I know this is a bit late, but better late than never yes? 
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~
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.
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
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Comments (67)
[…] 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 […]
THAT Animeblog » The 7000th commenter’s topic is _______ (fill in the blanks) added these pithy words on Apr 20 07 at 6:41 pmWell 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 
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.
Caraniel added these pithy words on Apr 20 07 at 5:02 amHis 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…
xau added these pithy words on Apr 20 07 at 6:19 amSorry, 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 ?
xau added these pithy words on Apr 20 07 at 6:22 amYeah, 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…
Kojak added these pithy words on Apr 20 07 at 7:33 amwow…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).
Danny added these pithy words on Apr 20 07 at 8:36 amI 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??
TedFox added these pithy words on Apr 20 07 at 6:29 pmTedfox: That’s impossible since Gin and Tousen aren’t even part of the 10 Espada
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?
captfamous added these pithy words on Apr 23 07 at 10:21 pmUlquiorra 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.
Ralvador added these pithy words on Apr 27 07 at 10:40 pmI 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.
espada_ichi added these pithy words on Apr 29 07 at 6:35 amthe 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.
Schiffer added these pithy words on May 01 07 at 4:02 amI thought the same thing about Ulquiorra Schiffer being the #1 Espada in S
Psychedelic added these pithy words on May 01 07 at 3:45 pmi bet on halibel, noitora and stark as top 3
Schiffer added these pithy words on May 14 07 at 11:20 pmdidnt noitora claim to be the strongest espada after he K.O’d Chad?
c0ckcommander added these pithy words on May 15 07 at 4:00 amHe claimed he was the strongest but he said he wasn’t recognised as the strongest. There is a difference.
alkanphel added these pithy words on May 15 07 at 10:10 amyo 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
Dan added these pithy words on Jul 06 07 at 5:59 amhttp://ranobe.com/up/src/up200543.jpg
shimijimi added these pithy words on Jul 14 07 at 4:28 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
Malachi added these pithy words on Jul 14 07 at 9:13 am
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…
Anime Dattebayo added these pithy words on Jul 22 07 at 2:27 pmFor 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.
Malachi added these pithy words on Jul 22 07 at 5:20 pmd 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
eltio chulo added these pithy words on Jul 27 07 at 11:34 am1. 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.
obviusly tousen is not included in the espada..for me he’s too weak… defeated by kenpachi like that… 
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
Stark is #1
klfslk added these pithy words on Aug 17 07 at 10:06 amNo, 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.
Zee added these pithy words on Aug 18 07 at 1:40 amjust 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
wtf added these pithy words on Aug 25 07 at 2:52 pmyah 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
hijero added these pithy words on Aug 27 07 at 4:09 pmna 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
lol added these pithy words on Sep 01 07 at 7:58 am1-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
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.
S.P.W added these pithy words on Sep 03 07 at 5:45 am10 - yammy
9 - aaroniero
8 - szayel
7 - old man..?
6 - grimmjow
5 - noitora
4 - ulquiorra(favourite)
3 - black guy..?
2 - halibel
1 - stark
Ulquiorra might become 1 espada not long my freind tell me and grimjaw will become 2 espada dude
Ulquiorra added these pithy words on Sep 11 07 at 6:53 ameven though hes number four espada doesnt mean that he is not the strongest like byakkya he 6 but he so strong
Ulquiorra added these pithy words on Sep 11 07 at 6:56 amranks in the espada are different from the ranks of the 13 gaurd squads. the espada ranks determine there power and there ulquiorra is 4th.
bankai added these pithy words on Sep 13 07 at 6:36 pmthe 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
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
urahara added these pithy words on Sep 22 07 at 8:50 amHow about Nell? She is revealed as number 3 Espada in one of the latest manga.
james added these pithy words on Sep 29 07 at 6:27 amWell, 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.
Nghia added these pithy words on Sep 29 07 at 7:35 pmAnd 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.
Nghia added these pithy words on Sep 29 07 at 7:41 pmThe number 1 espada is the old man, because he is shown wearing a crown when the espada notice that #9 was killed.
Shadow added these pithy words on Oct 07 07 at 5:50 pmi 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
“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…
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
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
Bare keen man with fat chode added these pithy words on Oct 15 07 at 10:27 am1. 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
Stash48 added these pithy words on Oct 19 07 at 5:15 pmI 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)
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.
Jiruga added these pithy words on Nov 01 07 at 3:11 pmTop 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
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.
wimbledfire6886 added these pithy words on Nov 05 07 at 12:48 amAlright, 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*
Reap'em added these pithy words on Nov 18 07 at 9:57 pmi 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.
aizen rulez added these pithy words on Nov 26 07 at 5:21 pm1st 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
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
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
Equvior added these pithy words on Jan 02 08 at 5:59 amnel 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.
annoying added these pithy words on Jan 23 08 at 10:02 amdudes u probaly wont belive this but the third espada is really nel the little arranc ichigo is holding
frop added these pithy words on Mar 13 08 at 8:16 amAlright, 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
Sanity added these pithy words on Mar 18 08 at 9:15 pmlooks 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
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.
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
Byakuya Fan added these pithy words on Jun 03 08 at 7:45 amCorrection 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.
Byakuya Fan added these pithy words on Jun 03 08 at 7:54 amthe 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
Sj added these pithy words on Nov 02 08 at 2:48 pm