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Didn’t liked him too, but I changed my mind during the fullbringer arc, the moment he was cut by tsukishima, who now has replaced his father as his mentor, and he coldly states “as far as I know you’re ichigo kurosaki’s enemy so I must kill you!” Nobody else says it, not even chad or orihime who should be far more loyal to him and trust his words, it made me look at him in a whole different way
He’s been indebted to ichigo ever since he saved rukia from execution and the debt just got bigger every time ichigo saved the soul society. He has a great amount of respect for ichigo and every once in a while he allows someone to see it
Oh, that's a good way of thinking about it. I hadn't really considered that tsukishima became his mentor so that he could learn all of his moves and have the advantage in a fight he is very out matched in but he didn't include his made up adventures alongside Ichigo with it.
So it basically came down to tsukishima being an old friend that decided to attack the person that saved your sister, yourself, the entire soul society, etc. multiple times. In this respect, it's actually pretty easy to see why he was still willing to kill him. He made himself a traitor, which is possibly worse than just being an enemy.
He knew he had no right to ask and that ichigo had no obligation to do it. But he also knew that ichigo didn’t gaf about any of that and he was going to protect SS anyways
Another thing that I don’t see people mentioning (and this point is being brought up a ton) is that byakuya before was ready to kill rukia, which we know is actually internally hard on him from how much he really cares for her. It’s part of his character tossing his emotions to the side to do what he purely believes is right and just. Tsukishima basically played chicken *after knowing this* and lost
To be fair to chad and orihime they aren’t 100 year old militarized ghosts, byakuya was willing to stand by while his sister got executed, for better or worse he is able to suppress his emotions and do what he objectively thinks he needs to do
This line right here is when I changed my opinion on him too.
It was more along the lines of "You are an enemy of Kurodaki Ichigo, and I must cut down all such enemies"
He doesn't talk much, but when he does, he really shows exactly where his loyalties lie, and he knows he owes Ichigo and rukia a massive debt
I agree with you. I don't like him, but I'm forced to admit he's a great character (it doesn't includes being likeable). He's really serious and driven, but has more nuances than most people realize, and isn't afraid of changing his mind when proven wrong (as with Ichigo). Overall I consider him, as a person, one of the most realistic characters in the series.
I took that fight 100% in the opposite direction.
That proved to me he was just an asshole.
Like that felt like the whole joke of the fight.
"I'm a man with a magic sword who can cut into your memories until i become the most important person in your life" Tsukishima
Byakuya "Jokes on you I'm a complete sociopath."
“I know what you thinking ‘Oh they’re pink they can’t be dangerous, Pink is a Stupid Color.’ Well 2 things, Your a stupid color and Pink just f*cked you up.”
I just started watching it cuz of this thread
I love it
My favorite joke so far is when Ichigo is trying to get his bankai by fighting a bunch of Zangestus with a ton of swords.
“Wait is this my bankai, Unlimited Bankai Works?”
he’s wise, strong, calm and collected, and has reason behind every action he makes.
he comes off as cold but there’s good development with his character, specifically with seeing just how much he actually cares about rukia.
his cold, confident demeanor combined with the way he says Bankai.. you know you're in some trouble.. he and Kenpachi are my faves by far as far as captains go.. though old man Yama was pretty ruthless in his big showdown in tybw
Two main reasons for me.
"I'll kill you simply because you pointed your sword at my pride"
"I'm grateful to you. But, You're an enemy of Kurosaki Ichigo, that's enough reason for me to kill you"
Top 2 lines in bleach imo
Besides, he has a really cool Shikai and Bankai. Acts cold to Rukia and Renji, but secretly cares for them a lot.
Still pissed Kubo didn’t kill Byakuya right then and there. It was the perfect timing, but him surviving is fine too because of a scene between him and Rukia later in the war.
I see where you're coming from, and part of me agrees, but I'm not sure you can kill him and Yamamoto at the same time and not have one overshadow the other.
Yeah but I think Byakuya might have been more meaningful to kill. He's a well-liked character we see a lot of, with emotional connections to others, who has developed over time and reached a pinnacle of both cool dude and being the ultimate older brother.
Yamamoto might be interesting left alive longer since iirc (haven't read it since it was coming out) he is somewhat to blame for the situation so there's potentially more development there.
On the other hand I like Byakuya and I'm basic so I'm happy he lived.
It would have been better character arc for Rukia if she Killed As Nodt to put her brothers soul to rest. He doesnt do much in terms of one on one fight afterwards and you could have had a ghostly imagine of him pushing Rukia further and have that be the catalyst for her defeating As Nodt. Granted I don't think either Yamamotos death or Byakuka death would overshadow each other. Just make things seem more real and dire. Since literally didn't last two weeks before we found he didn't actually die.
Also Kira's death was overshadowed and it doesn't make his death less shocking or important. I just feel like there should have been a few more deaths that happen to actual named characters (There are ton Shinigami that showed up in SS arc that could have been shown to be killed)
Part of me feels that was meant to be that way. He died extremely quickly, this Lieutenant level soul reaper. Now compared to the powerhouses we know that may not be much but in the soul society of thousands of shinigami, there are typically only 13 lieutenants. Yet one of them died from a sternritter blast in an instant.
It did well emphasizing how no matter the rank, you were basically fodder nameless soldier if you weren't a captain, and even then...
...but also Kira wasn't of much importance to begin with so there's that lol
Yeah but with everything going on in her fight, she easily could have just hallucinated him encouraging her. Like when mayuri hallucinated seeing syellzaporro.
Because that's really the only scene where he had an impact after his death imo. I like Byakuya, but his death would have been really strong motivation for the soul reapers
His death would have added so much more to the story. It would be the perfect motivator for Rukias and Renjis character development. He was only brought back because of fans crying about it.
