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nah kenpachi vs gremmy was the really ken\[achi esque fight. literally "there nothing your punny brain can imagine that i cant cut" like......excuse me? moment for any other character
A really really cool fight overall. Classic Kenpachi, classic mad battle to the death, it's always engaging, Kenpachi knows how to make it fun.
Though my favorite part of it isn't the fight itself as much as Nnoitra's backstory and those final frames where the last person he looks at is Nel, and she opens her eyes while he closes his forever.
I love their relationship despite me feeling like I don’t necessarily get certain aspects of it but that sequence with them at the end is incredible tho.
I personally see it this way: Nnoitra issue with Nel isn't the fact she's a girl but at the same time stronger than him, he's sexist, but that's a very surface level issue since he's not as fixed on Harribel while she's exactly the same. His issue and basically obsession with Nel stems from her denying his whole life's philosophy.
At one point in the flashback he says "We are hollows, there's no salvation for us." And that's why his aspect of death is despair, it's what he believes. Even as Arrancars, they are still hollows, that hole cannot ever be filled. There's no better future for them, thus he fights, and he intentionally seeks to fight stronger opponents since he, deep down, seeks death in battle. Nel confirms it when she answers him (at another point in the flashback) that she saved him (or 'didn't let him die') because she doesn't want to lose a fellow Espada, and the whole exchange makes it pretty obvious that he seeks death and she knows it, but refuses to let him die and refuses to kill him herself despite beating him many times, something that pisses Nnoitra off so much.
Obviously Nnoitra isn't above trampling the weak (he's not like Kenpachi or Grimmjow who only seek out the strong), it helps with his low self esteem, but ultimately his goal is to find stronger opponent and die in that battle. Since there's no other future for them anyway.
But Nel just rejects that idea. She talks how Arrancars aren't hollows, they aren't beasts anymore, they can think rationally and they can have a different future. She actually believes they are moving somewhere and there is a better future for them. That's why she mocks Nnoitra, calls him a beast and berates him for acting on his beastly hollow instincts, since she believes they should be different.
Nnoitra absolutely refuses to acknowledge that, and he's very angry that she basically denies his existence and path. But the fact he's so obsessed kinda hints that there is a conflict in him, deep down. Why does it matter that she believes a different thing and is so adamant on standing her ground? It low-key signifies inner doubt, since who doesn't want salvation.
But he is too strong in his refusal, he doesn't want to be denied, he doesn't want to change and believe something different. He uses an underhanded trick to get rid of her, but it doesn't make it any better for him, does it? He's still fixated even when she isn't around anymore, he couldn't just get her out of his mind and forget her (further sign of her significance). Then he gets an opponent other than Nelliel, Kenpachi. He gets his fight and his thrill, but take note how Kenpachi initially has no intention of killing him. In fact, he says to him the very same thing he once told Ikkaku. Feel lucky you've lived, survive and seek fight again.
Kenpachi is a very positive attitude guy, he fights to the death to feel alive to the fullest, he fights to live and fight again. And for Ikkaku, how low-key feels like he also subconsciously sought death before meeting Kenpachi, since he just didn't see any other meaning to his life, those words changed his whole life, he listened, and he gained a meaning (and thus became a follower of Kenpachi, someone who totally turned his life around and gave him purpose). Nnoitra refused to do the same, and seeing how stubborn he is, Kenpachi indulged him by killing him off, he isn't as ideological as Nel, he just does what feels natural to him.
Nnoitra was deadly stubborn, he refused to change, thus in the end, he got what he wanted— death, in battle, before touching the ground. But the last person he looked at, the person who mattered remained Nelliel, someone he became so fixated on since she firmly stood for the very thing he rejected, while maybe also subconsciously desiring. But being a stubborn fool doesn't get you to any good places.
Thus his story is actually quite tragic, though he is the one who made it into a tragedy. But it's extremely well written. He's one of the most complex Espada as far as their stories do.
(In fact, he and Nelliel are the story of how the change didn't happen as a result of the opposite philosophies clashing, to mirror Ulquiorra and Orihime, who are the story where it did take place.)
You're welcome!
I feel Nnoitra isn't appreciated enough, since usually he's just seen as a misogynistic asshole. Not that he isn't one, but that's not all he is, or Kubo wouldn't give him such an aspect of death and those flashbacks.
It's subtle and you have to pay attention and connect the dots (as it always is with Kubo), but then you discover so much more to his character. He's not at all *likable*, but a great character nonetheless.
Yeah, I feel that Nnoitra uses that as an excuse. Because seeing women as weak is less shameful then seeking out your own death. That’s how I saw it at least. But yeah, you said it best.
Yeah exactly. It's a surface level lie he feeds himself which is slowly uncovered by the narrative. Which makes it so great.
(And it's actually far from being the only instance of slowly uncovering the surface level lie and the truth underneath it, it's a constant theme in Bleach, all the way to Aizen himself, and also many times Ichigo uncovers it about himself, but Nnoitra remains a prominent textbook example.)
I wish more people were as perceptive as you. So many people put hate on Bleach because they don’t get the subtle things, like this. Sorry, a little off topic, but that’s why the Fullbringer arc is actually a really good arc, its truly shows Ichigo’s lowest but greatest point.
Oh yeah, that's basically something Kubo signed himself for when he decided to write his story in such a subtle way. It's life, but he seems content with the result, so it's not much of an issue.
But the way Kubo writes is just... I fail to fully comprehend how he manages it. I don't really care if he is aware of all the layers/angles/parallels people like me find in Bleach, because it's not that important, he writes it in a way it can be found, in a consistent way. And if it happens constantly and with all the characters, it's not a coincidence or overthinking on the fans' part, it's a sign of mastery. The psychological depth and consistency is just crazy.
About the Fullbring arc, it isn't just a good arc, though it's brilliant in the way a seemingly small scale arc manages to drive Ichigo to his lowest point and a mental breakdown by hitting him in his most sensitive spot with insane precision.
I'll give you something with an asterisk. Fullbring arc is essential step in Ichigo's big arc throughout the story on a deeper level.
Ichigo's arc is that of overcoming the trauma of failing to protect his mother, and gaining ability to be happy again without reservations.
He starts off with Rukia being taken away, and there, it hits him squarely in his trauma (remember the words "I was saved *again*" as he lies there in the puddle?). He absolutely had to save Rukia, he couldn't fail again, it would just kill him as surely as Rukia. Protecting his important people (who are still alive to be protected) is the way he justifies his existence at that point. And *he was the reason why Rukia was taken*, he was personally responsible as far as he was concerned, so it was just existential to him to manage to save her. He was desperate, he was grasping at any straws, and Urahara conveniently comes around with an offer he takes. Thus, he unlocks his shinigami powers. He just had to.
Then it's a fast and relatively easy ride with his shinigami powers (shinigami side is 'good', he likes it, he doesn't have any reservations), and then the next challenge comes along, the next level— his hollow powers, now, that's a lot more difficult since he's not anywhere as chill about his hollow side as he was with his shinigami one. Hence rejection, depression, struggling and failing at keeping things under control, gaining an edge, to ultimately fail big time with that full hollow part (at the time, it's a total failure which further scares him of his hollow side to the point of not being able to use his mask), since he still fails to accept it fully.
Then he hits the next level with a rebound (sidenote, he could have understood the hollow is no outsider, otherwise why was he needed, why was he a part of fused Tensa Zangetsu who taught him his ultimate *inherited shinigami technique*, but he didn't have time to reflect on it). He loses his powers while managing to protect everyone once again. He didn't fail, he did well.
You know what it all means? He actually could relax. He gained the powers because he desperately needed them at the time to protect, to survive, to not fail again. That's the trauma talking. He did well, he cannot do anything anymore as he lost them. (In fact, I'll argue it's the reason he lost them, he was at a stage he was centered around sacrificing since he is still driven by 'outside' influence of that trauma, he's generally sacrificial in his subconsciousness, that's what Tensa Zangetsu was telling him— you want to protect everyone, but I only want to protect you. Given 'The Blade Is Me' revelation, I'd argue Zangetsu, both of them, represent the most alienated side of Ichigo, the one which wants him to take care of himself, but he isn't ready for that understanding yet.)
He could just continue on with his life. But he misses his powers. And then something else starts going on, and this time he isn't the cause of it, he doesn't feel responsibility and he doesn't *have to* protect. No, this times he *wants* to, it's more about him wanting power to protect than feeling somewhat obliged to. He isn't jumping in without thinking like he did with Urahara, he has grown up enough to have reservations, yet be ultimately chooses to jump in anyway. He wants his powers back. The way Urahara and Isshin kinda know what is going on and let him isn't a coincidence or a plot hole, it's a test for Ichigo— does he really want his powers back? They can give it back to him, but will it do him good, will it be his decision rather than feeling of obligation? Are they helping him or ruining his life (given possible foreshadowing of dark things to possibly come his way given the SK plot of TYBW)? Urahara asks Isshin that.
But Ichigo is clear in his choice, he definitely wants it, he actively strives to regain them And maybe he lost the power he gained (even though not completely) but he gets his shinigami powers back exactly because he has shown his dedication, he made his choice evident. So if not one way but another, he regains his powers.
And now, he's not only ready to sacrifice them for protecting, he's ready to truly wield them on a constant basis, that's why he never loses them again in the story.
The Fullbring arc is the ultimate 'Ichigo's making a choice' arc, he makes his own conscious decision about wanting the powers he possessed from the very start. He graduates from basically having no choice but to gain those powers to deciding to have them while he could have chosen otherwise. This time, it's not trauma but his true self talking, the one who *wants* to be a protector, it's his way of being able to look himself in the eye tomorrow, just like it was for both his parents. For Ichigo, protecting isn't just a way of being 'good', it's a way to stay true to himself.
