Bleach is filled with dozens of unique characters, and the final season will introduce plenty more. While the members of the Gotei 13 and all the antagonists are full of big personalities, the main cast is still full of fan favorites. Viewers who plan on binging the series in anticipation of the final arc will want to become familiar with the main cast.

Updated on May 22, 2022 by Ritwik Mitra: Bleach is one of the most well-known manga ever made, even though its quality and popularity had steadily waned over time. Tite Kubo has his strengths, and his stellar character design is definitely one of his biggest talents. As a result, the main cast of Bleach has been immortalized in pop culture for their iconic look and personality, and here’s everything that fans of the show need to know about the main characters in this series.

Ichigo Kurosaki

Age: 17 Height: 5'11" Birthday: July 15th

Ichigo Kurosaki is a Substitute Soul Reaper and the protagonist of Bleach. The series begins with Ichigo being a stubborn and impulsive teenager, with a strong will and short temper.

A chance encounter with the soul reaper Rukia Kuchiki leads to Ichigo gaining the ability to become a Soul Reaper. His combat abilities and powers develop further throughout the series. However, Ichigo’s impulsive nature does lead to plenty of conflicts with himself and other characters in the series.

Rukia Kuchiki

Age: Approximately 150+ Height: 4'8" Birthday: January 14th

Rukia Kuchiki is a Soul Reaper and member of the 13th division. She often has a cool and aloof demeanor, though through the bonds she develops with her friends she begins to open up more.

Rukia was brought to the Soul Society with her older sister after they died in the Human world. Rukia was abandoned as a baby and grew up on her own until meeting Renji Abari and his group of friends. She was later adopted into the Kuchiki family. Rukia is skilled in swordsmanship and Kido, the latter being her greatest strength as a Soul Reaper.

Uryu Ishida

Age: 17 Height: 5'9" Birthday: November 6th

The quiet and solitary Uryu Ishida is the only Quincy in the main Bleach group. Uryu strongly believes in the “Pride of the Quincy” and has a strong sense of justice.

As a child, Uryu spent most of his time training with his grandfather to continue on the Quincy legacy. He initially begins the series with a deep hatred towards Soul Reapers, causing plenty of initial conflict with Ichigo and Rukia.

Orihime Inoue

Age: 17 Height: 5'2" Birthday: September 3rd

Orihime is naive though optimistic. She is one of Ichigo’s classmates and is constantly trying to hide her crush on the protagonist. Orihime is a pacifist by nature, and this does cause plenty of problems when the group encounters opponents who aren’t as forgiving.

Throughout the series, Orihime develops her spiritual powers, in the form of six spirits residing in her hairpins. These spirits allow her to negate phenomena and undo events such as injuries others have sustained.

Yasutora Sado

Age: 18 Height: 6'5" Birthday: April 7th

Yasutora Sado, most often called Chad by the other characters, is one of Ichigo’s classmates. The teenager appears much older than he is due to his extreme height. He is the quieter member of the group, but his loyalty to his friends speaks volumes.

Sado has superhuman strength, and this strength only increases throughout the series through training. He can manifest armor on both his arms. The right takes on a defensive form, while the left boosts enhanced strength and a powerful spiritual attack.

Renji Abarai

Age: Approximately 150+ Height: 6'2" Birthday: August 31st

Renji Abarai is the lieutenant of the sixth division of the Gotei 13. When Renji makes his debut, he comes off as cocky and smug. Despite this, he can become very serious when facing a challenging foe; however, when defeated Renji can become very depressed.

Renji is skilled in swordsmanship and can hold his own against captain-level threats. When Renji is first introduced in the series, both he and Byakyau Kuchiki travel to the human world to arrest Rukia. His decades of combat skills instantly overwhelm Ichigo and Uryu.

Kon

Age: Unknown Height: 10 1/2" Birthday: December 30th

Though often forgotten about by the other members of the group, Kon serves as the comedy relief for much of the series. Kon is a modified soul that resides inside a plush toy. Before Ichigo is officially instated as a substitute Soul Reaper, he uses Kon to switch into his soul form.

This causes plenty of chaos, due to the Mod Souls personality being drastically different from Ichigo’s. Despite Kon’s personality, he values all lifeforms, due to living for years with the fear of being disposed of himself. This leads him to constantly risk his own life, and disregard the limitations being a toy gives him.

Sosuke Aizen

Age: Unknown Height: 6'1" Birthday: May 29th

The reveal of Aizen as a cutthroat is one of the best moments in the Soul Society arc and cements this saga as one of the greatest shonen tales of all time. This Commander shows his sinister side with a string of diabolical moments, following by a change in character design that cemented his place as the series’ biggest villain at that point.

The sheer amount of power that Aizen wielded is hard to comprehend to this day. He was able to take on the entirety of the Gotei 13 with only minor wounds, making him a pretty exciting character indeed. It’s a shame that he was defeated by Ichigo in a manner that completely destroyed his character… and the interest that most people had in the series too.

Kisuke Urahara

Age: 200+ Height: 6'0" Birthday: December 31st

Kisuke Urahara is one of the more mysterious characters to appear in the show. A Shinigami who was banished by Soul Society for reasons that weren’t revealed until long after in the anime, Urahara is easily one of the coolest characters in the show who harbors a ton of power.

There’s a reason why he was the perfect mentor for Ichigo to learn his iconic Bankai. The Thousand-Year Blood War features the appearance of his Bankai as well, which was absolutely brilliant in the manga as well. Only time will tell whether the adaptation will do justice to this incredible moment.

Yhwach

Age: 1200+ Height: 6'5" Birthday: December 25th

The antagonist of the Thousand-Year Blood War arc is one of the most powerful characters Tite Kubo has ever created. The fact that this character is the son of the Soul King should be proof enough of just how powerful Yhwach really is, with his introduction leading to the death of the powerful Commander Yamamoto himself!

Over the course of this arc, establishes himself as a force to be reckoned with time and time again. It’s a shame that the final battle against him is just so underwhelming, and fans are hoping that the anime adaptation will possibly rectify this disappointing fight… although it does seem pretty unlikely at this point.

More: Bleach: What Happens After The Anime?