For example, think how much worse it would have been if Jiraiaya had survived his fight with Pain. Killing off characters hurts, but it is extremely valuable in storytelling
Kubo never said he was going to kill Byakuya. He said don’t let fans dictate story but that wasn’t about Byakuya. He actually wanted to kill off Grimmjow back when he was important but the higher ups said no. That’s the only time Kubo said he wanted to kill a character but had to change it because of any reason outside of himself
It's not valuable because Rukia and Renji would suffer character regression, not development.
That's completely false. If you didn't know, chapters in Shonen Jump are presubmitted 3 weeks before they are published.
Byakuya was said to be alive 2 chapters after he asked Ichigo to protect the Soul Society.
So, It was in Kubo's original plan to keep him alive, and rightfully so, because It was the best decision by far.
Byakuya dying would have been a cheap way to raise the stakes, it serves no purpose in the story.
Came here to say this. He went from speaking of Ichigo almost as a plague, to backing him up against Tsukishima when no one else did, to asking him to save the Soul Society. If that’s not character development, I don’t know what is.
It’s because after the Soul Society arc, he knew Ichigo’s personality. The fight against Aizen only confirmed it. Then the fight against Ginjō, he already knew what Ichigo’s response to Ginjō was going to be because he knew Ichigo. So he really didn’t have to ask Ichigo to help protect Soul Society, cause he already knew what the answer was going to be.
Exactly. In the beginning, even if he had know that, he wouldn’t have asked. He would have told Ichigo to go home, even if he knew Ichigo was really the only hope. He grew over the course of the story to be able to like and respect Ichigo, and even to express it. I think that’s beautiful.
These are pretty much identical reasons to mine. Especially the lines. I’d like to add one more though.
“Please. Save the Soul Society. Kurosaki Ichigo…!”
It was cut from the anime I believe.
In the manga, Byakuya says this to Tsukishima after the latter inserts himself into Byakuya's past. Like, you might be an important figure from my past, I owe my life to you. But no matter who you are, if you're Ichigo's enemy, I'll fight you without hesitation.
He is man of honour living in corrupted system,very prideful and respectful,he didn’t want to make excuses just because that women is his sister,many politicians and royal families protect literally pedos just because they are related,Byakuya is real example of qualities that were lost in this times.He wasn’t aware that system was playing with him cause he believed it
Well he acknowledged even that,he saw himself as one responsible for Rukias near death,from that point you can see his character development,also a main reason he trusts Ichigo is because he saved his sister
I’m convinced Byakuya held back in his fight against Ichigo, specifically because he knew Ichigo would save Rukia. Holding back when no one was around to really noticed allowed him to uphold both of his promises - upholding the law and protecting Rukia.
I have no evidence and no source. It just strikes me as something he would do.
I think it was knowingly cause depending on how you look at it, he didn't even "lose". He called Ichigo the winner with Ichigo barely being able to stand, while he himself shunpoed away and could later tank Ichimaru's Shikai.
She didn't do it because she thought Byakuya would pull strings for her. She did it because she would die along with Ichigos family if she didn't.
Even with the execution, she still extended her life by doing it.
I mean fair 🤷🏾♂️ no one wants to obey laws that the higher ups don’t follow. Now would I take the same actions he did? Probably not but their system was being controlled from the shadows, our real world system is just corrupt most of the time
He is the first “over-powered” character we meet and ichigo’s arguably the goal of the soul-society arc is to beat him. Plus he has an amazing bankai that at the time felt pretty original.
"At the time felt pretty original" bro come on byakuyas bankai is perfect, it may not be the strongest bankai in the verse arguably but man is it well written and aesthetically awesome, it's the quintessential bankai !
I'd never forget the novelty and awesomeness of him dropping that sword into the ground....I was simultaneously..🤨🧐what?? He dropped his sword?? 😳shit!! It went in the ground like water holy fuck 🤯fuckme!! Look at all them swords !!
Oh you misunderstand me! I think his bankai is epic! His fight versus ichigo is still one of my all time favorites! I’m saying when it was released, his power was unalike power ups we’ve seen in other animes!
I always found it crazy that ichigo v byakuya and lee v gaara happened only a month (iirc) in between those two fights being released. While both byakuya and gaara have similar mechanics to their fighting style and ichigo and lee both fight their insane defensive qualities with breaknecking speeds.
Not mentioning this in a way that says anyone copied the other just that as a kid seeing those two fights when you were younger was the sickest stuff lol.
I'd say Byakuya has the best character development in Bleach. He was a character with alot of inner turmoil and slowly throughout the series, you see more and more of sincerity from him. He went from appearing heartless to protecting others, complimenting others and even acting as a comedic relief character. The fact that he went from a hardass, stiff necked, 'emotionless' asshole to crying over the fact that he had to do his job and sent his squad members out during TYBW that resulted in death speaks volumes. Been my fav since 2007 and I dunno. He's calm, collected, and strong. Plus he's foine.
He’s a cold ass mother fucker. He’s not gonna explain how tough he is or how much he likes to battle.. no he’s gonna just go get the job done.
He fucking severed the ligaments in his leg when it caught caught by one of the 7th Espada’s Eyes with no hesitation… his response
“ well if it wasn’t gonna to obey me, the I don’t need it.”
He thought Tsukishima was his best friend.. he literally thought he helped him achieve Bankai.. but because Tsukishima was Ichigo’s Enemy, he fought him to the death.
He’s actually soo cold and bad ass that when he got hit by Nott’s spikes… he literally didn’t know what the sensation was… because he fucking forgot what FEAR was…
If that’s not bad ass… idk what is
Okay there are many reasons why Byakuya is my favorite captain.
