Highlights
- Bleach's Thousand-Year Blood War arc has exceeded expectations and brought back the original Gotei 13 Captains, delighting fans.
- Tite Kubo, the series creator, released character designs to celebrate the anime's return, showing his continued love for the franchise.
- The original Gotei 13 Captains had unique appearances, from Danjiro Obana's hidden face to Chika Shihouin's shaggy white hair.
When Bleach ended, a lot of fans were left disappointed because they believed they would never see the final arc in animated form, but that all changed when news broke that The Thousand-Year Blood War would be adapted. The arc debuted in October, and so far, it has exceeded expectations, and many fans were happy to see Bleach's original Gotei 13 Captains in action. The original Captains were on screen for barely two minutes, where they were each seen dispatching Quincies with ease.
In the manga, the original Gotei 13, with the exception of Yamamoto, were nothing more but silhouettes. Bleach is known for its well-designed characters, and series creator Tite Kubo released the designs for the original Captains to celebrate the anime's return. Their names and Squad numbers were also released, and it was clear that Kubo still has a ton of love for the franchise despite all the tiffs he had with his editors over the creative vision of his series.
Updated on August 11, 2023, by Ritwik Mitra: Bleach: The Thousand-Year Blood War is shaping up to be one of the most talked about anime around, with its approach on shorter and more focused episodes meaning that players don't have to worry about drawn-out scenes or filler anymore. Yhwach is a pretty engaging antagonist, and fans can only wait and see how this tough villain is defeated after he manages to kill the Captain-Commander, Genryusai Yamamoto himself. As a treat for fans, the character designs of the original members of the Gotei 13 are available for them to peruse, with these designs showing Kubo at his very best.
13 Danjiro Obana - Squad 5 Captain
Aizen and Hirako are the Squad 5 Captains that most fans know about, but the original Captain was a real fighter. His name was Danjiro Obana, and not much is known about his full appearance because his face is always either hidden or obscured.
What is known is that he is a tall man with brown eyes and thick eyebrows, and his hair is wavy and shaggy looking. He sports a short ponytail and long sideburns. He wears blue gauntlets on his forearms, which have gold trim. Unfortunately, these gauntlets are his most prominent feature.
12 Kinroku Izuhara - Squad 3 Captain
Squad 3 has been led by the likes of Gin Ichimaru and Rojuro Otoribashi, but the squad's original Captain looked very different. His name was Kinroku Izuhara, and he preferred to take out his opponents by going for their throats.
Kinroku looks like an ordinary middle-aged man with fair skin, a thin mouth, a sharp nose, prominent cheekbones, and a pronounced jawline. He also has short grey hair that is parted to the right side. The only thing that makes him stand out is the yellow lenses of his glasses.
11 Chigiri Shijima - Squad 4 Captain
When the Gotei 13 were founded, Squad 4 was not known as the Healing Corps, which came much later. The Squad's original Captain was named Chigiri Shijima, and he was a legitimate fighter. During the Quincy's first invasion, he removed the heads of dozens of Quincy with his sealed Zanpakuto.
In terms of appearance, not much is known about his face because it is covered by his long grey hair. He is pale-skinned, though, and he appears to have a pointed nose and eyes that are meant to strike fear.
10 Furuoki Otogawa - Squad 10 Captain
When Furuoki Otogawa was revealed, many assumed that he was a member of the Kuchiki Clan and the original Captain of Squad 6, but he was actually the first Captain of Squad 10. He is a tall and thin man with fair skin, and he seems to always have the same passive expression, which is why he seemed like Byakuya's ancestor.
He has long black hair, which he wore in chest-length bangs. What separates him from the rest of the original Gotei 13 is the straw rice hat that he sometimes wore.
9 Batsunsai Katori - Squad 8 Captain
Most Bleach fans associate Squad 8 with the ever-so-charming Shunsui Kyoraku, but the original Captain was female. At first glance, she appears to be related to Lisa Yadomaru or Nanao Ise, but her actual name is Batsunai Katori.
She had pale skin and large eyes, which explains why she wore large thin-rimmed glasses. Her hair was black, and it was arranged into bangs in the front and a long segmented ponytail that went down her back. Batsunai looks like a nice girl, but she was actually a cold-blooded killer who would cut through enemies with her spear-like Shikai.
