Sosuke Aizen is one of anime’s biggest supervillains who became iconic even out of the Bleach fandom with the way Tite Kubo pulled off one of the biggest plot twists in the industry. Many of the villains who came before him were just small fry and didn’t pose that much of a threat to Ichigo and the Soul Reapers. But the Aizen reveal changed the series forever, making him a top-tier antagonist.
Sosuke Aizen’s status in the Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War anime and story arc is mostly that of an unpredictable wild card. It’s vital to remember that Aizen is a third party who has no affection for the Gotei 13 and is no longer a member, having betrayed them two years ago before waging war on them. Now that King Yhwach has risen as Bleach‘s final antagonist, Aizen could redeem himself by doing the unthinkable.
How could Sosuke Aizen redeem himself in Bleach: TYBW?
The Soul Society wouldn’t forgive Aizen for his betrayal but they could use his help in defeating Yhwach. It’s important to remember that Aizen is a third party who has no fondness for the Gotei 13 and is no longer a member, having betrayed them roughly two years ago before waging his war on them.
Aizen has no love for the Wandenreich and more than likely would not join them to get back at the Soul Reapers. He already declined Yhwach’s earlier offer to join forces, after all. When it comes down to it, Aizen is a terrifying third party who must be convinced by one side or the other to earn his support. Yhwach isn’t bothering any longer, so it falls to Captain Kyoraku to persuade Aizen to aid him in a meaningful way.
Sure, there is a possibility that Aizen can hatch some new plan and attack the Soul Reapers, but that depends on how much he wants to be redeemed. Remember, he had helped the Soul Reapers by crushing a huge number of dark, one-eyed creatures with his spiritual pressure and offered to bring down the Soul King’s palace to help the Soul Reapers reach it in time.
As recent episodes showed, Head Captain Shunsui Kyoraku is desperate enough to partially release Sosuke Aizen from the Muken prison to enlist his aid, making Aizen a total wild card in this defining moment of the war. But the question is, if Aizen cooperates and helps, will that actually redeem him?
The meaning of character redemption in anime and Bleach in particular
The same question can apply to villains in other shows as well. In Dragon Ball Super, Frieza helped Goku and Android 17 defeat Jiren and save their universe from certain destruction. But does that act undo everything he had done in Dragon Ball Z? Certainly not but fans know that Frieza continues to tread the path of villainy by taking down Goku and Vegeta in his black form.
In the case of Aizen, the dude literally faked his own death and sacrificed hundreds of Shinigami souls and the souls of the people who lived in Rukongai just to acquire the Hogyoku, an item capable of dissolving the barrier between Shinigami and Hollow. To meet his end goal of becoming the Soul King, he would do anything without feeling any guilt or remorse.
Therefore, in the eyes of fans, Aizen isn’t a redeemable character and his teaming up with Soul Society to take down Yhwach is simply like Frieza joining Goku to take down a common enemy. There’s no stopping both Aizen and Frieza from instigating more chaos and becoming a bigger villain than the previous one. Frieza is already there so there’s a chance that Aizen would tread down the same path.
However, if Tite Kubo really does redeem Aizen for his sins, then he needs to do it properly in a way that is convincing and not for plot purposes. That would ruin the legacy he had created for Bleach.
Bleach is available for streaming on Crunchyroll. The manga is available for reading on Viz Media.
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