In Bleach, Ichigo Kurosaki is the classic shonen hero, and he has faced the series' most powerful villains and prevailed, from Grimmjow Jaegerjaques to the rogue Sosuke Aizen. But he couldn't have done it without the guidance and support of his father, Isshin Kurosaki. In fact, Isshin was a Soul Reaper before Ichigo was.
Born as Isshin Shiba, this character was the Captain of squad 10 until he gave up his powers to save Masaki's life. Now, he is the head of the Kurosaki household, being a protective figure to Yuzu and Karin while training Ichigo to become the best Soul Reaper he can. How does Isshin live up to all these responsibilities, and how does he fall short?
10 STRENGTH: He Runs A Clinic
Not much is seen of this, but it's still a part of the Bleach universe: Isshin Kurosaki runs a fully stocked urgent care clinic out of his very own home, meaning he's always ready to help people who need him. That's a very noble thing to do.
Isshin probably can't compare to Retsu Unohana, the Captain of Squad 4, but he is being an excellent neighbor by providing a free healthcare clinic for ordinary people who need to get patched up. His daughters are always ready to help, too.
9 WEAKNESS: His Awkward Humor
Everyone knows about "dad jokes," and Isshin isn't afraid to dish them out when he thinks the mood is getting too dour. Isshin tries his best, but alas, he simply can't elicit a single laugh from anyone around him, not even his three children.
This is just a minor flaw in Isshin's character, but it's a shame that he can't use his outgoing personality to make better jokes or skits to brighten everyone's day. He ends up making everyone groan and roll their eyes instead, which is a total letdown.
8 STRENGTH: He's Cheerful
On the flip side, Isshin is a fellow with a warm, radiant personality, and no one can blame him for at least trying to cheer people up and make them laugh. His heart is in the right place, and if he worked on making better jokes, he might get somewhere with it.
Everyone needs someone like Isshin in their lives, a perpetually upbeat, positive character who can cheer them out of a bad mood. Ichigo isn't terribly receptive to his father's antics, but Yuzu seems to appreciate Isshin's trademark humor from time to time.
7 WEAKNESS: His Iffy Bankai
Captain Isshin Shiba once showed off his shikai, Engetsu, when he fought the modified Hollow known as White one fateful night (while Aizen and Kaname Tosen observed the scene). But what about his bankai? The world will never know what it's capable of.
What's the problem? Isshin's bankai is, based on what Aizen said, too taxing for an injured Isshin to use at all. So, if Isshin has his back to the wall, he can't rely on bankai to handle the situation. Even in favorable circumstances, the bankai is exhausting to use. It's far from the best bankai out there, evidently.
6 STRENGTH: He Will Sacrifice Anything
Captain Isshin Shiba was doing well for himself, and he even took on the Hollow called White and, with Masaki's help, destroyed it. However, White was poisoning the Quincy Masaki's body, and Kisuke Urahara couldn't do much to help until Isshin volunteered to lend her his power.
Isshin is clearly a fellow who places the needs of others above himself, and that is a deeply admirable trait for any Soul Reaper Captain and hero. He saved Masaki's life this way, and there is no doubt that he would do the same for any of his children if he had to.
5 WEAKNESS: He Dodges Paperwork
Isshin Shiba did not like to do the paperwork associated with being a Soul Reaper officer, which put him in the same league as Lieutenant Rangiku Matsumoto and Kenpachi Zaraki. Being a Captain means having a desk job as well as patrol duties, and Isshin balked at the idea.
So, he simply dumped all the paperwork on his poor 3rd seat, a youthful Toshiro Hitsugaya. Rangiku was Isshin's Lieutenant at the time, and she didn't like doing paperwork either, so Toshiro ended up doing far too much work on his own. The kid needed a break.
4 STRENGTH: His Humility
This is something that describes Isshin's personality as a whole. Seeing how he doesn't miss his Captain days to bitterly, and his willingness to look goofy to cheer people up and make sacrifices for them, it's easy to conclude that Isshin is quite a humble person.
At no point did Isshin ever try to heap glory upon himself or create a legacy of himself. He made everything about his wife instead, and he dearly missed her when she was killed by Grand Fisher. Isshin is also perfectly willing to allow Ichigo to save the day, while Isshin himself plays a supporting role without complaint.
3 WEAKNESS: Goofing Off In Cemeteries
This is a pretty awkward bad habit for Isshin to have. When visiting the grave of his late wife Masaki, Isshin really does respect her memory and miss her dearly, but he goes a bit too far to compensate for his heavy feelings. He often gives his children the wrong idea.
Isshin, if he thinks his daughters are feeling really sad while visiting Masaki's grave marker, will goof off and make a clown of himself, to the point that Karin once slugged him and sent him tumbling all the way down a hill. Rukia Kuchiki, who had come along for the trip, could hardly believe her eyes.
2 STRENGTH: He's Fearless
Isshin isn't recklessly brave like Kenpachi is, but then again, it is admirable that Isshin is always ready to face the enemy without a second of fear, hesitation, or doubt. He has seen and done a lot as a former Captain and as a parent, and he won't let the likes of Grand Fisher or Aizen faze him.
Isshin had no problem taking on the terrifying White when it invaded the world of the living, and Isshin, despite being rusty after all those years, took on and sliced apart Grand Fisher with one blow. Then, he went up against Sosuke Aizen himself and fought with impressive confidence and courage. He didn't care how strong Aizen was; he was ready to do his duty and face the villain.
1 WEAKNESS: He Pesters Ryuken
In all fairness, Ryuken could stand to be a little nicer, too, and show some better diplomacy. At any rate, Isshin and Ryuken are acquaintances and don't bear the Soul Reaper vs Quincy grudge to a significant degree. In fact, Ryuken doesn't care about Quincy or Soul Reaper politics at all.
Instead, Ryuken dislikes Isshin simply because the latter is obnoxious and a bit tiresome, and Isshin ought to know better than to alienate a potential ally like Ryuken by acting so goofy all the time. Isshin never said anything really hurtful, but still, he could stand to boost his charisma a bit and earn Ryuken's respect.