5160 replies to this topic

[Paradox Jast]

Its just getting confusing now.

Seriously, this chapter left me scratching my head in confusion.

[Derock]

This chapter was very puzzling.

Ulq reawaked to get blasted again by Ichigo at the end. Uryu got stabbed by Ichigo (why did he reason with the hollowfied Ichigo? ) And then Yammy is like 5x bigger in height...

So confusing...

[True]

^Ichigo was ready to fire up a cero but Ulquiorra disrupted it by attacking his horn and thus it exploded before it was ready.

Also, I don't get why Ishida wouldn't let HollowIchigo kill Ulquiorra when he can REGENERATE and the only way to defeat him is to cut off his head, which Hichigo was going for. Still wondering what the hell he's thinking.

And I wonder what happens now. I mean Ulquiorra already lost since his best move got tanked...don't know how else he can win.

[demonfox04]

Yeah, this chapter was confusing. I'm wondering why Ishida stopped Ichigo. Ichigo stabbing him is interesting. But it seems that Hollow Ichigo is a slave of sorts. Hopefully we'll get a better idea next week. Tite probably has a good response. My only thing is I want to see Ulq dead already. Good, but confusing chapter, if that makes sense.

[Illmatic]

cmon Ishida, everybody has to go dammit.

oh noez! dont kill him! thats weak

[Kyuudaime]

Good chapter, but not as good as the last few to me.

And I don't get what you guys are confused over.

[Vyse]

I'm really enjoying this fight, although I admit some choices here confused me greatly. I can't wait to see Ichigo learn how to use this new power!

Back then --Click here to view--

and

Now --Click here to view--

Man, I hope they get out of there before Ulq blows up the entire realm. Only two minutes to go, or six episodes. GOOD LUCK ICHI!

[kage'e shoujo]

Regarding Ishida and his impromptu meddling: did he hear Ulquiorra when he said his weak point was the brain and internal organs? (as an aside, what kind of mid-boss tells the protagonist the as-of-then completely unknown weak point? Really? Is that logical?) Because considering Ulquiorra's damage, he might have thought the battle was finished and that what Ichigo was doing was overkill.

...okay, it was still a pretty stupid move. But, uh... Maybe it's Ishida's sense of chivalry coming out of the woodwork? (although that usually only comes out with female enemies. Maybe Ishida knows something we don't?)

My real question is: how did Ulquiorra raise himself to the level of Ichigo's horns when he's regenerating two legs and an arm... and one of his wings is broken? /useless-question

[Cloud]

GODDAMN ISHIDA!

Ulq almost dead, and you had to meddle.

Edited by Cloud, 03 April 2009 - 06:13 PM.

[SageNaru]

This chapter was good. But it didn't have enough for me.
I wanna know what's gonna happen next week now.
Does anybody else think that Rukia might do something since she sensed Ichigo's reiatsu?

[Chivalrysae]

Like most of you, I was hoping Ichigo would have killed Ulq also. But I think Ishida was trying to save Ichigo. It's possible Ishida can feel Ichigo's riatsu become more and more Hollow-like. And the more he loses control of himself the more like a hollow he becomes. There may be a risk of him going completely hollow and not returning the human form. I don't know, and he doens't know, but Ishida seems liek the type that doesn't want to take that chance with his friend's life. Too bad he had to take one for the team.

We see in a lot of the training that Ichigo has had to go through has been with him having to fight his inner hollow and learn to control it or risk becoming a hollow forever. Like the first time he lost his Shinigami powers. I am sure that fight with his inner hollow will come back as well. You can tell from the conversation with Inoue at the end of the chapter his speech was very animalistic and it would seem he was on the brink of losing to his Hollow side.

I do have to admit, Ichigo looks pretty awesome. And I hope the horn grows back. lol

[Miss Soupy]

Ishida stopped Ichigo because the battle was clearly already over. No matter what Ulquiorra did, he could not over power Ichigo, and he admitted his defeat. To go on and kill him after the fact is NOT like Ichigo at all, and Ishida knows that the real Ichigo would have had restraint. In fact, killing Ulquiorra makes everything Ulquiorra said to be the truth. That the heart does not make someone stronger when it took Ichigo losing his to gain enough power to defeat him. I think what Kubo has set up here is 3 of his characters needing redemption: Ulquiorra, Ichigo, and Orihime. Ishida is the only one who seems to have himself under control here. I'm interested to see how he will work this all out, though this chapter seemed to be preparing at least Orihime for something, if not Ulquiorra.

