#gintama spoilers under cut

[lacerta123]

This was a post I made on Reddit in response to someone saying Gintama was sexist because the women need rescuing every other arc. Which is nuts to me because it’s not even true.

Gintama has its issues, but it also has some pretty explicitly feminist themes in its writing. I love the fact that the male and female cast get equal attention during the serious arcs. It means the female cast is extremely well developed. Both Gintoki and Kagura got their own final arcs which is so cool (Shogun Assassination and Rakuyou respectively). Gintama regularly portrays its female cast as equal to its male cast in terms of dignity, importance, and often strength.

Also the character designs in Gintama are not overly sexualized, and the camera never leers at their bodies in uncomfortable ways. And Kagura, who is 14 years old, is never sexualized. She is always portrayed as a child, and even when she tries to look sexy, it’s always portrayed as humorous, like a kid playing with makeup.

The female cast of Gintama never gets underused. Even in arcs that arnt explicitly about the female cast like Yoshiwara in Flames and Courtesans of the Nation, they still play important roles and get considerable screentime (Sa-Chan in shogun assassination arc, Nobume in Farewell Shinsengumi arc (tho that’s 1/2 her arc)) And don’t forget Otose! She’s the beating heart and soul of Gintama and I will die on that hill.

Here’s a spoiler-y breakdown of the arcs, with a good deal of focus on refuting the idea that the Gintama girls are “damsels in distress”.

Harusame Arc - Kagura refuses to be a used as a hostage and kicks off the side of the ship, which feels like a refutal to the women as weak hostages that need protecting trope. Both her and Shinpachi were kidnapped, and in no way was she portrayed as a damsel in distress

Benizakura Arc - Matako is portrayed as a threat, and a capable member of the Kiheitai. Kagura goes off on her own and drives the plot forward by herself. She does get captured, but is portrayed as difficult to contain because of her strength, and her vulnerability isn’t exploited against the rest of the cast. She’s hardly a prop getting tossed around by the plot because of her femininity, like how Nami was in One Piece’s thriller bark. Tetsuko goes to the Yorozuya to ask for help, but it’s because she’s a non combatant and it makes sense to hire someone who knows how to fight. She meaningfully contributes by crafting Gintoki’s sword for that fight. She’s portrayed as the more skilled sibling in a traditionally male dominated craft. And the arc is an ideological battle between her and her brother which she wins.

Fuyo Arc - Fuyo could be considered a damsel in distress, because she’s in trouble and needs help. But I don’t think a female character needing help automatically turns them into a damsel in distress. She ends that arc with her own two hands. I’m a big fan of giving female characters the agency to finish their own stories. Her being in danger was not used to aggrandize the male cast, if Gintoki had finished the fight for her while she cried in the distance (arlong park) then I’d have a problem.

Yagyu Arc - Otae is a damsel in distress in this one, because the whole point is to rescue her from a bad situation. But a lot of respect is given to Otae’s agency. Gintoki says he’d respect her decision to marry whomever she wants, but seeing her cry makes him think it wasn’t really a decision made with her happiness in mind. Basically the arc is about convincing Otae to choose her own happiness over her sense of duty. We get full insight into Otae’s thought process and the arc only ends when she changes her mind. Kyubei says she loves Otae because of the fact that she has strength as a woman, something appealing to Kyubei who was raised to believe you can only have strength as a man. While fighting Kyubei, Gintoki and Shinpachi don’t hold back on account of her sex, and remark that whether you’re a man or a woman, you can still be an asshole. Kyubei remarked that Hijikata holding back was disrespectful to her efforts as a martial artist.

Mitsuba Arc - This arc actually is sexist though, but I read somewhere that Sorachi expressed some regret over not making Mitsuba more of a character.

Hasegawa Prosecution arc - This one was also bad, not because of how women are portrayed, but because of how sexual crimes are portrayed, which is a problem I have on a whole with Gintama. Sorachi writes his women strongly, but doesn’t give things like stalking, voyeurism, ect. a lot of narrative weight. They’re hardly endorsed, but they also arnt taken seriously.

Yoshiwara in Flames - Explicitly feminist. The story of a bunch of female sex workers rising up to violently overthrow their male oppressor, and reclaim their own identity as women. This is made very clear when Tsukuyo joins the fight vs Hosen and asks Gintoki where that Fire he was boasting about is and he says it just got here [referring to her and the Hyakka]. This line decentralizes Gintoki’s importance and makes the arc explicitly about the women of Yoshiwara overthrowing their oppressor rather than a story of Gintoki overthrowing Yoshiwara’s oppressor for them. Hosen and Kamui both express dehumanizing views of women that are opposed by the narrative. You might see Hinowa as a damsel in distress, but like Otae she has agency within her imprisonment (that’s kinda the point of her character) and she ends her own battles, narratively speaking. The violence against her (the reveal that she was hobbled) furthers her story rather than just existing so a male character can look good by getting outraged about it. You might find her comforting Hosen at the end to be a “forgive your abusers” type deal, but I didn’t. Since her narrative was the sun shines on everyone, and Hosen was trying to crush that sun and destroy her spirit, her shining for him at the end was her ultimate triumph over him. That he never broke her. She never forgave him though. The story is about women who’ve had womanhood defined for them through their usefulness for men standing up and redefining it on their terms. They define that through something they take pride in, motherhood. They declare every last woman in Yoshiwara to be Seita’s mother, and they are proud of that. Also in the ending, most of the women of Yoshiwara are still sex workers, just self employed and with the freedom to leave. That’s an explicitly pro-sex worker sentiment. Also Kagura, when Shinpachi says he’ll protect her, he ends up snapping her out of her rage, protecting her personhood rather than her physical body. That’s a subversion of a sexist trope.

This is as far as I’ve gotten in my rewatch, so I’ll give it a rest. But Courtesans of a Nation arc is also explicitly feminist in its messaging.

Actually I’m not done yet, I changed my mind. Even though Hinowa is almost certainly getting raped by Hosen, the anime doesn’t show any of that. Sexual violence against women isn’t sexualized or romanticized unlike in other shows (One Piece panning over Nami’s body as she’s being assaulted). Also, when Hinowa asks Seita to let her down and for him to go with Kagura and Shinpachi to open the sky hatch, she says they both have their own battles to fight. That Hinowa needs to fight. Hinowa is not powerless and weak just because she is a victim.

[schwirrymartz]

Yomi no Tsugai is almost three years old, so it's time to at least dream of an anime adaptation. So, I tried to think of who I hear when I read the manga, and came up with this list. I tried to provide video examples, but, sadly, not every seiyuu has a "{name} roles compilation" video. Also, some videos are hyperlinked because of tumblr's 10-videos-per-post limit.

Under the cut is the part of the main cast I could come up with voices for. Warning: the fact that I have only seen like three anime (is it comical exaggeration? who knows) is even more glaringly obvious here.

aaaand i'll have to repeat because this is the piss on the poor website: there's no news about the anime yet! no one is talking about it officially at the moment! it's my dream cast! who i personally imagine when i read! you absolutely can and should disagree with me and maybe share who you would like to hear as who!

Yuru IMHO, he should be voiced by male seiyuu. For example, Takeo Ootsuka (the closest to what I imagine is Oshi no Ko's Aqua).

Asa (real) Her seiyuu should be able to switch between two modes: the "cold and ruthless" mode and the "sweet teenage girl" mode, and her voice should be relatively deep. I can hear someone like Mizuki Nana (FMAB's Lan Fan, Uramichi Oniisan's Utano Tadano). I mean, Lan Fan has both of these sides.

Asa (fake) She is a sweet girl like 100% of the time, and Saori Hayami's voice (Spy x Family's Yor, Majo to Yajuu's Phanora) would fit her perfectly.

