A Gintama chapter a day keeps the ending away...Lesson 405
MY 15 FAVORITE MOMENTS IN LESSON 405:
(Honestly, I was watching the Olympics while reading this chapter--since this is already the 3rd time I’ve read this arc--so you can say I was multi-tasking or even distracted, yet, once I got to the latter part of the chapter, I still started crying. Sorachi-sama hits me in the gut like that all the time)
Moment 1: the chapter started out funny enough, really never expected it to take a sad turn.
Moment 2: Omgggaawd. Lmao.
Moment 3: already right here I remembering thinking, oh no, this is going to be really hard on Shinpachi and Tae-chan. I hate how right I was.
Moment 4: Papa Yagyuu providing another brief moment of humor. I appreciated that. Plus it was nice seeing that diminutive Yagyuu leader again.
Moment 5: I have no idea why he thinks Shinpachi is being naughty by just doing that, but I like that he thought it was Gintoki’s influence.
Moment 6: I appreciated both the sexual innuendo and the random reference to Hitman Reborn, which I used to love too (until the horrible ending killed my love).
Moment 7: And then all of a sudden, it went from bad to worse. That was just such a cruel development, my jaw probably dropped in dismay first time I read it.
Moment 8: the quietness of this moment gave me chills.
Moment 9: It was here that I stopped actually paying attention to the Olympics and focused all my attention on this chapter. I probably already started getting teary-eyed by this point when I first read this chapter: Shinpachi acknowledging Gintoki’s impact and importance in his and Tae-chan’s life to Hajime was quite emotionally significant for him.
Moment 10: My heart was really hurting hard for Shinpachi.
Moment 11: Ugh...the pain....
Moment 12: And then to see this...I am sure I probably cried like a baby the first time I read this because my tears were falling like crazy as I re-read this tonight.
Moment 13: I almost wished he never returned. This was just horribly cruel.
Moment 14: I was so shocked that Gintoki just went for the kill anyway. It made sense why he would do that afterwards when I thought about it, but in that instant, I was really surprised.
Moment 15: the contrast between the Shimuras’ reactions and Kagura’s managed to make me chuckle through my tears.
SHIPS TALLY:
Shinpachi x Hajime: I actually debated including them since I felt that it was really only brotherly love between them, but then I realized I was being unfair. I’m sure there are a lot of people who would argue the same for Shinpachi and Gintoki, and they were my very first ship in the fandom, so I decided to include them for those who saw something else in their interactions.
Otae x Hajime: he was her first love. That is fact, therefore they’re pretty much canon. Or ex-canon at least.
Gintoki x Otae: sure he’s doing it to save the world, but he could also be doing it out of jealousy.
Hijikata x Okita: again, Sougo exhibiting his obsession with Hijikata by dragging him into topic even when he’s not.
Hajime x Kagura: totally inappropriate...for him to make Kagura-chan feed his fire for his bath...and of course for him to proposition her, but he’s barely human or even alive anymore so I’ll cut him some slack (plus, Kagura totally would be able to kill him if he tried anything).
Disclaimer: Gintama is not only about shipping. Gintama is hilarious, clever, exciting, poignant, heart-breaking, loving, brilliant, and just so freaking amazing. It is only due to Sorachi-sama’s generosity that I can enjoy Gintama on yet another level, the shippy level, and I am forever grateful for that. GINTAMA IS LIFE AND LOVE.
2/11/2018
