Ulquiorra remains one of Bleach's most memorable and popular characters (as we recently saw in our community poll!), but how does the character fare for you? What's your favourite Ulquiorra moment?

Ulquiorra revealing he's only the 4th Espada is one for my favorite moments in the series.

Food for thought: Ulquiorra could be a portmanteau of the pronunciation of the phrase El Que Llora in Spanish which means “the one who cries” which could explain the teardrops on his face

I've always believed that Ulquiorra's true rival wasn't Ichigo, rather Orihime. Like you've said, he is a emotionless being, perfectly protraying that empty / lifeless hollow being. While Orihime is one of the most emotional characters in Bleach, filled with soo much empathy, she literally heals her enemies and the ones that hurt her and her friends. So Ulqiuorra trying to understand why she's like this, along with the emotional bonds she shares with the ones that have come to save her, "Six Hearts Beat As One". It's this invisible heart that perplexes Ulquiorra to the point he thinks it's something physical, going back and forth with Orihime sets up this emotional debate between the two, which in my opinion, is greater than the physical battles he faces. Ulqiuorra obviously only believes what his eyes can see, so when Orihime emotionally challenges him, he takes this to a much higher offense. Until the very end, she opposed him with this idea of 'heart', and once he started to fade, he understood what 'heart' is, not a physical thing; but rather a emotional bond linking loved ones together.

I feel like Aizen recognizes that Ulquiorra, being entirely empty and literal, doesn't have the capacity to desire power or usurpation, deceit or betrayal in the ways other espada do. So even if he might not be the most powerful in Aizen's circle it would make sense that he would trust Ulquiorra the most out of the espada to be truthful and loyal at any cost and in any situation.

7:38 I’ve believe this is what Byakuya would have become had he never fought Ichigo. These two characters both share similar traits: stoic, cold, enforcers. Although Byakuya was emotionally torn, he was still willing to let his own sister die, if it meant upholding Soul Society’s law. Kind of disappointed we never got any interaction between the two. It would be interesting for Byakuya to come face-to-face with a mirror image of his former self.

Baby wake up, Tommo taicho just dropped a 1 hour Ulquiorra video essay.

There's a very bitter irony that he got to know the heart in his final moments after becoming curious with Orihime's input and her refusal to succumb to the darkness of her situation. His death before her sure was a changing moment for her......

My favorite hollow Ulquiorra. Intelligent, cold hearted but searching to fulfill the emptiness within ironic given the hole in his chest.

Ulquiorra's death was for me one of the turning points of how I see a character's death in any type of media. When I liked a character I used to think of their death as waste, and so I would feel sad or disappointed. But with Ulquiorra, I could see that each character has their own story, and a message to share even with their death. His death was for me a full circle, in the beginning, he is an empty being, he has no feelings and sees it as weakness, he is alive, but he is dead inside. But in the end, he is more like a human, his emptiness is fulfilled with feelings, he is dead but he feels what it is to be alive for the first time. In my opinion, It's a great trajectory drawn by Kubo Sensei and a complete cycle for the character. I can see him coming back in the Hell Arc but as a different being, with a different perspective. He would not be as vibrant as Grimmjow is, but, following the Byakuya's path, he would be less about the duties and more about his bonds, less like a tool and more like a human being.

You have to remember that someone that fundamentally has no understanding of emotions cannot emotionally manipulate someone. To be able to do so, you would have to understand emotions to begin with. He does, however, have a need or desire to come to understand them. All his interactions with Orihime are him using unfeeling reason to learn what the opposing emotional response will be. He's not trying to purposely hurt her feelings because he doesn't know what they are. He's trying to learn how emotional responses differ from pure reason. His odd respect and protection of Orihime is because of this. In his yearning way he sees value in Orihime who is showing him what pure emotions are and he respects in an odd way that she can always respond with emotion over reason. She is his antithesis. Her being able to show him feeling at a moment when reason tells him it is impossible for someone to do so is in his eyes the epitome of emotion overcoming all reason and he responds with aww and yearning and respect and desire all within that moment. Whether he actually FELT something, even in that moment, is (and should always be) unclear.

