The hit fantasy anime Bleach stars Ichigo Kurosaki, a human Soul Reaper who will always draw his sword to defend his friends and hometown. He risked life and limb to rescue Rukia from the Soul Society, and during that arc, we met many new Soul Reapers, from Ikkaku Madarame to Gin Ichimaru to Captain Hitsugaya and his Lieutenant, Rangiku Matsumoto.
Rangiku is one of the most lively and fun characters in the entire cast of Bleach, and she can brighten any scene that she's in. Still, this Soul Reaper is a capable fighter when duty calls, and she is a wonderful person and a good friend. What are ten facts that newcomers to Bleach should know about squad 10's Lieutenant Matsumoto?
10 She Has Personal Flair
Soul Reapers wear a standard uniform: white robes, black robes over that, white tabi socks with straw sandals, and a white sash. This is a traditional Japanese outfit that looks cool and is easy to move around in.
Still, some Soul Reapers add personal touches to their appearance, and Rangiku had some fun with her attire. This ranges from her beauty mark to a thin gold necklace to a pink scarf (Byakuya isn't the only scarf lover around here) to her preference for keeping her robes' chest rather open.
9 She Recruited Toshiro
Sometimes, Soul Reapers stumble upon talented people out in the civilian world of the Soul Society and recruit them. Many years ago, Yachiru Unohana found a young Kenpachi this way, and later, Rangiku met Toshiro Hitsugaya.
Toshiro's inner power yearned for release, and he was accidentally using his ice powers at odd times as Daiguren Hyorinmaru called for him. So, Rangiku happened by, spotted his potential, and basically told him, "Sign up and join us." And he did.
8 She's Protective
Rangiku is a goofball and pretty laid-back (more on this soon), but by the same token, she won't stand for anyone bullying or mistreating others. She always wants what's best for others, often by sharing her sake or cheering them up.
In the previous entry, we mentioned that Rangiku met a young Toshiro. At the time, Toshiro had been short-changed by a shopkeeper without realizing it, and Rangiku demanded that Toshiro be more careful to not lose his money to dishonest people. She was right to tell him that.
7 She Can Handle Weirdos
This is one of the funnier parts of Rangiku's character. She is a gorgeous woman with a figure that many men find incredibly appealing, and Karakura Town is home to two self-styled ladies' men: Keigo Asano and Kon.
Both of them went wild when they laid eyes on Rangiku and her, well, style of dress, and they pounced. Fortunately, Rangiku is clearly used to this, since she easily and casually knocked both of them aside. At some point, Ikkakuy wondered aloud if this was some odd human tradition!
6 She's A Party Girl
Everyone has an extroverted, party-loving friend who seems to be everywhere at once, and Rangiku is happy to assume that role. Unlike the quieter girls like Momo and Nanao and Rukia, Rangiku loves to party it up, usually with sake to get things going.
More than once, she parties all night (or afternoon) with her friends, and they groggily wake up later and go crawling back to their barracks. In the human world, Rangiku keeps it up, and she and Orihime had friendly (and G-rated) fun all night. Toshiro couldn't stand how noisy they were.
5 She's Like A Big Sister
Rangiku loves to party and get carried away, but she's not totally irresponsible. In fact, Rangiku is also the big sister type, and goodness knows that we could all use one of those. If anyone is reduced to tears, Rangiku will rush to their side to comfort them.
This happened when Rangiky hung out with Orihime and heard the younger woman get agitated about her odd relationship with Ichigo and Rukia. Orihime was confused and in tears... until Rangiku tickled her to snap her out of it, then talked things out to get Orihime back in good form.
4 Bad With Paperwork
While Rangiku is a skilled and brave Soul Reaper against any foe, she doesn't exactly savor the paperwork that comes with her rank. She is the second-highest-ranking officer in Squad 10, meaning she and Captain Hitsugaya have all kinds of desk work to handle.
Suffice it to say, her inbox dwarfs her outbox, since she can't stand doing paperwork! This is used to humorously contrast her with the diligent and serious Toshiro Hitsugaya. In fact, back when Isshin Shiba was Squad 10's Captain, both Rangiku and Isshin dumped all their paperwork on poor little Toshiro.
3 She's Witty In Battle
Rangiku is not only a talented Soul Reaper, but she can navigate a battlefield with wit and grace. She found herself clashing against Halibel Tier's three fracciones, who are already a powder keg when together. Rangiku easily played them against each other and created an opening, despite being badly outnumbered.
Not only that, but Rangiku is perfectly capable of using kido in battle, and this can give her an edge against opponents who use more straightforward attacks. She's a flexible fighter for sure.
2 She's Active In The Women's Association
A number of Soul Reaper ladies formed a club called the Women's Association, and for some reason, the young Yachiru Kusajishi is the president. Rangiku is a member of this group too, and she has all kinds of fun there.
In bonus comics and episodes, Rangiku helps the ladies pick out swimsuits for some beachside fun in the human world, and she also contributed a classy idea for new Soul Pagers. She thought that pink is overdone, so she suggested purple and/or gold for a new Soul Pager. Sounds good to us.
1 She's a Journalist
Here are two major figures in the Seireitei Communication newspaper: Rangiku at left, and Shuhei Hisagi at right. Shuhei's squad, the 9th, runs the newspaper, and Rangiku has something to offer.
She writes a column titled The Many Faces of a Wet Cat, and that's not her only journalistic work. She also contributed some photos of her own Captain Hitsugaya for a photo album, showing just how much she loves her pint-sized Captain! Both Toshiro and Byakuya are popular photography subjects among Soul Reaper women, in fact.