Highlights
- Characters' height in Bleach can give them an advantage in battle, striking fear and packing more power into attacks.
- Some characters, like Mask De Masculine and Kenpachi, stand leagues above their enemies in size and strength.
- Size matters: from wrestling moves to psychological warfare, characters like Nnoitra and Yammy use their towering stature to intimidate.
When writing out a battle scene in Bleach, Tite Kubo always pays close attention to every aspect of his characters that could give them an edge in battle. This includes their height, which will allow an individual to tower over their opponent, striking fear into their eyes, and packing more power into each one of their attacks, making them fearsome fighters who tend to be absurdly strong and more than capable of holding their own in a fight.
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Of course, since this is a shonen series where any two individuals could clash swords at any time, the characters need to be at least somewhat comparable in their size so that things don't end up being too unfair. With that said, there are still a select few characters in Bleach who stand leagues above every enemy they've faced, and it's these Soul Reapers, Sternritter, and Espada which this list will be looking at today.
7 Mask De Masculine
Size: 6' 6"
Compared to his stoic and intimidating Sternritter peers, Mask de Masculine sets himself apart not only with his jovial personality but also his size, which is enough to have his enemies trembling in fear before he even lands a punch. Mask stands at well over 6 feet, making him one of the biggest members of the Sternritter, and as a result, one of the most durable, as is shown in his multiple fights throughout the Thousand Year Blood War arc.
Mask's height perfectly complements his wrestling fighting style, allowing him to flatten enemies with his high-flying splashes and fling them miles away when he channels all of his bodily strength into a single punch or kick. Even Renji, who by that point had proven he was more than capable of taking on even the most dangerous of the Soul Reapers' enemies, showed concern when Mask began approaching him, partly because of his ridiculous outfit, but also due to his size.
6 Zaraki Kenpachi
Size: 6' 7"
At the beginning of the series during Ichigo's mission to save Rukia in the Soul Society, all the opponents that he encounters look like ordinary people who aren't much different in their size or stature. This was not the case with Kenpachi though, a bloodthirsty warrior who manages to terrify Ichigo to his core just from his appearance alone. Though there's a lot to admire about Kenpachi's look, including his eye-patch and spiky hair which is often decorated with ringing bells, by far his most notable feature is his size, being one of the tallest humans in the Soul Society.
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Kenpachi loves nothing more than having a good fight, but as shown in his bout with Ichigo, he also isn't against playing with his prey if he decides to have some fun, which is very easy for him given his menacing stature. Needless to say, Kenpachi's size causes more than a few of his opponents to run away just from the sight of him, and that's before he even gets the chance to pull out his Zanpakuto.
5 Marechiyo Omaeda
Size: 6' 10"
Just because Omaeda is larger than Kenpachi doesn't mean he's more dangerous in combat. In fact, Omaeda is played off as somewhat of a gag character throughout much of Bleach, usually getting in the way of his captain, Sui-Feng, and rarely ever contributing to the larger battles that take place. Still, his spiked-ball weapon and personality might not be anything to write home about, but Omaeda does have one striking feature that helps him stand out: his height.
At 6 feet and 10 inches, Omaeda is an absolute giant and after the future Vizards left the Soul Society, he was officially the largest human Soul Reaper. Kubo tends to play his height off as a bit of a joke, considering the fact that Omaeda is a poor combatant, all things considered. For example, there are plenty of shots throughout the story where he and Sui-Feng are standing next to one another, but while Omaeda is double the size of his captain, he's always far weaker than his mentor and is often the one looking more scared about the oncoming battle than she is.
4 Nnoitra Gilga
Size: 7' 1"
It can come as quite a surprise to some fans that Nnoitra is this massive, but in reality, he's the second tallest Espada who easily towers over every opponent he's faced. Even when going against Chad, who's already known for having a big and bulky physique, Nnoitra is still shown to be a lot taller than his foe, which gives a good indication of how intimidating he is. Nnoitra loves to instill fear into his opponents, sometimes through his use of words, but also through his appearance, since he always wears a creepy smirk and enjoys showing off his Hollowified left eye socket.
As a result, his size helps to feed into his sick and twisted personality and fighting style, reminding his enemies what they're about to be up against when they decide to duel him. He might not be the tallest Espada of the bunch, but Nnoitra will still gladly look down on anyone he comes up against, both mentally and physically.
3 Yammy Llargo
Size: 7' 6"
From the moment Yammy shows up in Karakuro Town alongside his companion Ulquiorra, it is clear from his appearance alone that he is going to assume the position of being the big bad bruiser of the group. Yammy doesn't eat like ordinary people, but instead, uses a technique known as Gonzui which allows him to suck the souls out of any nearby humans. His tall stature means he almost always has a pretty big appetite, allowing him to consume the souls of numerous people in a matter of seconds. When he's not feasting on souls though, Yammy loves nothing more than using his physical strength and size to tear his enemies apart, and sometimes, even his comrades, as shown when he crushes a fellow medic with his bare hands simply to test his strength.
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Considering that Yammy isn't packing as many special techniques and abilities as some of his peers, Kubo made sure he was instead as physically imposing as possible, to ensure he didn't come off as some sort of joke. It was, therefore, a genius idea to make Yammy this massive, since it allows him to come across as a big deal, even if he's not the smartest tool in the shed.
2 Hachigen Ushoda
Size: 8' 5"
Unlike a lot of characters who use their size as a form of strength to crush their opponents, Hachi, who just so happens to be one of the largest characters in the series, is the exact opposite. Hachi is instead a Kido master, being able to use a myriad of devastating Kido techniques, including Bakudo, to attack his opponents, and protect his allies, making him a valued member of the Vizard team who's always able to get them out of a sticky situation if they find themselves in danger.
Hachi's size can also come as a determent at times though, such as how he struggles to use Shunpo without becoming winded, which can mean he sometimes lags behind the rest of the group at times. Though Hachi has stated he's against using his sword fists for fighting, considering he stands taller than Yammy, there's no doubt his attacks would be more than capable of annihilating anyone who would dare step up to him.
1 Sajin Komamaru
Size: 9' 5"
Officially the biggest Soul Reaper to have ever lived, Komamaru is a giant in every sense of the word, something Kubo often likes to emphasize through his panels. Kubo will always use clever angles to depict Komamaru as being absurdly large in overall size, and though a part of this is to make him look as powerful as possible since he is a captain, it also hints at the underlying backstory of Komamaru.
Komomaru has long been self-conscious about his identity. Being an anthropomorphic wolf, he's always seen himself as "different" from the other Soul Reapers, and as a result, he starts the series by hiding his face and hands in an attempt to blend in more. Despite his efforts though, Komamaru is so massive that he can't hide the fact he isn't human like everyone else, which is a genius bit of visual storytelling that feeds into the character and his development throughout the series.
