User:Theoryguru

About me
Greetings! I am Theoryguru. As you have likely guessed already, my favorite Bleach character is Urahara Kisuke. I am fond of him because of his intellectual curiosity, self-deprecation and respect for others. For me, Urahara reflects a central theme in Japanese culture: balance. He balances modernity and tradition, science and folkways, and seriousness and humor. He is also a somewhat tragic character, having been framed by Aizen for crimes he did not commit. But he also seems to be the love interest of the insanely-hot, constantly-disrobing Shihoin Yoriuchi, which makes his banishment to the World of the Living likely more bearable.

What you may not know about me is that I am a student of social and political theory and a fan of Japanese film and anime, particularly the works of Kurosawa, Ozu, Mizoguchi, and Miyazaki, just to name a few. Given that I am new here, I guess I am a sort of shinsetsu. I welcome your thoughts about Bleach's connection to Japanese culture and its relationship to the traditional/modern/postmodern cultural discourses out of which it emerges. Hit me up for a talk!

My favorite Bleach moments
Bleach has a number of indelible scenes that range from campy humor and fanboy catnip to cultural reflection and philosophical musing. I have to admit that I dig the catnip as well as the conjecture, but I only want to focus on the latter here. These mediations on Episodes 307-9 are my own take on what is excellent about the series and are, of course, open to some debate. But I hope, dear reader, you find them interesting.

1. The motivation of Ichimaru Gin

I have read in several places that people were "completely caught off-guard" by Ichimaru's plotting and that there should have been more "foreshadowing" of his plans as well as more development of the backstory that explained them. I have to disagree with that take and will spend this time explaining why.

To the discerning reader/viewer, Ichimaru had a way of addressing Aizen that should give ample cause for consideration. While Aizen's enemies dispensed with honorifics and merely called him "Aizen," his supporters, namely the Arrancar and Tosen Kaname, referred to him as "Aizen-sama." Ichimaru, on the other hand, referred to Aizen as "Aizen-taichou" consistently. Note that Aizen did not become "Aizen-san" let alone "Aizen-sama" for Ichimaru. (The American English translation of the manga, however, sometimes translated the "Aizen-taichou" in the original Japanese to "Aizen-san," which is both incorrect and unfortunate. See especially Chapter 404, p. 14.) Instead, Ichimaru continued to call him "Captain Aizen," this despite the fact that 1) the two characters knew each other for over a century, 2) they were both captains at the time of their departure to Hecho Mundo and captains in the Gotei 13 typically do not call one another "taichou" and 3) they apparently were rejecting Gotei 13 by leaving in the manner they did. The fact that Ichimaru continued to call Aizen "Aizen-taichou" seems to reveal 1) a distance between the two and 2) a connection to Gotei 13 that Ichimaru has not relinquished. Here is red flag number one.

Another issue was the fact that, when leaving for Hecho Mundo, Ichimaru did two things that were incredibly out of character and were related to his relationship with Matsumoto Rangiku. Before he ascended, Ichimaru turned to Matsumoto, dropped his ever-present simper, and apologized to her. This is doubly confounding. Ichimaru's simper is as part of his character as his silver hair - it defines him. That he would drop it is a cue that something very important is happening. The fact that Ichimaru would issue anyone an apology - particularly one that appeared completely sincere - is very odd. The questions it should raise are 1) what is Ichimaru's relation to Matsumoto (who is not in his Division) and 2) why does he feel he has to apologize to her for his perceived treachery? Why does she merit this? This is the second red flag.

Finally, when Ichimaru engaged Ichigo in the Fake Karakura Town, there were some clues to what he was doing with Ichigo. Ichimaru never seemed that interested in killing Ichigo; he had many opportunities to do so and he actually pointed them out rather than exploit them. No, what Ichimaru appeared to be doing instead was testing Ichigo, seeing if he was a viable alternate tool to be used to destroy Aizen. Remember that Ichimaru sat with Aizen and watched Ichigo's development. He likely knew that Ichigo was a possibile means for getting rid of the man that Ichimaru hated. Even in the end, Ichimaru never killed Ichigo even while the latter was beginning to fill with a stifling despair. It would appear that Ichimaru held out the hope that, if he failed in killing Aizen, Ichigo may somehow do it. This is pretty clear in the end.

Ichimaru's reveal is both tragic in its unfolding and poetic in its brevity. His motivation is simple - he loves Matsumoto blindly and has vowed to destroy the one he knows has hurt her, no matter how long it takes. How can you not adore that?