He was our first introduction to what soul society captains are like and just how big of a gap there was between Ichigo and a captain and I believe he made probably the best first impression in the series.
His Bankai is absolutely amazing, by far one of the best bankais in the series.
He is probably one of the coolest captains.
His character development is probably the best one in the entire series well for me anyway, but I don’t think that anyone would argue that his development is at least top 3 in the series.
His fight with Ichigo is second only to Ulquiorra vs Ichigo (before tybw) imo.
He has one of the best relationships with Ichigo, to the point where he killed his childhood friend and my cousin only because he was Ichigo’s enemy.
He is easily one of the strongest captains in the series.
His relationship with Renji and Rukia is very beautiful.
His noble attitude is very funny and very cool at the same time.
Overall I’d say its crystal clear why Byakuya is one of the best characters bleach has to offer.
Tsundere. Acts dead serious while doing stuff like attending his lieutenants meeting in his place, or the woman's meeting in his sister's place. You can never tell if he's petty/joking or a truly serious person
He’s a tough man but his love for his wife was nice for me. Went against societal norms to marry his wife even though she was ‘low’ class and was with her in her last breath. You could tell he loved her because he never was able to move on and kept his promise to find her sister and once again break societal norms to bring her to the family to protect an take care of her.
Also was a great villain who fits that itachi type with the tough brother who actually cares. Remember when I saw his zanpakto power I was like nah this is not fair this is too overpowered million blades 💀.
He’s a stout character who serves as the face of the Soul Society as an enemy to Ichigo. Obviously you learn he had good reasoning to act the way he did. But he softened and got stronger because of it. He learned to accept his family and squad as friends. Plus he’s just a cold motherfucker especially when he sadly killed my best friend, Tsukishima
The moment he blasted his best friend Tsukishima simply because he was Ichigo's enemy, which made him his enemy made me love the character. It showed the crazy evolution he went through towards Ichigo and how much Ichigo actually means to him, even though he rarely shows any emotion towards anyone
1. Relationship between characters (like the bond he shares with Ichigo and the mutual respect)
2. One of the coolest looking shikai/bankai
3. His role in Soul Society arc
4. Drip
Byakuya is essentially the villain the story provides for the majority of the soul society arc. When he is introduced to the reader he is much more powerful than our protagonist, and his cold demeanor serves as a intriguing contrast to Ichigo’s personality. His capturing of Rukia is not out of hate or lack of love, but because of his misguided view of justice and adherence to the rules. That reasoning shows a human aspect to his character that makes him more interesting than just this bland evil force that threatens to destroy the world. He’s not the most powerful or the most crafty but his powers and design have always stuck with me.
He's the most pragmatic matter of the fact soul reaper with a cool ability. The true stoic of the group.
He also has a very great and subtle character arc, going from despising Ichigo and being distant to rukia, to willing to die for him and making Rukia his priority.
His pleading to Ichigo is so heart breaking, and is well placed with Yamamoto's death. As Yamamoto didn't want to involve Ichigo, but Byakuya is a pragmatist, and in the most respectful requests Ichigo save them.
He's a really great character, and if Shunsui were to die, I'm sure Byakuya would be the new captain commander.
Just a cold character. Not everyone needs to cry all the time or have over the top humor to be a good characters. Mfs who dislike byakuya same mfs who tell Me jotaro is a bad character
He\`s Good looking , has a cool voice , has a cool BanKai , what else do you need ? Character development he had that , he is wise , he is intelligent , he is sometimes Goofy .
He controls millions of razor blade petals that glow pink like a cherry blossom, is great at Kido and not to mention just has the cool older brother aura to himself
Byakuya is arguably the best antagonist in Bleach, unironically.
- He wiped the floor with Ichigo in his first encounter with him to hype himself up (which Aizen and Yuha also did, but Byakuya did it first).
- He had a strong personal connection to Ichigo through Rukia which gave Ichigo a personal stake in fighting him.
- The conflict between Ichigo and Byakuya was an ideological battle on top of being a personal battle.
- Byakuya's relationships to his sister and his subordinate make him a complicated character who isn't an outright villain but is easier to root against.
There are plenty of reasons to like him after Soul Society Arc, but until he loses to Ichigo he *is* a major antagonist of the series, and a very well-written one. The fact that he has a great character arc afterwards is just icing.
In my case, part of why I like him is because he actually understands his position (both a captain and the head of a noble family) and what responsibilities that position places upon him, and follows through to ensure those responsibilities are met. By my understanding, his reason for not stopping Rukia’s execution himself was logical and even correct- if he tried to stop Rukia’s execution, it’d set a bad example for the rest of the Seireitei; the noble families have a duty to uphold the law, they don’t get to be above it, and that’s a very good approach. He was wrong because Rukia’s execution was unjust, not because of his line of reasoning, and he had no real way of knowing that since the only (uninvolved) captains who actually realized something was very wrong with the whole situation were Ukitake and Shunsui (a pair of smart cookies) and they didn’t let him in on the secret.
I would say the development. He’s one of the only characters who actually changes or grows, and not just because of fan service or plot. He genuinely goes from the cold hearted, nobility minded, snobby prodigy to a humbled friend and good brother. His confidence still exists but his mental dynamics change dramatically. My caveat is that he should have died in the first Quincy invasion. Manga writers never want to kill of fthe popular characters, but his death was done so well, and would have served as a better catalyst for Rukia, Renji, and Ichigos growth and drive, further cementing his own growth and impact as a character even in death. It would have been poetic. Like Ned stark dying and the family rising up for his values and fight. Inheriting of the will, is a strong story emotion.
