@ikesoji & @shugyos wanted a compilation of takasugi screamingĀ āgintokiā, i took the liberty of compiling allĀ āgintokiās said by takasugi throughout the anime and suffered a ton having to sit through the painful scenes again :)
The last thing I saw with my left eye was your face. If the enemy burned into this eye had been the bakufu, everything would be so much easier.Ā
Our sworn enemy is ourselves. Even though we fought to save him, we were so weak, we had to use his life as a stepping stone to surviveā¦ And we made you bear that cross. Every time I remember your face etched into this eye, the scar throbs and bays for blood. āWhy wonāt you avenge Sensei? You can put an end to everything by piercing that chest with a sword!ā And thatās exactly right. We werenāt meant to survive.
Why did you come to save us? Why didnāt you abandon us and save Sensei? Iām sure you could have done it. You promised me back then. And you mustāve wanted to save him more than anyone. So whyā¦ Why? Why did you choose us, Gintoki?!
Iām amazed you can still say that nowā¦ I see. I had no idea.Ā
ok but why is komamura bringing out his bankai so easily??? he didnt even go to shikai actually what the hell was his shikai i forgor i dont think ive seen it more than. once. probably
Takasugi really feels like the embodiment of a character who's literally the enemy of the entire narrative... The narrative painted him as Gintoki's archenemy who rightfully harbours anger and hatred for him for his actions in the past and turning a blind eye, but it turns out Takasugi was actually angry at himself and couldn't stand seeing Gintoki cry.
There's how Gintoki and Hijikata have strongly contrasting designs and compatible personalities, as if hinting at how their dynamic would likely have a strong role in the overall narrative... And Takasugi was just the toxic yaoi ex who Hijikata was meant to replace. Only for Takasugi to entirely take Hijikata out of the picture and leave Hijikata pathetically tailing the two of them in Silver Soul arc.
And if Takagin really is romantically implied... You can interpret "wait for me in hell" as Takasugi getting Gintoki to promise that the only person he would belong to and go home to is Takasugi alone. Tsukuyo had commented that Gintoki is the type who can't belong to one place and it's why there is no romance in the story - and Takasugi destroyed that.
Takasugi destroyed all the allegations and tropes against him that were established at the very start. The way this iconic line is unironically true... Takasugi is the troll to Gintama that trolls everyone. Takasugi is the enemy of the entire Gintama universe.
He's so terrible he won't even make his character clear to the audience... Best boy BTW.
It's in the way that Kagura calls him Gin-chan, and in the way the Shimura siblings call him Gin-san. Tama calls him Gintoki-sama. The Shinsengumi (especially Sougo) call him Danna. Hijikata calls him Yorozuya even after the reveal of the White Demon moniker. [He judges Gintoki on his present deeds and not the past and that alone can fill pages]. Umibozu acknowledges him as Kagura's earth parent and Kamui refers to him as Kagura's brother, Abuto lumps him with the rest of Kamui's dysfunctional family. Shoyo-sensei, Katsura, Sakamoto and Takasugi all call him Gintoki (Sakamoto is doing his best). I don't know where I'm going with this but Sakata Gintoki is loved and
okay, so here's my post digging into kirimusubi, one of the songs DOES did for gintama the final.
this is largely based on two existing translations (turn on english CC for the video), both of which i compared carefully and supplemented with my meagre understanding of japanese and some research.
both translations are generally pretty good, with the tumblr one (not sure where it's originally from) being more literal and the youtube video one smoothing the words to sound a bit more natural. one or the other seems more accurate in different places. here's more or less what i believe the lyrics to mean, with a priority over conveying meaning:
The stardust in the night sky that I look up at is always
Beyond the silver dream
In order to regain the old bond that I lost/was lost
We have been trying to wash away even red-dyed fate
And kept searching
And finally got here in that hollow sunlight
We swore that we would never let go of each other again
[kiri musubu], shedding tears at the unruly/rough tenderness/kindness
In order to love, we must continue forward on this path no matter what
The stardust in the night sky that I look up at is always
Beyond the silver dream
If you're going to bitterly abandon yourself and go mad
Why not live an upright life that's like you? (as in, when people say "That's just like you" or "that's not like you")
With wounds/scars in our chests,
Let's walk, then laugh like brats again
So that one day, our shadows will meet again
[A cry from the underbelly of my blazing soul] or [A blazing cry from the underbelly of my soul] (where "ura" is used, as in ura and omote, to denote the "other side" of the stomach)
Engraves the proof that we once lived together in this place
The destination of our messing around is always
Beyond the silver dream
If you'll do anything to protect someone,
Raise your fist
[kiri musubu], shedding tears at the unruly/rough tenderness/kindness
In order to love, we must continue forward on this path no matter what
A cry from the underbelly of my blazing soul
Engraves the proof that we once lived together in this place
The destination of our messing around is always
Beyond the silver dream
so. there's a LOT to unpack here. but first, let's address the lyric i left untranslated, which is also the title of the song: kiri musubi. so what does this term actually mean?
literally speaking, these words mean "cut" and "tie." you might recognize kiri as a different form of "kiru." interestingly, the video translator translated it as "in the clashing swords." i'm not sure this actually has basis in anything, but it's a neat thought.
see, the title of the song is almost certainly an inversion of musubi kiri, a specific kind of knot in the japanese tradition of knot-tying, mizuhiki. what does this knot signify? well...