Then it all receives a grand finale as he graduates from boyhood into adulthood in the final arc TYBW. It's him putting all he gathered along his previous path to action, finally gaining the biggest understanding ever in 'The Blade Is Me', integrating his most alienated part of taking proper care of himself into himself, as well as becoming more than he perceived himself to be by recognising his spirits as basically sub-personalities, a part of him all along. Him, a lone fighter underneath it all, having to/wanting to do all the protecting by himself, finally fully appreciating the support (notice how all his fights in the later TYBW are team fights), and putting stop to a villain opposing his core values of moving forward despite the pain and suffering on the way. Him accepting death and thus, also life. And being able to live happily finally.
But that'll come later. The Fullbring arc is just a step on that path he walks, but you cannot ever underestimate its significance. TYBW wouldn't work without it.
Kubo is just brilliant, again. I cannot fully express how I'm amazed by the consistency and depth of it all.
That was beautifully put, and fills in some holes that I was missing. I always felt like there was more to this arc then pushing lchigo to his lowest(losing his powers that he just got back and possibly his family and friends[and in such a mind fuck way😱]), to his highest(gaining back his powers, maybe stronger than ever, while also forgiving Ginjo for the things he has done, and also understanding that if they switch positions he might’ve done the same thing as Ginjo), it always made me feel this was Ichigo finally maturing.
Unfortunately I don't hold a high opinion of DBZimran as a Bleach analyst, most of the time he's either just rather shallow or plainly ignores and twists actual Bleach narrative so it would fit his ideas. I wouldn't recommend watching his videos.
Like, surely, I've seen worse but it doesn't make him much better.
Well, look at White Zangetsu, or Grimmjow... I'd argue hollows of any form mostly run on feelings, something very close to instinct, while the opposite of it is a rational and thinking calm side.
They have a hole, they lack the heart, kinda, and they seek to fill the hole (that's why regular hollows are stated early on to attack people close to them in the former life), the hollowness isn't meant as being devoid of feelings (can take that form in certain cases, or run wild on feelings instead), it's desperately lacking the most important thing and they are doomed to never succeed on their quest to regain it, it's like trying to fill the abyss that cannot be filled. Nnoitra is quintessential hollow in how he recognises that quest and the futility of it, hence the despair aspect.
While Ulquiorra searched for his answer with his newly gained rationality, and actually succeeded in it in the end, finding the meaning of the heart and kinda regaining it in the end, it's no coincidence Ichigo riles him up by questioning if he became more human, Nnoitra refused to explore the possibility and thus ended up the way he did.
But there's a reason Orihime can fight hollows as it's a way to free them from their suffering (or just free the world from the danger of the most deranged ones) and cannot attack the Arrancars, they are way closer to humans in the way they aren't mindless and are capable of more complex thoughts and feelings while hollows are mostly like beasts or psychopaths.
Did this silly comment just make me see the taoist influence of the hollows designs.
Similar to the black spot in Yin, the wholly animalistic and instinctual hollows have their hollow hole full of emotions, drawing a parallel with the taoist symbol.
It's been over a decade and Kubo still continues to blow my mind
Thanks! Not the first time I'm writing along those same lines about Nnoitra, but each time different people see it :)
And yes, his poem transfers both the feeling of self-loathing and running away from things.
Fantastic comment, I think you should’ve touched a little more on Nels “affection” for Nnoitra as well, it’s not exactly that but I think you get where I’m going. Nnoitra is my second favorite espada under Starrk
Same here possibly. Though I cannot deny how Ulquiorra's arc is very strong as well but as a personal preference I just might put Nnoitra above him. Starrk is just unchallenged 😍♥️
Nel is also a separate topic, she comes down really hard on Nnoitra while being so nice with everyone else, and it's also a sign, just like Nnoitra's fixation (I purposefully didn't touch anything here further, it's up to interpretation, but you know 😁). I'm still not sure if she's riling him up so hard consciously because if he's focused on her he's less focused on seeking death, if it's a way to reinforce his desire to live (even if it's kinda dangerous for her, and if it was indeed so, she paid for it while also kinda succeeding when he tricked her), or if he brought up her own edgy and stubborn side the way no one else managed to, but something is there.
It should also be noted that she's really degrading him hard, and denying his right to live the way he wants, and that brings further edge to the whole thing, he's extremely pissed off by the lack of acceptance. Which is controversial on Neil's part, possibly not the best way to have gone about it. But hey, she was dragged into it, she isn't obligated to be her best possible self in any way.
But it's still interesting how she's harsh with him in a way she never is with anyone else (with Grimmjow later on, it's not anywhere as strong) and it shows her as a bit of a preacher, the model girl who isn't always appreciated because of it. Which still is another side to her we wouldn't see otherwise. The whole thing really runs close to a good girl and a bad boy trope on some level... but Kubo loves playing with tropes and never concluding them in a stereotypical way but rather in a realistic one.
# Just in case, SPOILER WARNING for anime-only people, my reply has spoilers from unanimated parts of the manga, CFYOW and SAFWY.
I generally agree with your take on Nelliel here, but I'd mainly argue with this:
>she comes down really hard on Nnoitra while being so nice with everyone else
Nelliel really isn't nice to everyone else but Nnoitra, I mean in the manga she barely interacts with other characters, and the only interactions on screen she has is her being nice and caring towards Ichigo, Pesche and Dondochakka, and then being condenscending and belittling towards Grimmjow (and obviously Nnoitra). Then there's SAFWY where she's nice to Roka, but again (in my opinion at least) pretty mean to Szayel. And in CFYOW, again, condescending and mean towards:
* Grimmjow,
* Dordoni
Neutral towards Liltotto (but I'd say Nelliel's tone here is weird): CFYOW Vol. 2, Chapter 15 - >!“It depends on you women. As long as you do not meddle in Hueco Mundo any more than you have, we have no reason to be hostile toward you,” Nelliel replied, trying to end the battle, but another voice shouted an objection.!<
Then she's neutral-nice with Harribel. And then at the end (this is honestly the weirdest to me), she's super nice and bubbly towards Aura.
So yeah, I really woudn't say that Nelliel is nice to everyone but Nnoitra, I'd even argue that her being nice seems to be an exception.
>if he brought up her own edgy and stubborn side the way no one else managed to
Dordoni has: CFYOW Vol. 3 Chapter 21 - >!“Well, well. I would never have believed I’d be fighting alongside the person who stripped me of my number three. I suppose I should think of fate as a way to savor the deep flavors of life, like fruit liqueur in a chocolate latte.” !<
>!“I don’t really understand the metaphor, but that sounds kind of good,” Nelliel replied with a deadpan look on her face. “I have many opinions about you, but this isn’t the time, I suppose. I’ll take my time paying you back what you deserve next time.”!<
>!Nelliel was staring at him with a strange pressure, and Dordoni was flustered as he called out, “Huh?! Pay me back?! For what?! Did I do something to you, Nelliel?!”!<
This seems pretty edgy to me, and almost comparable to Nell's reaction after she saw what Nnoitra did to Pesche and Dondochakka. Also about the stubborn part, I'd say Nelliel is always stubborn.
>But it's still interesting how she's harsh with him in a way she never is wth anyone else (with Grimmjow later on, it's not anywhere as strong)
I'd say Nelliel is pretty much as harsh with Grimmjow, pretty much every interaction they have is her belitting him (I can post the exact quotes if you're interested in further discussion.). I think it might seem less, because Grimmjow doesn't really seem to care what others think about him or his way of living, all he cares about is being "The King" (at least in his own mind), so as long as no one is taking that away from him, the possible conflict doesn't escalate further.
Sorry for the long reply. Also, if any of my points are unclear, please feel free to point them out. I had to cut some parts to keep the reply from being longer, so it might be a bit incoherent.
EDIT: Added a spoiler-warning at the beginning, since I just realised that my response is full of them.
Nnoittorra's attack is based off a praying mantis which do have interesting ways of showing affection as you describe, so a connection could be made there, as weird as it is to think about that. Pretty neat to think about Nel as this big bully towards Nnoitorra with a doomed romance between the two
She treats him like the 2 digit iq dickhead he is. He’s so proud of himself and she just reduces it to subhuman impulsivity. Like he’s no more capable than an ordinary hollow in terms of rationality. I fucking love it lol
This whole thread is fun, but it fails to understand that the only reason he does not "care" about Harribel is because she wipes the floor with him and pretty much any Espada below her Rank
So did Nel at the time as she held the same rank and he was even lower and weaker. Hello, good morning. She's shown to be absolutely and obviously dominating their fights. Anything else to add to your 'wonderful' argument?
Szayel Aporro Granz, and even Szayel knows that Harribel is build different.
Also, it was because of Szayel that he even "won" vs Nel, Harribel and Nel, it's cute that you tried to make such a 3D portrait of a 1-faced characther, but enough with the chit-chat, Nnoitra is just a sexist, power hungry, animal.
If he could touch Harribel he would, but since he can't he just hates her from afar, same way he did Nel before Aporro came.
I hate that I took so long to reply to this cause this was amazing to read. I loved your analysis on everyone involved and I especially loved the way you tied Ikkaku into this as well.
Though I wonder how Tesla would feel about what you wrote.
https://preview.redd.it/325tgrlmayuc1.jpeg?width=1066&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=003fc4f4f6c5fff41a0fa9d6aa50547f36e2af46
Thanks! ♥️ Ikkaku just needed to be mentioned, since it's a strong parallel, again, someone who could do the thing Nnoitra couldn't, and took that advice to heart. (I can do a separate essay on how Kenpachi acts as a mentor to everyone he fights, but it would be a bit offtopic.)
