Try Rosetta Stone today and use my link to take advantage of a discount of over 50% on the LIFETIME 25 LANGUAGES offer, giving you lifetime access to all the languages offered by the app, or the LIFETIME 1 language offer! partners.rosettastone.com/mrtommo-1 How important is Zangetsu to the story of Bleach? Did they deserve more scenes, and which version of Ichigo's power is your favourite? How did you feel about the reveal of Old Man Zangetsu's true nature? Let me know your thoughts in the comments!
I think the real question should be is if old man zangetsu the Quincy power is actually still alive? We know that in his final strike against yhwach ichigos bankai was shattered revealing his very first shikai. He also just uses his old shikai in the hell arc. So did his Quincy power sacrifice itself to help ichigo reach yhwach? Or did it die with the Quincy king? I would really like the answer to that question…
It wasn't said there's a specific bankai spirit just that Kempachis zanpaktu spirits bankai releases form was spilt for it's original body. All the spirits would change in bankai. Tensa isn't unique in that way. Bankai is the spirits ego manifested that's all. Furthermore it only happened to kempachi because nozarashi couldn't communicate with him.
@patrickzantomaster bleach taught me that a dusatrously dangerous shortcut from an old shop owner that's been around once or twice is worthy of trusting my life with.
Bleach taught me that I have to accept myself to become my most powerful version. Also that my bankai will take 10 years to learn unless imma special character like Ichigo or Urahara or Yoroichi or Kenpachi or Rukia or...
"I believe the world is full of danger. I want to protect you from it. Only because inside me is the same impulse as that danger." -From Bleach Volume 61 Poem
I saw a guy cosplaying as Zengetsu at Zenkaikon back in March. He had a giant prop sword and everything. It was a very pleasant surprise and he let me take a few pictures.
I totally agree with you, it will never not hurt me that Ichigo saw White swing Zangetsu by its hilt, never thought to try it, yet proceeds to continually spam Getsuga Tenshos.
Ichigo does launch his bankai at "Ywach" upon reaching the soul society in tybw. I don't think he's depected swinging it, but that's as close as he comes to the same technique.
Tbf Ichigo never had a moment where was just overpowering everyone after that feat white did. It seemed like a vulnerable move to do in the moment of fighting unlike Getsuga.
If you look at the manga when white first appears you can see his reflection on the sword and he isn't smiling white always played an act to help ichigo and I love that detail.
There's no way you can tell me old man zangetsu wasnt Yhwach in the 70's. Looking like a man getting ready to cut rugs in a disco club. That's why he's the most peaceful version of Yhwach, he was in his Hippie era
My favorite version of Zangetsu is the literal iconically oversized kitchen knife itself, the wrap is so incredibly iconic especially for how Ichigo and White both utilize it. I was so glad to see that design point stick with the true Shikai on the handles
I honestly have the opposite perspective. It was my least favorite design because of how comically large it was, and the dual blade Shikai was the best IMO.
@@MrGksarathy I think it's a pretty decent largeness, nothing too crazy about it but it's equally imposing and a raw representation of Ichigo's protectiveness in its from
@@maxonbardo I just don't like that it's a huge cleaver without a guard of any kind. I much prefer the fake Tensa and the true Zangetsu dual blade. I've never been a fan of comically huge weapons IRL or in fiction.
Well, Zangetsu not changing when he is wearing his bankai is obvious, because it isn't his Bankai. We have no idea what Whites bankai spirit form looks like. When Ichigo uses his True bankai, his cloak doesn't change at all. What we are seeing is White wearing his fake bankai, which is actually what Old man Zangetsu used to pretend to be a Bankai. OMZ changing to a teenaged Ywatch is strange, but perhaps that is because he technically is a Zanpaktou spirit and is affected by the rules they follow, which is why he could be pulled out by that device during Bankai training. Whats more interesting then, is what is that Fake Bankai? When Byakuya first sees it, he insults it and says it isn't a bankai. Ironic it may be, he says it for a reason, because every other bankai gets bigger in some way compared to its shikai.... except one. Thats right, I bet with everything I got OMZ created a fake bankai after the only one Ywatch remembers most clearly because he lost to it 1000 years earlier, Zanka no Tachi. OMZ Has some of Ywatch's memories, because he clearly said he thought he (the real Ywatch) would have to kill Ichigo, something OMZ could only know if he had such memories. So When Ichigo was training to learn Bankai, he had to invent one up, and he did so based on Ywatch's memories of Zanka no Tachi. Namely, East, compressing the flames into the blade, and West, cloaking his body in a protective suit of his power. That is what the fake bankai does, compresses his power into the sword, and cloaks his body with a new outfit made of his power. Its also conveniently, 2 things that Quincy excel at, as they create arrows of compressed Reshi as well as their outfits changing as they use Volstandig/Letzt Stil.
Yama developed those other directions of his Bankai after defeating Yhwach. Which is why Yhwach (Royd) didn't recognize it when they fought in TYBW. From the memories, he only recognizes the West part of his Bankai
My headcanon was that the reason Tensa Zangestsu look they way they do is due to a power imbalance. White becomes closer to looking like the original hollow mixed with a shinigami robe because he had the stronger presence when Ichigo was in Bankai, where as the Old man reverted to his younger form because his influence is weaker
That makes sense, though I personally think that this was yet another instance of the Old Man tricking Ichigo by pretending to be this bespoke Bankai spirit for whatever reason. White Tensa's rough appearance can also be explained by the fact that Ichigo doesn't fully trust White and White and the Old Man don't trust each other and are fusing very roughly.
@@MrGksarathy Why th would Bankai spirit doesn't exist if the Zanpakuto spirits are literally a thing? lmao That made no sense whatsoever. Even Shunsui has his Bankai spirit showed up.
Ichigo's inner Hollow taking over is among the most intense and terrifying moments in the Arrancar arc. More so given it's out of control berserker state and potentially killing his own friends in that state. The butchering of Ulquiorra and then stabbing of Uryu, Ichigo is right to fear it.
Nothing to fear, it is like a big brother coming to save his sibling. It stabbed Uryu because he trying to stop him killing Ulquiorra who was a major threat
@@thrilla72The hollow is full of rage, has no empathy. I wouldn't want that as a backup. Ichigo fears the hollow because he knows that after he has gone rampant, he might come to his senses only to realize that he has executed his friends.
@@thrilla72it’s too…erm Black and White- in action lmao, Uryu was trying to stop it from brutalizing a already defeated Uliquorra, and it assumed Uryu was also a threat due to that
Yhwach’s god form is almost a visual representation of Ichigo conquering the darker side of the old man he admired for a long time- his first introduction of being a soul reaper in his own merits being what he finally finishes
@@MojaveKnight17 he's referring to the fact that the only times we've seen the hollow White in the flashbacks is during rainstorms, both in the soul society and in the world of the living.
Old man represents what Ichigo likes to present himself to the worlds- a stoic resolute who resembles a superhero with a cape or a bandaged, raven haired demigod. White represents what Ichigo doesn’t like to admit- a battle-crazed berserker who taunts his enemies and being brutal- often taking increasingly demonic forms culminating in the horned form. Ichigo finding a balance is the crux of his character arc.
I feel like the philosophical/psychological aspect of bleach isn't talked about enough. There's so many "metaphors" that I resonate with. Biggest metaphor being the fight inside Ichigo. The way White shows himself when it rains (when Ichigo is sad) and Old Man Zangetsu hates the rain (wants Ichigo to be happy). These same forces/voices exist inside every human on earth. And hollows are those whose link to these voices has been severed. My interpretation might be different from what Kubo meant, but nonetheless I love the series. A fight between good and evil. That is what life mostly is, I believe. And this show captures it so well. And how it isn't black and white, people arent naturally ONLY evil nor good.
