So what are your thoughts on... character death
With these quick fights, there's seems to not be much to talk about, so there hasn't been much activity in these parts lately. Hopefully this is a topic that can stir up some discussion. This was something that's been on my mind lately, and with another series not choosing to kill of a main character this week (Fairy Tale) and a large portion of people calling the creator a coward for doing so, it's really got me thinking about the same flaw that a lot of people have been seeing in Bleach.
Would character deaths make Bleach a better story?
Like most people, I've been a bit upset at just how easy things have been for the shinigami lately. At the introduction of this whole arrancar business, we're lead to think that it takes a bankai to beat a released arrancar. Hitsugaya, Ikkaku, and Renji all struggled greatly against their first arrancar foes, and even Yoruichi was distressed at how much stronger Yammy was than they had estimated arrancar being. Hitsugaya seemed particularly pessimistic about their odds. Maybe it was his inexperience and lack of knowledge of the 13 squads, but I'd think Yoruichi and Urahara wouldn't have felt a similarly if that was the case.
But instead, we had captains waltzing into Hucedo Mundo and beating espada like it was almost nothing. There was some struggle, but there weren't many moments when I thought they were done for. The only one who didn't really experience an issue was Mayuri, but that fight wasn't physical so I don't think you can judge it on the same standards.
The counter to that disappointment is that these fights were meant to relieve the pressure, so naturally, they weren't going to be as bleak and hopeless as maybe desired. We were creeping up on a no hope situation. Nel had spent what power she had, as did the other Desert Brothers. Rukia was, for lack of a better term, in a pool of her own blood. Renji and Ishida are missing organs. Ichigo was getting trampled on my Tesla, and Orihime was forced into being a bystander. The captains came in on their white horse to save them, and that's what happened.
That brings me to these current fights. Now, I'm not expecting any death. We're just getting in some quick action from guys we've yet to see in action. Well, expect Ikkaku, so that will be interesting to see where it goes.
So that brings me to the point at hand:
Would a shinigami death at this juncture make a difference?
For these fights, I'm going with a big fat NO. Why? Because they're fraccion, and even if a VC dies fighting a fraccion, we know there's someone stronger to step up. They're by no means a force that can't be beat, so I don't see why a VC losing is going to really do much in terms of mood change if someone stronger can win. We know that it would be hard for them to beat someone who was in the lower espada, but I don't find it entirely unreasonable to think that they can't beat a fraccion or two.
Like I said eariler, I'm all for character death, as long as it means something. I don't want a character to die just for the sake of having someone die. Death alone does not make a manga-ka edgy and cool. To me, it's like how loads of angst doesn't make a good story either. One example being that some people who want Orihime to die because her powers can get rid of good guy deaths often point out that since she's a human, she could become a shinigami, so it really wouldn't be the end for her. That ultimately does exactly what people fear will happen because it devalues her death. While it is true that she would just become a soul if she died, having her still in the story as a soul or potentially a shinigami makes her death entire ineffective as a final end to her. You've just made something you find bad, in my opinion, worse. If Kubo were to kill a shinigami or two, I'd like to see it further things along or complicate things.
Whose death could you see in the future and why?
I can se Old Man Yama losing. The big guy at the top going out is fairly foreseeable, and it would seriously throw the Gotei 13 off since they are without their central governing body. Plus, I think Kubo's set up the Gotei 13 to be an organization that's old and needs to be changed. The Central 46 are already gone, so all that's left is Yama-ji as the figure of the entire organization. Getting rid of that would lead to some panic, but in the end, it would do them better to get rid of the old system.
Urahara. Urahara is the reason they're in this mess, and he knows it. I think he's at the point where he'd sacrifice himself if it'd help the situation. It's not only his atonement for creating something that was the root of much of this (who knows if Aizen would have furthered his plans had he not been able to get an arrancar armor), but it's his way out. I don't think he'd go back to the Soul Society if her could, but I don't see him staying out in the human world until he dies, which wouldn't be for ages. It's another mentor-style death, since Urahara was the one the focused Ichigo and set him on his path.
