Ichigo Kurosaki
Encyclopedia
is a fictional character
in the anime
and manga
franchise Bleach
by Tite Kubo
. He is the story's main character. The series begins with Ichigo receiving Soul Reaper powers as a result of a run-in with Rukia Kuchiki
, the Soul Reaper assigned to patrol his city, Karakura Town. These powers come at the cost of Rukia's own, and as a result, Ichigo concedes to work as Rukia's stand-in, fighting to protect people from evil spirits called hollows and sending good spirits, wholes, to Soul Society. In addition to the main series, Ichigo appears in many other pieces of Bleach media, including the three featured films in the series, the two original video animation
s, and several video games.
Ichigo's character was created to replace Rukia as the lead character from the series as Kubo noted that Rukia was unsuitable to be the protagonist. Merchandise based on Ichigo's likeness has also been released, including toys, clothing, and action figures. Ichigo's character has been well received among both fans and reviewers, and people all over the world. Ichigo is also featured in Weekly Shōnen Jump
character popularity polls, consistently ranking as one of the most popular characters in Bleach, while the 2007 Japanese Newtype
magazine polls ranked him as one of the top 100 most-loved anime characters. Reviewers of the series have also remarked favorably on his personality, though some considered him to be a stereotypical anti-hero
during the first few episodes of the series. It was recently picked as the third best manga ever created.
, the first character he created, did not seem like a lead character, so he created Ichigo to be the series protagonist. When designing Ichigo's appearance, Kubo had thought of several types attributes of the character that were never added to the story. Initial design sketches show Ichigo wearing glasses, and having dark hair and kind eyes. When designing Rukia, however, Kubo modified Ichigo's appearance to contrast with hers, giving Ichigo orange hair, a trademark scowl, and removing the glasses. During the series' first chapter, Ichigo's wristwatch was based on one Kubo himself wore at that time. In latter chapters, his wristwatch was based on Naoto Fukasawa
's W11K cellphone. Along with Orihime Inoue
, Ichigo has the hardest face to draw for Kubo. When making illustrations featuring Ichigo, he found one weird as it featured him with a cheerful smile.
Kubo considered Ichigo's greatest strength to be that he is considerate and thoughtful as he always thinks about other people's needs. However, he also saw that as his greatest weakness, since worrying about his friends tends to put him in danger. Kubo was asked in an interview if he had any plans to focus in the love triangle
between him, Rukia and Orihime, but Kubo chose neither to confirm nor deny it as he did not want to focus in romance. Kubo thinks Ichigo is very popular among fans since he "looks cool". He also mentioned that as fans read more about him they discover that underneath he is warm and kind hearted, which attracts them.
Ichigo is voiced by Masakazu Morita
in the Japanese anime, while as a child he is voiced by Yuki Matsuoka
. Johnny Yong Bosch
voices him in the English dub as a teenager, and Mona Marshall
as a kid. Bosch has liked Ichigo's character due to how he wants to protect people. However, he experienced difficulty voicing him in the episodes in which Ichigo shouts for a long time.
Ichigo is an orange-haired 15-year-old teenager able to see spirits. He meets Soul Reaper Rukia Kuchiki
in the midst of a hollow attack. After Rukia is heavily injured by the hollow, she is forced to transfer her Soul Reaper powers to Ichigo so that he can kill the hollow and save their lives and his family. Though he defeats the hollow, Ichigo absorbs almost all of Rukia's spiritual power, and he is forced to perform her Soul Reaper duties until she recovers her powers. When Ichigo was nine, he mistook hollow Grand Fisher for someone in danger, and his mother, Masaki Kurosaki, was killed by the hollow while protecting Ichigo. Masaki's death continues to influence Ichigo by causing him to feel guilt for his inability to protect those close to him and therefore, he thanks Rukia for giving him the powers to protect them.
