In the hit anime Bleach, based on the manga by Tite Kubo, the supernatural takes center stage. This series is all about black-robed Soul Reapers who escort dead souls to the afterlife, but some souls go bad and become hollows (a.k.a. monsters). Archvillain Sosuke Aizen gathered the strongest hollows of all and morphed them into arrancars, and the top ten arrancars became the fearsome Espadas.
These mighty warriors are a threat to even the Soul Reaper Captains, and their powers and abilities range from mad science to death-breath to exploding spirit wolves. Espada #3 is a woman named Tier Halibel (sometimes spelled Harribel), and she can control water when she releases her zanpakuto. Now, what else should we know about the third Espada and what she can do?
10 She Represents Sacrifice
During the battle for Karakura Town, 2nd Espada Barragan explains that all ten Espadas represent different aspects of death. Halibel's is sacrifice, though the meaning of this is ambiguous. Does she represent self-sacrifice, or does she sacrifice other people for her own gain?
Based on what we've seen, though, Halibel leans toward the former, and she will give her very life for the people whom she loves without hesitation (more on this soon). In that way, Halibel may be the most noble Espada of all.
9 She Mirrors Captain Hitsugaya
An Espada like Halibel probably wouldn't like being compared to a Soul Reaper—and a kid, at that—but it's easy to see that Halibel and Toshiro Hitsugaya are meant to mirror one another, and this fact is evident as they do battle.
Both of them are fighting for their beloved friends, and the normally cool Hitsugaya may fly into a rage if Momo Hinamori is hurt or threatened. Their powers are similar, and they each warn the other to not underestimate them. Not to mention how they are both incredible sword fighters by any standard.
8 Censored Appearance
While Bleach is a classic Shonen title—and one of the Big Three—it does get pretty R-rated at times in the manga. When this series got animated, the animation studios toned down some of the more graphic or sexual content for airing 0n TV in Japan and elsewhere.
Halibel got a bit of censoring, mostly for her release form. Her clothes are gone, replaced with bony armor that doesn't cover a whole lot of her body. In fact, most of her breasts are exposed in the manga, so the anime's version adds a bit more bone armor to keep things PG-13 or so. The skirt of her release form was made a bit longer, too.
7 Unknown Fate
Maybe some obscure peripheral Bleach material shows Halibel's final fate, but, in the anime and manga, we don't get any closure where the 3rd Espada is concerned. During the battle for Karakura Town, Aizen eventually strikes Halibel down in frustration, and she plummets to the earth.
Did she die? No, she survived and escaped, later becoming Hueco Mundo's de facto queen. But, soon enough the Wandenreich muscled in, and Halibel was captured and chained up in Stilbern, the Quincy palace. What came of her then? The manga left it hanging in a big way.
6 She's A Pack Leader
Meet Halibel's three fracciones, or minions: Sung-Sun (left), Mila Rose (center), and Apacci (right). They are all fiercely loyal to Halibel, and they will take any risk or pay any price to fight for her, even if it's against impossible odds, such as when they challenged a Sternritter.
While Coyote Stark (1st Espada) has a sort of pack mentality, Halibel does, too, and, as a hollow, she recruited these three to be like her friends and sisters. She wanted to protect them and give them strength in numbers, and, as we mentioned earlier, she'll make any sacrifice for them.
5 She's A Confirmed Vasto Lorde
She's a what? A Vasto Lorde is the most powerful type of Menos Grande—even more fearsome than an Adjuchas like Grimmjow is. Grimmjow is one scary guy, but he couldn't possibly take on Halibel and win.
As Hitsugaya once explained, there are very few Vasto Lordes out there, and each one is more powerful than a Soul Reaper Captain. But, of all the Espadas, only Halibel is confirmed to be Vasto Lorde class. It is likely that Ulquiorra, Barragan, and Coyote Stark are of the same class, but we can't guarantee it.
4 She's Perceptive
Unlike the blockhead Yammy and the overconfident Aaroniero, Halibel is a witty and perceptive Espada, much like Stark and Ulquiorra are. This makes her even more fearsome, and she can use psychological warfare, too.
She easily recognized Ichigo's and Grimmjow's spiritual pressure as being roughly similar, and she also realized that Hitsugaya was secretly insecure about his ability to protect Momo, and he was more afraid than he was willing to admit. Nothing fools this Espada.
3 She's Cool-Headed
Not only is Halibel a sharp and perceptive woman, but she has the personality to go with that and make her a fearsome fighter on all levels. Grimmjow and Nnoitora like to charge ahead and act brutal, while Halibel waits and thinks first.
She's patient and deliberate, and she's not too quick to unleash her devastating power and throw around to show off. But, when her three beloved fracciones are in danger—or if they need avenging—Halibel is ready to step in, which brings us to our next point.
2 She's Proud
Halibel isn't too quick to fight, but, when she does, she has a stubborn pride to match Grimmjow's and Nnoitora's step for step. She is 100% confident in her power and her ability to avenge her fracciones, and she looks down on Hitsugaya during their entire fight.
In fact, when Halibel gets the upper hand early in their duel, she scoffs at Hitsugaya, commenting along the lines of "I can't believe my fracciones lost to the likes of you." But she ate those words when Hitsugaya got the edge on her later on.
1 Her Unique Alternate Look
Here's the fun part about Shonen action anime like Bleach: even when the series ends, you can keep exploring the story with games! Fighting games, RPGs, and more are great ways to see your favorite characters again, and, in this case, we get the Brave Souls game series.
In it, Halibel has a unique look that redesigns her release form so she looks even more like a monster. Her hair is gray this time, and she's got two upright horns and even a tail—not to mention black, pointed fingernails.