How Ichigo’s New Powers in The Thousand Year Blood War Change the Game
----- ADS-----
The Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War anime arc is a game-changer on many levels, from its modern production values and strong pacing to the fact that an entire empire of Quincy has arrived to serve as Ichigo Kurosaki’s final enemy in this shonen saga. Many prominent characters are being forced to reassess their powers and their self-image, from the Gotei 13’s Captains to Ichigo himself. When Yhwach first invaded the Soul Society, Ichigo wasn’t ready to face him, but by now, all that has changed.
The Thousand-Year Blood War story arc actually sidelined Ichigo Kurosaki for a brief time after his zanpakuto broke, and he started training with the Royal Guard. Near the end of cour 2, the anime brought its shonen star back with new powers and a new understanding of himself, and that fact will alter the course of this war until its very end. King Yhwach and the Sternritter are underestimating just how powerful and confident Ichigo Kurosaki has become, and they’ll pay for it in this anime’s final two cours.
Even if the Bleach franchise doesn’t often bluntly state it, Ichigo Kurosaki’s powers are largely based on his emotional state and his self-image as a self-made action hero. Unlike more extroverted heroes like Naruto Uzumaki, Ichigo doesn’t draw much strength from how others view him. He does fight hard for his friends’ sake and cares about them, thus tapping into the power of friendship like any shonen hero would, but Ichigo’s blend of powers and emotions is more self-centered than not. For a time, that fact actually worked against Ichigo, because he was weighed down by his unresolved grief about his mother and his confusion about why she had to die.
----- ADS-----
