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Bleach 271: Ulquiorra’s rank revealed

I know this is a bit late, but better late than never yes? :D
Oh and this won’t be much of a manga review, considering I’ve never done one. It’s more like a… I-post-and-you-discuss-it kind of thing haha~

m7_bleach_ch271_02.png



My attempt at a short summary:

Ichigo’s hollow mask collapses and Nell jumps at him, reprimanding for using such power at his current state. He apologizes and declares that it is time to go, thinking that he has beaten Ulquiorra. How very wrong he is. Not only is Ulquiorra still standing, he is not even that wounded. Ulquiorra fires a cero at Ichigo and Nell and after some throwing about, Ichigo “stabs” Ulquiorra. He declares that he will not surrender and that if he can beat Ulquiorra, it is the same as winning the war because he thinks Ulquiorra is the numero uno espada. Ulquiorra grabs the sword and rips his shirt -hears some fangirl screams in the background- in the process, revealing his number.

m7_bleach_ch271_16.png

Ulquiorra stabs Ichigo with his hand alone, saying that Ichigo can never beat him and even if Ichigo did, he would still have to face 3 other espada. The chapter ends with Ulquiorra saying, “The path to victory doesn’t exist.”

Thoughts:
As I said, I won’t be doing much of a review. I want you guys to share your thoughts instead. As for me, though… Quite frankly, I’m a bit shocked. I expected Ulquiorra to be at a higher rank. Hm who knows, maybe the Halibel is the numero uno espada~

So thoughts? Opinions? Reactions?

Image credits: Maximum 7

70 comments

70 Comments so far

  1. alkanphel April 20th, 2007 4:46 am

    Well I always thought Ulquiorra was going to be #1 so I’m kinda disappointed of course. My next prediction for #1 is going to be Stark then :P

  2. Caraniel April 20th, 2007 5:02 am

    Aye I had always thought Ulquiorra would be #1 too, so 271 sorta had me let out a loud high pitched squeal of ‘Eh!??’ when he was revealed as #4.

    I’m sorta at a loss as to who the top 3 Espada are now, the rest havent had much screentime yet….so I’m thinking Norita (or as I call him Spoon-Car) will be #3 or #2, dont think hes #1….dont know who else I would stick in the top 3 though.

  3. xau April 20th, 2007 6:19 am

    His character design always made me believe that he was #1 as well. No idea why. Scary…

    Hotlink error by the way… Maybe try http://imgred.com next time…

  4. xau April 20th, 2007 6:22 am

    Sorry, the image only showed up as ‘no hotlinking’ because I was reading it in my RSS reader.

    Can you please allow hotlinking via google.com/reader ?

  5. Kojak April 20th, 2007 7:33 am

    Yeah, it’s shocking, i as well, was expecting for Ulquiorra to be number one espada but he’s not even amount the top 3. That means things are not that clear and of course more action in a near future, I’m still waiting for the twist that will guide the involvement of Soul Society and Vaizards in the WAR.

    P.D.: How the hell will Ichigo beat or escape from Ulquiora? Well, we all have a general idea, i guess…

  6. Danny April 20th, 2007 8:36 am

    wow…i never thought ulquiorra was number 1, considering how he was one of the first espadas to appear. and his cautiosness when he first appears with yami against urahara and yoruichi made me think he was pretty lowly (weaker than grimjaww).

  7. TedFox April 20th, 2007 6:29 pm

    I concurr with Danny, had the same thoughts.

    There’s the 2 shinigami who left with Aizen at the beginning right?? I would guess that they are the top few??

  8. [...] Congratulations to Kojak, who has become the winner of this little dedication after his comment in Aezie’s Bleach 271 entry. He designated me this time (remind me to exclude myself from the [...]

  9. alkanphel April 20th, 2007 7:22 pm

    Tedfox: That’s impossible since Gin and Tousen aren’t even part of the 10 Espada :P

  10. captfamous April 23rd, 2007 10:21 pm

    I have a theory, based entirely on speculation, that Wonderwice (sp?) is one of the top two, possibly number one, Espada. This is based largely on not being able to think of a reason that he’d even be in the story if he wasn’t secretly super strong. Plus, if he really is pure as Tosen says, and pure figures are drawn to each other, as Tosen says, what would happen if he met Orihime, who seems to be the purest character in the story?