When his actions eventually attract the attention of Soul Society, Rukia is taken back to the spirit world to be executed, and Ichigo leads an effort to save her. To rescue her, Kisuke Urahara trains him to become a Soul Reaper with his own powers allowing him to release his zanpakutōs true form named . Zangetsu's spirit takes the form of a middle-aged man, voiced by Takayuki Sugo
in the Japanese anime and by Richard Epcar
in the English dub. While in bankai mode, Zangetsu appears as a young man with same appearances as the middle-aged man but with slightly shorter hair. Zangetsu's special ability is the , a wave of spirit particles released from his blade. However, Ichigo partially becomes a hollow in the same training. This leaves him with an insane inner hollow spirit that tries to take control of his body to fight. Within Ichigo's inner world, the hollow mirrors his appearance.
Upon Ichigo's arrival in Soul Society, he repeatedly clashes with high-ranking Soul Reapers as he approaches Rukia's location. In order to defeat them, Ichigo learns his bankai form, named , which changes his uniform and sword in order to move at incredibly high speeds. With the assistance of Ichigo's newfound allies, Rukia is saved, though she quickly falls into the hands of Sōsuke Aizen
. Aizen, the mastermind behind Rukia's execution, fulfills his plans by removing the Hōgyoku from her body. In the aftermath, Ichigo is made a "Substitute Soul Reaper" and is allowed to return home with his friends.
Aizen, through the use of the Hōgyoku, creates an army of arrancar that attacks Ichigo and his friends in the human world. In order to fight the arrancar Ichigo is taught to control his hollow by the Visored, Soul Reapers with hollow powers, allowing him to call upon his hollow powers at will and without sacrificing control by donning a hollow mask through a limited time. Although they fend off the arrancar with the bolstered defenses, they are unable to prevent the abduction of Ichigo's friend, Orihime Inoue
. When Soul Society refuses to save her, Ichigo and his friends go to Hueco Mundo to rescue her on their own. Ichigo engages Ulquiorra Cifer, the arrancar taking her hostage, in combat and subsequently kills him in his new hollow form. He later goes to Karakura Town to protect it from Aizen. Upon his failure, Ichigo begins training with his father Isshin to defeat Aizen. Concluding his training, Ichigo fights Aizen, weakening him at the expense of his Soul Reaper powers. As Ichigo's powers fade away, Urahara seals Aizen within a kidō barrier, intending to allow Central 46 to decide his fate.
Seventeen months later, Ichigo becomes a senior in high school. He meets Kūgo Ginjō from the group Xcution who presents Ichigo with a chance to regain his Soul Reaper powers in return of helping Ginjō and his group be free of their own "Fullbringer" powers. With their help, Ichigo unlocks his own Fullbring powers through his Substitute Soul Reaper Badge. However, when Ichigo is attacked by Shūkurō Tsukishima, one of Ginjō's allies who changed his memories to trick Ichigo, his Fullbring powers are stolen. He regains his Soul Reaper powers by a decision made by the captain commander Shigekuni Yamamoto, as an act to repay Ichigo's deeds to the Soul Society. Ichigo then engages Ginjō in combat, alongside Uryu.
, aiding in the search for Tōshirō Hitsugaya
in the The DiamondDust Rebellion
.,investigating a mysterious incident, involving mass amnesia
of most Soul Reapers, especially Rukia, who was kidnapped by two mysterious rogues in Fade to Black
.,and going into Hell
in order to rescue Yuzu in The Hell Verse
. He also appears in both of the original video animation
s; fighting against a hollow called the Grand Fisher in the first one and combating the rogue Soul Reaper Baishin in the second one. In the Bleach video games, Ichigo is a playable character in every game, including the Heat the Soul
and Blade Battlers
series. In some games, his hollow form and bankai state are available as separate characters. In Rock Musical Bleach, a musical based on the Bleach series, he is played by Tatsuya Isaka
. His character is featured in two volumes from the Bleach Beat Collection CD soundtrack series which features themes composed by his Japanese voice actor, Masakazu Morita
. These include the first of them in which he is the only character and the fourth season's fourth volume along with Rukia.