"a knot that's difficult to loosen once it's been tied" brings to mind the way that shouka sonjuku trio describe the bonds between them. for example when they're complaining about it in the beginning of the final (ch 699):
this is just one of the many terms used in the song that evokes a specific moment or line of dialogue in gintama. for example, "raise your fist" and
but i digress. the shocking truth is that the song's title, and part of the lyrics in its chorus, deliberately invokes a marriage and funeral simultaneously. "tying the knot" and "cutting the knot," literally. in case you didn't think the movie-original sakura blossom boat scene was enough.
that's not all, though. because i would argue that the words being inverted--kiri musubi rather than musubi kiri--alongside the other lyrics imply that rather than "a wish for something to only happen once," the song is expressing a wish for something to happen once more. "to regain the old bond that was lost" and "that we once lived together in this place" make it pretty clear what's being implied, i think.
and yet, kiri means to cut. it means to snip away that difficult-to-loosen knot. and the rest of that line is about shedding tears at a violent kindness, a kindness that must be performed no matter how difficult because. if you'll do anything to protect someone, you'll even use their corpse, your sensei's corpse, as a stepping stone.
and the irony is pretty clear here too. the wish for something to only have to occur once--but this isn't the first time gintoki has had to cut down takasugi, or lose shouyou. so naturally, the words are inverted. that hope was dashed. the whole arc is a bizarre rehashing of their past. but in that happening, there's also opportunity for a different kind of wish. whatever your thoughts are on the writing choices for the final arc, this song seems like a sincere dedication to the emotions therein...
"the lyrics in its chorus, deliberately invokes a marriage and funeral simultaneously. 'tying the knot' and 'cutting the knot,' literally."
"the song is expressing a wish for something to happen once more. 'to regain the old bond that was lost' and 'that we once lived together in this place' make it pretty clear what's being implied, i think."
@lotus-tower why did they do this. to torment me i guess,Ā IM JUST SAYING EVEN I TAKAGINNIE9000 would not use symbolism or language like marriage for them canonically???
PLEASE HERPES MEEE END ME NOOOW (;Ā“ą¼ąŗ¶Šą¼ąŗ¶`)
"the tumblr one (not sure where it's originally from) being more literal" Yeah that's because I just put it in a translator š
This is great. Thank you so much for giving your insight on this! šš
DOES really are the ultimate yaoi warriors. let us not forget that they started everything with KNOW KNOW KNOW being used for a special one episode-only takagin AMV. and then shounen jump made a whole new one.
the most important factor when shipping things that arenāt outlined or implied in canon or where the characters donāt have much canonical dynamic going on is how much it strengthens and adds to an existing situation. everyone and their mom knows joui 4 is real in a way few other anime Main Character Group polycules are real. and I genuinely am invested in sakamoto/takasugi even if theyāve only interacted 1.5 times. and thatās because of the following mathematical premises:
1. takagin is (obviously) real
2. takazura funny never married divorcees
3. everyone falls for sakamoto because of his SS rank charisma stat
what we end up here with is the following situations, all of them funny and therefore good:
- sakamoto threw up in gintokiās face upon their first meeting and gintoki developed a crush on him anyway and ditched his childhood friends to hang out with the handsome new guy whoās really annoying and talks too loud. and who also threw up on you (takasugi)
- despite this takasugi doesnāt hold it against sakamoto because no one holds it against sakamoto. sakamotoās allowed to do that
- zura also doesnāt hold it against sakamoto. however he Does hold it against takasugi and develops numerous fascinating complexes about takaginās existence (and probably his ntr kink in the process)
- sakamoto and zura get along just fine but zura isnāt sakamotoās type even though sakamoto likes dark haired women who would work as hostesses because zura out-bokkes him
- however this makes him gift him elizabeth. he was never even mad at takasugi and he made a tender flashback shounen promise with gintoki and just never got them anything. and after he met up with them again he continued to not get them anything. except pickled daikon. after he knows gintoki probably got heavily traumatized by the events of the plot he still doesnāt get him anything or text him.
- takasugi has no opinions about ginzura. I donāt think he thinks zura is capable of having a genuine relationship (funny thing for him to think of another human being). and I think ginzura is mainly concentrated in the present where takasugi has used the highest grade exorcism talismans to seal off his panels from any encroaching āgintoki having unspoken feelings and tender tension with old friend from his pastā aura
- gintoki is a character born to get into funny situations where heās in cartoon boxers and interacting with implied femdom gags. heās a guy we see on a leash and with underwear on his face. heās a guy who claims to be a virile shounen jump hero but needs to bottom for genre health and also his own health. but heās stuck with takasugi and zura who both want/need him to top them in different ways. gintoki doesnāt want to deal with it. he wishes sakamoto would elope with him and they could go to sci fi vegas where heāll drink a lot and forget everything. however sakamoto leaves him on read
- both zura and sakamoto think they were the guy who had to clean up after gintoki and takasugiās messes and mediate between them. zura felt like it as a conflation of how he felt like a third wheel. sakamoto was genuinely mediating because both parties actually liked him.
- the only guy everyone likes as a blanket rule is never around and doesnāt talk to anyone except zura, because zura knows everyoneās contact information. but he also wonāt share
- you know that infamous scene where gintoki and takasugi both picked the same woman at the brothel. and where takasugi (gay boy) spent the whole night unmoving in the corner. okay forget those two have you thought about how zura felt that night. and probably many other nights. he would Never engage in such a morally crass activity. going to the brothel would pollute his samurai soulāsakamoto is also there of course. sakamoto loves brothels. itās just zura. alone. at home. all his men gone out. leaving just him. in his tent. well itās fine. itās his principles vs their degenerate tendencies. theyāre all out having sex without him right nowā¦ā¦ā¦ā¦ā¦ evenā¦ takasugiā¦ā¦ā¦ā¦ā¦ā¦ā¦.
considering this is the first time that katsura corrects somebody on his name, i feel this is somewhat noteworthy i think considering yk takasugi's canon fate of being dead
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