Writer: Zayan#2039
We’ve all heard of shows like One Piece, Naruto, Dragon Ball, etc. These series shaped anime as a whole. But, now if I were to tell you about Gintama which is a show released in the same era as them but not as popular, some of you may haven’t even heard of it. Gintama is one of the last legends of that era in shonen jump that came to an end this January by releasing its final movie, Gintama: The Finale. Written by Sorachi Hideaki, and animated by Sunrise. Unlike every other shonen serialized in shonen jump, Gintama is the exact opposite. It is one of the most unique shows you’ll find in the whole of shonen jump.
The Author
Gintama is written by Sorachi Hideaki, who was born on May 25, 1979. He is a famous manga artist best known for Gintama. He holds a degree in commercial advertising, which was stated in volume no. 11 of the manga. He wanted to become a manga artist from his 4th grade, but only started pursuing it after graduation because he could not find a job, thus he turned to drawing manga (which he had already learned in university) again stated in volume 11. He usually portrayed himself as a gorilla in both the anime and manga.
The Series
Gintama has everything a shonen should and far more than that. It is a really uniquely written show which is comedy for the most part, but the serious plot is also written properly and isn’t rushed. it gets fully into it’s serious plot at about episode 300 of the anime and volume 56 of the manga with the start of the Shogun assassination arc.
Gintama has about 64 arcs which last 2 episodes or 3 manga chapters at a minimum. The anime consists of about 367 episodes, 3 movies. The manga has about 704 chapters.
The Series and Its Ratings
Before we get into this, it’s important to know that Gintama might not necessarily be for everyone because of the length of the show and how people prefer more of a plot based story than a character based story, where the characters and their development play a way more important role than the plot. Now, most people are there for the action and do keep asking when the show actually gets serious, which is quite understandable considering the majority watch or read for more of the action/serious part. But what makes Gintama unique is how it constantly breaks the fourth wall and how it can bring a good laugh, which we all may not realize but need.
For me, it’s my favourite anime series of all time, because of how it gives you a message to enjoy the little things and take things seriously when they actually are. The characters of the show are probably the best you could ask for. It consists of mini arcs which make the characters develop. Such arcs last for about two to four episodes whereas the more serious ones last for five to ten episodes. It has a very low filler rate of about 6% though, I recommend to not skip the fillers because of how hilarious they are.
Ratings
Gintama, despite how underrated it is, totally dominates the ratings; the five seasons of Gintama on Myanimelist.com have the average rating of 9.024/10, on imdb it has a solid 8.6/10. The consistency of the ratings shows that the show hasn’t messed up in any sectors of technicality such as sound, animation, and such. And I can confirm that Sunrise has done an amazing job in animating Gintama.
Sakata Gintouki
This show wouldn’t be as good if it weren’t for the characters and if I were to write about all the characters I could keep going forever, but, I’m going to pin it down to my favourite Gintama character and my favourite anime character of all time.
“Before dawn, the night is darkest just before dawn. But keep your eyes open, keep them open no matter how dark the night ahead may be. If you avert your eyes from the dark, you’ll be blind to the rays of a new day.” ~~Sakata Gintoki
Now, at first look Gintoki might be less appealing compared to some other shonen protagonists like Naruto, but that’s exactly what makes him unique. Gintoki is a man in his mid-twenties and an extremely lazy and sadistic person. He was a war orphan and had fought in the ‘Joui war’ introduced in the later episodes. He is often seen wearing a dumb expression on his face and spends his days lounging around reading Shounen Jump, not motivated to do anything. Despite that, he’s a really relatable and realistic character who sets an example that not every protagonist is motivated and inspiring.
“Then and now, what I protect hasn’t changed.” ~~Sakata Gintoki
Gintoki is a very selfless person who values his bonds and the people he spends his time with. Usually coming up with strategies that are very brutal such as charging through a huge amount of people. He is extremely skilled in physical combat and is very agile. Also, a skilled swordsman as he has already fought for his survival many times in his life. Usually, He’s very lazy and unmotivated, but, when serious, a really durable, intelligent, and admirable person.
There’s a lot more to say about Gintoki but I’ll leave that to when you guys watch the show!
Conclusion
There’s way more to tell about Gintama. It’s a huge and a really enjoyable franchise which was running for over 15 years and came to an end this January. It may be long, But, it’s a very unique and comedic franchise that’s sure to make you laugh, but also a well-written and executed action series with great animation and an enjoyable storyline. I highly recommend the series to everyone who’s into comedy and action. The author and Sunrise did a great job with the whole franchise. That’s it for the article, thanks for reading it.
Further Reading/Sources
https://myanimelist.net/anime/918/Gintama
Tsukei 
