The Importance of Strength to Quincies and How It Explains Bazz B’s Character
TW: s*icide, d*pression
This is probably going to be my wildest analysis on Bazz B, but I feel a strong need to say this. We know that Quincies highly value strength. There are plenty of examples of this: Masaki being scolded by her adoptive mother for her slow progress on her training, the auswahlen targeting weak or impure Quincies, Bambietta getting away with killing numerous soldat, the desire to be chosen by Yhwach, Yhwach's worst fear being powerlessness, and the fact that Quincies like Jugram were killed because they were deemed to be failures.
Why is this so important to Bazz B's character? Well it explains a lot about his mindset! When we see Bazz B as a child he introduces himself as a genius, and, interestingly enough, by his nickname. This is just my interpretation, but Bazz's real name is essential to understanding his character. When Jugram says his real name during their fight it's framed as this massive deal. It's the first time we see Jugram so genuinely distraught (he was acting during the first invasion). We know how important names are to Bazz. He insists on being called Bazz by Jugram, he always refers to Jugram as Jugo and the one time he calls him Haschwalth it's in contempt. And the day they broke up (lol), he exclusively refers to himself as Bazz B, and so does everyone else. Bazz never calls himself Bazzard Black. The reason why is left up to interpretation, but my theory is that Bazz never felt like he was good enough for it. Let me explain.
We know Bazz is from a noble family, and seeing how badly the Ishidas treated Masaki, imagine what it was like for Bazz, who likely has to worry about becoming the heir. His nickname is clearly meant to be affectionate, and his insistence on using it is likely meant to distance himself from the pressure of living up to his name. He literally goes out of his way to bring back his kills to his castle to prove he's a genius. This is also just my interpretation, but after noticing Jugram's bruises, he tells Jugram not to worry about what the adults say, as if he were genuinely speaking from experience. We can assume that Quincy values were instilled into him from birth. (This is why it's so special that he decided to help Jugram, a "powerless" Quincy, when weak Quincies are seen as worthless.) So when Bazz's family is effortlessly slaughtered by Yhwach and his royal guard, Bazz becomes even more obsessed with strength. And since he's meant to parallel Ichigo (their birthdays are a day apart), it's likely he developed survivor's guilt. Since Bazz was the son of the lord, everyone likely died to protect him. Bazz had to sit back and watch as his clan was slaughtered, his mother was killed in front of him with her corpse cushioning his fall, and their home was destroyed. The boy who believed so strongly that he was a genius was unable to protect anyone he loved. He's powerless. He's worthless. He's only alive because Yhwach spared him. His family's sacrifice was for nothing.
Bazz cries over the loss of his home but stops after Jugram appears behind him. He's not allowed to be weak, especially in front of others. Even after witnessing such overwhelming strength, Bazz embarks on what's essentially a suicide mission with Jugram. This isn't surprising, Ichigo tried to do the exact same thing (saving Rukia with no training or a plan) and Urahara calls him out for it.
Revenge is how Bazz, in his mind, can redeem himself from this failure. He's so obsessed with achieving his goal, yet despite this, he chooses to not abandon Jugram, even when Jugram is a potential burden who could jeopardize his revenge. When Yhwach calls him weak and says that Jugram was actually the strong one the entire time, Bazz's world shatters. The idea that all of his improvement is because of Jugram, that Jugram is the talented one, is something he can't accept, so he becomes jealous. Remember that his own strength is so important to him. He's been raised with the belief that he's worthless if he's weak. If he were strong, he could've saved his family, if he were strong, he could've been the hero and redeemed himself, if he were strong, he wouldn't be such a failure. He is an insecure child who needs validation, even if it's from his worst enemy.
And here's the real gut punch for Bazz, Jugram ABANDONS him for the stronger person on the drop of a hat. The same man they had vowed to kill together, the same man who killed their families. This is devastating for Bazz. The boy he would never abandon for being weak/worthless, doesn't do the same for him. His belief that strength is his only value is practically solidified, and continues to be proven true by the Wandenreich. Jugram telling Uryu that there's no point in having friends if they're not "beneficial" is just further proof of this, so Bazz constantly challenging Jugram is his attempt to prove himself, to show his friend that he has value as a person. He knows he's not going to win. When Uryu is chosen as the successor over Jugram, Bazz is angry for Jugram's sake because he respects his strength. During their fight, Bazz explicitly says he hasn't lost YET.
Now here's my wildest theory: I think Bazz wanted to die. He knows that infighting amongst sternritters is punishable by death (turns out killing weaker Quincies isn't, though). Yet he still continues to challenge Jugram and is frustrated that Jugram continues to ignore him. If Jugram fights him and Bazz manages to prove himself? Good! If Bazz dies? That wouldn't be too bad. I mean, think about it; Bazz believes that Jugram, the one person he has left in his life, doesn't care about him anymore. He does nothing to prevent the auswahlen and leaves Bazz to die. Who knows what would've happened if the Shinigami decided to pick off the remaining Quincies instead of trying to get to the royal palace. Bazz has to serve the man he hates the most for 1000 years all while dealing with the crushing hopelessness that it's impossible for him to kill Yhwach, and the only chance he has to cripple his power is to kill his best friend. At the same time, serving Yhwach gave Bazz the value he always wanted, the power he always wanted, so he has to live with the fact that he's happy serving the man who killed his family.
This man has an identity crisis. Is he Bazzard Black, the last survivor of the Black family who will avenge them, finally make them proud, and live up to his name? Is he Bazz, the beloved son of the Black family, Jugo's friend, who would never hurt him? Is he Bazz B, the loyal soldier of Yhwach who finally feels valuable? When Bazz finally dies, he's HAPPY. He finally has a genuine smile that isn't smug. Why wouldn't he? He lost his powers, the only thing that proved his value. He couldn't get revenge, he couldn't prove himself to Jugram, he couldn't get his best friend back. His best friend, the one he was still willing to believe wholeheartedly still cared about him, cuts him down like he's nothing, like he's worthless to him. He never called him Bazz again. There's no one left in the world who loves him for who he is. His family died to protect someone as worthless as him. Nothing ever goes his way.
Bazz's voice actor said that when Bazz died he had to make it sound soulless and like a burden was lifted from him.
That burden could be so many things. His final words, being that he thought it would hurt more to lose to Jugram, could mean so many things. He knew this was going to happen. Was he happy to know that Jugram truly didn't need him anymore because he had achieved their dream of becoming the strongest Quincy? Was he happy to know what Jugram truly felt about him because he could finally confirm that Jugram also thought he was worthless? Bazz is a mysterious character and can be interpreted in so many ways, which is one of the reasons why he's my favorite character.
Thank you for reading!
