For the longest time, Tite Kubo’s Bleach has been the inferior one among the Big Three. Fans have expressed their opinion about Bleach’s lacking in multiple aspects, but it looks like these opinions have changed recently. And the credit for this goes to the portrayal of villains in the sequel, Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War’s anime adaptation.
Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War is the perfect combination of a brilliant storyline with compelling animation, but what makes the series even better is the portrayal of the characters, especially the antagonist. The main antagonist of the series is Yhwach, the Quincy King and the commander of Wandenreich, his army, who has launched an attack on Soul Society.
Yhwach’s character is complex in terms of his ambitions and motives regarding his army and his opponents. But the element that proves his perfection is the shocking twist that Kubo introduced in the middle of the series. This twist was so big that it even blew past the Sosuke Aizen reveal in the first series.
Yhwach’s Portrayal as an Antagonist in Bleach
Just like any other major villain in the anime community, Yhwach’s entire character is based on the idea of destroying the world in order to save it. However, his methods and reasoning to do so are quite unique, which makes him an enticing addition to the Bleach storyline. His past and his character development in the series make the plot intriguing.
Since the beginning, Yhwach’s goal has been to conquer the Soul Society and display his dominance as The Almighty. However, Ichibe, the commanding officer of the Royal Guard, stopped him and his plans before he could move any further. Ultimately, Yhwach went silent until the Thousand-Year Blood War arc, where he gained his full power and more.
Yhwach’s first attack on Soul Society left everything in dust. He destroyed the entire region and killed many major characters in the process. His rage towards the Soul Reapers and his ambition to save the world by destroying it became the fuel that powered him and his dangerous Quincy army.
The Twist That Made Yhwach’s Character as a Villain Even Better
Yhwach is the final major villain in the entire Bleach narrative. This is one of the reasons why Tite Kubo has put his heart and soul into planning Yhwach’s character, his ambitions, his powers, his weaknesses, and his connection to the antagonist of the series, Kurosaki Ichigo. In fact, this connection works as the most shocking twist in the entire narrative.
During the Thousand-Year Blood War arc, Ichigo finds out that Zangetsu, the manifested spirit of Ichigo Kurosaki’s Zanpakuto, is actually an entity reflecting Yhwach’s Quincy powers. Ichigo finds out that he is part Quincy, and the Zangetsu who guided him throughout was actually the manifestation of those powers, which is why he looked like Yhwach.
This is the biggest shock in the entire Bleach narrative. It not only reflects on Ichigo as a Quincy but also reveals the truth about his mother. Plus, it gives a new perspective to Yhwach’s character as a villain. This twist, according to many fans, makes Yhwach a better villain than Sosuke Aizen in Bleach.
Bleach is available to watch on Hulu.