When Yhwach steals Ichigo's quincy powers, he also takes his hollow powers. Ichigo said the two powers were mixed. So by that statement, Kubo was probably trying to tell us that when his hollow powers mixed with his shinigami powers, his quincy powers also mixed with his shinigami powers because his hollow and quincy powers were mixed since Masaki was a hollowfied quincy so her soul was mixed with the hollow White. That might be the reason why his quincy powers manifested in his inner world because they were mixed in with his hollow powers and why Zangetsu told Ichigo he and OMZ are one and they share the same body. Also, when Ichigo realized there were no lies in either of their words, he realized that OMZ also helped him in his shinigami form and to him OMZ (his quincy powers) is a part of his shinigami powers.
Old Man Zangetsu is I think, the character that best represents Kubo's approach to storytelling. There is so much meaning, symbolism and heart in his character, as well as great quotes and a fantastic design. One of my favorite characters in the series.
What if tensa zangetsu looks like a younger yhwach is because more of white's power is being released while in bankai. It seems during tybw that there is a connexion between yhwach's power and his moustache and facial hair (the more powerful he becomes the longer the hair becomes). Tensa zangetsu doesn't have any facial hair, indicating less influence on ichigo's powers
11:29 it's speculated Yhwach will return to a Baby if he loses all his Power. So can we speculate "Tensa Zangetsu" younger appearance is due him losing power over ichigos soul to White ?
For the name situation i would imagine Ichibe has revoked Ywach name before and what he tries to tell Ichigo is his true name that he can't say because of Ichibe's power.
I mean, I personally hc that Ichibei had somehow blacked out his name when he was a baby, but he was able to carry on due to being a power parasite, and Ichibei seemingly cannot stop the transfer of power.
Also there is the interesting case that only shinigami have inner worlds, so only Ichigo could see the after effects of Ichbei. It also explain why it took so long for Yhwach to reawaken the Almighty because he has to overcome Ichbei’s presumptive curse first to unlock the ability.
I think you're missing something here: The bankai "spirit" is NOT a separate spirit. They can change forms when the soul reaper enters bankai but the bankai spirit is the same spirit as the zanpakuto's spirit in general The shadow technique doesn't have to be connected to the wandenreich. The quincy created an empire in the shadows due to their ability to manipulate reishi. The wandenriech isn't a realm that the quincy simply escaped to. It's a realm that the quincy created within shadows using their shadow manipulation technique combined with thrir reishi manipulation technique
Considering what Kubo revealed that individual influence in the Zanpakuto, I wonder if Ichigo influenced in the Juha's fragment and that's why he looks so modern
Might also explain why tensa zangetsu gets younger when he's the bankai spirit. Ichigo sees zangetsu the blade become smaller with bankai, it's kind of a simple idea for Ichigo to assume the spirit gets smaller as well
From the moment i saw ywach it all dawned on me. Was a brilliantly writtain twist, its was all before us, and i knew he was the oerfect hybrid but to think his zanpakuto was actually ywach was an absolute bombshell. On top of that, i always just thaught it was ichigos confusion about himself that lead to him kot hearing ywachs name, but really, thats damn good forshadowing. Even if it wasnt planned, he made it work ❤
i'm sure it has been said but I feel the dual souls is a direct commentary (though sub-conciously) on the duality of people. The ying and yang needing to constantly balance each other and as Ichigo grows in power, skill, and wisdom they become more in balance. Bring a sense of peace and center.
Not about duality, but integration the integration of many parts, the alchemy of the soul into the philosopher's stone, Carl Jung's Shadow and the whole schbockle, the feral monster that we are afraid to embrace that is our shadow, with sharp claws and fangs that exists only to protect us and be our strength, so much that the more we deny it's existence and try to suppress, the dangerous it becomes, getting angrier and feral so it can manifest in one way or another because it refuse to see the king being the horse and being trampled by other's malice, the white lie of the mask of the mighty honored civilized old man that we try to project to the outside world, forcing to belive thT this is trully who we are, our insecure and foolish self that is disgusted by his shadow and refuse to really understand it and also knows that the mask is a lie, he isn't everything he wants to project, but you wish you were him so much that you believe you can be the mask or at least strive to it, but is always short of really being more than just a projection. Only when you understand that the shadow is you, it is your raw power, it exists to protect you and take what you need, it is justa sharp blade made for defense without malice, you only got hurt by it because you refused to wield it properly, and the projection isn't a lie either, but you wouldn't able to become that without your shadow integrated as well, and when integrated, that projection becomes small and shallow compered to when the self, shadow and mask are only one, not different polarized sides, but 3 colored stones made to react between them to generate something even stronger and more solid, born out of friction, impact, heat and chaos so the entropy generated can allow for true order to be born out of it and make the stable element that is worthy of becoming a soul king.
In the original JP version of the anime, when the Old Man tries to tell Ichigo his name, it is distorted but you can clearly tell that it sounds like he was saying Yhwach. I very much think Kubo had the true nature of Zangetsu planned. The main reason being, everytime the Old Man seems to display some of his powers, they are more like that of a Quincy. Gathering Reishi, using shadows to teleport, both are things that invoke Quincy powers rather then Soul Reapers powers. It must also be said, it is a very fine line to walk when trying to hint a something. If Kubo had been more obvious, like say, having the old man summon bows and arrows as well as swords during the Bankai training, the whole thing would had been given away. Kubo wrote the whole thing more low-key and I like it better like that. I appreciate and respect the more subtle approach to storytelling.
29:49 I actually think this is Zangetsu's activation phrase. In the Zanpakuto Tales, iirc; Muramasa uses the Zanpakuto's activation phrase to manifest the Zanpakuto's spirit and control them. He says the exact phase here to take control of old man Zangetsu. Now we ask what parts of that filler are canon or not; but keep in mind Shunsui's Zanpakuto spirit had a first appearance here before the manga. I believe Kubo said he had been advising the anime staff at the time, but had no direct control over it since he felt he wasn't qualified.
Awesome... for someone(s) so elusive & complicated... Zangetsu definitely deserved a long analysis video. I'm always so impressed by your work and feel I'm [(we) are all] extremely fortunate for your existence in the world of bleach. I pray that one day the powers that be, would hire you for collaborations regarding all things bleach related.
I personally always interpreted the bankai spirits as not being entirely separate beings from the shikai, but a transformed state of the spirit, since the spirit is just a way for the shinigami to visualize and manifest their own power in the first place. Ichigo's situation is specifically unique due to Ywach's will being a part of all Quincy power.
When I first read bleach I always found the scenes in Ichigo’s inner world to be the most interesting parts of the whole series, and his whole relationships with all the Zangetsu’s is probably my favorite in Bleach. I can’t agree more that I wish we got more of it, just a few more scenes to flesh out the dynamic and relationship all the more, but I still love all that we got with it.
I think the whole thing behind why the appearance of Zangetsu, both White and Old Man, takes on many forms is due to the shift of balance within Ichigo's powers. The Old Man's form resembling a mature Yhwach symbolizes that his Quincy powers are currently dominant, while White in base form symbolizes how his Hollow/Shinigami powers is currently being suppressed. So when Ichigo goes into Bankai, releasing more of his Shinigami/Hollow powers, White becomes the dominant one taking on the form of the full hollow while the Old Man reverts to a teenage state, signifying that the power balance have shifted.
The brilliant writing of Bleach shows itself when Ichigo is given new powers whenever he goes into his inner world and is given a new sword. It shows a deep understanding between Ichigo and Zangetsu in an immaculate way that is hidden in plain sight, and we only understand this at the very end of the story.