I'd really like to know the reason Ulquiorra decided to intervene, if either he saw an opening and took it, or he was paying Ishida back, or perhaps reacting to Orihime's pleading, I'm not sure. Based on how Kubo set it up however, I'd say it would either point to him acting for his own purposes, or for Orihime, because Ishida was not shown at all once Ulquiorra attacked, and Kubo put a lot of detail into Orihime's surprise over it.

Anywho, I found some new info about the 4th espada:

http://i39.tinypic.com/25yxgko.jpg

[kage'e shoujo]

To go on and kill him after the fact is NOT like Ichigo at all, and Ishida knows that the real Ichigo would have had restraint.

Actually, after reading more specific translations, Ishida wasn't trying to stop Ichigo from killing Ulquiorra at all. Ishida thought Ulquiorra was already dead (he used the word corpse) and thought Ichigo using a sword against a dead enemy was out of line.

Not killing enemies, having mercy towards enemies, being friends with enemies are common shounen tropes, but if there's one thing the whole HM-arc has been doing to Ichigo, it's to show him that his method of being too kind-hearted in battle is a drawback, especially when most of his enemies won't hesitate a millisecond to completely obliterate him.

With Ulquiorra's extreme powers of regeneration, the only method to be free of him is to kill him. Even Ishida understood this. Unfortunately, he was not aware of Ulquiorra's regeneration capabilities and became an unwilling target of the uncontrolled Ichigo.

I think what Kubo has set up here is 3 of his characters needing redemption: Ulquiorra, Ichigo, and Orihime.

I'm interested to know what you think Orihime needs to be redeemed for. Ulquiorra is obvious—what hasn't he done that doesn't need redemption, and Ichigo with his rampage is a given. Orihime's sin is too vague for me. Pushing Ichigo to turn Hollow?

I'd really like to know the reason Ulquiorra decided to intervene, if either he saw an opening and took it, or he was paying Ishida back, or perhaps reacting to Orihime's pleading, I'm not sure.

I'm leaning on the former. He considers humans trash, I don't think he was paying Ishida back for anything, and he's shown more emotion in regards to Ichigo than his entire time with Orihime. He's just been beaten by trash, his defeat spells his inability to follow Aizen's command (and considering his loyalty, that's probably something), and there is a prime opening presented to him when his opponent turned his back and focused on someone else. It fits his character more, I think.

[Miss Soupy]

Actually, after reading more specific translations, Ishida wasn't trying to stop Ichigo from killing Ulquiorra at all. Ishida thought Ulquiorra was already dead (he used the word corpse) and thought Ichigo using a sword against a dead enemy was out of line.

I'm not sure if Ishida really knew Ulquiorra was dead or not. Sleepyfans translated it as corpse, but I want to look at a different translation to see. If you think back to when Ryuuken killed the hollow for Ishida, he told Ishida specifically you have to cut off the head before it can regenerate, and Ichigo was going to do just that when Ishida stopped him. But you might be right too, that Ishida just thought he was dead and was preventing Ichigo from overkill.

Not killing enemies, having mercy towards enemies, being friends with enemies are common shounen tropes, but if there's one thing the whole HM-arc has been doing to Ichigo, it's to show him that his method of being too kind-hearted in battle is a drawback, especially when most of his enemies won't hesitate a millisecond to completely obliterate him.

With Ulquiorra's extreme powers of regeneration, the only method to be free of him is to kill him. Even Ishida understood this. Unfortunately, he was not aware of Ulquiorra's regeneration capabilities and became an unwilling target of the uncontrolled Ichigo.

Ichigo has yet to kill any of the arrancar he has fought, and yet he still is able to advance. I don't see Ichigo being too kind-hearted, but rather that he has had a bad idea of the powerful levels of the espada. He was constantly trying to hold himself back, because he thought them weaker than they actually were, and I think lack of understanding of this power difference has been his downfall more than anything.

