Gintama

Episode 287

Freaky Friday meets Gintama this week with the start of a promising new arc in which Gintoki and Hijikata swap bodies. While engaged in their trademark bickering, the two are simultaneously hit by a delivery truck. Following the accident, the men's souls attempted to hightail it back to their respective containers but wound up fighting in transit, landing the longtime frenemies in their current predicament. The explanation for this unbelievable turn of events is no more ridiculous than the technical details behind any other body swap comedy, and it's a great deal more hilarious. As it turns out, the truck's mysterious cargo played an integral role in the proceedings.

However, the "how and why" are ultimately perfunctory, as the aftermath of the swap is what drives the narrative. After the initial shock of switching bodies wears off, the two decide to assume each other's identities until a cure can be found. By the end of the episode, the Shinsengumi is a mess and Odd Jobs Gin-chan is the most disciplined organization in Kabuki-cho. A few running gags that have fallen by the wayside in recent episodes are prominently featured in this week's installment. For example, it's been a while since we've seen Hijikata order his underlings to commit seppuku for inconsequential infractions. Gintoki's low blood sugar also hasn't been referenced in ages.

However, the swap does raise one significant question. On his second day as Gintoki, Hijikata gives Kagura and Shinpachi all of their back pay and insists on paying Otose the rent he owes. (Naturally, this prompts Otose to proclaim the end of the world is nigh, Kagura just assumes the money was stolen.) At first, it seemed possible that Hijikata took the money from his personal funds, strange as it may be for him to waste money on Gintoki's financial obligations. However, he claims it came out of "his own" (as in Gintoki's) bank account, even showing his suspicious employees the proper checkbook. After feigning poverty for so long, did Gintoki actually have enough money to cover rent and pay his staff's salaries? If so, it's a perfect example of his selfishness, even if it goes unnoticed. If that's not the case, I have to wonder how Hijikata managed to raise the money so quickly.

Stories centered on the contemptuous relationship between Gintoki and Hijikata are always entertaining, and this episode is no exception. Despite being polar opposites in many respects, these characters also have many things in common. Both have tragic pasts, are very set in their ways, and refuse to allow any slight (real or perceived) go unanswered.

The one drawback to episode 287 is that it's sometimes easy to forget the principal characters' bodies are swapped despite the about-face in personalities. When other animated series pull off body swap stories, characters often retain their original voices even after switching bodies. In the case of Gintama however, the original seiyu continue voicing the body: Tomokazu Sugita (Gintoki's V.A.) voices Hijikata-as-Gintoki, and Kazuya Nakai (Hijikata's V.A.) does Gintoki-as-Hijikata. It certainly makes sense—and it might be too strange to see the voices swapped on top of everything else—but the confusion boils down to their few similarities. Both deep-voiced men are quick to anger and often play the role of tsukkomi (even if Gintoki's equally likely to be a boke whenever Shinpachi's within earshot). When they're both screaming about the absurdity of a situation, there's not much difference between them, and that becomes more obvious here.

Despite a few minor flaws, this week's episode is a treat for Gintama fans. The pacing, animation, and most importantly, the gags combine to demonstrate how much comedic potential this well-worn premise has in the world of Gintama. It's almost as if Oscar and Felix from The Odd Couple or Bert and Ernie swapped bodies, leaving everyone around them to wonder why the slob became so rigid and the uptight jerk turned into a slovenly ne'er-do-well.

Rating: A

Gintama is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

Amy is a YA fantasy author who has loved anime for two decades.