is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Hideaki Sorachi. It was serialized in Shueisha's manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump from December 2003 to September 2018, later in Jump Giga from December 2018 to February 2019, and concluded on the Gintama app, where it ran from May to June 2019. Its chapters were collected in 77 volumes. Set in Japan during the Edo period, which has been conquered by aliens named Amanto, the plot follows Gintoki Sakata, a samurai who works as a freelancer in his self-established store, "Yorozuya", alongside his friends Shinpachi Shimura and Kagura, offering a wide range of services to handle various tasks and odd jobs. After his editor suggested doing a historical series, Sorachi incorporated a science fiction setting to develop characters to his liking.
An original video animation (OVA) adaptation produced by Sunrise was featured at the Jump Festa 2006 Anime Tour in 2005. This was followed by a full 367-episode anime television series adaptation, which aired on TV Tokyo from April 2006 to October 2018. The storyline of the anime series was concluded in the film Gintama: The Very Final, released in January 2021. Two other films, Gintama: The Movie and Gintama: The Movie: The Final Chapter: Be Forever Yorozuya, were released in April 2010 and July 2013, respectively. Besides the anime series, there have been various light novels and video games based on Gintama. A live-action film adaptation was released in July 2017 in Japan by Warner Bros. Pictures. A sequel live-action film premiered in August 2018.
The manga was licensed for English release in North America by Viz Media. In addition to publishing the individual volumes of the series, Viz Media serialized its first chapters in its Shonen Jump manga anthology from the January to the May 2007 issues. Viz Media ceased the English-language localization in 2011, with 23 volumes released.
In Japan, the Gintama manga has been popular, with over 73 million copies in circulation by November 2024, making it one of the best-selling manga series of all time. Gintama has been well-received by critics and audiences alike, with praise for its comedy and characters, as well as its overarching plot and action choreography.
Plot
The story is set in an alternate-history late-Edo period, where humanity is attacked by aliens called . Edo Japan's samurai fight to defend Earth, but the shogun cowardly surrenders when he realizes the aliens' power. He agrees to an unequal contract with the aliens, ceding power to them, and also places a ban on carrying swords in public and allows the invaders to enter the country. The samurai's swords are confiscated and the Tokugawa bakufu (shogunate) becomes a puppet government.
The series focuses on an eccentric samurai, Gintoki Sakata who works as an odd-jobs freelancer. He helps a teenager named Shinpachi Shimura save his sister Tae from an Amanto group that wants to send her to a brothel. Impressed by Gintoki, Shinpachi becomes his freelance apprentice to pay the bills and learn more about the enigmatic samurai. When the pair rescues a teenage alien girl with super-strength, Kagura, from a yakuza group, they accept her into their odd-jobs freelancing business, and the three become known as .
While working, they regularly encounter the Shinsengumi police force, who often ally with Gintoki when work involves dangerous criminals. The trio also meets Gintoki's former comrades from the Amanto invasion, including the revolutionary Kotaro Katsura who is friendly toward them despite his terrorist activities against the alien-controlled government.
The story is a balance between episodic and shorter arc based plotlines that resolve quickly, and a rich background plot that develops from its beginning to end. For example, Gintoki's former comrade Shinsuke Takasugi is a major antagonist who regards Gintoki and his other former comrades as enemies and seeks to destroy the shogunate. Over time, Takasugi gains allies, including Kagura's brother Kamui, and the elite fighting unit Mimawarigumi to prepare for his large-scale coup d'état. After the true antagonist—the immortal Utsuro—is introduced, Gintoki works with both friends and enemies to stop Utsuro from destroying the Earth.
Production
In 2003, manga artist Hideaki Sorachi, having previously published two one-shots in Weekly Shōnen Jump, was preparing his first serialized work. An editor suggested he create a series based on the Shinsengumi, inspired by an upcoming television drama about the historical group. Although Sorachi admired the Shinsengumi, his initial attempts to develop this concept were unsuccessful. He subsequently shifted to creating an original story set in a fictionalized version of the historical Bakumatsu period, incorporating science fiction elements.
The series was initially titled , but Sorachi found it unimpactful. After discussions with his family, he settled on the title Gintama. The setting was influenced by Sorachi's earlier one-shot "Samuraider," which, despite his own negative assessment, introduced alien characters that were carried into Gintama. Sorachi selected the Bakumatsu and Sengoku periods for their thematic focus on societal change and human nature. By setting the series in an alternate-history Bakumatsu, he aimed to highlight the declining status of samurai and explore their bushido code. The manga Rurouni Kenshin was also a significant inspiration.
The protagonist was originally intended to be Toshiro Hijikata, a character inspired by the historical figure Hijikata Toshizō, whom Sorachi admired. However, after being unable to refine Hijikata's design, Sorachi relegated him to a supporting role and introduced the Shinsengumi as a group within the story. A pilot chapter featured a different plot, including more Shinsengumi members such as one based on Harada Sanosuke, but these older characters were removed for not being entertaining. Sorachi stated that most characters are loosely based on real Edo citizens, with the protagonist Gintoki drawing partial inspiration from Sakata no Kintoki.