When I think about it, the phrase "actions speak louder than words" really applies to Zangetsu. Mans berates and antagonizes Ichigo, but always protects him when things look grim. Sure he beats Ichigo relentlessly as well, but I think that's part of how Ichigo learns about his powers. Cause Ichigo doesn't realize his instincts until Zangetsu has almost completely defeated Ichigo. Imo both OMZ and White wanted to protect Ichigo, just in different ways. White wanted Ichigo to be strong enough for him to be able to defend himself while OMZ wanted Ichigo to avoid conflict at all cost (kind of similar to what a certain lookalike claims)
Bleach's entire personality power system takes from Jung psychology. It applies the most with Zangetsu/White, who embodies Ichigo's shadow, his battle lust and killer instinct that he wishes to repress, but you see fragment of it through others interaction with their own Zanpakuto as well. Learning Bankai involves manifesting that part of one's personality (that one wish to reject) into reality, battle it head on and eventually accepting it as part as oneself (The Blade Is Me). Byakuya was completely correct about Ichigo's Bankai, he never properly achieved Bankai at all, just a facsimile manifested by his Quincy spirit, and the brunt of the Arrancar arc is Ichigo actively running away from the part of himself that he has to accept. In a sense, he's no different from Yumachika or Rangiku, characters who has similarly antagonistic interactions with their shadow self (albeit in a more comedic setting). Hisagi later received a similar character arc in CFYOW, with his self denial being so bad he couldn't even manifest his proper Shikai until the very end.
i think that ichibe blocking zangetsu speaking about ywach make sense since it would be better to have ichigo with the shinigami instead with the quincys
Around 24:46 No think you are misunderstanding that, it's not on Ichigo's power that's put on, it's on Yhwach's power, and remember names *ARE POWER IN BLEACH.* As such this fragment of Yhwach can't overpower the power of Ichibei, like the complete Yhwach could.
I feel like something that's a little overlooked is how Ichigo really treats his zanpakuto. He only calls out to it when he needs something. He only ever goes into his inner world when he actively needs something from his sword. He never talks to Zangetsu just because. To be honest it's no better than Yoroichi saying she doesn't need her sword at all but to a lesser extent. Ichigo doesn't need his sword unless he wants something
Imagine if Ichigo just occasionally went to his inner world to train, learned a new move or two, to help him get over the badguy. I think it would have healthily fluffed the series. I also think we all be happier with more White/Ogihci in our lives.
1. Old man Zangestu was able to freely manifest in the real world which I theorize is because he is the manifestation of his Quincy-Shinigami hybrid powers. 2. Due to the hollow white fusing with Ichigo's latent Shinigami powers at birth, and being created to take over his host by Aizen, he could only violently manifest in the physical world by completely taking over Ichigo as we witnessed in his fight with the 4th Espada. 3. Old man Zangestu stated that he only lied about his name, but only because Ichigo could not hear it. Am hoping to see teenage Zangestu & Full mask white Zangestu teaming up again as they did during the dangai training.
I think tensa zangetsu appears as a younger self because he is still the center of Ichigo's power and the one he views as his zanpaktou. Perhaps that is why he changes and not white.
Ichigo does technically swing Zangetsu by the bandage but only whilst stood upon the Sogyoku pillar and even then. If I remember rightly, it was just a spin as I think he grabs the handle to destroy the stand to free Rukia.
Another great lecture from Tommo-san! Thank you! I take an Asuichi as an empty vessel, like any sort of body made of blood and bone or reishi, and reflects the soul of the wielder. Which is why the "Blade is [him]". I appreciate Ichigo learns a killer instinct from White and so early on in the story. The pacing of the manga lets the artwork and story really shine. Hollow Ichigo was peak. Hollow Ichigo, Mugetso Ichigo, and HOS Ichigo were pretty peak. I didn't realize how much foreshadowing there was before he fought Aizen. "The twist he was the most apprehensive of." Ichigo does use Zangetsu in the plural sense when he draws both swords. I guess he became Zangetsu? Fingers crossed the animators follow Tommo-san and add depth where he recommended it! I loved it, bro! Thank you!
Somebody on the bleach subreddit made the theory that ichibei inked out yhwach's name well before the question was ever asked. The evidence in the theory was that yuhabahha written in katakana in the same size font the rest of the bleach manga is written in fits perfectly in the black box. Zangetsu in katakana is only 3 characters long and leaves tons of room in the box. It's far from concrete but people noticed this way before the klub outside question its not evidence since kubo had little to do with the anime at that point but in the anime the blurred out name zangetsu gives ichigo ends in an A sound just like yuhabahha. just a coincidence which makes it work even more. ichibei's darkness power can travel through time as we saw when he made the mausoleum he stole the black from the night sky 100 years into the future. very within the realm of possibility for him to do it to ichigo.
24:05 I want to point out that in the anime, the distortion only happens with the first name. You actually hear "Bach" at the end, whereas "Yhwach" was distorted. I always wondered what that first name was back in the day.. Just for him to say "Zangetsu" later on, which was always weird to me.
How do you expect to fight with a sheathed sword takes on a whole new meaning when you consider that Juha bach was acting as the sheath for Zangetsu as Ichigo fought the first several arcs.
What gets me is how ichigos inner world is incredibly vast and submerged in deep water resembling his spirit pressure and the vastness of it. and when he is plunged into it he forgets how to breath at first showing us how inexperienced and unsure ichigo is of himself and everything he has been through
I haven't been on the channel in a while as I haven't really been messing with Bleach much of recent. I'm not even caught up on anime. But when I was reading the manga as a young adult, everything with Zangetsu blew my mind. I wasn't really able to get my mind around it back then. And while I have a grasp on it now, I'm still eager to veg out on this video and have my favorite Bleach historian break it down for me.
Wow, over an hour on Ichigo's zanpakuto spirit? Sign me up! I know we technically got what I'm about to wish for in the Ulquiorra fight, but I genuinely wish Ichigo had just once consciously and willingly donned the complete helmet mask. It's a fantastic mirror image of Ulquiorra's own mask. Now that you've covered Zangetsu, I would really love to see you tackle a few of the other major things that haven't gotten a full analysis yet, namely the Ichigo vs. Byakuya and Ulquiorra fights. I'd also be super interested to see you compile your ultimate Gotei 13, picking from all available time periods and maybe moving some people around to divisions they weren't originally part of if you think it would work.
Didn't Kubo explain somewhere that the reason why "Tensa Zangetsu" looks like a younger Yhwach is because with Ichigo's growing power, the Quincy spirit was supressed, and thus took on a weaker form? Similarily, Yachiru could have taken on the child form we know, because she was just a fragment of Nozarashi's true power, even if she represented the bankai part.
Around 39:52 I don't think Kubo regrets this scene, because both are Zangetsu, yes the origin of the Old Man is Ichigo's Quincy powers, but in the inner world only a Zanpakutou could appear. And that fact that they can exist separately and not like White describe later on as one being the bones and another being the flesh, it's a sign of the contradiction.
My thought process is that during Deicide, and by extension whenever Ichigo uses bankai, White having more dominance within Ichigo's soul likely depowers the Old Man and boosts White to whatever Ichigo's normally attainable peak at the time *should* be. Think about it, if Ichigo wasn't terrified of Zangetsu during the Arrancar arc, he probably could've came out of his training being able to use Cero like White was doing outside of his inner world and that giant Getsuga he used inside of it. Like you said, White's form in Deicide is probably what Ichigo's hollowfication *should* have looked like at the time, but he was still afraid of that kind of power. And then he merges later, so it's all good. Lol
Great write up. OMZ is still my favorite character design in the entire franchise. The cover of Volume 8 is still probably my favourite after all these years I was so glad Kubo paid off the reveal about Yhwach and OMZ which was implanted since that first clash with Zaraki in the early days I think the only time he did the spinning blade thing was over Rukia destroy the execution scaffold, but I think that anime only iirc That point on Ichibei and OMZ is that I thought it was to Yhwach was attacked by the brush in his early life or even Yhwach's mother was attacked by Ichibei and that's where that connects I always thought their consciousnesses dissolved becoming part of Ichigo's whole, so there would be no one to talk to as separate entities
ichigo discovering his zampakuto subtly gave us the ending of the TYBW. zangetsu meaning "moon cutter" is a hint to two important events; 1. ichigo cutting the soul king-- which is a metaphor to the moon. the moon just reflects sunlight, in analogy to the soul king being a flase god. 2. ichigo cutting YHWACH-- which is soul king's son, someone lesser than the soul king. Also, the shikai reflects the relationship of white and old man. when ichigo wields zangetsu the blade is black, the sheath is white-- meaning the inner is quincy, clothed as shinigami; which is plainly ichigo. but when wielded by white, the blade is white, the sheath is black-- telling us that old man is hiding ichigo's true zanpakuto. lastly, the first bankai also gave us hint. the hand guard is a "manji" symbol-- meaning "heaven and earth linked", hinting on ichigo being someone of multiple races. and also people thinks of the manji symbol as a swastika, hinting to the german roots of YHWACH and the quincy.