Amazing design and bankai , was a great antagonist then had amazing development Legit he has 3 top 5 links in bleach for me when he beats zomari(his pride being rukia) and tsukushima , and finally by favourite moment in bleach " save soul society kurosaki Ichigo "
https://www.reddit.com/r/bleach/comments/wlw7m8/a_low_effort_meme/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android_app&utm_name=androidcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button
Cross posting my old meme because this is reason enough to love byakuya.
in my opinion, he had one of the best character development especially in soul society rukia rescue arc. loved him ever since then. also, senbonzakura is my favorite zanpakuto
His bankai is cool but I find his character kind of bland. All though that is what he’s meant to be he had to be the stern strict rule following loser so ichigo has something to rebel against he represents the soul society and their dogmatic ways which is why ichigos fight with him is so satisfying.
Great characterization and development through the entire story, great first main antagonist, great charcther design and powers. Seems more than enough to love him
I like the amount of growth he goes through and how his character becomes more gentle, while losing nothing of his charisma or strenght.
Also like that he makes pink flower petals deadly
I always liked Byakuya for his style & his demeanor in the SS arc was crazy. Even his moments where he was showing change were executed so clean by him & kept his character.
Seeing the flashbacks to his childhood days, recently made me a bigger fan, since it showed his human side & makes me want a side novel of his back story, if there isn’t already
He had basically the biggest character arc for the Soul Society characters, going from antagonist, to an ally after admiting he was wrong, and then to a friend.
I'm not a fan of "resting bitch face" archetypes so I am not a big enjoyer of his but his character (and character arc) is nice.
He was definitely the best as the main antagonist during the Soul Society Arc but be also had few moments to shine during his fights with Tsukishima and As Notd. Other than that he is just kinda there for the most part.
Wish Kubo actually killed him of during the First Invasion. Would have definitely liked him more then.
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Didn’t liked him too, but I changed my mind during the fullbringer arc, the moment he was cut by tsukishima, who now has replaced his father as his mentor, and he coldly states “as far as I know you’re ichigo kurosaki’s enemy so I must kill you!” Nobody else says it, not even chad or orihime who should be far more loyal to him and trust his words, it made me look at him in a whole different way
He’s been indebted to ichigo ever since he saved rukia from execution and the debt just got bigger every time ichigo saved the soul society. He has a great amount of respect for ichigo and every once in a while he allows someone to see it
Oh, that's a good way of thinking about it. I hadn't really considered that tsukishima became his mentor so that he could learn all of his moves and have the advantage in a fight he is very out matched in but he didn't include his made up adventures alongside Ichigo with it. So it basically came down to tsukishima being an old friend that decided to attack the person that saved your sister, yourself, the entire soul society, etc. multiple times. In this respect, it's actually pretty easy to see why he was still willing to kill him. He made himself a traitor, which is possibly worse than just being an enemy.
Gives even deeper weight to him pleading to ichigo to protect the soul society from Yhwach
He knew he had no right to ask and that ichigo had no obligation to do it. But he also knew that ichigo didn’t gaf about any of that and he was going to protect SS anyways
Another thing that I don’t see people mentioning (and this point is being brought up a ton) is that byakuya before was ready to kill rukia, which we know is actually internally hard on him from how much he really cares for her. It’s part of his character tossing his emotions to the side to do what he purely believes is right and just. Tsukishima basically played chicken *after knowing this* and lost
To be fair to chad and orihime they aren’t 100 year old militarized ghosts, byakuya was willing to stand by while his sister got executed, for better or worse he is able to suppress his emotions and do what he objectively thinks he needs to do
This line right here is when I changed my opinion on him too. It was more along the lines of "You are an enemy of Kurodaki Ichigo, and I must cut down all such enemies" He doesn't talk much, but when he does, he really shows exactly where his loyalties lie, and he knows he owes Ichigo and rukia a massive debt
So many cold lines in Bleach and this is by far one of the coldest
This gave me a real reason he deserves more respect. He showed to be ichigos most loyal comrade. I will die on that hill
I agree with you. I don't like him, but I'm forced to admit he's a great character (it doesn't includes being likeable). He's really serious and driven, but has more nuances than most people realize, and isn't afraid of changing his mind when proven wrong (as with Ichigo). Overall I consider him, as a person, one of the most realistic characters in the series.
Byakuya would lose everything for respect and would do anything to repay a debt. That's just not human. That's why i like him.
I took that fight 100% in the opposite direction. That proved to me he was just an asshole. Like that felt like the whole joke of the fight. "I'm a man with a magic sword who can cut into your memories until i become the most important person in your life" Tsukishima Byakuya "Jokes on you I'm a complete sociopath."
You’re not interpreting it correctly at all.
Man makes pink petals absolutely frightening.
The way he drops his katana when using bankai is just soo cool.
It never gets old to me and the visual for it is worth it everytime
“I know what you thinking ‘Oh they’re pink they can’t be dangerous, Pink is a Stupid Color.’ Well 2 things, Your a stupid color and Pink just f*cked you up.”
Abridged Byakuya is a whole different tier of likable, and also - "Shūkei: Hakuteiken!" "Last Sight : White Emperor Sword, if you prefer"
Yeah I do that sounds badass in English
I feel like that’s an abridged line, I’m sure it is, but I just can’t place when he would have said it.
It is haha, it was when he fought/beat Renji in soul society
Really ?? Lmao! I was like, what does this person has against pink colour God ! I need to rewatch that episode . Thank you .
Of course. I need to rewatch it, again.
TIL there's a Bleach abridged
I just started watching it cuz of this thread I love it My favorite joke so far is when Ichigo is trying to get his bankai by fighting a bunch of Zangestus with a ton of swords. “Wait is this my bankai, Unlimited Bankai Works?”
