The Big Three is a popular term coined by anime fans in the early 2000s that refers to the three most influential shonen series of that decade. The Big Three includes One Piece, Naruto, and Bleach, all of which are major hits, all hailing from Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump magazine. While anime fans have tried to repurpose the term "Big Three" to speak of newer shonen trios, none of that has truly stuck. Even today, when speaking of the Big Three, One Piece, Naruto, and Bleach are what come to mind.
Among the Big Three series, the best-selling story has always been One Piece by Eiichiro Oda, and Naruto by Masashi Kishimoto has remained a strong seller as well as a global icon. Bleach, while not too shabby sales-wise, however, has struggled to keep up with the other two. That all changes today, as it has risen in a new special way. In terms of online platform ratings, Bleach has officially surpassed its two rivals and finally became the number one of the Big Three. It is all thanks to Bleach: The Thousand Year Blood War anime adaptation by Studio Pierrot that the anime has jumped rankings on MyAnimeList.
The Big Three is a term that references three extremely popular Weekly Shonen Jump series that had great influence in the 2000s, those being One Piece by Eiichiro Oda, Naruto by Masashi Kishimoto, and Bleach by Tite Kubo. The Big Three has thus become one of the most popular terms that is recognizable by all anime fans. While their run was certainly generational, the group took a hit with the departure of Bleach in 2012, when its anime officially ended. When Studio Pierrot initially ended Bleach's anime, it never completed the story, which is why, in 2022, the studio returned with a new final arc adaptation for the Bleach franchise, known as Bleach: The Thousand-Year Blood War.
The Thousand Year Blood War has been separated into four parts, and through it, we have seen the Bleach series in a new light. Instead of the clunky filler and subpar animation outside of the big fights, the Thousand Year Blood War anime revitalizes the franchise with a new, incredible adaptation, so much so that fans all around the world have been obsessed. The Thousand Year Blood War has been a massive upgrade for the Bleach franchise, and clearly, the reception has been overwhelmingly positive. This positive reception has allowed Bleach to officially shoot ahead of its two rivals, One Piece and Naruto, in terms of rating.
On massive anime rating platforms like MyAnimeList, Bleach officially surpasses One Piece and Naruto and becomes the second-highest-rated anime of all time. Bleach is officially rated as 9.12/10, putting it only second behind Frieren Season 1. In comparison, on MyAnimeList, the One Piece anime is rated only 8.73 out of 10, making it the 54th highest-rated anime. Meanwhile, Naruto is rated at 8.02, and Naruto Shippuden is rated at 8.29. Clearly, in terms of ratings, Bleach has blown the other two out of the water, and this will likely stay the case for a while.
Bleach impressed us all when it officially became the second-highest-rated anime of all time on MyAnimeList. Its rating only keeps rising with every new episode, as the high-octane action and stakes reach their boiling point in the final arc. That being said, Bleach remains, overall, the weakest of the big 3. Rating-wise, it's expected for a newer TV anime adaptation to perform better than extremely old and outdated series like One Piece and Naruto. When comparing the series with their original anime adaptation, Bleach is actually the lowest rated, with only an 8/10 score on MAL, far behind the other two.
Furthermore, fan ratings are only one factor in a series's overall performance. When it comes to sales, Bleach is by far the lowest of the three. One Piece is, of course, the world's best-selling manga series of all time, with over 600 million copies in circulation and 115 volumes currently. Naruto is second, with over 250 million sales and 72 volumes in circulation. Bleach is the lowest of the three, even though it remains generally a high performer for Weekly Shonen Jump.
Bleach, overall, ended its run with around 130 million sales and 74 volumes, which is more volumes released than Naruto, with fewer sales overall. Bleach has a long way ahead of it if it hopes to ever surpass the other two. Aside from the sales, Bleach also falls behind when it comes to cultural impact and has yet to catch up. Even a decade after its end, Naruto remains one of the most popular anime series of all time, with an undying fanbase, and One Piece still has a long run ahead of it, with a growing global fanbase and new projects popping up every year.
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