#Prime Minister Katsura Zura Zurump Kotarou

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A Gintama chapter a day keeps the ending away...Lesson 681

MY 5 FAVORITE MOMENTS IN LESSON 681:

Lots of important exposition so not so much favorite moments. 

1) This was a shocking image though...and explains why Takasugi had to seek immortality.

2) It was nice to see Old Legolas again and working with Zura! 

3) This was not my favorite moment at all but more like I was just so exasperated with these freaking Tendoshuu dumbasses. Couldn’t believe they were back as well. Hate them as much as the Naraku.

4) I loved this imagery because it was so bleak and disturbing for Gintama.

5) This was both brutal and sad because now we know why Takasugi is on borrowed time, since Oboro was too. 

SHIPS TALLY:

Not this time.

Disclaimer: Gintama is not only about shipping. Gintama is hilarious, clever, exciting, poignant, heart-breaking, loving, brilliant, and just so freaking amazing.  It is only due to Sorachi-sama’s generosity that I can enjoy Gintama on yet another level, the shippy level, and I am forever grateful for that. GINTAMA IS LIFE AND LOVE.

11/18/2018

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Gintama anime ep 362/manga chaps 669, 670, and 671

Dear Gintama gods and Sorachi-sama,

Please allow me to humbly express to you what I am most thankful for in this episode:

- an unexpected outcome to a trip down memory lane,

- a precious pocket puppy,

- a Madao by any other name is still Madao,

- Tae-chan,

- a handsome stalker-turned-house-husband,

- this beautiful final fantasy,

- dear old ladies,

- a sweet virgin cherry boy,

- Neo Armstrong Cyclone Jet Armstrong Gengai Cannon’s “Kin-Tama”,

- Tamako the adorable, precious little robotic wood sprite,

- Kintoki’s wise observation,

- heart-breaking partings,

- the lolicon meter, 

- a shippable moment,

- the most beautiful and awesome Commissioner General of the Police,

- the most beautiful and awesome Shogunness President Princess Leader,

- my favorite new ship,

- this BOSS AF lady,

- cruel lies,

- Prime Minister Zura-Zurump-Katsura,

- an approaching reunion,

and lastly, my favorite manga to anime moment:

For fellow Gintama fans who have not had the pleasure of reading the manga up to this point, I can only imagine how confused they must be feeling as we delve into this timeskip. I remember how confused I felt back when I first read those chapters, and I remained confused for quite some time as I wasn’t sure if we were supposed to take any of these developments seriously. I almost envy their ignorance; even though the uncertainty did cause me a good amount of stress, looking back now, there was also an exciting aspect to the mystery as I couldn’t wait to see what you would reveal to us each week. Watching this episode made me relive all the wonderful and distressing emotions I felt at the time, which provides a certain degree of enjoyment and entertainment in a different way. I’m doubly glad that BNP has finally decided to slow down a little and only  cover a few chapters of the manga this time instead of cramming a handful of them in one sitting. I hope they will continue to take this pace from now on since I really don’t want them to rush through anything or worse yet, omit any important moments from the manga as we head into what may be the last stretch of the anime ever, a thought that fills me with infinite sadness, and yet I understand it’s a reality I have to eventually get used to unless you bless us with some miracle. In the mean time, I am going to try to push those depressing thoughts aside for now so that I may properly enjoy the crazy, unpredictable treasure of this timeskip arc.

Yours truly,

A silly fangirl with yaoi dreams

(^3^)

[razberryyum]

Gintama manga chap 688

~

Dear Gintama gods and Sorachi-sama,

Finally, FINALLY, a Yorozuya reunion!!! Well, close enough. Ok, so Shinpachi was out cold and Kagura is in her granny form—and will probably murder Gintoki in the next chapter for seeing her naked—but at least they're all together again, back in their Yorozuya home! I wanted to cry! Actually I already started tearing up when Gintoki was carrying Shinpachi home on his back. That was such an unbelievably sweet moment: I wish Pachi-kun was actually awake for it. I was hoping that he was only feigning unconsciousness, that he actually saw it was Gintoki in that quick moment when Shachi partially pulled down the loincloth and he is only pretending to have passed out so that he could listen to everything Gintoki was saying as he brought him home. Shinpachi did react for that split second, so I really hope that was actual indication they he knows it is Gintoki already. If Gin-chan beats it out of there before Shinpachi wakes up, I think I would honestly cry. I know I shouldn't raise my hopes too much that you would let them have a proper reunion when Gintoki is still on his mission, but at the very least, I hope that Shinpachi realizes he's back in Kabukichou, even if he won't reveal his identity to everyone.  