Amongst the Bleach reader base, Ichigo has been highly popular, having always ranked within the top 5 in the Weekly Shōnen Jump popularity polls for the series. He has usually taken first place, though in early 2008 he dropped to 3rd place. His zanpakutō, Zangetsu, also ranked 3rd in the zanpakutō popularity polls. His character also appeared in the 2007 Japanese Newtype
magazine polls ranked him as one of the best anime male characters. In the Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation Awards from 2008, Ichigo ranked as the third best male character. The Japanese music distributor Recochoku has made two annual survey of which anime characters that people would like to marry. Ichigo ranked tenth in the category "The Character I Want to Be My Groom" from the 2008 survey and eight in the 2009 poll in the same category. Wizard Entertainment
considered Ichigo the best hero from 2007, commenting that he does not try to be a hero as he just fights in order to protect his friends or to return a debt. He was also 20th in IGN
's Top 25 Anime Characters of All Time with comments focused on his design and personality. Ichigo has also appeared twice in the Anime Grand Prix polls, ranking as one of the most popular male anime characters.
At the first Seiyū Awards
in March 2007, Masakazu Morita
won in the category "Best Rookie Actor" for his role as Ichigo Kurosaki. Ichigo's voice actor in the English adaptation, Johnny Yong Bosch
, has also been praised for his voice work on Ichigo's character by Anime News Network
(ANN), which favorably compared Bosch and Morita's work. Various merchandise based on Ichigo's appearance has been created, including action figures, plush toys and key-chains. Since the series was released, replica models of Ichigo's zanpakutō and bankai have been produced for purchase by collectors and fans.
Several publications for manga, anime, video games, and other related media have provided praise and criticism on Ichigo's character. Mania Entertainment reviewer Chris Beveridge commented that Ichigo's history about how he becomes a Soul Reaper in the series could be "obvious", but it is avoided by how Ichigo tries to avoid his role. Additionally, he commented that Ichigo does have "awkward moments" when fighting with hollows or handling his zanpakutō, making him a more normal person. ANN's Melissa Harper commented that Ichigo's initial rebellious actions make him almost a stereotypical anti-hero, but note that he is soon revealed to be a more complex character with a sad past. Los Angeles Times
s Charles Solomon comments Ichigo's persona has little in common with protagonists from other series due to his bad temper and how he tends to fight. However, he added that readers from the series still "love" Ichigo. Although the way Ichigo becomes a Soul Reaper was found to be relatively common by Carlos Alexandre from popcultureshock.com he noted that was unimportant, and then added Ichigo's character of a "tough guy with a heart of gold" had already been done in several series. Charles White from IGN praised Ichigo's climactic fight against Byakuya Kuchiki
as one of the best fights in the Bleach series, and later Ramsey Isler gave additional praise to both the design and voice acting for Ichigo's inner hollow. Ichigo's development during the story arc in which he sets to rescue Rukia Kuchiki
from being executed have been praised by ANN's Theron Martin with the scenes in which he manages to stop her execution and his subsequent demonstration of his bankai as one of the "eminently satisfying landmark moments in the series". Wired News
's Corrina Lawson stated that she liked Ichigo's strong sense of responsibility, and commented it was one of the reasons of the series' popularity.
Character (arts)
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
in the anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
and manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
franchise Bleach
Bleach (manga)
is a Japanese shōnen manga series written and illustrated by Noriaki "Tite" Kubo. Bleach follows the adventures of Ichigo Kurosaki after he obtains the powers of a —a death personification similar to the Grim Reaper—from another Soul Reaper, Rukia Kuchiki...
by Tite Kubo
Tite Kubo
, known by his pen name , is a Japanese manga artist. His most significant work is the manga series Bleach.-Biography:Kubo was the son of a town council member in Fuchu, Aki District, Hiroshima. He never took drawing seriously until he was 17, and after reading the manga Saint Seiya which...
