Bleach/Tropes L-N

Tropes for Bleach, L to N:
"Yamamoto: 'Damn kids!'"
 * Lamarck Was Right: Chapter 405 revealed that
 * Last-Name Basis: Ichigo with his friends, save for Rukia, Tatsuki, Keigo and Mizuiro. Chad is debatable, as "Chad" is Ichigo's mispronunciation of "Sado" which became a nickname that stuck, though all other characters use Sado. Averted/subverted in the English dub and to a lesser degree in the English manga, as most characters are referred to by first name, while Chad is "Chad" to everyone, when in the original it's only Ichigo who uses the nickname. Also, Hitsugaya, Urahara, Aizen, and a couple more.
 * The English manga doesn't go quite as far with the aversion/subversion, as many of the characters who used last names continue to do so, but some exceptions remain (Ichigo's friends; Renji, Momo and Izuru; and Ukitake and Kyoraku).
 * Taking it further, Ichigo and Ishida both drop honorifics when speaking to one another. Of course Ichigo rarely uses honorifics anyway; Ishida is a more interesting case since normally he has a "well-mannered young man" speaking style from which he only deviates when he's talking to Ichigo (and some enemies, not to mention his father).
 * Ichigo seems to always use given names for the people he met in Soul Society, whether he befriended them or not. This greatly irritates Byakuya and Hitsugaya.
 * Late Arrival Spoiler: Aizen is evil, Gin is a subverted Red Herring, Aizen is evil, Tousen goes with them because he's a Knight Templar, Aizen is evil, Shinji Hirako is a Badass, Aizen is evil, Urahara isn't as nice as he seems, and oh yeah, AIZEN IS EVIL!!!
 * Anything that's aired in the often-delayed American dub. If it's gotten that far, it's been around long enough that it doesn't need spoiler tags.
 * The Fullbring arc is suffering from this as well, what with a magazine cover showing
 * Leaning on the Fourth Wall: In chapter 430 when Karin and Yuzu are talking about Ichigo Karin says "He's just a normal guy, you know? He's not some anime character."
 * Leeroy Jenkins: Yamamoto had a plan to regroup the Gotei 13, give Urahara the time needed to set up a suitable battleground in Karakura Town for the captains to fight Aizen, and stabilise a method of transport for captain-class shinigami to travel to Hueco Mundo. Ichigo, and later Renji and Rukia (with Byakuya's help), throw him a curveball by charging off to Hueco Mundo to rescue Orihime, regardless of their plans, responsibilities and orders.

"Yuzu: (crying) Brother's goooone!!!
 * Left for Dead: Happens a fair bit in this manga. Byakuya in particular has a habit of doing this but he's not the only one.
 * The Lost Lenore: Hisana Kuchiki, of the Type A variety. Without her, much of this manga would never have unfolded the way it did as it's the reason for the Byakuya/Rukia relationship and all the consequences that have come from that. Even Byakuya's conflicting vows stem from the fact he married Hisana in the first place because it was the rebellion he caused to both marry her and then adopt Rukia (on her request) that led to his second vow and the start of all his problems that led to the Soul Society arc unfolding the way it did.
 * Leotard of Power: Yoruichi's latest outfit, in combination with some Zettai Ryouiki.
 * Grimmjow's resurrección.
 * Lethal Chef: In a Filler episode, a ghost needs the help of a couple of shinigami to make a cake for his mother. Unfortunately for the ghost, his helpers, Yumichika, Hanatarou and Rin, are absolutely hopeless chefs and their taste testers (Renji and Sado) end up going into hiding because of the amount of times they were forced to eat vomit-inducing cake.
 * Lethal Harmless Powers: Orihime's powers are technically shields. However, because one repels on both sides of its surface, it can be used to split something in half, and her powers are technically classified as Reality Warper powers. As of Chapter 449,
 * Let's Get Dangerous: Although it was short lived Pesche and Dondochakka suddenly revealing that they're not bumbling fools was awesome. Too bad their opponent is Crazy Prepared.
