Summary
The Hueco Mundo inhabitants have been the thorns in the Shinigami sides for centuries, being wandering spirits who cause chaos in the Living World and Seireitei by filling their bottomless voids with innocent souls. Essentially trapped in purgatory, the Hollow can theoretically exist for all eternity and have, therefore, established a hierarchy of power to keep things ever-so-slightly orderly in the afterlife ofBleach.
When hundreds of Hollow converge, a Menos is formed, which can then slowly gain power until it reaches the Vasto Lorde state, theStrongest Hollowform. Arrancar are in a class of their own, as these overpowered Hollow have managed to gain Shinigami abilities by using Hogyoku or removing their masks, granting themthe beastly Bankai-like transformationsknown as Resurreccion.
Updated June 25, 2025, by Oluwatokiloba Folami:The early stages of the Bleach anime and manga series established Hollows as serious threats. These cool but radical monsters were what Ichigo had to hunt as he formed an alliance with Rukia, a Shinigami. Over the course of the series,the strength and overall importance of Hollowshave been greatly diminished, particularly with much more menacing threats like Yhwach and Sosuke Aizen being on the scene, but even then, some Hollows remain unforgettable. Aside from the run-of-the-mill Hollows, more evolved versions like Espadas, Arrancars, and even Vasto Lordes are capable of giving various characters in Bleach a run for their money should they underestimate them.
The following article contains spoilers forBleach: Thousand-Year Blood War.
Arrancar (Adjuchas) #13
As an ambitious individual, Edrad Liones, alongside other Arrancars, wanted to become a Vasto Lorde, the highest class of Hollows. However, despite eating 3000 Hollows, Edrad was unable to become a Vasto Lorde. He met Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez, to whom he offered himself in service to.
While Edrad never became a Vasto Lorde, he was a powerful Adjuchas, powerful enough to face Ikkaku Madarame, the current lieutenant of the 11th Division. While Edrad eventually lost against Ikkaku, he managed to put up a fight,surprising Ikkaku with his Resurreccion, Volcanica, and even momentarily overpowering him with his Reiatsu. As an Arrancar, Edrad embodied more than just brute strength, as he proved himself to be highly analytical in battle, taking advantage of enemy weaknesses.
23Choe Neng Poww
Arrancar #25
Like Edrad Liones, Poww also faced the Lieutenant of the 11th Division, Ikkaku Madarame, but unlike his fellow Hollow, he completely crushed the lieutenant. Their battle happened at the Fake Karakura Town, where Baraggan Louisenbairn and he, by extension, were summoned by Aizen to face the Gotei 13.
Choe Neng Poww was a member of Baraggan’s Fraccion, and even after they joined Aizen, they stillreferred to Baraggan as his king and god. As an Arrancar, Poww was iconic in that he was large and highly physically gifted. With a single punch, he was able to send the captain of the 7th division, Sajin Komamura, flying for several miles but was eventually defeated by the Captain’s Bankai.
22Shawlong Koufang
Arrancar (Adjuchas) #11
Similar to Edrad Liones, Shawlong Koufang was a member of Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez’s five Fraccion and devoted himself to him. He was also the 11th Arrancar in Aizen’s army and rose above his fellow Adjuchas to become the leader of Grimmjow’s Fraccion.
As a character, Shawlong is highly intelligent and analytical in battle. His intelligence also comes from his long life, as he was the only one among Grimmjow’s Fraccion to be older than Grimmjow himself. In Shawlong’s battle against Toshiro Hitsugaya, the captain of the 10th Division, he managed to temporarily overwhelm the captain. The tides of battle only changed when Hitsugaya received permission to remove his limiter, showing that Shawlong was not an enemy he could easily make work of.
21Wonderweiss Margela
Arrancar #77 (The Only Modified Arrancar To Exist)
Despite not being an Espada, Wonderweiss' spiritual level is ranked as one. Unlike normal Arrancars, Wonderweiss was modified by Aizen specifically for sealing Yamamoto’s powers. Moreover, due to Wonderweiss' immense regenerative speed, complicated tactics are hardly used in battle, as Wonderweiss simply attacks with instinctual force without a care for damage taken.
Aside from several attacks like Cero, Bala, and Vagido, Wonderweiss primarily attacks with physical force through hand-to-hand combat. During Aizen’s battle against Yamamoto, Wonderweiss interrupts and temporarily seals the effects from the captain-commander’s Zanpakuto, which is impressive in its own right. Unfortunately for the Arrancar, even without his Zanpakuto, Yamamoto remains a deadly threat and simply uses hand-to-hand combat to defeat the modified Arrancar.
