Urahara Kisuke - Final Villain?
Urahara: More dangerous than Aizen?
When I watch Bleach, I’m always struck by how similar Urahara and Aizen are. Sure, Aizen is the Big Bad who almost took down Soul Society while Urahara runs a candy shop and helps Soul Society out in his free time, but what does that mean? To my mind it means that Urahara must either be (a) less evil; (b) less motivated; or (c) biding his time before he strikes. And I’m thinking it’s (b) or (c).
Don’t believe me? Just consider these striking similarities between Aizen and Urahara. And then consider that unlike Aizen, Urahara hasn’t been stopped…yet.
1. They both attempt to create the hogyoku at roughly the same time.
As Aizen explains, he and Urahara just happen to both try to create the hogyoku at roughly the same time - which allows Aizen to combine his failed one with Urahara’s more successful one which somehow leads to the creation of the actual hogyoku (I’m still a little unclear on the details). Seriously - what are the chances that two men with different goals would invent the same totally new substance at the same time? It seems pretty unlikely - unless, of course, the two men were almost exactly the same person. Speaking of which…
2. They both try to dissolve the boundaries between hollow and soul reaper.
Well, I say “different goals,” but actually their goals are also strangely similar. During the flashback vizard arc, both Urahara and Aizen were researching how to make a soul reapers stronger via hollow powers. Urahara claims he abandoned the research (something that Aizen definitely did not do), and yet…
3. They both turn people into hollows and help create the vizard.
Aizen turns a bunch of captains and lieutenants into hollows as part of his research and also because he’s a dick. Urahara tries to help save them and makes them vizard. It happens. But later Urahara puts his knowledge to good use by restoring Ichigo’s soul reaper powers by first turning him into a hollow - and you can’t tell me that Urahara didn’t know that this process would ultimately turn Ichigo into a vizard.
4. They are crazy-smart.
This is the similarity that Aizen himself points out - Urahara is the only one with the brains to keep up with him. They both have minds that work on a different level than everyone else - which is how they think of things like the hogyoku or turning soul reapers into hollows or planting kido bombs in other people’s bodies. You know, nerd stuff.
5. They are sociopaths.
Evil nerd stuff, that is. I suppose I don’t have to argue for Aizen being a sociopath - that’s pretty clear given everything about him. But I believe Urahara is one too. Shinji realizes this - during the flashback arc he tells Urahara not to worry about his subordinates’ feelings…and then adds that Urahara probably doesn’t have a problem with that. Because Urahara, despite his floppy exterior, is a cold, cold person who uses other people as tools to further his schemes. As a sociopath would.
6. They act unassuming while secretly being powerful and dangerous.
Yet Urahara seems like such a nice guy! He wears a funny hat and is always waving his hands and stuttering. Yet once he starts to fight, he proves that he’s crazy powerful and dangerous. Aizen is very similar - he acted like a sweet little nerd in the first Soul Society arc, sure, but even in Hueco Mundo he speaks in a quiet voice, never loses his temper…..and has all of the Espada scared out of their minds.
7. They both try to turn Ichigo into a weapon
This is the clincher for me. I knew that Urahara was shaping Ichigo to be a weapon pretty much from day one - not to mention sending him to Soul Society and to Hueco Mundo to take care of things for him. Really, most of Bleach wouldn’t have happened without Urahara pulling the strings. Then Aizen comes along and declares that actually it was all his doing - he was the one manipulating Ichigo from the beginning. And at first I was irritated by the retcon, and then I realized….of course. Of course Urahara and Aizen were both working to shape Ichigo into a super-powered weapon. Because their goals and methods have been pretty similar this whole time.
So watch out, Soul Society. When Urahara makes his move, you are all going to be so screwed.