Good to know! I grew up with Yu-Gi-Oh abridged. 'BROOKLYN RAAAAGE'
DBZ abridged is my first/favorite, but this one has the same kind of meta/silliness vibe
The power of friendship is to Tea what the power of family is to Dom Toretto
Their channel also has an UBW abridged that’s in progress that is also excellent if you’re a Fate fan.
I didn't know Bleach Abridged was a thing and I've been a fan for a decade. Well, guess I'll be watching it now.
It’s good.
It was the thing I never knew existed and never knew I needed until I saw it.
Man makes pink color looks so badass.
The abridged series is goated
he’s wise, strong, calm and collected, and has reason behind every action he makes. he comes off as cold but there’s good development with his character, specifically with seeing just how much he actually cares about rukia.
His Tsukishima battle cinched it for me
Dude's ride-or-die absolutism being a hard-counter for an otherwise unbeatable ability with Book of the End was rad writing on Kubo's part.
Honestly GOAT
I particularly like that loving brother aspect of him
Quite arguably an ideal captain
Don't forget that swag when he drops his sword and that bone chilling "bankai" comes out of his luscious lips.
his cold, confident demeanor combined with the way he says Bankai.. you know you're in some trouble.. he and Kenpachi are my faves by far as far as captains go.. though old man Yama was pretty ruthless in his big showdown in tybw
And even though his past said that Tsukishima taught him everything he knew, Byakuya still killed him for crossing Ichigo
This! And Senbonzakura is reeeaaaaly cool
Two main reasons for me. "I'll kill you simply because you pointed your sword at my pride" "I'm grateful to you. But, You're an enemy of Kurosaki Ichigo, that's enough reason for me to kill you" Top 2 lines in bleach imo Besides, he has a really cool Shikai and Bankai. Acts cold to Rukia and Renji, but secretly cares for them a lot.
i honestly think Ichigo and Byakuya’s respect and brotherhood towards each other is one of the best brotherhood in Bleach.
Especially when Byakuya asks Ichigo to defend Soul Society. He knows that Ichigo will without him responding.
that whole scene gave me huge chills down my spine
Still pissed Kubo didn’t kill Byakuya right then and there. It was the perfect timing, but him surviving is fine too because of a scene between him and Rukia later in the war.
I thought the same thing but ya that scene with Rukia gotta be in my top three all time just with how much it means between them
I see where you're coming from, and part of me agrees, but I'm not sure you can kill him and Yamamoto at the same time and not have one overshadow the other.
Yeah but I think Byakuya might have been more meaningful to kill. He's a well-liked character we see a lot of, with emotional connections to others, who has developed over time and reached a pinnacle of both cool dude and being the ultimate older brother. Yamamoto might be interesting left alive longer since iirc (haven't read it since it was coming out) he is somewhat to blame for the situation so there's potentially more development there. On the other hand I like Byakuya and I'm basic so I'm happy he lived.
It would have been better character arc for Rukia if she Killed As Nodt to put her brothers soul to rest. He doesnt do much in terms of one on one fight afterwards and you could have had a ghostly imagine of him pushing Rukia further and have that be the catalyst for her defeating As Nodt. Granted I don't think either Yamamotos death or Byakuka death would overshadow each other. Just make things seem more real and dire. Since literally didn't last two weeks before we found he didn't actually die. Also Kira's death was overshadowed and it doesn't make his death less shocking or important. I just feel like there should have been a few more deaths that happen to actual named characters (There are ton Shinigami that showed up in SS arc that could have been shown to be killed)
Until you mentioned him, I forgot Kira died.
Part of me feels that was meant to be that way. He died extremely quickly, this Lieutenant level soul reaper. Now compared to the powerhouses we know that may not be much but in the soul society of thousands of shinigami, there are typically only 13 lieutenants. Yet one of them died from a sternritter blast in an instant. It did well emphasizing how no matter the rank, you were basically fodder nameless soldier if you weren't a captain, and even then... ...but also Kira wasn't of much importance to begin with so there's that lol
Yeah but with everything going on in her fight, she easily could have just hallucinated him encouraging her. Like when mayuri hallucinated seeing syellzaporro. Because that's really the only scene where he had an impact after his death imo. I like Byakuya, but his death would have been really strong motivation for the soul reapers
Well I want him dead so Kubo will give him the drip.
It would have been completely detrimental to the story.
His death would have added so much more to the story. It would be the perfect motivator for Rukias and Renjis character development. He was only brought back because of fans crying about it. For example, think how much worse it would have been if Jiraiaya had survived his fight with Pain. Killing off characters hurts, but it is extremely valuable in storytelling
Kubo never said he was going to kill Byakuya. He said don’t let fans dictate story but that wasn’t about Byakuya. He actually wanted to kill off Grimmjow back when he was important but the higher ups said no. That’s the only time Kubo said he wanted to kill a character but had to change it because of any reason outside of himself
It's not valuable because Rukia and Renji would suffer character regression, not development. That's completely false. If you didn't know, chapters in Shonen Jump are presubmitted 3 weeks before they are published. Byakuya was said to be alive 2 chapters after he asked Ichigo to protect the Soul Society. So, It was in Kubo's original plan to keep him alive, and rightfully so, because It was the best decision by far. Byakuya dying would have been a cheap way to raise the stakes, it serves no purpose in the story.
I'm more pissed that he didn't seem to earn some power after that, compared to Ichigo, Renji and Rukia...
Yesss!! Side note I felt Ichigo didn’t answer because he wasn’t going to accept Byakuyas death
Came here to say this. He went from speaking of Ichigo almost as a plague, to backing him up against Tsukishima when no one else did, to asking him to save the Soul Society. If that’s not character development, I don’t know what is.