8 Shigekuni Genryusai Yamamoto - Squad 1 Captain
Yamamoto was the oldest of the Gotei 13 Captains when the group was first introduced, which is understandable since he founded the entire organization. He was the strongest Soul Reaper for thousands of years, and his powerful abilities and attacks proved just how strong he was.
When he was younger, he still looked old, but he was not completely bald, and his hair was still black. He did not have his long beard either, instead, he sported a long mustache, and his eyebrows were much shorter. Yamamoto looked a lot meaner when he was younger, but his overall design made him look too ordinary.
7 Saizou Sakahone - Squad 13 Captain
Most Bleach fans would agree that Jushiro Ukitake was a handsome individual, but the same cannot be said about his Squad 13 predecessor. Saizou Sakahone was the oldest of the original Gotei 13, and it showed, as he was a gaunt man with tanned and heavily wrinkled skin.
He had a big nose, no hair, and sunken eyes, which made him look like he was already dead. He had a hunched back as well. Despite his age, Saizou was feared, and he took out a large number of Quincy during their original invasion of Soul Society.
6 Entetsu Kumoi - Squad 9 Captain
Squad 9's Captains are not known for looking scary, but the original Captain looks as though he belongs in a horror movie. His name was Entetsu Kumoi, and he was a fairly large man with no hair and olive-colored skin.
He had a scar running down his left eye, but he wore thick glasses which hid his eyes. Entetsu's most striking feature is his golden teeth, which are on full display since he does not seem to have any lips. His Shikai also looks menacing because it takes the form of a black rod that looks eerily like a spinal cord.
5 Yachiru Unohana - Squad 11 Captain
Since she was first introduced, Unohana has been the Captain of Squad 4. She leads the healing core, and she has always appeared to be a calm, polite, and caring individual, but she is actually one of the most ruthless characters in Bleach.
Her real name is Yachiru Unohana, and she was the original Captain of Squad 11. She is considered to be the worst criminal in Soul Society's history. Originally, she wore her hair down instead of her traditional front ponytail, and she possessed a menacing and bloodthirsty look.
4 Uhin Zenjoji - Squad 12 Captain
Kisuke Urahara and Mayuri Kurotsuchi are two of the smartest characters in Bleach, and they were both Captain of the 12th Squad. In the beginning, though, Squad 12 was all about fighting, not science, and Uhin Zenjoji was a violent melee fighter.
He had a Zanpakuto, but he preferred to use his hands in combat. He is a large and overweight individual with a wicked and almost insane-looking smile. He had a U-shaped mark on his face, as well as small grey eyes. His hair was shaved down the middle, but he had a pair of short braids on both sides of his head.
3 Chika Shihouin - Squad 2 Captain
Yoruichi Shihouin was the Captain of Squad 2, and she is the reason why the Squad merged with the Stealth Force. It turns out that her family led Squad 2 for most of its existence, as its original Captain was Chika Shihouin.
Chika was a youthful man with olive skin and golden eyes, but unlike Yoruichi, he had short and shaggy white hair. He wore a pair of gold rectangular earrings, and he had a gold-trimmed orange scarf with spiral patterns wrapped around his neck.
2 Busuna No Shigyou - Squad 7 Captain
Komamura stood out because of his dog-like appearance, and the original Captain of Squad 7 looked like a beast as well, but for different reasons. Busuna No Shigyou was a tall, lanky, and pale man with sunken and twisted skin, particularly around his arms, chest, and eyes.
He had a long and pointed mustache and a long goatee. He also had spiky black hair, which he kept wrapped in black fabric. He wore black gloves and a dark brown fur stoat around his neck and shoulders. Busuna looks like a real killer, so it is safe to assume that he was a very dangerous Soul Reaper.
1 Furoufushi Saitou - Squad 6 Captain
The original Captain of Squad 6 was not a Kuchiki, it was actually a young woman named Furoufushi Saitou. She was the youngest of the original Captains, and she appeared to be quite bloodthirsty as she reveled in combat during the original Quincy War.
She possesses dark pink hair, which she wears as a pair of hip-length pigtails, and she covers the right side of her face with bangs. She has violet eyes, but one of them is covered by an eyepatch, and she wears a white cloth around her head. As young as she is, Furoufushi is undoubtedly one of the strongest women in Bleach.