is a
fictional character
In fiction, a character (or speaker, in poetry) is a person or other being in a narrative (such as a novel, play, radio or television series, music, film, or video game). The character may be entirely fictional or based on a real-life person, ...
in the
manga
Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is u ...
and
anime
is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...
franchise ''
Gin Tama
is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Hideaki Sorachi. It was serialized in Shueisha's ''shōnen'' manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' from December 2003 to September 2018, later in ''Jump Giga'' from December 2 ...
'' created by
Hideaki Sorachi
is the pen name of a Japanese manga artist, most well-known for his manga ''Gin Tama,'' which began serialization in 2003 and ended in 2019. He has also written numerous one-shots, including ''Dandelion'', of which he has won the Tenkaichi Hono ...
. Gintoki is the
protagonist
A protagonist () is the main character of a story. The protagonist makes key decisions that affect the plot, primarily influencing the story and propelling it forward, and is often the character who faces the most significant obstacles. If a st ...
of the series and his name serves as part of the basis of the series' title. He is introduced as a former
rebel
A rebel is a participant in a rebellion.
Rebel or rebels may also refer to:
People
* Rebel (given name)
* Rebel (surname)
* Patriot (American Revolution), during the American Revolution
* American Southerners, as a form of self-identification; ...
samurai
were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retainers of the '' daimyo'' (the great feudal landholders). They h ...
who lives in a fictionalized version of 1860s Japan after being invaded and transformed by
aliens
Alien primarily refers to:
* Alien (law), a person in a country who is not a national of that country
** Enemy alien, the above in times of war
* Extraterrestrial life, life which does not originate from Earth
** Specifically, intelligent extrate ...
. Gintoki once fought the alien invaders until he realized the lack of sense in doing so, leading to him choosing to instead make a living as a
freelancer
''Freelance'' (sometimes spelled ''free-lance'' or ''free lance''), ''freelancer'', or ''freelance worker'', are terms commonly used for a person who is self-employed and not necessarily committed to a particular employer long-term. Freelance w ...
for hire in
Edo alongside his friends
Shinpachi Shimura and
Kagura
is a type of Shinto ritual ceremonial dance. The term is a contraction of the phrase , indicating the presence of gods () in the practice.
One major function of is , involving a procession-trance process. Usually a female shaman will perfor ...
in order to pay the monthly rent. Across the series, more details about Gintoki's past are revealed leading him to encounter former friends as enemies. As the main character, Gintoki has appeared in most of the episodes of the anime series, as well as in other media related to the franchise, including the film and all of the
spin-off video games and
original video animation
, abbreviated as OVA and sometimes as OAV (original animation video), are Japanese animated films and series made specially for release in home video formats without prior showings on television or in theaters, though the first part of an OVA s ...
s.
Sorachi created the character after suggestions of his editors of having silver-haired samurai. He was originally going to be based on
Hijikata Toshizō, the vice-captain from the
Shinsengumi
The was a special police force organized by the (military government) during Japan's Bakumatsu period (late Tokugawa shogunate) in 1863. It was active until 1869. It was founded to protect the shogunate representatives in Kyoto at a time when ...
special forces. However, Sorachi changed his mind as he did not want the main character to be working in an organization and further remodeled his design into the present one. In the anime series Gintoki was voiced by
Tomokazu Sugita
is a Japanese voice actor and author. He mainly plays young men and is characterized by his "deep bass voice," and he often performs ad-libs and imitations.
He is best known for his roles as Gintoki Sakata in '' Gintama'', Tadaomi Karasuma in ...
, who enjoyed his character. For the English release of the first movie, he was voiced by
Chris Patton
Chris Patton is an American voice actor who has worked on a number of English-language versions of Japanese anime series that have been dubbed by ADV Films, Funimation, and Sentai Filmworks. Some of his major roles at ADV include Sousuke Sagar ...
, whereas in the ''Gintama°'' episodes Gintoki was played by
Michael Daingerfield
Michael Daingerfield is a Canadian actor, acting coach and founder of On The Mic Training, a voice acting school in Vancouver, British Columbia.
He is best known for his voice roles of Ace Ventura in '' Ace Ventura: Pet Detective'', playing Gordo ...
; later, Roly Gutiérrez dubbed him in the
first anime series.
Shun Oguri
is a Japanese actor and voice actor, son of stage director Tetsuya Oguri, and the youngest of 3 siblings, including older brother Ryo, who is also an actor.
