A discussion about the treatment of Giselle Gewelle in „Marching Out the Zombies“.
The following contains spoilers for BLEACH: Thousand-Year Blood War Part 2, Episode 9, „Marching Out The Zombies“, available on Hulu and Disney+.
The following also contains mentions of transphobia that may be triggering to some readers. Please proceed with caution.
Fans of BLEACH who have read the manga have been pensive about how the anime would handle a particularly controversial element in the Thousand-Year Blood War: the handling of Giselle Gewelle’s gender identity. In the 9th episode of BLEACH: Thousand-Year Blood War Part 2, „Marching Out The Zombies“, the 11th Squad 3rd and 4th Seats Madarame Ikkaku and Yumichika Ayasegawa encounter Giselle, with Yumichika using particularly violent language in his interactions with her, with his reveal of her being biologically male (AMAB).
Various moments in this season have indicated that Giselle absolutely despises being called „a man“, as Yumichika puts it; however, beyond that, one BLEACH content creator on X (Twitter) noticed that there were actually two different versions of the episode – the one on Disney+ cuts out something else that Yumichika says to her before their battle. Given the manner in which Giselle’s sex and gender identity have been referred to in BLEACH: Thousand-Year Blood War, the interactions with Yumichika and Charlotte, and the deliberate misgendering of Giselle are things that warrant discussion. Gigi
Sternritter Z – The Zombie, Giselle Gewelle is a petite girl with long black hair and antennae-like extensions coming out of the top of her head that give her the basic silhouette of a cockroach. She wears a small version of the standard military cap worn by the Wandenreich, offset slightly in a style reminiscent of a fascinator (or hatinator), and she has an oversized jersey that goes past her waist. She wears black leggings and white boots – as one of the Bambies, Giselle’s approach to the Quincy attire is particularly stylish when compared to her other colleagues. With her unimposing frame, Bambi leans into a hyper-feminine, „girly“ kind of aesthetic in looks and in mannerisms. This appearance is also something that aids in her ability, as she uses reverse psychology to goad her enemies into attacking and getting sprayed with her zombifying blood.
This strategy proves to be ineffective against Yumichika and Ikkaku, who can feel that they’re being pushed into attacking her, which could be playing into a trap. When Giselle describes herself as a helpless little girl, Yumichika scoffs at her while covering his nose, telling her that it’s obvious that she’s „a man“.