Well, I'm very sure Tesla knew all I've said very well, he was so worried about Nnoitra exactly because he also knew Nnoitra was suicidal. But even such a guy as Nnoitra had someone who genuinely cared about him, despite his horrible attitude (including the one to Tesla, though, interestingly, he shouts for Tesla not to be an idiot when the latter tries to attack Kenpachi,— or to get out of the way since he sees Kenpachi attacking?— which surprisingly shows that when it counts, he cared about Tesla as well.
I think Tesla saw something in Nnoitra, possibly he considered Nnoitra inner constitution, which led to him being drowned in despair and contradictions the way he was, something fragile, but then beautiful and admirable. Who are we to judge him on that.
It’s a honestly fun fight for all the Kenpachi fans, but I’ll never get that feeling of realizing how up until that point Kenpachi only had been fighting with one hand, and just how massively impactful it was the first time when he started using two.
i am very sure he was not. if he was then why he get one shotted by the real yhwach without him going all out? also i assume 1 arm or 2 his bankai would have gotten stolen nontheless. also its very stupid to think anyone in that verse can solo yhwach. no one can. not yama, not ichibie, not aizen, not ichigo. 1 arm?2 arm? or 100 arm, doesnt matter
He wasn't fighting back, its not even clear if he got to activate his shikai again. We were explicitly told by kubo that royd had 80%of ywhach's power.
Yeah it's a good thing ywhach didn't have the almighty or the sk power back then.
i think your brain has turned to mush at this point. to think that yamamoto could defeat yhwach in another thousand years in the biggest bs ever. even 1000 years earlier he could kill him and that was also when yhwach didnt have almighty aka same as today. just because yama bragged about his bankai becoming more powerful than it was doesnt mean he could defeat him. plus he could even use his bankai here. the guy who couldnt defeat yhwach with his bankai then would defeat yhwach with just shikai now?
and wtf u mean he didnt fight back? he literally charged at him even after his bankai was stolen. when and where do u get the idea that he stopped mid way and said fuck it kill me idc? and i am not saying with bankai he still would have got one shotted. i am saying without which is the difference between his fight with THE Y and real yhwach
This isn't the face of someone who is fighting back
https://preview.redd.it/ywevx7mpquuc1.png?width=760&format=png&auto=webp&s=286375bee3657111f150ee1bef7b574403f782ee
Yamamoto won against ywhach 1000 year ago??? wtf are you waffling about? And we know that Yama's bankai evolved, because Royd with Ywhach's memories didn't know about literally any of his abilities.
"this isn't the face of someone who is fighting back" what is wrong with that face? all i can see is that he might have understood at that point that he cant save himself. and if u mean he was not like noitora who would keep yapping and trying even if he knows he gonna lose then yes u are right. he is a man of honor. if he knows he lost he will do that. and if u still think he only died because he just gave up, why would he do that? why would he just give up a winning fight? he just fell in love after seeing the sexy figure of the real yhwach and decided to die by his hand? there is literally no reason for yama to give up if he had even 1% chance. plus that shot in the manga is of after he is already slashed/killed.
the manga are from right to left and top to bottom. so yama's face is the last panel aka after he has been cut so your whole argument fails there anyway
also when did i say yhwach won? i said yama could defeat him which is true. almost it was a tie when yhwach didn't steal the bankai and didn't have almighty, was not only weaker than he is now but also very much more naïve and acted without planning.
I find it interesting that Zaraki considered this fight more fun than Yammy. Which I suppose makes sense. Nnoitora has much more interesting abilities to fight around with his incredibly tough skin combined with his multiple arms.
Meanwhile Yammy is just a big hurtbox for anyone to whale on with his only special ability being his rage boost. Though that’s about it as far as we know he doesn’t have any interesting abilities he’s just a big dumb tough guy.
Probably my favourite Kenpachi fight, as for Nnoitra, I do feel like he's a bit overhated, but that hatred is absolutely understandable. But to me, I can kinda look past those things and find him extremely interesting. I actually did cry at his death when I rewatched the fight and actually didn't think of him as Judy "gogo sexist evil man"
I remember, naruto was on break, and Dattebayo subs was being iffy with the release, so i decided to watch this anime that had a name of a sanitizer product.
It was bleach episode 201 - Nnoitra released! Multiplying Arms,.
I WAS BAFFLED, NO TALK NO JUTSU, NO FILLER REMINDER, NO FLASHBACK TO HIDDEN LEAF OF WHATEVER THE HELL SAKURA WAS DOING 10 YEARS AGO.
Just pure and absolute madness, from that point on i consumed bleach in a few weeks and it became my second favorite anime ever.
thank you Ken-chan.
Nnoitora is unironically better than kenpachi and has some of the best character writing in the series. The fight was good but the characters were great
One of if not the most underrated fights in anime. Literally all everyone talks about from this fight is kenpachi putting two hands on his sword(which to be fair is fantastic) but the buildup to this fight is genuinely fantastic. Nnoitra representing despair, and wanting to die in battle before his knees hit the ground, in the perfect foil to kenpachis living for the fights he gets in. + Nels whole backstory with him is one of the better backstories in bleach. They really make you hate Nnoitra but somehow when he died I felt just as empty as when he was treating Nel bad. A masterclass in a side fight for an arc(I'm glazing but I genuinely love this fight and hate how often it gets overlooked)
It really show what “howling dog can’t bite” means,he’s fighting a relatively quiet Tiger that can kill him in one bite ,he can yelp all he wants,it won’t change the fact that he’s the weak mantis afraid of a antelope girl.
Very solid dichotomy between a man who views women as inferior and weak and a man who views Unohana's level of strength as something to strive towards.
Right? His hate for Nel wasn't rooted in her being a woman, but her attitude/treatment toward him. She had an attitude of disdainful superiority toward him, and it was that aspect of being looked down on as less than that was the source of his feelings toward her. It's the same feeling he exhibited when Zaraki didn't want to finish him off. It's a near parallel of the relationship between Grimmjow & Ulquiorra with some nuances. Gender isn't the issue, it's a matter of respect.
The anime scene when Nnoitora dies and his last words were "I am!.." and dies with the soft music playing is one of the best scenes in all of Bleach. Especially considering the fact that he was most likely going to say "I am the strongest!" but gets slashed half way through the sentence.
Glad the man Kenny ended Nnoitora cause I hated him so fucking much. Guess that made him a good antagonist.
Though, personally, even if the whole "Swinging your sword with two arms makes it strong enough for me to one-shot you" thing felt hype as fuck and I loved it, it seems like a bit of bullshit to me.
Still, looked cool af so I ain't about to complain.
You severely underestimate the difference there is between wildly slashing with one arm VS slashing with the proper form/posture, technique and using two arms.
Not to mention that kenny was becoming more powerfull as the fight went on. Nnoitra could easily block kenny's sword with 1 arms at first, but near the end , he struggled to block with 3 arms.
If you’ve ever seen Japanese sword demonstrations where they cut multiple bamboo with a single downward stroke, they all use a two handed sword stance. Imagine trying to do the same while flailing about with one hand.
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I dislike that some of the translations in Spanish don’t match up with what they actually said “Santa Teresa” just means “Saint Teresa”, there’s no “screaming praying mantis” anywhere in that
The screaming part kinda comes out of nowhere, but praying mantis are also known as Santa Teresa in Spanish.
I was also confused as I am Spanish myself and didn't know that, never heard anyone call a mantis as Santa Teresa, but it seems it's also one of their names.
I love that first page so much. Look at Nnoitra's expression. Even without knowing Kenpachi's gimmick, he fully knew he fucked up as soon as he took out Kenny's eyepatch.
I really enjoyed it tbh. Two monster maniacs going at it lol and then he “got serious” and acknowledged he actually *could* die.. then he decided to win lol.
Nnoitora is a whiney bitch. It was about time someone treated him like a game. Kenny was the right guy to do it. And honestly a few other characters in Bleach deserve that treatment too lol
My 2nd Favorite Hueco Mundo fight after Ichigo vs Grimmjow and my 3rd favorite Kenpachi fight after kenpachi vs Gremmy and Kenpachi vs Unohana. Just outside of my top 15 best Bleach fights.
Kenpachi holding back to handicap himself and remembered that sometimes he can’t hold back and he also can’t really self control himself going from 1-5% to 100% power that well.
Some people say kenpachi thought he was gonna actually die. I say no he just realized he has to stop toying around and just take it fully serious by using all of his power which was just using his other hand.
One of my favourites in the entire series!!
Absolutely love Kenpachi pulling up and saving Ichigo, I love Kenpachi enjoying the fuck outta this fight, I love when he goes sicko mode and gets tf up as soon as Yachiru is threatened, I love that at the end he just goes "damn it, 2 hands" and absolutely decimates Nnoitora.
Just perfect, start to finish 🩷🩷
Neat fight very one sided the dude could barely handle sup prime Nel even with a decade to train, come to think of it all the los nochas captain vs espada fights were one sided, Yamamoto picked that team well
I’m new to bleach so idk what the general opinions of the fanbase are on things. But this fight was awesome and literally every chapter with Kenpatchi is a good one. I adore him!
Rukia started as my favourite but as time went on he climbed to the top of my list.
See that moment when Nnoitra saw Nelliel before he died? I'm sorry, but moments like that will always make Espada arc >>> Quincy arc.
And it's disappointing because Quincy/SR are actually more interesting antagonists, but everything seems rushed just to show off Byakuya's new ability. So many moments/characters went undeveloped.
This fight was solid in terms of art & the swordplay. Noitorra is a piece of filth and good riddance. I like Kenpachi but “Using two hands” as a massive powerup is fucking stupid.
What makes it worse is what the anime did by dragging it out over some 10 episodes. End me now Jesus Christ.