I don't think there's any reason to assume Zangetsu's shadows specifically shouldn't lead to Ichigo's inner world instead of the Shatten Bereich like the other Quincies. He's a different kinda being
1:09:16 you could say his Quincy powers have been with him from the very beginning as well so it wouldn’t surprise me if they are working differently in himself
The old man Zangetsu reveal and him truly becoming one-half of the True Zangetsu in The Blade is Me reminds me of a certain quote "You live the lie long enough and it becomes your truth/reality". This is paraphrasing a bit given, I don't remember the exact quote or even where it came from, but it encapsulates the brilliance of that arc, and it coming around full circle.
I always find it kinda sad that we don't see Zangetsu again after 'the blade is me'. I hope the anime adds SOMETHING in eventually. Hope this video mentions that in someway 🥺
@@Jaycutler709 I personally am fine with them not appearing because as things are now, Ichigo has fully accepted them as part of him and doesn't need to actively go to them for help.
I know this is justa filler, but I do recall that old man zangetsu wanted to end the fight with ichigo during the zanpacto arc, as soon as he realize that ichigo is getting the hang of using white’s power or maybe he’s begin to tap further exploring his true power that the old man wanted to prevent or holding back.
Talking about Zangetsu is like talking about Bakura in YuGiOh, which one? In season 5 there are 3 of him running around, even the fans have trouble keeping up with that.
My headcanon for Old Man Zangetsu looking different is because his power was suppressed even more in Bankai (White had more control). That's why White had Vasto Lorde attire as well. Because, for one, during training it would be a spoiler. And second, he has more control/power here than Old Man.
It's understandable that you didn't include the anime filler since it's not canon(but then again, neither is the tybw anime filler is!), but in the zanpaktou rebellion we get sone more of what we're missing but before that we see in the arrancar arc his fights with kariya, kenpachi, and byakuya where white is reminding him and teaching him about his surpressed nature. Great video and i loved it!!!
Finally finished this, and so glad you also hope that we would have seen white/zangetsu one more time. Hopefully they come back in SOME capacity, even if it's just one more time
1:00:18 It's funny but now that you mentioned this, I thought white was physically inside because when he went into vasto lorde and he revived Ichigo, it was supposed to represent how white is physically keeping Ichigo alive by being his heart or something along those lines. Which would kind of explain why he is never seen again.
Zanpakuto don't have a seperate bankai Spirit. Some Zan Spirits change form like Tensa and White, but others don't like Katen. Nozarashi/Yachiru is a special case where it seems Nozarashi split itself like Katan Kyokotsu and Yachiru embodies tha bankai. I believe Old Man Zangetsu is a special case as well. We see from Everything But The Rain that Masaki doesnt have an inner world or an inner Yhach, so i think that either the nature of Shinigami powers or the Asauchi gives OMZ properties similar to Zan-spirits, which is why he does Zan-spirit things like manifest via the tenshintai
To this day, for all my gripes, I will always give Kubo credit for this twist because I never saw it coming. I only realized how well it was laid out once it was dropped like the bombshell that it is.
After seeing the whole storyline.. it does seem like its 80% of the way there. Has so many cool ideas setup, but not fleshed out, prolly cuz kubo had other things to juggle. But def felt the lack of old man zangestu for so long + lack of white zangetsu at the merger being very odd. The anime zanpakto arc was nice to show connections between shinigami + sword, but I don't think Ichigo had many moments either in that.
It’s the soul aspect of Yuhabach but is the “Ego” separately of ZANGETSU. As we all have an ego and a heart that’s the under layer emotions that flows thru our thoughts… that under layer is the same but his mind was separate and a part of Ichigos natures
10:40 Zangetsu was still hiding the truth from Ichigo. Transforming himself, while preventing white from transforming. What would have happened if _White_ had been in a different form there? Even Ichigo would have figured that one out! Though technically, white was in a different form. A form that wore a horned masked. Like Ichigos "Horn of Salvation" Bankai. In the end, Spirits can immitate other spirits: - Yachiru immitated a Shikai - Katen Kyōkotsu immitated being a dual spirit - Zabimaru had a fake Bankai, Ruri'iro Kujaku had a Fake Shikai
The blue flame sword outline that Old Man used to suppress Ichigo's power is the same (or very similar) outline as the sword Ywach summons to use. Would have been cool to incorporate some of that into a new True Zangetsu design, but that's alright. Maybe if/when we get to see some more of his Quincy power.
Loved all of this! Also glad even from your educated perspective that Tensa Zangetsu doesn't quite fit. I always thought that form was different. Thanks so much for the analysis and perspective!
Tensa makes sense to me as: In order to give Ichigo his Bankai old man zangetsu had to incorporate a lot more of white's power. And the only way to do that whilst still subjugating him was to combine with him in a way. White being about as old as Ichigo would explain the age reversal
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How important is Zangetsu to the story of Bleach? Did they deserve more scenes, and which version of Ichigo's power is your favourite? How did you feel about the reveal of Old Man Zangetsu's true nature? Let me know your thoughts in the comments!
White is definitely important since it’s what pushed him to accept himself.
@MrTommo2304 ur my favorite British person
I think the real question should be is if old man zangetsu the Quincy power is actually still alive?
We know that in his final strike against yhwach ichigos bankai was shattered revealing his very first shikai. He also just uses his old shikai in the hell arc.
So did his Quincy power sacrifice itself to help ichigo reach yhwach? Or did it die with the Quincy king?
I would really like the answer to that question…
It wasn't said there's a specific bankai spirit just that Kempachis zanpaktu spirits bankai releases form was spilt for it's original body. All the spirits would change in bankai. Tensa isn't unique in that way. Bankai is the spirits ego manifested that's all. Furthermore it only happened to kempachi because nozarashi couldn't communicate with him.
FUCKK YEAHH!!! Any video on bleach makes my day...and hour and a half long..MAKES MY WEEK
Bleach taught me that inside every teenage man there is an old dude hating the rain.
Bleach taught me that to attain greater power, you gotta beat the shit out of yourself
Yup, a brief introduction to Carl Jung's Shadow.
Not when I was a teen, the teenager hated the rain.
@patrickzantomaster bleach taught me that a dusatrously dangerous shortcut from an old shop owner that's been around once or twice is worthy of trusting my life with.
Bleach taught me that I have to accept myself to become my most powerful version.
Also that my bankai will take 10 years to learn unless imma special character like Ichigo or Urahara or Yoroichi or Kenpachi or Rukia or...
"I believe the world is full of danger. I want to protect you from it. Only because inside me is the same impulse as that danger." -From Bleach Volume 61 Poem
@@BANKAIFUTANARINOTOGAMESam- I mean wth
@BANKAIFUTANOTOGAME4EVA1 how many times have they deleted your account?
@BANKAIFUTANOTOGAME4EVA1 don't let the overlords censor you! Keep spreading the love for Rukia futanari!
@@someroboguywtf
they put this at the end of the blade is me episode in part one of tybw
What i like about White Tensa design is that it foreshadowed the horn of salvation, with the one hollow horn and eye on one side
I wish he summoned the mask like that. I'm not a fan of it coming from his skin like that
This was also what i was going to bring up aha😊
@@indigo4740yeah the HOS design is Kubo’s biggest miss
I saw a guy cosplaying as Zengetsu at Zenkaikon back in March. He had a giant prop sword and everything.
It was a very pleasant surprise and he let me take a few pictures.
That's dope
I really gotta go Zenkaikon. I live with 20 minutes of where it’s held every year, idk why I haven’t ever gone
I got a photo too. Loved it
@@zephyr1249 You live really close to me then.