  11. Ralvador April 27th, 2007 10:40 pm

    Ulquiorra if I would compare him with the Captains appears to be like Byakuya, very powerful, monotonous in emotion, almost chivalrous in appearance, but not quite the top. The three surpassing Byakuya would be the white hair dude, the flowery dude, and the head captain, sorry i forgot the names.

  12. espada_ichi April 29th, 2007 6:35 am

    I don’t pay much attention to who has shown their ranks, can anyone list who’s shown their ranks now? As for Ulquiorra being #4, I was definitely shocked out of my mind when they announced that and am psyched to find out the top 3 then.

  13. Schiffer May 1st, 2007 4:02 am

    the number one espada must have unimaginable power. and ulquiorra is definitely not weaker then urahara, he stopped urahara’s blast meant to kill yammy with just his bare hands.

  14. Psychedelic May 1st, 2007 3:45 pm

    I thought the same thing about Ulquiorra Schiffer being the #1 Espada in S

  15. Schiffer May 14th, 2007 11:20 pm

    i bet on halibel, noitora and stark as top 3

  16. c0ckcommander May 15th, 2007 4:00 am

    didnt noitora claim to be the strongest espada after he K.O’d Chad?

  17. alkanphel May 15th, 2007 10:10 am

    He claimed he was the strongest but he said he wasn’t recognised as the strongest. There is a difference.

  18. Dan July 6th, 2007 5:59 am

    yo im think the espada are mostly clones of the gotei 13 or other strong charaters

    for instent take a look at this

    espada:
    Noitora, (unnamed), Grimmjow, Aaroniero, Halibel.
    good side:
    soi fon yamammoto zaraki konomamaru (halibel i dunno)
    espada:
    Yammy, Stark, Ulquiorra, Szayel Aporro, (unnamed).
    good side:
    (yammy i dunno) shunsui byakuya ishida (unnamed i dunno)

    it might not be all correct but they might have similar abilities

  19. shimijimi July 14th, 2007 4:28 am
  20. Malachi July 14th, 2007 9:13 am

    Actually for the pic shimijimi provided…I actually prefer Aaroniero as “Test-Tube head sama” rather than as Kaien Shiba

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Arroniro_arleri.png#filelinks

  21. Anime Dattebayo July 22nd, 2007 2:27 pm

    Obviously ulquiorra isnt #1!!! Aizen is #1, then Gin then Tousen!!!! i actually thot Ulquiorra was like #6…but Grimmjow….i still havent figured out who #5 is…i mean i skimmed through everything…(skimmed!) and i cant find much about him…well our dattebayo is already working translating Bleach Manga #286….#285 is already translated but won’t come out until next friday..and our anime episodes are coming…though i cant stress it enough…please oh please, dont upload any of our dattebayo episodes onto youtube or crunchyroll…we host them…not youtube!! please keep that in mind and NarutoBuzz will allow you to do so…

  22. Malachi July 22nd, 2007 5:20 pm

    For a guy who claims he’s from dattebayo, you don’t know alot abt what dattebayo does…they sub Bleach Episodes not Bleach Manga chapters. Also even Shounen Jump hasn’t published Bleach 285 so how the heck can anyone do a scanlation of Bleach 285, let alone 286 unless you actually broke into Tite Kubo’s studio and stole the chapter from his office.

    Anyway I tend to think that it is still pretty acceptable for Ulquiorra to be number 4. Heck I actually expected him to be number 2 given his demeanour.

  23. eltio chulo July 27th, 2007 11:34 am

    d k mierda ablais si ya van por el 285 so gilipollas kapulloos de mierda so chulo idiotas imbeciles tu madre era tan zorra k nascio follando

  24. Koto Szayel August 11th, 2007 9:43 am

    1. Noitora 2. Stark 3. Old Man 4. Ulquiorra 5. Halibel 6. Grimmjaw. 7. Dark Guy 8. Szayel 9. Aaroniero 10. Yammy
    Aizen, Gin, Tousen act as the leaders, Its just like Soul Society, 13 Leaders. it is perfectly understandable why Ulquiorra is number 4, why because when Ulquiorra made his appearance in the human world why would Aizen send the strongest Espada to just look around. And Since Noitora is the strongest and also My Psycho he would most likely ruin the show because Ichigo showing up and Noitora just killing him just like that.

