Bleach is a Character Development show, plain and simple. Everything else that happens is just there to provide filler, and an environment where the characters can be introduced and interact to gradually reveal their personalities, powers, traits and history. It's all about providing just enough to get you interested and wanting to see more. There are many small events or seemingly inconsequential occurences that can correlate hundreds of episodes later. In this regard, it is absolutely essential to rewatch Bleach at least once.
For the new viewer, the sheer number of main and supporting characters can be overwhelming. To be honest for awhile it kind of turned me off until I really began to get what it was all about. It's also important to understand that while Ichigo is the main character, he's moreso there just to provide a common ground upon which all the different aspects of the show converge. He is not an overpowering lead or the centre of everything, and doesn't really have a particularly interesing personality. The attraction of Ichigo lies in the what and why and how, and the way he is percieved by others.
The character art is fantastic - each character's personality is very accurately represented in their appearance. Nearly every character is interesting and has a lot of deep history, unanswered questions and mystery, many of which are so far left to the viewers imagination. Don't expect the same level of depth from the enemies, as they inevitibly all die.
While nearly all of the Bleach Intro and End credits are absolute rubbish, the soundtracks are nothing short of masterpieces. Without a doubt, Bleach has the best and most fitting music of any long running anime series. A couple of the arcs aren't fantastic story-wise, and like any show it has its ups and downs so its important just to stick with it. Look away for a moment, and you can miss important clues and info. The second time around, things can make a lot more sense and suddenly seem a lot more interesting.
Unfortunately I hate to admit that the first time I watched Bleach I was still a dub watching fanboy noob. Bleach changed all that, and rewatching the first 200 eps in Japanese was the best thing I could have done. The actual proper voice actors have a huge impact on overall watchability, and are amazingly fitting for each character. If you watch this show dubbed, you are losing a lot right there, so if you are going to bother watching Bleach i suggest doing it right and going subs. I've never watched dubs since, and in fact Bleach turned me into a hardline anti-dub viewer.
As 'generic' and mainstream as Bleach's reputation can sometimes be, it is still probably one of, if not my favourite anime just for the complexity and depth of characters. Sadly i think a lot of people who watch Bleach just dont get it, id suspect mostly younger viewers. It's important to realise this isn't just some shallow kids crap like Dragon Ball Z. When the series was cancelled I was absolutely devastated since after 366 episodes there is still so much with regards to many characters not yet even touched on. I'm hoping that this is just a way to move past Ichigo as the main character, and a 'spin-off' is in the works.
If you haven't watched Bleach, you're missing out bigtime!