He started in small roles as extra in the works in which his father and brother worked ...
portrays him in the live-action films.
Gintoki's character has received critical response from various reviewers and publications for manga, anime and other media. While Gintoki's reception has been positive, writers have also criticized his characterization in some story arcs. When he once parodied a Japanese politician in 2016, the company behind the manga,
Shueisha
(lit. "Gathering of Intellect Publishing Co., Ltd.") is a Japanese company headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. The company was established in 1925 as the entertainment-related publishing division of Japanese publisher Shogakukan. The foll ...
, expressed pressure as well as laughter. Gintoki has also remained highly popular with ''Gin Tama'' fans, ranking first in all of the popularity polls. Merchandise based on Gintoki has also been released, including figurines.
Creation and development
While brainstorming on the name for a manga,
Hideaki Sorachi
is the pen name of a Japanese manga artist, most well-known for his manga ''Gin Tama,'' which began serialization in 2003 and ended in 2019. He has also written numerous one-shots, including ''Dandelion'', of which he has won the Tenkaichi Hono ...
's editor commented, "Do you think a silver samurai would be cool?" This inspired Sorachi to create the main character after deciding the series should be named ''Gin Tama''. Sorachi's initial plan for his first major series was to center it around a fictionalized version of the
Shinsengumi
The was a special police force organized by the (military government) during Japan's Bakumatsu period (late Tokugawa shogunate) in 1863. It was active until 1869. It was founded to protect the shogunate representatives in Kyoto at a time when ...
, mostly to ride off the hype for ''
Shinsengumi!
is a 2004 Taiga drama historical fiction television series produced by Japanese broadcaster NHK. It was a popular drama about the Shinsengumi, a Japanese special police force from the Bakumatsu period.
Actors include Koji Yamamoto, Tatsuya Fuj ...
'', a
Japanese drama starring idol actors as the famous Japanese special police force. However, Sorachi's version was planned to be as unrealistic as possible; his force included both men and women possessing bizarre traits that were nothing like the original Shinsengumi, and that would seep into many of the characters that would be part of his eventual manga. One of the characters from this set was a silver-haired man who was to be the representation of prominent member
Hijikata Toshizō. Sorachi particularly liked Hijikata and wanted this character to be the hero of his series despite the lack of similarities with the real Hijikata.
While Sorachi loved the design he created for his silver-haired Hijikata, he could not draw out his character or figure out what he would do in the series. He considered dropping the character and his editor nearly forced him to give up on him just as the original Shinsengumi concept was falling apart. Eventually it was decided that the silver-haired character would be an original lead character, while the Shinsengumi would be portrayed as comedic foils. Quickly giving him the nickname of "Gin-san", the original concept of the silver-haired Hijikata was shattered and Sorachi recreated the character from the ground up into the lazy-eyed freelancer he would be in the series.
The concept behind Gintoki's character is that he is a strong person who does not belong to any organization and tends to disregard rules. Although Gintoki was roughly based on
Sakata Kintoki
Sakata may refer to:
People
* Jeanne Sakata, American actress and playwright
* Lenn Sakata (Lenn Haruki Sakata) (born 1954), former American professional baseball player
* Harold Sakata (Toshiyuki "Harold" Sakata) (1920–1982), American Olymp ...
, Sorachi did not intend Gintoki to be a descendant of Sakata. Unlike common heroes within manga series, Gintoki does not undergo
character development. This is connected with the character's background as several things in his life changed due to the Amanto invasion and wishes some things not change.
For the
anime
is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...
series, Gintoki has been voiced by
Tomokazu Sugita
is a Japanese voice actor and author. He mainly plays young men and is characterized by his "deep bass voice," and he often performs ad-libs and imitations.
He is best known for his roles as Gintoki Sakata in '' Gintama'', Tadaomi Karasuma in ...
in Japanese. When learning he was selected to voice the ''Gin Tama''s main character Sugita wanted to show off to fit the character. However, he later took a bigger view on Gintoki's character; understanding that Gintoki lives with a lot of people's support, Sugita changed his mindset when voicing the character. In the English dub of the first movie, he is voiced by Chris Patton,
while
Michael Daingerfield
Michael Daingerfield is a Canadian actor, acting coach and founder of On The Mic Training, a voice acting school in Vancouver, British Columbia.
