Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez

"Whether you're a Human, or a Shinigami or an Arrancar, anyone who looks at me like they're underestimating my power, I'll smash every one of 'em into oblivion!"

- Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez

Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez (グリムジョー・ジャガージャック, Gurimujō Jagājakku) is an Arrancar who is the Sexta (6th) Espada in Sōsuke Aizen's affiliated army and a villain from the manga and anime series Bleach.

Past
Grimmjow was once a small Adjuchas-class Menos Hollow that wandered Hueco Mundo, devouring other Hollows. One day he came across a group of other Menos including Di Roy Rinker, Yylfordt Granz, Nakeem Grindina, Edrad Liones, and Shawlong Kūfang. Di Roy tried to devour him, only for Grimmjow to strike with surprising speed and power, killing two unnamed members of the group and take a bite out of Di Roy’s face. The others were impressed by his power and Shawlong came forward and the two introduced themselves. He then asked Grimmjow to join the group and they all bowed before him, explaining that their goal was to become Vasto Lorde-class Hollows. However they needed a power strong enough to guide them, which they saw in Grimmjow and Shawlong asked him to become their “king”. But much later, Shawlong and the others told him that they’d given up in their quest since after eating their 1000th Hollow, they’d felt no increase in power. That day marked the 3000th Hollow they’d eaten and still felt no change so they knew that it was pointless to continue trying. Grimmjow told they could give up if they wanted, but he wouldn’t do so and decided to leave the group. However before he could, Shawlong asked him to eat part of each of them since they’d realized doing so would halt a Hollow’s evolution. This would make it so they wouldn’t regress back into Gillians and Grimmjow called them cowards. However Shawlong said they realized that which Hollows would become Vasto-Lordes may have been determined even before they became Hollows. They knew Grimmjow would be the only to get that level and he granted their request, taking a bite out of each. Later, Grimmjow became an Arrancar and was eventually assigned his former Hollow comrades as Fracción.

Attacking Karakura Town
After Ulquiorra Cifer returned from his mission to analyze Ichigo’s power and was explaining why he didn’t kill him, Grimmjow interrupted. He said that he should have killed Ichigo, whether he thought he was worthy or not. However, Ulquiorra said that Aizen was concerned with his growth rate, not his current power and if his unstable power didn’t kill him, Ichigo could be useful. Grimmjow argued that he could just as easily become a threat to them, but Ulquiorra said that if that happened, he would take care of Ichigo himself. However, the 6th Espada decided to fix the 4th Espada’s “mistake” and brought his Fracción to Karakura Town. When they all arrived, Grimmjow and the others scanned the town with their Pesquisas, discovering numerous spiritual energy signatures. The 6th Espada then ordered the group to kill anybody with even the slightest bit of spiritual energy and his Fracción set out across town. Later when Di Roy was killed by Rukia Kuchiki, she and Ichigo were confronted by Grimmjow, who introduced himself as Arrancar 6. He then asked who the stronger of the two was and Rukia told Ichigo to get back, only for the 6th Espada to suddenly impale her through the stomach, noting it wasn’t her. Ichigo angrily attacked Grimmjow, only for him to easily block and the Arrancar told Ichigo to release his Bankai, saying he’d do the same to him that he did to Rukia. The Shinigami attacked Grimmjow again, but he easily sidestepped the attack and grabbed Ichigo with his sword, using it to throw him away. They continued to trade blows until the 6th Espada sent Ichigo crashing into some buildings. Grimmjow said that his Bankai was unimpressive, since it only enhanced his speed, but as the smoke cleared, Ichigo attacked with his Getsuga Tensho. The 6th Espada managed to block, though it did leave a large scar on his torso, but instead of being angry, he was delighted by the attack. Grimmjow laughed, saying that Ichigo had just proven himself worth killing and drew his Zanpakuto, stating it was time for his own Zanpakuto release. However suddenly Kaname Tōsen arrived, telling Grimmjow he had launched an unauthorized mission into the Human World and mobilized 5 Arrancar, only to lose all of them. He went on to say Aizen was highly displeased and the 6th Espada’s punishment would be decided back in Hueco Mundo. Tosen opened a Garganta and the two began to leave, though Grimmjow clearly didn’t want to. Ichigo demanded that they finish the fight, but the 6th Espada said the only reason the Shinigami was alive was because the fight was over. Grimmjow pointed out how much of a toll the Getsuga Tensho had taken on Ichigo and even if it didn't, a hundred uses of the attack couldn’t defeat his release state. The 6th Espada told Ichigo his name and pray he never heard it again since it would be the last thing he heard. Upon returning to Las Noches, Aizen decided not to punish Grimmjow, interpreting his actions as an overzealous display of loyalty. Tosen asked for permission to execute the 6th Espada and Grimmjow noted that he just had a personal grudge against him. Tosen just stated that he served justice and didn’t tolerate those who sowed discord, then proceeded to cut off and incinerate Grimmjow’s arm. Enraged, the 6th Espada attempted to attack him, but was stopped by Aizen, who said if he attacked Tosen, then he would punish him, forcing Grimmjow to angrily leave.