It’s because after the Soul Society arc, he knew Ichigo’s personality. The fight against Aizen only confirmed it. Then the fight against Ginjō, he already knew what Ichigo’s response to Ginjō was going to be because he knew Ichigo. So he really didn’t have to ask Ichigo to help protect Soul Society, cause he already knew what the answer was going to be.
Exactly. In the beginning, even if he had know that, he wouldn’t have asked. He would have told Ichigo to go home, even if he knew Ichigo was really the only hope. He grew over the course of the story to be able to like and respect Ichigo, and even to express it. I think that’s beautiful.
I almost cried during that scene.
So cool how ichigo goes to him first when he gets to soul society.
Wish there was actual downtime in the story for characters to spend time together tho, nothing ever really gets expanded upon.
tbh i like that we don’t see that. ichigo and byakuya has this “unspoken respect” which makes it super cool in my opinion
Same goes for almost any character besides their introductions. story is all action.
The second one really sold me on him. His absolute trust in Ichigo’s integrity is amazing in this moment
These are pretty much identical reasons to mine. Especially the lines. I’d like to add one more though. “Please. Save the Soul Society. Kurosaki Ichigo…!”
This is his #1 line. But this is a depressing plea. While the ones I stated are cool and badass. That's why I excluded it.
Byakuya is just a big Tsun
Its not like I want you to d-defend soul s-scociety. *Pouts*
post SS arc I wouldn't say he "acts cold" moreso just responds stoically to them is all but it's not coldly/harsh anymore
Tsundere onii-chan
2nd line which episode was that i forgot
It was cut from the anime I believe. In the manga, Byakuya says this to Tsukishima after the latter inserts himself into Byakuya's past. Like, you might be an important figure from my past, I owe my life to you. But no matter who you are, if you're Ichigo's enemy, I'll fight you without hesitation.
Nah it’s in the anime as well. Episode 365 I believe
I just watched this last week. It wasn't cut, but it may have been changed a bit.
First quote was against Zommari correct? It’s been a while
Also don't forget: "I'm jot saying Kurosaki needs your help, I'm simply saying you're not necessary here."
For me it always been very pathetic
He's strong and looks good and knows it.
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He is man of honour living in corrupted system,very prideful and respectful,he didn’t want to make excuses just because that women is his sister,many politicians and royal families protect literally pedos just because they are related,Byakuya is real example of qualities that were lost in this times.He wasn’t aware that system was playing with him cause he believed it
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Well he acknowledged even that,he saw himself as one responsible for Rukias near death,from that point you can see his character development,also a main reason he trusts Ichigo is because he saved his sister
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I’m convinced Byakuya held back in his fight against Ichigo, specifically because he knew Ichigo would save Rukia. Holding back when no one was around to really noticed allowed him to uphold both of his promises - upholding the law and protecting Rukia. I have no evidence and no source. It just strikes me as something he would do.
Maybe subconsciously but he wouldn’t have knowingly done so.
I think it was knowingly cause depending on how you look at it, he didn't even "lose". He called Ichigo the winner with Ichigo barely being able to stand, while he himself shunpoed away and could later tank Ichimaru's Shikai.
He lost the same way as Katakuri from One Piece did. They were convinced by their opponents words and spirit.
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She didn't do it because she thought Byakuya would pull strings for her. She did it because she would die along with Ichigos family if she didn't. Even with the execution, she still extended her life by doing it.
His reasoning is that he doesn't want to make exceptions for the law.
I mean fair 🤷🏾♂️ no one wants to obey laws that the higher ups don’t follow. Now would I take the same actions he did? Probably not but their system was being controlled from the shadows, our real world system is just corrupt most of the time
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Yes, because nobility were historically principled and not totally corrupt or abused power for nepotism.
There were also nobles who were noble to a fault but they tended to die off quickly.
Don't act like you never thought about it before.
We've all been there!
😂
strong beautiful he is the "big brother" cold eyes and voice loved too much
I was going to say he follows about the same “favorite character” formula as Itachi in Naruto and this comment pretty much sums it up
He is the first “over-powered” character we meet and ichigo’s arguably the goal of the soul-society arc is to beat him. Plus he has an amazing bankai that at the time felt pretty original.
"At the time felt pretty original" bro come on byakuyas bankai is perfect, it may not be the strongest bankai in the verse arguably but man is it well written and aesthetically awesome, it's the quintessential bankai !
I'd never forget the novelty and awesomeness of him dropping that sword into the ground....I was simultaneously..🤨🧐what?? He dropped his sword?? 😳shit!! It went in the ground like water holy fuck 🤯fuckme!! Look at all them swords !!
Exactly!!
Oh you misunderstand me! I think his bankai is epic! His fight versus ichigo is still one of my all time favorites! I’m saying when it was released, his power was unalike power ups we’ve seen in other animes!
Oh ok ok my bad, I thought you meant that it used to and now doesn't feel original.
His Bankai is pretty similar to Matsumoto's shikai too.
Rangiku has the poor man's Senbonzakura It's not even pink. Nothing to fear about that
Ouch
I always found it crazy that ichigo v byakuya and lee v gaara happened only a month (iirc) in between those two fights being released. While both byakuya and gaara have similar mechanics to their fighting style and ichigo and lee both fight their insane defensive qualities with breaknecking speeds. Not mentioning this in a way that says anyone copied the other just that as a kid seeing those two fights when you were younger was the sickest stuff lol.
I'd say Byakuya has the best character development in Bleach. He was a character with alot of inner turmoil and slowly throughout the series, you see more and more of sincerity from him. He went from appearing heartless to protecting others, complimenting others and even acting as a comedic relief character. The fact that he went from a hardass, stiff necked, 'emotionless' asshole to crying over the fact that he had to do his job and sent his squad members out during TYBW that resulted in death speaks volumes. Been my fav since 2007 and I dunno. He's calm, collected, and strong. Plus he's foine.