. He is the story's main character. The series begins with Ichigo receiving Soul Reaper powers as a result of a run-in with Rukia Kuchiki
Rukia Kuchiki
Rukia is 4foot 8 . is a fictional character in the anime and manga series Bleach created by Tite Kubo. In the series, Rukia is a Soul Reaper in charge of slaying evil spirits known as Hollows...
, the Soul Reaper assigned to patrol his city, Karakura Town. These powers come at the cost of Rukia's own, and as a result, Ichigo concedes to work as Rukia's stand-in, fighting to protect people from evil spirits called hollows and sending good spirits, wholes, to Soul Society. In addition to the main series, Ichigo appears in many other pieces of Bleach media, including the three featured films in the series, the two original video animation
Original video animation
, abbreviated as media , are animated films and series made specially for release in home-video formats. The term originated in relation to Japanese animation...
s, and several video games.
Ichigo's character was created to replace Rukia as the lead character from the series as Kubo noted that Rukia was unsuitable to be the protagonist. Merchandise based on Ichigo's likeness has also been released, including toys, clothing, and action figures. Ichigo's character has been well received among both fans and reviewers, and people all over the world. Ichigo is also featured in Weekly Shōnen Jump
Weekly Shonen Jump
is a weekly shōnen manga anthology published in Japan by Shueisha under the Jump line of magazines. The first issue was released with a cover date of July 2, 1968, and it is still circulating. One of the longest-running manga magazines in Japan, it has a circulation of 2.8 million copies...
character popularity polls, consistently ranking as one of the most popular characters in Bleach, while the 2007 Japanese Newtype
Newtype (magazine)
is a monthly magazine publication originating from Japan, covering anime and manga . It was launched by publishing company Kadokawa Shoten on March 8, 1985 with its April issue, and has since seen regular release on the 10th of every month in its home country...
magazine polls ranked him as one of the top 100 most-loved anime characters. Reviewers of the series have also remarked favorably on his personality, though some considered him to be a stereotypical anti-hero
Anti-hero
In fiction, an antihero is generally considered to be a protagonist whose character is at least in some regards conspicuously contrary to that of the archetypal hero, and is in some instances its antithesis in which the character is generally useless at being a hero or heroine when they're...
during the first few episodes of the series. It was recently picked as the third best manga ever created.
Creation and conception
When creating the manga series, Kubo commented that Rukia KuchikiRukia Kuchiki
Rukia is 4foot 8 . is a fictional character in the anime and manga series Bleach created by Tite Kubo. In the series, Rukia is a Soul Reaper in charge of slaying evil spirits known as Hollows...
, the first character he created, did not seem like a lead character, so he created Ichigo to be the series protagonist. When designing Ichigo's appearance, Kubo had thought of several types attributes of the character that were never added to the story. Initial design sketches show Ichigo wearing glasses, and having dark hair and kind eyes. When designing Rukia, however, Kubo modified Ichigo's appearance to contrast with hers, giving Ichigo orange hair, a trademark scowl, and removing the glasses. During the series' first chapter, Ichigo's wristwatch was based on one Kubo himself wore at that time. In latter chapters, his wristwatch was based on Naoto Fukasawa
Naoto Fukasawa
is a Japanese industrial designer, born in Yamanashi Prefecture in 1956. He graduated from Tama Art University in 1980. After having acted as the head of the American company IDEO's Tokyo office, he established Naoto Fukasawa Design in 2003...
's W11K cellphone. Along with Orihime Inoue
Orihime Inoue
is a fictional character in the anime and manga series Bleach created by Tite Kubo. She is a classmate and friend of Ichigo Kurosaki, the main character of the series. Like many other friends of Ichigo, she quickly develops spiritual powers of her own after Ichigo becomes a Soul Reaper...
, Ichigo has the hardest face to draw for Kubo. When making illustrations featuring Ichigo, he found one weird as it featured him with a cheerful smile.