I'm interested to know what you think Orihime needs to be redeemed for. Ulquiorra is obvious—what hasn't he done that doesn't need redemption, and Ichigo with his rampage is a given. Orihime's sin is too vague for me. Pushing Ichigo to turn Hollow?

Well, I feel Orihime needs to be redeemed because of always using Ichigo as a crutch. Going by the sins theme, I'd say Orihime is Sloth. I know a lot of people are pretty annoyed by her behavior. But she is just doing what Ichigo always told her to do: believe in him, that he will win and save everyone. (I still REALLY want her to do something, please Kubo DX )

I'm leaning on the former. He considers humans trash, I don't think he was paying Ishida back for anything, and he's shown more emotion in regards to Ichigo than his entire time with Orihime. He's just been beaten by trash, his defeat spells his inability to follow Aizen's command (and considering his loyalty, that's probably something), and there is a prime opening presented to him when his opponent turned his back and focused on someone else. It fits his character more, I think.

Ulquiorra has changed since his first encounter where he thought everyone was trash. After only a few words with Orihime, he called her a strong woman. I think this battle has gone beyond just fighting because Aizen says so. Aizen told him to protect Las Noches, and he has done more damage to it than anything else. This battle, I think, was more for Ulquiorra than anything. He could have killed Ichigo in the beginning, but he toyed with him for a long time, demanding to know why it was he kept fighting. Ulquiorra is curious about them, but he hides it in his comments that no human can equal a hollow. But Ichigo has somehow bridged the gap between them and came out stronger. Ulquiorra has no choice but to admit defeat. He gives up and even tells Ichigo to go ahead and kill him. He is an arrancar, what else would he expect but death, but he even agrees that Ichigo's actions are so hollow-like, showing no mercy.

I think it's strange that in one moment Ulquiorra seems to want to die, and in the next he uses his power to regenerate himself. It feels like to me it's not for himself, hopefully it will be cleared up.

[FullmetalNinja25]

Uryuu Ishida, when did he become such an idiot? Does he not know that in order to kill an Arrancar you have to decapitate them? Frankly I don't blame Ichigo for lampooning him (even though he's probably gonna go all emo if Uryuu dies) cuz if Ulqiarra were to kill Ichigo because Uryuu stopped Ichigo from killing him guess whose fault it would be? God this Chapter was awful.

[True]

click! --Click here to view--

Kubo really likes the use of surprise back attacks.

click! --Click here to view--

of course Ishida tries to be Mr. cool and do it from a different angle.

What does Kubo do?

click! --Click here to view--

Stab him for his disobedience. :cookie:

[Illmatic]

Ishida needs to know when to conform

and yea we know about Ishida trying to save Ichigo's humanity but I think I speak for some of us when I say

WE WANT BLOOD

[kage'e shoujo]

Sorry, Miss Soupy, this got long. Spoiler-tag so it doesn't affect normal manga discussions.

x --Click here to view--

I'm not sure if Ishida really knew Ulquiorra was dead or not.

This isn't my computer, so I can't dig up the other translations I've found. MangaHelper's Cnet translates Ishida's line as this, though:

Ishida: ...That's enough. // ...Kurosaki.
[TN: The correct response is to go completely psycho and slice Ishida in half too. For the luls.]
Ishida: You've won this battle. // He may be an enemy... / ...but that is no reason to carve up his corpse... // You can stop now... // Kurosaki...

To Ishida, Ulquiorra was already dead. He probably didn't know that Ulquiorra had high regenerating capabilities (which is just weird, he saw him regenerate an arm in seconds, after all), probably didn't hear Ulquiorra tell Ichigo the only way to kill him and didn't know that as uncontrollable as Ichigo currently is, he still pretty much has a goal and that's killing Ulquiorra. Ishida saw the corpse-looking Ulquiorra and came to his own conclusions that Ichigo raising his sword is "carving up his corpse" instead of what we readers saw as the completion of the job. Ichigo, who is uncontrollable and had a goal to complete, probably saw Ishida as an obstacle to his job completion and did what he did.