He is best known for his voice roles of Ace Ventura in '' Ace Ventura: Pet Detective'', playing Gordo ...
voices him the ''Gintama°'' series.
Appearances
In ''GinTama''
Gintoki Sakata is a freelancer former samurai living in an era where aliens known as the Amanto have come to Earth after the Joi War, a battle in which the latter defeated the former. As a child, he was taught by Shoyo Yoshida, with his classmates being two of his future Joi allies,
Kotaro Katsura and
Shinsuke Takasugi
The characters from the anime and manga series ''Gintama'' were created by Hideaki Sorachi. The story is set in Edo, the "Land of the Samurai", which has been invaded by aliens named Amanto, who subsequently coexist with humans. Despite the time ...
. Shoyo was unjustly accused of trying to raise an army, which resulted in his capture, with Gintoki and his friends entering the Joi War to rescue their teacher. During that period, he was known as the due to his silver hair and white coat he wore in battle, which, combined with his impressive capabilities as a
swordsman
Swordsmanship or sword fighting refers to the skills and techniques used in combat and training with any type of sword. The term is modern, and as such was mainly used to refer to smallsword fencing, but by extension it can also be applied to a ...
, made him famous among his comrades and struck fear into Amanto.
During a time in the Joui War when he, Katsura and Takasugi were captured by Tendosho, under orders by Sada Sada, Gintoki was forced to execute his master without any choice before his master's final bidding to him right in front of his comrades' eyes.
After his master's death, Gintoki chooses to open a freelance business where he could handle matters his own way, while continuing to live by his own
samurai code. In his job, he gets two employees, the samurai apprentice
Shinpachi Shimura and the alien girl
Kagura
is a type of Shinto ritual ceremonial dance. The term is a contraction of the phrase , indicating the presence of gods () in the practice.
One major function of is , involving a procession-trance process. Usually a female shaman will perfor ...
and comes to have a close relationship with both of them.
The group often have problems to pay the monthly rent for
Otose, Gintoki's landlady whom he swore to protect after eating the food offerings meant to her husband's grave.
Despite his age, Gintoki often shows various childish behaviour, the most noticeable is his insatiable sweet tooth. However, Gintoki has been warned by his doctor to control his sugar intake.
He is also obsessed with reading the
manga
Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is u ...
anthology magazine ''
Weekly Shōnen Jump
is a weekly ''shōnen'' manga anthology published in Japan by Shueisha under the ''Jump'' line of magazines. The manga series within the magazine consist of many action scenes and a fair amount of comedy. The chapters of the series that run ...
''. Despite being a dangerous combatant well-versed in the ways of the sword, he acts like a coward most of the time to avoid needless bloodshed because of the trauma of suffering the loss of most of his friends and allies during the Joui war. He is quite sadistic, much like Okita Sougo. This may explain the reason why Sougo feels a certain attachment to him as he addresses Gintoki as "Boss" every time they meet. This is can be shown where he always treats Katsura, Sarutobi and Hijikata, in various extreme ways and his tendencies of quitting easily on certain moments which can lead to a punishment and someone's death, in which he can handle easily and even enjoy it. He is very respectful of the memory of his teacher Yoshida Shouyou due to his actions (opening a school for poor children, with Gintoki there as the first student)
As a member of the Four Heavenly Kings, Gintoki is an extremely powerful swordsman. Throughout the series, he has demonstrated tremendous skill in swordsmanship, being able to fight on equal grounds against Utsuro, the evil persona of his master (whom Gintoki has never been able to win a match) or other Amanto that are considered the strongest in their respective class. His swordplay is rough, but far from unrefined. The ''bokuto'' he wields is a , which he purchases through a TV shopping program, whenever one is broken. Using this sword, he is often seen cutting, smashing, deflecting and basically destroying all kinds of strong objects such as a metal cannon, or deflecting a beam sword without noticeable damage. Occasionally, though, Gintoki has used other swords, including real ones such as ''
katana
A is a Japanese sword characterized by a curved, single-edged blade with a circular or squared guard and long grip to accommodate two hands. Developed later than the ''tachi'', it was used by samurai in feudal Japan and worn with the edge fa ...
'', in combat when he needs it due to a tougher encounter. Although Gintoki is more than capable of defeating powerful Amanto warriors and various other samurai, he will not hesitate to use tricks and manipulation if it means a quick and easy victory.