Kubo considered Ichigo's greatest strength to be that he is considerate and thoughtful as he always thinks about other people's needs. However, he also saw that as his greatest weakness, since worrying about his friends tends to put him in danger. Kubo was asked in an interview if he had any plans to focus in the love triangle
Love triangle
A love triangle is usually a romantic relationship involving three people. While it can refer to two people independently romantically linked with a third, it usually implies that each of the three people has some kind of relationship to the other two...
between him, Rukia and Orihime, but Kubo chose neither to confirm nor deny it as he did not want to focus in romance. Kubo thinks Ichigo is very popular among fans since he "looks cool". He also mentioned that as fans read more about him they discover that underneath he is warm and kind hearted, which attracts them.
Ichigo is voiced by Masakazu Morita
Masakazu Morita
is a seiyū and actor born in Tokyo, Japan. He currently works for Aoni Production. He is also the host of the radio show, Bleach B-Station. Morita is perhaps best known for his roles as Ichigo Kurosaki , Tidus , Auel Neider , Pegasus Seiya , Troy Bolton is a seiyū and actor born in Tokyo, Japan....
in the Japanese anime, while as a child he is voiced by Yuki Matsuoka
Yuki Matsuoka
is a voice actress from the Hirano-ku ward of Osaka. She graduated from Otemae Women's University in Nishinomiya. She is affiliated with Production Baobab.- 2001 :*Mo~tto! Ojamajo Doremi *Cosmic Baton Girl Comet-san...
. Johnny Yong Bosch
Johnny Yong Bosch
Johnny Yong Bosch is an American actor, voice actor, martial artist, and musician.He may be best known for portraying Adam Park in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, and being the English voice of Ichigo Kurosaki in the hit anime series Bleach, Vash the Stampede in Trigun and Lelouch Lamperouge in Code...
voices him in the English dub as a teenager, and Mona Marshall
Mona Marshall
Mona M. Ianotti is an American voice actress. She is often cast in the role of young boys. Her roles have included parts in not only Japanese anime, but also in American cartoons as well. Mona Marshall has recently lent her voice to the talking bear Koby the Study Buddy...
as a kid. Bosch has liked Ichigo's character due to how he wants to protect people. However, he experienced difficulty voicing him in the episodes in which Ichigo shouts for a long time.
In the Bleach manga and anime series
Rukia Kuchiki
Rukia is 4foot 8 . is a fictional character in the anime and manga series Bleach created by Tite Kubo. In the series, Rukia is a Soul Reaper in charge of slaying evil spirits known as Hollows...
in the midst of a hollow attack. After Rukia is heavily injured by the hollow, she is forced to transfer her Soul Reaper powers to Ichigo so that he can kill the hollow and save their lives and his family. Though he defeats the hollow, Ichigo absorbs almost all of Rukia's spiritual power, and he is forced to perform her Soul Reaper duties until she recovers her powers. When Ichigo was nine, he mistook hollow Grand Fisher for someone in danger, and his mother, Masaki Kurosaki, was killed by the hollow while protecting Ichigo. Masaki's death continues to influence Ichigo by causing him to feel guilt for his inability to protect those close to him and therefore, he thanks Rukia for giving him the powers to protect them.
When his actions eventually attract the attention of Soul Society, Rukia is taken back to the spirit world to be executed, and Ichigo leads an effort to save her. To rescue her, Kisuke Urahara trains him to become a Soul Reaper with his own powers allowing him to release his zanpakutōs true form named . Zangetsu's spirit takes the form of a middle-aged man, voiced by Takayuki Sugo
Takayuki Sugo
is a Japanese voice actor who is affiliated with Bungakuza.-TV Anime:*Bleach *Burst Angel *Buso Renkin *D.Gray-man *Gad Guard *Gosick *Heat Guy J *Honey & Clover...
in the Japanese anime and by Richard Epcar
Richard Epcar
Richard Epcar is an American actor voice actor / director, mostly specializing in the field of voice acting in games, animation and anime. He is the husband of voice actress Ellyn Stern, with whom he owns and operates Epcar Entertainment, Inc., a voiceover production service company based in Los...
in the English dub. While in bankai mode, Zangetsu appears as a young man with same appearances as the middle-aged man but with slightly shorter hair. Zangetsu's special ability is the , a wave of spirit particles released from his blade. However, Ichigo partially becomes a hollow in the same training. This leaves him with an insane inner hollow spirit that tries to take control of his body to fight. Within Ichigo's inner world, the hollow mirrors his appearance.