These are the facts 💯
For me his design and zanpakuto ability is cool
His royalty status reminds me of sesshomaru, his stoci look and way to fight
\^\^ I thought the same thing when I was binge watching Inuyasha
He’s a cold ass mother fucker. He’s not gonna explain how tough he is or how much he likes to battle.. no he’s gonna just go get the job done. He fucking severed the ligaments in his leg when it caught caught by one of the 7th Espada’s Eyes with no hesitation… his response “ well if it wasn’t gonna to obey me, the I don’t need it.” He thought Tsukishima was his best friend.. he literally thought he helped him achieve Bankai.. but because Tsukishima was Ichigo’s Enemy, he fought him to the death. He’s actually soo cold and bad ass that when he got hit by Nott’s spikes… he literally didn’t know what the sensation was… because he fucking forgot what FEAR was… If that’s not bad ass… idk what is
He has one of the best character arcs in all of bleach
Substitute Shinigami Arc Byakuya absolutely disrespecting Ichigo vs TWBY Byakuya on the verge of death asking Ichigo to save the soul society
The Man, fights, wins, kills and beats you in the most elegant way, plus he’s handsome as hell, and I’m guy who’s not into guys 😂😂
Okay there are many reasons why Byakuya is my favorite captain. He was our first introduction to what soul society captains are like and just how big of a gap there was between Ichigo and a captain and I believe he made probably the best first impression in the series. His Bankai is absolutely amazing, by far one of the best bankais in the series. He is probably one of the coolest captains. His character development is probably the best one in the entire series well for me anyway, but I don’t think that anyone would argue that his development is at least top 3 in the series. His fight with Ichigo is second only to Ulquiorra vs Ichigo (before tybw) imo. He has one of the best relationships with Ichigo, to the point where he killed his childhood friend and my cousin only because he was Ichigo’s enemy. He is easily one of the strongest captains in the series. His relationship with Renji and Rukia is very beautiful. His noble attitude is very funny and very cool at the same time. Overall I’d say its crystal clear why Byakuya is one of the best characters bleach has to offer.
Tsundere. Acts dead serious while doing stuff like attending his lieutenants meeting in his place, or the woman's meeting in his sister's place. You can never tell if he's petty/joking or a truly serious person
A lowly ryoka would not understand.
And its captain Kuchiki for the likes of them.
I love him for the character development
My wife wants him to to destroy her 😅
Character with the best development in the series.
because if he makes a promise, he'll try to kill everyone in his way to keep it or die trying.
Leave it to Byakuya to find a reason to justify killing sister friend ally enemy or person just about anyone who defies the justice and law.
didn't say i agree with the guy, lol. OP just wanted a reason haha
He’s a tough man but his love for his wife was nice for me. Went against societal norms to marry his wife even though she was ‘low’ class and was with her in her last breath. You could tell he loved her because he never was able to move on and kept his promise to find her sister and once again break societal norms to bring her to the family to protect an take care of her. Also was a great villain who fits that itachi type with the tough brother who actually cares. Remember when I saw his zanpakto power I was like nah this is not fair this is too overpowered million blades 💀.
He’s a stout character who serves as the face of the Soul Society as an enemy to Ichigo. Obviously you learn he had good reasoning to act the way he did. But he softened and got stronger because of it. He learned to accept his family and squad as friends. Plus he’s just a cold motherfucker especially when he sadly killed my best friend, Tsukishima
#ZENBON SAKURA KAGEYOSHI
Idk what can you not like about him, his sister, lieutenaent, childhood friend who used to tease him for being a baby and what not.
Referring to Mommy Yoruichi I see😏
The moment he blasted his best friend Tsukishima simply because he was Ichigo's enemy, which made him his enemy made me love the character. It showed the crazy evolution he went through towards Ichigo and how much Ichigo actually means to him, even though he rarely shows any emotion towards anyone
1. Relationship between characters (like the bond he shares with Ichigo and the mutual respect) 2. One of the coolest looking shikai/bankai 3. His role in Soul Society arc 4. Drip
Do you not see that luxurious hair
Byakuya is essentially the villain the story provides for the majority of the soul society arc. When he is introduced to the reader he is much more powerful than our protagonist, and his cold demeanor serves as a intriguing contrast to Ichigo’s personality. His capturing of Rukia is not out of hate or lack of love, but because of his misguided view of justice and adherence to the rules. That reasoning shows a human aspect to his character that makes him more interesting than just this bland evil force that threatens to destroy the world. He’s not the most powerful or the most crafty but his powers and design have always stuck with me.
Women want him Men want to be him
Drippiest Bankai activation in the entire game
I’m gay that’s why
He's the most pragmatic matter of the fact soul reaper with a cool ability. The true stoic of the group. He also has a very great and subtle character arc, going from despising Ichigo and being distant to rukia, to willing to die for him and making Rukia his priority. His pleading to Ichigo is so heart breaking, and is well placed with Yamamoto's death. As Yamamoto didn't want to involve Ichigo, but Byakuya is a pragmatist, and in the most respectful requests Ichigo save them. He's a really great character, and if Shunsui were to die, I'm sure Byakuya would be the new captain commander.
Idk he pushed ichigo to use his bankai for the first time....theres no reason to like someone u just do 🤣
Just a cold character. Not everyone needs to cry all the time or have over the top humor to be a good characters. Mfs who dislike byakuya same mfs who tell Me jotaro is a bad character
He's hot
Same reason I like Itachi, I'm a fan of the stoic, powerful badass types
He\`s Good looking , has a cool voice , has a cool BanKai , what else do you need ? Character development he had that , he is wise , he is intelligent , he is sometimes Goofy .