 * The quirky father, Isshin Kurosaki, confronts Grand Fisher, and reveals that he was once a Captain level Shinigami. He then kills Grand Fisher with a single attack.
 * Don't forget Captain Shunsui Kyoraku and his barely Evil Counterpart Coyote Starrk. Both of these men are lazy as hell (though Shunsui is more laid back and fun loving, Stark's just apathetic) and both have female subordinates that get away with beating the hell out of them in a very funny fashion. But should you get either one of these lazy bums to get off their asses and fight, well nice knowing you. And Ukitake, who seemed happy to continue sitting around being the Nice Guy until Starrk upped the ante against Kyoraku. Ukitake dispenses with his 'honour' thing to join in the fight. Still smiling, still polite, all whilst playing Catch and Return with the Espada's Beam Spammage.
 * Shinji pulls one on Aizen after Gin
 * It's two men fighting over who's the Fairest of Them All and Hilarity Ensues. It's Plucky Comic Relief in the middle of all that serious fighting. It's one Berserk Button too many getting pressed resulting in the villain losing it. It's a villainous Finishing Move activating his opponent's Hidden Depths. It's a fight that switches from funny to serious before the fanbase can say "Curb Stomp Battle". It's Charlotte Cuulhorne being defeated by Yumichika "Let's Get Dangerous" Ayasegawa.
 * Orihime against
 * Let's Split Up, Gang!. During the Season 7 (Hueco Mundo Sneak Entry) and Season 9 (New Captain Shusuke Amagai).
 * Let Them Die Happy: Right before her execution, Rukia's last wish is for Ichigo and friends to be granted safe passage back home, Yamamoto agrees. Captain Unohana remarks that although he lied, he did it out of kindness so that Rukia may die peacefully.
 * Lies to Children: Some American fans often accuse Rukia of using Blatant Lies when she tells souls that Soul Society is a wonderful place to go to despite the fact she's simply doing her job to expedite the natural cycle of souls passing to Soul Society. Given the length of time between Soul Society's first mention and it's actual appearance in the storyline, fans also debate whether this is simply an example of the evolution of the afterlife's concept in the author's mind.
 * It should also be noted that only the districts with higher numbers are bad-- Ddistricts 1-20 should be pretty good, and it doesn't really get BAD until maybe District 50.
 * Lightning Bruiser: Ichigo is already absurdly powerful. His bankai not only condenses his spiritual pressure, making it much stronger and allowing him to fight longer than most, but also makes him faster than the fastest Captain in Soul Society. Of course, this is to be expected from someone with his growth rate.
 * Like Brother and Sister: Ichigo and Rukia partially fit this trope; Word of God states that the two are "more than friends, but less than lovers."
 * Little Miss Snarker: Karin. As seen in this exchange, while Ichigo is with the Vizards trying not to give in to his inner Hollow:

Karin: Stop crying. He's fine. Just give it two or three days 'til he shows up."

""Hearts? You humans are always talking about hearts. It's as if you have them in your hand...What is a heart? If I rip open your chest, will I see it? If I crack open your skull, will I find it in there?""
 * Load-Bearing Hero
 * Loads and Loads of Characters: The page has a break down of just how many characters this series has by Arc. Wikipedia lists it as having 147 speaking characters, and that isn't including the spirits of the Zanpakuto or the Shun Shun Rikka. Kubo has said that when he has trouble writing plotlines and new materials, he begins to think of new characters, usually en masse, hence new characters usually arriving in large sets (the Soul Reapers, the Vizards, the Espada, and so forth). Heroic characters rarely die, resulting in long periods between seeing various characters and sometimes fights even finishing off-panel.
 * Locked Out of the Loop: The reason Tatsuki once got angry enough to put Ichigo's head through a window.
 * Look What I Can Do Now!: Ichigo has a truly epic example after achieving bankai. Other characters have similar moments after a trainning arc.