But yeah, definitely go next year. It’s a blast.
Hey bro you love isane now imagine if she was a futanari like Rukia and did it💕♠️🤤
I totally agree with you, it will never not hurt me that Ichigo saw White swing Zangetsu by its hilt, never thought to try it, yet proceeds to continually spam Getsuga Tenshos.
Ichigo does launch his bankai at "Ywach" upon reaching the soul society in tybw. I don't think he's depected swinging it, but that's as close as he comes to the same technique.
He did spin his blade in soul society arc to save rukia
@@michaelhuss0 Well, I’m talking about the exact same technique, when White used it, you felt the sense that one slice could cut your head off.
@@tenkuken7168 But not against an opponent, and not in the deadly fashion White displayed.
Tbf Ichigo never had a moment where was just overpowering everyone after that feat white did. It seemed like a vulnerable move to do in the moment of fighting unlike Getsuga.
If you look at the manga when white first appears you can see his reflection on the sword and he isn't smiling white always played an act to help ichigo and I love that detail.
gonna check on this and if it is a fake, I'll call out your BS
@@angelhurtado5535:33
ch110
When white says: Your opponent: is yourself.
You can see in the reflection of the sword, that white isn‘t happy here
@angelhurtado55 well lord of citations?
@@angelhurtado55 Oh holy authority of citation police, what is your verdict?
There's no way you can tell me old man zangetsu wasnt Yhwach in the 70's. Looking like a man getting ready to cut rugs in a disco club. That's why he's the most peaceful version of Yhwach, he was in his Hippie era
That Zaa had him contemplating peace 😆
This was funny i even chuckled
it not possible but super cool regardless 😂
I LOVE this interpretation 👌
@TerreneitorPlusUltra lmao I was weak too 😂
Sternritter z the zaa @@bw5020
My favorite version of Zangetsu is the literal iconically oversized kitchen knife itself, the wrap is so incredibly iconic especially for how Ichigo and White both utilize it. I was so glad to see that design point stick with the true Shikai on the handles
I honestly have the opposite perspective. It was my least favorite design because of how comically large it was, and the dual blade Shikai was the best IMO.
@@MrGksarathy I think it's a pretty decent largeness, nothing too crazy about it but it's equally imposing and a raw representation of Ichigo's protectiveness in its from
@@maxonbardo I just don't like that it's a huge cleaver without a guard of any kind. I much prefer the fake Tensa and the true Zangetsu dual blade. I've never been a fan of comically huge weapons IRL or in fiction.
Well, Zangetsu not changing when he is wearing his bankai is obvious, because it isn't his Bankai. We have no idea what Whites bankai spirit form looks like. When Ichigo uses his True bankai, his cloak doesn't change at all. What we are seeing is White wearing his fake bankai, which is actually what Old man Zangetsu used to pretend to be a Bankai. OMZ changing to a teenaged Ywatch is strange, but perhaps that is because he technically is a Zanpaktou spirit and is affected by the rules they follow, which is why he could be pulled out by that device during Bankai training.
Whats more interesting then, is what is that Fake Bankai? When Byakuya first sees it, he insults it and says it isn't a bankai. Ironic it may be, he says it for a reason, because every other bankai gets bigger in some way compared to its shikai.... except one. Thats right, I bet with everything I got OMZ created a fake bankai after the only one Ywatch remembers most clearly because he lost to it 1000 years earlier, Zanka no Tachi.
OMZ Has some of Ywatch's memories, because he clearly said he thought he (the real Ywatch) would have to kill Ichigo, something OMZ could only know if he had such memories. So When Ichigo was training to learn Bankai, he had to invent one up, and he did so based on Ywatch's memories of Zanka no Tachi. Namely, East, compressing the flames into the blade, and West, cloaking his body in a protective suit of his power. That is what the fake bankai does, compresses his power into the sword, and cloaks his body with a new outfit made of his power. Its also conveniently, 2 things that Quincy excel at, as they create arrows of compressed Reshi as well as their outfits changing as they use Volstandig/Letzt Stil.
cooking.
That makes sense why yamamotos bankai is also small
🫡
Yama developed those other directions of his Bankai after defeating Yhwach. Which is why Yhwach (Royd) didn't recognize it when they fought in TYBW. From the memories, he only recognizes the West part of his Bankai
That's the best thing I've ever heard from a fellow reader. Holy!!!
My headcanon was that the reason Tensa Zangestsu look they way they do is due to a power imbalance. White becomes closer to looking like the original hollow mixed with a shinigami robe because he had the stronger presence when Ichigo was in Bankai, where as the Old man reverted to his younger form because his influence is weaker
That’s definitely what that was it makes so much sense
That makes sense, though I personally think that this was yet another instance of the Old Man tricking Ichigo by pretending to be this bespoke Bankai spirit for whatever reason. White Tensa's rough appearance can also be explained by the fact that Ichigo doesn't fully trust White and White and the Old Man don't trust each other and are fusing very roughly.
@@MrGksarathy tbh I want to see that fused form one day I want to see what his true bankai spirit looks like
@@nytroshaw1862 I personally don't believe Bankai spirits exist outside of Zaraki's unique case.
@@MrGksarathy Why th would Bankai spirit doesn't exist if the Zanpakuto spirits are literally a thing? lmao That made no sense whatsoever. Even Shunsui has his Bankai spirit showed up.
Ichigo's inner Hollow taking over is among the most intense and terrifying moments in the Arrancar arc. More so given it's out of control berserker state and potentially killing his own friends in that state. The butchering of Ulquiorra and then stabbing of Uryu, Ichigo is right to fear it.
Nothing to fear, it is like a big brother coming to save his sibling. It stabbed Uryu because he trying to stop him killing Ulquiorra who was a major threat
@@thrilla72The hollow is full of rage, has no empathy. I wouldn't want that as a backup. Ichigo fears the hollow because he knows that after he has gone rampant, he might come to his senses only to realize that he has executed his friends.
@@thrilla72it’s too…erm Black and White- in action lmao, Uryu was trying to stop it from brutalizing a already defeated Uliquorra, and it assumed Uryu was also a threat due to that
Yhwach’s god form is almost a visual representation of Ichigo conquering the darker side of the old man he admired for a long time- his first introduction of being a soul reaper in his own merits being what he finally finishes
I clicked this and didn't realize it was an hour. What a fucking blessing
"I hate the Rain" - Zangetsu
Despair
That’s funny since when Zangetsu was White he only hunted while it was raining.
@@AschaVovina hunted?
@@MojaveKnight17 he's referring to the fact that the only times we've seen the hollow White in the flashbacks is during rainstorms, both in the soul society and in the world of the living.
@@williamklemp3764 ah makes sense
Old man represents what Ichigo likes to present himself to the worlds- a stoic resolute who resembles a superhero with a cape or a bandaged, raven haired demigod.
White represents what Ichigo doesn’t like to admit- a battle-crazed berserker who taunts his enemies and being brutal- often taking increasingly demonic forms culminating in the horned form.
Ichigo finding a balance is the crux of his character arc.
I feel like the philosophical/psychological aspect of bleach isn't talked about enough. There's so many "metaphors" that I resonate with.
Biggest metaphor being the fight inside Ichigo. The way White shows himself when it rains (when Ichigo is sad) and Old Man Zangetsu hates the rain (wants Ichigo to be happy).
These same forces/voices exist inside every human on earth. And hollows are those whose link to these voices has been severed.
My interpretation might be different from what Kubo meant, but nonetheless I love the series.
A fight between good and evil. That is what life mostly is, I believe. And this show captures it so well. And how it isn't black and white, people arent naturally ONLY evil nor good.
When Yhwach steals Ichigo's quincy powers, he also takes his hollow powers. Ichigo said the two powers were mixed. So by that statement, Kubo was probably trying to tell us that when his hollow powers mixed with his shinigami powers, his quincy powers also mixed with his shinigami powers because his hollow and quincy powers were mixed since Masaki was a hollowfied quincy so her soul was mixed with the hollow White. That might be the reason why his quincy powers manifested in his inner world because they were mixed in with his hollow powers and why Zangetsu told Ichigo he and OMZ are one and they share the same body. Also, when Ichigo realized there were no lies in either of their words, he realized that OMZ also helped him in his shinigami form and to him OMZ (his quincy powers) is a part of his shinigami powers.