Danji (and Ken) I hear each of these guys' lines in either Megumi Ogata's voice (Shinji from NGE, Hanako from Jibaku Shounen Hanako-kun), or Maaya Sakamoto's (Ciel from Black Butler, Haruhi from OHSHC). I'd say, Danji's voice in my head is closer to Shinji's.

Gab Her voice should be high-pitched. Rie Kugumiya (do I even need to) maybe? Definitely not her Al voice, but closer to her Kagura Gintama five years later voice. steal one of the brothers' look, steal the other's voice :D

Left She probably should have the deepest voice compared to the rest of the female cast. I'd probably choose someone like Romi Paku (but not her Ed Elric voice; her Kill la Kill's Ragyou Kiryuuin or Black Butler's Madam Red voice. Or something in between; god, this woman's vocal range...).

I also thought about Shouko Tsuda (Izumi from FMA and FMAB; Martha from Spy x Family), but couldn't find a video.

Right Someone like Rikiya Koyama (Lum's father from Urusei Yatsura 2022, Neptune Shoukaku from Gintama (beware of spoilers in this example). He should sound like one of these two characters, not like, for example, Fukuzawa BSD <- unbelievable that these three have the same seiyuu).

Dera Sugita Tomokazu. Is it because he voiced Gintoki, another morally dubious badass fighter guy who sees a kid, asks "who's gonna adopt them" and doesn't wait for an answer, and then goes to spend all of his money on gambling? Maybe. Oh, he's also voiced Kyon from Haruhi Suzumiya and Joseph Joestar. (god, his voice is too recognizable)

Hana Satsuki Yukino (FMAB!Rosé, Tae from Gintama, Kagome from InuYasha). Yes, it's because of Tae. Both Tae and Hana are 1) pretty (and) dangerous, and 2) the best girls of their respective manga. Also, her voice just fits. Another option would be Marina Inoue (TTGL's Yoko Littner, Gintama's Ikeda Asaemon, SZS's Kitsu Chiri <- another best girl, what an unbelievable coincidence)

Jin His voice should be deep, that's what I'm certain of. He also should sound like he's permanently very, very, very tired of everything. I think of someone like Hosoya Yoshimasa (Kunikida BSD, Reiner AOT). The videoo with examples does not provide any example of tiredness, but does provide an example of a deep voice.

[0fps]

zzz chapter 1 cunning hares spoilers/review under cut

NEKOMATAAAAA 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

actually caught me by surprise how much i liked this story chapter. was it predictable? yes. cliche? yes. but damn did it get me, largely in part to the cast of characters and overall artistic direction and delivery. the comic-book styled narration alone has me more invested in the story than any hyv game has ever made me, and i think a lot of is has to do with being able to actually see a scene dynamically unfold as opposed to a bunch of characters just standing around and talking until you get to the one or two token animated cutscenes.

character-wise, sure i can agree that most of them are pretty one-dimensional but the way they play off each other is genuinely so fun and the banter and dialogue feels very natural. helps that the english dub has been fantastic so far. i genuinely did not expect to like all these characters as much as i do, and i really can't wait to meet all the other factions now. even fairy, the mis-countdown bit actually gave me a good laugh.

i will say that zzz's approach to its story definitely feels much more "slice of life" and although there are hints of a larger overarching plot in the background its not really a focus especially in such early chapters. so i think big plot and lore-enthusiasts aren't going to find much satisfaction in the story, and just more generally i can understand why people would find it boring.

part of it actually reminds me a lot of gintama which is just plain idiocy 80% of the time and then you have the serious arcs which really really hit. but it's definitely one of those "you love it or you don't" type of shows (for the record i'm in the "love it" camp), and i can see zzz doing something quite similar.

the main thing i don't like is the tv exploration gameplay. it feels tedious for the most part and you're just trying to get through it quick to get to the next combat section. it's not even that visually appealing to look at. i kind of hope they find ways to optimize or limit it or do SOMETHING to make it more fun. the "dungeons" in general also feel pretty repetitive already. the combat also feel ridiculously easy right now but its kind of still the tutorial chapters, so i'm hoping for harder stuff later. i'm still having fun with it either way so whatever lol.

[goldenlaquer]

(SPOILER) I WAS WAITING FOR YOU TO FINISH THE LAST BECAUSE I WANTED TO KNOW!!!!!

What do you think is Takasugi’s fate???

OH 🥺🥺🥺 All this time you were saving your(question)self for me?!?! 🥺🥺🥺

I'll leave my answer under the cut for all my peeps who are still holding out 😔❤️:

The bare-assed kid is just some rando Ma*ko picked up and Takasugi is now having the time of his, er, life soaking in a lava river in hell. (it's takasugi, he'd raise an army called the kihelltai and crown himself king of hell while using satan as a footrest, all in the span of a commercial break, that's just the type of man he is 🥺)

Alright, alright, I'll be for real now 😔

Takasugi was always a babe, but now he's really is a babe, as heavily insinuated. And what I'll say about this plot point is what Gintama has already said. Just a teacher protecting his student, just one of Shoyo's last gifts to Takasugi— can you really call that a miracle?! 🥺

Ach, I'm going to cry again 😭 because Sorachi is so clearly playing with forgiveness and redemption here; Takasugi finally being able to forgive himself, to at last allow himself to rest from the years living as a guilt-ridden, vengeful machine. If anyone sorely deserves this second chance, it's Takasugi. (I'm leaking, I'm leaking)

Anyway, what happens after is anyone's guess as good as mine ofc ofc— but for sure, babysugi is going grow up eventually. I wonder, since his rebirth is powered by altana, if he grows up a normal rate or if it's sped up like Shoyo's. I'm placing bets on the latter.

And will he keep his memories? Or lose them? Losing them could be interesting, and I'm sure Ma*ko would fill him on the memories that he lost anyway, but the additional benefit of him losing the memories is that he can live his second life without the burdens of the first-hand pain he went through the first time around.

Omg but the comedy... Chibi Takasugi vs Grown-ass Gintoki... Suddenly Gin-chan is living his shoka sonjuku memories again while facing this precocious child that Takasugi was, but now he can't even have the benefit of punting the little guy across the room without everyone ganging up on him calling him a child-abuser (He started it! is no longer a valid excuse for you, Gin-chan... you're the adult here, you man-child)

A LOT of ways Takasugi's fate can go from here on out, but one thing is for sure, he'll be happy :')

(personally, if there was an option to keep takasugi as an adult, that's an option i'd take, but i can absolutely understand why sorachi did this for him and i love it too)

[hijitae]

Thank you for answering my question on how everyone would react to hjitae Strangely ever since you made the gintama/trigun post on your blog and I started watching clips of the anime on YouTube i couldn’t stop imagining hijikata as wolfwood and otae as milly (they were together in the anime i think) and I thought i might share this idea with you

Thank you for asking! It was a fun question.

**Spoilers for those who haven't watched the original Trigun series.**

First, I'm glad my post inspired you to check out Trigun. That's great to hear!

Second, I totally didn't make the connection at all until you pointed it out. 😅 Thank you for sharing this idea! I'll put the rest of my thoughts under a cut just in case of spoilers.

I guess it's because I'm pretty neutral on Trigun ships, so I've never thought about it before. What I loved a lot besides the characters was the sci-fi/western aesthetic and how the fusion of genres worked so well. But the Wolfwood and Milly dynamic does seem similar to Hijikata and Otae, doesn't it? Wow, I've gotta think about this more. Milly is upbeat and cheerful, but also a scary sight with that stun-gun of hers. She nicely contrasted with Meryl and Wolfwood in that way, sharing similarities with Vash. And while Wolfwood and Hijikata's personalities are different (though it's been such a long time since I watched), they do give off a similar vibe.

Yes, in the original anime, Milly and Wolfwood were kind of implied to be romantically involved or at least attracted to one another? EDIT: Okay, now that I've refreshed my memory with some clips, there was a serious scene between them that definitely implied they spent the night together. But in the manga, there seems to be only friendship. I never finished the manga (not because I didn't like it, but I was into several series at a time, so I put it on-hold indefinitely), so I can't say for sure. It must've been an anime-only choice.

