Warning: Contains spoilers for Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War, part 3, episode #10.Bleach has had a wide variety of villains over the years, but few are as notorious as Mayuri Kurotsuchi. Despite being on the side of the heroes, Mayuri has been characterized as a sociopath who finds joy in making others suffer since her debut, and even her daughter, Nemu, has not been immune to this, as Mayuri's first fight saw her constantly suffering. physical and verbal abuse from him at every turn.
Mayuri's horrible actions made people see him as an even bigger villain than he was. Bleachmain antagonists, but this no longer appears to be the case. Mayuri's fight with Pernida in Thousand Year Blood War did a lot to put Mayuri in the spotlight and recontextualize her character, and from part 3, episode 10, Bleach: Thousand Year Blood War officially rescued Mayuri to portray him as an objectively heroic figure. How well this worked may still be up for debate, but with how much work went into it, it's hard to deny its effectiveness.
Bleach: the thousand-year bloody war completely changes the way we see Mayuri
How Bleach turned its biggest villain into a hero
Bleach: Thousand Year Blood War part 3, episode 10, was framed largely around Mayuri and Nemu's relationship, and it was much more positive than one might imagine. Not only was Mayuri's verbal abuse framed as Mayuri wanting to protect Nemu, but a flashback to Nemu's childhood revealed that Mayuri has always been proud of Nemu, as she is the pinnacle of his research into creating artificial souls. Mayuri, despite her past actions, revealed that she has always cared for Nemuand even his original abuse of her can be recontextualized as an exaggeration of his inability to show it.
There is an argument that Mayuri only cares about Nemu because of her research, but even that is quickly refuted. Not only was Mayuri visibly distraught over Nemu's death to the point of hallucinating Szayelaporro Granz taunting him, but when Mayuri lost consciousness and entered a healing chamber, the last thing he saw was Nemu's spirit comforting him. as he grabbed his brain. The ending for Bleach: Thousand Year Blood War part 3, episode 10 makes it clear that Mayuri values ​​Nemu as a person and not just an objectand it completely changes the way people should view your relationship.
Bleach: Thousand Year Blood War also does a great job developing Mayuri's relationship with the larger cast. Although even Mayuri's fellow Soul Reapers hated him, after the fight with Pernida, Mayuri is repeatedly thanked for everything he did, with even Mayuri commenting how strange it was for so many people to thank him. Other characters who show gratitude for Mayuri's actions as opposed to resentment emphasize how Bleach: Thousand Year Blood War wants Mayuri to be seen as a heroand when added to his interactions with Nemu, it's hard to see things any other way.
Bleach laid the groundwork for Mayuri's redemption years ago
Was Mayuri ever considered a villain in Bleach?
Mayuri's last fight in Bleach: Thousand Year Blood War officially redeems his character, but the foundations for his redemption were already laid years ago. When Mayuri appeared in the Hueco Mundo arc, he was still a sadistic sociopath, but it was either aimed exclusively at Szayelaporro or it was a laugh-out-loud joke, something that would be maintained in his future appearances in the story. Add how the fight with Szayelaporro also suggested that Mayuri cared more about Nemu than she let on, and Bleach was planning Mayuri's rescue years before Bleach: Thousand Year Blood War made it official.
The biggest sign of Mayuri's anticipated redemption, however, came from her interactions with Uryu. Originally, Uryu despised Mayuri for his abuse of Nemu and how Mayuri was responsible for the death of Uryu's grandfather Soken, and although Uryu still disliked having Mayuri around in the Hueco Mundo arc, none of the intense hatred that Uryu had in his The first fight was kept and was barely referenced. Bleach letting go of the animosity between Uryu and Mayuri was a huge indication that Mayuri was on the path to redemptionand from Thousand Year Blood Warthis finally bore fruit.
Bleach is needed to make Mayuri a hero to make its story work
How Mayuri's Character Change Saved Bleach
When the Soul Reapers were first introduced in the Soul Society arc, not only were they ready to kill Rukia for something that wasn't her fault and ultimately helped countless people, but they were also enforcing a brutal class system among the impoverished Rukongai and the wealthy Seireitei, the latter of which comprised most of their ranks. The Soul Reapers were portrayed as villains when they first appeared in Bleachso it made sense that they would have someone as terrible as Mayuri in their ranks.
Mayuri being a Soul Reaper made sense with how the organization was originally characterized, but the problem is that the story didn't stay that way. Once the Soul Society arc ended, the Soul Reapers became the heroes of the story, and that made it difficult to justify someone like Mayuri being in their ranks. Mayuri was also too important to kill, so Bleach needed to redeem Mayuri's character so that it would be possible to believe that the Soul Reapers were heroesa choice that, based on how well Bleachthe story progressed and ultimately for the better.
Why Mayuri is much better as an antihero than as a villain in Bleach
Why Mayuri's Redemption Works in Bleach
Mayuri's last fight officially confirms his status as an anti-hero at worst. Bleachand he's a much better character for it. Even with Bleach Mitigating Mayuri's villainy, he's still an unabashed sadist, but now that he's played for laughs, every scene of him torturing someone or acting haughty and powerful is a great source of comedy, especially when one of the villains falls victim to his antics. . Mayuri's change from sadistic villain to mad scientist and antihero made him one of the funniest charactersand how big this twist is makes it even better.
Mayuri could have been a one-note villain, but making him a more heroic figure gave him more depth through his contrast with bigger villains and how it allowed his relationships with Nemu and other characters to evolve and as such, Mayuri's most heroic characterization in the later parts of Bleach made him one of his most interesting and developed characters by far. As strange as the change to Mayuri's character may be, it was ultimately the right decision for the story, and it will be great to see what else Bleach: Thousand Year Blood War do with it.
Bleach: Thousand Year Blood War releases new episodes on Saturdays on Hulu.