It's true that Ryuuken told Ishida the way to properly kill a Hollow, but... Ishida's one of my favorites and all (the humans are my favorites), but Kubo seriously messed his characterization up, so if he somehow forgot this little info, I wouldn't be surprised. His interaction with Mayuri in HM... Man, was I cringing.

Ichigo has yet to kill any of the arrancar he has fought, and yet he still is able to advance.

But those cases are different from Ulquiorra because they don't have high regeneration capabilities. All Ichigo needed to do was beat them to a pulp, make sure they're so thoroughly beaten they won't get up any time soon and move forward. They're not a threat anymore. Ulquiorra is different because every time Ulquiorra is beaten, he regenerates and IS able to fight back, as this current chapter has shown us. Being merciful, letting the enemy live, would be stupid because letting Ulquiorra live means letting him regenerate to be a threat again. Unlike the others, Ulquiorra can fight and fight and fight, which is why killing is the way if they want to get away from him.

I don't see Ichigo being too kind-hearted, but rather that he has had a bad idea of the powerful levels of the espada. He was constantly trying to hold himself back, because he thought them weaker than they actually were, and I think lack of understanding of this power difference has been his downfall more than anything.

I'm pretty sure Ichigo knows exactly how powerful the Arrancar/Espada are. HM-Ichigo is different from SS-Ichigo when he was still cocky and thought he could seriously beat Byakuya just because he has an unusual reiatsu power level. He saw how powerful Grimmjow was, what Yammy and Ulquiorra were capable of, and considering his last moments before leaving for HM, he knows how much of a suicidal mission it was. He doesn't look like a man underestimating his opponents at all.

His constant holding back has always read as pacing to me and not underestimation. And given how he was all, "I'll beat GJ, Ulquiorra and Aizen and bring everyone back with me!" speech, it makes sense. He knows the odds because he's done it before at SS. And unlike SS, there is a slim-to-none chance of HM-dwellers rallying to his cause. He needs all the energy he can and going all out every chance he has is not the way to do that.

Considering the fact that there are no breaks, I'd say it hasn't been a day since they entered HM. Orihime's been there for about two or three days and she's already suffered that much torture and went through a dozen emotional roller coasters. Ichigo might be a spirit but that doesn't mean he doesn't get tired. And he's fought so many already.

Well, I feel Orihime needs to be redeemed because of always using Ichigo as a crutch. Going by the sins theme, I'd say Orihime is Sloth. I know a lot of people are pretty annoyed by her behavior. But she is just doing what Ichigo always told her to do: believe in him, that he will win and save everyone. (I still REALLY want her to do something, please Kubo DX )

With her lines this chapter, ("Why did I rely completely on Kurosaki-kun?"), I'm positive we'll be seeing something from her soon. Those are usually the cues, after all. Women in really shounen manga have the tendency to always be below the men in power-level, but with a dialogue like that, I'm hoping for more action too. And this is a woman with Universe-breaking powers. I'm really excited about it.

I can't see Orihime as Sloth, though, because she has been consistently trying to improve herself, which doesn't really fit the Sloth theme at all. I really don't see how she's been inactive in HM either because she's doing what she's capable of during the times when she can do something. She's crippled by her self-esteem issues to the point that she was surprised her friends came for her to Las Noches. And just as she started to hope that they can help her, that they came because they cared for her, she felt them go down one-by-one with Ulquiorra pushing that it's her fault they're dead (even as she helplessly says they're not dead). It's just a whole arc of breaking her so I can't see how she needs to be redeemed for that.

I really can't remember her using Ichigo as a crutch either. Would you mind pointing out examples?

Ulquiorra has changed since his first encounter where he thought everyone was trash. After only a few words with Orihime, he called her a strong woman. I think this battle has gone beyond just fighting because Aizen says so. Aizen told him to protect Las Noches, and he has done more damage to it than anything else.

Really? Hmm... I can't see it. Would you mind explaining how he's changed? From his words against Ichigo, it seems to me he's still bigoted against humans. He constantly reminded Ichigo how he was just human, how a human can't do this, can't beat that, etc., etc. After calling Orihime a strong woman, he then proceeded to try to completely break her, torturing her mentally and emotionally using her weaknesses and her friends. Damage to Las Noches fighting Ichigo is still protecting Las Noches because he's defending it from an enemy. So, essentially, he's still following Aizen's orders.

