Gintama.: Porori-hen

This is my second full review on this site.


I want a life for Christmas.


Let me first address the minority among you, the ones actually wanting to know whether Gintama is worth watching - the ones looking for a proper review. Everybody knows the type - every time a season begins or concludes, a few of these pop out of the woodwork looking to "get into Gintama" or "catch up with Gintama" or whatever. I've had a number of them irl as well.
I understand your confusion. For every 10/10 review claiming Gintama is the best thing since frozen bread, there are probably 5 users ... with it being dropped, a score of 1/10, and an incredibly helpful tag of "overrated". Every time you decide to take the plunge, a voice in your head asks you - is it truly going to be worth it? In that 300+ episode runtime, you could be doing something useful (or watching other anime, I don't really care) - are you going to invest that time on poop jokes?

Truth is, I can't help you, and I don't think anyone can.

I will say this - when Gintama peaks, it is going to be one of the best anime you've ever seen. It will fully deserve that overblown 9+ score, which ranks it above other hot favorites and makes people salty. It's when it peaks that causes all the polarization, in my opinion.

Say you don't like toilet humor. Then for you, the show might peak during its parody bits.

I also know some who consider references to be the lowest form of comedy. Maybe the self-deprecating gags or the ones parodying tropes instead of other media are more your cup of tea.

"I don't really like anime comedy but I'm checking Gintama out coz of its high score" - the action arcs might be where the show peaks for you. (Seriously though the score doesn't make it less of a comedy)

These are only a few examples but the point I'm trying to make is Gintama is mixed bag of goodies which aren't limited to a single style or genre. The more among them you like, the more you are inclined to like the show as a whole, and vice versa.
Consequently, there is no teaser for Gintama - X episodes you can watch that will tell you exactly what the show is. People might say the show gets good after a certain episode - I think that's more of them finding the first instance where the show peaked for them. I dare say your experience would be different.

This isn't to say don't watch Gintama. But barreling through the show expecting 9+ quality right from the start will more often that not turn you away.
One possible way to watch is to get to know the main cast (~10 episodes) then check out some of the top comedy episodes (there probably are a few threads listing them here and there) - if you like them, great, the show has a definite peak for you, and you can decide to keep watching or not. If you don't, well, 300 episodes is honestly a lot, and most of it is comedy of the same or lower quality.

Onto this season then.

Honestly, this season was just regular Gintama. There were good episodes and bad episodes, similar to the previous seasons. Bad episodes, however, seem much more prominent when the season is 13 episodes, compared to 50 or 200. Variances in quality have been present throughout Gintama's run, and I don't necessarily feel this season is weak at least in terms of source material.

The biggest negative for me is the existence of a "Slip Arc" when it could have been adapted in order, with perhaps a break before SA began. I also expected the characters to make a lot more fun of the honestly moronic decision to skip stuff. Whatever. I've made my peace with BNP. Getting a complete adaptation is not something very common, and I suppose I should count my blessings.

The lack of budget saving background shots still irks me, though. It probably is fucking weird to want fillers, but the self parody segments were one of the biggest positives of Gintama comedy. The humor itself is great, but the love the staff felt for the show really shines through in the bonus segments, like Gintoki getting sleep paralysis for example. I just don't get that from any of the BNP seasons, not just this one. The switch from Sunrise to BNP makes me feel like overseeing an employee who went from giving 110% to 100%. I can't really complain, but I'm still disappointed.

In any case, whatever my feelings about BNP are, with the multi-colored poop segment of the Excalibur arc I can finally say unironically that I lost brain cells while watching Gintama. I appreciate the fact that they were trying to stick to the manga, which didn't have mosaics. But I can't believe that no one looked at the final product and went, "hey, this is unbelievably fucking stupid!" Or they did, and the staff just ran with it anyway. Lampshade stupid things, for god's sake. Make a character say that rainbow poop is shitty, no pun intended. It's moments like these where BNP refuses to utilize the reputation Gintama has built up over the years which make me hate them. Combine this with the ever-present janky zoomed out scenes - or scenes where the camera focuses on the background instead of the characters - to save budget instead of just airing the fucking static BG, and there's no love lost between me and BNP.

I don't mean for this to turn into another rant - I've accepted that this is the best we're going to get. This season is still weak, but for me it's more due to these small shortcomings that add up instead of the comedy being weaker or stale. I just hope this reduced budget goes to animating the multitude of fights in the SS arc in gloriously high quality. I want Gintama to go out with a bang, not fizzle towards its end.

tl;dr - same Gintama comedy, weaker execution, basically another BNP season 8/10

Its really amazing how Gintama doesn't care about randomly getting into slip arcs and still jokes about it, "...stuff happened, and now we're here"

Story/Characters:
This season starts with a parody of 9 popular anime[as far as I could catch them] and is already getting you rolling in laughter just in 1 minute![The Hunter Chunin Hero Exam xD]

Continuing on, its just the same old Gintama with a straight man routine, stupidity, randomness and a touching serious storyline which they never miss a chance to joke about, you've got to love that how every single character in Gintama is connected in a significant way to many others! ...

Sound:
The openings and ending are not so amazing for this season in my opinion, but the rest of soundtrack never fails to set the mood and get you all in on what they have up their sleeves!