In other media
Though also part of the ''Gin Tama'' franchise, Gintoki is also the lead character of the spinoff stories "3-Z Ginpachi-Sensei", where he is a high school teacher putting up with the idiocies of all of the other characters who are his students at the school. The two OVAs of the series also feature Gintoki with the first featuring multiple sidestories and the latter Gintoki's time in the war against the aliens.
Gintoki has been the leading character in the two movies the series had. The first film, ''Gintama: A New Retelling Benizakura Arc'', has Gintoki reprising his role from the Benizakura Arc where he goes in the search of his friend Kotaro Katsura as well as the mysterious sword Benizakura. The second film, ''
Gintama: The Movie: The Final Chapter: Be Forever Yorozuya'' has Gintoki travelling to a future where Edo has been destroyed and has to stop the threat that ruined the city.
Gintoki's character appeared in various video games based on the ''Gin Tama'' series. Gintoki has also been featured as a playable fighter in two crossover ''
Weekly Shonen Jump Weekly, The Weekly, or variations, may refer to:
News media
* ''Weekly'' (news magazine), an English-language national news magazine published in Mauritius
*Weekly newspaper, any newspaper published on a weekly schedule
*Alternative newspaper, als ...
''-based video games: ''
Jump Super Stars
''Jump Super Stars'' is a 2D crossover fighting game for the Nintendo DS, based on ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' characters. It was developed by Ganbarion and published by Nintendo. The game was released on August 8, 2005, in Japan and accompanied th ...
'' and ''
Jump Ultimate Stars
Jumping is a form of locomotion or movement in which an organism or non-living (e.g., robotic) mechanical system propels itself through the air along a ballistic trajectory.
Jump or Jumping also may refer to:
Places
* Jump, Kentucky or Jump S ...
'', both times alongside Kagura.
He also appears as a playable character in ''
J-Stars Victory Vs
is a crossover fighting video game that combines the universes of several ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' manga series, including former series and some that have been transferred to other magazines. It was released in Japan by Bandai Namco Entertain ...
'' and ''
The King of Fighters All Star
''The King of Fighters All Star'' is a beat 'em up role-playing game developed by Netmarble Games and published by SNK. It was first released in Japan on July 26, 2018, for the iOS and Android. The game is a retelling of SNK's ''The King of Fight ...
''. Gintoki's costume is also featured in the video game ''
God Eater 2
is a video game developed by Shift and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment on November 14, 2013, in Japan for PlayStation Portable. It is a sequel to '' God Eater''. It features a new setting, as well as new protagonists, new monsters, and ...
'' as an alternative skin.
Reception
Gintoki remains the most popular character in the series based on polls taken within ''
Weekly Shōnen Jump
is a weekly ''shōnen'' manga anthology published in Japan by Shueisha under the ''Jump'' line of magazines. The manga series within the magazine consist of many action scenes and a fair amount of comedy. The chapters of the series that run ...
'' magazine. He has also been featured in various types of merchandise connected to the franchise. In the ''
Newtype
is a monthly magazine publication originating from Japan, covering anime (and to a lesser extent, tokusatsu, manga, Japanese science fiction, seiyuu, and video games). It was launched by publishing company Kadokawa Shoten on March 8, 1985, with i ...
'' Japanese journal, Gintoki has commonly appeared within the top ten of best male characters between the 7th and 8th spot. In another ''Newtype'' poll from March 2010, Gintoki was voted as the eighth most popular male anime character from the 2000s. In the
Anime Grand Prix
The is an annual Japanese anime awards giving to recognize the best in anime of the previous year, decided by the votes of readers of entertainment magazine ''Animage'', published by Tokuma Shoten since July 1978. The Anime Grand Prix started i ...
polls, Gintoki was voted as one of the most popular male anime characters. The Japanese music distributor Recochoku has made two annual surveys of which anime characters that people would like to marry. Gintoki ranked second, then first in the category "The Character I Want to Be My Groom." Polls from
Niconico and "ranking.goo.ne.jp" (popular Japanese survey sites) had female fans voting Gintoki as the second most appealing male character overall and the seventh-most appealing ''
Weekly Shōnen Jump
is a weekly ''shōnen'' manga anthology published in Japan by Shueisha under the ''Jump'' line of magazines. The manga series within the magazine consist of many action scenes and a fair amount of comedy. The chapters of the series that run ...