The world wasn’t good enough for Ulquiorra

Ulquiorra embodied emptiness and it was portrayed really well. He really is the most hollow hollow.

In some strange parallel universe, Ulquiorra is the protagonist of Kingdom Hearts.

If I remember correctly, the translation I originally read stated they were ranked by deadliness. With that in mind, it always made sense to me why Stark and Barrigan were ahead of Ulquiorra, with Barrigan able to essentially kill with almost no effort and Stark killing literally without even trying or wanting to kill.

Not gonna lie Ulquiorra's death makes me teary eyed every time. I actually wish he had survived because just imagine how badass it would've been if he could've teamed up with Urahara and Grimmjow to fight the Wandenreich!

I too would like to see Ulquiorra return, but unfortunately it would just be fan service if he did. We just have to live with the sting of saying goodbye to him and remembering him in the pages.

Great analysis! Bleach has a wonderful cast of characters, but Ulquiorra is the one character that I feel Kubo truly handled perfectly. I remember thinking right before Ichigo's final confrontation with him that Ulquiorra had been such a cool villain, and that while he probably wouldn't make it past the decisive battle with Ichigo, I really hoped he would go out on a high note - and he sure did! Arguably both the best fight and the best death scene in all of Bleach.

My time has come! Literally my favorite character in the entire series! Thank you for giving me an hour of QUALITY ulquiorra content

I think Ulquiorra embodies the psychopaths inner struggle with humanity and emotions. He sees emotions and humanity in others, yet he doesn't know what these are. He longs for a connection, but never seems to grasp the concept of what connections are.

It's also interesting that Ulquiorra is the embodiment of the pure hollows in some sense. Perhaps, to Aizen, Ulquiorra embodies that ultimate goal of usurping the soul king, and he represents Aizen's vision in more ways than one.

Finally Espada Nr 4. I hope he comes back in the Hell Arc with Starrk, if Kubo sensei decides to do more chapters ever.

I always enjoyed theorizing what the the espadas' human lives were like before they became hollows, as I imagine that affected how they developed as hollows. I always imagined Ulquiorra was a socially reclusive kid who either was killed while being bullied or committed suicide after being bullied, hence the tears on his face and why he just couldn't grasp connections with other people, because he never had any in life and it was in fact the very opposite that led to his death, then his soul went through a breakdown where it gave up on hope of feeling any kind of connections and the hollow Ulquiorra was born. Well, that was just my headcanon, but it's interesting to think about. Like, what would happen to a hollow who managed to move on past the mindless beast stages, become cognizant of themselves and their surroundings and managed to fill that missing piece that led them to their hollowfication? Would they turn into a normal soul again, transform into a shinigami? Or maybe they'd just die and their soul would move on. It'd be a fun concept to see developed in Kubo's future work or maybe the work of some Kubo sponsored canon light novels

I think ulquiorra puts a hole on his enemy's chest because that's where his hollow hole is. Just like how grimmjow pierced rukia on her stomach (where grimmjow's hollow hole is)

Ulquiorra's backstory would be worthy of an episode when the anime returns, in my opinion.

When I was watching this video, two thoughts came to mind: 1. First, when you mentioned his nihilism and how he doesn’t really believe or relate to concepts he can’t see or fit his reality, I was further drawn to how he related to Orihime. Her powers allow the rejection of reality, and to me it makes a lot of sense why that out of any character that ends up having an effect on him, it’s her. She challenges that both with her literal power, but as you mentioned as well, her being confident in the bond with her friends and despite the odds against them, still kept trying to save her. 2. You mentioned that he is the perfect hollow villain, and I really agree with that analysis. For starters, despite being humanoid in appearance, he has many classic hollow features/powers. For instance, his hollow hole location (at least the second iteration) is close to the heart, which many normal hollows have. Secondly, he retains the regeneration feature. However, something that is interesting to me is that despite being in many ways being the ultimate hollow, he lacks the desire and wants that drive the rest of the hollows/arrancar. And in that lacking, he unlocked something the rest of them didn’t, the second form. This had me thinking that I partially wonder that a hollow’s existence is forever going to be a cursed one. Ulq became the ultimate hollow and felt nothing/and nothing changed for him, but the moment he understand bonds and connection, he died. I wonder if that is what ultimately destroys a hollow, the moment they find what their is existence is lacking, their existence must end.