Watching Gintoki survey his home again made me a little emotional because even though he spent most of the chapter talking about how he might have held the ones he loved and cared about back by leaving them two years ago, the truth of the matter is, both Shinpachi and Kagura have gotten on quite well without him. Both of them actually have grown stronger, and even though Shinpachi was forced to take up the responsibilities of the Yorozuya, I am hard-pressed not to believe that he would have done that anyway even if Gintoki stuck around. His family dojo has already found a better purpose, and is flourishing, so what IS left for him other than the Yorozuya? Not only has he been successfully carrying on the duties of their business, but he was also able to help Edo rebuild. All in all, he's been pretty productive during Gin-chan's absence and has definitely matured as a person. The same goes for Kagura. Sure, she took maturity to an extreme, but she has obviously gained a lot more in strength and abilities. Even if she wasn't able to reverse the effects of the Altana on Sadaharu, at least she has been able to preserve and protect him. Of course they are sad about Gintoki's absence—all three of them obviously miss each other—but everyone made their own choice and they have lived purposefully as a result of it. The truth is, the only person whose life was put in stasis because Gintoki left is really only poor Shachi, who has been waiting for his big bro to return and review his manga. I mean, even Sacchan, for all her misguided goals, has been promoted to head of the Oniwabanshuu. So even though everyone no doubt missed Gin-chan, they have all—with the exception of Shachi—have done remarkably well.  

If anything, I would think Gintoki should actually feel a bit saddened by the fact that Shinpachi and Kagura have done well without him. He should be the one regretting ever leaving them in the first place. He hasn't held any of them back; he's been held back by his own ghosts of the past. One prominent ghost of his past to be exact. And I'm not quite sure I agree with his assessment that Shinpachi would stop him from saving the guy who might destroy the earth. If Shinpachi had seen Utsuro in his baby Shouyou form and how helpless he appears to be as a child, I almost have no doubt that he would be the one staying Gintoki's killing hand. Originally I thought the reason why Gintoki left was because he was going to kill what was essentially a child, and he didn't want the people closest to him to see him carry out such a seemingly inhumane act. But if his worry was that Shinpachi would stop him from killing that "child"...I really don't think that would have been a problem. I have strong feeling Shinpachi would have probably talked Gintoki into adopting that kid and raising him to not be a monster. Kagura, on the other hand, would probably kill that kid or at least be less optimistic about his chances of not being a homicidal, world destroying shithead. But since she had already chosen to go on her own journey, that wouldn't have been an issue for...well...until Gintoki and Shinpachi figured out a way to talk her out of not killing the pint-sized Utsuro.  

I could understand if Gintoki just didn't want to involve them in his mission since, obviously, there are dangers involved. The stupid Tendoshuu is still after him. But I somehow think that really wouldn't make Shinpachi or Kagura feel better that he didn't trust them enough to be able to protect themselves. There’s really a lot of things that need to be said between them; I really cannot wait for them to clear the air by having a very long talk and be one family unit again. 

As for Zura and Takasugi, I was of course excited to see them reunite, but I hope they don’t have to return to being adversaries once again. I don't know why Takasugi thinks Zura is trying to end the country, when from all appearances he has been rebuilding it (he is definitely not deserving of the Zurump nickname), so I am hoping he’s just being facetious. I would love it if he’s actually going to enlist Zura’s help in rescuing baby Utsuro from the Tendoshuu. Either way, they too have some catching up to do and I really hope that we're afforded the opportunity to see them properly converse like old comrades. I also hope that this won't be the last we see of Shachi and Asaemon. I'd like to think they will be allowed to have a greater role than to just act as the completely accidental impetus for the Yorozuya's reunion. It was an important purpose, to be sure, but I like them enough that I wouldn’t mind their further involvement in the current proceedings since they were forced to sit the entire war out. 