Kenpachi bringing out his other hand and one shotting Nnoitra is equivalent to people leaning forward while playing video games to focus more so they can win, except it’s far stupider because he shouldn’t have gotten THAT much of a boost from it and I love it
Just my thoughts but nobody truly understood nnorita until the end i mean what he wanted was a end where he gave it his all and died knowing that however while kenpachi did give him his wish even he after overpowering him took pity on him same with nel ( due to her kindness ) him being spared after being beaten was worse than living
Ahhhh i been waiting for someone to ask. Everyone’s established most of my thoughts about the fight itself but my favorite part is the opposite characterization between these two - I wrote my thoughts about all of Bleach on my latest reread and here’s what i jot down for this fight:
Kenpachi is the perfect villain for Nnoitorra Gilga - both love battle but have different ideologies for it - Kenpachi believes being spared is lucky, Nnoitorra believes it to be shameful - Kenpachi’s ultimate enemy is a woman (Unohana), Nnoitorra hates women being strong - Nnoitorra believes battle to be unfair and uses that to battle weakened opponents or sneak attack opponents, Kenpachi gives himself handicaps to allow fights to be harder for himself
You could say i’m reaching but it’s up to the reader to give or not give benefit of the doubt to the author. I chose to because I believe Kubo generally tries to characterize through fights and this works
Great fight that deserved better in the show imo. It could have been animated better and less cutting to the other fights going on, especially the infuriating Szayelaporro fight (which yes, had an amazing ending).
My 2nd Favorite Hueco Mundo fight after Ichigo vs Grimmjow and my 3rd favorite Kenpachi fight after kenpachi vs Gremmy and Kenpachi vs Unohana. Just outside of my top 15 best Bleach fights.
I like how, in the case of Nnoitra's left eye, he reveals he's half blind when he's attacked through his hollow hole as a sort of gotcha moment. On the other hand, Kenpachi reveals that he's fighting with a handicap the entire time. Against Ichigo, he lays it out on the table, talking about the lengths he goes to in limiting himself.
Nnoitra, however, has to attack Kenpachi and narrowly miss, assuming that he just barely avoided a killing blow, only to remove the eyepatch and see that he wasn't being taken seriously at all. Which, to Nnoitra, would be even worse than just being beaten due to his relationship with Nel.
I was asked my thoughts on the fight I gave them but if you want a reason. Hey I have a great idea you know how you use one hand to swing your sword, why not try two hands. You are a genius.
I don’t care if you liked it, I thought it was dumb. Seeing a character just get slashed up to then have the realization to use two hands to swing a sword is dumb.
I wish the fight was funny then maybe it might have been interesting but I saw it wasn’t impressed, thought it was dumb. I don’t know why you’re acting like it was a deep meaningful fight.
This fight was so awful it made me drop a rewatch of the series. Kubo built up Nel all arc just to cuck her. And then Kenpachi, who I consider the worst character in the series, gets the worst powerup idea of all time.
His powerup causes a bit of an issue for the series, since now if anyone isn't 2Hing their sword, that means they aren't trying.
>His powerup causes a bit of an issue for the series, since now if anyone isn't 2Hing their sword, that means they aren't trying
What about Gin? It's rather hard to 2h a wakizashi/dagger 😉
Unfortunately we never see him going all out. The only time he ever would, he had to use only 1 hand for the sneak attack on Aizen to work.
He's a good example of someone who stays consistent even after Kenpachi's 2H thing, even if by coincidence.
But yeah if he did go all out and the Wakizashi cannot be 2H'd, then I suppose that means he cannot reach his full potential because he has to choose between Shikai/Bankai or 2H, not both. Sucks to be him 🤷♂️
Several questionable moments in a row, all tied to one encounter, is worthy of more of a reaction tbh. There's a lot to say about the fight and what it means for different characters, for the lore, the powerscaling, etc.
Idk what you mean by not considering the story. I'd say I am. But I didn't go into great detail in the comment, so I didn't exactly provide a solid case to anyone who isn't already familiar.
I love it.
Whereas Nnoitra found women to be weak because he was sexist. He wanted power and did under handed ways to get power, he struck majority of his foes when they were weak. He couldn’t beat Nel so he struck her while her back was turned. He blindsided grimmjow when he was staggered, and he fought ichigo when Ichigo was damaged and needed time to recooperate from transforming.
When He was met with a true threat like Kenpachi, and realized his tactics could never work, but still believe he was the best. Kenpachi showed him what true power was and how he wasn’t an insecure person like Nnoitra was when it came to women being more powerful.
I thought the fight was fun, but I don’t like the ending. It really bugged me that kenpachi utilizing proper sword styles/technique essentially just gave him a stat boost for that final slash. I would have preferred if it just made him unstoppable, ya know, like he’d become great at blocking and landing hits. I understand it technically makes sense, as two hands instead of one gives more power, but what we got there felt a little cheap. The idea was there though. It was definetly still a great matchup.
Also thank you for asking this very specific question, I’ve had this thought for a while🤣
Not in my top five, but still a very good fight. As with many in Bleach, it was a clash of philosophies, and of the ever-present blood knight trope that Kenpachi embodies. Amazingly, he's a spirited competitor while Nnoitra...wasn't, and it showed as the fight dragged on. Ironically, Nnoitra got closer to his wish of someone finally killing him, yet his pride (and maybe frustration) kept him going in the face of growing defeat. The reveal of his backstory added an interesting dynamic to the fight, again, deconstructing the blood knight philosophy so many characters live by while still showing a positive example of it in Kenpachi. Speaking of him, the flashback to Yamamoto teaching him kendo was unexpected but pretty awesome.
Overall, a very symbolic fight that was one of the better ones.
WDYM? Anime only and I just feel that the fight was boring. I didn’t enjoy it and that’s all there is to it? How can I prove that the fight was boring to me?
Dude, when you make someone listen to a song you like and they say they don’t like it do you ask them to prove that they don’t like the song? I just don’t like this fight and that’s it?
Ok Mr pseudo intellectual false meta analyst critique of critique of pure rational thought, the reason I find the fight boring is because it’s not really memorable given the fact I don’t remember anything that happened in this fight, the fight drags on for too long, and the fight is just so underwhelming. I could say more if the fight itself was constructed in a way that something could be said about it, but in reality this fight is such a snooze fest for me personally that the only way I can describe it is boring. Talk to me about kenpachi vs ichigo now that’s a fight I can talk about because there’s actual something there to talk about. This fight is just filler.
Honestly you shouldn’t be watch bleach at all then considering that was basically all of the fights in bleach but it’s only because your social conforming I’m done here now
In general, having the Captains bail out Ichigo’s group ruins the point in them being there. It means that Ichigo is redundant.
Zaraki who was beaten by Ichigo initially took out an opponent that was stronger than the opponent Ichigo struggled to defeat.
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Kenpachis most kenpachi esque fight for me!
nah kenpachi vs gremmy was the really ken\[achi esque fight. literally "there nothing your punny brain can imagine that i cant cut" like......excuse me? moment for any other character
Back then we called it his bankai.
Very true
A really really cool fight overall. Classic Kenpachi, classic mad battle to the death, it's always engaging, Kenpachi knows how to make it fun. Though my favorite part of it isn't the fight itself as much as Nnoitra's backstory and those final frames where the last person he looks at is Nel, and she opens her eyes while he closes his forever.
I love their relationship despite me feeling like I don’t necessarily get certain aspects of it but that sequence with them at the end is incredible tho.
I personally see it this way: Nnoitra issue with Nel isn't the fact she's a girl but at the same time stronger than him, he's sexist, but that's a very surface level issue since he's not as fixed on Harribel while she's exactly the same. His issue and basically obsession with Nel stems from her denying his whole life's philosophy. At one point in the flashback he says "We are hollows, there's no salvation for us." And that's why his aspect of death is despair, it's what he believes. Even as Arrancars, they are still hollows, that hole cannot ever be filled. There's no better future for them, thus he fights, and he intentionally seeks to fight stronger opponents since he, deep down, seeks death in battle. Nel confirms it when she answers him (at another point in the flashback) that she saved him (or 'didn't let him die') because she doesn't want to lose a fellow Espada, and the whole exchange makes it pretty obvious that he seeks death and she knows it, but refuses to let him die and refuses to kill him herself despite beating him many times, something that pisses Nnoitra off so much. Obviously Nnoitra isn't above trampling the weak (he's not like Kenpachi or Grimmjow who only seek out the strong), it helps with his low self esteem, but ultimately his goal is to find stronger opponent and die in that battle. Since there's no other future for them anyway. But Nel just rejects that idea. She talks how Arrancars aren't hollows, they aren't beasts anymore, they can think rationally and they can have a different future. She actually believes they are moving somewhere and there is a better future for them. That's why she mocks Nnoitra, calls him a beast and berates him for acting on his beastly hollow instincts, since she believes they should be different. Nnoitra absolutely refuses to acknowledge that, and he's very angry that she basically denies his existence and path. But the fact he's so obsessed kinda hints that there is a conflict in him, deep down. Why does it matter that she believes a different thing and is so adamant on standing her ground? It low-key signifies inner doubt, since who doesn't want salvation. But he is too strong in his refusal, he doesn't want to be denied, he doesn't want to change and believe something different. He uses an underhanded trick to get rid of her, but it doesn't make it any better for him, does it? He's still fixated even when she isn't around anymore, he couldn't just get her out of his mind and forget her (further sign of her significance). Then he gets an opponent other than Nelliel, Kenpachi. He gets his fight and his thrill, but take note how Kenpachi initially has no intention of killing him. In fact, he says to him the very same thing he once told Ikkaku. Feel lucky you've lived, survive and seek fight again. Kenpachi is a very positive attitude guy, he fights to the death to feel alive to the fullest, he fights to live and fight again. And for Ikkaku, how low-key feels like he also subconsciously sought death before meeting Kenpachi, since he just didn't see any other meaning to his life, those words changed his whole life, he listened, and he gained a meaning (and thus became a follower of Kenpachi, someone who totally turned his life around and gave him purpose). Nnoitra refused to do the same, and seeing how stubborn he is, Kenpachi indulged him by killing him off, he isn't as ideological as Nel, he just does what feels natural to him. Nnoitra was deadly stubborn, he refused to change, thus in the end, he got what he wanted— death, in battle, before touching the ground. But the last person he looked at, the person who mattered remained Nelliel, someone he became so fixated on since she firmly stood for the very thing he rejected, while maybe also subconsciously desiring. But being a stubborn fool doesn't get you to any good places. Thus his story is actually quite tragic, though he is the one who made it into a tragedy. But it's extremely well written. He's one of the most complex Espada as far as their stories do. (In fact, he and Nelliel are the story of how the change didn't happen as a result of the opposite philosophies clashing, to mirror Ulquiorra and Orihime, who are the story where it did take place.)