  25. nosaj August 14th, 2007 3:41 pm

    obviusly tousen is not included in the espada..for me he’s too weak… defeated by kenpachi like that… :)

  26. Stark August 15th, 2007 7:21 pm

    Top 3 Espada
    1st Espada Unknown
    2nd Espada Unknown
    3rd Espada Unknown (Maybe Halibel or Stark)
    ————————————-
    4th Espada Ulquiorra
    5th Espada Noitora
    6th Espada Grimmjow
    7th Espada Unknown (Maybe Halibel or Stark)
    8th Espada Szayel
    9th Espada Aaroniero
    10th Espada Yammy

  27. klfslk August 17th, 2007 10:06 am

    Stark is #1

  28. Zee August 18th, 2007 1:40 am

    No, I think the old man would be no. 1. Because, I forgot which chapter, he had a crown on which kind of gave away a little bit that he would be the top espada (also had more experience). And Stark would be no. 2, the big black gu no. 7 and the chick no. 3.

  29. wtf August 25th, 2007 2:52 pm

    just cuz the old man has the crown and all the scars, doesnt mean that he is the top espada. those scars could easilt hav been from when he was still alive or somthin’. I think Stark is no.1 cuz look at his name. his name means strong in german or complete in english. and also note, he is the only one who does not hav the remains of his mask directly on his face. he must be the first ‘complete’ arrancar im guessing…anyway, my list then would be:

    1. Stark

    2.big black dood or chick

    3.big black dood or chick

    4. Ulquiorra

    5. Nnoitora

    6. Grimmjow

    7. Old man

    8. Szayel Aporro

    9. Arniero

    10. Yammy

  30. hijero August 27th, 2007 4:09 pm

    yah right i think stark is strong but not that strong i agree that the old man is the strongest because he is old and has scars could mean he has the most battle experience of them all making him the strongest of the espada

  31. lol September 1st, 2007 7:58 am

    na na na na na todos sois lols o k ?

    1-Noitora ( se sabe ya por el comic ¬¬ lols)

    2-Halibel

    3-Stark

    4-Ulquiorra

    5-Old man

    6-Grimmjow pero aora en la serie de momento esta luppi pero grimmjow al recuperar el brazo buelve a ser un espada la destroza a la luppi

    7- el negro

    8-Szayel Aporro

    9-Aaroinero

    10-Yammi

    esta es la lista correcta //is the list correct comproved for manga and the web oficial the Bleach Lols

  32. Xerxes September 2nd, 2007 4:15 pm

    1-Old Guy … just like the Captain Commander in the Gotei 13
    2-Stark… could be 1st but he’s too lazy
    3-Black Guy .. has a “3″ on his chin
    4-Ulquiorra
    5-Noitora
    6-Grimmjow
    7-Halibel
    8-Szayel Aporro
    9-Aaroinero
    10-Yammi

  33. S.P.W September 3rd, 2007 5:45 am

    I think there is a high chance that Stark might be the number 1 Espada or the top 3. Animes have most of the time (Or always) make the most lazy or dumb characters that is in the group turn out to be the strongest. It’s just a gues do… But I can’t just shake this feeling that he is the number 1.

  34. ulquiorra lover September 7th, 2007 2:18 am

    10 – yammy
    9 – aaroniero
    8 – szayel
    7 – old man..?
    6 – grimmjow
    5 – noitora
    4 – ulquiorra(favourite)
    3 – black guy..?
    2 – halibel
    1 – stark

  35. Ulquiorra September 11th, 2007 6:53 am

    Ulquiorra might become 1 espada not long my freind tell me and grimjaw will become 2 espada dude

  36. Ulquiorra September 11th, 2007 6:56 am

    even though hes number four espada doesnt mean that he is not the strongest like byakkya he 6 but he so strong

  37. bankai September 13th, 2007 6:36 pm

    ranks in the espada are different from the ranks of the 13 gaurd squads. the espada ranks determine there power and there ulquiorra is 4th.