Seeking Revenge
A month later, Grimmjow was present at Wonderweiss Margela’s transformation into an Arrancar. He was then chosen by Aizen to go with Yammy Llargo, Wonderweiss, and Luppi Antenor, his replacement as the 6th Espada to attack the human world. Upon arriving, Grimmjow immediately went to find Ichigo and soon found him with Ichigo promising to show how much stronger he’d gotten and released his Bankai. Grimmjow reminded him that his Bankai did nothing against him last time but Ichigo reminded him that it was his Bankai that put that scar on his chest. He proceeded to ask what happened to Grimmjow’s arm, but the Arrancar said he got rid of it because he didn’t need two arms to kill him. Ichigo proceeded to summon his Hollow Mask, which surprised the Arrancar and quickly attacked Grimmjow. He managed to block with his Zanpakuto and Ichigo proceeded to unleash a point blank Getsuga Tensho. This greatly damaged the Arrancar, who noted that Ichigo’s power wasn’t that of a Shingami and asked him what he’d been doing the past month. However Ichigo just blasted Grimmjow with two more Getsuga Tenshos, that sent him falling out of the sky. He moved to attack the Arrancar, but he fired a Cero at Ichigo, which he blocked and Grimmjow appeared behind him. Ichigo countered his attack, but at that moment his Hollow Mask shattered and the Arrancar took the advantage, smacking his enemy away. As Grimmjow continued to attack, he noticed that Ichigo seemed to be losing power and was straining to fight. The Arrancar said he had taken his share of damage, but the fight was over since Ichigo’s power wasn’t enough to beat him. Grimmjow kept attacking and Ichigo tried to summon his mask, only to fail and be knocked flying. The Arrancar used his Zanpakuto to pin Ichigo’s arm down and prepared to incinerate his head with a Cero. But before Grimmjow could fire, his arm was frozen by Rukia, who had come to Ichigo’s aid and she used her Hakuren technique to freeze him completely. She attempted to free Ichigo, only for Grimmjow to break through the ice, grabbing her by the head and charging a Cero. He scolded her for thinking that she could freeze him to death and Ichigo tried to stop him from hurting Rukia, but couldn’t get up. However Shinji Hirako showed up and saved her, saying that he did not like getting involved in Shinigami’s fights, but when the sounds of fighting are so close, one can’t ignore it. Grimmjow asked him who he was, but Shinji said it did not matter and the Arrancar attacked him. The two traded blows and Shinji, realizing how violent Grimmjow was and that the fight was destroying everything around them, summoned his Hollow Mask. He easily defeated the Arrancar and prepared to finish him off with a Cero, but Grimmjow managed to counter with one of his own, minimizing the damage, though still sending him crashing to the ground. Enraged, the Arrancar began his Zanpakuto release, when suddenly Ulquiorra appeared and brought him back to Hueco Mundo.

Reclaiming the 6th Espada
After returning, Aizen had Orihime, whom Ulquiorra had captured, heal Grimmjow’s arm so as to demonstrate her powers. When she succeeded, the Arrancar had her heal the scar on his back over his Espada tattoo. Grimmjow proceeded to impale Luppi with his arm and blow away the top half of his body with a Cero to regain his Espada rank.