Agree, disagree? Want to tl;dr right back at me?
Would character deaths make Bleach a better story?
Like most people, I've been a bit upset at just how easy things have been for the shinigami lately. At the introduction of this whole arrancar business, we're lead to think that it takes a bankai to beat a released arrancar. Hitsugaya, Ikkaku, and Renji all struggled greatly against their first arrancar foes, and even Yoruichi was distressed at how much stronger Yammy was than they had estimated arrancar being. Hitsugaya seemed particularly pessimistic about their odds. Maybe it was his inexperience and lack of knowledge of the 13 squads, but I'd think Yoruichi and Urahara wouldn't have felt a similarly if that was the case.
But instead, we had captains waltzing into Hucedo Mundo and beating espada like it was almost nothing. There was some struggle, but there weren't many moments when I thought they were done for. The only one who didn't really experience an issue was Mayuri, but that fight wasn't physical so I don't think you can judge it on the same standards.
The counter to that disappointment is that these fights were meant to relieve the pressure, so naturally, they weren't going to be as bleak and hopeless as maybe desired. We were creeping up on a no hope situation. Nel had spent what power she had, as did the other Desert Brothers. Rukia was, for lack of a better term, in a pool of her own blood. Renji and Ishida are missing organs. Ichigo was getting trampled on my Tesla, and Orihime was forced into being a bystander. The captains came in on their white horse to save them, and that's what happened.
That brings me to these current fights. Now, I'm not expecting any death. We're just getting in some quick action from guys we've yet to see in action. Well, expect Ikkaku, so that will be interesting to see where it goes.
So that brings me to the point at hand:
Would a shinigami death at this juncture make a difference?
For these fights, I'm going with a big fat NO. Why? Because they're fraccion, and even if a VC dies fighting a fraccion, we know there's someone stronger to step up. They're by no means a force that can't be beat, so I don't see why a VC losing is going to really do much in terms of mood change if someone stronger can win. We know that it would be hard for them to beat someone who was in the lower espada, but I don't find it entirely unreasonable to think that they can't beat a fraccion or two.
Like I said eariler, I'm all for character death, as long as it means something. I don't want a character to die just for the sake of having someone die. Death alone does not make a manga-ka edgy and cool. To me, it's like how loads of angst doesn't make a good story either. One example being that some people who want Orihime to die because her powers can get rid of good guy deaths often point out that since she's a human, she could become a shinigami, so it really wouldn't be the end for her. That ultimately does exactly what people fear will happen because it devalues her death. While it is true that she would just become a soul if she died, having her still in the story as a soul or potentially a shinigami makes her death entire ineffective as a final end to her. You've just made something you find bad, in my opinion, worse. If Kubo were to kill a shinigami or two, I'd like to see it further things along or complicate things.
Whose death could you see in the future and why?
I can se Old Man Yama losing. The big guy at the top going out is fairly foreseeable, and it would seriously throw the Gotei 13 off since they are without their central governing body. Plus, I think Kubo's set up the Gotei 13 to be an organization that's old and needs to be changed. The Central 46 are already gone, so all that's left is Yama-ji as the figure of the entire organization. Getting rid of that would lead to some panic, but in the end, it would do them better to get rid of the old system.
Urahara. Urahara is the reason they're in this mess, and he knows it. I think he's at the point where he'd sacrifice himself if it'd help the situation. It's not only his atonement for creating something that was the root of much of this (who knows if Aizen would have furthered his plans had he not been able to get an arrancar armor), but it's his way out. I don't think he'd go back to the Soul Society if her could, but I don't see him staying out in the human world until he dies, which wouldn't be for ages. It's another mentor-style death, since Urahara was the one the focused Ichigo and set him on his path.
Agree, disagree? Want to tl;dr right back at me?