The last scene between Ulquiorria and Ichigo is the moment I absolutely declared Bleach as my favorite anime. The emotional depth in that moment is so intense and has so many layers that I couldn’t even imagine writing. It truly is the most impactful scene I’ve ever seen.

Personally I loved ulquiorra's first release. I greatly enjoyed the dark rain thing that his release causes.

I love your ulquiorra breakdown videos. He’s one of the best developed characters of bleach. So much mystery and curiosity in his personality. Truly hope he returns in the future and if not at least he got a good story

One thing I always found as quite a nice subtle detail is the significance of Ulquiorra’s number in relation to Ichigo, and how he is the only character in the series that “killed” Ichigo twice. In Japanese, the number four can be written in two distinct ways, the first is “よん” or “yon”, and second is “し”, or “shi”. The second pronunciation has gained negative connotations and superstitions, because coincidentally, that pronunciation of “shi” is the exact same as the one for “death” (死). The belief that the number four is unlucky, similarly to the number 13 in the west, has grown so large in Japan to the point where there are many (older) buildings that outright don’t have a fourth floor button on elevators, skipping from floors three to five. Some might already understand where I’m going with this, but to clarify further the relation of the number four to Ulquiorra: Ulquiorra, as the fourth Espada appears before Ichigo every time he is at his most unlucky and unfortunate moment, or perhaps his appearance is what dictates those factors. He is present alongside Yammy when Ichigo gets beaten due to his uncontrollable Hollow powers, he is present when Ichigo is about to be massacred by Grimmjow and Orihime disappears, and most importantly, he is present before Ichigo when Rukia is believed to be dead, serving as an obstacle. Ulquiorra’s appearance before Ichigo always heralds disaster for him, which is why I personally believe that his number was intentionally given to him in order to narratively counteract Ichigo and any action he could take to turn the tide of battle in his favour. There is no better example of this than the two times Ulquiorra outright “kills” Ichigo, living up to the reputation that the deadly number four has been given, while also being the only character in the series capable of such a feat. I always found this subtle but consistent detail about Ulquiorra incredibly fascinating and I’m surprised that not many people observe it, in fact I don’t think I’ve seen anyone talk about it.

Ulquiorra is absolutely my favourite character. He reminds me of my past self, I was very violent, apathetic, and lacked passion and agency. I still relate to him during those long periods of time I fall into a state of depression I do anything to forget the fact that I don’t feel real and incredibly stale and blank My favourite Ulquiorra moment is ironically his death, he starts to understand emotions. For so long he has been surviving, now he can fathom (a wee bit) the vitality of life, and now he is dying. In another life Ulquiorra would definitely be Orihime’s younger brother

Ulquiorra is definitely one of my top favorite Bleach characters like his character arc design abilities and death were so beautiful like it really made want to see more of him. That's why back when Bleach was still going I was truly hoping he would comeback in the TYBW but unfortunately he didn't. I really felt like he should've had a second chance you know like it would have been so cool to actually see how his character would go after the Arrancar arc. I'm honestly hoping he does comes back in the New Hell Arc ( if this arc somehow gets a continuation).