Art:
The animation gets slightly better(as expected), the animation studio has started using more of ___(bright light/Shines here and there/you know ufotable stuff), [Kagura looks cuter thanks to that, and Zura slightly less appealing imo] It doesn't really matter much with the comedy arcs though as the facial expression gintama characters make are priceless!

Enjoyment:
[till ep4]
Gintama is best anime for me and I'm sure there are a lot of Gintabros out there who feel the same!

It was my first review here, thanks for reading!

If you’ve made it this far into the Gintama series, chances are you’ll be watching this regardless of any reviews or recommendations. You’re probably invested in the characters, not to mention the buildup to the finale that has gradually been revealed through the last two arcs.

This arc isn’t like that. It’s the slip arc, which actually takes place before the farewell shinsengumi arc, so you can expect to see old faces here. (I’m talking the Shinsengumi, Otsu, Ikumatsu, Tetsuko from the Benizakura arc…) This season of Gintama is actually more of a return to the original, before everything got serious. Pure silliness for 13 ... episodes, funny and cringeworthy more often than not, the way it used to be. Good, in a way, but it doesn’t exactly live up to the massive build up from the previous season. Don’t worry though, they’re working on it! They are actually finishing off the final season, but it’s taking a while because, (in the words of Gintama itself) ‘there were some adult issues at play.’ 😉 (look after the ending credits)

Not the best arc I’ve seen, not even close, but still undeniably Gintama. It has the same cast and crew that we’ve all grown to love by now, and the same style of storytelling that is so ridiculous you almost don’t notice that a bunch of deep messages are thrown in there too. So it’s worth seeing in any case. 😊 XD

Introduction:
Gintama... One of the top-rated anime that come out here on this website. At first when I saw Gintama on this website, having 9+/10 ratings on almost every show of it, I persuaded myself to watch all of the seasons even if its really hard due to my schedule. 300+ Episodes? Seriously. I can't even finish Bleach which is also 300+ episodes. So I recklessly tried Gintama from the beginning last summer and I, in fact, one of those who rated every Gintama a 10/10 with one pure reason. Comedy plus Values. Thats how I summarized Gintama. Now this season, the new Gintama came out ... and it is the "Slip Arc".

Story:
As stated in the first episode, this arc will present some comedic material throughout the series and after it, will begin the final arc which is the "Silver Soul" arc. Now I don't have a problems with this thing because more Gintama meaning more laughter that I really need in my life. If I'm going to review the story of Gintama, then you already know it is hard because... Gintama is meant to be random, though it is full of arcs and side stories. On this season of Gintama, we are presented by "Slip Arc", that also have side stories. For example, the story of Nishi Ikumatsu (Katsura's crush who makes ramen for him), who we saw how she was longing to see that one person who was keep on coming to her shack. Then comes Gin and Kankou (Umibouzou) father issues with the Titans. And also the scabbards' romantic story. Those were funny but there is still some value hidden within it. Like the story of Terakado Tsu (Otsu-chan), who was fallen to the streets again but rose up due to the help of her fans (this was a very funny two episodes). Slip Arc presented us variety of laughable side stories with simple values. Though 13 episodes is really not enough. Lack of executions or content is one of the issue of this arc though it is also an advantage to the author to go ahead with the final arc. What I can describe to it accurately is that this Gintama is like the mini-version of the first season of Gintama. Bite-sized. Let me tell you this. Compare a bite-size Oreo (the mini ones) to the original Oreo cookie. What Oreo have the more milk and chocolate? What Oreo have more taste? Obviously, its the original one although, the bite-size one are made for the ones who are lazy? or who wants to eat it like chips. The "Porori-hen" (Slip Arc) offered us what the original Gintama can do although the original have more variety.

Characters:
Ahh yes.. They are back at it again... First minute of the first episode of this anime showed us already that Gintama is basically the king of all parodies. With the references on top even on the following episodes, its safe to say that all of the characters stick to their attitude and motives since when they appeared in the other seasons. Also, we get to learn more stories about other characters and what can they do like Musashi, Tetsuko (the blacksmith) and Ikumatsu.

Art:
Art is simply Gintama and nothing changed. Though I love how the opening gave us so much colors and when it goes to the chorus, it shows the characters running and the background is full of past scenes from past episodes, which gives a good signifance to it.

Sound:
The opening gives us hype and thats all we need for every Gintama episode. While the ending gives us like good sets of girls dressed up in bride dress. Not to mention, the soundtrack and other sounds (like when Katsura enters and when someone fails) gives us a Gintama element to it.

Overall thoughts and Enjoyment:
This Gintama is one of the highest rated anime that was currently aired and yes it deserves to be one of the highest. Enjoyment was top-notch and it is safe to say that this Gintama is like a taste-test (or bite size lol) to the original Gintama. I, honestly, recommend you to watch it before the final arc of Gintama comes so that we will be having smiles before we end Gintama (even though I dont want it to end).

This review of Gintama is about the whole series from 2006-2017 including the Slip Arc. It's my tribute for these years that I spent together with Gintama. Enjoy!