  38. Ice September 17th, 2007 1:58 pm

    the chick has to be top 3 b/c when grimmjaw released his sword and turned into panthera or something…the chicks bodyguards got scared of his reitsu
    yet the chick said that it was only normal for non espadas to fear an espadas released form

  39. urahara September 22nd, 2007 8:50 am

    isnt the big black guys name stark and the old man could be # one cause look at captain commander and by the way the only way that zaraki could beat aizen is because hes insane and that illusion stuff doesnt effect him and urahara is way stronger then any of the espada because he is able to stop any attack and he only fights using shikai and he could easily be able to take on aizen

  40. james September 29th, 2007 6:27 am

    How about Nell? She is revealed as number 3 Espada in one of the latest manga.

  41. Nghia September 29th, 2007 7:35 pm

    Well, i guess i have to agree with some of you in that Stark is #1 . Halibel to be #2, and the unknown old man to be #3.

  42. Nghia September 29th, 2007 7:41 pm

    And let us not forget about “Wonderwice Margera” . Although he appears to be an Arrancar, Soul Society ranks his spiritual power in the same class as the Espada. Wonder if he’s strong, they’ve been going on a little about him in the manga.

  43. Shadow October 7th, 2007 5:50 pm

    The number 1 espada is the old man, because he is shown wearing a crown when the espada notice that #9 was killed.

  44. Ice October 9th, 2007 6:26 pm

    i thouhhgt stark was the white guy who was sleeping at the table
    and to james…nell is ranked #3 espada but that was when she was still an espada.. espadas now are much stronger
    in newer chapters in the manga you find out that noitara broke nells mask when she was still espada and noitara said when you come back to las nochas you wont be able to defeat me anymore meaning nell has gotten weaker even though she is ranked 3

  45. OmgOnigiri October 10th, 2007 8:22 pm

    “Ulquiorra grabs the sword and rips his shirt -hears some fangirl screams in the background- in the process, revealing his number.”
    XD

    I was a bit surprised–yet no so at the same time…–when I found out Ulquiorra’s rank. I had a feeling he wasn’t #1, though.
    “Shi” means “four” or “death.” In Asia, four is thought to be unlucky because of this connection…or something along those lines. ^^’ I think Ulquiorra’s rank is fitting for some reason…maybe I’m thinking too deeply about this…

  46. Annihilation October 11th, 2007 10:39 pm

    hmm i thought ulquiorra wouldn’t be one. hoped so but didn’t think so. (thoughts for espada ranks)

    10.yammy(released)
    9.aaroniero(released)
    8.szayel aporro(released)
    7.halibel
    6.grimmjow(released)
    5.noitra(released)
    4.ulquiorra(released)
    3.stark
    2.unknown blak guy
    1.old geezer

  47. Bare keen man with fat chode October 15th, 2007 10:27 am

    yeah top 3, is gunna be old geeza for sure, had to be a girl in top 3 so halibel and i would say stark, i would say unknown blak guy will be 7th because big beefy dudes and nob ends are like 6 and above but quiet and “cool” dudes are in top 4 so u know.

    This had prb already been said but im not gunna read through them all,

    by the way i have a fat nob that bends to the lest and is hard to wank with

  48. Stash48 October 19th, 2007 5:15 pm

    1. Halibel 2. Stark 3. Old Man 4. Ulquiorra 5. Noitora 6. Grimmjaw. 7. Dark Guy 8. Szayel 9. Aaroniero 10. Yammy

    Thats how it is

  49. Leo October 21st, 2007 2:44 pm

    I think Stark is the #1 Espada, because he looks the coolest and the reason he is lazzy is because since he has allready surpaced everyone he has no one who will give him a real challange. Besides he does look really cool and i can’t wait for the manga to say he’s the #1.

