It can be difficult for fans to determine what’s standard and what’s not when it comes to animated series, and Bleach is no exception in that regard. While it’s quite common for popular anime series to have their own movies, they rarely resemble the main story. While this allows movies to tell new and original stories without the burden of continuity, it can often make movies feel clunky. However, a Bleach movie could have overcame this debate and become the norm, all because of an easily missed behind-the-scenes shot.
The first Bleach film, Bleach: Memories of Nobody, is one of the more popular films in the series, telling a rather small story and focusing on a new character, namely Senna. Although Senna doesn’t actually appear anymore by the end of the film, she has proven to be a surprisingly popular character, continuing to appear in Bleach games and other media. In fact, Senna has become so popular that she could have been canonized for the entire series, at least for the anime.
Bleach: Memories of Nobody Might Be Bleach’s Only Canon Movie
In the final scene of Memories of Nobody, Ichigo catches a ribbon that is blowing in the wind, reminding him of something, though he can’t quite remember what. Then he sees a girl who looks a lot like Senna run by, smiling and the movie ends. Ichigo’s memories may have been altered in some way, but it’s clear that Senna isn’t completely forgotten. It also establishes that a person very similar to Senna still exists. In a spin-off of the anime, specifically episode 204, Ichigo is sitting in a restaurant with his friend. A shot of Ichigo shows a girl behind him with hair identical to Senna throughout the film, including the yellow ribbon she originally had. It only appeared on screen for a second, but there was no doubt for anyone who had seen the film: it was Senna.
There is evidence that the movie is just like the manga. In chapter 627, Ichigo mentions having passed through an area known as Kyogoku before. Fans of the film may recognize the more translated term: Screaming Valley. Screaming Valley was created for the movie and is only later mentioned in the manga, and Ichigo has never had anything to do with that place outside of the movie, so those must be the events in the movie he’s working on. reference. Kubo even left an author’s note at the end of the chapter, advising fans curious about Kyogoku to watch the film first. If that’s not strong enough proof of the film’s classicism, then nothing is.
While it may be a good thing that many anime spin-offs are certainly unorthodox, that doesn’t mean that creating a mainstream movie can’t have its own benefits. Arguing about canon can often come down to personal preference, but at least in this case, the truth is pretty clear. BleachHer favorite first movie is truly a classic, and it looks like the Senna-like character has gone on to have a blessedly peaceful life.
