Who is the weakest Espada in Bleach? Explained

Modified Aug 12, 2024 01:54 GMT

Bleach and the answer to the question "Who is the weakest Espada?" (Image via Shueisha).

Bleach fans often ask themselves who the weakest Espada is. While they were originally organized from 10 to 1 as the most powerful to the weakest, the story didn't stick with it. Author Tite Kubo threw some curve balls such as Ulquiorra having a second release form or Yammy's 0 Espada twist, which makes the analysis of who is the weakest a bit more challenging.

A good way to measure how strong or weak a Espada is in Bleach is by taking into account the character who defeated each member. That gives readers and viewers a clear way to understand the level of strength of each member of Aizen's elite army of Hollows. In that regard, there is no denying that the weakest Espada is probably the ninth one, Aaroniero Arruruerie.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for the series. Any opinion expressed here belongs to the author and not Sportskeeda as a whole.

Aaroniero Arruruerie is likely the weakest Espada in Bleach?

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The weakest Espada is probably the ninth one, Aaroniero Arruruerie, and that is mostly due to whom he died fighting against. While Rukia Kuchiki is one of the main characters of the series and a fan favorite, she wasn't as powerful as the main players of the Arrancar arc and managed to defeat Aaroniero without the use of a Bankai.

It is true that someone such as Nnoitra Gilga, the fifth Espada, lost to a version of Zaraki Kenpachi who didn't even have a Shikai at the time but the latter is an extreme rarity when it comes to the power scale among the Shinigami.

Rukia follows a more straightforward line of development and was capable of defeating Aaroniero without a Bankai.

Why Aaroniero Arruruerie is the weakest, explained

Aaroniero's true form (Image via Studio Pierrot).

A major reason why Aaroniero is the weakest Espada is that he is a Gillan, which is the lowest class of Menos within the Hollow race. Therefore, when he was turned into an Arrancar, he was in the weakest state among the Menos, thus leading to a lesser leap in power when compared to the likes of Ulquiorra or Coyote Starrk, who were both natural-born Arrancars.

There is also the fact that Aaroniero had no major feats of strength throughout his time in the series, thus making him a much more underwhelming Espada when compared to the rest.

While characters such as Zommari Rureaux and Szayelaporro Granz were Espada by Captain-level Shinigami such as Byakuya Kuchiki and Mayuri Kurotsuchi, he was defeated by Rukia, who was still yet to reach her prime as a fighter in Bleach.

Other candidates for weakest Espada

Yammy Llargo in his Cero Espada form (Image via Studio Pierrot).

The main reason that a lot of Bleach fans are not 100% certain that Aaroniero is the weakest Espada is mostly due to the character of Yammy Llargo. While he was initially introduced as the tenth Espada, meaning the weakest member on paper, Tite Kubo eventually had him reveal that he is the zero Espada because he is the one with the biggest Reiatsu and grows stronger through anger.

The Yammy twist was mostly poorly-received by the fandom because the character didn't have the story, development, or gravitas to be the strongest Espada, although Kubo was never straightforward about the numbers being a clear reference of strength.

Ulquiorra was the fourth Espada and was the only one with a Segunda Etapa, which is a state that no other Arrancar reached in the canon manga, meaning that the number doesn't always equal strength.

However, even if Yammy wasn't very powerful, he was still defeated by two of the strongest Shinigami, Zaraki Kenpachi and Byakuya Kuchiki. Therefore, Aaroniero still ranks as the weakest Espada.

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Edited by Prem Deshpande