Yours truly,

A silly fangirl with yaoi dreams

(^3^)    

[razberryyum]

Gintama manga chap 680

Dear Gintama gods and Sorachi-sama,

Those pesky Naraku, why can't they just DIE already?? I'm honestly getting rather sick of them. The Tendoshuu are gone already, Oboro's gone and Utsuro is pretty much gone; I wish those guys would just give up and retire to the countryside or something like that. I know one of the crows are still in charge of them, but my problem is why would any of the underlings even want to follow him. Why would they want to support the revival of Utsuro, considering the fact that he turned most of them into mindless zombies during the war and then just treated them like a completely expendable armed force. I would understand it if they wanted Utsuro's body to gain immortality themselves, but since that doesn't seem the case, I find the motivation behind their actions rather perplexing. I don't believe they would be moved by a noble sentiment such as loyalty, so I worry that they're being evil just for evil's sake, which is both annoying and kind of boring at the same time. I don't mean to sound like I am complaining or questioning your creative choices, dear Sorachi-sama, but I just don't get these guys. In a weird way, I almost want to learn more about them because I do not understand their purpose for existing as an organization anymore. I understood their past purpose, but now, it just feels like they're a herd of dumb sheep following a questionable leader to pointlessly wreck havoc on a world that is just rebuilding. I hate that they are bothering Gintoki, and I especially hate that because of them, he has to refrain himself from reuniting with his Yorozuya family lest he endanger them. And if I am to be honest, I hate that they brought about the premature death of little Shouyou because of how much it hurt Gintoki.  

Even though I knew Shouyou-chan's days with Gintoki was numbered since we don't see him in present time, I was still surprised by the immense sadness I felt as I watched him give up his life for essentially the sake of the world. I wish that it didn't have to end this way. Knowing now that the child is indeed Shouyou's young form instead of Utsuro, I wanted him to spend more time with Gintoki. In fact, I would have actually loved to see Gin-chan raise him into a man so that he had a second chance at living normal and hopefully pain-free life. I wish Takasugi got to meet him. I know it is downright ridiculous of me to lament over a scenario that was most likely never a possibility to begin with, but ever since seeing that child's face, I found myself hoping for an alternative resolution so that he would be able to continue living happily, first with Gintoki and then maybe eventually with Takasugi so that they could regain the happiness they once shared with their teacher. I think I fell in love too quickly with the romanticism of it all: the idea of them parenting the person who was once their parent.  I guess with Shouyou's heart still surviving there is always a chance for such an opportunity, but I doubt that is the end game you were aiming for. If anything, destroying his heart and body is probably the best for everyone and the world. I do hope that before they do that, Takasugi could at least consume some of Shouyou's blood so that his body won't break down further. I don't know if he really deserves to become immortal nor do I think for him, immortality would really be a blessing since he's such a miserable git sometimes, but I also don't want him to die so soon, so I hope he finds a way to cure his ailment, which I'm guessing is the result of consuming the Tendoshuu's body parts. Even though they were immortal, they probably had a more diluted version of Utsuro's powers to pass on which is probably doing a number on Takasugi's body right now.

Since Prime Minister Zurump has been conspicuously absent for quite some time already, I hope he eventually joins the fray and lends a hand in protecting Gintoki and Shouyou's heart. I would like to see another reunion soon: if not the Yorozuya's then at least give us the Joui 4? I really am not kidding when I say this chapter left me feeling rather sorrowful, so I do hope you can inject some cheer back into the current proceedings soon by bringing together the Joui boys again.  

Yours truly,

A silly fangirl with yaoi dreams

(-_-)

[razberryyum]

Gintama manga chaps 681 - 682

Dear Gintama-gods and Sorachi-sama,

I must ask, just how stupid are these Tengenist followers? I found myself massaging the bridge of my nose in frustration a number of times as you revealed to us what they’ve been doing for these past two years and the chaos they are still carrying on with. Are they no better than dumb sheep that are constantly in need of being bossed around by undead overlord? I understand that they want immortality—I mean, who wouldn’t want that—so I’m all for them gathering up the bits and pieces of Utsuro and harnessing the power of Altana (though I absolutely do not condone their acts of terrorism to achieve that), but why, oh why, did they have to revive those Tendoshuu old farts and then worship them?? Keep those a-holes in their water glass prison and just grill them for instructions on how to resurrect Utsuro. Or just ANYTHING but restore their form and then fall to their knees to kowtow to them. Complete idiots. I mean, those old farts get to rule again while sending these red shirts off to do all the self-sacrificing, dirty work. They’re the ones on the front line risking their lives, I just don’t understand why they would put themselves in such a vulnerable position again. You would THINK they’d be happy that the war finally helped them get rid of their old masters. I just…I’m frustrated for them. I really hate the Tendoshuu or Tendenists or whatever they decide to call themselves next. Honestly, I dislike their new name even more than their old one since it doesn’t even roll off the tongue…I know the name is probably an unfortunate side effect of Japanese-to-English translation, but I have to keep on stopping myself from referring to them as the Tendonitis instead.