It's a shame that Trigun Stampede has replaced Milly with a new character because the show already has few women in it (though I still have hope they'll bring her back somehow).

Anyway, thank you for your message! I enjoyed reading it. Now I'm going to have to rewatch clips featuring them and think more on this.

Wouldn't it be nice if we had fanart of Hijikata and Otae in Wolfwood and Milly's outfits? I think that would be so cool.

[shuuenmei]

Some "black or white" stuff but while thinking of the potential ending for this fic, there were actually two scenario's I thought about?

First ending is still something I'm keeping under wraps about at the moment but it's the one that I decide to be the true and final ending for "black or white".

The second one... I dub it as the "Time travel ception" ending

(Placed under the cut for future scenario and spoilers)

The ending is half inspired from the Gintama movie "Yorozuya yo Eien nare" and also the Korean webcomic "flow" which had a concept of everyone having a supernatural animal spirit but only a few are selected to have the spirit of the Four cardinal beasts.

To not spoil much, Yuu (Rei) borrowed magic from the world and also from Shiro due to needing his power as a mythical beast to turn back time to one year back to her arrival in Twisted Wonderland when beating an overblotted Grim seemed impossible as everyone's been downed and there's no telling when reinforcements could arrive.

A little something about Shiro is that beyond his control of the earth and metal and connection to the fall, for this story, each mythical beast had a secondary set of powers that help keep the balance of the world and Shiro has an ability connected to time.

Since time related magic is fragile because one wrong step can do something wrong, Shiro is the only one that can wield and use the power to control time safely but even he and the masters he chose still need to follow the time and dimensional clause to a degree.

So Yuu (Rei), now with memories of the one year that happened along with Shiro, went out of their way to avoid meeting with anyone from Night Raven College to take refuge in the now defunct Ramschakle dorm.

But Yuu (Rei) cuts her contract with Shiro and borrowed magic from the world to erase herself and Grim from existence so none of the events such as the overblots and Grim's eventual overblot will come to pass.

Grim, who doesn't know anything was fighting his way out that he doesn't want to be erased but Yuu (Rei) kept firm, hugging Grim tight as the magic takes effect and says.

"Don't worry Grim, we'll go together. As if we never existed in the first place."

And just like that, Yuu (Rei) and Grim disappeared with only Shiro and the Ramshackle ghosts being the witnesses who remembered them.

The magic was felt all over the island since it's world changing, but once the effect takes place, they forgot it ever happened.

However, things started to get strange.

Riddle acted a lot more lenient than he was supposed to, having flashbacks of the failed Unbirthday party and of someone telling him that "There's no right or wrong answer" to rules and how he should stand up to his two feet to try and make things right.

Ace and Deuce remembered going through that event with someone but didn't remember who.

Flashes of the original timeline bleeds, an unintended side effect to the time travel and some, which I'll cover in a bit.

As the year goes by, the main casts and some of the staff remember things being a little different and find it odd... until the one year mark passed.

Ace and Deuce decided to go to the abandoned dorm as a small dare to commemorate finishing their first year but that's when things went a little odd.

They see flashes of someone being there and the dorm is not abandoned but felt like a second home to someone.

So they entered and lying on the floor of the unused dorm's lounge, is a pocket watch.

Ace held it curiously and then the magic activated.

And they remember.

"Don't worry you guys, I can finish this, I'll handle this." "Yuu, what are you doing-"

They finally remembered what truly occurred and got their answer.

"What... what the fuck Yuu!? We didn't ask for this! We didn't ask for a future where you're not here!"

The rest of the students, everyone that Yuu (Rei) had befriended, all headed for Ramshackle and saw Ace and Deuce knelt down the ground, makeup smudged and messed up with tears, holding onto the pocket watch that is still emitting magic.

Lilia recognized the pocket watch.

"That's the pocket watch I once received from Kaname... I had wondered why it was not among my possessions and I thought I misplaced it."

Now the ghosts and Shiro finally showed up and reveal that they knew what had occurred but kept it quiet because that's what Yuu (Rei) wanted.

The pocket watch was a gift from Kaname to Lilia, and Lilia decided to hand it over to Yuu (Rei) as a memento of her grandma after Shiro's true identity as the White Tiger and connection to grandma is unveiled.

The pocket watch becomes a magic conduit to keep the magic contained and running but it's a bit unstable, leading to the casts remembering the original timeline.

Since the overblots didn't happen at all, everyone involved comes up with a way to time travel back to the moment before Yuu (Rei) and Grim disappeared.

Malleus had enough magic to spare since he never overblotted and with Shiro's help, they all went back in time to stop Yuu (Rei) from disappearing.

Then they blink their eyes, they are back to the start of the year, during the entrance ceremony.

And everyone who remembered proceed to skedaddle out there and headed for Ramshackle.

They stopped Yuu (Rei) from activating or starting the magic, got there in time.

Ace and Deuce arrived first, magic pens pointing towards her.

"Ace? Deuce? "We remember, Yuu." "Remember? What... you shouldn't be-" "Oh we are NOT letting you play yourself as a self-sacrificial martyr!"

Long story, short, everyone caught up and after lots of talking and reasoning, stopped Yuu (Rei) from disappearing.

Grim, on the other hand, is damn confused to what's happening and the only gist he later got is that he will destroy Night Raven College in the future and thus, shouldn't actually be allowed to study in the first place.

"I haven't done any of that here! Why should it matter that I'd be some future bad guy!?"

In the end they allow Grim to stay after much talking because they all also remembered a time when Grim's an innocent individual, before he got corrupted by the crystalized blot he kept eating.

And it's unfair to judge him for that.

So the time-travel ception ending ends with everyone being mostly safe and sound, remembering everything.

The cons is that they all had to repeat the year. LOL

The staff also remembered but Crewel already got first dibs on taking in Yuu (Rei) as his ward before Crowley could and everyone else is gonna be weirded out at the newly changed self but things are okay.

But yeah, that's what I got for the time-travel ception ending!

The actual "black or white" story had a different ending that I ultimately liked better so this is an alternate ending of sorts that I'm willing to share bits about!

[dadbodgintoki]

gintama fic recs (hijigin+ edition)

this post is primarily for a friend of mine, when they eventually finish the series, but i thought it might be nice to compile some recs here for those who haven’t spent as much time wandering through ao3 as i have. i was gonna have all my recs in one place originally but then the post became like. incredibly fucking long so! instead i’m gonna split them by pairing/genre-ish and have multiple posts, starting with hijigin (+ some bonus). if you see your fic on here, let me know and i’ll link it back to your tumblr if you want! (and also, thank you for writing such a wonderful fic) 

Recs under the cut!

Series: No One Looks At Series Titles So Call Them Whatever you Like, starting with When Life Gives You Lemons Make Sure To Save Them To Your Hard Drive, by Apathy and @saltedpin​. Original is rated T, but sequel ratings vary. 

He has no problem with the attention. It’s just that right now he’s receiving so damn much of it that it’s almost starting to get a little unnerving. It’s nothing he can’t deal with, of course, but the lingering stares, the whispering behind gently waving fans, and the barely audible giggling would, were he a weaker man, give him the screaming heebie-jeebies. Gintoki learns the hard way that there is a difference between good attention and bad attention. 

Kids Who Don’t Play With Trains When They’re Young Will Never Grow Up to Become Skilled City Planners by Game_Changer. Rated T. 

Two idiots engage in the longest, most utterly pointless con of the century for no particularly good reason. [General Gintama spoilers up to and including the Baragaki Arc.]

And the Gintoki-side companion piece to City Planners: If You Get a Big Enough Bookshelf, Gravestones Could Be Your Bookends.  Rated T. 