In my opinion, Ulquiorra is the perfect foil to Ichigo out of all the villains that Ichigo faces. Ulqiorra had a solitary, terrifying, and overwhelming feeling to his character. He dominates Ichigo to a ridiculous level. But, we watch him slowly start to understand human emotion a tad bit as the arc goes on. And then, when Ichigo is goes into his vasto lorde form we watch their roles completely flip. Ulquiorra becomes literally the last thing standing between us watching our hero destroy everyone(and potentially everything) that he holds dear for the sake of the power needed to protect Orihime. I still think to this day what would happen if Ulquiorra didn't break the mask. Ulquiorra for me was the best Villain of the series due to his complete contradiction of Ichigo's ideals. I wish we could have spent more time with him as a character to see how much his character changes with his newfound understanding of Human emotion.

I always loved Ulquiorras spear cero. Looks kinda flimsy till he tosses it and it goes off like a nuke.

HE NEEDS to return through the Hell Arc, would be an amazing rebirth to his character! ESPECIALLY reuniting with Orahime!

Ulquiorra's VA also did an awesome job in portraying the character.

I also found it very interesting that Ulquiorra has those green lines going down from his eyes. I think they were green. Anyway, they look like tears (to me anyway) and they always reminded me of sorrow and sadness that might have been inside this character. And I haven't watched the entire video yet, I am about half way through. But, I am sure you talked about his second release. He claims that Aizen does not know about it and I believe him. That alone would put him higher than 4 IMHO. He is a fascinating character and I am glad you spent so much time on him.

It's kinda scary to think how strong Ichigo would be if his powers weren't clashing...

The chapter where Ulqiorra is revealed to be #4 blew my mind. I thought he was #1 adleast and to be 4 just made my mind go blank

Ulquiorra has been my favorite villain since I first saw him appear on my TV as a teen way back in 08. from the first hint of him being insanely strong, by him striking Yammy in his stomach(sending him back a few feet and looking inconvenienced), taking a Getsuga point blank and stopping it briefly with one hand, wreaking Ichigos shit with barely trying, to him eventually showing some emotions at the very end and having a sympathetic look as his eyes went back to normal. as well as him just resigning himself to death as he fades to dust. I also just loved his design, I grew up around a few emo kids back when he first appeared and I guess that made him just take root in my mind. While theres been other characters like him in anime, He just seemed to give me definite emo vibes, and that view of him was really cemented in his backstory. He's one of the few characters that really fit his design and its similarity to what someone in the real world would give the impression of. Though it was sad to see him go, i felt a hole/sinking feeling in my stomach the first time I saw his wings rip and him turn to dust. I wish he had stayed around, more so than Grimjow(even though I was hoping he'd stay around back when I thought he was dead).

I think Aizen gave Ulquiorra the number 4 intentionally to toy with Ichigo (and even the other espada), especially sense he planned for them to fight from the get go. I feel like it’s a conceivable concept especially considering just how much trust he seems to place in him. Ulquiorra, more so than any other espada feels like an extension of Aizen’s group (Gin and Tosen). Ulquiorra mentions not having shown Aizen that segunda etapa, but it’s not far fetched to believe that Aizen knew Ulquiorra was hiding an even greater power and allowed him to believe that he’d kept this a secret and thus gave him the number 4. Thoughts?

Ulquiorra has always been my favorite Bleach character when I started watching the anime when I was 12 (I'm 24 now). I was obsessed with his character design at the time and it was so nostalgic seeing him again as I've been rereading the manga. Thanks for making this!

One of the most Iconic character’s in the series.

I feel like the trope is Ulquiorra is closer to Byakuya, as Grimmjow is closer to Kenpachi, though lame that we never got that fight. Renji isn’t really chaotic, in the way Kenpachi is anyways.

Because of his backstory and the themes of the show, especially the Espada, his name Cifer is probably a play on the name "Lucifer" in some way.

Masterfully done MrTommo2304, I loved this video. It gave a great insight into Ulquiorra's character, and hopefully may have changed the opinion of some who would say Ulquiorra is a blank and uninteresting character. It was very obvious to me from a thematic perspective that this character has had a multitude of depth put into his writing, and arguably has one of the most impactful deaths in anime history. I love this character, I'm glad you share that love and you're able to see things about this character that I felt alone in seeing.