'' character in anime, respectively. Ike and Momiken from the Japanese rock band
SPYAIR
Spyair (stylized as SPYAIR) is a Japanese rock band from Nagoya, Japan, formed in 2005. The band currently consists of Yuji "UZ" Nakai (guitar, programming), Kenji "Momiken" Momiyama (bass guitar, leader) and Kenta Sasabe (drums). The band's nam ...
commented that Gintoki was their favorite character from the series as both of them found him cool.
Gintoki's character has also received a critical response from various western publications for manga, anime, and other media. While reviewing the fifth volume of the manga Carlo Santos from
Anime News Network
Anime News Network (ANN) is a news website that reports on the status of anime, manga, video games, Japanese popular music and other related cultures within North America, Australia, Southeast Asia and Japan. The website offers reviews and oth ...
found Gintoki's personality as one of the sources of comedy in the series, remarking the way he talks as well as his actions through the chapters. In the chapters where Gintoki suffers from
amnesia
Amnesia is a deficit in memory caused by brain damage or disease,Gazzaniga, M., Ivry, R., & Mangun, G. (2009) Cognitive Neuroscience: The biology of the mind. New York: W.W. Norton & Company. but it can also be caused temporarily by the use ...
, Santos noted that Gintoki's different personality in such state makes him "decidedly not funny". On the other hand,
About.com
Dotdash Meredith (formerly About.com) is an American digital media company based in New York City. The company publishes online articles and videos about various subjects across categories including health, home, food, finance, tech, beauty, ...
writer Deb Aoki found Gintoki's carefree attitude and his desire to protect people as a "tradition of other shonen anti-heroes." She also noted his "low-blood sugar moments" make him look cranky. Michael Aronson from Manga Life criticized Gintoki's expression in the first volumes from the series as he mentions it does not reflect his dialogues. He also commented that the series succeeds if it is about Gintoki's job, adding that some of his fights against other characters do not help increase the series' popularity. While reviewing the first film's Chris Homer from The Fandom Post stated that Gintoki is "a typical shounen hero, a bit dumb but has a kind heart and able to access power when he needs to protect his friends" with Kagura being more likable than him during the review. Other negative comments regarding focused on fights such as Hijikata's fight against Gintoki.
When the 2016 season of the anime began, Gintoki parodied a Japanese politician, Ryutaro Nonomura, crying for misuse of funding. While this had no negative consequences, the staff at
Shueisha
(lit. "Gathering of Intellect Publishing Co., Ltd.") is a Japanese company headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. The company was established in 1925 as the entertainment-related publishing division of Japanese publisher Shogakukan. The foll ...
, the company that publishes the manga, admitted they felt nervous. Another parody was made by Gintoki in the 2017 release of the anime with he referencing the ''
Gilgamesh Night
was a softcore porn Japanese variety TV show broadcast from October 1991 to March 1998. Airing early Sunday mornings at 1:15 a.m. JST on TV Tokyo, the hour-long show helped launch the career of one of its late hosts, Ai Iijima, who afterwar ...
'' show due to the series taking its timeslot. Anime News Network writer Amy McNulty had mixed feelings about
Michael Daingerfield
Michael Daingerfield is a Canadian actor, acting coach and founder of On The Mic Training, a voice acting school in Vancouver, British Columbia.
He is best known for his voice roles of Ace Ventura in '' Ace Ventura: Pet Detective'', playing Gordo ...
's work as Gintoki's English actor as she found it too similar to Hijikata and Katsura. On the other hand, Mike Toole, another member from Anime News Network, found Daingerfield's work as appealing as the one from the original cast,
Tomokazu Sugita
is a Japanese voice actor and author. He mainly plays young men and is characterized by his "deep bass voice," and he often performs ad-libs and imitations.
He is best known for his roles as Gintoki Sakata in '' Gintama'', Tadaomi Karasuma in ...
.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sakata, Gintoki
Anime and manga characters who can move at superhuman speeds
Anime and manga characters with superhuman strength
Comics characters introduced in 2003
Fictional alcohol abusers
Fictional cross-dressers
Fictional gamblers
Fictional Japanese people in anime and manga
Fictional samurai
Fictional swordfighters in anime and manga
Fictional characters with post-traumatic stress disorder
Gin Tama
Male characters in anime and manga
Martial artist characters in anime and manga
Orphan characters in anime and manga