The manga initially struggled in popularity and faced potential cancellation. Although the first volume sold out, Sorachi later learned the print run had been intentionally small due to publisher Shueisha's concerns. To boost readership, he introduced the Shinsengumi characters, which his assistants found memorable. Sorachi had low expectations for the series' longevity, and after the release of a third volume, he struggled to generate new material. Early popularity was partly attributed to the contemporaneous Shinsengumi drama. Initially hesitant to reference the show, Sorachi later incorporated longer, more dramatic storylines while maintaining the series' humor and satire of modern Japan.
Sorachi's workflow involved developing ideas through solitude or walks, though he occasionally missed revision deadlines before his editor collected the manuscript. He described his ideas as seemingly random but thematically connected, and he frequently relied on his editor for assistance. He approached each chapter as either comedy or drama, defining the overall series as a "science fiction human drama pseudo-historical comedy."
For illustration, Sorachi typically used a felt-tip pen, fountain pen, brush-tip pen, and multiliner. For major characters, he used a felt-tip pen and fountain pen, outlining them with a multiliner-0.8.
Themes and style Hideaki Sorachi's primary focus in Gintama was the use of gags, though he began incorporating more dramatic storylines during the manga's second year while retaining its comedic foundation. The series frequently employs meta-humor, including fourth-wall breaks and commentary on other manga series. In the first chapter, after a brief fight scene, a character complains it lasted only "one page," to which the protagonist Gintoki replies, "Shut up! One page is a long time for a manga artist!" Gintoki's exaggerated obsession with obtaining the Weekly Shōnen Jump magazine, which leads to conflicts parodying typical tropes, further satirizes the genre. Other comedic elements rely on knowledge of Japanese culture for full comprehension.
Publications have described the humor as "bizarre" and "weird," often categorizing it into "sci-fi comedy" involving the alien Amanto species and "samurai comedy" derived from the historical setting. The satire frequently targets modern social conventions, celebratory days, and mythical figures. Several characters are also based on or reference historical individuals.
Beyond comedy, the narrative explores social issues arising from the Amanto invasion, most notably the lack of social equality between humans and aliens. This establishes a central theme of characters striving to preserve their way of life, contrasting with the more common trope of pursuing ambitious dreams.
Media Manga
Written and illustrated by Hideaki Sorachi, Gintama debuted in Shueisha's manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump on December 8, 2003. The manga was originally scheduled to end on September 15, 2018; however, on that day, it was announced that the series would be transferred to Jump Giga, where it ran in three consecutive issues from December 28, 2018, to February 22, 2019, and later continued in the free Gintama app, where it ran from May 13 to June 20 of that same year, concluding with its 704th chapter. Shueisha collected its chapters in 77 volumes, released from April 2, 2004, to August 2, 2019.
Viz Media licensed Gintama for publication in North America. A 55-page preview from the series was first featured in the January 2006 issue of its Shonen Jump magazine. The chapters were serialized in Shonen Jump from the January to the May 2007 issues, at a rate of one chapter per month. Viz Media published the first 23 volumes under its "Shonen Jump Advanced" imprint from July 3, 2007, to August 2, 2011; the publisher ceased the series' publication without providing further details.
Anime Jump Festa specials Two animated specials of Gintama were developed by Sunrise for the Jump Festa Anime Tour 2005 and 2008. The first one, having the same title, is composed of various auto conclusive stories meant to introduce the characters from the series. The second special titled is initially set in the war between aliens and samurai and is later revealed to be a hoax. On September 30, 2009, a DVD collection, Gintama Jump Anime Tour 2008 & 2005, was published by Aniplex. It contains the 2005 and 2008 specials and an audio commentary. In July 2014, it was announced that the Gintama anime would return for a one-episode special for the year's Jump Festa. The anime special DVD was bundled with the limited edition of the 58th manga volume released on April 3, 2015. The fourth special was also released in 2015.
Television series 2006–2010 series
An anime television series adaptation, also produced by Sunrise, aired for 201 episodes on TV Tokyo from April 4, 2006, to March 25, 2010.
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, the sequel to the 2006–2010 series, aired for 51 episodes (episodes 202–252 of the overall series) on TV Tokyo from April 4, 2011, to March 26, 2012.
A second part, subtitled , aired for 13 episodes (episodes 253–265 of the overall series) from October 4, 2012, to March 28, 2013.
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A third series, titled , aired for 51 episodes (episodes 266–316 of the overall series) on TV Tokyo and its affiliates from April 8, 2015, to March 30, 2016.
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A fourth series, , aired for 12 episodes (episodes 317–328 of the overall series) on TV Tokyo and its affiliates from January 9 to March 27, 2017.
A second part, adapting the skipped comedic arcs taking place before the events of the Shogun Assassination Arc, subtitled , aired for 13 episodes (episodes 329–341 of the overall series) from October 2 to December 25, 2017.