He doesn’t believe in ghosts, really. He might be the tiniest bit afraid of them though. Gintoki’s side of Kids Who Don’t Play With Trains.

Thirst Aid Kit by evils. Rated E. 

Don't be intimidated, Gin-san...try to imagine him in his underwear!...Oh no, he's hot!

RSVP Even if You Aren't Sure You'll Make It, Just In Case; It's Better to Have More Chairs Than Less by @sharkiegorath. Rated E.

Hijikata has a problem and needs Gintoki's help

swallowing is overrated, just bring a handkerchief (a handkerchief you don't like) by @sharkiegorath. Rated E.​ (thx sharkie for the fic!) 

Gintoki and Hijikata finally hook up and it's thoroughly disgusting.

Warmth by chrendon. Rated G. 

Hijikata and Kagura bond. Gintoki is useless.

Don't Assume KOF Stands for King of Fighters. The F Might Stand for Something Else. by writing_in_the_dark. Rated E.  

Gintoki and Hijikata became addicted to a smartphone game where they had GinHiji and HijiGin sex as their characters in the game. They were then told the only way to level up any farther was to have sex with each other in the real world. They didn’t really want to, but they were hopelessly addicted to the game and desperate to continue grinding their fighters. So, they fucked each other’s brains out, leveling up their fighters and finding out they liked each other a little more than they realized.

If You're Scared That No One Will Want You When You're Old And Ugly, Remember That You're Currently Young And Beautiful And No One Wants You Anyway by @cr-bat. Rated T. 

The Yorozuya's latest job involves old gods, marriage issues, a sun that decides to stop setting, and way too much collateral damage. Sometimes Toushirou wondered what the point of surviving a homicidal immortal human-turned-demigod was if he was just going to end up slaughtering every Edo citizen himself out of pure frustration.

And also, for those of us who have a lot of hijigintsu/gintsu/hijitsu feelings:

the sun also rises series by @saltedpin​ starting with The kiss I would have spent on you. Both fics rated T. 

There was no reason why the Demon Vice Commander and the Courtesan of Death should have crossed paths; and besides which, why would they have needed to, when Gintoki could so easily pass between both of their worlds, a gulf that had, at least until recently, seemed too vast to cross? Noble idiots attempt to out-noble idiot each other

shameless self promotion: if you give a mouse a cookie, you should probably ask if he's got any nut allergies beforehand by yours truly :). Very much rated E, lmao.  

God, Gintoki thinks, please bring me the comfort of death. And, he adds, tell Kagura and Shinpachi I died from food poisoning or something. Gintoki makes a request of his partners. They oblige, in the most frustrating way possible.

[gamechangeroo]

Just finished reading the end of Gintama, and boy do I have some thoughts. The one person I know in the physical world who has seen some Gintama seems to be operating under the impression that the main character’s name is Gintama, so I think my thoughts are better thought here.

Big giant endgame spoilers under the cut.

My main takeaway from the Silver Soul Arc was that Sorachi fucking adores these characters, and he respectfully understands that others do too. Surprising I know, but hear me out.

Over the first part of the arc, when everyone in Edo was trying to fend off a Liberation Army-Naraku sandwich, the plot progression became surprisingly formulaic. I mean, Gintama has some tropes and and story standards it makes fun of and leans on more than others, but this was… more extreme than usual.

To sum it up, our intrepid gang of outgunned and outmanned heroes find themselves caught in a deadly situation with no way out until… a group of other characters from a previous arc pop up at the last possible second to save the day! This happened again (Gengai) and again (Shinsengumi) and again (Jirocho and co) and again (Yoshiwara) and again (Saigou and co) and again (Hedoro) and… Well, I started to feel like I was a kid with a twenty page math worksheet that had me filling out the same multiplication tables over and over. Two pages in and I already know what’s on page 18, but they’re still making me fill it out anyway like repetition is the Babylonian with a chisel and my brain is the stone tablet that will be discovered in 3,000 years with 4*8=I WANT TO BE STEAMED CHEESE BREAD engraved firmly upon it.

Admittedly, I wasn’t liking how the finale was shaping up to just be a parade of characters we’ve seen through the years, but then I realized that Sorachi was pulling a Maes Hughes. He took out his wallet and showed us a mountainous pile of pictures of all these people he had created; he showed us what the culmination of the character arcs through the series have made them, and how each of them have gotten to the place where they could stand back to back with the Yorozuya and take on the universe for the sake of Earth in their own unique ways. He showed us these pictures in his wallet one last time before the series had to make its final fateful call inside the phone booth.

That’s the way I started to see it, at least. I still wasn’t glued to my screen for that part of the experience (excepting Gengai, Tama, and Kintoki’s part which was MASTERCLASS), but I respected the creative choice a little more.

Then into the two-year skip, we get a significant change of pace and some large looming questions. A big one being who are these characters beyond the ages and arcs we’ve seen them exist and who will they become? Sorachi heavily implied with his final fantasy japes that no one was getting a wrapped-up picturesque and-then-they-married-and-named-their-children-Boruto-and-Albus-Severus ending, but that didn’t mean people weren’t going to change. It was so refreshing to see Shinpachi’s leveled up swordmanship!

However, the question of where these characters were heading very quickly had to take a backseat to the conclusion of Takasugi and Shouyou’s arcs, which I didn’t find all that compelling, so I don’t really have a lot to say about it.

Instead, beyond the final final this-is-the-last-one-really final battle at the terminal, we finally got our answer of where these characters would go:

Nowhere.

Sure, the city may have changed a little. Princess Soyo’s role was a bit different and who even knows what Katsura’s going to do at this point, but mostly we have our Yorozuya our Yoshiwara our Shinsengumi etc, moving forward as they always have in changing times. They weren’t shunted into these roles for plot points or out of necessity, but just because they wanted to be there. I think that was Sorachi’s answer to the question of where his characters go and why:

Sometimes we choose to do the things that we do simply to be with the people we love, and that’s just fine.

Shinpachi doesn’t have some ultimate fateful calling – neither do Kagura or Gintoki –, but they have found a home in being together, which we’ve seen being built almost brick-by-brick throughout this entire gargantuan series. All things considered, it was a very kind ending made by a creator who sincerely cares about his story and about those who care to read/watch it.

In other words,

[float-me-now]

Shout-out to fics [1/?]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Gintama Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Hijikata Toshirou/Sakata Gintoki Characters: Hijikata Toshirou, Sakata Gintoki, Hijikata Tamegorou, Itou Kamotarou, Child - Character Additional Tags: Love at First Sight, Getting Together, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Fluff, Kid Fic, Itou and Hiji are roommates, Tamegorou best onii-san, flower shop, Falling In Love, Fluff and Humor, Cute Kids, only one kid actually but oh well, Long!Haired!Hijikata!!!

Summary:

Maybe getting lost in a random street with nothing but loose change in his pockets and meeting an adorable father-daughter duo who turned his life upside down wasn’t so bad after all , Hijikata thought.

SPOILERS UNDER THE CUT

So, this is the first fic I’ve decided to give a shout-out to. It was a great surprise in a very shitty day, so I thought it deserved this spot.

It caught my eye because Itou was in it, and when I read the ‘Itou and Hiji are roommates’ tag, even if it was a romantic fic about a couple I don’t even ship, I just knew I had to read it. So, I’ll start by saying that the writing is very nice and fresh and I loved the choice of characters and the way they were portrayed. I tend to dislike OOC writing, but even if Hijikata and Gintoki are indeed a bit OOC in this it didn’t really bother me because it was quite well mixed with the rest. It’s very fluffy and fun and light, a simple but pleasant read.

Highlights:

Tamegoro and Toshi’s phone call. Realistic and pure af

‘like the last time at the ice cream store’ in one of the first Hiji-Itou exchanges implies that they hang out together. Instant extra points.