Take a seat and let’s talk about a memorable story.
A story that will not be forgotten , a story that will make laugh and cry , a story that will teach about life and a story that will teach you about what is love and friends and how to value people that are close and dear to you. A story which every addicitive reader should know.

Story 9/10
Have you ever saw a anime which can combine elements ... of comedy and drama and execute it’s concept and idea so well. The story is simple not much to say about it it depicts elements from the history of Japan: Samurai, Katana, Edo-period arhitecture buildings, the old Kyoto capital , Shinsegumi, Shogun, ninja, etc. Since this has parody in the genre elements of parody are added like skyscrapers mixed with old Japanese houses and aliens . This may look dumb and stupid at a first glance but all this elements are explained in the anime during the story and it leaves a strong impact for the viewer.

Gintama manages to use so well the parody elements to fulfill it’s purpose of providing amusement to the viewer. Also these parody elements are combined with the drama and action this show has and as a pleasant surprise everything goes well avoiding the clusterfuck and helping with the progress of the story.

The themes that Gintama covers and abords are vast and the most important ones: family, love,human nature , parody and many more. Gintama doesn’t disappoints us in the slice of life genre at all as a contradiction it manages to execute that theme better than its parody genre.You will learn about family , about love , about sacrifices , about teacher student relation, about friends everything told in a mature perspective to the viewer and with a well directed and balanced tone of comedy and drama.

The purpose of this anime is simple and it’s executed with no flaws , Gintama makes you laugh as hard as you can and in the next minute it makes you cry and in the end it makes you shout as hard as you can :”What a great anime I saw”. Like I mentioned the transition between comedy and drama is flawless because this anime takes time to explain the characters and their background story and every detail is not missed at all.

The pace in the beginning is slow (first 40) we get used to the characters , habits, actions and interactions , what they like what they hate etc. We are introduced to the crazy setting this story is set and explained step by step about the aliens, skyscrapers , and other residents from that parody edo setting. After that everything comes as a roler coaster and for the pleasant surprise of the viewer this is where Gintama shines the drama and actions scenes well directed. Its strange right a parody being better in the drama and action well Gintama is a balanced show so you won’t notice much of a difference in the transition between comedy drama and action.

At the end of each episode you will learn a lesson about life. Yes each character in this anime tells to the viewer a lesson about life , and leaves a memorable impact on the viewer.

Characters 10/10
Despite it’s huge number of characters this show manages to develop each character and tell their background story without missing any detail. Even the minor character have their moments to shine in this anime and contribute to the development of other characters.

What Gintama manages to exceed many expectations is how it uses these characters to tell the story. Practically the characters in Gintama are the story and each character tells his own story from each of his/her perspective. Gintama connects those stories and bring a meaning to the progression of the story and characters.

Gintama doesn’t rushes at all the character development it takes it time for each character at a slow pace adding elements of comedy and drama to the story. At first as any parody the characters are presented as gag characters and used to provide entertainment but oh boy when the pace of the story increases those characters become irreplaceable in Gintama. Let me explain this statement , we get to know their story and circumstances , we are shown how they interact with other characters and how they influence each other directly or indirectly and we see the conclusion told by each character after their experience.

Gintama is like a school which teaches his viewers about life and each character from Gintama is a teacher who takes good care of his students and guides them through life.

Animation 8/10
Good animation, great fighthing scenes , and well directed drama scenes.

Sound 10/10
Great ost and opening songs, the sound is well balanced between the comedy and drama transition.

Enjoyment 10/10
You will laugh until your stomach will hurt, you will cry until you will fill a bucket , you will feel connected to the characters , you will shout “I love this anime” and in the end you will learn a lesson about life called Gintama.

Overall 10/10
This a story that you can tell to your kids and your kids to their kids and so on ……and in the end every generation will come up with the same conclusion :” Thank you for changing my life Gintama”.

After focusing on the central plot, Gintama returns to its essence with the focus on comedy, parodies and presentation of new characters, except for the more dramatic tone of the Ikumatsu bow that had the closing of the development of this character.

This is not a bad choice, but by returning in the mold of Gintama's previous seasons prior to the Arch of Murder of the Xogum, in which Gintama stopped focusing on the characters and began to focus on the world, as a result their central plot did not advance.

Gintama is not an anime with a very complex plot, it only dries the mold of ... an ordinary Bathe Shonen and does comedy in a well made way over the problems of the characters themselves.

The problem that make the plot almost totally focused on comedy breaks the molds that Gintama's own anime built.
What I'm trying to say is that the almost total focus on comedy, which is the case of this 6th season of Gintama makes it annoying for me, missing that most serious footprint of the previous bows and I feel seeing a season filer.

Although I am a fan of Gintama and I like their characters, a good point is the return of old characters that have been left out of the last seasons.
However I would like an explanation for some returns that the plot did not bother to explain, like the Shinsengumi
 and a character who was supposed to be dead.

His art and soundtrack remain good and on the same level of seasons.

Overall I consider this to be the weakest of all Gintama seasons so far, but it still retains its essence with good comedy episodes, and for anyone who is a fan of the series continues to be recommendable.

I don't know who I should blame between Bandai and TV Tokyo, but whoever decided that this should be adapted after Gintama. has seriously dropped the ball.