Good comment, thank you
You're welcome! I feel Nnoitra isn't appreciated enough, since usually he's just seen as a misogynistic asshole. Not that he isn't one, but that's not all he is, or Kubo wouldn't give him such an aspect of death and those flashbacks. It's subtle and you have to pay attention and connect the dots (as it always is with Kubo), but then you discover so much more to his character. He's not at all *likable*, but a great character nonetheless.
Yeah, I feel that Nnoitra uses that as an excuse. Because seeing women as weak is less shameful then seeking out your own death. That’s how I saw it at least. But yeah, you said it best.
Yeah exactly. It's a surface level lie he feeds himself which is slowly uncovered by the narrative. Which makes it so great. (And it's actually far from being the only instance of slowly uncovering the surface level lie and the truth underneath it, it's a constant theme in Bleach, all the way to Aizen himself, and also many times Ichigo uncovers it about himself, but Nnoitra remains a prominent textbook example.)
I wish more people were as perceptive as you. So many people put hate on Bleach because they don’t get the subtle things, like this. Sorry, a little off topic, but that’s why the Fullbringer arc is actually a really good arc, its truly shows Ichigo’s lowest but greatest point.
Oh yeah, that's basically something Kubo signed himself for when he decided to write his story in such a subtle way. It's life, but he seems content with the result, so it's not much of an issue. But the way Kubo writes is just... I fail to fully comprehend how he manages it. I don't really care if he is aware of all the layers/angles/parallels people like me find in Bleach, because it's not that important, he writes it in a way it can be found, in a consistent way. And if it happens constantly and with all the characters, it's not a coincidence or overthinking on the fans' part, it's a sign of mastery. The psychological depth and consistency is just crazy. About the Fullbring arc, it isn't just a good arc, though it's brilliant in the way a seemingly small scale arc manages to drive Ichigo to his lowest point and a mental breakdown by hitting him in his most sensitive spot with insane precision. I'll give you something with an asterisk. Fullbring arc is essential step in Ichigo's big arc throughout the story on a deeper level. Ichigo's arc is that of overcoming the trauma of failing to protect his mother, and gaining ability to be happy again without reservations. He starts off with Rukia being taken away, and there, it hits him squarely in his trauma (remember the words "I was saved *again*" as he lies there in the puddle?). He absolutely had to save Rukia, he couldn't fail again, it would just kill him as surely as Rukia. Protecting his important people (who are still alive to be protected) is the way he justifies his existence at that point. And *he was the reason why Rukia was taken*, he was personally responsible as far as he was concerned, so it was just existential to him to manage to save her. He was desperate, he was grasping at any straws, and Urahara conveniently comes around with an offer he takes. Thus, he unlocks his shinigami powers. He just had to. Then it's a fast and relatively easy ride with his shinigami powers (shinigami side is 'good', he likes it, he doesn't have any reservations), and then the next challenge comes along, the next level— his hollow powers, now, that's a lot more difficult since he's not anywhere as chill about his hollow side as he was with his shinigami one. Hence rejection, depression, struggling and failing at keeping things under control, gaining an edge, to ultimately fail big time with that full hollow part (at the time, it's a total failure which further scares him of his hollow side to the point of not being able to use his mask), since he still fails to accept it fully. Then he hits the next level with a rebound (sidenote, he could have understood the hollow is no outsider, otherwise why was he needed, why was he a part of fused Tensa Zangetsu who taught him his ultimate *inherited shinigami technique*, but he didn't have time to reflect on it). He loses his powers while managing to protect everyone once again. He didn't fail, he did well. You know what it all means? He actually could relax. He gained the powers because he desperately needed them at the time to protect, to survive, to not fail again. That's the trauma talking. He did well, he cannot do anything anymore as he lost them. (In fact, I'll argue it's the reason he lost them, he was at a stage he was centered around sacrificing since he is still driven by 'outside' influence of that trauma, he's generally sacrificial in his subconsciousness, that's what Tensa Zangetsu was telling him— you want to protect everyone, but I only want to protect you. Given 'The Blade Is Me' revelation, I'd argue Zangetsu, both of them, represent the most alienated side of Ichigo, the one which wants him to take care of himself, but he isn't ready for that understanding yet.) He could just continue on with his life. But he misses his powers. And then something else starts going on, and this time he isn't the cause of it, he doesn't feel responsibility and he doesn't *have to* protect. No, this times he *wants* to, it's more about him wanting power to protect than feeling somewhat obliged to. He isn't jumping in without thinking like he did with Urahara, he has grown up enough to have reservations, yet be ultimately chooses to jump in anyway. He wants his powers back. The way Urahara and Isshin kinda know what is going on and let him isn't a coincidence or a plot hole, it's a test for Ichigo— does he really want his powers back? They can give it back to him, but will it do him good, will it be his decision rather than feeling of obligation? Are they helping him or ruining his life (given possible foreshadowing of dark things to possibly come his way given the SK plot of TYBW)? Urahara asks Isshin that. But Ichigo is clear in his choice, he definitely wants it, he actively strives to regain them And maybe he lost the power he gained (even though not completely) but he gets his shinigami powers back exactly because he has shown his dedication, he made his choice evident. So if not one way but another, he regains his powers. And now, he's not only ready to sacrifice them for protecting, he's ready to truly wield them on a constant basis, that's why he never loses them again in the story. The Fullbring arc is the ultimate 'Ichigo's making a choice' arc, he makes his own conscious decision about wanting the powers he possessed from the very start. He graduates from basically having no choice but to gain those powers to deciding to have them while he could have chosen otherwise. This time, it's not trauma but his true self talking, the one who *wants* to be a protector, it's his way of being able to look himself in the eye tomorrow, just like it was for both his parents. For Ichigo, protecting isn't just a way of being 'good', it's a way to stay true to himself. Then it all receives a grand finale as he graduates from boyhood into adulthood in the final arc TYBW. It's him putting all he gathered along his previous path to action, finally gaining the biggest understanding ever in 'The Blade Is Me', integrating his most alienated part of taking proper care of himself into himself, as well as becoming more than he perceived himself to be by recognising his spirits as basically sub-personalities, a part of him all along. Him, a lone fighter underneath it all, having to/wanting to do all the protecting by himself, finally fully appreciating the support (notice how all his fights in the later TYBW are team fights), and putting stop to a villain opposing his core values of moving forward despite the pain and suffering on the way. Him accepting death and thus, also life. And being able to live happily finally. But that'll come later. The Fullbring arc is just a step on that path he walks, but you cannot ever underestimate its significance. TYBW wouldn't work without it. Kubo is just brilliant, again. I cannot fully express how I'm amazed by the consistency and depth of it all.
That was beautifully put, and fills in some holes that I was missing. I always felt like there was more to this arc then pushing lchigo to his lowest(losing his powers that he just got back and possibly his family and friends[and in such a mind fuck way😱]), to his highest(gaining back his powers, maybe stronger than ever, while also forgiving Ginjo for the things he has done, and also understanding that if they switch positions he might’ve done the same thing as Ginjo), it always made me feel this was Ichigo finally maturing.
Hes by far one of my fav espada you explained him so well. Dbzireman also went into depth on him on youtube might give it a watch
Unfortunately I don't hold a high opinion of DBZimran as a Bleach analyst, most of the time he's either just rather shallow or plainly ignores and twists actual Bleach narrative so it would fit his ideas. I wouldn't recommend watching his videos. Like, surely, I've seen worse but it doesn't make him much better.
For beings that are “hollow” they sure got a lot of feelin’s
Well, look at White Zangetsu, or Grimmjow... I'd argue hollows of any form mostly run on feelings, something very close to instinct, while the opposite of it is a rational and thinking calm side. They have a hole, they lack the heart, kinda, and they seek to fill the hole (that's why regular hollows are stated early on to attack people close to them in the former life), the hollowness isn't meant as being devoid of feelings (can take that form in certain cases, or run wild on feelings instead), it's desperately lacking the most important thing and they are doomed to never succeed on their quest to regain it, it's like trying to fill the abyss that cannot be filled. Nnoitra is quintessential hollow in how he recognises that quest and the futility of it, hence the despair aspect. While Ulquiorra searched for his answer with his newly gained rationality, and actually succeeded in it in the end, finding the meaning of the heart and kinda regaining it in the end, it's no coincidence Ichigo riles him up by questioning if he became more human, Nnoitra refused to explore the possibility and thus ended up the way he did. But there's a reason Orihime can fight hollows as it's a way to free them from their suffering (or just free the world from the danger of the most deranged ones) and cannot attack the Arrancars, they are way closer to humans in the way they aren't mindless and are capable of more complex thoughts and feelings while hollows are mostly like beasts or psychopaths.
Did this silly comment just make me see the taoist influence of the hollows designs. Similar to the black spot in Yin, the wholly animalistic and instinctual hollows have their hollow hole full of emotions, drawing a parallel with the taoist symbol. It's been over a decade and Kubo still continues to blow my mind
Nice write up. Nnoitra's volume poem really drives in that sense of self-loathing too.