Itou tugs at his hair to get his attention. 10000 points to Gryff- to the author.

THEIR TEXT CONVERSATION WAS A+ COMEDY

I don’t know if it was intentional, but mentioning Zoro was genius (Hijikata and Zoro share the same seiyuu, Kazuya Nakai)

The Sakata family is adorable

The super pretty art at the end of the story (by @mielko)

Itou and Hijikata are literally roommates goals and as someone who hoped that Itou lived to see him interact more with Hiji, this fic was a godsend. Recommended!

[bluekaddis]

I would love you to elaborate if you want to! ❤ 👀

well I'M GLAD YOU ASK

*rubs hands together*

(I put the rest under a cut in case some people would like to avoid any spoilers about the characters presented in this post. There won't be massive spoilers but better safe than sorry)

1. Riza Hawkeye (Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood)

- my fav anime girl so was the first thing that came to mind as an inspiration to create a warrior blonde OC

- combat prodigy despite young age

- sent into battlefield while still very young, forever scarred by war

- no superpowers - still can kick your ass

- loyal af

- smart, can see through deception

- pragmatic, gets frustrated when people don't follow the plan

- unhealthy su*cidal tendencies when facing tragedy and loss (episode 19 anyone?)

- witty, kind and warm towards those few people she cares about (but she won't coddle them), professional and private towards others

- subtle display of affection

- has a dog

2. Olivier Mira Armstrong (Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood)

- aesthetic (blonde long hair, blue outfit, sword)

- a patriot

- gets the shit done

- despises people in power who hide when they ask other people to fight

- judges people by their deeds, not opinions of others

- can be patient but will rather act than talk

- if she dislikes someone THEY WILL KNOW

- you would rather fight a bear than her

(generally Rein gives more Olivier-vibes in court and other official queen/warden commander business, much less with close friends)

3. Tsukuyo (Gintama)

- a cheek scar that started a new chapter in her life

- acts cool, actually cares too much

- really cares about her own dignity and will get defensive and awkward when caught on something embarrassing

- not really sure what to do to make herself fit to most of the traditionally feminine roles (or if she even wants to)

- loud when drunk

- will rather battle an army than admit she has a crush on sb and everyone need to help her open up.

4. Mikasa Ackerman (Attack on Titan)

- dual wielding

- too competent for this world

- great fear of losing her (found) family again

- usually stoic, will enter a reckless rage mode if her loved ones are in danger

- very private

5. Queen Meve (The Witcher, especially Thronebreaker game)

- blond badass queen aesthetic

- a painful treason makes her a fugitive in her own country

- picks up strays along a way and they fight bad guys and monters together

6. Lagertha (The Vikings)

- oh look, another blond badass queen

- you REALLY don't want to hurt people important to her

- holds grudges and can take revenge after years

- if she loves someone it is for life, even if time and circumstances may tear those relationships apart

- loved and respected by her people, but men in power would like to control her (they fail)

7. Mary Crawley (Downton Abbey)

- privileged girl who is used to winning and getting what she wants but is not cruel or using her position to drag other people down.

- dedicated to protecting her family and their good name.

- other often see her as an ice queen but she loves deeply, even if it difficult for her to embrace her own feelings.

- not afraid to get her hands dirty (literally)

8. San (Princess Mononoke)

- warrior girl who will fiercely protect her home

- tends to divide people into clear groups of allies and enemies and will not easily change her mind

- also, friends with big doggos <3

9. Adora Belle Dearheart (Discworld)

- resting bitch face

- not easily impressed by fancy words and gestures

will fight for her cause even if she is left alone in the battlefield

- story arc includes getting back her family business and finding juistice for people who ruined her family.

[anime-lover-forever-1127]

The Sadist’s Nurse {Okita Sougo} - 1.This Is Only The First Chapter And I Can't Think Of A Title. How Am I Gonna Survive The Entire Fanfiction?!  Well Good Thing This Is A Gintama Fanfiction,  So I Can Do This

This Is Only The First Chapter And I Can't Think Of A Title. How Am I Gonna Survive The Entire Fanfiction?!

Well Good Thing This Is A Gintama Fanfiction,

So I Can Do This ^

Disclaimer - (Cause fanfiction is tricky ground and I hope not to offend the creator of the original story and get sued)

I do not own "Gintama", it belongs to its original creator Hideaki Sorachi - or as we may know him, the Gorilla (If you did not get that reference, then I'd like you to stop, and ask yourself - Are You A Real Gintama Fan?) . This is only a fanfiction that I was inspired to write by the original work. Please support the official release. Most of the media - such as the art and illustrations, gifs, video's, etc. used in this fanfiction - are from the web. Thus, most of them aren't mine (because I really, really can't draw) unless mentioned. To fit the story, images are also edited by various apps and websites. So they aren't mine, just edited.

Also if you own a picture or Video that I found online, and you either want your name added, or me to take it down. Please contact me and we can talk it out. P.s. I also ask that you do not copy my work and publish it onto any other website.

If you're gonna use my idea, please ask me (If you ask nicely, I for sure, will agree). If I don't contact you within a week, then just assume I'm giving you the all clear and go for it. Just remember to credit me.

I will be writing out scenes even if my Oc isn't in them. As long as she's mentioned, or influencing the characters in some way. Or maybe because it influences the story. This may seem a bit annoying. But that's just how I write. I like to embed my characters into the story line. Because of this, most of the dialogue/scenes will come from the original work.

I may not get all the references in the story - because I haven't watched all those anime - so sorry if I butchere those those ones. (It goes without saying that I don't own any of those as well)

*****

Warnings: Spoilers for episode 5

Today's Special

Never let your best friends get lonely...

Keep disturbing them

~ Unknown

*****

Akira watched her brother mutter to himself as he spied out the window.

"Okita wake up." Hijita said, balling up Katsura's wanted poster up and hitting the sleeping man on the head with it. The main reason he did that being that he didn't like how at home he looked sleeping on his precious baby sisters lap.

Akira stopped running her hands through the man's soft locks as he got up.

"I'm surprised that you could sleep through that explosion." Hijikata said.

"Explosion?" Sougo questioned. "Did you let the terrorists attack again?" He asked, pulling down his sleeping mask. "What's your problem, Hijikata? You need to apply yourself. Take a page out of Akira's book."

"Me! You're the one who needs to take a page out of her book and stop sleeping on the job." Hijikata shouts, grabbing his sword's hilt. "They can blow up all the Amanto for all I care. I'll let those fishes swim for a bit before I'll reel 'em up… and cut their necks." He drew his sword, pushing his palm against the flat side of the blade. "It'll be a proud moment for the shinsengumi. I'm looking forward to this fight."

"If that's settled. Then let's head back to the base and we can decide what action to take there." Akira suggests.

*****

"Oh? So we finally found them?" Kondo asks.

Hijikata nods, "Yes. Yamazaki is following them right now. It's only a matter of time before we discover their base, Kondo-san."

"Yeah. But it wouldn't be the first time we've thought that. We gotta be careful or they'll slip right through our fingers again." says Akira, as she leans against the door frame.

"That's fine. We'll just have to be careful. Goodwork, Toshi."

"It's too soon to thank me." The vice-chief says, he turns around to look at their boss. "Save it for after we've killed them!"

"That is smart. You know it's just like the saying goes. It's never a good idea to count your chickens before they hatch." Akira nods.

"That's right." Konod agrees, "The Shinsengumi only give credit after distinguished military service. We, the Shinsengumi, belong in battle. " Kondo nods.

Hijikata smirks, "You're the chief. I'm only following orders."

"I'm counting on you, Toshi." Says the older man.

"We'll in that case. I better go check the medical stock and get the room ready." Akira says. "Someone around here, and by that I mean me, has to make sure you idiots don't bleed out and kill yourselves."

*****

Akira watches from the sidelines as a Shinsengumi unit charges forward, her brother and childhood friend at the helm. Leading the attack.