If you take away anything from this review, just don't watch this season in the intended order. It would fit much better between Gintama' and Gintama° (yes, I do actually think it's funny).

For short, the Slip Arc is a return to the basis of Gintama, a back to the usual style, with 5 arcs and a few standalone episodes fitting in a 13 episode duration. Not only is it moving away from what happened at the end of Gintama° ... and during Gintama. where the story started ramping up, it's actually inferior to what happened before.

Older seasons of Gintama had a pretty large amount of episodes which means they could afford to make 5-6 episodes arcs, which, in my opinion are always better than the rest. However, with only 13 episodes to show for it, the Slip Arc's longest arc is only 3 episodes, which doesn't leave much wiggle room to make a good story, although that singular 3 episode arc was quite good.

For the people who dislike Gintama getting more serious, it's probably a breath of fresh air, but for people like myself who actually enjoyed the main story pacing up, well it feels like some people at Bandai were desperate for money, they probably wanted to fund that Gintama Rumble thing that was mentioned.

A shame really, I have a busy week and not much time for anime. Still a decent season, just a step down compared to everything else.

As an show on its own, this season was decent. However, it somewhat falls short as a gintama season. It is not that this season was bad, but gintama has raised the bar so high that if it is a disappointment if it is anything less than amazing.

I will review it based on the given categories. I apologize if it is too lengthy

Story: 7/10
The slip arc was going to mainly adapt the old comedy arcs that the anime never adapted. So far, the "arcs" - or whatever they're called - have been funny. I found myself laughing to tears at some moments, but I've also ... found myself just nose exhaling (you can look it up on urban dictionary if you don't know what it means) at some other jokes. What weakens the punchlines to this extent is the direction and animation.
Gintama always knew how to unveil the punchline of a joke in the perfect manner to enhance it; be it an abrupt punchline, or a creeping one where you laugh before it is even revealed. This new season fails at this at some times, and so did the battle on rakuyo season. I don't know if the director of the show was changed, but the show is lacking in this department.

Art: 6/10

Sure, gintama isn't famous for its gorgeous art. But when it delivers, it delivers. I never had any problems with arts or animation in gintama, or at least not until the battle on rakuyo arc. The art and animation have taken a hit after the beautiful FS arc. It is not like everything needs to look on point, that is understandable. So, I do not mind it when characters in the back of a shot look somewhat off-model, but when characters in the front of a shot look off-model, it becomes disengaging.

Sound: 7/10

The voice acting is okay, albeit it would seem much better if the animation complemented the scenes. The sound effects in general are alright as well, so I have given it a 7 out of 10.

Characters: 8/10

All is good. Our beloved cast portrayed as they should be, and the guest supporting cast was interesting.

Enjoyment: 8/10

Is it enjoyable? yes. An 8 out of 10 if I am being honest to myself.

Overall, the season gets an overall of 7/10 once I calculate the average, and it seems fitting after taking everything into consideration.

I am really big fan of Gintama I have watched every episode and I was really exited when new season started airing.

Story: 10/10
If you have watched first 5 seasons of Gintama you will be used to it weird story line and this trend is continued.

Art: 10/10
Painting of Gintama is really unique. Also, greatest part of Gintamas art is faces of characters and I mean their expressions when something happens.

Sound: 10/10
Gintama has some soundtracks that are memorable, opening and ending themes are also pretty good. Audio part is great mostly focusing on comedy part of anime, it makes scenes funnier and more memorable. ...

Characters: 10/10
I have nothing to say here all of them are great and they do everything right.

Enjoyment: 10/10
Gintamas gets better and better and as its 6th season it is one of best seasons. You will enjoy is a much you enjoyed others.
Result: 10/10
For some people Gintama is best anime ever, I can't agree or disagree with this. Everyone has anime which is best for them for me its Gintama and you will find your one too.

At the end I will say one thing if you love comedy anime and you watched some of them watch Gintama you won't get disappointed. One really important thing to note is that you have to watch all 5 previous seasons :D.

I'll keep it short because Porori-hen is for me like OVA for me rather than another season as it's between serious Gintama arcs, so I'll rate it subjectively.

Porori-hen aka Slip arc, as it strays from the current arcs and we'll see basically another "random" stories. Even though I find these random stories to be decent, I would rather give it OVA's or specials mark as it's kinda "ruins" the "serious" feel we had since "Shogun assassination arc".

The season is like I said "random" stories, so more focused on humor, now it's difficult with humor jokes as everyone has a different taste, I am gonna ... say it's somewhere in average, maybe below average, but that varies for everyone.

Conclusion: Porori-hen is the weakest Gintama season, as it only has 13 episodes and they aren't really any memorable. I wouldn't say it's terrible, I have enjoyed it to some degree, but as it's kinda cuts into the "serious" mood of Gintama that's been developing.

I give it 7/10 Artwise it's the same and soundwise it is good, but in comedy and enjoyment it's been dissapointment for me.

Gintama has been going strong for a reasonable amount of time now and still proves to be the best of the best!

Casually slipping into a slip arc (teehee) is something you would expect from this show and gives it the break from all the seriousness that it deserves. Admittedly, I was slightly surprised about the way this season just presented itself as a silly interlude right from the get go. At the time I was unsure if it would work putting the main story on hold, however, I was pleasantly satisfied after watching.

