Tite Kubo has made sure that one aspect of Bleach remains undefeated, and Eiichiro Oda clearly struggles in the field with One Piece.
SUMMARY
Bleach has arguably better female characters than One Piece with powerful women who aren’t damsels in distress.
One Piece has fewer strong female characters and Eiichiro Oda often overly sexualizes them.
In Bleach, Rukia goes through almost as much development as Ichigo and there are plenty of female characters who can stand on their own prowess, and have a huge impact on the series.
The One Piece Vs. Bleach debate is neverending, and once you get sucked into the void, there’s no exit. Of course, there are sub-parts to this debate: most powerful protagonist, best female character, best villain so on and so forth. But there’s one field in which Bleach has a relatively upper hand.
Be it Rangiku, Rukia, Orihime, Unohana, Soi Fon, or Yoruichi, the list of strong female characters in Bleach goes on. Tite Kubo has created more quality female characters than both One Piece and Naruto.
Bleach might have better female characters than One Piece
Orihime and Rukia in Bleach | Credits: Studio Pierrot
Orihime in Bleach | Credits: Studio Pierrot
⛶
Bleach does have its damsel in distress moments with characters who needed to be helped out by the protagonist. But the series was still ahead of its time with female protagonists. The Shonen genre has always been nefarious with the treatment of women, as most are downgraded to side characters. Even if they are powerful, they are nerfed to make the male protagonist shine, but Tite Kubo never walked down that path.
Bleach has a large volume of female characters who are extremely strong and independent. Something that cannot be stated about One Piece or Naruto. The women in Bleach actually leave an impact on the story. While the series also has a male-dominated cast like its peers, Tite Kubo made room for powerful women who are known for their own identities and are not just token wives.
Rukia is often called the best female character of Bleach as well as among series like One Piece and Naruto. She went through almost as much character development as Ichigo. Orihime might look like the damsel in distress, but her skills are top-notch, and she has the ability to reject any phenomena. The only reason she doesn’t fight as much is because of her dislike of combat.
Bleach presents female characters better
Soi Fon in Bleach | Credits: Studio Pierrot
⛶
Yoruichi in Bleach | Credits: Studio Pierrot
⛶
Yoruichi Vs. Soi Fon in Bleach | Credits: Studio Pierrot
Bleach does have a few eye candies and fan service involved with female characters. But it’s nowhere near as severe as One Piece. Eiichiro Oda often gets criticized for overly sexualizing female characters, and rightfully so. Most One Piece female characters sport extremely sexualized bodies with unrealistic body standards.
While characters like Rangiku also provide fan service, it is at least a bit more realistic than One Piece. Other Bleach characters like Yoruichi, Soi Fon, and Unohana are bona fide fighters who can rival the strongest male characters in the series. Additionally, Rukia was never marginalized in the story and Orihime was never just the token love interest.
Nami and Nico Robin in One Piece | Credits: Toei Animation
In fact, Viz Media also has a 34-minute video titled The Women of Bleach, to explore each of the phenomenal characters.
Strong female characters in Bleach are just more in number than One Piece and Naruto and they affect the story in various ways. Thus, Bleach has set a great example for the next generation of anime and manga with its beautiful and empowering portrayal of women.