"You're under arrest!" yells Hijikata, kicking the door down. "Come quietly, you terrorist scum!"

"It's the Shinsengumi!"

"Oh no! Run away!"

And other similar shouts were heard from the room.

"Kill them all!" Hijikata shouted, pointing his sword forward.

"Actually Aniki. We should take some of them alive. I highly doubt that this is the entire army." says Akira, coming up to stand beside the two commanding officers.

"She's right you know Hijikata-san." Sougo says, and never one to miss out on an opportunity to annoy the older man, he adds, "I feel bad for Akira-chan. Always having to pick up her oniisan's slack."

"Why you-" Hijikata starts to growl, only to be cut off with a slap to the head.

"Hey. Why did you do that?" He asked, rubbing his head.

"Because well you two are here, bickering like children. The enemy is getting away." Akira answers, her hands on her hips. "Now go, before I decide to hit you with something a lot harder."

"Fine. Let's go Sougo."

*****

Within minutes there were injured Shinsengumi members coming to Akira to get their injuries looked at.

"You can continue to fight." She says to a member of the 2and squad. "Oh, and well you're out there. Can you please try to capture one of the Jouishishi members alive. We could use a bit more intel on their future operations. oK."

"Of course Akira-san." The man nodded, picking his sword up and running off into the battle again.

Seeing no more people, Akira poked her head around the corner to see all the members standing outside a barricaded door.

Seeing that the fight was practically over, she walked over to the group of men.

"This again? Where do they think they're gonna go?" Akira wonders, as one of her fingers tap against her cheek.

"Who knows what's ever going on inside those terrorists' heads." A Shinsengumi member answered.

"Hey, come out. We're really going to fire this time." Sougo shouted at the door. His thumb and pointer finger holds his chin, as his arm rests on the palm of his other hand. "Hijikata-san, our evening soap rerun is going to start soon."

"Did you remember to set our VCR?" Akira asks, raising an eyebrow.

"Geez. I forgot." He answers.

"Great. Note to self. Don't give you that job again." pouts Akira. She then turns around to the men and shouts, "Come on people. Let's wrap this up. We have 45 minutes to get back to the base. So let's finish this up today ladies."

"Dam. I didn't know she could be so mean." One of the newer members mumbles.

"Yeah. I thought she was known for being nice."

"She usually is. But since you two are new here, you don't really know her and you haven't seen anything yet either. Wait till her favorite store is selling strawberry cake. Then you realise how mean she can truly be. She'll tear you the shreds and then sew you back up together again. There are a couple of unwritten rules in the Shinsengumi. Ones that you'll have to learn if you intend to survive here." Another one answers.

Getting sick of the mutters, Hijikata shouted, "You heard the women. Let's get this over with. Prepare to fire!"

Just as the explosive was about to be launched, the barricade broke open from the other side as three people jumped out.

"Wh-what are you doing?! Stop them!" shouted Akira, surprised.

A puffy silver haired man continued to charge forward, holding something round in his hand. "If you want to stop something, then stop this bomb, please!" He said.

"You have a bomb squad, don't you?"

"He's got a bomb." Someone shouted.

As the group of men in black ran away from the trio, Akira simply grabbed the vice-chief and first division captain and pulled them to the side and let the group run right past them.

"Normally i'd say that we should stick around and help them out. But I'm dying to see who killed Gyuki. If we go now, we can make it right before the opening credits finish." Akira smirked.

"Don't we need to stick around?" Toshi asks.

Raising an eyebrow, Akira fires back, "Do you wanna stick around?"

"Hell no" The two men answer in unison.

*****

Legend/translation:

Aniki - Your own older brother, not to be confused with oniisan, which means someone else's older brother.

I also feel like I need to clear up the topic of her hair colour. It's mostly black, but under certain lighting, it looks brown.

I also understand the difference between a doctor and a nurse. And, yes, she really is a doctor. But let's all be honest, 'The Sadist's Nurse' has a much better ring to it then, 'The Sadist's Doctor'. It honestly just rolls off the tongue better.

You can read the other chapters of this story (in order) on Wattpad, Quotev, Fanfiction.Net, Ao3, or Webnovel - Under the username Animeloverforever1127 (Under the same title of course). Or you could shuffle around my tumbler, (I’ll try to keep my tags constant) but I’d go with the first - just seems like a lot less work.

[i-simp-for-gintoki]

me reacting to the new gintama trailer so ig spoilers under the cut

IM SO HYPED FOR THE GINTAMA MOVIE I LITERALLY CRIED FROM HYPE LIKE

LOOK HOW CLEAN THIS IS

LOOK AT THAT SMILE

i thought his eyes were red??

SO GOOD

ALSO

DONT FUCKING GIVE ME THIS FACE IT SHATTERS MY HEART THIS IS ILLEGAL OH MY FHSJSJ

anyways im crying yet again because of anime how are you guys doing?

[blacknidstang]

gintama vampire au

(shouyou spoilers under the cut)

so an au where shouyou or rather utsuro is a vicious vampire, ruthless, always lusting for blood, living a lavish life in his world but through some unknown events he turns into his shouyou persona for some years, finds a way to survive without human blood. helps orphans around the town and all those saintly acts but upon sensing the smell of blood his insides feels torn apart with his divided mind. and boy once he accidentally get a taste of someone’s blood, there’s no stopping his utsuro from emerging from the depth of his mind.

[raphaelaan]

Gintama 704 Summary

SPOILER UNDER THE CUT

Okay. So. Yeah. I’m dead. Anyway, to the main point:

- Katsura was called by Shouyou through a video call. He asked for everyone to stay away from the terminal as he will attempt to redirect the Altana.

- He wanted to do it alone but Shinpachi and Kagura supported him. And then so does the rest of the Gintama cast, saying that if they do this it will buy Shouyou enough time to give a fist to the head to Gintoki.

- Shouyou finally died, sacrificing his life for the safety of Edo and the people who made Gintoki “Sakata Gintoki”, the way his students made him “Yoshida Shouyou”. His final thoughts were how good of a man Gintoki has become.

- Tama woke up after a time skip. In the aftermath of the Terminal battle, years and years after the final battle of the terminal. It is now a futuristic city, implying a long, LONG, time skip.

- Edo was renamed Tokyo and the Yorozuya three opened Yorozuya once again.

- Soyo became the new leader of the country, protected by Nobume.

- Katsura is still a terrorist. The only difference this time is Elizabeth’s the leader of the movement, as is his right.

- “For the Shinsengumi, this ending is only the new beginning!”

- Gorilla, Sacchan and Kyuubei are still our beloved stalkers.

- Everyone has a party in the cabaret club.

- Except for Kamui who’s eating out a store all by himself and saying he’ll return to conquer Earth.

- Matako goes around each dragon vein’s opening like Gintoki once did. Henpeita commented that Takasugi’s body was swallowed by the Altana, but his chances of rebirthing was one in a million and it needed a miracle for it to happen.

- In one of the dragon vein, Matako found a baby.... the narration from Sakamoto saying ‘But I cannot say that a master saving his student is a ‘miracle’. If anything, it’s a given”.

- The final narration implored Tama to not be lonely and cry because she now lives under a sky without them. Because they will always be with her, and they will break through world, time, and panels to wipe her tears. 

- And they did break through the ages for one final gag.

- The last two pages are the picture of the old Edo disintegrating as the Yorozuya run toward a job they must do.

Gintoki: “Yoo, Tama, what’s with that sleepy face? Well, anyway, we have an emergency job so don’t you close your eyes until we get back. There’s no need to wipe those tears, right?”

Kagura: “Gin-chan, what emergency job was it again?”

Gintoki: “Eh... what is it...”

Shinpachi: “Why are you forgetting it even if the work is an emergency??”

Kagura: “What was it...”

Gintoki: “What was it..”