I must say that it ever so slightly missed the bar that Gintama ... set itself, just by a smidgen. Although it pulls off what it needed to rather well.

Story - 9

Lacking slightly compared to previous seasons. Seems arcs are a little forced together.

Art - 10

Gintama art has improved tenfold over the years and is at a near-perfect state.

Sound - 10

Voice acting brilliant as always. Soundtracks compliment the art well.
OP is one of my of my favourite from the series, ED lacking slightly.

Character - 10

What do you expect? It's Gintama!

Enjoyment Overall - 10

Watch this show right from the beginning, NOW!

THIS REVIEW CONTAINS MINOR SPOILERS

Why not the first part? Why doesn't the part get the highest score? Why am I writing this review in the first place

After watching Gintama season 5, I was quite disappointed with it. Because the plot is bad, the characters are poor? No. It's a serious arc, the whole part is an arc (12 eps). But it lacks what I love about this series after watching 300 eps. Humor is almost absent or not enough to be amusing. The action scenes are repetitive and predictable which makes it boring. Gintama's previous serious arcs were really good especially Shogun Assassination and ... Farewell Shinsengumi. Of course season 5 isn't bad, it's just not as good as the previous 4.

Back to "Gintama: Slip arc". The main reason is that as mentioned above, season 5 made me quite disappointed but in this season 6, a normal Gintama has returned, a Gintama that I like (not as good as part 1,2,3 of course), 4) . There is no serious arc in this part. It's like a break between intense battles. It's all about preparing for the final arc (Silver Soul). The events of this part take place before the Shogun Assassination arc, so you can see familiar faces that have contributed to Gintama's name. The humor, bullshit often seen in the anime series has also returned in 13 episodes. Of course, because the length of the movies is a bit short, they can't be as funny as part 1 (201 eps), part 2 (51 eps), part 4 (51 eps).

There doesn't seem to be a specific plot for this anime. The story revolves around Gintoki, Shinpachi, Kagura and their friends :). Arcs often start with humor, sometimes bullshit, and end emotionally. And as usual, Shinpachi screams in every episode. The return of colorful characters is also a notable one. If you've made it all the way to this part of the series, this is a great one. Once again, Gintama surprised me with its ability to link the events of the movie in the past. A lot of footage that most viewers will not remember appeared in this part. Although my favorite Gintama is back, this part is quite bland, with a total of 5 but I will only mention the part that I think is the best here. It's the "Homeless arc". The arc sees the return of Zura, Ikumatsu - the owner of a soba noodle shop, and one of my favorite couples in Gintama (Katsura x Ikumatsu). If you've read the manga or watched the previous installments, you probably know where their relationship is headed. Besides, this is also the only arc that is truly captivating in this part. There is humor, there is touching, there are 2 characters who seem to have nothing to do with each other but have an unexpected connection. We also get to know more about Ikumatsu's past, the series really does a good job of building out supporting characters even though they are rarely seen. I actually thought season 6 could be better than season 5 after watching this arc but the arcs that followed left me disappointed. They're bullshit, pretty bland; there are still touching scenes but don't really leave an impression.

I won't say much about the picture & sound but some BNP did it well. Only the ED part is special here. Why? We will see many female characters (Kagura, Otae, Tsukuyo, Sacchan, Kyubei, Nobume...) in Gintama wearing wedding dresses. Yes, you are not mistaken, it is a wedding dress. Sounds like harems :). The melody of the song is quite funny even though I don't understand Japanese. Many people say it doesn't suit Gintama and it's true. Imagine you are watching a sad scene and suddenly ED pops up. But it's okay to see female characters in wedding dresses.

This season is still weak, many shortcomings. You can completely skip it if you want to continue the drama of the previous part. But I still recommend you to watch it if you really love Gintama

(This review applies to the entire Gintama series.)
What is Gintama about? Well, according to Gin-san: "We don't even know". But for me, Gintama is a great filler with some anime bows tucked in the middle of genius shapes.

Gintama tells a story about Japan at a time when it was dominated by alien forces, the plot focuses on our four protagonists: Gintoki, Shinpachi, Kagura and Sadaharu. Now speaking of the anime, Gintama is very good indeed, all the characters have a different charisma, from their personalities to their beliefs, like our revolutionary Zura, oh my mistake, "Zura janai, Katsura da.", Dear Hasegawa-san (Madao), the whole shinsegumi ... from Kondo-san (gorilla), Hijikata-san (mayonnaise) Okita-kun (sadist), among others. Seriously, there are soooo many characters, which turns out to be a problem too, as it's impossible to always show them all, so there are times when they just disappear for several episodes and yet more characters still appear, there are a few moments when that happens. makes it nauseating, but Gintama's universe is undoubtedly incredible, with the advent of aliens it is easy to put up with many different situations ranging from comedy (like all scenes in which Baka, I say, Hata Ouji appears) to dramas (Like Prejudice that exists between the amantos and humans), this is something strong in Gintama, is a shounen that has comedy as its essence, but knows how to create various heavy and sad situations, an example of this are the side storys of the villains, there are some that in fact they made me water. Apart from all these points, the songs, the soundtracks are wonderful, they fit the scenes very well and the amount they use is amazing (if you have the time looking for some playlist to hear some). And it's amazing how the stories fit together.