 * Loophole Abuse:
 * After the Soul Society arc, Byakuya's vow conflict no longer has such a hold on him and he begins exploring the value of loop-holes to his vow to uphold the law. When Yamamoto orders him to bring Renji and Rukia back from the human world, he notes that Yamamoto failed to give him any orders on what to do with the pair once they'd returned home. As a result, as soon as he gets them home, he promptly helps them get to Hueco Mundo so they can aid Ichigo in the search for Orihime.
 * After the Soul Society arc, Uryu's father agreed to restore his powers on the condition that Uryu never associate with Shinigami or their allies ever again. Uryuu, however, concludes that because Soul Society has withdrawn their support from the mission to rescue Orihime, Ichigo is not an ally of the shinigami and, as a substitute shinigami, he's not even a shinigami himself. Ichigo calls him out on this and Uryuu blatently admits he's thinking of it as a loophole.
 * From the Amagai Arc, when the Gotei 13 is ordered to apprehend Ichigo, Byakuya washes his hands of the entire affair, instead ordering Renji to take full control of the squad's response to those orders. It takes Renji a few moments to realise that what Byakuya is really doing is merely playing lip-service to the order by creating a situation where he can turn a blind eye to any help his rebellious, Ichigo-supporting, vice-captain may give Ichigo.
 * Love Imbues Life: Fullbrings.
 * Love Makes You Evil:
 * Loving Bully: In one FAQ Rukia says that someone was a schmuck towards her in the Shinigami school because he couldn't tell her his feelings. Unsurprisingly, chapter -17 (a bonus chapter) seems to indicate that that someone was Renji.
 * Lower Deck Episode: Chapter 480.
 * Made of Iron: Chad, full stop. He had an iron girder fall on his head and then collided with a motorcycle. Afterwards, he carried the driver to the hospital because he was injured. He was only slightly late for school. This was before he even got his powers.
 * Made of Phlebotinum: Everything in the Soul Society is made of spirit particles.
 * Mad Doctor: When Mayuri Korotsuchi isn't being a Mad Scientist, he's busy "helping" "mend" people. And by "helping" to "mend" people what we really mean is that he's playing Mad Doctor.
 * Mad Scientist: Mayuri Kurotsuchi, Szayel Granz and Ran'Tao.
 * Mad Scientist's Beautiful Daughter: Nemu Kurotuschi. Mildly subverted in that she hasn't ever even met Ichigo to be attracted to him. Her interactions with Uryuu have created a keen following, however.
 * Magic Is a Monster Magnet -- Due to Supernaturally Delicious and Nutritious
 * Magic Skirt: Kubo is not at all fond of Panty Shots (although he really LOVES some other features of the female body), even when it should happen according the laws of gravity. Notable examples are Nemu, Lisa and Rukia, the latter being the worst offender. Averted with Harribel, who seems to be Going Commando.
 * Magical Girl: Charlotte Cuuhlhourne is definitely a parody. Even more obvious in the anime.
 * Major Injury Underreaction: More than a few characters react minimally or even barely at all to major injuries. Even before their powers awakened, Sado shrugged off a steel girder falling on him and Orihime laughed off being hit by a car.
 * Male Gaze: No shortage in this manga.
 * Malevolent Masked Men: Yamamoto found himself confronting a group of people so heavily masked and cloaked it was impossible to tell even their gender.
 * The Man Behind the Monsters
 * Marshmallow Hell: many examples, see trope page for detail.
 * Martial Pacifist: Hisagi, Kyoraku, Tousen (allegedly), and maybe Kira.
 * Mask Power: The trope is played straight by Vizards, who gain power when they put on Hollow masks, and inverted by the Arrancar, who become stronger when they remove their masks.
 * Masquerade: The hollow-hunting activities of shinigami are kept secret from ordinary humans through copious use of memory-erasing devices.
 * Mass Hypnosis: Aizen's shikai ability.
 * Master Actor: Aizen.
 * Meaningful Echo: The Memories of the Rain arc towards the beginning of the manga has Rukia briefly flashback to someone telling her there are two types of fight (for life and for pride). Towards the end of the Soul Society arc we're given both the context of that comment and the identity of the person who said them.
