Season 2 of Gintama was an unprecedented improvement over its predecessor, in my opinion. So, how does the third season fare? Let’s find out.
The third season of Gintama picks up from where the second season left the show, and runs away with it. Even more extravagantly elaborate sub-plots show up throughout, and the humor hits an even higher level in this successful successor, if I might so add. The show retains all the features which made the second season awesome, and tries to improve on it. The effort is obvious in the amount of innovation that has gone into this season, with all the grandiose schemes and the unexpectedly hilarious outcomes of the actions of the protagonists and their friends[or should I praise the manga, actually?].
The effort pays off for the majority of the anime, although on rare occasions this attempt does backfire. Once in a while, the anime focuses on the side-characters, and the bumbling trio of Gintoki, Kagura and Shinpachi are absent for the whole of the episode. Although this effort to explore the side-characters is laudable, sometimes the anime goes for 2-3 episodes without even a glimmer of them, which dulls the experience somewhat. This experiment actually ends up exemplifying the pivotal importance of Gintoki & Co. Other than this minor blemish, the anime is brilliantly made.
But undoubtedly, the overwhelming highlight of this season is the godly parody of pop culture and anime. From Prince of Tennis to Dragon Ball Z to Saw[them slasher flicks] to its own self, nothing is safe from Gintama’s clutches. For instance, an episode where Gintoki helps out a struggling manga artist and points out the familiar tropes of shounen manga, is pure gold. And there is an episode where Hijikata…well, you really have to watch that one to find out, hehe.
Overall, if you have finished watching Gintama‘s 2nd season, do yourself a favor and don’t hold yourself back from watching the 3rd season.
RATING : 9/10
PROS :
– even better parodies than the previous seasons
– feels even more innovative
CONS :
– occasional absence of the main characters for extended times hurts
gamingotaku575 