But undoubtedly, the characters are the most captivating things in the works, you may end up not liking one or the other, but it is impossible not to like at least one of them. Even such "villains" have their story very well developed, which makes you even more fond of Gintama, creating a special affection for this great "void of anime" and full of feelings. Not all episodes will make you laugh, or make you cry, but some of them will touch you, I'm sure, and don't underestimate Gintama because he wants to take everything in comedy, it's the author's way of showing that you should laugh even at times that seem impossible. Speaking of Gorilla (not Kondo), I find it impressive how he can mess with those who watch his work, but undeniable the clear improvement of the adaptation, the studio and director managed to give a unique air with all those 4th wall breaks.
Perhaps the only 'problem' in Gintama for us (from the west) is the various references to the culture there, such as the structure of their language or actors, comedians and the sennyu themselves (voice actors). Which makes some episodes extremely boring unless you really understand. I also think that not all ages can really appreciate Gintama, I remember I started watching when I was 10 ~ 11 and found it extremely, because I was a shounen without those screaming powers stuff or a protagonist who was really “badass” but Today, with my 19 years, I can enjoy much more. But I don't want to talk about it, so give Gintama a try, it's an amazing anime that has a lot to show you, both in history, in comedy, and of course in characters.

(Essa review vale para toda a série Gintama)
(PT-Br) Do que se trata Gintama? Bem, de acordo com o Gin-san: "Nem nós sabemos". Mas para mim, Gintama é um grande filler com alguns arcos de anime enfiados no meio de formas geniais.

Gintama conta uma história sobre o Japão em um momento em que ele foi dominado por forças alienígenas, a trama tem como foco nossas quatro protagonistas: Gintoki, Shinpachi, Kagura e Sadaharu. Agora falando do anime, Gintama é de fato muito bom, todos os personagens tem um carisma diferente, desde suas personalidades até suas crenças, como nosso revolucionário Zura, oh erro meu, "Zura janai, Katsura da.", o querido Hasegawa-san (Madao), toda a shinsegumi desde o Kondo-san (gorila), Hijikata-san (maionese) Okita-kun (sadista), entre outros. Sério, tem muuuuuuitos personagens, o que acaba sendo um problema também, pois é impossível mostrar todos eles sempre, então tem alguns momentos em que eles simplesmente desaparecem por vários episódios e ainda assim continuam a aparecer mais personagens, tem alguns momentos em que isso se torna enjoativo, mas o universo de Gintama é sem dúvida incrível, com o advento dos alienígenas fica fácil colocar várias situações diferentes que vão desde comédia (como todas as cenas em que o Baka, digo, Hata Ouji aparece) até dramas (Como o preconceito que existe entre os amantos e os humanos), isso sim é algo forte em Gintama, é um shounen que tem a comédia como essência, mas sabe criar várias situações pesadas e tristes, um exemplo disso são as side storys dos vilões, tem algumas que de fato me fizeram lacrimejar. Além de todos esses pontos, as músicas, as soundtracks são maravilhosas, elas encaixam muito bem com as cenas e a quantidade que eles usam é incrível (se tiver um tempo procura algum playlist pra ouvir algumas). E são impressionantes como as histórias se encaixam.

Mas sem dúvidas, os personagens são as coisas mais cativantes das obras, você pode acabar não gostando de um ou outro, mas é impossível de não gostar de pelo menos um deles. Até os tais “vilões” tem suas histórias muito bem desenvolvidas, o que te faz gostar ainda mais de Gintama, criar um afeto especial por esse grande “vazio de anime” e cheio de sentimentos. Nem todos os episódios vão te fazer rir, ou te fazer chorar, mas alguns deles vai te tocar, tenho certeza, e não subestime Gintama por ele querer levar tudo na comédia, é o jeito do autor mostrar que você deve rir até em momentos que parecem impossíveis. Falando do Gorila (não o Kondo), eu acho impressionante como ele consegue mexer com o quem assiste sua obra, mas é inegável a clara melhora da adaptação, o estúdio e diretor conseguiram dar um ar único com todas aquelas quebras da 4° parede.
Talvez o único ‘‘problema’’ em Gintama para nós (do ocidente) sejam as várias referências a cultura de lá, como na estrutura de sua língua ou atores, comediantes e os próprios sennyu (dubladores). O que faz alguns episódios serem extremamente “chatos”, a menos que você realmente entenda. Também acho que nem todas as idades conseguem apreciar de fato Gintama, lembro que comecei a assistir quando tinha 10~11 anos e achei extremamente, pois era um shounen sem aquelas coisas de gritar poderes ou um protagonista que fosse de fato “badass”, mas hoje, com meus 19 anos, consigo aproveitar muito mais. Mas eu não quero me estender falando disso, então, deem uma chance a Gintama, é um anime incrível que tem muito o que te mostrar, tanto em história, quanto em comédia e, claro, em personagens.