    My top 3

    #1: Stark(He looks cool and calm and not as worried as the other guys)
    #2: Halibel(she looks hot and strong)
    #3: Old Man(Even though he looks tough, he wouldn’t be #1 because that would be too obvious)

  50. Jiruga November 1st, 2007 3:11 pm

    aizen is a no nonsense guy therefore he wouldnt deal with such a lazy guy as stark unless he was strong thus making him number two almost like shunsui who was as strong as hell but just not number one! halibel looks like number three to me then that old fool is first because he bares resemblance to yama in age silence and scars. i was hoping zomari leroux was 3rd but to bad.

  51. Stark the espada November 1st, 2007 7:50 pm

    Top 3 Espada
    1st Espada Unknown (Maybe Halibel or Stark or Old Man)
    2nd Espada Unknown (Maybe Halibel or Stark or Old Man)
    3rd Espada Unknown (Maybe Halibel or Stark or Old Man)
    ————————————-
    4th Espada Ulquiorra Schiffer
    5th Espada Noitora
    6th Espada Grimmjow Jeagerjaques
    7th Espada Zomari Le Roux
    8th Espada Szayel Aporro Granz
    9th Espada Aaroniero Arruruerie
    10th Espada Yammy

  52. wimbledfire6886 November 5th, 2007 12:48 am

    I have a feeling that Halibel is number three because she actually has subordinates and is out watching the battle of Grimjaw and Ichigo. Number two I think is the old man because it would be too obvious for him to be numero uno. Stark seems to be the most easy going of all of them, so I feel it’s only natural that he would be the strongest since he’s not phased by the deaths of his comrades. I guess you could say he’s waiting his turn so he can face the strongest opponent.

  53. Reap'em November 18th, 2007 9:57 pm

    Alright, I think Stark is #1 (sorry to the old man/chick/black guy lovers) mainly beacuase of his appearance. It’s already been revealed that when a Vasto Lorde (sp?) or a high-leveled Adjuchas (sp again?) becomes an Espada/High Numeros, they take on a much more human-like form. I think this applies more with the higher rank you are. Ulquiorra is somewhat of an exception to this, like OmgOnigiri said earlier (i’ll choose to believe him/her) his name deals with death, and Ulq looks like a dead person in my opinion. Anyway…Out of all the Espada, Stark has the least amount of his mask still visible and is also the the most human-looking (in my opinion).

    Plus…..like many others, I’ve got this odd vibe that Stark is #1……………………Go Stark! *waves banner*

  54. aizen rulez November 26th, 2007 5:21 pm

    i think stark is number one halibel number two and either the black guy or old man is 3rd. i know halibel and stark are in the top 3 because i checked wikipedia so this is my thoughts.

  55. Dane December 14th, 2007 7:07 am

    1st Old Man
    2nd Stark
    3rd Halibel
    4th Ulquiorra Schiffer
    5th Noitora
    6th Grimmjow Jeagerjaques
    7th Zomari Le Roux
    8th Szayel Aporro Granz
    9th Aaroniero Arruruerie
    10th Yammy

  56. Lux Invictus December 26th, 2007 3:25 pm

    1st Stark
    2nd Halibel
    3rd Old Espada
    4th Ulquiorra Cifer
    5th Nnoitra Jiruga
    6th Grimmjow Jeagerjaques
    7th Zommari Le Roux
    8th Szayel Aporro Granz
    9th Aaroniero Arruruerie
    10th Yammy

  57. Equvior January 2nd, 2008 5:59 am

    1st Old Man(with a crown on the head)
    2nd Halibel
    3rd Stark.

    10th—- can’t believe, with only this much of power can be in top 10–> Yammy

  58. Lisa January 21st, 2008 7:05 am

    Hmmm is nel 3rd?

    o.o ????????????

    >

  59. annoying January 23rd, 2008 10:02 am

    nel is an ex spada. noitorra back stab her and hit her at the head. losing her memory and most of her reiatsu thus resulting to her transforming into a kid.

  60. Ulquiorra's lover March 8th, 2008 9:18 pm

    Ulquiorra
    me love him

  61. frop March 13th, 2008 8:16 am

    dudes u probaly wont belive this but the third espada is really nel the little arranc ichigo is holding

  62. Sanity March 18th, 2008 9:15 pm

    Alright, i’m not entirely sure as to how old this thread is, however this is how i personally see it ranked 1-3.