Gintoki: “Ah, well, it doesn’t matter. Because we are the Yorozuya.”

[bossladytae]

Major Gintama spoilers ahead. Decided to share my thoughts since I feel people are missing the point on why some of us are not happy with the current developments, especially when we are looking at the bigger picture, not just a snapshot. A few folks have already and wonderfully articulated their thoughts that I agree with, so this is my two cents to add. No one has to agree with me. I’ve been a Gintama fan for a very, very long time. I will always love this series, but no series is perfect, and having a different viewpoint about the present events does not make me or anyone else less of a fan.

Death in general always brings a mixture of emotions, and people are allowed to mourn, to question, to do what they need to do in order to process somebody’s last farewell (just don’t harass people if they feel differently than you do). You are not required to be 100% positive or negative about the story’s progression. Different opinions on this chapter can and do exist. I’m sharing mine only because I want to clear up some misconceptions about why those of us with the same thoughts feel as we do.

We are not necessarily unhappy that Takasugi died (although this does not make us jump for joy, either). We were prepared to accept Takasugi living or dying, depending on the manner in which either fate was carried out. Indeed, his death mirrors history with the real Takasugi also dying young. His death brings to mind Gintoki’s words to Oboro: “Be it killing him or protecting him, they’re both my job.” Takasugi’s death has been foreshadowed more than once, particularly with his first appearance post-time skip and the revelation of borrowed time, so it’s not a surprise when it’s been quite apparent. We know this. Lastly, some of us, like myself, are fine with the death scene itself (Takasugi dying in Gintoki’s arms) because it was beautifully done.

We’re unhappy that the final arc post-time skip consisted of rehashed events that have already taken place multiple times (even in a movie). We’re unhappy that Katsura, who originally said, “I can’t let you cut down your master again,” is denied the chance to be present for these final moments when he’s also a student of Shouka Sonjuku, having experienced the same loss. We’re unhappy that Matako and Henpeita – who have now lost more of their closest comrades – were denied the chance to fight alongside Takasugi just as everyone else was allowed to rush forward and fight with Gintoki. We’re unhappy that Shouyou had to be reminded once again that he could not save a single one of his cherished students. We’re unhappy that Takasugi had to stab himself again, compounding his trauma, as if Utsuro bringing him to the brink of death countless times was not enough. We’re unhappy that in a cruel and twisted way, Gintoki saves his teacher but loses his friend, whom he had already protected multiple times, body and soul. We’re unhappy that Gintoki is reliving that choice, that pain—again, and again, and again.

No, happiness doesn’t always prevail in life. Everyone knows this. But we’re talking about a fictional story whose final arc is one we feel could’ve been set up differently. And there is nothing wrong with expressing a variety of opinions about it.

I’m not a fan of endless tragedy and violence with little to no substance. To me, it felt like Takasugi had become a vehicle for violence. “How much more can I shock the audience and get away with it?” That’s the impression I received. Consequently, these last few chapters have come off as rather uninspired to me, especially when several pages were centered on everyone simply running around or running after people, and repeating the same one-liners and sentiments they have expressed countless times already. It’s not as if we’ve forgotten or have never seen how much the cast cares for one another. Gintama’s past arcs have given us high standards already, so we had different expectations for the finale.

This is partly why I wasn’t fully on board with Nobu Nobu’s death, even though his death flag was obvious, too. It felt like the easy way out, because then he wouldn’t live on to deal with the consequences of his actions, wouldn’t have to work hard to change what he had caused. It’s harder to live on with such a burden, to find a new path in life, and to earn back people’s respect and trust, but how much greater a message that would’ve been. Killing off your antagonists immediately after redeeming them also has the risk of becoming a cliché as much as surviving does.

However, I accepted it because even though Gintama isn’t mirroring history detail for detail (for one thing, Okita would’ve died instead of his sister), it still does with the passing of the Edo to Meiji era, Amanto parallels with the Perry Expedition, the end of the Tokugawa Shogunate, the Western influences, and more. Nobu Nobu’s death and the rise of a new government within Gintama’s world made that much clear.

It can also be said that chapter 703 emphasizes the fact that you can still move on after a great loss. But, as far as lessons go, we have already learned this through Shige Shige’s death with little time spent on the fact that Zenzou had to kill a friend to save a friend, and lost that friend in the end, anyway. Yet, he returned to assist in the battle against Utsuro. Zenzou has exemplified moving on from a terrible tragedy; we have seen the lesson in action already, and, truly, Zenzou has amazing inner strength. I was sad that Shige Shige had to die after all that because he is a good man, but I liked the plot and character development his death resulted in.

Takasugi had his redemption already, and his entire story arc was well done and even his death is memorable, as redundant as the circumstances turned out to be, but I would expect nothing less, for he deserves to go out with a bang. He has directly and indirectly caused many deaths as much as any other antagonist in the story, but he has also saved many lives through his later actions. Had he lived, I wouldn’t expect him to feel he must spend the rest of his life atoning for his actions, because he did not see himself on the “wrong side” so much as he did the government. Politics is a complex matter, which is why Gintama has always focused on one’s reaction to their circumstances and polishing their soul to silver, not whether they’re politically right or wrong.

Rather, if chosen to survive, I think Takasugi would have tried to find his own way to live in the new world while being a product of the old one. Yes, he held onto his grief and rage for far too long, but he was also driven to change or destroy all the obstacles in his way. Shogun Assassination and Rakuyou arcs showed him renewed by the end. He would have found his way again, just as Shouyou once told him he was capable of doing. And it would’ve been a nice change from dying right after you reconcile with your family or friends. It would’ve been an inspiration for those that live on with great burdens in their past, but can now look forward to a future for once after believing there was no more hope for them in their traumatic lives.

As for living on borrowed time, I’d also hoped that Takasugi would be able to die on his own terms away from the public eye, sharing one last drink with Gintoki, Katsura, Sakamoto, and even Matako and Henpeita. If Sorachi really couldn’t think of anything else to do with him (or the Kiheitai, for that matter) except to kill him off, then at least give Takasugi some final moments of peace with his friends before exiting this world, just like other characters received (whether they died or departed the city). But he was not granted that. Instead, he was subjected to one violent attack after another, used to deliver another fatal injury to himself and cause his teacher more sorrow, and then, finally, cut down by one of his dearest friends. For me, it was nothing but senseless bloodshed.

After reading this convoluted-to-the-utmost-degree finale, I can appreciate that Takasugi at least could die within Gintoki’s arms. It continually reaffirms my belief that Gintoki and Takasugi’s relationship is unbreakable. They know each other so well—too well, perhaps, which is why they were so readily annoyed with one another, too. Gintoki called him “my other self.” Takasugi admitted that hurting Gintoki hurts him more than anything else. They were the original pair of rivals from the beginning. They entrusted earth and space battles to one another, needing no explanation. Gintoki knew Takasugi would come back; Takasugi knew Gintoki would come through in the end. No one understands one another better than they do (except I would venture to include Katsura, and Sakamoto on some level, as one who had met them after Shouyou’s initial capture).

Gintoki wielding both their swords to deliver the final blow to Utsuro, who kept trying to destroy Gintoki while in the throes of death thanks to Takasugi, is a nice touch. Gintoki saying that not even death will break their bond is a lovely sentiment. Takasugi protecting Gintoki in return and paying the ultimate price moves my soul. Takasugi making a joke about his height is well within the spirit of the story. Gintoki saying, “We might have just been born under that star,” makes me smile. Takasugi wanting Gintoki’s smile as his last sight of this world, and Gintoki struggling to keep his tears in check until after Takasugi has left him, breaks my heart.

I’m fine with all of that.

I simply lament the fact that the path leading to the finale, to Takasugi’s death, was not all that I’d expected. I can only hope that like Shige Shige, Takasugi’s death will challenge and change status quo somehow. It has to because it’s such a significant event.

