The opening chapter of Bleach volume 36 winds the clock back more than a century, gathering the captains of an earlier Gotei 13 as they wait to greet a lazy new arrival taking over the Twelfth Division.
Main Characters (4)
Summary
A hundred and ten years before the clash in Fake Karakura Town, Sōsuke Aizen, then lieutenant of the Fifth Division, collects his captain, Shinji Hirako, so the two can attend a welcoming ceremony. The pair squabble over Aizen's refusal to dress up and over Shinji's taste in music on the way to the First Division headquarters, where Hiyori Sarugaki greets Shinji with a kick to the face and earns a scolding from Love Aikawa. As the group waits, Shinji grumbles about the Eleventh's tenth-generation Kenpachi being made a captain, and Love notes it is simply custom for that division to be led by a Kenpachi.
When Ukitake, Kyōraku, and Lisa Yadōmaru turn up, talk shifts to the recent churn among the captains. Rose took the Third Division two years earlier, and only Kyōraku, Ukitake, Yamamoto, and Unohana have held their posts beyond a century. Overhearing that Kirio Hikifune vacated the Twelfth, Aizen asks where she went, and Kyōraku reveals she was elevated to the Royal Guard. Kensei Muguruma then announces that the newcomer has arrived and that Yamamoto wants everyone lined up. Kisuke Urahara steps in wearing a captain's haori, and both Aizen and Shinji size him up as lazy.
Key Events
The chapter opens the flashback that fills in Soul Society's state a century before the main story. It establishes Aizen as Shinji's outwardly mild lieutenant, introduces the earlier roster of captains and their easy camaraderie, and marks a period of unusually rapid turnover in the Gotei 13. Hikifune's promotion to the Royal Guard creates the vacancy that brings in Kisuke Urahara as the fresh captain of the Twelfth Division, setting the stage for everything that follows.
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Notes
This is the first chapter of volume 36, a book whose entire nine-chapter run is devoted to the Turn Back The Pendulum flashback and carries Shinji Hirako on its cover. The chapter was adapted as Episode 206, The Past Chapter Begins! The Truth from 110 Years Ago. Its numbering runs backward, a device used across the arc to signal events that precede the series' present timeline.
Frequently Asked Questions
What episode is Turn Back The Pendulum?
The opening chapter TURN BACK THE PENDULUM was adapted as Episode 206, The Past Chapter Begins! The Truth from 110 Years Ago. It begins the anime's Turn Back The Pendulum flashback.
Is the Turn Back The Pendulum arc filler?
No, the Turn Back The Pendulum arc is not filler; it is a canon flashback from the manga that fills the entire nine-chapter run of volume 36 before being adapted into the anime. The story winds the clock back more than a century to an earlier Gotei 13.
When is TURN BACK THE PENDULUM set?
The chapter TURN BACK THE PENDULUM is set a hundred and ten years before the clash in Fake Karakura Town, when Sosuke Aizen was still lieutenant of the Fifth Division under captain Shinji Hirako.
Why is Kisuke Urahara made captain of the Twelfth Division?
In TURN BACK THE PENDULUM, Kirio Hikifune vacates the Twelfth Division after being elevated to the Royal Guard, and that vacancy brings in Kisuke Urahara as the fresh captain of the division.
Why does the chapter numbering run backward?
The chapter TURN BACK THE PENDULUM uses backward numbering as a device across the arc to signal events that precede the series' present timeline. Volume 36's entire nine-chapter run is devoted to this flashback and carries Shinji Hirako on its cover.
Sources & Information
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View on FandomThis content is original writing by Daddy Jim Headquarters based on the Bleach anime series, manga, and official materials. Episode and chapter references are cited where applicable.
Rights holders
- Created byTite Kubo
- Published byShueisha
- Animated byStudio Pierrot
All rights belong to their respective owners.
Character and scene imagery on this site is original artwork by Daddy Jim Headquarters, not screenshots or licensed imagery. Official cover art is used on three types of pages for editorial commentary:
- Movie pages: theatrical posters and key visuals, credited to Studio Pierrot and the production committee.
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- Manga chapter pages: Jump Comics volume covers, credited to Shueisha and Tite Kubo.
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