I hope I’m not coming off as criticizing the new direction the story has taken. You know me, anything that would logically prolong your beloved series, I am all for. I just wish destroying Edo once again wasn’t part of that plan. Poor Zura just finished rebuilding Edo, for the gods’ sake; I wish these bird-worshipping losers would just leave the city alone already. I also feel bad for those other places that they destroyed for their Altana-hoarding mission…I don’t care how long it takes, Sorachi-sama, but can you make sure to completely wipe out these annoying troublemakers this time around. I don’t care that they’re trying to revive their loved ones with Utsuro’s powers…they’re going about it in a genocidally crappy way so I just want them to be permanently obliterated, once and for all. If they can’t learn to leave well enough alone, they don’t deserve to stick around.  

I wish I didn’t have to spend so much time complaining about those guys because I actually want to focus on Takasugi and Zura instead, two people I actually really like and love, respectively. It’s odd, I thought I would feel much sadder knowing that Takasugi would probably not live long, but instead I feel a sense of acceptance about it. After Bansai’s death, the Kiheitai no longer feels like a whole unit, and with his tumultuous history with his Joui comrades, I don’t know where Takasugi belongs anymore. There was a time that I had hoped he would be able to enjoy life again, sitting and drinking sake with his old comrades, but I don’t know if that is even a possibility anymore since Takasugi has lost too much and is simply too changed. He used to always talk about destroying the world since it took away his beloved sensei from him, but obviously, Utsuro’s own destructive actions has pretty much neutralized the necessity of his previous goal. After he leaned the truth about Shouyou, I don’t even feel that he is angry at the world anymore. Takasugi just seems…sad…and tortured. I worry that death may be the only peace he could ever attain. I know that would completely break Matako’s heart, and I would be bawling my eyes out too—in fact, just thinking about it now is already making my eyes well up—but it’s becoming harder to deny that perhaps that would be the best end for him. At least with his final mission of destroying all the fragments of Utsuros in the world, he would be doing something positive for mankind before he dies; not to mention, thanks to Oboro’s remnants, he has now been granted the opportunity of a far more dignified death than being brought down by a bunch of Liberation Army nobodies due to a moment of distraction.  When his actual final moment does arrive, all I ask is that you allow Bansai to appear before him so that he could guide Takasugi into the afterlife. I look forward to being emotionally destroyed by such a touching scene. Again, I’m getting weepy just thinking about it…I should move on to happier things.

And who can make me happier than our dear Prime Minister Zurump Zura! I am so proud of him! From all appearances, he has been doing a really fine job; if ShigeShige was still checking in on everyone from whatever higher place he’s currently residing at, he must be so proud of his friend. In a short two years, with the help of old Legolas, Zura was essentially able to repair most of the damage that the Liberation Army had caused to Earth. That’s really impressive! I mean, sure, he has had years of experiencing leading a group of drama-watching rebels, but that’s still kind of a far cry from actually leading the entire country to successfully rebuilding from their previously devastated state. Honestly, considering how good a leader Zura seems to be, I really don’t understand why Matsudaira and Sougo is even trying to get rid of him. I mean, the only flaw I can detect on Zura is that horrible Hitler mustache. If Sougo does catch up to him, I hope he holds him down and shaves that ugly caterpillar off. But otherwise, why all the assassination attempts? I’m sure we’ll find out soon enough, but I still with the people I love can all just get along.  

But I’m glad everyone is slowly but surely converging on each other. Gintoki and Takasugi are back in Edo, and I hope the long-awaited reunion of our Yorozuya will finally take place. Please give us some hugs between them, Sorachi-sama? They’ve waited two years, we’ve waited a few months which have felt like two years, we deserve some Yorozuya family love, don’t we? Your kind consideration is greatly appreciated.

Yours truly,

A silly fangirl with yaoi dreams

(^3^)  

[razberryyum]

A Gintama chapter a day keeps the ending away...Lesson 682

MY 12 FAVORITE MOMENTS IN LESSON 682:

1) Takasugi’s abs. That’s all.