Old Man Zangetsu is I think, the character that best represents Kubo's approach to storytelling. There is so much meaning, symbolism and heart in his character, as well as great quotes and a fantastic design. One of my favorite characters in the series.
What if tensa zangetsu looks like a younger yhwach is because more of white's power is being released while in bankai. It seems during tybw that there is a connexion between yhwach's power and his moustache and facial hair (the more powerful he becomes the longer the hair becomes). Tensa zangetsu doesn't have any facial hair, indicating less influence on ichigo's powers
I like the idea that old man zangetsu gets younger as the Quincy power becomes less prominent.
11:29 it's speculated Yhwach will return to a Baby if he loses all his Power.
So can we speculate "Tensa Zangetsu" younger appearance is due him losing power over ichigos soul to White ?
For the name situation i would imagine Ichibe has revoked Ywach name before and what he tries to tell Ichigo is his true name that he can't say because of Ichibe's power.
I mean, I personally hc that Ichibei had somehow blacked out his name when he was a baby, but he was able to carry on due to being a power parasite, and Ichibei seemingly cannot stop the transfer of power.
Maybe Yhach wasn't even his original name. That's just what the humans called him.
Also there is the interesting case that only shinigami have inner worlds, so only Ichigo could see the after effects of Ichbei. It also explain why it took so long for Yhwach to reawaken the Almighty because he has to overcome Ichbei’s presumptive curse first to unlock the ability.
Ichigo‘s second Quincy friend
His mom, him, then Uryu
I always thought the quote "retreat and you will age be afraid and you will die shout my name" was how he summoned his shikai
When Ichigo yelled out “Zangetsu” that was when his sword released.
I think you're missing something here:
The bankai "spirit" is NOT a separate spirit. They can change forms when the soul reaper enters bankai but the bankai spirit is the same spirit as the zanpakuto's spirit in general
The shadow technique doesn't have to be connected to the wandenreich. The quincy created an empire in the shadows due to their ability to manipulate reishi. The wandenriech isn't a realm that the quincy simply escaped to. It's a realm that the quincy created within shadows using their shadow manipulation technique combined with thrir reishi manipulation technique
Over an hour long video?! MrTommo treats us so well!!
Also, I hate the rain Ichigo
Considering what Kubo revealed that individual influence in the Zanpakuto, I wonder if Ichigo influenced in the Juha's fragment and that's why he looks so modern
I always figure it was Ichigo's influence that resulted in the Old Man's glasses.
Might also explain why tensa zangetsu gets younger when he's the bankai spirit.
Ichigo sees zangetsu the blade become smaller with bankai, it's kind of a simple idea for Ichigo to assume the spirit gets smaller as well
From the moment i saw ywach it all dawned on me. Was a brilliantly writtain twist, its was all before us, and i knew he was the oerfect hybrid but to think his zanpakuto was actually ywach was an absolute bombshell. On top of that, i always just thaught it was ichigos confusion about himself that lead to him kot hearing ywachs name, but really, thats damn good forshadowing. Even if it wasnt planned, he made it work ❤
i'm sure it has been said but I feel the dual souls is a direct commentary (though sub-conciously) on the duality of people. The ying and yang needing to constantly balance each other and as Ichigo grows in power, skill, and wisdom they become more in balance. Bring a sense of peace and center.
Not about duality, but integration the integration of many parts, the alchemy of the soul into the philosopher's stone, Carl Jung's Shadow and the whole schbockle, the feral monster that we are afraid to embrace that is our shadow, with sharp claws and fangs that exists only to protect us and be our strength, so much that the more we deny it's existence and try to suppress, the dangerous it becomes, getting angrier and feral so it can manifest in one way or another because it refuse to see the king being the horse and being trampled by other's malice, the white lie of the mask of the mighty honored civilized old man that we try to project to the outside world, forcing to belive thT this is trully who we are, our insecure and foolish self that is disgusted by his shadow and refuse to really understand it and also knows that the mask is a lie, he isn't everything he wants to project, but you wish you were him so much that you believe you can be the mask or at least strive to it, but is always short of really being more than just a projection.
Only when you understand that the shadow is you, it is your raw power, it exists to protect you and take what you need, it is justa sharp blade made for defense without malice, you only got hurt by it because you refused to wield it properly, and the projection isn't a lie either, but you wouldn't able to become that without your shadow integrated as well, and when integrated, that projection becomes small and shallow compered to when the self, shadow and mask are only one, not different polarized sides, but 3 colored stones made to react between them to generate something even stronger and more solid, born out of friction, impact, heat and chaos so the entropy generated can allow for true order to be born out of it and make the stable element that is worthy of becoming a soul king.
In the original JP version of the anime, when the Old Man tries to tell Ichigo his name, it is distorted but you can clearly tell that it sounds like he was saying Yhwach. I very much think Kubo had the true nature of Zangetsu planned. The main reason being, everytime the Old Man seems to display some of his powers, they are more like that of a Quincy. Gathering Reishi, using shadows to teleport, both are things that invoke Quincy powers rather then Soul Reapers powers. It must also be said, it is a very fine line to walk when trying to hint a something. If Kubo had been more obvious, like say, having the old man summon bows and arrows as well as swords during the Bankai training, the whole thing would had been given away. Kubo wrote the whole thing more low-key and I like it better like that. I appreciate and respect the more subtle approach to storytelling.
An one hour long video analysis about Zangetsu? Good I prepared my evening meal to eat while I enjoy this :) !
29:49
I actually think this is Zangetsu's activation phrase. In the Zanpakuto Tales, iirc; Muramasa uses the Zanpakuto's activation phrase to manifest the Zanpakuto's spirit and control them. He says the exact phase here to take control of old man Zangetsu. Now we ask what parts of that filler are canon or not; but keep in mind Shunsui's Zanpakuto spirit had a first appearance here before the manga. I believe Kubo said he had been advising the anime staff at the time, but had no direct control over it since he felt he wasn't qualified.
Let’s go🔥🔥 a whole 1 hour + video from the best bleach enthusiast out here🐐🔥🔥
Just causally uploads a almost hour and 30 long video tommo is the strongest captain honestly after this feat for real.
Thank you, been waiting almost a year for this video
Awesome... for someone(s) so elusive & complicated... Zangetsu definitely deserved a long analysis video.
I'm always so impressed by your work and feel I'm [(we) are all] extremely fortunate for your existence in the world of bleach.
I pray that one day the powers that be, would hire you for collaborations regarding all things bleach related.
I personally always interpreted the bankai spirits as not being entirely separate beings from the shikai, but a transformed state of the spirit, since the spirit is just a way for the shinigami to visualize and manifest their own power in the first place. Ichigo's situation is specifically unique due to Ywach's will being a part of all Quincy power.
"I hate the rain. It's wet, humid, and it gets everywhere."
When I first read bleach I always found the scenes in Ichigo’s inner world to be the most interesting parts of the whole series, and his whole relationships with all the Zangetsu’s is probably my favorite in Bleach. I can’t agree more that I wish we got more of it, just a few more scenes to flesh out the dynamic and relationship all the more, but I still love all that we got with it.
I think the whole thing behind why the appearance of Zangetsu, both White and Old Man, takes on many forms is due to the shift of balance within Ichigo's powers. The Old Man's form resembling a mature Yhwach symbolizes that his Quincy powers are currently dominant, while White in base form symbolizes how his Hollow/Shinigami powers is currently being suppressed. So when Ichigo goes into Bankai, releasing more of his Shinigami/Hollow powers, White becomes the dominant one taking on the form of the full hollow while the Old Man reverts to a teenage state, signifying that the power balance have shifted.