I have issues with the narrative as a whole since Rakuyou arc, but that’ll be too long to get into right now, and I don’t have any desire to write out my thoughts at this point (not enough time, anyway). One of them in a nutshell is this idea that you can’t move on unless your cherished ones return. Sometimes you don’t know when they will and sometimes they don’t. If you’ve built your life around the condition that those people are always there, then you may not have the strength to stand on your own two feet when you have to tackle something on your own. I feel it contradicts one of Gintama’s lessons about building up your inner strength – your soul – so that you can still move forward, even if you must walk alone. Solely relying on others for your happiness, solely making others responsible for your happiness, is not that healthy, in my opinion.

I think Tae and Tsukuyo showed a healthier way of moving forward while hoping for others to return or reunite. They became/resumed being leaders and businesswomen; they reacted to their circumstances and proceeded accordingly with what they felt was best. For Sacchan, Sorachi relied on an old gag; for Kyuubei, Sorachi placed them in a marriage interview situation, as if he couldn’t think of what else to do with them. In the end, Tae was worried for Shinpachi being unable to move on, and Tsukuyo was the one who reassured everyone that Gintoki would eventually come back, and that they would all see him again. Not even Katsura believed that Gintoki had somehow become an enemy of the world; he has always trusted that Gintoki would be on a sure path because Gintoki told him, “If you've got time to fantasize about a beautiful death, why not live beautifully until the end?” So it was strange to me when others expressed their doubts in thinking they’d have to fight Gintoki in order to protect the world.

But, I digress, and I will stop before I lose sight of my original purpose for this post.

Everything that has inspired me before Silver Soul arc will remain. I still think Gintama is one of the best shounen series to date with its myriad of ways to stand out from the rest. Sadly, it just fell short of my expectations at the end, becoming more like a generic shounen story. I don’t know if Sorachi is burnt out; or if his editor(s) were pressuring him to write a certain way; or if he had written himself into corner and this is the result of him trying to get out in a believable way. He has redrawn things before and has admitted he has forgotten details or story elements in the past. It happens to the best of us, and only he knows how his internal process works. Clearly, he’s still trying to end things in the best way he can with what he already presented chapters ago. No one is faulting him for that. It’s not the same as critiquing a story’s entirety on its own.

I will accept Gintama’s impending conclusion, but as I have stated many times in the past, you are always free to question, to challenge, and to even affirm canon material of any text with your opinions. Everyone thinks and feels differently. That is why we study literature; that is why we love stories. I’m eternally thankful to Sorachi for creating Gintama. I will always treasure this series.

I will never forget that Takasugi Shinsuke gave his life for a world he was intent on destroying—and, really, he did destroy it so that it could be renewed. And I hope none of the cast forgets, either.

[razberryyum]

A Gintama episode a day keeps the ending away...Episode 86

Episode Title: It's Often Difficult To Sleep When You're Engrossed With Counting Sheep

MY 23 FAVORITE MOST EMOTIONAL MOMENTS IN LESSON 86 (chapters 129 and 130):

Of course I love the Mitsuba Arc: one of the most important arcs in the series, not to mention one of the most emotional.  It always leaves me in a weepy mess, and my heart heavy with sorrow for Mitsuba, Sougo and Hijikata.  

1) The fact that she is Sougo’s sister already made me pre-disposed to love her, but her unrequited love for Hijikata followed by her unexpected fate made me cherish her more. SPOILERS under the cut:

I say unexpected because at the beginning, I truly never thought Mitsuba would die. Such a sad ending didn’t seem possible for such an obviously sweet character who was also so important to someone like Okita. I assumed she would be saved by some miracle cure, so I was pretty devastated when no such miracle occurred. Total gut punch.

2) I loved seeing how different Sougo was around his beloved sister. It hurts my heart that we may never see this side of him ever again.

3) Of course I loved this. 

4) Sougo’s very innocent expression as he’s threatening Gin-chan.

5) I loved that the sadism was obviously hereditary in the Okita family.

6) Bless Kondou for taking this lonely little bean under his wing. 

7) Although, to be honest, he looked a bit like a predator in the moment. Surprised Sougo didn’t punch him in the balls or something.

8) I loved Mitsuba more for recognizing the similarities between Gintoki and Hijikata immediately. I firmly believe that in a different universe, Mitsuba would’ve totally been a GinHiji shipper...if she wasn’t busy trying to play match-maker between Gin-chan and her little bro.

9) Their first meeting after being apart for so many years. Ugh, my heart. 

10) This subtly gut-wrenching moment: how Hijikata pretended he didn’t give a shit about Mitsuba but then that slight movement of his eyes that totally gave away how he felt, that he still cares about her. Every time I watch this scene now I wish so much he had just stopped, if even for a minute, to SAY SOMETHING to her. Ask if she was feeling better. Or just say hi. 

11) Grumpy baby Okita is just CUTENESS TIMES 1000!!!! The fact that he was being grumpy about Hijikata made it even cuter!

12) I love Hijikata no matter what, but I WORSHIP Hijikata with long hair.

13) I couldn’t stop screaming at the cuteness! Seriously, how freaking PRECIOUS is grumpy baby Okita????

14) Droooollllll. Also, important moment since that’s when he first noticed Mitsuba...his attraction to her was probably instantaneous.

15) It really hurts my heart to think of this: when Mitsuba was still alive, Hijikata probably slathered his food in mayonnaise because it reminded him of Mitsuba and the gesture most likely filled him with happiness. After she passed away, he still thinks of Mitsuba every time he does it, but the gesture now only fills him with sadness at her passing.

16)  Gin-chan being a total sweetheart to Mitsuba just made me love him more. It’s so sweet that he was especially nice to her because he knew how important she was to Sougo.

17) Yamazaki is a horrible spy but his obvious content from eating crappy sausages is just too adorable. 

18) I love that Yamazaki easily told Gintoki because he obviously doesn’t think of him as just anyone. It’s like he understood Gintoki is always the exception.

19) Sougo’s vulnerability just broke my heart to a million pieces.

20) I could never hate Hijikata, but the cold way he rejected Okita’s plea for Mitsuba’s happiness made me feel something dangerously close to that emotion for that one second, especially seeing the shocked look on Sougo’s face.

21) Poor baby Sougo. I can understand his resentment at the time, but little did he know he would also grow to love Toshi one day too...he just won’t show it.

22) The emotional weight of this moment just kills me. Mitsuba giving up her pride to make her plea to Hijikata; Okita’s shock at realizing that his sister was in love Hijikata. All of it just made Hijikata’s response all the more brutal.

23) Even though I know Hijikata’s heartlessness both times may have been  bourne from his love for Mitsuba--in the past he didn’t want to put her in danger since they were essentially going to an unknown setting and in the present he didn’t want her to marry a monster--it doesn’t make it any more palatable because it really was so damn cold and cruel.

SHIPS TALLY: 

Hijikata x Mitsuba: I was so sure that she was introduced to be Hijikata’s endgame when we first met her. After knowing her and knowing what happens to her, I truly wish they would have been able to enjoy some happiness together, regardless of how short their time together would have been.

Gintoki x Okita: one of my alternate OTPs so of course their interaction made me happy, even though technically Gintoki was being friend zoned to the max. 

Mitsuba x Toma: she was way out of his league in the looks department but because he seemed so sweet to her, I really hoped that in the end we would find out he’s actually a nice guy. I hate him so much now that I hate even acknowledging him as a partner for Mitsuba. She deserved so much better in every single way.

Hijikata x Yamazaki: Yamazaki was uncharacteristically insightful about Hijikata and it was cute how he was just dragged away by him cave-man style.

Kondou x Mitsuba: I have a feeling if Kondou was the one Mitsuba had fallen in love with and had asked him to take her to Edo, he would’ve married her immediately and taken her with him and now she would be a happy wife and a happy mother of his children. [sigh]

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

3/27/2019