Upon Ichigo's arrival in Soul Society, he repeatedly clashes with high-ranking Soul Reapers as he approaches Rukia's location. In order to defeat them, Ichigo learns his bankai form, named , which changes his uniform and sword in order to move at incredibly high speeds. With the assistance of Ichigo's newfound allies, Rukia is saved, though she quickly falls into the hands of Sōsuke Aizen
Sosuke Aizen
is a fictional character and formerly the main antagonist in the anime and manga series Bleach created by Tite Kubo. He is the captain of the 5th Division when he is first introduced, but later betrays the Soul Society and becomes the series' main antagonist...
. Aizen, the mastermind behind Rukia's execution, fulfills his plans by removing the Hōgyoku from her body. In the aftermath, Ichigo is made a "Substitute Soul Reaper" and is allowed to return home with his friends.
Orihime Inoue
is a fictional character in the anime and manga series Bleach created by Tite Kubo. She is a classmate and friend of Ichigo Kurosaki, the main character of the series. Like many other friends of Ichigo, she quickly develops spiritual powers of her own after Ichigo becomes a Soul Reaper...
. When Soul Society refuses to save her, Ichigo and his friends go to Hueco Mundo to rescue her on their own. Ichigo engages Ulquiorra Cifer, the arrancar taking her hostage, in combat and subsequently kills him in his new hollow form. He later goes to Karakura Town to protect it from Aizen. Upon his failure, Ichigo begins training with his father Isshin to defeat Aizen. Concluding his training, Ichigo fights Aizen, weakening him at the expense of his Soul Reaper powers. As Ichigo's powers fade away, Urahara seals Aizen within a kidō barrier, intending to allow Central 46 to decide his fate.
Seventeen months later, Ichigo becomes a senior in high school. He meets Kūgo Ginjō from the group Xcution who presents Ichigo with a chance to regain his Soul Reaper powers in return of helping Ginjō and his group be free of their own "Fullbringer" powers. With their help, Ichigo unlocks his own Fullbring powers through his Substitute Soul Reaper Badge. However, when Ichigo is attacked by Shūkurō Tsukishima, one of Ginjō's allies who changed his memories to trick Ichigo, his Fullbring powers are stolen. He regains his Soul Reaper powers by a decision made by the captain commander Shigekuni Yamamoto, as an act to repay Ichigo's deeds to the Soul Society. Ichigo then engages Ginjō in combat, alongside Uryu.
In other media
Ichigo appears in the featured films of series; protecting a Soul Reaper named Senna in Memories of NobodyBleach: Memories of Nobody
Bleach: Memories of Nobody is a 2006 animated film adaptation of the anime and manga series Bleach. Directed by Noriyuki Abe and written by Masashi Sogo, the film was first released in Japanese theaters on December 16, 2006. The DVD was released in Japan on September 5, 2007...
, aiding in the search for Tōshirō Hitsugaya
Toshiro Hitsugaya
is a fictional character in the anime and manga series Bleach created by Tite Kubo. In the series, Hitsugaya is the captain of the 10th Division in the Gotei 13, a group of Soul Reapers protecting Soul Society. His lieutenant is Rangiku Matsumoto...
in the The DiamondDust Rebellion
Bleach: The DiamondDust Rebellion
is the second animated film adaptation of the anime and manga series Bleach. The film is directed by Noriyuki Abe and co-written by Michiko Yokote and Masahiro Ōkubo, and the theatrical release was on December 22, 2007. The theme music for the movie is by Sambomaster...
