Seasons 1-6
Gintama is a show that mix comedy and action, but it is still the Deadpool of anime as this show is primarily a comedy, but damn is this on another level compared to other anime I’ve seen. There have been so many times where I ended up almost not breathing due to all the laughing due to the absurdity of it all.
However, this show does use plenty of toilet humor, so if you want something clean and kid friendly, stay away. This show is made for teens and adults in mind. That aside, just watch this episode if you need convincing. You will never find a series that has 4 episode with three characters talking in the toilet. I will let you start us off sensei,
Japan, the land of the samurai. There was a time, long ago, when their country was known by that name. With the arrival of the “Amanto” from outer space and the subsequent ban on swords twenty years ago, the samurai class fell into decline. In such hard times, there was only one man left with the spirit of the samurai: Sakata Gintoki, a reckless jack of all trades with a sweet tooth, and the founder of Yorozuya, or Odd Jobs, a small outfit that takes up, well, odd jobs. However, they are usually bad at their jobs.
Gintoki is meta comedy of the shounen MC, he is not loud, he is lazy, he is not the strongest character in the group, he gets drunk, gets into fights and is a gambler that makes parents want to cry if they see him become their children’s role model, but when “the sticks are down” you can know Gin-chan will save your butt with Shinpachi and Kagura by his side. It is this gap in character that make Sakata-san so amazing. Back to you, Kid-san
90% of the time, Gintama is a comedy, and good comedies will often live or die on their characters, which is one of the main reasons Gintama has found such success because its cast is not only wide and varied but absolutely hilarious. This show is the Deadpool of anime and manga. It constantly break the 4th wall and address the problems of anything and everything otaku related from manga to video games. The show is meme materials on adrenaline like JoJo and Magical Guru Guru . You can expect to see Bleach, Gundam, Dragonballs, One Piece and Shonen jump to be used as the butt of the jokes
For starters, the Odd Jobs trio of Gin, Shinpachi and Kagura has the perfect chemistry between each member, that of good friends that give each other a hard time precisely because they are such good friends. Shinpachi’s role is that of the classic straight man, pointing out the frequent logical or rational fallacies of the world and actions that surround him, particularly those taken by his two compatriots, Kagura being a crude, playful and even somewhat violent young girl, while Gin is just kind of a bum, low on cash and happy to spend his days drinking, playing panchiko and reading manga.
Comedy isn’t Gintama’s only strong suit though. Whenever the plot or political situation needs to move forward, Gintama does a great job at getting you invested. Mentally as well as emotionally. While there really are only 6 “serious” arcs across all 63 episodes with an occasional single, most are surprisingly well done. Especially as most of them just start as a small, silly situation. Gintoki is no Luffy, Naruto, or most Isekai MC. He is strong and intelligent fighter like Luffy, but he never finish the big bad by himself. He team up with people from the land of samurai to protect the peace. Back to you sensei.
Gintama’s strongest point is its ability to make you laugh you butt off in a few, then slam your face off amazing fight scenes or make you cry so hard that yours eyes are mixed in so well, that you don’t know what show’s genre is is.
Its second strength its ability to make old characters from previous acts show up and make them play a significant role in the show again. A good example is the show’s madao, or Japanese useless old man. He is usually the joke character of thev show, but he has made me cry, so many times.
This war, taking place years before the show itself, is a centerpiece of Gintama’s backstory. It’s what caused the Amanto to demand a ban on swords in the first place, forcing the native government to go through with the measure and essentially destroy the samurai way of life. Thus, we have the existence of the rebels, essentially remnants of that original faction that fought the aliens when they first arrived, and a group which Gin in fact formerly belonged to. So now you see how it all ties in.
Plot lines involving Gin’s former comrades, and their moderate or radical takes on rebellion, are responsible for what the show becomes when it is at its most serious.
There are two movies of Gintama. The first one is called Gintama Movie: Shinyaku Benizakura-Hen, which is if you’re familiar with it, a remake of the arc. They made the animation of the fight scenes a whole lot better since it was the first most serious arc.
Gintama Movie: Kanketsu-Hen – Yorozuya yo Eien Nare is the second movie. It’s fairly considered that this movie is a whole letter better than the remake in the first one. It deals with the story of Gintoki being hurtled in the future, where he strangely disappeared. He left behind two grown up Yorozuya, Shinpachi and Kagura. Shinpachi and Kagura, though, are not like he left them before, as they barely smile or do the same shenanigans. This movie was a sort of what would have if Gintoki was not around. Sensei and I really enjoyed this movie. The only issue was the lack of world introduction. We wanted to see more of this Gintoki “missing world”.
In my opinion, as the Sensei, Kagura and Shinpachi turned back to their old selves too quickly, but I get we should have expected this from a movie’s runtime.
At the end of the day, Gintama should always be a must want on your list.
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