Ulquiorra finds his purpose slowly but surely from the moment he encounters Ichigo and Orihime. From there to where he meets his end, it is neatly tied together imo.

recently came across your channel and went down a rabbit hole of all your content to get ready for the new anime and give myself a refresher on the manga as well, and I have to say, your content is absolutely amazing man, you do a great job with your analysis and it's clear how much love and passion you have for the source material and the world of Bleach, I consider myself an avid Bleach enthusiast and even I came to understand so much more after after watching your videos, makes me want to do another rewatch/read before the TYBW anime comes out.

I would have loved for his backstory chapter to be animated as like a stand alone OVA released in the blu ray releases or something

Ulquiorra my favorite character on bleach and on my top 5 of all anime .

I really love the way his character died off and ended with finally knowing what a heart somewhat means. However, i do feel like he was killed off too soon. ((personally)) Really hoping he gets brought back in the Hell Arc.

That moment when ulquiorra flew by and palmed ichigos head is the best moment in all of bleach and maybe one of the best in all of anime!

You sir, are a storyteller. The way you explain this story with so much eloquence and appreciation for the themes and symbolism makes you yourself a storyteller. You give us all the gift of falling in love with the story of Bleach all over again, thank you so much for that 🙏

I love your channel and I’m so happy someone still talks about bleach

Me Tommo your video essays have become an essential part of my work schedule/ life I appreciate it man.

the best part of the dub is listening to Yami say Ulquiorra

I loved from the get go, his design, voice and the way he carried himself are so cool. Then the way he interacted with Orihime was so interesting, only saying things as matter of fact and wanting to understand emotions subconsciously. Ironic he didn't believe in things he couldn't see yet people without reiatsu can't see him and he still exists. The last fight with Ichigo cemented him as one of my favorite so much so that I was annoyed at Ichigo for destroying him the first time I watched the anime lol His death is still the saddest moment for me in the series, and like you said it would feel a little cheap to see him again but that doesn't mean wouldn't like it at all depending how its done.

Listening to your channel changed my whole view of bleach and gave me a way better understanding

Ulquiorra is my favorite character in the series, so much so that I have his number tattooed on my chest. My favorite moment is actually the reveal of Murcielago. The music that plays, the reishi that literally rains down in Ichigo, it’s such an amazing moment. I also love when Ichigo is trying to defend Orihime from Loly, and they do the split screen shot of him rushing past Ulquiorra after firing a Gestuga, only to drop the bottom of the split screem to reveal him charging a Cero that blasts Ichigo away.

Amazing video as always. The scene where Ulquiorra reveals himself to be "only" number four was amazing.

Ulquiorra was by far my favorite Espada in the Arancar Arc. I hated the part when he faded away into dust after reaching for Orihime, which was very emotional to the viewers. Would love to see him come back in future Bleach episodes.

I absolutely love Ulquiorra. He's so complex and interesting. My heart aches at his death scene.

I love this character. Probably my favorite overall Bleach character in terms of potential. Kubo ended him beautifully but the potential for a better written storyline was there too. I feel like Stark and Ulquiorra represent what true hollows are like. There's a neutral darkness to them and the thing they hunger for most is to find others who can understand them.

Your timing is absolutely impeccable! Thank you mr tommo

He's one of my all time favorite characters in general.

THIS is the video Ive been waiting for. Thanks, Tommo!

Love the work I cannot watch this one myself, as Ulquiorra and Orihime hurts my soul and a few lines said hit me too closely to past experiences early on when he talks to her. Still I wanted to share I left not cause bad content and love your work. Thanks for the videos

This is fr one of your best works yet. Cheers!

Great video man, some amazing content

Omg the colored manga is so beautiful. Yeah I've seen the entire anime series and read the black and white manga but omg the manga art from Kubo is incredible compared to the anime and now that is was colored is just in awe. Ulquiorra looks amazing.

I always saw Ulquiorra becoming more human with the discussions with orihime but he doesn't notice it until Ichigo hollowfies because of witnessing the sheer pain Ichigo was willing to endure for orihime. However he sadly died before he could fully understand.