.,investigating a mysterious incident, involving mass amnesia
Amnesia
Amnesia is a condition in which one's memory is lost. The causes of amnesia have traditionally been divided into categories. Memory appears to be stored in several parts of the limbic system of the brain, and any condition that interferes with the function of this system can cause amnesia...
of most Soul Reapers, especially Rukia, who was kidnapped by two mysterious rogues in Fade to Black
Bleach: Fade to Black, I Call Your Name
is the third animated film adaptation of the anime and manga series Bleach. Directed by Noriyuki Abe, the film was released December 13, 2008. The film's theme music was "Koyoi, Tsuki wa Miezu Tomo", performed by Porno Graffiti and its screenplay was written by Natsuko Takahashi, who is a...
.,and going into Hell
Hell
In many religious traditions, a hell is a place of suffering and punishment in the afterlife. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hells as endless. Religions with a cyclic history often depict a hell as an intermediary period between incarnations...
in order to rescue Yuzu in The Hell Verse
Bleach: The Hell Verse
is the fourth animated film adaptation of the anime and manga series Bleach. Directed by Noriyuki Abe. The film's theme song is "Save The One, Save The All", performed by T.M.Revolution and its screenplay was written by Natsuko Takahashi and Ookubo Masahiro, with Tite Kubo, author of the manga,...
. He also appears in both of the original video animation
Original video animation
, abbreviated as media , are animated films and series made specially for release in home-video formats. The term originated in relation to Japanese animation...
s; fighting against a hollow called the Grand Fisher in the first one and combating the rogue Soul Reaper Baishin in the second one. In the Bleach video games, Ichigo is a playable character in every game, including the Heat the Soul
Bleach: Heat the Soul (series)
The series is a series of 3-D cel-shaded fighting games for the PSP based on the popular manga and anime series Bleach by Tite Kubo. Each installment is developed by Eighting and published by SCEI. All installments have been released only in Japan....
and Blade Battlers
Bleach: Blade Battlers (series)
The is a series of fighting games released only in Japan for the PlayStation 2 based on the manga and anime Bleach by Tite Kubo. There are two games in the series, both developed by Racjin and designed by SCEI. Both games became best-sellers in Japan....
series. In some games, his hollow form and bankai state are available as separate characters. In Rock Musical Bleach, a musical based on the Bleach series, he is played by Tatsuya Isaka
Tatsuya Isaka
is a Japanese actor. He played Ichigo Kurosaki in the rock musical Bleach.-Television dramas:* Gokusen * Water Boys * Kamen Rider 555 * Genseishin Justiriser * Tumbling -Movie:...
. His character is featured in two volumes from the Bleach Beat Collection CD soundtrack series which features themes composed by his Japanese voice actor, Masakazu Morita
Masakazu Morita
is a seiyū and actor born in Tokyo, Japan. He currently works for Aoni Production. He is also the host of the radio show, Bleach B-Station. Morita is perhaps best known for his roles as Ichigo Kurosaki , Tidus , Auel Neider , Pegasus Seiya , Troy Bolton is a seiyū and actor born in Tokyo, Japan....
. These include the first of them in which he is the only character and the fourth season's fourth volume along with Rukia.
Reception
Newtype (magazine)
is a monthly magazine publication originating from Japan, covering anime and manga . It was launched by publishing company Kadokawa Shoten on March 8, 1985 with its April issue, and has since seen regular release on the 10th of every month in its home country...
magazine polls ranked him as one of the best anime male characters. In the Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation Awards from 2008, Ichigo ranked as the third best male character. The Japanese music distributor Recochoku has made two annual survey of which anime characters that people would like to marry. Ichigo ranked tenth in the category "The Character I Want to Be My Groom" from the 2008 survey and eight in the 2009 poll in the same category. Wizard Entertainment
Wizard Entertainment
Wizard Entertainment, formerly known as Wizard Press, was a New York-based publisher of Wizard and ToyFare magazines, along with various special issues for each magazine and the annual Toy Wishes holiday guide....
considered Ichigo the best hero from 2007, commenting that he does not try to be a hero as he just fights in order to protect his friends or to return a debt. He was also 20th in IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
's Top 25 Anime Characters of All Time with comments focused on his design and personality. Ichigo has also appeared twice in the Anime Grand Prix polls, ranking as one of the most popular male anime characters.
