Ichigo Kurosaki

Ichigo Kurosaki (黒崎 一護, Kurosaki Ichigo) is a playable newcomer character in Super Smash Flash 2. He is the 16-year-old protagonist of the Bleach franchise. He appears in his Shinigami form and uses his zanpakuto "Zangetsu".

Character description
When creating the manga series, Tite Kubo, creator of Bleach, commented that Rukia Kuchiki, the first character he created, did not seem like a lead character, so he created Ichigo to be the series protagonist. When designing Ichigo's appearance, Kubo had thought of several types attributes of the character that were never added to the story. Initial design sketches show Ichigo wearing glasses, and having dark hair and kind eyes. When designing Rukia, however, Kubo modified Ichigo's appearance to contrast with hers, giving Ichigo orange hair, a trademark scowl, and removing the glasses. Along with Orihime Inoue, Ichigo has the hardest face to draw for Kubo.

Kubo considered Ichigo's greatest strength to be that he is considerate and thoughtful as he always thinks about other people's needs. However, he also saw that as his greatest weakness, since worrying about his friends tends to put him in danger. Kubo was asked in an interview if he had any plans to focus in the love triangle between him, Rukia and Orihime., but Kubo chose neither to confirm nor deny it as he did not want to focus in romance. Kubo thinks Ichigo is very popular among fans since he "looks cool". He also mentioned that as fans read more about him they discover that underneath him is warm and kind hearted, and that attracts his fans.

Ichigo is voiced by Masakazu Morita in the Japanese anime, while as a child he is voiced by Yuki Matsuoka. Johnny Yong Bosch voices him in the English dub as a teenager, and Mona Marshall as a kid. Bosch has liked Ichigo's character due to how he wants to protect people. However, he experienced difficulty voicing him in the episodes in which Ichigo shouts for a long time.

In the series canon, Ichigo is an orange-haired 15-year-old teenager able to see spirits, he even befriend some of them. He meets Soul Reaper Rukia Kuchiki in the midst of a hollow attack. After Rukia is heavily injured by the hollow, she is forced to transfer her Soul Reaper powers to Ichigo so that he can kill the hollow and save their lives and his family. Though he defeats the hollow, Ichigo absorbs almost all of Rukia's spiritual power, and he is forced perform her Soul Reaper duties until she recovers her powers.

In Super Smash Flash 2
Due the big success and popularity of the Bleach franchise, Ichigo makes an appearance as an starter character. He was the first newcomer confirmed according to the trailer and demo.



Normal Ground Attacks

 * Standard Attack 1: Slashes vertically.
 * Standard Attack 2: Slashes horizontally.
 * Standard Attack 3: Slashes up over his head. (Combo is Very slow - Ichigo usually does not reach the last hit.
 * Downward Tilt: Slashes horizontally while crouched.
 * Downward Smash: Lifts his sword high in the air, then, yelling, thrusts it into the ground, releasing a wide blast of energy on either side. Slow, but does a lot of damage.
 * Forward Tilt: Slashes forward with his sword, creating a short-range projectile.
 * Forward Smash: Slashes forward powerfully with his sword.
 * Upward Tilt: Slashes above his head
 * Upward Smash: A stronger, slower version of his Upward Tilt.
 * Dash Attack: Slashes from above his head to his side.

Aerial Attacks

 * Neutral Aerial: Slashes horizontally, semi-spiking opponents.


 * Forward Aerial: Slashes horizontally, in a tighter motion than the Neutral Aerial, moving forward somewhat.


 * Backward Aerial: Slashes horizontally behind himself.


 * Upward Aerial: Just like his Upward Smash, but in the air.


 * Downward Aerial: Slashes below himself. If he hits a foe, Ichigo bounces up. If anyone hits the arc of Ichigo's sword and not the sword itself, he or she is sent downwards quickly. It is the strongest Meteor Smash in the game.

Grabs and Throws

 * Grab: Simply reaches a hand out to grab.
 * Pummel: Hits with his zanpakuto
 * Forward Throw: Like his Forward Smash.
 * Backward Throw: Like his Forward Smash, but backwards.
 * Upward Throw: Like his Upward Smash.
 * Downward Throw: Like his Downward Smash.

Other

 * Ledge Attack: Rolls and gives a quick slash.

Misc.

 * Entrance: Ichigo appears in his human form with the spirit of his zanpakuto "Zangetsu" appearing and changing him into his shinigami form.
 * Taunt: Points sword in front of him and says 「お前を斬るぜ. 」 (Omae wo kiru ze, lit. "I'll cut you")
 * Revival platform: A platform made of stones.
 * Wins: Unknown
 * Loses: Looks at the background with his back turned toward the camera.

Role in The Flash Of Shadows
Currently unknown.

Trivia

 * In previous versions of the SSF2 Demo, Ichigo used a slightly different moveset. Prior to v0.2a, Ichigo's Down Special Move was the Stunning Slash instead of the Down Swipe.