Bleach/The Day I Became a Shinigami

The Day I Became a Shinigami
Season 1, Episode 1
Airdate	October 5, 2004
Production Number	01
Written by	—
Directed by	Noriyuki Abe
ADR Writer(s)	Carl Macek Liam O'Brien Mark Ryan Michael Sorich
ADR Director(s)	Michael Sorich
— N/A	1x02 → A Shinigami's Work
Bleach — Season One

The Day I Became a Shinigami is the first episode of the first season of Bleach. Ichigo's life is changed when he finds himself in between a soul reaper (Shinigami) and a hollow.

Co-Stars: Michael Sorich (Fishbone D)

Plot Overview

On his way home from school Ichigo Kurosaki stops to berate and assault three young men who accidentally knocked over a tribute to a girl that died where they were skateboarding. He apologizes to the spirit and continues on his way home after promising that he'll return the next day and replace the flowers. But, when that time comes around, he sees the girl again, running from a hulking monster that is presumably chasing her. Ichigo flees with the spirit, but she trips leaving both of them vulnerable to the monster. Before it can kill them, a girl in a black kimono with a large sword leaps out of nowhere and cuts the monster in half.

Later that night, the girl appears in Ichigo's room and pretends like she can't hear his questions. When Ichigo kicks her in the head, she explains that she is a shinigami (or soul reaper) and that he shouldn't be able to see her, much less touch her. She explains to him what exactly she is and her job as an agent of the Soul Society. When Ichigo shows his typical impudence, the soul reaper gets annoyed and performs a binding spell on him. After sending a soul that was haunting Ichigo's home to the Soul Society, the reaper continues her explanation; she particularly focuses on the difference between a Hollow and a "Plus."

Meanwhile, another hollow has appeared and has begun chasing the girl from before, but when it gets close, it diverts its attention away from the spirit and towards Ichigo's house where it hurts Yuzu and Karin Kurosaki. The reaper leaves Ichigo upstairs while she attempts to deal with the monster, but he stumbles down the stairs, still affected by the magic. Despite the reaper's insistance that it can't be done, he breaks the binding spell and attempts to club the hollow with a chair. The reaper rushes to Ichigo's rescue but is hurt badly in combat. She tells Ichigo that the only way that he'll be able to stop the hollow is by becoming a reaper himself.

Rukia Kuchiki, the reaper, attempts to give Ichigo a fraction of her power but winds up giving him nearly all of it. Ichigo, now in a powered up reaper form, quickly dispatches the hollow to Rukia's amazement.

Trivia

The Show

• Alternate Title: This episode is entitled "A Shinigami is Born" in some international versions of the series.