The tenth 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, released on DVD as the , is 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...

. The 16-episode season is 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. The episodes' plot continues to follow 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...

's and his friends' battle against the Espada, the strongest of former Soul Reaper Captain Sōsuke Aizen

Sosuke Aizen

is a fictional character and formerly the main antagonist in the anime and manga series Bleach created by Tite Kubo. He is the captain of the 5th Division when he is first introduced, but later betrays the Soul Society and becomes the series' main antagonist...

's army, to rescue Orihime Inoue

Orihime Inoue

is a fictional character in the anime and manga series Bleach created by Tite Kubo. She is a classmate and friend of Ichigo Kurosaki, the main character of the series. Like many other friends of Ichigo, she quickly develops spiritual powers of her own after Ichigo becomes a Soul Reaper...

. Episodes 204 and 205 are centered on a soccer match developed by the Kasumiōji Soul Reapers who appeared in season 9.

The season first aired from October 14, 2008 until February 3, 2009 on TV Tokyo in Japan. The English adaptation of the anime is licensed 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...

, and began airing on Cartoon Network

Cartoon Network

Cartoon Network is a name of television channels worldwide created by Turner Broadcasting which used to primarily show animated programming. The channel began broadcasting on October 1, 1992 in the United States....

'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...

 starting on February 5, 2011, and ended on May 21, 2011. Aniplex released the season in a series of DVD compilations, with each of the four volumes containing four episodes. The first DVD volume was released on May 27, 2009, and the fourth one on August 26, 2009.

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 closing themes. The opening theme is "Velonica" by Aqua Timez

Aqua Timez

is a Japanese pop rock band signed to Epic Records.-Overview:Futoshi and OKP-Star met on with9.com in 2000 and attempted to start a band together. Unable to agree on the band's future, the two disbanded. In 2003, the current band members gathered and formed Aqua Timez. Their first independent music...

. The first ending theme, "Hitohira no Hanabira

Hitohira no Hanabira

"Hitohira no Hanabira" is the first single by the Japanese rock group Stereopony. It was released on November 5, 2008, under gr8! Records. The main track, "Hitohira no Hanabira", was the 17th ending theme for the anime series Bleach....

" by Stereopony

Stereopony

, is a Japanese rock band that formed in Okinawa, Japan in 2007, consisting of Aimi , Nohana , and Shiho...

, is used for episode 190 to 201, and the second ending theme, by Shion Tsuji

Shion Tsuji

is a Japanese singer-songwriter. She is best known for her song "Sky Chord ," which was used as the 18th ending theme song for the anime Bleach.- Biography :...

, is used for the remainder. To promote the third feature film, Bleach: Fade to Black, I Call Your Name

Bleach: Fade to Black, I Call Your Name

is the third animated film adaptation of the anime and manga series Bleach. Directed by Noriyuki Abe, the film was released December 13, 2008. The film's theme music was "Koyoi, Tsuki wa Miezu Tomo", performed by Porno Graffiti and its screenplay was written by Natsuko Takahashi, who is a...

, which was released on December 13, 2008, the credits from episodes 197 through 201 use teaser

Teaser trailer

A teaser campaign is an advertising campaign which typically consists of a series of small, cryptic, challenging advertisements that anticipate a larger, full-blown campaign for a product launch or otherwise important event. These advertisements are called "teasers" or "teaser ads"...

 footage.

Episode list

No.	Title	Original airdate	English airdate