Celebrity Rehab Episode 3: Gintama Collection 3 Does Episodic Comedy Right

I think I’ve said it before, but it deserves saying again: if you don’t find the Gintama series funny you really need to get your funny bone checked out. True the show doesn’t have a PLOT plot, but this anime does episodic comedy right. I don’t think there has been a single episode that has failed to make me at least smile if not outright howl with laughter. The series doesn’t lose its comedic edge as it progresses either! The third collection of Gintama is just as funny, if not more so, than the other box sets that have come before. Box set three collects episodes 27-39.

For those who need a refresher on what Gintama is about, think of Edo Period Japan substituting the Japanese civil war with the samurai uniting to take on space aliens. Then have the space aliens win and bring advanced technology down to leniently occupied Japan. That’s about the gist. The main character is Gin, a former samurai who is content spending his days trying not to work. He runs a jack of all trades agency that will do any odd job you can throw at them and trust me they get plenty of odd jobs! He later picks up two assistants, against his will, and together they try to earn enough to get the rent paid and the scary building owner off their backs.

Collection three is the gang up to their same hi-jinks-ridden escapades. Amenisa, cat girls and the Shinsengumi abound! There is also a Christmas episode thrown in. Too bad this didn’t come out just a week earlier! Most of the gang put in appearances in these episodes, so unless your favorite is Takasugi, you’re going to be pleased. I was very happy with the Shinsengumi screen time myself.

If you’re in the market for a good anime comedy, you can’t go wrong with Gintama. It has the distinction of being one of the few shows that will make me laugh at humor I usually won’t find funny. Gintama has a way of doing everything with its own brand of spectacular flair, even toilet humor. There are a lot of in jokes in Gintama, so if you’re really into your JUMP manga/anime you will appreciate the series even more. It is always spoofing other shows, genres, even American movies. Yes, they also make a lot of jokes about being sued for copyright infringement. Hopefully those were jokes…. So please, even if you don’t think Gintama is your thing, give it a try. I was pleasantly surprised by it. Now it’s one of my official pick-me-up shows. The world can’t be an entirely bad place as long as there is an episode of Gintama on the TV!

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