2. The tragedy of Tensa Zangetsu

A second brilliant and beautiful piece of writing and animation is seen in the story of Tensa Zangetsu. When Ichigo returns to his inner world and meets Tensa, the landscape has changed markedly. The tall skyscrapers that reflected Ichigo's hopes and ambitions were replaced by Karakura Town: his ambitions had been supplanted by his conerns, perhaps even his narrow obsession with saving his home and his friends. The atmospherics had also changed. While Zangestu pointed out that it occasionally rained in the inner world - a condition that reflected Ichigo's fears and doubts and something that Zangetsu would help change were Ichigo to trust him - Tensa did not need to reveal that the inner world had now become completely submerged under an ocean. Ichigo's fears had become hopeless despair. He was literally drowning. Tensa revealed the source of the despair, Ichigo's inner hollow, which Tensa forcibly removed from Ichigo's body. He then merged with the hollow and took up arms against Ichigo.

Tensa was aware why Ichigo came back. He knew that Ichigo wanted the final Getsuga Tensho, but Tensa was unwilling to give it. The two - Tensa/Hollow Ichigo and Ichigo - fought a tense battle until Ichigo noticed that Tensa's sword "only revealed sadness." Tensa himself appeared forlorn, not wishing to look at Ichigo and showing a profound melancholy that was animated wonderfully. As Tensa prepared for a high-speed lunge, Ichigo realized what he must do to address his too-strong opponent: he must give up his sword and allow himself to be impaled. As Tensa ran him through, Ichigo took the blow. He emitted a wonderful, silent scream. Ichigo then remarked that he felt no pain. Tensa replied that Ichigo would not feel pain if he accepted the sword which was, after all, part of Ichigo. At this point, Ichigo notices that Tensa is weeping and asks him why. Tensa explains that although Ichigo values protecting his friends - something that Tensa himself does not value - Tensa protects something too, namely Ichigo himself. Tensa then explains that the ability to use the technique and the explanation of it reside in the sword that Tensa plunged into Ichigo's body.

The reason this exchange exhibits the hallmarks of tragedy is because of the fact that Tensa could not escape his fate and, in doing so, must destroy the foundations of his own existence. His raison d'etre was to protect Ichigo. Because of this, he had to provide Ichigo with the tools to survive Aizen, namely Mugetsu (which is translated as "moonless night"). But by providing Ichigo with the tools to survive, by protecting him, Tensa was also creating the conditions for his never being able to protect Ichigo again. Were Ichigo to use Mugetsu - which he must in order to defeat Aizen - then Ichigo would lose his Soul Reaper powers and, as such, his ability to commune with and be connected to Tensa. Tensa could no longer protect Ichigo as a result as their bond would be broken, likely forever. The weight of this awful fate that Tensa had to carry out in order to follow his duty caused him great sorrow and pain and gives the viewer a beautiful and truly transcendent scene that approaches Sophocles and Shakespeare.

3. The hubris of Aizen, the conservatism of Urahara

The final important scene in the Aizen/Ichigo showdown occurs as Aizen finally loses his powers and becomes entrapped by Urahara's hogyoku kido.

As Urahara explains the reasons for Aizen's entrapment - and why the hogyoku has rejcted him - Aizen derides Urahara for following "that thing" and not his "powerful intellect." Urahara realizes that Aizen is referring to the Soul King, the lynchpin which holds Soul Society together. Urahara explains that the Soul King performs a necessary function in order to maintain a harmonous, existing world. Without the Soul King, Soul Society itself would fall apart. Although the Soul King plays no determining role in the structuring of Soul Society - that has been taken over by Control 46 and is enforced by the Gotei 13 - his existence is nonetheless paramount in maintaining a fragile status quo. For Aizen, such talk is for the weak. Aizen, unlike Urahara, endeavors to create an ideal world, one that is the result of his own imagination and his own will. Indeed, Aizen's entire purpose is to create the conditions for his bringing such a state of affairs into existence. Aizen spits out that he despises Urahra's weakness of will and narrowness of vision before he is completely enclosed by the hogyoku's trap.

What is most remarkable about this exchange is what it reveals in terms of fundamental philosophies. Aizen's is a sort of meld of the Western elements of liberalism and Nietzsche. Like liberalism, Aizen does not respect existing conventions and ways of being because they are time-tested. These can be supplanted by better practices and institutions. Echoing Nietzsche, doing so should be directed by someone with proper control of the Apollonian and the Dionysian, who can direct his will to power to create the better society. For Aizen, he is such an ubermensch, the bringer of the truly good society. For Urahara, the existing conditions are there precisely because they work and create homeostasis. They are necessary and they are good. Science, Urahara's great love, is there to make them better, but not to eradicate them. Urahara, then, is a cultural conservative and, quite possibly, is not only defending Soul Society but also ''Japanese society itself. ''It is the hubris and folly of men like Aizen that threaten societies and must be dealt with accordingly. 理論教祖 (talk) 10:15, January 30, 2012 (UTC)

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