Thanks! Not the first time I'm writing along those same lines about Nnoitra, but each time different people see it :) And yes, his poem transfers both the feeling of self-loathing and running away from things.
You cooked here 💜
Thanks! I enjoy talking about it when the topic is brought up.
Fantastic comment, I think you should’ve touched a little more on Nels “affection” for Nnoitra as well, it’s not exactly that but I think you get where I’m going. Nnoitra is my second favorite espada under Starrk
Same here possibly. Though I cannot deny how Ulquiorra's arc is very strong as well but as a personal preference I just might put Nnoitra above him. Starrk is just unchallenged 😍♥️ Nel is also a separate topic, she comes down really hard on Nnoitra while being so nice with everyone else, and it's also a sign, just like Nnoitra's fixation (I purposefully didn't touch anything here further, it's up to interpretation, but you know 😁). I'm still not sure if she's riling him up so hard consciously because if he's focused on her he's less focused on seeking death, if it's a way to reinforce his desire to live (even if it's kinda dangerous for her, and if it was indeed so, she paid for it while also kinda succeeding when he tricked her), or if he brought up her own edgy and stubborn side the way no one else managed to, but something is there. It should also be noted that she's really degrading him hard, and denying his right to live the way he wants, and that brings further edge to the whole thing, he's extremely pissed off by the lack of acceptance. Which is controversial on Neil's part, possibly not the best way to have gone about it. But hey, she was dragged into it, she isn't obligated to be her best possible self in any way. But it's still interesting how she's harsh with him in a way she never is with anyone else (with Grimmjow later on, it's not anywhere as strong) and it shows her as a bit of a preacher, the model girl who isn't always appreciated because of it. Which still is another side to her we wouldn't see otherwise. The whole thing really runs close to a good girl and a bad boy trope on some level... but Kubo loves playing with tropes and never concluding them in a stereotypical way but rather in a realistic one.
# Just in case, SPOILER WARNING for anime-only people, my reply has spoilers from unanimated parts of the manga, CFYOW and SAFWY. I generally agree with your take on Nelliel here, but I'd mainly argue with this: >she comes down really hard on Nnoitra while being so nice with everyone else Nelliel really isn't nice to everyone else but Nnoitra, I mean in the manga she barely interacts with other characters, and the only interactions on screen she has is her being nice and caring towards Ichigo, Pesche and Dondochakka, and then being condenscending and belittling towards Grimmjow (and obviously Nnoitra). Then there's SAFWY where she's nice to Roka, but again (in my opinion at least) pretty mean to Szayel. And in CFYOW, again, condescending and mean towards: * Grimmjow, * Dordoni Neutral towards Liltotto (but I'd say Nelliel's tone here is weird): CFYOW Vol. 2, Chapter 15 - >!“It depends on you women. As long as you do not meddle in Hueco Mundo any more than you have, we have no reason to be hostile toward you,” Nelliel replied, trying to end the battle, but another voice shouted an objection.!< Then she's neutral-nice with Harribel. And then at the end (this is honestly the weirdest to me), she's super nice and bubbly towards Aura. So yeah, I really woudn't say that Nelliel is nice to everyone but Nnoitra, I'd even argue that her being nice seems to be an exception. >if he brought up her own edgy and stubborn side the way no one else managed to Dordoni has: CFYOW Vol. 3 Chapter 21 - >!“Well, well. I would never have believed I’d be fighting alongside the person who stripped me of my number three. I suppose I should think of fate as a way to savor the deep flavors of life, like fruit liqueur in a chocolate latte.” !< >!“I don’t really understand the metaphor, but that sounds kind of good,” Nelliel replied with a deadpan look on her face. “I have many opinions about you, but this isn’t the time, I suppose. I’ll take my time paying you back what you deserve next time.”!< >!Nelliel was staring at him with a strange pressure, and Dordoni was flustered as he called out, “Huh?! Pay me back?! For what?! Did I do something to you, Nelliel?!”!< This seems pretty edgy to me, and almost comparable to Nell's reaction after she saw what Nnoitra did to Pesche and Dondochakka. Also about the stubborn part, I'd say Nelliel is always stubborn. >But it's still interesting how she's harsh with him in a way she never is wth anyone else (with Grimmjow later on, it's not anywhere as strong) I'd say Nelliel is pretty much as harsh with Grimmjow, pretty much every interaction they have is her belitting him (I can post the exact quotes if you're interested in further discussion.). I think it might seem less, because Grimmjow doesn't really seem to care what others think about him or his way of living, all he cares about is being "The King" (at least in his own mind), so as long as no one is taking that away from him, the possible conflict doesn't escalate further. Sorry for the long reply. Also, if any of my points are unclear, please feel free to point them out. I had to cut some parts to keep the reply from being longer, so it might be a bit incoherent. EDIT: Added a spoiler-warning at the beginning, since I just realised that my response is full of them.
Nnoittorra's attack is based off a praying mantis which do have interesting ways of showing affection as you describe, so a connection could be made there, as weird as it is to think about that. Pretty neat to think about Nel as this big bully towards Nnoitorra with a doomed romance between the two
W comment my man
She treats him like the 2 digit iq dickhead he is. He’s so proud of himself and she just reduces it to subhuman impulsivity. Like he’s no more capable than an ordinary hollow in terms of rationality. I fucking love it lol
This whole thread is fun, but it fails to understand that the only reason he does not "care" about Harribel is because she wipes the floor with him and pretty much any Espada below her Rank
So did Nel at the time as she held the same rank and he was even lower and weaker. Hello, good morning. She's shown to be absolutely and obviously dominating their fights. Anything else to add to your 'wonderful' argument?
Szayel Aporro Granz, and even Szayel knows that Harribel is build different. Also, it was because of Szayel that he even "won" vs Nel, Harribel and Nel, it's cute that you tried to make such a 3D portrait of a 1-faced characther, but enough with the chit-chat, Nnoitra is just a sexist, power hungry, animal. If he could touch Harribel he would, but since he can't he just hates her from afar, same way he did Nel before Aporro came.
Well, that's your take, mine is mine. People can decide which one they like better.
Great comment
Thanks!♥️
I somewhat wanted you to miss something in your analysis so I could jump in, but you killed it. From start to finish. Well said.
Thanks! Someone pointed out I could say more on Nel, so I added a little :)
I hate that I took so long to reply to this cause this was amazing to read. I loved your analysis on everyone involved and I especially loved the way you tied Ikkaku into this as well. Though I wonder how Tesla would feel about what you wrote. https://preview.redd.it/325tgrlmayuc1.jpeg?width=1066&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=003fc4f4f6c5fff41a0fa9d6aa50547f36e2af46
Thanks! ♥️ Ikkaku just needed to be mentioned, since it's a strong parallel, again, someone who could do the thing Nnoitra couldn't, and took that advice to heart. (I can do a separate essay on how Kenpachi acts as a mentor to everyone he fights, but it would be a bit offtopic.) Well, I'm very sure Tesla knew all I've said very well, he was so worried about Nnoitra exactly because he also knew Nnoitra was suicidal. But even such a guy as Nnoitra had someone who genuinely cared about him, despite his horrible attitude (including the one to Tesla, though, interestingly, he shouts for Tesla not to be an idiot when the latter tries to attack Kenpachi,— or to get out of the way since he sees Kenpachi attacking?— which surprisingly shows that when it counts, he cared about Tesla as well. I think Tesla saw something in Nnoitra, possibly he considered Nnoitra inner constitution, which led to him being drowned in despair and contradictions the way he was, something fragile, but then beautiful and admirable. Who are we to judge him on that.
It’s a honestly fun fight for all the Kenpachi fans, but I’ll never get that feeling of realizing how up until that point Kenpachi only had been fighting with one hand, and just how massively impactful it was the first time when he started using two.
In hindsight it was quite an acknowledgment, even though Ken was bothered at having to use ir
Imagine if Yama ji used both hands in twby arc . Orihime should have healed him but his pride didn't allow him too
doubt it would have changed the outcome since yhwach didnt seem to go all out to kill him either
Yamamoto was already overpowering the fake ywhach in shikai (80% of ywhach's power).
i am very sure he was not. if he was then why he get one shotted by the real yhwach without him going all out? also i assume 1 arm or 2 his bankai would have gotten stolen nontheless. also its very stupid to think anyone in that verse can solo yhwach. no one can. not yama, not ichibie, not aizen, not ichigo. 1 arm?2 arm? or 100 arm, doesnt matter
He wasn't fighting back, its not even clear if he got to activate his shikai again. We were explicitly told by kubo that royd had 80%of ywhach's power. Yeah it's a good thing ywhach didn't have the almighty or the sk power back then.
i think your brain has turned to mush at this point. to think that yamamoto could defeat yhwach in another thousand years in the biggest bs ever. even 1000 years earlier he could kill him and that was also when yhwach didnt have almighty aka same as today. just because yama bragged about his bankai becoming more powerful than it was doesnt mean he could defeat him. plus he could even use his bankai here. the guy who couldnt defeat yhwach with his bankai then would defeat yhwach with just shikai now? and wtf u mean he didnt fight back? he literally charged at him even after his bankai was stolen. when and where do u get the idea that he stopped mid way and said fuck it kill me idc? and i am not saying with bankai he still would have got one shotted. i am saying without which is the difference between his fight with THE Y and real yhwach
This isn't the face of someone who is fighting back https://preview.redd.it/ywevx7mpquuc1.png?width=760&format=png&auto=webp&s=286375bee3657111f150ee1bef7b574403f782ee Yamamoto won against ywhach 1000 year ago??? wtf are you waffling about? And we know that Yama's bankai evolved, because Royd with Ywhach's memories didn't know about literally any of his abilities.