He could have killed Ichigo in the beginning, but he toyed with him for a long time, demanding to know why it was he kept fighting. Ulquiorra is curious about them, but he hides it in his comments that no human can equal a hollow.

Toying with, demanding answers... these are exactly what he's been doing to Orihime ever since she entered his charge. From what I've seen, this is how Ulquiorra operates. He acts exactly like a bigot who knows nothing about the people he's bigoted against. He is curious but I don't think he's hiding them in his comments because his discussions with Orihime and Ichigo are full of questions already. He's openly showing his curiosity to the point of being mean regarding Orihime and her friends, constantly asking her how she thinks, being frustrated because he can't understand Ichigo's way of thinking, his consistent drive to fight even in a losing battle.

But Ichigo has somehow bridged the gap between them and came out stronger. Ulquiorra has no choice but to admit defeat. He gives up and even tells Ichigo to go ahead and kill him. He is an arrancar, what else would he expect but death, but he even agrees that Ichigo's actions are so hollow-like, showing no mercy.

I think it's strange that in one moment Ulquiorra seems to want to die, and in the next he uses his power to regenerate himself. It feels like to me it's not for himself, hopefully it will be cleared up.

Given that Ulquiorra thinks humans are trash and his tendency for vanity, I'm thinking his acceptance of Ichigo's hollow-like mercilessness is more for his benefit than Ichigo (apart from the textual confirmation that Ichigo's hollow has overtaken him). Ulquiorra's pretty proud. He was all, "I am the only Espada with this second transformation," and yet he was still beaten by a human. Human-turned-Hollow, but still someone who identifies as a human which is practically the same. His dialogue that Ichigo kill him sounds like a demand and considering how it echoed GJ's, I'm thinking that for his benefit than Ichigo's, too.

Demanding he be killed then changing his mind isn't really all that uncommon, though. Every one has self-preservation instincts. He saw a chance and decided to take a hit. Now, we'll see if having on less horn will affect Ichigo or not.

[Miss Soupy]

@kage'e shoujo

o --Click here to view--

To Ishida, Ulquiorra was already dead. He probably didn't know that Ulquiorra had high regenerating capabilities (which is just weird, he saw him regenerate an arm in seconds, after all), probably didn't hear Ulquiorra tell Ichigo the only way to kill him and didn't know that as uncontrollable as Ichigo currently is, he still pretty much has a goal and that's killing Ulquiorra. Ishida saw the corpse-looking Ulquiorra and came to his own conclusions that Ichigo raising his sword is "carving up his corpse" instead of what we readers saw as the completion of the job. Ichigo, who is uncontrollable and had a goal to complete, probably saw Ishida as an obstacle to his job completion and did what he did.

It's true that Ryuuken told Ishida the way to properly kill a Hollow, but... Ishida's one of my favorites and all (the humans are my favorites), but Kubo seriously messed his characterization up, so if he somehow forgot this little info, I wouldn't be surprised. His interaction with Mayuri in HM... Man, was I cringing.

Well, if he did say corpse, then it's true Ishida thought he was either dead or dying, but I still believe it goes against Ichigo's nature to actually kill anyone, even an arrancar. Other characters have been called dead without truly being so (Ulquiorra said as much about Ichigo to Orihime after he cero'd a hole in his chest). And Ishida somehow not seeing or hearing about the regeneration thing..seems a stretch. Ishida is a pretty observant fellow, and he and Orihime aren't that far away. Ishida had to be close enough to see Ichigo's intent to cut up Ulquiorra further after the blast as well, so I'm pretty sure he knew what Ulquiorra was capable of. Ishida also was able to recognize that Ichigo is not himself, but I believe he didn't realize how far gone he was, which is why he tried to hold him back.

Actually, after looking back at the panels, Ichigo only seems to be going to decapitate Ulquiorra. Ishida going in to stop Ichigo from merely doing this, doesn't seem to make as big of an impact as it would if he was stopping Ichigo from killing Ulquiorra. The whole point of this scene, to me, is that Ishida is basically saying, he has given up, you have won, so don't go any further than that or you will lose your humanity. It wouldn't matter if Ulquiorra was dead or alive, I think Ishida would have tried to stop Ichigo regardless.