Hands down favorite character in all of bleach. Nice job 👍

You put so much time and effort into these videos. You deserve every sub you get.

Excellent interpretation and explanation. Your style is so direct and fascinating to listen to.

Best character in the series imo. So much depth and time put into him and always the one that stood out as a complete barrier to ichigos progression, an unstoppable force that just wouldn’t let him pass. Always will be my number 1.

Oh man I've been waiting for this and an hour long to you never disappoint

I also feel like Ulquiorra and Grimmjow are more akin to Byakuya and Kenpachi more so than Byakuya and Renji; Partially because they operate more like captains of different divisions and are the two characters for this arc that 1) push Ichigo to the brink and 2) force Ichigo to undergo his hollow transformation/takeover. I love the vids!!!

Appreciate you doing this video on one of my most favorites out of the Espada.

Oh yeah he’s definitely one of my favourites, it’s fun to see what someone can do when there’s no sense of “too edgy”.

You want to know something I'm never subscribed to you or even hit the like button but I always watch your shows for a long time you know you you're really good.... And I've been watching your shows and stuff for quite some time they're very good very insightful.... Spot on

Awesome analysis 💕

His character was perfect. Just his philosophy on life is just outstanding. My favorite. Just so stoic. He is almost sympathetic. Trash. I thought that was great. And his conversation with Orihime talking about a heart is just outstanding.

I wonder if his being number 4, outside of rank, was for the significance of the number in Japanese with its relation to death?

Amazing video. He is my 3rd favorite character behind Lord Aizen and Kisuke

Its taken over a decade to get to this point; but I can safely say (FOR MYSELF, that is), Ulquiora is the best character I have ever experienced in anime/manga.

Great video!

Amazing Character analysis keep up the good work. Stay safe 🙃👋

When this man revealed he had a second release and proceeded to show it, gave me absolute chills

This video bout to do numbers

Among all of the Espada, I truly resonate with Starrk and Ulquiorra alot. I'm very introverted, mostly nihilistic, and overall very monotonous. I also happen to be a lazy guy who just does not want to step up to anything unless it's insisted upon me. They're also both longing for something which I also happened to be searching for after life changing occurrences changed me and my world views on a much larger scale. Those being the meaning to have a heart and the never-ending quest to satiate this feeling of solitude and isolation. So them being the embodiment of those traits really resonated with me on a spiritual level.

Wake up boys, Tommo just posted. It's a good day.

Over the last couple of years I can really relate to Ulquiorra even if he isn’t my favourite character

I remember way back when getting into an argument with someone about whether or not Ulquiorra's segunda form was 1. Stronger than the top 3 Espada and 2. If Aizen knew about it or not. We already know he at least hasn't seen it. I really like Ulquiorra and his journey to understanding the heart. I'm really glad in his final moments, he got a small glimpse of what the heart is! Before this video, I did wish there was a way for him to be reborn so he could experience all kinds of bonds but you're right, it would really do a disservice to his character.

Ulquiorra was to Hueco Mundo as Byakuya initially was to Soul Society

Probably my favorite villain of all anime! I love everything about him!

I feel like the tree held him and gave him love by his standards that he was longing for.

26:05 also because Ulquiorra dosnt really want anything Aizen doesn't have to worry about him doing anything silly like trying to take something for himself.

I absolutely loved Ulquiorra from the first time I saw him, and I was further in love (and also dismayed) when I saw his resurrection because as a kid I wanted to be a fantasy writer, and the main villain/rival to the hero had a transformation EXACTLY like that

Ulquiorra is my favorite villain in the entire series. The drawn out character development, the perfect dialogues he has to highlight his character and foil Ichigo's struggles, the immense power and cool transformations. The only thing that bothered me was moving his hollow hole. Awesome analysis! Thanks!

I respect that you boldly do these long arse videos, I enjoy them immensely. Even when you rumble off, digress a bit. You aren't robotically reading a script. 💪🏿