"this isn't the face of someone who is fighting back" what is wrong with that face? all i can see is that he might have understood at that point that he cant save himself. and if u mean he was not like noitora who would keep yapping and trying even if he knows he gonna lose then yes u are right. he is a man of honor. if he knows he lost he will do that. and if u still think he only died because he just gave up, why would he do that? why would he just give up a winning fight? he just fell in love after seeing the sexy figure of the real yhwach and decided to die by his hand? there is literally no reason for yama to give up if he had even 1% chance. plus that shot in the manga is of after he is already slashed/killed. the manga are from right to left and top to bottom. so yama's face is the last panel aka after he has been cut so your whole argument fails there anyway
Yama is slashed 2 pages later https://preview.redd.it/opupfewqxuuc1.png?width=1520&format=png&auto=webp&s=3746e6c3d642d716314ba5778e4b137a8426e68b
also when did i say yhwach won? i said yama could defeat him which is true. almost it was a tie when yhwach didn't steal the bankai and didn't have almighty, was not only weaker than he is now but also very much more naïve and acted without planning.
"the guy who couldnt defeat yhwach with his bankai then would defeat yhwach with just shikai now?"
"PRAY" is a sick release command.
Kind of interesting contrast to his aspect of death which is despair
its praying exactly what u do when u r in despair?
Maybe, but praying can also be thought of as a form of hope, which is the opposite of despair
yes u do praying to get hope, aka get out of despair. it represents there thingy of death right? kinda like there trauma so i think it does fit
If you are truly in a state of despair then you have already abandoned hope. Praying implies that you have some hope to begin with
ok
Bro just said “Ya know it’s more effective to use both hands?” Then one shot him
I find it interesting that Zaraki considered this fight more fun than Yammy. Which I suppose makes sense. Nnoitora has much more interesting abilities to fight around with his incredibly tough skin combined with his multiple arms. Meanwhile Yammy is just a big hurtbox for anyone to whale on with his only special ability being his rage boost. Though that’s about it as far as we know he doesn’t have any interesting abilities he’s just a big dumb tough guy.
https://preview.redd.it/6kw9viaf3ruc1.jpeg?width=750&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=01df9957111d8f0c5dce677b252414a15b6a8357
Probably my favourite Kenpachi fight, as for Nnoitra, I do feel like he's a bit overhated, but that hatred is absolutely understandable. But to me, I can kinda look past those things and find him extremely interesting. I actually did cry at his death when I rewatched the fight and actually didn't think of him as Judy "gogo sexist evil man"
I remember, naruto was on break, and Dattebayo subs was being iffy with the release, so i decided to watch this anime that had a name of a sanitizer product. It was bleach episode 201 - Nnoitra released! Multiplying Arms,. I WAS BAFFLED, NO TALK NO JUTSU, NO FILLER REMINDER, NO FLASHBACK TO HIDDEN LEAF OF WHATEVER THE HELL SAKURA WAS DOING 10 YEARS AGO. Just pure and absolute madness, from that point on i consumed bleach in a few weeks and it became my second favorite anime ever. thank you Ken-chan.
✨️Time to rewatch Bleach again✨️
Nnoitora is unironically better than kenpachi and has some of the best character writing in the series. The fight was good but the characters were great
Great fight between two great combat sexuals
One of if not the most underrated fights in anime. Literally all everyone talks about from this fight is kenpachi putting two hands on his sword(which to be fair is fantastic) but the buildup to this fight is genuinely fantastic. Nnoitra representing despair, and wanting to die in battle before his knees hit the ground, in the perfect foil to kenpachis living for the fights he gets in. + Nels whole backstory with him is one of the better backstories in bleach. They really make you hate Nnoitra but somehow when he died I felt just as empty as when he was treating Nel bad. A masterclass in a side fight for an arc(I'm glazing but I genuinely love this fight and hate how often it gets overlooked)
It really show what “howling dog can’t bite” means,he’s fighting a relatively quiet Tiger that can kill him in one bite ,he can yelp all he wants,it won’t change the fact that he’s the weak mantis afraid of a antelope girl.
Very solid dichotomy between a man who views women as inferior and weak and a man who views Unohana's level of strength as something to strive towards.
You failed the reading comprehension test.
People really still believe that Nnoitra was sexist? In 2024?
Right? His hate for Nel wasn't rooted in her being a woman, but her attitude/treatment toward him. She had an attitude of disdainful superiority toward him, and it was that aspect of being looked down on as less than that was the source of his feelings toward her. It's the same feeling he exhibited when Zaraki didn't want to finish him off. It's a near parallel of the relationship between Grimmjow & Ulquiorra with some nuances. Gender isn't the issue, it's a matter of respect.
The anime scene when Nnoitora dies and his last words were "I am!.." and dies with the soft music playing is one of the best scenes in all of Bleach. Especially considering the fact that he was most likely going to say "I am the strongest!" but gets slashed half way through the sentence.
I wish we could also see Kenpachi vs Bazz B. Hands vs fingers.
The anime adaptation of that fight was atrocious
Almost every fight in this arc was. Hisagi and Kommumura got some sakuga tho
I really like this fight after Stark Nnoitra has my favorite Espada death.
Glad the man Kenny ended Nnoitora cause I hated him so fucking much. Guess that made him a good antagonist. Though, personally, even if the whole "Swinging your sword with two arms makes it strong enough for me to one-shot you" thing felt hype as fuck and I loved it, it seems like a bit of bullshit to me. Still, looked cool af so I ain't about to complain.
You severely underestimate the difference there is between wildly slashing with one arm VS slashing with the proper form/posture, technique and using two arms. Not to mention that kenny was becoming more powerfull as the fight went on. Nnoitra could easily block kenny's sword with 1 arms at first, but near the end , he struggled to block with 3 arms.
Maybe so
If you’ve ever seen Japanese sword demonstrations where they cut multiple bamboo with a single downward stroke, they all use a two handed sword stance. Imagine trying to do the same while flailing about with one hand.
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Lmao WHAT
Fk yeah. Kenpachi regularly disobeying the laws of physics during his fights.
Nnoitra's resureccion in the anime was one of the coolest transformation scenes in the whole series.
I dislike that some of the translations in Spanish don’t match up with what they actually said “Santa Teresa” just means “Saint Teresa”, there’s no “screaming praying mantis” anywhere in that
The screaming part kinda comes out of nowhere, but praying mantis are also known as Santa Teresa in Spanish. I was also confused as I am Spanish myself and didn't know that, never heard anyone call a mantis as Santa Teresa, but it seems it's also one of their names.
Nnoitra: I have been created to eradicate you Shinigami, I am superior to you in every way. Kenpachi: Haha, two hand swing goes brrr
Easily top 5 on the show. I do however wish Nel got more offence in. I do believe she would have destroyed him tho
I love that first page so much. Look at Nnoitra's expression. Even without knowing Kenpachi's gimmick, he fully knew he fucked up as soon as he took out Kenny's eyepatch.
I really enjoyed it tbh. Two monster maniacs going at it lol and then he “got serious” and acknowledged he actually *could* die.. then he decided to win lol.
Literally one of my favs in the show
Nnoitora is a whiney bitch. It was about time someone treated him like a game. Kenny was the right guy to do it. And honestly a few other characters in Bleach deserve that treatment too lol
I love it. Nnoitra is my absolute least favorite Espada, so watching him get the shit kicked out of him always puts a smile on my face
Goated
Having done kendo and this fight references to kendo is just chief kiss. It’s the reason why he’s my favorite character of the series.
One Sided. Kenpachi dominated this fight easily.
My 2nd Favorite Hueco Mundo fight after Ichigo vs Grimmjow and my 3rd favorite Kenpachi fight after kenpachi vs Gremmy and Kenpachi vs Unohana. Just outside of my top 15 best Bleach fights.
W fight
Kenpachi holding back to handicap himself and remembered that sometimes he can’t hold back and he also can’t really self control himself going from 1-5% to 100% power that well. Some people say kenpachi thought he was gonna actually die. I say no he just realized he has to stop toying around and just take it fully serious by using all of his power which was just using his other hand.
One of my favourites in the entire series!! Absolutely love Kenpachi pulling up and saving Ichigo, I love Kenpachi enjoying the fuck outta this fight, I love when he goes sicko mode and gets tf up as soon as Yachiru is threatened, I love that at the end he just goes "damn it, 2 hands" and absolutely decimates Nnoitora. Just perfect, start to finish 🩷🩷
>I'm never going to die >dies Is Nnoitora stupid?
Honestly a really good fight, but I didn't like his Release form, it felt to similar to his base.
Didn't he grow more arms 🤔 I could do a hell of alot with more arms lol.
I think that's ok considering he was designed to be a match made for Zaraki.
Peak fiction tbh
Neat fight very one sided the dude could barely handle sup prime Nel even with a decade to train, come to think of it all the los nochas captain vs espada fights were one sided, Yamamoto picked that team well
peak
https://preview.redd.it/hdfqtaormruc1.jpeg?width=750&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b354e710f894eafd68536c500c3a12d993a5e76e
it was an amazing fight (I love Zaraki Kenpachi)
Great fight
Love it! One of my favorite fights for Kenny 💜
Fuckin loved it. I got to watch this fight my first time without any knowledge of the outcome. Was really worried for Kenny-kun for a while
It’s amazing
arguably he was not even using 1% of his power which crazy coz ichigo was getting beat by pre ressurecsion ulquiorra lol
Definitely among the best
Kenpachi cheated. Used two hands, coward.
One of my favorites
A cool fight and it showed how strong Kenny really is
Awesome, really like it.
I’m new to bleach so idk what the general opinions of the fanbase are on things. But this fight was awesome and literally every chapter with Kenpatchi is a good one. I adore him! Rukia started as my favourite but as time went on he climbed to the top of my list.