Attending Espada Meeting
Later, the 6th Espada attended a meeting of the Espada called by Aizen, where he told them about the arrival of Ichigo, Uryu Ishida, and Yasutora Sado. Grimmjow angrily got up and was leaving to take care of the three on his own, but Aizen subdued him with his spirit energy and told the Espada to wait for the intruders to come to them.

Rescuing Orihime
Soon after this, Grimmjow heard that Ulquiorra had defeated and badly wounded Ichigo, then broke into Orihime’s room, while she was being attacked by Loly Aivirrne and Menoly Mallia. Grimmjow proceeded to easily defeat the two, blasting Menoly with a Cero and tearing out Loly’s leg. The 6th Espada stated that it was to repay her for healing his arm before, but then demanded she help him. Grimmjow brought Orihime to where Ichigo was and commanded her to heal him. She revived him, but the 6th Espada demanded she heal him fully, because he wanted to settle the score.

Confronting Ulquiorra
Orihime didn’t want to and Grimmjow commanded her to do as she was told, only for Ulquiorra to appear. He demanded to know what the 6th Espada was doing, but he didn’t say anything and the 4th Espada demanded he hand Orihime over, since Aizen left her in his care. Grimmjow refused and attacked Ulquiorra, taunting him by saying he was afraid to fight him. The 6th Espada blasted the 4th Espada into the air with a Cero, but he appeared above Grimmjow to fire his own. The 6th Espada blocked it, blowing up the tower they were in and managed to temporarily seal Ulquiorra away with a Caja Negacion. Grimmjow then demanded that Orihime finish healing Ichigo, but she refused, saying that the 6th Espada just wanted to hurt him. However Ichigo got to his feet, asking Orihime to heal him and then Grimmjow, who’d been hurt by Ulquiorra’s Cero so they could fight on equal terms.

Final Fight with Ichigo
Grimmjow and Ichigo proceeded to fight each other, with Grimmjow firing a Cero at him, only for Ichigo to block it. He prepared to use his Getsuga Tensho, but before he could unleash it, the 6th Espada countered with a Cero. As they continued to fight, Grimmjow asked what Ichigo’s reason was for coming to Hueco Mundo, pointing out that if his objective was just to save Orihime, he would’ve grabbed her and left as soon as he saw her. Grimmjow explained that the real reason Ichigo came here was because he wanted to fight, since at his core he was just a Shinigami fighting a Hollow and that it was just a natural instinct as it had been for millennia. They continued fighting and Grimmjow fired another Cero, which Ichigo countered with his Getsuga Tensho. The Cero overcame Ichigo’s attack, but he managed to side-step the blast. The 6th Espada then attacked him from behind with Sonído and though Ichigo blocked, he was still cut. Grimmjow proceeded to fire a Gran Ray Cero at Orihime and Nel Tu and Ichigo summoned his Hollow Mask, allowing him to block the blast. The 6th Espada then entered his Resurrección form and let loose a cry that sent out a shockwave, before he threw himself at Ichigo. As they continued to fight, Grimmjow began laughing and said how much he hated Ichigo’s eyes. The 6th Espada eventually fired a set of dart-like projectiles at Ichigo, but he dodged, only to stand in their way so as to prevent them from hitting Orihime and Nel. Ichigo managed to slash Grimmjow’s chest, causing him to fall to his knees, but he grabbed his blade, saying Ichigo actually thought he could win. The 6th Espada proceeded to impale him in the stomach, then struck Ichigo over and over again, saying how foolish he was for thinking he was stronger. Grimmjow vowed to smash Ichigo to pieces and used his powerful Desgarrón attack. He blocked the technique, but was forced back, eventually regaining his footing and shattering the attack. Ichigo said Grimmjow wasn’t the only one who wanted to win and charged at the 6th Espada, breaking through another Desgarrón and declaring he would defeat everyone in his way and leave with his friends. Ichigo finally got in close and slashed Grimmjow across the chest, sending him falling to the ground. However the 6th Espada rose to his feet, refusing to give up as his Resurrección form dissipated. Grimmjow moved to attack Ichigo, but he grabbed the Arrancar’s hand, telling him to stop. The 6th Espada refused to listen, when suddenly Nnoitra Gilga attacked him out of nowhere. Grimmjow called him a bastard and the 5th Espada was surprised that he was alive, moving to finish him off, but Ichigo stood in his way, protecting Grimmjow as he lay severely injured. It is later revealed by series creator Tite Kubo that Grimmjow is still alive. There is speculation that he has made an appearance in the Thousand-Year Blood War arc, but he was only ever seen from the shadows and only his voice was heard, so this can't really be verified.