The concept of time in the universe of Gintama is by far its most fascinating meta subject. For as much as the show likes to mock itself for its seemingly unchanging sitcom status quo, the fact is that Edo has never been frozen in time. The world has evolved with the show, with new characters, new relationships, old relationships developing and deepening, new playing fields of possibility being opened, and an increasingly changing understanding of the foundation fabric of the story itself., whether in massive game-changing arcs or the nuances of the ever-evolving sitcom antics themselves. Like its central character, Gintama is a show that ... is constantly looking forward, constantly running towards the future that waits just beyond its grasp. It’s what’s made it such an exhilarating watch for me, the excitement of wanting to find out just how far this world and my relationship with it would grow and evolve over time. It’s an incredible strength in a show full of incredible strengths.

I bring this up because this is the only time in Gintama’s history where it has, quite literally, decided to stop looking forward and turn back the clock. The Slip Arc is composed of lighter segments and arcs from the manga that were never adapted before, the one-off stories the anime skipped over on its journey to its explosive climax with the Shogun Assassination and Farewell Shinsengumi arcs. Which means that not only are we taking a breather before rushing into what still appears to be the true goddamn finale, we’re taking a breather in the past, in that stretch of easy-going time before Shigeshige's death firmly closed the book on Gintama ever going back to the show it was before. Characters who had died are still around, characters who went through development haven’t had that development yet, and the stakes-raising intensity that followed the Pinky Promise arc is completely absent. This is nostalgic Gintama, complete with the closest thing to a “standard format” OP we’ve gotten since Day by Day, It’s a trip down memory lane, remembering the fun times we used to share before finally taking on the final boss in the next chamber.

And you know what? I’m completely okay with that.

Yes, it is, for lack of a more descriptive term, weird to see Umibozu running around still being an over-protective, smothering father after turning over a new leaf following the Battle at Rakuyo. It’s weird to see the Shinsengumi still hanging around, and Sasaki still alive. It’s weird to suddenly be returning focus to the street level we abandoned so long ago, to hang out with characters like Ikamatsu the ramen lady and Hasegawa, the former of whom we haven’t even seen since Katsura first busted up her shop almost 300 episodes ago. But you know what? I liked Hasegawa. I liked Ikamatsu. I liked when I could just stretch my arms and relax with this show, when not every arc needed to be the biggest, most world-ending thing ever. We have had 29 straight episodes of the most awe-inspiring action of the show’s history, the biggest upheavals and reversals and explosions ever. It’s been a LOT. It’s been a lot of good, but it’s been a lot. So if the impetus here is to relax and take a load off, to remember why we fell in love with this show in the first place before bidding it farewell, then I see no reason not to enjoy it for all it's worth.

And I say this as someone who has absolutely fucking loved this new era of GIntama; seeing the story enter its final stretch has been so rewarding on so many levels, a masterpiece of payoff that has left me reeling from the impact over and over again. But while Gintama may shine in these big moments, its heart still lies in the small. Yoshiwara in Flames, Battle at Rakuyo, Farewell Shinsengumi, none of these arcs would be as meaningful without the weight of the countess hours we’ve spent just living with these idiots, experiencing life with them in all its stupidity and brilliance. The slowly expansive sitcom formula that defined this show for so long is the soul of Gintama, and it only makes sense to return to it one last time before the grand finale. Whether or not this was planned is an entirely different question all together, but if there’s one thing watching anime for so long has taught me, it’s that something doesn’t need to be planned to matter.

So yes, I quite enjoyed the Slip Arc and everything it represented. This is Gintama, back in its original form for one last hurrah, full of fun memories and stupid larks and more poop jokes than I know what to do with. This is why I fell in love with you in the first place, show, this wild, uninhibited stream of consciousness, full of humor and heart in equal measure. And I see no reason to complain about that.

Why am I even writing this review? I'm two years late, and this is 330 episodes in. Does it even matter? Of course it doesn't matter. But, I'm addicted to leaving reviews so here is a pointless one for people who've already invested literally a decade of their lives getting this far into the series.

Gintama Porori-hen is funny. Shocking, I know.

But, like every other season of Gintama, it's hilarious. This is probably the only anime out there that can make you laugh about anything from Castanets and boogers, to guardian spirits and sword scabbards. ("And on Castanets...Otae!" and "Scabberina"...those ... two moments had me in tears, man. Literal tears welled up in my eyes I laughed so hard.)

This season is pure filler, and was still hilarious. Odd Jobs just jumped from one crazy situation to another, as they often do between serious arcs. One minute they're caught in the middle of a feud between the homeless, the next minute they're getting into the pop idol business, the next minute, they're doing community games with ghosts, (Which was totally random, even for them.). And they always make you laugh, just constantly. It's actually physically tiring if you watch enough episodes back to back. It's only one of two animes that made me stop watching for a while, because I actually got tired of laughing. (The other was Seto No Hayamone.)

If laughter adds years to your life, Gintama should make you immortal.

I won't give this a perfect 10 score, because it's still filler, and they did mail it in a little this season on certain episodes (Like the Tales of Gintama Game episode). But, it's funny as hell. Gintama mailing in a filler season is funnier than 99.999% of other animes trying their dead level best to make you laugh.

Based upon this review alone, you will now continue to watch Gintama. Not because you've been watching it since 2006 already. But, because of this super needed and relevant review for the ages. You're welcome.