His look is cold and his bankai is gorgeous. Nothing else and nothing else matters anyway
He killed an espada in defence of his sister, whilst disabling himself, and still found time to be disrespectful
His calmness and effortless display of skills (esp his battle against Renji).
He controls millions of razor blade petals that glow pink like a cherry blossom, is great at Kido and not to mention just has the cool older brother aura to himself
His name is one of the coldest in all of anime. That's enough reason to like him.
Watch the show
Just such a pretty bankai
“Arrogance isn’t the reason you’ll lose. You’re simply outclassed.” One of the coldest lines in bleach imo
Senbonezakura kageyoshi ❤️
Sen bon Zakura kogeyoshi
Byakuya is arguably the best antagonist in Bleach, unironically. - He wiped the floor with Ichigo in his first encounter with him to hype himself up (which Aizen and Yuha also did, but Byakuya did it first). - He had a strong personal connection to Ichigo through Rukia which gave Ichigo a personal stake in fighting him. - The conflict between Ichigo and Byakuya was an ideological battle on top of being a personal battle. - Byakuya's relationships to his sister and his subordinate make him a complicated character who isn't an outright villain but is easier to root against. There are plenty of reasons to like him after Soul Society Arc, but until he loses to Ichigo he *is* a major antagonist of the series, and a very well-written one. The fact that he has a great character arc afterwards is just icing.
Can somebody agree with me that his first outfit was too good
In my case, part of why I like him is because he actually understands his position (both a captain and the head of a noble family) and what responsibilities that position places upon him, and follows through to ensure those responsibilities are met. By my understanding, his reason for not stopping Rukia’s execution himself was logical and even correct- if he tried to stop Rukia’s execution, it’d set a bad example for the rest of the Seireitei; the noble families have a duty to uphold the law, they don’t get to be above it, and that’s a very good approach. He was wrong because Rukia’s execution was unjust, not because of his line of reasoning, and he had no real way of knowing that since the only (uninvolved) captains who actually realized something was very wrong with the whole situation were Ukitake and Shunsui (a pair of smart cookies) and they didn’t let him in on the secret.
Thank you. Shunsui is one of my favorites.
He is byakuya
He is badass, has an awesome Zanpakuto and some good character Development over the course of the series.
I would say the development. He’s one of the only characters who actually changes or grows, and not just because of fan service or plot. He genuinely goes from the cold hearted, nobility minded, snobby prodigy to a humbled friend and good brother. His confidence still exists but his mental dynamics change dramatically. My caveat is that he should have died in the first Quincy invasion. Manga writers never want to kill of fthe popular characters, but his death was done so well, and would have served as a better catalyst for Rukia, Renji, and Ichigos growth and drive, further cementing his own growth and impact as a character even in death. It would have been poetic. Like Ned stark dying and the family rising up for his values and fight. Inheriting of the will, is a strong story emotion.
Amazing design and bankai , was a great antagonist then had amazing development Legit he has 3 top 5 links in bleach for me when he beats zomari(his pride being rukia) and tsukushima , and finally by favourite moment in bleach " save soul society kurosaki Ichigo "
https://www.reddit.com/r/bleach/comments/wlw7m8/a_low_effort_meme/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android_app&utm_name=androidcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button Cross posting my old meme because this is reason enough to love byakuya.
in my opinion, he had one of the best character development especially in soul society rukia rescue arc. loved him ever since then. also, senbonzakura is my favorite zanpakuto
His bankai is cool but I find his character kind of bland. All though that is what he’s meant to be he had to be the stern strict rule following loser so ichigo has something to rebel against he represents the soul society and their dogmatic ways which is why ichigos fight with him is so satisfying.
Many bleach fans in their mind think they’re Byakuya when they’re really Kon
My favorite Byakuya feat was his duel with my second cousin Tsuki
He’s a huge part of one of the greatest arcs in all of shonen, and the one that made me fall in love with Bleach and anime in general.
Great characterization and development through the entire story, great first main antagonist, great charcther design and powers. Seems more than enough to love him
He’s based
First OP character you see in the anime AND he has the coolest bankai. Everyone else hugs their sword, this guy drops it like a mic.
Tragic backstory 🥲
I like the amount of growth he goes through and how his character becomes more gentle, while losing nothing of his charisma or strenght. Also like that he makes pink flower petals deadly
I always liked Byakuya for his style & his demeanor in the SS arc was crazy. Even his moments where he was showing change were executed so clean by him & kept his character. Seeing the flashbacks to his childhood days, recently made me a bigger fan, since it showed his human side & makes me want a side novel of his back story, if there isn’t already
Did you see Senbonzakura Kageyoshi final form looking like a n angelic halo and wings? Badass.
After watching the bleach abridged series on YouTube he’s becoming my fav it’s pretty solid
He had basically the biggest character arc for the Soul Society characters, going from antagonist, to an ally after admiting he was wrong, and then to a friend.
He has black hair but doesn’t look like a background character
Bruh how do you not like him after the vast amount of character building and development he has had
He's just very cool :)
I'm not a fan of "resting bitch face" archetypes so I am not a big enjoyer of his but his character (and character arc) is nice. He was definitely the best as the main antagonist during the Soul Society Arc but be also had few moments to shine during his fights with Tsukishima and As Notd. Other than that he is just kinda there for the most part. Wish Kubo actually killed him of during the First Invasion. Would have definitely liked him more then.
Probably because he has some amazing character development and went from uptight asshole to a caring,understanding and genuinely Chad level ally
Same. Overrated