 * Meaningful Name: Ichigo. (No, not strawberry.) It's mentioned during the first Memories in the Rain Arc and he actually hangs a lampshade on this when talking to Jidanbou: "Ichi" means one, "go" means protector. Kurosaki in of itself could be considered a symbol, because it has "kuro" in it, which means "black," which is a color associated with shinigami (which is why fans often refer to Ichigo's Hollow as "Shirosaki," "shiro" meaning "white").
 * Zanpakuto and Resurrección are prone to having these as well.
 * takes the cake though.
 * Mega Twintails: In the anime, when Kyouraku's zanpakutou Katen Kyoukatsu takes human form, his tachi's human form includes Mega Twintails.
 * Memory Gambit:
 * Mental World: Ichigo meets Zangetsu and fights his inner hollow a number of times inside his inner world. It takes the form of a sideways city. When Ichigo's upset, the sky darkens, and when he's especially saddened or angsty, it rains. In a late chapter,.
 * This is part of the reason why Zangetsu is so insistent that Ichigo learn how to use him properly during the first several arcs. Zangetsu hates the rain.
 * Mentor Occupational Hazard: Kaien Shiba and Soken Ishida both go out in really ugly ways, in the presence of the ones they were mentoring.
 * Mind Rape: Not only that, but apparently he's been doing it for a long time, and when his victims, he only makes it worse and eventually breaks them. This almost happens to.
 * Mind Screw: Baura is a fish. And he's able to fly. And he has an entire dimension inside his mouth. He can also shoot lightning, along with regurgitating anything he's previously swallowed - like fire and dust.
 * Chapter 453. All of it.  Can't comprehend it? That's OK, you don't have to.
 * Mini-Dress of Power: Nemu's shikakasou is this, showing She's Got Legs. The Turn Back the Pendulum Arc shows us that Lisa was also like this when she was Kyouraku's vice-captain.
 * Minor Injury Overreaction: Happens a few times. Examples include Medezeppi and Charlotte.
 * Mirror Match: During the fight with Kenpachi, Ichigo is forced into a Battle in the Center of the Mind with himself to prove to Zangetsu that he's worthy of wielding him. However, this "other Ichigo" turns out to be Ichigo's inner Hollow. This happens again in Ichigo's Vizard training, only this time the hollow can use Getsuga Tensho and Bankai. One of the filler arc characters can mimic anyone else and Ichigo ends up fighting a "copy" of himself. Also one of Szayel's powers.
 * The latest filler arc has all the shinigami cloned so there have been several of these, including Kenpachi fighting his double
 * Mistaken for Masturbating: Ichigo's father jokingly considers this when his son is talking to ghosts in his room.
 * In Color Bleach, when Yoruichi finds Ukitake stuck to a tree with his chest showing (Soi-Fon and Kiyone did that to take pictures of him) she thought he was enjoying some Personal Time.
 * Mixed Archetypes: Ichigo - Messiah/Anti-Hero.
 * Moment Killer: Ichigo throws Rukia at Renji right after his sappy, heroic rescue.
 * Nel smashing into Ichigo's midsection while he's talking to Orihime after the Grimmjow fight.
 * In chapter 228, Rukia and Orihime are veering close to a touching moment, and Hiyori quite literally falls from the sky and drags Orihime off.
 * At the end of the Soul Society arc, Renji visits the bed-ridden Byakuya and things begin to get sentimental (in a manly way). Cue Ichigo bursting through Byakuya's third-floor window, shouting Renji's name practically into a very shocked Byakuya's ear. Renji is not amused.
 * Monster Roommate
 * Monstrosity Equals Weakness: The more powerful a Menos or Arrancar is, the more human-like they appear. The lowest-level Menos are as tall as skyscrapers and are shredded like wet tissue paper by the main character, while the Arrancar Espada all appear to be human and take several episodes to fight.
 * Mood Whiplash: Kubo admits that he injects humor into the story at any point where he just feels bored. This can lead to awkward situations like Arrancar maiming or Aizen slaughtering people one scene, and funny arguments between protagonists the next! Can seem particularly bizarre the many, many times said arguments take place while an extremely powerful villain is right there.
