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Bleach and "Who are the Vasto Lordes" are two things that go hand in hand when it comes to the lore of the Hollows within author Tite Kubo's manga. That is because Kubo displayed different categories for the Hollows' evolution and the highest level they can reach before turning into an Arrancar is a Vasto Lorde.
There is a lot more to unpack when it comes to Bleach and the question of "Who are the Vasto Lordes" because, sadly, the story doesn't give a lot of examples to go by. However, Kubo developed enough plot points and lore for the audience to understand who these powerful entities are and how they came to be in the sands of Hueco Mundo.
Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for the series. Any opinion expressed here belongs to the author and not Sportskeeda as a whole.
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Who and what are the Vasto Lordes in Bleach, explained
Vasto Lordes are the highest level Hollows can reach before turning into Arrancars and are also the most powerful version of Menos Grande. For those who don't know, Menos Grande is the conglomeration of several Hollows, usually as a result of eating others across Hueco Mundo, being so powerful that Soul Society only sends seasoned Shinigami to deal with them.
It is also worth pointing out that the Menos Grande starts as a Gillian, which is the form of giant Hollows that Ichigo Kurosaki and Uryu Ishida fought in the Substitute Shinigami arc earlier in the story. Then there are the Adjuchas, who are smaller and more animalistic in appearance but more powerful and capable of reasoning, such as Grimmjow's panther form during his flashbacks prior to becoming an Arrancar.
On the other hand, the Vasto Lordes usually have humanoid forms and are said to be extremely rare across Hueco Mundo. They are the strongest form a Hollow can reach without turning into an Arrancar and the methods to reach the Vasto Lorde state are not confirmed, although Grimmjow's group during their Adjuchas days speculated that involved eating a lot of Hollows.
Their ranks among the Arrancar
The Arrancar are Hollows who have broken their masks and reached new levels of power, which also include more humanoid appearances and holding a good percentage of their strength in their Zanpakuto. They are some of the most popular and iconic characters in Bleach, although the connection with the Vasto Lorde can be a bit difficult to make.
Not every Arrancar started was a Vasto Lorde before making their transformation, although Coyote Starrk, Ulquiorra Cifer, Baraggan Louisenbairn, and the aforementioned Grimmjow have been confirmed to be at some point in their respective lives as Hollows. Furthermore, the third Espada, Tier Harribel, was shown as a Vasto Lorde during the anime-only flashback of her meeting Sosuke Aizen, and Cien Granz was also one before splitting into Szayelaporro and Yylfordt, although this is exclusive to the Spirits Are Forever With You novel.
Ichigo Kurosaki, while not an Arrancar, also reached the Vasto Lorde form when fighting Ulquiorra during the Hueco Mundo arc. It is widely considered the purest form of his Hollow powers and is also one of the most popular transformations in the entirety of Bleach.
What makes the Vasto Lordes special
Besides the question of "Who are the Vasto Lordes?" in the Bleach community, there is also the question of what makes them so special. One of the most important is the ability to maintain reason and logic as individuals, which was one of Grimmjow and his group's fears as they were evolving as Hollows.
The other major reason is the higher level of power, which is the strongest Hollows can get without the aforementioned Arrancar evolution. This was speculated by Gotei 13 captain Toshiro Hitsugaya when he mentioned that a group of Vasto Lordes turned into Arrancars could be a major threat to Soul Society as a whole.
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