2) To be honest, I don’t think I was really sad about Takasugi possibly dying because he was on borrowed time from Oboro’s bones because I kept on thinking at the time that at least he will be reunited with Bansai again. But Gintoki’s reaction did stir something in me. I know Matako would be devastated, that’s a given, but I never really considered until now what effect it would have on the Joui 3, and thinking about that made me a little emotional.

3) This is not a favorite moment, more like I really just hate these dumbasses for worshiping those Tendoshuu old farts. Die already.

4) This made my heart ache a bit: Takasugi finally acknowledging out loud the emotional pain Gintoki suffered all those years ago.

5) Again, so happy they were once again on the same side, fighting for the same goal. 

6) Why would anyone ever want to assassinate this noble man? 

7) I love Zura so much. 

8) Shinsengumi going after Zura still made absolutely no sense to me at that point, but I loved that it was Sougo chasing after him once again since it felt so nostalgic in a good way.

9) Good to know that Shijaku was still prone to sudden bouts of goofiness.

10)  Bless Pachi-kun for being so understanding of Gin-chan.

11) I loved this moment, where Kagura and Shinpachi shared one mind about Gintoki and what he was going through...

12) ...”--If it were me...if it were me, what would I do? Someone important to me...if someone important to me made the whole world their enemy...could I still fight to protect the world? Could I make the world my enemy and keep believing? I don’t know. But there’s one thing I’m sure of...I’d still want to see them.”  Awwww!

SHIPS TALLY:

Gintoki x Takasugi: I totally detected a softening of expressions on both their faces.

Zura x Shijaku: I kinda think it’s cute they became friends and comrades in the past two years, and although I can’t join this ship cuz of my other loyalties in regards to Zura, I can totally understand it. 

Disclaimer: Gintama is not only about shipping. Gintama is hilarious, clever, exciting, poignant, heart-breaking, loving, brilliant, and just so freaking amazing.  It is only due to Sorachi-sama’s generosity that I can enjoy Gintama on yet another level, the shippy level, and I am forever grateful for that. GINTAMA IS LIFE AND LOVE.

11/19/2018

[razberryyum]

A Gintama chapter a day keeps the ending away...Lesson 672

MY 12 FAVORITE MOMENTS IN LESSON 672:

1) I thought Zura was a fine prime minister; he gave a great speech. I could have done without the stache but otherwise, he’s a great leader. Everyone should be so blessed to have such a noble man in power.

2) Noble AND strong and clever. Why would anyone in their right minds want to assassinate Prime Minister Zura?

3) I cheered! 

4) Aaaah, so much better without that caterpillar on his lip.

5) You know, now that I look back, the fact that Matsudaira was almost villainous in his machinations should have tipped me off that something was amiss. But I think I was too swept up with all the new developments going on that I didn’t even think twice to question anything...other than whether or not the whole time skip was true. Otherwise, I sincerely thought the old man was becoming the Big Bad or something.

6) He looked completely worst for the wear but I was still glad Sakamoto was alive.

7) I was elated to see Mutsu, happy that she was finally captain of her own group, but sad that she and Sakamoto seemed to have gone their separate ways. 

8) YES! ALL FOUR JOUI BOYS ACCOUNTED FOR!

9) And finally, the hero reappears! I think I was most excited by Gin-chan’s new kimono design...even though I like immediately missed his old look. 

10) I instantly guessed that that HAD to be Kagura.

11) But then, because of Shinpachi’s shocked expression, I started to doubt and then came up with the crazy theory that it was actually Kagura and Okita melded into one. I feel embarrassed about that now.

12) AAAHHHH!!! I guessed that the grave had to belong to Utsuro since Takasugi was paying his respects to it and I was so excited about these two Joui boys reuniting this way.

SHIPS TALLY:

Zura x Elizabeth: I was so happy they were still together, AND Elizabeth still had Zura’s back, AND they had matching mustaches and outfits and kinda hair as well. They’re just absolutely adorable. 

Shinpachi x Soyo: They look like a little family with Tamako! I REALLY want this ship to happen now.

Disclaimer: Gintama is not only about shipping. Gintama is hilarious, clever, exciting, poignant, heart-breaking, loving, brilliant, and just so freaking amazing.  It is only due to Sorachi-sama’s generosity that I can enjoy Gintama on yet another level, the shippy level, and I am forever grateful for that. GINTAMA IS LIFE AND LOVE.

11/9/2018

(I would loooooove to go back to posting the same day I actually read the chapter...hopefully that’ll happen tonight....hopefully)