 * In a possible Lampshade hanging, even Aizen gets annoyed at Isshin and Ichigo after their battle, and just says what he plans to do.
 * Nel beating down Nnoitra with a dead serious expression on her face before turning and giving Ichigo a bone-crushing hug.
 * The fight between
 * Chapter 480 has a brutal version. The timid new shinigami, Kyuki, encounters a hollow and immediately runs to try and find his friend, the other shinigami sent with him. The scene is mostly played for comedy, but then
 * Mook Chivalry
 * Mook Maker:
 * Also
 * Morality Pet: Delightfully subverted with Yachiru Kusajishi, who looks the part, but eagerly enjoys watching Blood Knight Zaraki have his fun, and always tries to see to it that he gets to have more fun.
 * Rangiku to Gin, although it didn't stop him from leaving.
 * The Movie: Four so far.
 * Also, Warner Bros. began developing a live action movie in 2010.
 * Mr. Fanservice: Almost every male character; this is the reason why this is one of those shonen series that manages to gain a substantial female following.
 * Ms. Fanservice: Happens a lot in this manga.
 * Multi-Armed and Dangerous: The released form of the Espada Arrancar.
 * Multiple Reference Pun: Arrancar is read as the Spanish verb for 'uproot' or 'tear' and written with the kanji for 'tear, violate, smash' and 'face, mask.'
 * Mundane Object Amazement : Rukia is amazed at the way humans drink out of juice boxes, by poking the straw through the foil hole and using it to drink. In the anime she even tells Hanatarou about it as if she'd mastered some difficult skill by being able to do it.
 * When Hitsugaya's advance guard settle into the human world to prepare for the Arrancar invasion, Ikkaku is so amazed at the idea that shops can sell multitudes of neatly wrapped onigiri (and order even more when they run out!) that he's convinced it must be a conspiracy - he can't imagine humans being capable of such a feat without something dodgy going on behind the scenes.
 * Mundane Utility: We've seen that Hitsugaya will use his zanpakutou to create ice for cold drinks on hot days and we've seen that Yamamoto will use his zanpakutou to light fires as needed (ovens, cooking potatos, staying warm). However, apparently this problem is so pervasive amongst the captains of Soul Society that Yamamoto ended up having to issue a blanket ban on the mundane use of bankai.
 * The Musical: The (several) "Bleach Rock Musicals"; live stage adaptations that very loosely follow the plot of the manga but focus on Soul Society and the Soul Reapers: Orihime and Chad only appear once or twice and Ishida doesn't appear at all.
 * Must Make Amends: In the rogue zanpakuto filler arc, Ichigo is tricked into breaking Yamamoto-Genryusai's barrier, allowing Muramasa to find out the location of . Ichigo, upon learning his mistake, determines that he must go stop Muramasa so that he can fix his mistake.
 * My Kung Fu Is Stronger Than Yours
 * My Name Is Inigo Montoya: Ishida vs. Mayuri. Ichigo vs. Grandfisher. Interestingly enough, neither one succeeds in killing their opponent.
 * Naked First Impression: Ichigo and Yoruichi, the first time she takes her human form.
 * Naked on Arrival: Yoruichi's human form. Also, Wonderweiss.
 * Names to Run Away From Really Fast: Coyote Starrk, the Primera Espada.
 * Kenpachi Zaraki is an in-universe example. "Zaraki" is the name of the most dangerous district in Soul Society, and "Kenpachi" is the title given to the best swordsman in Soul Society. Even Ichigo finds the idea of fighting him too unsettling to pursue a second time.
 * Nazis By Any Other Name: The Vandenreich apparently. Hell, their name alone says it all!
 * Needle in a Stack of Needles
 * Nested Mouths: All Hollows below Menos class have a second set of teeth within the first, indicating the remnant of the human soul inside them.
 * Neutral Female: Orihime 90% of the time. When Orihime tries to break out of this, in a surprisingly effective way, she's promptly told by Ichigo to stay out of the fight.
 * New Powers as the Plot Demands: Ichigo will spontaneously develop a new power quite often right in the middle of an important fight.
 * Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: In the Zanpakuto Unknown Tales Arc, everyone wants to rescue  from Muramasa's barrier-cage.   and the ensuring conflict causes the   At this point, it's revealed
 * In Chapter 415,
 * Nice Job Fixing It, Villain:
 * The Nicknamer: Yachiru, to everyone.
 * Nietzsche Wannabe: Ulquiorra is essentially an avatar of Nihilism (as each of the top ten Espada represent things that cause death, some better than others). Several characters in anime, manga and gaming have fit that classification before, and they are always excruciatingly powerful, but Ulquiorra is positively horrifying with it in the most cold, emotionless way possible.


 * Nigh Invulnerable: As one of the strongest characters in the series, Aizen has long been Made of Iron, but his ability to defy attacks and injuries that would kill anyone else reaches epic proportions
 * Ninja Pirate Zombie Robot: Most of the characters are ghost samurai. Secret mobile corps members like Soifon and Yoruichi are pretty much Ninja as well.
 * No Big Deal: Rukia has a Men in Black-style "flashy-thing" kicking around.
 * No Body Left Behind: When Hollows and Arrancar are destroyed, their bodies disolve into thin air.
 * No Export for You: Every Play Station 2 or PSP video game of the series (this includes the Blade Battlers, Heat The Soul, and Soul Carnival series).
 * They are finally going to bring over a PlayStation 3 game: Bleach: Soul Ressereccion.
 * No Eye in Magic: Kaname Tousen, being blind, is immune to, and when this is brought up, reveals.
 * No, I Am Behind You: Kubo's favorite trope. Practically every fight involves several examples of this.
 * Noblewoman's Laugh: The unnamed female arrancar that controls Aizen's hollow fortress in anime episodes 213 and 214 has such a laugh. She displays it at the end of episode 213.
 * Nominal Hero: Kenpachi and Mayuri don't care about the greater good or even just the good. Kenpachi is motived solely by the enjoyment of the fight and Mayuri has the opportunity to experiment to his heart's content.
 * Noodle Incident: We never did find out about Elevnth Division Lieutenant Kusajishi Yachiru's namesake, that Kenpachi would aspire to follow in his footsteps.
 * Isshin's backstory is still a completely mystery: he's a shinigami who voluntarily sacrificed his powers, lives a human life, and associates with exiles such as Urahara and quincies such as Ryuuken. On the same topic, Ryuuken's backstory is just as mysterious as Isshin's, including the real reason why he hates being a quincy and why his father gave him the Quincy Cross that symbolises being the "last quincy".
 * No Ontological Inertia:
 * Normally I Would Be Dead Now: Many, many examples. Ichigo  are easily the worst abusers in the series, though
 * No Sell: Most enemies are randomly immune to Ichigo's powerful moves.
 * Let alone Szayel who just happens to be immune to whatever Ishida throws at him, making the poor boy useless against him.
 * Inverted gloriously in 417+ --
 * Not Distracted by the Sexy: With all the fanservice around, it goes without saying that most characters rarely react to it all. Ichigo, in fact, stands out with the way he reacts to such things. Kon and Keigo are also in the minority of those who react, as is Mizuho, who went a little crazy over Ikkaku's shaved head.
 * Not Quite Dead: Too many to list...
 * Not So Harmless:
 * Starrk, the lazy, pacifist Espada who is unconcerned about Aizen's plot, is Espada #1.
 * Yammy, the complete moron who gets outsmarted by every hero he fights and can't even figure out who he's supposed to be killing without Ulquiorra looking over his shoulder and telling him what to do,.
 * Wonderweiss, the happily insane child who.
 * Not So Weak: Chad, who will not fight for his own benefit due to his promise to his grandfather.
 * Not Worth Killing: Often, including to Ichigo. Subverted when Kenpachi attempts to spare, saying that it's not worth his time to finish off someone who can't fight back. This only further enrages him, so he makes a last ditch attack on Kenpachi, who finishes him off.
 * Number Two: The Lieutenants.