But those cases are different from Ulquiorra because they don't have high regeneration capabilities. All Ichigo needed to do was beat them to a pulp, make sure they're so thoroughly beaten they won't get up any time soon and move forward. They're not a threat anymore. Ulquiorra is different because every time Ulquiorra is beaten, he regenerates and IS able to fight back, as this current chapter has shown us. Being merciful, letting the enemy live, would be stupid because letting Ulquiorra live means letting him regenerate to be a threat again. Unlike the others, Ulquiorra can fight and fight and fight, which is why killing is the way if they want to get away from him.

There, most certainly, has to be a limit to regeneration. With the other arrancar, they put everything into power, and if they didn't win because of that power then they were dead. Ulquiorra chose regeneration, meaning during the fight he can regrow portions of his body and still come back, but in the end he only has until his reiastu is depleted, just like any other arrancar. Letting any enemy live then, would be dumb, because they can always be healed and come back again, power or regeneration, it doesn't matter, its all down to reiastu. Ulquiorra has a lot more of than Grimmjow, but its not a bottomless well.

I'm pretty sure Ichigo knows exactly how powerful the Arrancar/Espada are. HM-Ichigo is different from SS-Ichigo when he was still cocky and thought he could seriously beat Byakuya just because he has an unusual reiatsu power level. He saw how powerful Grimmjow was, what Yammy and Ulquiorra were capable of, and considering his last moments before leaving for HM, he knows how much of a suicidal mission it was. He doesn't look like a man underestimating his opponents at all.

But Ichigo thought Ulquiorra was the strongest of all the espada. He could hardly believe that he was the 4th, and the shock was enough for him to immediately lose hope in the fight.

His constant holding back has always read as pacing to me and not underestimation. And given how he was all, "I'll beat GJ, Ulquiorra and Aizen and bring everyone back with me!" speech, it makes sense. He knows the odds because he's done it before at SS. And unlike SS, there is a slim-to-none chance of HM-dwellers rallying to his cause. He needs all the energy he can and going all out every chance he has is not the way to do that.

Well, against the first arrancar Ichigo fought in Las Noches (can never remember how to spell his name >.<), he held his power back because he thought if he couldn't defeat a lower level arrancar with just bankai, then how would he have the power to defeat Ulquiorra. And to me, the line you gave makes it seem like he really didn't know what his power level was vs. his enemies, for him to think he was going to beat Aizen. It is a line that shows his determination and desire, but to me it seems like ignorance on his part. But, I realize jumping in without knowing/caring about the odds is the shounen way XD

Considering the fact that there are no breaks, I'd say it hasn't been a day since they entered HM. Orihime's been there for about two or three days and she's already suffered that much torture and went through a dozen emotional roller coasters. Ichigo might be a spirit but that doesn't mean he doesn't get tired. And he's fought so many already.

Well, he fought the first guy, and then Ulquiorra. He did use all of his power to try and defeat Ulquiorra at that point. Then he was healed by Orihime and fought Grimmjow, then lost to Nnoitra, was healed again for his next fight with Ulquiorra. But the thought he could defeat them all, including Aizen on his one tank of gas? I just don't think he thought it all through.

With her lines this chapter, ("Why did I rely completely on Kurosaki-kun?"), I'm positive we'll be seeing something from her soon. Those are usually the cues, after all. Women in really shounen manga have the tendency to always be below the men in power-level, but with a dialogue like that, I'm hoping for more action too. And this is a woman with Universe-breaking powers. I'm really excited about it.

Yes! I am very hopeful as well, Kubo even put it in the black box type panel, so it must happen I say! XD I have waited sooo long for Orihime to grow, like the others have. I'd love to see her like, use Tsubaki to cut off what's left of Ichi-things mask XD

I can't see Orihime as Sloth, though, because she has been consistently trying to improve herself, which doesn't really fit the Sloth theme at all. I really don't see how she's been inactive in HM either because she's doing what she's capable of during the times when she can do something. She's crippled by her self-esteem issues to the point that she was surprised her friends came for her to Las Noches. And just as she started to hope that they can help her, that they came because they cared for her, she felt them go down one-by-one with Ulquiorra pushing that it's her fault they're dead (even as she helplessly says they're not dead). It's just a whole arc of breaking her so I can't see how she needs to be redeemed for that.