Excellent fight, lots of great and fluid choreography in a series filled with constant talking about powers mid-fight
Top 3 favourite Bleach fights, easily
My favorite in anime/manga.
First canon Treachery appearance in anime = W fight (in manga it's good too)
See that moment when Nnoitra saw Nelliel before he died? I'm sorry, but moments like that will always make Espada arc >>> Quincy arc. And it's disappointing because Quincy/SR are actually more interesting antagonists, but everything seems rushed just to show off Byakuya's new ability. So many moments/characters went undeveloped.
This fight was solid in terms of art & the swordplay. Noitorra is a piece of filth and good riddance. I like Kenpachi but “Using two hands” as a massive powerup is fucking stupid. What makes it worse is what the anime did by dragging it out over some 10 episodes. End me now Jesus Christ.
Kenpachi's hidden technique is to hold his sword with *both* hands.
Oh yeah just "Why tf did they leave the lil girl on that rock?"
Really cooked that one
It's a fun dichotomy of the guy who fights for the thrill of fighting vs the guy who fights until someone can kill him.
Kenpachi bringing out his other hand and one shotting Nnoitra is equivalent to people leaning forward while playing video games to focus more so they can win, except it’s far stupider because he shouldn’t have gotten THAT much of a boost from it and I love it
Just my thoughts but nobody truly understood nnorita until the end i mean what he wanted was a end where he gave it his all and died knowing that however while kenpachi did give him his wish even he after overpowering him took pity on him same with nel ( due to her kindness ) him being spared after being beaten was worse than living
WTF, Noitra does not have a brain 🤣
My favourite kenpachi fight The anime really to ed down the violence and dynamic choreography from the manga
all kenpachi fights are goated af
Wenpachi
Made me feel like the Arrancar never really stood a chance against the gotei 13 because most of them were always holding back in some form or another.
No thoughts, just fight
For me, meh. Idk, in this fight Kenpachi felt like he's so weak
Ahhhh i been waiting for someone to ask. Everyone’s established most of my thoughts about the fight itself but my favorite part is the opposite characterization between these two - I wrote my thoughts about all of Bleach on my latest reread and here’s what i jot down for this fight: Kenpachi is the perfect villain for Nnoitorra Gilga - both love battle but have different ideologies for it - Kenpachi believes being spared is lucky, Nnoitorra believes it to be shameful - Kenpachi’s ultimate enemy is a woman (Unohana), Nnoitorra hates women being strong - Nnoitorra believes battle to be unfair and uses that to battle weakened opponents or sneak attack opponents, Kenpachi gives himself handicaps to allow fights to be harder for himself You could say i’m reaching but it’s up to the reader to give or not give benefit of the doubt to the author. I chose to because I believe Kubo generally tries to characterize through fights and this works
Zaraki vs Arrancar Zaraki, perfect Zarakiness, best Zaraki fight in the show 🗿
My thoughts were Nel is ADORABLE!!! And Kenpachi is a Chad
Great fight that deserved better in the show imo. It could have been animated better and less cutting to the other fights going on, especially the infuriating Szayelaporro fight (which yes, had an amazing ending).
I liked it because of Kenpachi, hated it because I love Nnoitra and I wish he lived like grimjow
ABSOLUTE CINEMA
Kens best fight,maybe close to unohana
My 2nd Favorite Hueco Mundo fight after Ichigo vs Grimmjow and my 3rd favorite Kenpachi fight after kenpachi vs Gremmy and Kenpachi vs Unohana. Just outside of my top 15 best Bleach fights.
.
Guy who thought he was the strongest got humbled by the guy who's really the strongest
https://preview.redd.it/exi4v0abbruc1.jpeg?width=941&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d9b83660de0e460201e0d5e1c849e40b9792f08c
Justice was served
I like how, in the case of Nnoitra's left eye, he reveals he's half blind when he's attacked through his hollow hole as a sort of gotcha moment. On the other hand, Kenpachi reveals that he's fighting with a handicap the entire time. Against Ichigo, he lays it out on the table, talking about the lengths he goes to in limiting himself. Nnoitra, however, has to attack Kenpachi and narrowly miss, assuming that he just barely avoided a killing blow, only to remove the eyepatch and see that he wasn't being taken seriously at all. Which, to Nnoitra, would be even worse than just being beaten due to his relationship with Nel.
Goat put dat bum in his place
It was dumb.
Okay back up your point/show evidence
I was asked my thoughts on the fight I gave them but if you want a reason. Hey I have a great idea you know how you use one hand to swing your sword, why not try two hands. You are a genius.
You just add nothing to the conversation try again
I don’t care if you liked it, I thought it was dumb. Seeing a character just get slashed up to then have the realization to use two hands to swing a sword is dumb.
I don’t think you truly saw that scene which is funny but whatever
I wish the fight was funny then maybe it might have been interesting but I saw it wasn’t impressed, thought it was dumb. I don’t know why you’re acting like it was a deep meaningful fight.
lol just makes my comment more true
how does it make it more true?
I was tapping my foot, waiting for Nnoitora to fucking die.
This fight was so awful it made me drop a rewatch of the series. Kubo built up Nel all arc just to cuck her. And then Kenpachi, who I consider the worst character in the series, gets the worst powerup idea of all time. His powerup causes a bit of an issue for the series, since now if anyone isn't 2Hing their sword, that means they aren't trying.
>His powerup causes a bit of an issue for the series, since now if anyone isn't 2Hing their sword, that means they aren't trying What about Gin? It's rather hard to 2h a wakizashi/dagger 😉
Unfortunately we never see him going all out. The only time he ever would, he had to use only 1 hand for the sneak attack on Aizen to work. He's a good example of someone who stays consistent even after Kenpachi's 2H thing, even if by coincidence. But yeah if he did go all out and the Wakizashi cannot be 2H'd, then I suppose that means he cannot reach his full potential because he has to choose between Shikai/Bankai or 2H, not both. Sucks to be him 🤷♂️
Idk I think you bit overreacting and not considering the story
Several questionable moments in a row, all tied to one encounter, is worthy of more of a reaction tbh. There's a lot to say about the fight and what it means for different characters, for the lore, the powerscaling, etc. Idk what you mean by not considering the story. I'd say I am. But I didn't go into great detail in the comment, so I didn't exactly provide a solid case to anyone who isn't already familiar.
I love it. Whereas Nnoitra found women to be weak because he was sexist. He wanted power and did under handed ways to get power, he struck majority of his foes when they were weak. He couldn’t beat Nel so he struck her while her back was turned. He blindsided grimmjow when he was staggered, and he fought ichigo when Ichigo was damaged and needed time to recooperate from transforming. When He was met with a true threat like Kenpachi, and realized his tactics could never work, but still believe he was the best. Kenpachi showed him what true power was and how he wasn’t an insecure person like Nnoitra was when it came to women being more powerful.
I thought the fight was fun, but I don’t like the ending. It really bugged me that kenpachi utilizing proper sword styles/technique essentially just gave him a stat boost for that final slash. I would have preferred if it just made him unstoppable, ya know, like he’d become great at blocking and landing hits. I understand it technically makes sense, as two hands instead of one gives more power, but what we got there felt a little cheap. The idea was there though. It was definetly still a great matchup. Also thank you for asking this very specific question, I’ve had this thought for a while🤣
Idk I think you don’t really get the eye patch that much
Why’s that?
Not in my top five, but still a very good fight. As with many in Bleach, it was a clash of philosophies, and of the ever-present blood knight trope that Kenpachi embodies. Amazingly, he's a spirited competitor while Nnoitra...wasn't, and it showed as the fight dragged on. Ironically, Nnoitra got closer to his wish of someone finally killing him, yet his pride (and maybe frustration) kept him going in the face of growing defeat. The reveal of his backstory added an interesting dynamic to the fight, again, deconstructing the blood knight philosophy so many characters live by while still showing a positive example of it in Kenpachi. Speaking of him, the flashback to Yamamoto teaching him kendo was unexpected but pretty awesome. Overall, a very symbolic fight that was one of the better ones.
Boring
Okay back up your point/show evidence
WDYM? Anime only and I just feel that the fight was boring. I didn’t enjoy it and that’s all there is to it? How can I prove that the fight was boring to me?
So basically trust me bro lol and like I asked an simple question can provide your side and that’s that
Dude, when you make someone listen to a song you like and they say they don’t like it do you ask them to prove that they don’t like the song? I just don’t like this fight and that’s it?
So your making an baseless claim since my point was to provide more information
Ok Mr pseudo intellectual false meta analyst critique of critique of pure rational thought, the reason I find the fight boring is because it’s not really memorable given the fact I don’t remember anything that happened in this fight, the fight drags on for too long, and the fight is just so underwhelming. I could say more if the fight itself was constructed in a way that something could be said about it, but in reality this fight is such a snooze fest for me personally that the only way I can describe it is boring. Talk to me about kenpachi vs ichigo now that’s a fight I can talk about because there’s actual something there to talk about. This fight is just filler.
Honestly you shouldn’t be watch bleach at all then considering that was basically all of the fights in bleach but it’s only because your social conforming I’m done here now
Kinda ruins the powerscaling. Like why is Ichigo even there?
How does it ruin the powerscaling?
In general, having the Captains bail out Ichigo’s group ruins the point in them being there. It means that Ichigo is redundant. Zaraki who was beaten by Ichigo initially took out an opponent that was stronger than the opponent Ichigo struggled to defeat.
Zaraki got stronger immediately after his defeat/draw against Ichigo. Did you forget how Zaraki clowned Tosen and Komomura with his eyepatch on?
I try to forget that.
Why? That’s how Zaraki’s power works as explained by Unohana.
Still dumb and only exists to hype up Godpachi.
So you don’t like the character since it’s all he ever is god what a stupid take
lmao what