Lesson 1 is titled: Nobody With Naturally Wavy Hair can be That Bad.
Short Summary[]
The story begins with Shinpachi being harassed by his boss and some Cat Amanto, until he meets a Samurai with curly silver hair. The Samurai, Sakata Gintoki, accidentally gets Shinpachi fired from his job. To make up for this, he gives he and his sister Shimura Tae (Otae) his business card, saying that he'll do anything for money. But then, a Loan Shark Amanto comes in to take the siblings' dojo, unless Otae agrees to work as his prostitute. Knowing how much their dojo meant to their father, she accepts, remaking that if it's going to be painful to have the dojo and painful to give it up, she'd rather be in pain fighting to have it. Shinpachi then hires Gintoki to rescue her, beating up the Amanto. Otae remarks that Gintoki seems to have the same soul their father was talking about, and Shinpachi follows him on his own path to find that soul for himself.
Long Summary[]
The Lesson starts with the Shimura Ken telling his children Shimura Tae and Shinpachi about the meaning of samurai. He believes that a Samurai's sword is not something that you put into a sheath, but something you put into your soul. And even though the invasion of the aliens from space called “Amanto” might force them to give away their swords, they should never give away their souls.
Some years later, Shinpachi is found being scolded by his boss for not using correctly the cash register even after working for a year. Shinpachi tries to apologize, saying that he only knows how to work with swords. The boss explains to him that the age of Samurai and swords is over, but is interrupted by an Amanto customer, who asks for milk. The Amanto also remarks that he finds the samurai pitiful. When Shinpachi gets closer, he pulls a prank, stating his wish to bother them. Seeing that Shinpachi had spilt all the milk, the boss scolded him, but was, again stopped by another customer. This customer punches the boss, thus sending him flying to the table of the Amanto, which surprises them. Shinpachi notices the sword on his hip and realizes that he's a Samurai. The man complains about his Chocolate Sundae (which was spilt when Shinpachi tripped) and that because of his high blood pressure he only gets one a week. Using his wooden sword, he takes the Amanto out. Seeing this, Shinpachi thinks that he seems “too rowdy” to be a Samurai but with far too “straight eyes” to be called a thug. While leaving, the costumer leaves a message to Shinpachi stating that the Chocolate Sundae tasted good.
The police then arrive and Shinpachi is accused of attacking the Amanto, due to a wooden sword dripping blood found on his hip. Shinpachi runs after the real culprit and starts arguing with him about the fact of getting fired. They have an encounter with Otae, who asks Shinpachi why he is out instead of working. She starts beating him up stating that they need even “the small pay” but Shinpachi refutes saying that it was the silver haired Samurai's fault. The Samurai prepares to walk away but is caught by Otae.
He apologizes but Otae denies this, stating “If you could be forgiven with a simple 'sorry' there would be no such thing as Seppuku”. She explains that since the Amanto first appeared their dojo has been doing badly, and after Amanto war, swords were outlawed, and they became unable to get people to join. Even so, they tried to maintain it, but that now had been ruined by him. She tries to kill him but is stopped by Shinpachi. The Samurai then gives them his business card, to which he states that they cannot be too picky with jobs. The siblings take this the wrong way, and start assaulting him. After beating up the samurai whose name is Sakata Gintoki, Shinpachi tries to convince his sister to give up maintaining the dojo, but fails. The Loan Shark Amanto breaks into the dojo, saying that they can't wait any longer. Gintoki comments that the siblings are crossing a dangerous bridge, to which Shinpachi refutes that it wasn’t theirs but their father’s. The Amanto impatiently orders them to quickly give him the money, and after their attempt to calm him down, he speaks ill of their father. To which Otae punches him. Furious, the Amanto pins her down and tries to assault her but is stopped by Gintoki. He responds with surprise but quickly changes the subject to an offer: Instead of paying the loan, Otae must work in a new business, the "No Underwear Shabu-Shabu Heaven.". Shinpachi is against it but to his surprise Otae accepts. He tries to stop her by stating that the dojo isn’t that important, but she responds that it's painful to have the dojo, and painful to give it up. So, if she has to suffer, then she would like to suffer and keep it.
Shinpachi starts to swing a wooden sword to relieve frustration while complaining about his family, which is heard by Gintoki who is making a cake. Shinpachi vents and Gintoki decides to help him rescue his sister. They find out that the place of the business is in the sky, and that they have almost departed. Shinpachi starts complaining to Gintoki about the speed they’re traveling, and are then caught by the police. Gintoki then has the idea of stealing the flying police car.