The brilliant writing of Bleach shows itself when Ichigo is given new powers whenever he goes into his inner world and is given a new sword. It shows a deep understanding between Ichigo and Zangetsu in an immaculate way that is hidden in plain sight, and we only understand this at the very end of the story.
When I think about it, the phrase "actions speak louder than words" really applies to Zangetsu. Mans berates and antagonizes Ichigo, but always protects him when things look grim. Sure he beats Ichigo relentlessly as well, but I think that's part of how Ichigo learns about his powers. Cause Ichigo doesn't realize his instincts until Zangetsu has almost completely defeated Ichigo. Imo both OMZ and White wanted to protect Ichigo, just in different ways. White wanted Ichigo to be strong enough for him to be able to defend himself while OMZ wanted Ichigo to avoid conflict at all cost (kind of similar to what a certain lookalike claims)
Bleach's entire personality power system takes from Jung psychology. It applies the most with Zangetsu/White, who embodies Ichigo's shadow, his battle lust and killer instinct that he wishes to repress, but you see fragment of it through others interaction with their own Zanpakuto as well. Learning Bankai involves manifesting that part of one's personality (that one wish to reject) into reality, battle it head on and eventually accepting it as part as oneself (The Blade Is Me). Byakuya was completely correct about Ichigo's Bankai, he never properly achieved Bankai at all, just a facsimile manifested by his Quincy spirit, and the brunt of the Arrancar arc is Ichigo actively running away from the part of himself that he has to accept. In a sense, he's no different from Yumachika or Rangiku, characters who has similarly antagonistic interactions with their shadow self (albeit in a more comedic setting).
Hisagi later received a similar character arc in CFYOW, with his self denial being so bad he couldn't even manifest his proper Shikai until the very end.
i think that ichibe blocking zangetsu speaking about ywach make sense since it would be better to have ichigo with the shinigami instead with the quincys
Kubo never planned this, he made it up on the go as pretty much everything else that happens from one season to another
Around 24:46 No think you are misunderstanding that, it's not on Ichigo's power that's put on, it's on Yhwach's power, and remember names *ARE POWER IN BLEACH.* As such this fragment of Yhwach can't overpower the power of Ichibei, like the complete Yhwach could.
Fantastic character analysis your really have a great way with words
man, hollow ichigo vs byakuya is possibly my favorite moment from that arc, tied with the aizen reveal
OG Zangetsu was the best but that might be my nostalgia for my early Bleach journey back in '08.
12:00 bro when the two fuse IS his bankai spirit hence his later bankai
I feel like something that's a little overlooked is how Ichigo really treats his zanpakuto. He only calls out to it when he needs something. He only ever goes into his inner world when he actively needs something from his sword. He never talks to Zangetsu just because. To be honest it's no better than Yoroichi saying she doesn't need her sword at all but to a lesser extent. Ichigo doesn't need his sword unless he wants something
“Wait Zangetsu, I still need you!” Hits hard asf
Are we forgetting that White was active during the Soul Society arc as Hanataro speaks of the hollow mask that he tosses away
Imagine if Ichigo just occasionally went to his inner world to train, learned a new move or two, to help him get over the badguy. I think it would have healthily fluffed the series. I also think we all be happier with more White/Ogihci in our lives.
1. Old man Zangestu was able to freely manifest in the real world which I theorize is because he is the manifestation of his Quincy-Shinigami hybrid powers.
2. Due to the hollow white fusing with Ichigo's latent Shinigami powers at birth, and being created to take over his host by Aizen, he could only violently manifest in the physical world by completely taking over Ichigo as we witnessed in his fight with the 4th Espada.
3. Old man Zangestu stated that he only lied about his name, but only because Ichigo could not hear it. Am hoping to see teenage Zangestu & Full mask white Zangestu teaming up again as they did during the dangai training.
man it has been an hour? i didn't notice, amazing video
I think tensa zangetsu appears as a younger self because he is still the center of Ichigo's power and the one he views as his zanpaktou. Perhaps that is why he changes and not white.
Phenomenal video as always, Tommo. The inner world parts of Bleach are by far my favorite and I wish there was more.
Ichigo does technically swing Zangetsu by the bandage but only whilst stood upon the Sogyoku pillar and even then. If I remember rightly, it was just a spin as I think he grabs the handle to destroy the stand to free Rukia.
Another great lecture from Tommo-san! Thank you!
I take an Asuichi as an empty vessel, like any sort of body made of blood and bone or reishi, and reflects the soul of the wielder. Which is why the "Blade is [him]".
I appreciate Ichigo learns a killer instinct from White and so early on in the story. The pacing of the manga lets the artwork and story really shine.
Hollow Ichigo was peak. Hollow Ichigo, Mugetso Ichigo, and HOS Ichigo were pretty peak.
I didn't realize how much foreshadowing there was before he fought Aizen.
"The twist he was the most apprehensive of." Ichigo does use Zangetsu in the plural sense when he draws both swords. I guess he became Zangetsu?
Fingers crossed the animators follow Tommo-san and add depth where he recommended it!
I loved it, bro! Thank you!
Somebody on the bleach subreddit made the theory that ichibei inked out yhwach's name well before the question was ever asked. The evidence in the theory was that yuhabahha written in katakana in the same size font the rest of the bleach manga is written in fits perfectly in the black box. Zangetsu in katakana is only 3 characters long and leaves tons of room in the box. It's far from concrete but people noticed this way before the klub outside question
its not evidence since kubo had little to do with the anime at that point but in the anime the blurred out name zangetsu gives ichigo ends in an A sound just like yuhabahha. just a coincidence which makes it work even more.
ichibei's darkness power can travel through time as we saw when he made the mausoleum he stole the black from the night sky 100 years into the future. very within the realm of possibility for him to do it to ichigo.
24:05
I want to point out that in the anime, the distortion only happens with the first name. You actually hear "Bach" at the end, whereas "Yhwach" was distorted. I always wondered what that first name was back in the day.. Just for him to say "Zangetsu" later on, which was always weird to me.
How do you expect to fight with a sheathed sword takes on a whole new meaning when you consider that Juha bach was acting as the sheath for Zangetsu as Ichigo fought the first several arcs.
What gets me is how ichigos inner world is incredibly vast and submerged in deep water resembling his spirit pressure and the vastness of it. and when he is plunged into it he forgets how to breath at first showing us how inexperienced and unsure ichigo is of himself and everything he has been through
I haven't been on the channel in a while as I haven't really been messing with Bleach much of recent. I'm not even caught up on anime. But when I was reading the manga as a young adult, everything with Zangetsu blew my mind. I wasn't really able to get my mind around it back then. And while I have a grasp on it now, I'm still eager to veg out on this video and have my favorite Bleach historian break it down for me.
Probably my favorite cold line, even if it is short; "I have no name." followed by nasty slash. So sick.
Wow, over an hour on Ichigo's zanpakuto spirit? Sign me up! I know we technically got what I'm about to wish for in the Ulquiorra fight, but I genuinely wish Ichigo had just once consciously and willingly donned the complete helmet mask. It's a fantastic mirror image of Ulquiorra's own mask. Now that you've covered Zangetsu, I would really love to see you tackle a few of the other major things that haven't gotten a full analysis yet, namely the Ichigo vs. Byakuya and Ulquiorra fights. I'd also be super interested to see you compile your ultimate Gotei 13, picking from all available time periods and maybe moving some people around to divisions they weren't originally part of if you think it would work.
Didn't Kubo explain somewhere that the reason why "Tensa Zangetsu" looks like a younger Yhwach is because with Ichigo's growing power, the Quincy spirit was supressed, and thus took on a weaker form? Similarily, Yachiru could have taken on the child form we know, because she was just a fragment of Nozarashi's true power, even if she represented the bankai part.
Around 39:52 I don't think Kubo regrets this scene, because both are Zangetsu, yes the origin of the Old Man is Ichigo's Quincy powers, but in the inner world only a Zanpakutou could appear. And that fact that they can exist separately and not like White describe later on as one being the bones and another being the flesh, it's a sign of the contradiction.