At the first Seiyū Awards
Seiyu Awards
The are award ceremonies for the recognition of voice acting talent for outstanding performance in anime and other media in Japan...
in March 2007, Masakazu Morita
Masakazu Morita
is a seiyū and actor born in Tokyo, Japan. He currently works for Aoni Production. He is also the host of the radio show, Bleach B-Station. Morita is perhaps best known for his roles as Ichigo Kurosaki , Tidus , Auel Neider , Pegasus Seiya , Troy Bolton is a seiyū and actor born in Tokyo, Japan....
won in the category "Best Rookie Actor" for his role as Ichigo Kurosaki. Ichigo's voice actor in the English adaptation, Johnny Yong Bosch
Johnny Yong Bosch
Johnny Yong Bosch is an American actor, voice actor, martial artist, and musician.He may be best known for portraying Adam Park in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, and being the English voice of Ichigo Kurosaki in the hit anime series Bleach, Vash the Stampede in Trigun and Lelouch Lamperouge in Code...
, has also been praised for his voice work on Ichigo's character by Anime News Network
Anime News Network
Anime News Network is an anime industry news website that reports on the status of anime, manga, Japanese popular music and other otaku-related culture within North America, Australia and Japan. Additionally, it sometimes features similar happenings throughout the Anglosphere and elsewhere in the...
(ANN), which favorably compared Bosch and Morita's work. Various merchandise based on Ichigo's appearance has been created, including action figures, plush toys and key-chains. Since the series was released, replica models of Ichigo's zanpakutō and bankai have been produced for purchase by collectors and fans.
Several publications for manga, anime, video games, and other related media have provided praise and criticism on Ichigo's character. Mania Entertainment reviewer Chris Beveridge commented that Ichigo's history about how he becomes a Soul Reaper in the series could be "obvious", but it is avoided by how Ichigo tries to avoid his role. Additionally, he commented that Ichigo does have "awkward moments" when fighting with hollows or handling his zanpakutō, making him a more normal person. ANN's Melissa Harper commented that Ichigo's initial rebellious actions make him almost a stereotypical anti-hero, but note that he is soon revealed to be a more complex character with a sad past. Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
s Charles Solomon comments Ichigo's persona has little in common with protagonists from other series due to his bad temper and how he tends to fight. However, he added that readers from the series still "love" Ichigo. Although the way Ichigo becomes a Soul Reaper was found to be relatively common by Carlos Alexandre from popcultureshock.com he noted that was unimportant, and then added Ichigo's character of a "tough guy with a heart of gold" had already been done in several series. Charles White from IGN praised Ichigo's climactic fight against Byakuya Kuchiki
Byakuya Kuchiki
is a fictional character in the anime and manga series Bleach created by Tite Kubo. He is the captain of the 6th Division in the Gotei 13. His lieutenant is Renji Abarai.-Character outline:...
as one of the best fights in the Bleach series, and later Ramsey Isler gave additional praise to both the design and voice acting for Ichigo's inner hollow. Ichigo's development during the story arc in which he sets to rescue Rukia Kuchiki
Rukia Kuchiki
Rukia is 4foot 8 . is a fictional character in the anime and manga series Bleach created by Tite Kubo. In the series, Rukia is a Soul Reaper in charge of slaying evil spirits known as Hollows...
from being executed have been praised by ANN's Theron Martin with the scenes in which he manages to stop her execution and his subsequent demonstration of his bankai as one of the "eminently satisfying landmark moments in the series". Wired News
Wired News
Wired News is an online technology news website, formerly known as HotWired, that split off from Wired magazine when the magazine was purchased by Condé Nast Publishing in the 1990s. Wired News was owned by Lycos not long after the split, until Condé Nast purchased Wired News on July 11, 2006...
's Corrina Lawson stated that she liked Ichigo's strong sense of responsibility, and commented it was one of the reasons of the series' popularity.