Gintama: Shiroyasha Koutan

So, this "trailer" is basically a few minutes of Gintoki, Katsura, Sakamoto, and Takasugi in the Joui war, and the rest of the time is taken up by the characters complaining that Gintama hadn't gotten a movie yet (by 2008) and other characters complaining that they want more screen time.

This short was awesome in the beginning and funny at the end. It does a good job of showcasing why Gintama's comedy works so well. The appearance of all the major side characters on screen served to show that they make the series what it is. The fake trailer for a movie about Shiroyasha, though, was ... next level cool. If the viewer watched this after the first 201 episodes of Gintama, this trailer makes it seem as though there is a lot left to unveil going forward regarding Gintoki's past. It did its job of seeming like a badass movie trailer, and it's really fun to watch, so I recommend it.

The Gintama series loves to troll it's viewers with false announcements like it's 'cancellation' and a 'Shinsengumi movie' apart from many other trolls (the biggest of which was a movie of the Benizakura arc which was a reality) and this was no other. Sunrise knows that it's fans want a Gintoki background story and they delivered one... Just kidding.

Story: 6/10

For a 10 minute 'episode' it had lots of intense moments (talking about the actual Shiroyasha part here) and though it was pure troll it still made you feel how an actual show or movie would be if it was a reality. Even in 10 minutes, ... it still felt like a full fledged episode to some extent. It captured both faces of Gintama perfectly, both the funny and also the serious. It was pure nonsense, and that's all Gintama is at heart.

Art: 7/10

At a widescreen aspect ratio it totally looked like a movie (as pointed out by Gin-san). Although the 'Shiroyasha' part was short, it fired you up, largely because of the small Donten snippet (coming to that in Sound). The fight scenes were also amazingly designed and choreographed and blew me away. I mean, we got to see Gintoki holding a sword! (Not that piece of wood, but an actual sword) and go beast on those Amanto as well sent chills up my spine. The later part of the anime was the usual Gintama art style, bubbly and colorful as always.

Sound: 7/10

Apart from the excellent Donten performed by DOES which gave you goosebumps in excitement and the classic background music everyone was familiar in Gintama with also made you laugh not to mention another brilliant (and troll) performance by the Voice Actors, my favorite was obviously Shinpachi in this episode because he had a lot of lines in this episode (lucky Patsuan).

Character: 7/10

Once again the characters were a joy to watch, thankfully Katsura wasn't on standby this time so we got to see a lot of him as well (much to the chagrin of the Shinsengumi). Apart from him the majority of the cast were featured (including Sarutobi and Madao) and they were decently shown as well (especially for that last bit). Although once again you shouldn't expect Character development from a one-off episode.

Enjoyment: 7/10

Although I was bummed at the troll I still loved the idea of a Shiroyasha movie and it was a lot of fun watching the episode along with the One Piece spoof ED and ending selfie by them all. I really wished it was 24 minutes and not 10 but oh well.

Overall: 6.8/10

Shiroyasha Koutan was a sort of bonus to the fans and a jab at them altogether and was basically your everyday Gintama troll. That's what made it so much fun to watch. It hyped you up, then trolled you but ultimately left you satisfied at the end. A very Gintama-like present to the Gintama fans. Definitely worth the watch!

You know, I would have loved to be like all the guys writing reviews about it and actually have gotten the joke? The thing is, I'm close to 15 years after it landed and while I did have about 10% of a smile (which is a lot from a 10 minutes movie), I'm sure it would have been funnier in context. Oh well, until they've perfected time travel, this short special will still leave a rather... bland taste.

It's Gintama alright. At least I can tell it's Gintama, it does look like Gintama. And this special came out about the halfway point of the first season, ... meaning it wasn't at its best quite yet. But it's still about trademark Gintama, that I can tell.

Well there's nothing more to say. Just go watch this bit of Gintama and have some fun.