Summary
- Hollows in Bleach are born from lingering souls consumed by negative feelings, evolving into monstrous beings like Menos Grande and Gillian.
- Menos Grande are amalgamations of Hollows led by animal instinct, while Adjuchas are smaller, powerful Hollows with full sentience and individuality.
- Vasto Lorde are the ultimate evolution of Hollows, rare and powerful enough to pose a threat to the captains of the Gotei 13 in Soul Society.
Many different races exist in the vast world of Bleach. Humans like Ichigo and his friends, Soul Reapers like Rukia and the Gotei 13, Quincy like Uryuu Ishida and the monstrous Hollows, the inhabitants of Hueco Mundo that prey on humans. Hollows are born when a deceased human stays in the human world for too long and their soul is corrupted by their negative feelings. Usually, humans pass on to Soul Society thanks to a Soul Burial performed by Soul Reapers. But when a ghost is left lingering and their Soul Chain is consumed, they become a beastly Hollow, often making a loved one their first victim.
But in Hueco Mundo, Hollows inhabit an entire, albeit savage civilization. Hollows are one of the best examples of how dark the world and characters of Bleach can be. Hollows are divided into several classes, and their evolution is violent and monstrous. Here's everything you need to know about Hollows and their classifications.
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Menos Grande
Hollows live by a kill-or-be-killed system, they have virtually no sense of camaraderie and instead get stronger by killing their peers. Hollows gain power not by training but by cannibalizing other Hollows, and sometimes, when a great number of Hollows engage in inter-devouring, they merge into one being, called Menos Grande. Menos is the amalgamation of many Hollows, physically and mentally. Menos don't possess an individual mind and are led by animal instinct, while also being very powerful. Skilled Soul Reaper teams are often sent to defeat Menos.
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Gillian
Eventually, Menos Grande may acquire individuality and regain their desire to become stronger. Gillian begins devouring other Hollows, becoming more powerful with each victim. Gillian soon acquires a distinct mask that sets them apart from regular Menos. They become more intelligent and powerful. And as they continue devouring other Hollows, they reach their next form, Adjuchas.
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Gillian is the lesser of the Great Hollow classes, but they're still very dangerous, requiring powerful Soul Reapers to dispatch them. Gillian doesn't usually cross into the Human World. Still, they can when attracted by great amounts of Human reiatsu or when facilitated by a Kumon, a portal into the Human World. Out of the ten Espada, Aaroniero Arrurueri is the only member to be a Gillian before becoming an Arrancar.
Adjuchas
Once a Gillian has eaten enough Hollows they become an Adjuchas. Adjuchas are much smaller and vastly more powerful than regular Gillian. Adjuchas have full sentience and individuality, gaining a personality, distinct powers a name. Adjuchas must continue to cannibalize their peers to maintain their form, or else their minds will be lost and revert into a Gillian. Once they revert, they can no longer evolve into Adjuchas again.
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If an Adjuchas has any part of their body, especially their mask, their evolution will be completely stopped. While they can not evolve into their next form, they're also safe from reverting into Gillian. Notable Adjuchas turned Arrancar include Grimmjoww Jaegerjaquez and his Fraccion.
Vasto Lorde
Vasto Lorde is the ultimate evolution of Hollows. They have a humanoid appearance and size, a vast intellect and developed personality, and power so great they're able to fight or even defeat captains of the Gotei 13. Toushirou Hitsugaya mentions that if Sosuke Aizen assembled an army of Vasto Lorde turned Arrancar, Soul Society would be doomed. Vasto Lorde are incredibly rare and their number can be counted on one hand, some of them are so powerful their mere presence is deadly to lesser Hollows. Notable Vasto Lorde are Coyote Starrk, Barragan Luisenbarn, Tier Harribel and Ulquiorra Cifer.
Arrancar
When a Hollow tears off their mask and undergoes a transformation process facilitated by the Hogyoku, they gain fully Humanoid form and Soul Reaper-like powers, becoming an Arrancar. The Arrancar are members of Sosuke Aizen's Army to defeat the Soul Society. Top-level Arrancar are called the Espada, and they're ranked by number in descending order. Primera Espada (First Sword), Coyote Starrk being the strongest, and Diez Espada (Tenth Sword), Yammy Llargo being the weakest.
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Vizored
Vizored are a very small group of Soul Reapers that underwent Hollowfication at the hands of Sosuke Aizen. They were later turned back to normal by Kisuke Urahara but acquired Hollow masks and powers. Shinji Hirako is the leader of these.
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Ichigo is a human whose Soul Reaper powers were manifested mixed with the Hollow reiatsu within his mother Masaki. Ichigo is a hybrid of human, Soul Reaper, Hollow, and Quincy. His zanpakutou, Zangetsu, is a Hollow, giving Ichigo Arrancar powers.
Bleach
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- 2004 - 2012-00-00
Based on Tite Kubo's battle shonen manga, Bleach centers around Ichigo, a high school student who is dragged into the world of Soul Reapers. The original anime ended in 2012, but it was revived in 2022.