I really can't remember her using Ichigo as a crutch either. Would you mind pointing out examples?

Sloth means she is slow to act, which she does stand around and let Ichigo handle everything... Anytime she does this is what i mean by 'using Ichigo as a crutch'. She tries/wants to improve, I agree, but when it comes down to it, she doesn't act. Remember when the Ulquiorra vs Ichigo fight started, and Orihime threw up her shield, Ulquiorra commented that she hadn't used it the entire time and asked why. When the twins attacked her twice, she did nothing to defend herself. She has always looked to Ichigo, she even says so and regrets it. She had forgotten why she came to Las Noches while watching her hero fight for her. She forgot her powers, and her will, which caused her to fall into despair seeing him defeated. She honestly didn't know what to do and called for a defeated Ichigo to tell her. I think it was partly her despair that created Ichi-thing, because he was just reacting to her calls. I think a part of her might enjoy the fact that Ichigo is there fighting for HER, she has always wanted his attention so badly. It might be part of the reason she hesitates so much.

Really? Hmm... I can't see it. Would you mind explaining how he's changed? From his words against Ichigo, it seems to me he's still bigoted against humans. He constantly reminded Ichigo how he was just human, how a human can't do this, can't beat that, etc., etc. After calling Orihime a strong woman, he then proceeded to try to completely break her, torturing her mentally and emotionally using her weaknesses and her friends. Damage to Las Noches fighting Ichigo is still protecting Las Noches because he's defending it from an enemy. So, essentially, he's still following Aizen's orders.

Ulquiorra definitely believes hollows > humans, but he is also the one to observe and record Orihime's power and calls her strong. In a short time, he has gone from saying she is trash, to saying she, a human, is strong. Next, when he talks to her again, Ulquiorra notices her worried face and points it out, but it is Orihime who first says, 'Chad isn't dead'. He even seems to ignore her, she is repeating it over and over, and he finally decides to comment on it. It seems like he isn't doing it just to torture her, but to honestly tell her how he sees things and that she should think similarly. It seems strange to him that she cant, and when he presses the matter she slaps him. He does go far enough to insult her friends, which is what I think sets her off, but he seems honestly curious (as shown by the long stare after she does slap him).

Next, Ulquiorra goes after Ichigo, against Aizens orders to stay in his palace. If Ulquiorra's personality is to not care about anything, why this sudden interest in fighting the very person he allowed to live when he was in the living world? He forces Ichigo to fight him by declaring he took Orihime. I believe this fight was about his curiosity, he wanted to know about bonds here, but found out Ichigo even harbored some doubt about Orihime. Also, its interesting, after he defeats Ichigo, he stares at him for awhile. He says that he over-estimated him, why suddenly would he think Ichigo had a chance? Perhaps because Ichigo is fighting for his nakama. He even waits and stares at Ichigo for a moment before leaving, as if expecting more and is let down by what occurred.

The next part of importance I want to mention is when he meets Orihime in the 5th tower. The hearts conversation, to me, was a huge step for Ulquiorra. He tells Orihime, basically, that she is alone and no one will be able to save her. He wants to know if she is scared, even has to ask her twice to get her to answer. Fear, to arrancar, is a very significant emotion, so this question is particularly important. As Orihime is telling him now, Ulquiorra is shown in a panel to be intensely listening. He can't seem to grasp that she isn't scared, and asks if its because her friends are coming to save her. She continues to explain that their hearts are one, and Ulquiorra does not understand. But he does realize the heart exists, though where he isn't sure. He knows people refer to it being in the place of the actual organ, and that it is also an emotion the brain controls, but he cannot define where it is, because he does not know the feeling, because he cant SEE it. But, I believe, he genuinely wants to know about it, he has been shown to be curious, and Grimmjow and Ichigo have both commented that he seems more talkative than normal. Compared to when we first saw him, he was the silent observer, he has certainly become a lot more forceful, going out of his way to talk or fight. It is different than what his character would suggest, and I don't believe it can be said it is all for Aizen.

