User blog comment:Stark373/Was Ulquiorra the most powerfull Espada?/@comment-44061-20091123020517

No, People read to much into how hyped up Ulquiorra's power was. He was 4th for a reason and for all purposes the second release was a plot device for this new hollow form of Ichigo's. In all the second release was ineffectual in its purpose power wise, if anything it should have been devastating. The fact that Ichigo had to go into a new transformation to take him says more about the lack of ichigo's power at a normal level when Starrk as 1st espada was take out by Shunsui using his shikai. Thus making a point that Ichigo with the vast yet erratic spiritual pressure and various hollow transformations isn't the most powerful character in the series, as he is always using the hollow mask and bankai and getting royally worked until a turn of events loophole allows him to win. Having said that the question of Ulquiorra's power is stable at 4th espada regardless of his second release which as shown is only powerful enough to be a danger to ichigo in bankai and hollow mask as opposed to the new transformation.