This feels very much like a filler arc of gintama. It's not bad, it has a decent amount of laughs and good lines but the story itself is lacking. It's a fun spin with more hits than misses and the main characters are done well - but ultimately it is a series of short comedy sketches which doesn't compare to the more epic arc.

Ultimately it's a decent watch but don't expect the epicenes from the more plot centric arcs. The characters themselves are done well and it is hard to fault the direction. Fourth wall breaking remains central and is also utilized well.

Gintama.: Porori-hen
Gintama: Slip Arc


Questionable, but it's an undisputed fact for me. This season is the best of all Gintama, without exception. Not in terms of overall quality, but in terms of entertainment values.

But one wonders why? There are so many seasons and this season of all seasons is supposed to be the best? Well, the reasons are absurdly simple.

Gintama is a parody comedy with a relatively average plot, a lot of melodrama, great humor, and likable characters. And if you remove the "plot", all that remains is pure bizarre comedy as it should have been.

I can hardly put into words how much I enjoyed ... this wacky stupid season, without any drawn-out fights, slow pacing, and melodrama. This is Gintama, in its full bloom. Some other seasons achieved similar quality, but due to the constant fluctuations with the "Serious Arcs" and the lousy transitions, massive amounts of entertainment were lost.

[Plot 2]

Single humorous arcs without a real plot and with minimal narration.

[Characters 6]

The characters showed their best side here. You saw again, their egoistic and crazy personality and all their senseless conflicts. Whether it was to make money or simply to prevent the wedding between giants.

[Animations 5]

Average as ever. Gintama has never been known for excellent animation. For average presentation, these are more than enough.

[Music 7]
The usual familiar Easterns, without any great additions.
The intro from the Slip Arc is by far one of the most visually accurate for Gintama, which reflects the series well.
The outro is strange, musically relatively nice.


Conclusion


Since this season had nothing to do with the main storyline, it was a nice change of pace to see Gintama in all its glory once again.

[Enjoyment 9]

“Hate to break it to ya, but I’m not napping, either. I was pretending so people wouldn’t figure out during recess that I have no friends.”

- Okita, Episode 333 (Gintama.: Pororoi-hen 5)

It’s nice to be able to return to some of the arcs which had been skipped over during the production of the earlier seasons of Gintama. And, while not the most intentional of series structures, it offers a welcome reprieve from the intense arcs. Gintama.: Pororoi-hen is a welcome return to the familiar.

The short stories fit together well, with each providing laughs and utilising Gintama's absurdist humour to great ... effect. Mixing in a couple of emotional stories adds more depth to the series and refines the essence of what makes Gintama such an impactful series. While a certain character appearance can be a little bit odd chronologically, Gintama.: Porori-hen works well as a breath of fresh air and is, in some ways, bittersweet thanks to their addition.

The cast, as usual, remains brilliant. Bringing back some characters who were featured in the earlier episodes of Gintama is a nice touch that builds upon the theme of forging bonds. It also makes some of the events in the next series feel more impactful. Gintama is a series that constantly examines the relationship between the past and present, while looking into what it is that characters are fighting for. Gintama.: Porori-hen works to highlight these themes while also reminding the audience of what the cast is fighting for.

Overall, this series is a really enjoyable collection of comedy stories that stay true to the spirit of Gintama; not being afraid to make fun of itself while treating the more emotional stories with care. I would recommend watching it in the order it was aired as some chose to watch it before the end of Gintama°, but I think this changes how the series feels as an instalment of the Gintama series.

Gintama: Porori-hen is the sixth season of the popular anime series Gintama. The show follows the adventures of Gintoki Sakata, a former samurai who now works as a freelancer in a futuristic version of Edo Japan where aliens have taken over.

The story continues to follow the same comedic and action-packed formula as its previous seasons. It features a variety of standalone comedic episodes as well as more serious story arcs that explore the characters' past and motivations.

The style is similar to the previous seasons, with a mix of slapstick humor, parody, and pop culture references. The show also features a lot of fourth-wall breaking moments ... where the characters acknowledge that they are in a TV show.

Overall, is a great choice for fans of the series who are looking for more of the same hilarious and action-packed content. The show also offers a great entry point for newcomers to the series, with its mix of standalone comedic episodes and more serious story arcs.

For those of you wondering what this season is about, it's a season of comedy episodes that are adapted from manga chapters released before the content from episode 300 onwards. For those of you wondering if it's a nice break before the final arc of Gintama... not really.

Okay, okay, yes. Gintama kills comedy most of the time. Gintama comedy is worth watching. But this season definitely didn't crack the list of the best Gintama's comedy has to offer. I genuinely enjoyed three episodes from this season, and the rest were episodes I sort of just mindlessly watched. Don't get me wrong, Gintama's comedy is still ... unparalleled and amazing. Coming back to comedy after 29 episodes of main story was nice. This season did a fairly good job of bringing in some of the forgotten comedy elements of the Gintama world, but it didn't really bring in the best. One of the stories this season was really touching, and it was written really well. One of the episodes had me rolling. The rest were just okay.

Obviously, just okay for Gintama is better than most anime, but nonetheless. I don't have much to say about this season, unfortunately. It was fine. However, I'm ready to get into the final arc of Gintama, so I'm going to go do that now.