    1:Gin
    2:Tousen
    3:Halibel

    The reason i dont have aizen up there is because of the sheer fact that none of the arrancar like him being in the lead because they all refer to him as a shinigami still, however, nothing is ever mentioned of gin or tousen being shinigami once they are in hueco mundo, and considering how low it seems aizen’s standards are, i’m sure he would use them as test subjects to see what the hogyoku can do to a shinigami.

    Also, reasoning for Gin being 1 and Tousen being 2

    Just going by their general personalities (or the ones they put on) Gin seems to be more sinister in personality. Tousen seems to be driven by a devotion to the preservation of lives, i personally see tousen helping ichigo’s group when they get close to aizen, which is why i believe Aizen would have used the hogyoku on tousen before it was fully awaken to test it and someone he felt would be more loyal (gin) after it was more awakened

  63. mankey March 20th, 2008 10:06 pm

    looks like noone here knows anything about BLEACH because this is how the espada so everyone can just shut up about the old man being 1st because thats just stupid even if he’s the oldest LOOKING doesnt mean he’s the strongest

    NOTE:Gin and Tousen cant be included because they’re shinigami not arrancar(you can tell because some of the arrancar HATE them because they are shinigami)

    1st-Stark
    2nd–Halibel
    3rd-old man
    ****************
    4th-Ulquiorra
    5th-Nnoitra
    6th-Grimmjow
    7th-Zommari
    8th-Szayel
    9th-Aaroniero
    10th-yami

    3rd- formerly Neliel(lil kid ichigo is carrying)
    Nnoitra ambushed her and caused her to get amnesia and transform into a child and be kicked out of LAS NOCHES and thats how she knows almost everything about the arrancar
    Note: she’s actually as extremely HOT as Halibel

  64. Bleach Fan March 25th, 2008 11:54 am

    Dude havn’t any of you seen the commentary with Tite Kubo? He revealed the list of Espada from top to bottom.

    1)Stark
    2)Unnamed aged man
    3)Halibel
    4)Ulquiorra
    5)Noitorra
    6)Grimmjow
    7)Zommari
    8)Syazel Apporo Granz
    9)Arroneirro
    10)Yammy

    ANY OF YOU THAT THINKS OTHERWISE GO WATCH THE COMMENTARY.
    dont assume just by whoever looks strong, and dont say stuff if u havn’t even read the manga, if you don’t even know about Nel’s past… you have no right to judge.

  65. Byakuya Fan June 3rd, 2008 7:45 am

    This line up is the correct list of the top ten Espada

    1st-Stark
    2nd–Halibel
    3rd-Nel
    4th-Ulquiorra
    5th-Nnoitra
    6th-Grimmjow
    7th-Zommari
    8th-Szayel
    9th-Aaroniero
    10th-Yami

    Go Read the Manga

  66. Byakuya Fan June 3rd, 2008 7:54 am

    Correction Nel in the previous 3rd Espada as she has the number 3 still tatooed on her back. Barragan (that unnamed aged Espada)should be the “Current” 3rd Espada. Think when Lupe was number 6 and Grimmjaw killed Lupe as he still had the number 6 on him.

  67. Sj November 2nd, 2008 2:48 pm

    the 3rd espada isn’t nel anymore its that old guy probably ulquiorra is stronger than nell cause she was the third serveral years back lol

  68. ladyloss May 15th, 2009 1:44 pm

    big shoker here a spoiler the number one esparanda is stark beleive it or not the lazy one is the stongest

  69. Scooter July 13th, 2009 1:10 pm

    This is the real rank of espada:

    0)Yami released
    1)Stark
    2)Baragan
    3)Haribel
    4)Ulquiorra
    5)Noitorra
    6)Grimmjow
    7)Zommari
    8)Syazel Apporo Granz
    9)Arroneirro
    10)Yammy

    If you dont believe me you can read the manga and see.

  70. Stark1! July 22nd, 2009 1:02 pm

    1)Stark
    2)Baragan
    3)Haribel
    4)Ulquiorra
    5)Noitorra
    6)Grimmjow
    7)Zommari
    8)Syazel Apporo Granz
    9)Arroneirro
    10)Yammy

    this is the true list of espada.

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