Meanwhile, Otae is being trained by the Amanto, and starts to hesitate, but is forced by him. The police car then crashes in the room they are in, much too both their surprise. From it appears Gintoki and Shinpachi who state their wish to take back Otae. The Amanto makes little of their attempt and orders his guards to catch them. Gintoki tells them to run and starts beating up the pursuers. Watching a little of his battling style, Otae comments that is 'random but strong'. The brothers start to run away but Tae hesitates not wanting to leave Gintoki behind. Shinpachi reassures her that he will come back since he thinks that he has “that thing that father talked about”. Gintoki quickly catches up to them and they arrive at the machines room. The Amanto surround them, once again make fun of their efforts and of the Samurai that ruled the land. Gintoki remarks that he’ll protect what he wants and that they can do whatever they want with the country. The Amanto tries to shoot but is stopped in order to not damage the power generator. Taking this opportunity, Gintoki climbs the machine and breaks it, making the ship fall in the ocean. The Amanto are arrested and the siblings comment on the reckless of Gintoki. Otae notices of Shinpachi’s interest in Gintoki and tells him to find his sword with him, while she’ll find hers in her own way. Shinpachi comments on the strange man’s soul and states his wish to stand by his side and watch.
Quotes[]
- Shimura Ken: “A samurai’s sword is not something you put in a sheath. It’s something you put into your soul.”
- Shimura Ken: “Even if there comes a time when you must throw away your sword, never throw the sword resting in your soul”
- Shimura Ken: “I wanted to see… the cloudless sky of Edo one last time.”
- Sakata Gintoki: “THE DOCTOR TOLD ME THAT MY BLOOD PRESSURE IS HIGH… SO I CAN ONLY EAT A SUNDAE ONCE A WEEK!!”
- Shimura Shinpachi’s thoughts about Sakata Gintoki: That guy was too crazy to be called a samurai but had far too straight eyes to be a tug.
- Sakata Gintoki: “IN THIS WORLD THERE ARE SAMURAI THAT CALL A CARDBOAR BOX THEIR HOME!!”
- Shimura Tae: “If you were forgiven with a simple sorry, there would be no such thing as seppuku in this world.”
- Sakata Gintoki: “SHINPACHI-KUN!! WAS YOUR SISTER RAISED BY GORILLAS?!!”
- Sakata Gintoki: “In this era, you can’t choose your job so, I’m working a business where I’ll take any job. I, Yorozuya Gin-chan, will do anything you need help with.”
- Shimura Tae: “Do you need a reason for children to protect what their father had loved so much?”
- Sakata Gintoki about Shimura Tae: “Even if she was raised by gorillas, she’s still a girl.
- Shimura Tae: “It’s no good having this dojo. It’s just painful… But to me… It’s also painful to throw it away.”
- Shimura Tae: “Since both ways are painful… I’d rather suffer not losing it.”
- Sakata Gintoki: “A samurai doesn’t need a good reason to act. If there is something that you want to protect, then pull out your sword.”
- Sakata Gintoki: “Do you care about your sister?”
- Shimura Tae: “I’ve never been able to show cleavage in the 18 years I’ve lived.”
- Shimura Shinpachi: “I liked the dojo where my sister laughed. If I’m going to see her cry then I don’t need that dojo.”
- Sakata Gintoki: “The country? I’ll give that to you guys. It’s hard enough for me to protect what I want to protect. I don’t know how many times I have failed… to protect what I wanted to… I don’t have anything anymore but if there’s something on the floor I’ll pick it up.”
- Sakata Gintoki: “What is important to the customer is important to me. I’ll do anything to protect that!!”
- Shimura Shinpachi: “I’ve never seen such a crazy samurai…”
Characters[]
Characters in order of appearance
Trivia[]
- Gintama began serialization 1 week after Death Note
- The title "Gintama" translates to "Silver Soul". Shimura Ken's speech about how a Samurai's true sword is in their soul is likely a reference to this. However, "Kintama" is slang for testicles. As Kin means gold, and tama can also mean balls. "Sakata Gintoki" is based on the real life "Sakata Kintoki", so if you realize the connection, and put "Kin" in the title rather then "Gin", you get the pun.