20Gantenbainne Mosqueda
107th Arrancar
The Privaron Espada comes out of nowhere and makes for a decent opposing force for the trio of Ichigo, Uryu, and Chad to fight against. In the case of the latter, the Fullbringer has to fight against an Arrancar with an afro who uses punch daggers, making him a perfect fit for Chad’s brute fighting style. He’s one of the more honorable Arrancar in Aizen’s army who makes it a point to slowly match Chad’s strength before finally taking him seriously and transforming to show off his true power.
Despite showing off his released form, he’s no match for Chad’s brute strength when he unlocks the attacking power of his left arm, the Brazo Izquierda del Diablo. It takes one shot to bring Mosqueda down, who manages to escape after losing this battle. While the exact details of his fate aren’t cleared up, there’s no denying that he left this encounter with his life intact.
19Cirucci Sanderwicci
105th Arrancar
One of the Privaron Espada whom Uryu has to fight inBleachis Cirucci Sanderwicci, a villain witha rather cocky personalitywho boasts a decent wealth of power. Thankfully, Uryu’s Quincy skills are competent enough to take her out after a rough and grueling battle.
Her released form let her take on the form of a flying beast who could use her tail to dish out some serious damage. After losing to Uryu, she is taken to Szayelaporro Granz, who murders her in cold blood before her corpse is revived by Mayuri Kurotsuchi during the Thousand-Year Blood War arc.
18Dordoni Alessandro Del Socaccio
Arrancar Cientecimo Tercero (103rd)
The Privaron Espada certainly made for a neat idea, serving as three members of the Espada who were of a lower rank and the first opponents that Ichigo and his friends encountered while trying to invade Hueco Mundo. However, they were introduced right before they became irrelevant, and it was clear that their powers weren’t anything to fear despite the heroes facing a tough time dealing with them at first.
Out of the trio, Dordoni was definitely the toughest fighter of the lot. This character put up a good fight against Ichigo, but the truth was that his placement in the story only served as a way to make Ichigolook as threatening as possiblewhen he got serious. As a result, despite boasting a pretty remarkable Resurreccion, it didn’t take long for him to be disposed of before he eventually became Mayuri’s puppet.
17Luppi Antenor
Sexta (6th) Espada
By all accounts, Luppi should’ve been one of the strongest Arrancar in the series, given the fact that he earned the title of the 6th Espada. He certainly pulls his weight in a battle against Rangiku and Hitsugaya, although he almost loses his life before running away. However, before he could really show the true extent of his power, Grimmjow came back and killed Luppi in an unceremonious fashion to earn his place back in Aizen’s good books.
He does come back as one of Mayuri’s puppets, but nothing will make up for the fact that Luppi was a pretty pointless character with one of the more boring Resurreccions out of all the Arrancar. He was pretty powerful in his own right, but his power definitely waned in comparison to some of the stronger and more notable Hollow in the series.
16Zommari Rureaux
Septima (7th) Espada
Most people would assume that the 7th Espada would be a threat that anyone would worry about, and that was definitely the case when Zommari Rureaux revealed the true extent of his powers. The fact that he could control one’s Bankai and turn it against the user certainly set the stage for a high-stakes battle where any Shinigami would have their work cut out for them.
While Rukia definitelystruggled against this Espada, Byakuya simply used Zommari as a way to show just how strong he really was. The use of Kido blocked any attempt from Zommari to steal his Bankai, and Byakuya’s quick speed allowed him to utterly humiliate Zommari before landing a final blow on him to take out the Arrancar once and for all. It was pretty pathetic to see this Espada spout praises for Aizen as his final words before eventually meeting his demise.
15Yammy Llargo
Diez (10) / Cero (0) Espada
Yammy is an Arrancar who looks pretty imposing and certainly shows off just how much strength he really has. The man is already pretty strong as is, but what makes this Espada even tougher is the fact that his Resurreccion allows him to reach a truly monstrous size that can strike fear in the hearts of many.
However, toByakuya and Kenpachi, Yammy is nothing more than small fry, with the two arguing over who should bring him down and defeat this enemy instead of giving him the respect he deserves. This enrages Yammy to no end, who ultimately fails to understand that he was truly outclassed in this battle and didn’t stand a chance against this unlikely duo.
