Gintama

Episode 333

After taking a turn for the sentimental last week, the Slip Arc veers back into purely comedic territory with the season's first two-story episode. Despite the absence of the Odd Jobs trio, both of this week's tales are consistently funny, briskly paced, and representative of the series' unique sense of humor. In a season that's largely focused on multi-episode arcs, a self-contained installment like this makes a great palate cleanser that leaves the audience primed for more wackiness.

Continuing from last week's extended preview, the perpetually down-and-out Hasegawa finds himself playing a prominent supporting role in the comically intricate backstory of two rooftop assassins: One and Done Synshen and Quick Draw Synron. (Despite their claims to the contrary, both nicknames were earned through lackluster performances in bed.) The put-upon MADAO wants to die in a way that doesn't hurt, isn't scary, and won't damage his precious sunglasses, and the assassins agree to honor his wish—provided he act as an errand boy. As the story unfolds, we get a progressively clearer picture of the assassins' motives and true identities. Hasegawa, however, pays little mind to the increasingly intricate plot unfolding around him as he remains steadfastly focused on his goal of dying painlessly. Much to his chagrin, the Gintama.-verse's Meg Griffin is still among the living at the end of the story.

Episode 333's latter half focuses on another group of characters who haven't appeared much lately: the core members of the Shinsengumi and Mimawarigumi. While attending a special crash course for upper management law enforcement candidates, Hijikata, Sogo, and Kondo find themselves drawn into an argument with Nobume and a pre-deceased Sasaki. This draws the ire of Matsudaira, who decides to make the bickering police officers his personal guinea pigs in a special demonstration. Using advanced holodeck-esque technology, Matsudaira takes his subjects to a virtual crime scene, where they're tasked with solving the apparent murder of Japanese folk hero Momotaro. After spending the bulk of the story coming up with insane theories and quibbling over minor details, the officers eventually reach a consensus—only to discover that the actual cause of death was even crazier than they imagined.

As is often the case with Gintama.s dual-segmented episodes, the jokes fly off the screen at a rapid-fire pace, and some fans may need to view the episode a second time to catch all the gags. Of course, this isn't necessarily a bad thing, as it adds to the show's already high rewatchability. Although either of these stories could have carried an entire episode, stretching them out over 24 minutes may have negatively impacted the manic energy and comic timing, so the staff made the right call by doubling up.

While there isn't much of a unifying theme tying the tales together, both segments make ample use of the inflated tsukkomi/boke humor that Gintama. is known for. This week, Hasegawa and Kondo are on tsukkomi duty, effectively serving as audience inserts and commenting on the insanity as it unfolds. Granted, neither one of them can match up to Shinpachi, but Gintoki's bespectacled protégé is definitely there in spirit. Both stories also contain twists that are difficult to see coming but are perfectly in line with this bizarre world, though to be fair, the first segment's big reveal felt more organic than the second's.

Regarding the second story, it's bittersweet to see Sasaki alive and well again, especially since the audience has already seen what the future holds in store for him. (Similarly, Shigeshige was mentioned in this season's first arc but hasn't actually appeared.) Now that we've been privy to his incredibly sad backstory and tragic passing, seeing him reinserted into the usual ensemble and placed in a comedy-focused story may understandably give some viewers pause. Since the producers were presumably aware that the character was going to be killed off, it's strange that this story wasn't adapted for the 2015-2016 season, but this isn't so much a complaint as an observation. Seeing as this season is comprised entirely of pre-Shogun Assassination stories, something like this was inevitable.

As Gintama.s first self-contained episode in a good long while, the Slip Arc's latest outing doesn't disappoint. Despite the absence of Gintoki and his crew, Gintama. is once again able to rock the dual-story structure. Jokes are thrown at the audience with wild abandon, nonsensical twists abound, and nothing of lasting consequence transpires, but that's what classic Gintama. is all about.

Rating: A-

Gintama. is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

Amy is an author who has loved anime for over two decades.