Gintama is mostly comedic in tone, but the anime has some serious arcs too. Gintama’s serious storylines have made the anime much more exhilarating and emotional for fans.
With the series’ incredible characters and fight choreography, Gintama had its fair share of great arcs that went a little more serious than comedic and received great feedback from viewers.
The averaged rating of an arc's episodes on IMDb will be used as the main metric.
Last updated by Daniel Kurland on November 22, 2021: It’s become increasingly common for anime to accrue episode counts that are in the hundreds, if not thousands. Plenty of series can deliver a long-running story, but it’s extremely rare that these narratives are able to actively become stronger as they go along. Gintama delivers more than 350 installments, yet some of the series’ greatest heights occur during the final seasons where decades of storytelling culminates together. With the recent release of Gintama: The VERY FINAL, it seems as if the Gintama saga has finally come to a close, which means it’s the perfect time to revisit the series’ most effective serious arcs.
15 Gintama's Renho Arc Gets To The Bottom Of The Anime's Strangest Character (Rating: 8.1)
Elizabeth may be one of the most mystified characters in Gintama and the Renho arc dives deep into who she is. The show revealed that Elizabeth belonged to a race of humanoid creatures that wear duck costumes called the Renho.
As convoluted as it sounds, we soon learn that Elizabeth was a spy for the Renho in order to gather intel to help them take over Earth. Even though the storyline has bits of comedy, the Renho arc was still one of the show’s serious arcs thanks to the emotional relationship between Elizabeth and Katsura Kotaro. The arc had a delicate balance between dark and light in tone.
14 Gintama's Red Spider Arc Gets Dark And Dirty For Its Drama (Rating: 8.4)
Going deep into this particular arc, things got really dark for the anime and that is meant literally. This batch of episodes takes place with little light, almost like a horror movie. This is all because of the antagonist Jiraia, a mysterious foe who is malevolent and vicious with his fighting technique.
Fans get some cool flashbacks with Jiraia and Tsukuyo. Audiences even learn about Gintoki’s first time meeting Yoshida Shouyou. It gives viewers a chance to see how much progress these characters have made since we first saw them. The fight between Gintoki and Jiraia will always be one of the best highlights of the series. The Red Spider arc may be one of the weaker arcs in the Yoshiwara trilogy, but it’s a memorable one.
13 The Shinsengumi Crisis Arc Pushes Hijikata Out Of His Comfort Zone (Rating: 8.6)
Shinsengumi has grown to be one of the most important aspects of Gintama. As the first of four arcs revolving around the special police force, it was great to see how these guys operate in the story. Audiences are introduced to the season’s arc, antagonist Itou who was such a tragic character.
The whole arc revolved around him at the start until we realize that he was only a pawn of the Harusame to dismantle the Shinsengumi. Kawakami Bansai represents this mysterious group, a character who has a fondness for music. The Shinsengumi Crisis arc has a lot of emotional impact with so many pieces and a sad ending with Itou’s death.
12 The Yoshiwara In Flames Arc Lights A Little Fire Under The Heroes (Rating: 8.6)
This was the beginning of the Yoshiwara arcs that brought in a lot of characters into the story from the Yoshiwara clan. Seita and Hinowa are the two characters that begin the arc strong. When Seita tries to steal from Gintoki, little does she realize that she’s on a path towards Otose’s group.
She ends up asking for help to save Yoshiwara from Housen, the ruler of the clan. It was sad to find out her mother was dead after all that searching. Fans also get to know the Yato tribe members who play an important role in this arc. Everything that takes place in this arc results in an exciting story that completely blows everything away with stellar fights and emotional moments.
11 The Shinigami Arc Is Full Of Beautiful Battles (Rating: 8.8)
The show introduces a new part of the world of Gintama, the Yaemon family. This clan is known for their reputation as the shogunate’s executioners. The Shinigami arc focused primarily on the conflict between Asaemon and the Yaemon, which split the family apart.
Asaemon didn’t go along with Yaemon’s plan to kill everyone that their father has given freedom to, including Sakata Gintoki. The story also includes flashbacks to Gintoki’s backstory. Other than the nice flashback, the fight scenes in this arc stand out as some of the best on Gintama. This was a big build-up for the Shogun Assassination arc as well as our introduction to Hitotsubashi Nobunobu.
10 The Benizakura Arc Debuts A Prolific Weapon For Dramatic Duels (Rating: 8.8)
Gintama had its first serious arc with the Benizakura. Straight out of the gate, this storyline was full of intense and pumping action. This proved how much potential the show had for more action-oriented content by going into some humorless territory.
What brought the show to the forefront was the fight with Katsura, Harusame, and Gintoki in this arc, one of the best fight sequences to come out of Gintama. The end of the storyline took quite a toll on Nizou but seeing him fight Gintoki was a spectacle to watch.
9 Gintama's Baragaki Thorny Arc Allows The Shinsengumi To Meet Their Match (Rating: 8.8)
Most fans would bypass the Baragaki Thorny arc, but this set of episodes is filled with craziness and mixes both comedy and action. Baragaki focuses on the Shinsengumi's rival police force called the Mimawarigumi. This elite group is filled with members from some of the wealthiest families in the nation. They are rivaled against the lower class group of samurai that are comprised of the Shinsengumi.
