Bleach TYBW THE END 2 Episode Review – Uryu Stonks

At a glance:

• THE END 2 goes almost completely anime-original, and somehow the anime keeps finding new ways to surprise us.
• Uryu finally gets a chance to shine, while the anime adds some seriously interesting new material to the final stretch.

I genuinely don’t know what to even expect anymore from the anime. Every single time we think it is going to be something, the anime slaps us in the face and does something completely different. And I like it. Once again, THE END 2 almost completely consists of anime-original content. I am so glad that I made this Bleach TYBW Episode review a weekly thing because the anime keeps giving us episodes like THE END 2. Now, this isn’t as good as DEFEND YOU was, but let’s be honest, I don’t think even the finale will be as good as DEFEND YOU. But THE END 2 was still an amazing episode.

As always, spoilers ahead. Please watch the episode before continuing. With that said, let’s just get started.

Shinigami, Quincy, and Hollows Finally Fight Together

So first and foremost, this episode was pretty damn heavy on lore dumps. We finally know what the red orb thing at the bottom of Silbern is. I am still not sure if I understand it completely; I will have to go over the explanation a few more times. But essentially, dropping that orb into the rift forming between the Royal Palace and Seireitei would stop the destruction of the three worlds. And that brings me to the change that I really want to appreciate: Harribel, Nel (with Pesche and Donochaka), Shunsui, and Nanao all showed up to help Uryu, knowing the risks full well. A Quincy, Hollows, and Shinigami all working together. Now stuff like this is what makes it feel like a proper world-ending event.

And their conversation was very interesting while still being in-character. I love all the increased screen time Uryu is getting.

The R&D center is also getting a lot more screen time as they’re consistently working to prevent the three worlds from collapsing. I like how Akon is just nonchalant about the people dying because, well, if he doesn’t make the sacrifice, the whole world will end. A very nice character moment for him.

Auswählen strikes again

The only thing this episode lifts from the manga is Ichigo being malhandled by Yhwach. But what’s interesting is that to absorb Ichigo’s powers, Yhwach does an Auswählen again. And it is THIS Auswählen in the anime that kills Lille’s remnants, Gerard, and finally absorbs Mimihagi out of Ukitake. Another interesting thing is that there was a remnant of Mimihagi on Shunsui’s arm too, and he purposefully sent that into the Auswählen. I swear, this episode alone planted like 3 separate seeds for Yhwach’s defeat while giving him a crazy buff if what he says at the end is true.

The Auswählen looked fantastic once again. Something that devastating has no reason to look as incredible as it does. Now in the manga, Yhwach just leaves Ichigo and Orihime alive after this. While in the anime, he is forced to move to deal with Uryu while Ichigo and friends are rescued and carried out by Pesche and Dondochaka. Which is a very nice touch. The anime version of Yhwach isn’t the type to leave someone he considers a threat alive without reason.

Uryu Finally Gets His Moment Against Yhwach

Look, to set expectations, this isn’t really a fight. This is just Nel, Harribel, and Uryu trying to sink Silbern down into the rift after they’ve blown up the supporting bridges. But the thing is, this one long sequence just shows how insanely smart Uryu is and how powerful his Schrift is when used correctly. He not only outsmarts The Almighty, which is INSANE. He manages to save Nel and Harribel as well by teleporting them away with Antithesis; he also puts Yhwach right in front of the blast zone as Silbern sinks into the rift below. And he then proceeds to wrap up the blast with the arrows from his Vollständig to prevent the blast from spreading too much.

Someone in the anime team loves Uryu a lot lmao. The screen time increase and overall glow-up he has gotten in the anime is insane. That whole sequence was just perfect. That one scene solved so many of the issues from the manga. Yhwach now has a clear reason to leave Ichigo and Orihime; he has a reason to go down to the Seireitei; Uryu comes out looking incredibly good, and the end of the episode foreshadows something absurd. Yeah, Yhwach says that all the Schrifts have assimilated into the Almighty, and something like this is the beginning and end of this world.

That is all for now

What does that ending line from Yhwach mean? I don’t know. But that brings me to the end of this week’s Bleach TYBW Episode Review; once again, THE END 2 leaves us with more questions than answers. But once again, I’m so happy to see another anime-original episode, especially given just how good the new content was. The one scene it took from the manga was still heavily expanded upon. What does the next episode have in store for us? I don’t know. I can’t know. With the way these episodes are going, there’s no way of knowing. And I LOVE this feeling.

I am positive that we’ll see our uncle, Tsukishima, Ginjo, and Aizen next week. Aizen even had the episode-ending poem this week. So…well, I’ll see you next week when THE END TWO WORLD drops. With that said, see ya!

Also, check out my thoughts on THE END 1 here!