Personality
Grimmjow seems to be just a laid-back and disrespectful individual at first, but he actually has a very brutal, temperamental, and blood-thirsty personality. He is blunt and sadistic and has very little respect for authority, saying whatever is on his mind no matter what. Grimmjow often conflicts with Ulquiorra Cifer and believes that Ulquiorra to be weaker than him, something he is eager to prove. He also has a grudge against Ichigo for wounding him in their first two battles and desires to return the favor. Grimmjow is also greatly angered by Ichigo’s belief that he can beat him no matter what, which he interprets as looking down on him. He is highly rude, using no honorifics when speaking except when he talks to Aizen. However, Grimmjow does have some level of honor, refusing to fight a wounded Ichigo since it would be unfair and saving Orihime from Menoly and Loly to repay her for healing his arm. Also despite Grimmjow’s hotheadedness and aggression, he has a good deal of cunning, exploiting any opening he gets from his opponent.

Powers and Abilities
Grimmjow possesses a great deal of spiritual power and is a master of both hand-to-hand combat and swordplay. He also has a high level of physical strength and is highly knowledgeable in combat, able to figure out the aspects of a person's power. Grimmjow has demonstrated the ability to use a Cero, a powerful energy blast used by Hollows and Arrancars, the Gran Ray Cero, a more powerful Cero used only by Espada, Sonído, a technique which lets him move at high speeds, Hierro, a technique that makes his skin extremely durable to attacks, Pesquisa, an Arrancar ability to sense spirit energy, and Garganta, a technique that creates a portal capable of taking him to and from Hueco Mundo. Like all Arrancars, Grimmjow is able to enter his Resurrección form by releasing his Zanpakuto, Pantera, with the release command, “Grind”. In this form, he is even more powerful, gaining an increase in strength, speed, and agility. He is also powerful enough to level a building sized structure, and Desgarrón, his most powerful attack where he generates energy claws that he can send at his target, controlling them with slashing motions.

Trivia

 * Grimmjow’s theme song, as selected by Tite Kubo, is “Bombs LA(A Bombs) – Step Inside”.


 * His name comes from Nicholas Grimmshaw, an English architect noted for the creation of modernist buildings.


 * The aspect of death Grimmjow represents is Destruction.


 * He was one of the first Arrancar characters featured in a videogame, even before he appeared in the English dubbed anime.


 * In the most recent Bleach popularity poll, Grimmjow received 4987 votes, ranking in as the fourth most popular character while his Zanpakuto came in ninth in the Zanpakuto poll and his final fight with Ichigo tied for third in the best bout poll.


 * There was some censorship with Grimmjow between the manga and anime. In the manga, when Ichigo’s Getsuga Tensho hit him in their first battle, it made him bleed from numerous places on his body, while in the anime, he had burns instead.
 * Also when Grimmjow saved Orihime from Loly and Menoly, he kicked Loly in the stomach, then broke off her leg after killing Menoly. In the anime, he just slapped her away then knocked her out with his foot after scaring her.


 * The name of Grimmjow's Zanpakuto, Pantera, is "Panther" in Spanish and "Panther King" in Japanese, a reference to his cat-like Resurrecion form and panther-based form he had as a Hollow.


 * Grimmjow is the second oldest Arrancar as he's 12th Arrancar with his right-hand Shawlong Kūfang being the oldest as he's the 11th Arrancar.