Was Szayelaporro Granz a wasted potential in Bleach? Explored

Bleach is filled with a litany of villains, and many of them range from forgettable to unforgettable. In the beginning, the villains that Ichigo and his crew faced were antiheroes, as they were part of the Soul Society. Also, the battle adhered more to traditions than outright destruction or world domination.

The next noteworthy villain shown in Bleach was Aizen Sosuke. Aizen was the first member of the Soul Society who had one goal: domination. He went about this by manipulating members of the Soul Society; another way he used was hurting humans. One way he did it was through his cronies at the Hueco Mondo—the Espadas and Arrancars.

Many of those Espadas became some of Bleach’s most amazing characters. The likes of Nelliel and Grimmjow became useful characters in later arcs. Even Ulquiorra Cifer, one of Aizen’s Espadas, became a stepping stone for Ichigo in his final battle with Aizen.

However, there was one Espada in Bleach that was handled abysmally, and it is not Baraggan Louisenbairn, the Segunda Espada. Baraggan deserved more in Bleach, but his character wasn’t given enough screen time. The Espada that deserved a lot of screen time in Bleach is Szayelaporro Granz. The scientist of the Hueco Mondo served as the perfect foil to Gotei 13’s mad scientist, Mayuri.

Szayelaporro Granz later dies at the hands of Mayuri, but returns in the epilogues. In the epilogue, his character serves no purpose other than being a caricature. Here is why the eighth Espada deserved better treatment from Tite Kubo.

Disclaimer: This article reflects the author’s opinion and may contain spoilers.

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Who was Szayelaporro Granz?

Szayelaporro and his minions (Image via Studio Pierrot)

When it comes to Aizen’s Espadas, none nears the eccentricity of Szayelaporro. He was also one of the strongest Arrancars in the series, despite his number. He is also the foil to Gotei 13’s Scientist, Mayuri Kurotsuchi.

When his character is introduced in Bleach, viewers see a cocky personality who has the strength to back up his talk. He faces off against Renji Abarai, a battle where Szayelaporro overwhelms the Shinigami. While the Shinigami is at the brink of losing, he gets rescued by Quincy, Uryu Ishida. Despite just finishing one battle, he quickly hops into another one and thoroughly defeats the Quincy. Before he finishes the battle, Mayuri Kurotsuchi steps in.

This is where the eighth Espada shows his true strength. He lasts through all these battles and even pushes Mayuri to exhaustion. However, Mayuri uses subterfuge and kills the Espada; that’s how Mayuri meets his end.

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How Szayelaporro’s character was misused in Bleach

Szayelaporro using a Sonido (Image via Studio Pierrot)

Szayelaporro Granz deserved better treatment from Tite Kubo. The way his character is treated is similar to how Gotei 13’s Mayuri Kurotsuchi is treated. When Mayuri first appeared, he insinuated that he had experimented with many Quincys. This statement provoked Ishida, as he is the last of his kind. After the battle, that plot is never revisited, and Mayuri, who appeared malevolent, is made to look like an antihero.

Szayelaporro was meant to serve as the foil to Mayuri Kurotsuchi. However, he plays his role terribly and never shows any depth to his character. He states that he is a scientist, but Bleach never explains why or how he became a scientist. He just displays absurd techniques when fighting, which hurts his character’s credibility.

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Final thoughts

Szayelaporro Granz’s character was heavily misused by Bleach. He was one of the Arrancars and Espadas who should have survived the onslaught of the Shinigami and Quincy.

His character could have shown viewers a deep dive into how scientific research is applied to Hollows and Arrancars. Instead, his character was just used to give viewers a battle.

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