Tetsunosuke, Mimawarigumi chief Sasaki Isaburo's brother, ends up as a member of the Shinsengumi when his family loses faith in him. Chaos ensues between the two police forces when he gets kidnapped by a group of rebels. It was certainly a surprise when it is revealed that Gintoki was playing the villain in the entire arc.
8 The Kintama Arc Puts Gintoki Through An Identity Crisis (Rating: 8.9)
The Kintama arc gave fans another reason to love the Gintoki so much. The dilemma faced by Kintoki (blonde Gintoki) is handled throughout the arc, while also showing just how much of an impact Gintoki has made on all the other characters.
No matter what crazy antics Gintoki has pulled, it still made a deep impression on viewers and the group. The way the arc handled Gintoki as well as Mantama was a good way to keep people invested in the story. The Kintama does break the fourth wall at times, but it was a different story than most had come to expect from Gintama and that’s why it tends to be a fan favorite.
7 The Four Devas Arc Turns To The Past To Repair The Future (Rating: 9.1)
The Four Devas arc was a bold storyline that went onto become one of the greatest stories in the series. The storyline followed four devas: Otose, Saigo, Jirocho, and Kada. These are the four powerhouses of the Kabuki District and they all fight for power.
Fans get to see Jirocho’s relationships develop with both Otose and Tatsugoro. Gintama shows Jirocho at his most powerful when he teams up with Gintoki to fight against the Shinra army. A lot of story goes into this plot, but the civil war with these four individuals is what drives the show into one of the best arcs we’ve seen.
6 The Silver Soul Arc Handles Utsuro’s Apocalyptic Problem And Concludes The Anime (Rating: 9.41)
Gintama's Silver Soul arc receives the honor of being the series' final major storyline, but it's also the anime’s longest. Gintama's Silver Soul run is pure action and it's centered around Utsuro's devastating plan to trigger a war that will end in the destruction of the universe, as the only way to conquer his own immortality.
The painful history that exists between Utsuro and Gintoki is palpable, but Gintama also makes sure that every character gets a chance to properly shine before the series wraps up. The Silver Soul arc doesn't buckle under the pressure or its length.
5 Gintama’s Rakuyou Decisive Battle Arc Catalyzes Utsuro’s Endgame (Rating: 9.52)
The final chapters of Gintama become progressively serious where one sprawling dramatic arc will segue right into the next. The exodus of the Shinsengumi has an avalanche effect that's felt for the rest of the series as the Odd Jobs crew team up with the Joi Rebels, Kiheitai, and Sakamoto's team to withstand Utsoro's apocalyptic attack.
The Rakuyou Decisive Battle Arc is the second longest saga in the series, which allows it to produce many of the series' most epic battles, pivotal revelations about Kagura's mother and her family's history, as well as the true nature of Utsuro's master plan.
4 The Courtesan Of A Nation Arc Introduces Old Lovers And New Foes (Rating: 9.56)
Part of the reason that Gintoki makes for such a compelling protagonist is that even though he likes to pretend that he's lazy and uncouth, he can't help but aid strangers to receive closure from past trauma. The Courtesan of a Nation arc is only five episodes, but it creates a deeply moving story about aged Yoshiwara courtesan, Suzuran, and an ancient promise that she made.
The courtesan material connects, but this arc also introduces the antagonistic Naraku, and their leader Oboro, who's a major threat for the rest of the series.
3 The Farewell, Shinsengumi Arc Bids Goodbye To Crucial Characters (Rating: 9.69)
Gintama's main characters are Gintoki and the rest of the Odd Jobs crew, but the Shinsengumi police force immediately grew into fan favorites who are just as important to the anime. The Farewell, Shinsengumi arc directly picks up from the fallout of the Shogun Assassination episodes and continues to detail the changing landscape of Edo's police force.
These episodes are so satisfying because Odd Jobs partners up with the remaining Shinsengumi members, as well as the Joi Rebels, for the ultimate showdown. Gintama irrevocably changes following the conclusion of the Farewell, Shinsengumi arc, which also sets up the series' major antagonist.
2 The Shogun Assassination Arc Marks A Tonal Turning Point For Gintama (Rating: 9.81)
Gintama’s earlier episodes lean more into its comedic sensibilities, but there's always dramatic content that occasionally rises to the surface. The Shogun Assassination arc is a crucial turning point in the series because it marks a schism where serious storylines become more prevalent and start to dominate the comedy.
The Shogun Assassination episodes make such an impact because of the permanent changes they leave on the anime, as well as the long overdue details that are provided regarding Gintoki's past with Takasugi and the circumstances that surround their mentor’s death – which becomes a catalyst for the rest of the series.
1 Gintama's Yagyu Arc Brings Fan-Favorite Kyuubei Into The Fray (Rating: 10)
Yagyuu Kyuubei is introduced in the Yagyu arc and becomes very crucial later on in the series. Fans get to see Kyuubei start to build up as a character, showing us her drive and growth when the arc progresses.
When first introduced, Kyuubei gives the impression that she is a man. However, she is only pretending to be a man because of the burden that her family placed on her as the Yagyuu heir. The arc does shift its focus away from the main characters, but at least audiences get some good material on Kyuubei as well as her relationship with Otae.