Sorry, that was sooo long DX I just get into it...I enjoy analyzing Ulquiorra's character, and believe there is a lot more to him than most would see..

Toying with, demanding answers... these are exactly what he's been doing to Orihime ever since she entered his charge. From what I've seen, this is how Ulquiorra operates. He acts exactly like a bigot who knows nothing about the people he's bigoted against. He is curious but I don't think he's hiding them in his comments because his discussions with Orihime and Ichigo are full of questions already. He's openly showing his curiosity to the point of being mean regarding Orihime and her friends, constantly asking her how she thinks, being frustrated because he can't understand Ichigo's way of thinking, his consistent drive to fight even in a losing battle.

While Ulquiorra does strongly believe in his views of the world, he has still wanted to know about the humans he has interacted with. No one, as of yet, has been able to show him he is incorrect in his views, except if you count Orihime who did not show fear when he asked her of it. Ulquiorra hiding from the truth is shown when he throws a tantrum over Ichigo saying he is either more like a hollow or Ulquiorra is more like a human. Ulquiorra throws his sword down in a huge show of power, as if to say, how dare you say such a thing of me? It's a rash stunt from Ulquiorra at such a small comment from Ichigo. He could have ignored it, but he reacted, greatly, to the claim. It seems very much like denial to me, and he proceeds to beat it into Ichigo that he is NOT human at all.

And I don't think he toyed with Orihime, he seemed very direct with her. To Orihime, his words seem mean, but I dont believe Ulquiorra says them for this affect, but instead says them because, well, that's how he thinks. As for toying with Ichigo, the image comes to mind where he is blocking Ichigo while looking over his shoulder to where the arrancar twins are holding Orihime. Also, his ressurection, which completely over powered Ichigo to begin with, followed by a second ressurection that was pretty much not needed. He seems to specifically draw out the battle, giving Ichigo every chance to prove him wrong, that bonds can make him stronger. When Ichigo does not overpower him, he decides its over, he is correct, bonds make him weak, and he ends it.

Given that Ulquiorra thinks humans are trash and his tendency for vanity, I'm thinking his acceptance of Ichigo's hollow-like mercilessness is more for his benefit than Ichigo (apart from the textual confirmation that Ichigo's hollow has overtaken him). Ulquiorra's pretty proud. He was all, "I am the only Espada with this second transformation," and yet he was still beaten by a human. Human-turned-Hollow, but still someone who identifies as a human which is practically the same. His dialogue that Ichigo kill him sounds like a demand and considering how it echoed GJ's, I'm thinking that for his benefit than Ichigo's, too.

Yes, its an extremely huge blow to his pride to be defeated by Ichigo, though his surprise seems so short lived, he accepts the fact rather quickly. Though, its funny, how easily he accepts death seems to somehow counteract his initial pride, not sure if this is intentional or not XD; I kind of feel like, with his words of, 'I'm the only esapda with a second transformation' and 'i'm the only one who chose regeneration', he is trying to separate himself from all the other esapda, calling to their attention that he is different. Not sure, just a thought.

Demanding he be killed then changing his mind isn't really all that uncommon, though. Every one has self-preservation instincts. He saw a chance and decided to take a hit. Now, we'll see if having on less horn will affect Ichigo or not.

Perhaps it is just his instinct, though why did he go for a horn specifically and not just wait until he attacked and sliced his throat or something. If Ulquiorra wanted to get rid of the humans, he could have allowed Ichi-thing to destroy Ishida, and then taken advantage of the situation after the fact. But he didn't, he chose to act at a point where his actions can be be seen as helping Ishida and Orihime. As far as attacking the horn, it could just be the horn is a weaker spot, I'm not sure, but he chose to act before Ichi-thing fired. How he got that stub of a body to take off, is a mystery XD I hope part of Ichi-things mask is blown away from the back-firing of his cero...

[True]

Holy crap Soupy that was a spectacular post! You've put a lot of thought into Ulquiorra's character and put him in a different perspective for me. Very well constructed post. I loved reading all of it!