My thought process is that during Deicide, and by extension whenever Ichigo uses bankai, White having more dominance within Ichigo's soul likely depowers the Old Man and boosts White to whatever Ichigo's normally attainable peak at the time *should* be.
Think about it, if Ichigo wasn't terrified of Zangetsu during the Arrancar arc, he probably could've came out of his training being able to use Cero like White was doing outside of his inner world and that giant Getsuga he used inside of it.
Like you said, White's form in Deicide is probably what Ichigo's hollowfication *should* have looked like at the time, but he was still afraid of that kind of power. And then he merges later, so it's all good. Lol
Great write up. OMZ is still my favorite character design in the entire franchise.
The cover of Volume 8 is still probably my favourite after all these years
I was so glad Kubo paid off the reveal about Yhwach and OMZ which was implanted since that first clash with Zaraki in the early days
I think the only time he did the spinning blade thing was over Rukia destroy the execution scaffold, but I think that anime only iirc
That point on Ichibei and OMZ is that I thought it was to Yhwach was attacked by the brush in his early life or even Yhwach's mother was attacked by Ichibei and that's where that connects
I always thought their consciousnesses dissolved becoming part of Ichigo's whole, so there would be no one to talk to as separate entities
ichigo discovering his zampakuto subtly gave us the ending of the TYBW. zangetsu meaning "moon cutter" is a hint to two important events; 1. ichigo cutting the soul king-- which is a metaphor to the moon. the moon just reflects sunlight, in analogy to the soul king being a flase god. 2. ichigo cutting YHWACH-- which is soul king's son, someone lesser than the soul king.
Also, the shikai reflects the relationship of white and old man. when ichigo wields zangetsu the blade is black, the sheath is white-- meaning the inner is quincy, clothed as shinigami; which is plainly ichigo. but when wielded by white, the blade is white, the sheath is black-- telling us that old man is hiding ichigo's true zanpakuto. lastly, the first bankai also gave us hint. the hand guard is a "manji" symbol-- meaning "heaven and earth linked", hinting on ichigo being someone of multiple races. and also people thinks of the manji symbol as a swastika, hinting to the german roots of YHWACH and the quincy.
This was quite the twist and I'm annoyed at myself for not noticing the resemblance sooner.
I don't think there's any reason to assume Zangetsu's shadows specifically shouldn't lead to Ichigo's inner world instead of the Shatten Bereich like the other Quincies. He's a different kinda being
I subscribed. Been tuning into your videos for years.
1:09:16 you could say his Quincy powers have been with him from the very beginning as well so it wouldn’t surprise me if they are working differently in himself
30:12 ...and kills Kisuke's hat😂
Still my fav Bleach Ytber! the Goat !
The old man Zangetsu reveal and him truly becoming one-half of the True Zangetsu in The Blade is Me reminds me of a certain quote "You live the lie long enough and it becomes your truth/reality". This is paraphrasing a bit given, I don't remember the exact quote or even where it came from, but it encapsulates the brilliance of that arc, and it coming around full circle.
I always thought about tensa’s young ywach from to be a reduced level of Quincy power in his bankai
I always find it kinda sad that we don't see Zangetsu again after 'the blade is me'. I hope the anime adds SOMETHING in eventually. Hope this video mentions that in someway 🥺
@@Jaycutler709 I personally am fine with them not appearing because as things are now, Ichigo has fully accepted them as part of him and doesn't need to actively go to them for help.
@@MrGksarathy not thinking help, more like a... 'thank you' sort of thing. I just wanna see them again 😭
I know this is justa filler, but I do recall that old man zangetsu wanted to end the fight with ichigo during the zanpacto arc, as soon as he realize that ichigo is getting the hang of using white’s power or maybe he’s begin to tap further exploring his true power that the old man wanted to prevent or holding back.
Talking about Zangetsu is like talking about Bakura in YuGiOh, which one?
In season 5 there are 3 of him running around, even the fans have trouble keeping up with that.
My headcanon for Old Man Zangetsu looking different is because his power was suppressed even more in Bankai (White had more control).
That's why White had Vasto Lorde attire as well. Because, for one, during training it would be a spoiler. And second, he has more control/power here than Old Man.
It's understandable that you didn't include the anime filler since it's not canon(but then again, neither is the tybw anime filler is!), but in the zanpaktou rebellion we get sone more of what we're missing but before that we see in the arrancar arc his fights with kariya, kenpachi, and byakuya where white is reminding him and teaching him about his surpressed nature.
Great video and i loved it!!!
Finally finished this, and so glad you also hope that we would have seen white/zangetsu one more time. Hopefully they come back in SOME capacity, even if it's just one more time
3:45 Manly rains pour from my eyes every time I go by this image!
Got here quick af for this one
1:00:18 It's funny but now that you mentioned this, I thought white was physically inside because when he went into vasto lorde and he revived Ichigo, it was supposed to represent how white is physically keeping Ichigo alive by being his heart or something along those lines. Which would kind of explain why he is never seen again.
Crazy it took this long to get this video but you crushed it
Zanpakuto don't have a seperate bankai Spirit. Some Zan Spirits change form like Tensa and White, but others don't like Katen. Nozarashi/Yachiru is a special case where it seems Nozarashi split itself like Katan Kyokotsu and Yachiru embodies tha bankai.
I believe Old Man Zangetsu is a special case as well. We see from Everything But The Rain that Masaki doesnt have an inner world or an inner Yhach, so i think that either the nature of Shinigami powers or the Asauchi gives OMZ properties similar to Zan-spirits, which is why he does Zan-spirit things like manifest via the tenshintai
To this day, for all my gripes, I will always give Kubo credit for this twist because I never saw it coming. I only realized how well it was laid out once it was dropped like the bombshell that it is.
I've always wondered if White feels continuity with the hollow that attacked Misaki, or if he believes it is a separate being.
After seeing the whole storyline.. it does seem like its 80% of the way there. Has so many cool ideas setup, but not fleshed out, prolly cuz kubo had other things to juggle. But def felt the lack of old man zangestu for so long + lack of white zangetsu at the merger being very odd. The anime zanpakto arc was nice to show connections between shinigami + sword, but I don't think Ichigo had many moments either in that.
It’s the soul aspect of Yuhabach but is the “Ego” separately of ZANGETSU. As we all have an ego and a heart that’s the under layer emotions that flows thru our thoughts… that under layer is the same but his mind was separate and a part of Ichigos natures
10:40 Zangetsu was still hiding the truth from Ichigo. Transforming himself, while preventing white from transforming.
What would have happened if _White_ had been in a different form there? Even Ichigo would have figured that one out!
Though technically, white was in a different form. A form that wore a horned masked. Like Ichigos "Horn of Salvation" Bankai.
In the end, Spirits can immitate other spirits:
- Yachiru immitated a Shikai
- Katen Kyōkotsu immitated being a dual spirit
- Zabimaru had a fake Bankai, Ruri'iro Kujaku had a Fake Shikai
I wonder how many youngsters mistake this guy for Eraser-head from MHA.
Who?
Hopefully none, they look pretty different
Nobody… I’m sure literally nobody.
The blue flame sword outline that Old Man used to suppress Ichigo's power is the same (or very similar) outline as the sword Ywach summons to use. Would have been cool to incorporate some of that into a new True Zangetsu design, but that's alright.
Maybe if/when we get to see some more of his Quincy power.
Loved all of this! Also glad even from your educated perspective that Tensa Zangetsu doesn't quite fit. I always thought that form was different. Thanks so much for the analysis and perspective!
Tensa makes sense to me as: In order to give Ichigo his Bankai old man zangetsu had to incorporate a lot more of white's power. And the only way to do that whilst still subjugating him was to combine with him in a way. White being about as old as Ichigo would explain the age reversal
Zangetsu and the culmination of The Blade is Me it's my favorite writing in the entire of Bleach, peak, Tite Kubo knows how to foreshadowing
He's not Zangetsu, he's not Zangetsu either. But he is Zangetsu.