become. While Bleach somewhat fell into dormancy after the manga ended, not helped by how divisive the ending and final arc were, the amazing quality of the Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War anime did wonders to breathe new life into the franchise, and it’s now just as big as it was in the 2000s, if not bigger. Now, Bleach is even getting an official sequel, so there’s no denying that it’s as big as a fan could ask it to be.
For years now, Bleach has been unfairly regarded as the weakest member of the “Big 3” of anime to the point that people would want it replaced by something else, but in recent years, it’s become impossible to deny just how massive and overall great Bleach is as a franchise. Now that Bleach is getting an official sequel, it’s only going to get bigger, and between that and the anime, there’s never been a better time to be a Bleach fan.
- Video Game(s)
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Bleach: Blade Battlers, Bleach: Soul Resurrección, Jump Force
- First Film
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Bleach: Memories of Nobody
- Cast
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Johnny Yong Bosch, Michelle Ruff, Stephanie Sheh, Jamieson Price, Derek Stephen Prince, Wally Wingert
- Created by
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Tite Kubo