- #18
I'm still reserving judgement on just what Yuushirou's gender really is, but from my limited understanding of Japanese, the 'rou' suffix seems like a strictly male one, and considering various males in Bleach have it slapped on to the end of their names (Toushirou, Juushirou, Roujuurou, Hanatarou, Shuukurou,) I feel more comfortable perceiving him as one. The 'yuu' preceding it is quite feminine though, so who even knows. Perhaps Kubo is just intentionally painting the picture of an androgynous noble boy/girl...
This chapter was some quality shit tho. Old faces reappearing, one of the 4 noble houses entering the fray (and it's the Shihouin to boot!), Urahara continuing to be shady as always, and best of all the fight between Oshou and Yhwach. This has really got to be one of the most even and balanced fights in the history of this manga. Despite being pretty much the God of the Quincy, Yhwach lacks the air of invincibility that surrounded Aizen and made him that one-shot troll, he's actually putting genuine effort into his attacks and still getting knocked about. Maybe it's because Ichibei is the "Head of Shinigami" and thus an opponent that can deliver real damage if he so desires, but I'm still enjoying this fight way too much. It's a refreshing turn of events, compared to the usual one-sided curbstomps that happen.
10/10. Tremendously looking forward to what happens next week, as well as the color page!
