The is the first season of the 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...

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....

 series. The episodes are directed by Noriyuki Abe

Noriyuki Abe

is a Japanese anime director, storyboard artist, and sound director. He is best known for working with Studio Pierrot on major hits such as Ninku, Flame of Recca, Bleach, and Yu Yu Hakusho...

 and produced by TV Tokyo

TV Tokyo

is a television station headquartered in Toranomon, Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Also known as , a blend of "terebi" and "Tokyo", it is the key station of TX Network. It is one of the major Tokyo television stations, particularly specializing in anime...

, Dentsu

Dentsu

is one of the largest advertising agencies in the world. Its headquarters are located in the Dentsu Building in the Shiodome district of Minato, Tokyo....

, and Studio Pierrot

Studio Pierrot

is a Japanese animation/animation studio, founded in 1979 by former employees of Tatsunoko Production. Its headquarters is located in Mitaka, Tokyo.The company has a simple logo of the face of a clown...

. In the English release by Viz Media

VIZ Media

VIZ Media, LLC, headquartered in San Francisco, is an anime, manga, and Japanese entertainment company. It was founded in 1986 as VIZ LLC. In 2005, VIZ LLC and ShoPro Entertainment merged to form the current VIZ Media LLC, which is jointly owned by Japanese publishers Shogakukan and Shueisha, and...

, its title is translated as The Substitute. The episodes are based on 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...

's Bleach 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...

 series, spanning twenty episodes. The episodes' plot covers the adventures of Ichigo Kurosaki

Ichigo Kurosaki

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...

 after becoming a Soul Reaper and assuming the duties of Soul Reaper 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 arc initially ran from October 2004 until February 2005 in Japan on TV Tokyo

TV Tokyo

is a television station headquartered in Toranomon, Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Also known as , a blend of "terebi" and "Tokyo", it is the key station of TX Network. It is one of the major Tokyo television stations, particularly specializing in anime...

. The first English airing of the series was from September 2006 until January 2007. It was shown on both YTV's Bionix

Bionix

Bionix was a late night anime program block on the Canadian television channel YTV. From September 2009-February 7, 2010, it aired on Friday nights around 4:00pm to 2:00am and Saturday mornings/afternoons from 6:00 am to 9:00 am and 12:00am to 3:00pm , beginning on September 13,...

 and Cartoon Network

Cartoon Network (United States)

Cartoon Network is an American cable television network owned by Turner Broadcasting which primarily airs animated programming. The channel was launched on October 1, 1992 after Turner purchased the animation studio Hanna-Barbera Productions in 1991...

's Adult Swim

Adult Swim

Adult Swim is an adult-oriented Cable network that shares channel space with Cartoon Network from 9:00 pm until 6:00 am ET/PT in the United States, and broadcasts in countries such as Australia and New Zealand...

 programming blocks, with Bionix airing the show one day sooner. The arc started airing in the UK starting in September 2007 on AnimeCentral

AnimeCentral

Anime Central was a British television channel owned by CSC Media Group. The channel launched on 13 September 2007. It was first announced on 5 August 2007 though its licence first appeared on the Ofcom website in January...

.

The episodes use three pieces of theme music

Theme music

Theme music is a piece that is often written specifically for a radio program, television program, video game or movie, and usually played during the title sequence and/or end credits...

: one opening theme and two ending themes. The opening theme is Orange Range

Orange Range

is a 5-member Okinawan alternative rock band, based in Okinawa, Japan. Formed in 2001, the band began with Spice Music and later signed with Sony Music Japan's gr8! records division in 2003. The group left gr8! records in 2010 to start their own label, Super Echo....

's single "Asterisk". The ending theme for the first thirteen episodes is "Life is Like a Boat" by Rie Fu

Rie fu

, born on January 11, 1985, in Tokyo, is a Japanese singer-songwriter. She resides in Tokyo but frequently travels to the United Kingdom to record and promote her work.-Personal life:...

, while the remaining seven used "Thank You!!" by Home Made Kazoku

Home Made Kazoku

is a Japanese hip hop trio signed to Ki/oon Records, a subsidiary of Sony Music.-Biography:Home Made Kazoku is a trio, consisting of members Micro, Kuro, and DJ U-Ichi. The band was originally formed in 1996 under a different name. The band was in a state of flux with regard to membership until...

.

The arc was released on five DVD compilations, each containing four episodes of the show. They were released in Japan from February 2, 2005 to June 1, 2005. Viz Media's release of the DVDs was made from November 5, 2007 to July 31, 2007. The first of these compilations, with art featuring the series main character Ichigo Kurosaki, was nominated at the American Anime Awards

American Anime Awards

The American Anime Awards are a series of awards designed to recognize excellence in the release of anime and manga in North America.The first annual American Anime Awards balloting was supervised by Milton Griepp of industry website ICv2. The first gala awards presentation was hosted in New York...

 in 2007 for best DVD package design. A DVD collection box, containing all twenty episodes of the arc, was released by Viz Media on October 30, 2007. Manga Entertainment

Manga Entertainment

Manga Entertainment is a producer, licensor and distributor of Japanese animation in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, France, Australia and New Zealand...

 released two DVDs containing the first season in the United Kingdom on November 5, 2007 and March 3, 2008. A compilation of these two volumes was released on May 5, 2008.

Episode list

No.	Title	Original airdate	English airdate