Character:
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If you were hoping for a Bad-ass Ichigo moment, or answers to this confusing arc from the all seeing Urahara, you are sadly left displeased. Ichigo shows amazing skills, impressively crushing or rebounding Quincy arrows with his bare hands, but fails to wipe the floor with the Quincy; allowing him to take a second form, a form similar to Arancar’s Resurrección or a Soul Reapers Bankai. If Ichigo was so strong that he could effortlessly defuse the enemy’s attacks then why doesn’t he obliterate them outright? It seems a more prudent action, saving the time and energy that would otherwise be consumed fighting this powered up opponent. One might think differently had Ichigo been any kind of strategist, with the intention to learn his enemies’ attacks before facing them, but as we know Ichigo to be the kind of hero to rush into battle without giving it second thought, these delayed battles seem counterproductive. Will Ichigo find this new power difficult to overcome? It is hard to say, but many readers were surely hopping to see Ichigo squash him effortlessly. However this development suggests that Ichigo still has a way to go.
As for Urahara, the soul societies lazy genius and seemingly most knowledgeable and in-the-know man, we see him playing around with the Arancars; his purpose in entering Huaco Mudo, just as his true powers have always been, remains hidden. But perhaps that’s the way we love Urahara the most, the man who never reveals his hand until it’s time to strike. Certainly the serious look on his face suggest that he has an ulterior motive for following Ichigo into Huaco Mundo, but as to when Kubo will manifest action from this plot twist character, we can only wait.
---------- Post added at 03:45 PM ---------- Previous post was at 03:27 PM ----------
Predictions
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Now, we move on to the predictions. If Ichigo maintains his slow but badass fighting style -which seems to underestimate his opponent’s abilities- then I foresee a grueling sludge match that will leave Ichigo drained of energy in later battles; but on the other hand, this course of action will lead him to ‘power up’, so that he will finally have enough strength to fight the boss at the end; a character trait common with Shounen manga and Ichigo in particular. This match may last a number of chapters. However, in the unlikely hood that Kubo presents Ichigo as ‘ready’ and he fights seriously, the battle will be over in a course of a chapter and he’ll move on to other battles, but to be honest, that would be nowhere near as interesting and unlikely given Ichigo’s character.
I also foresee Urahara playing a pivotal role in uncovering the twist to this arc, do to his uncharacteristic activity that only takes place when something big is about to go down, such as the fight with Aizen. It may very well be Urahara who brings out the much anticipated 0 squad, as apart from Aizen, he is the only one who has made it clear that he has had contact with the Spirit King, or at the very least, knows what he looks like.