A lazy, washed-up samurai living in an era when samurai are no longer needed. Gintoki resides with his friends Kagura and Shinpachi, taking on odd jobs to make the world a better place and to pay off their rent. The three of them run a freelancer business known as Yorozuya Gin (Odd Jobs Gin).In the Joi war, he was known as the Shiroyasha or "White Demon" due to his silver hair and white coat he wore in battle, which, combined with his impressive capabilities as a swordsman, made him famous among his comrades and struck fear into the hearts of the Amanto. He fought the invaders until he realized the lack of sense in doing so, leading to him choosing to instead make a living as a freelancer for hire in Edo.Gintoki has an insufferable sweet tooth and is also obsessed with acquiring and reading the Weekly Shōnen Jump. Despite his uncaring attitude and brash behavior, Gintoki has a great amount of pride for the old bushido code and will go to great lengths to protect anyone in trouble, be it those he considers close comrades or complete strangers.
Badass Boast: "Hey, listen. I don't care what you punks do around the universe, but this is my sword, and anywhere it can reach is my country. Bastards who come in and try to mess with my things... whether it be a shogun, whether it be space pirates, whether it be a meteorite... I’ll destroy them!"
Berserk Button: Hurting his True Companions is an excellent way to trigger Gintoki's change from a seemingly useless bum to the White Demon.
A teacher abusing his own student is another, as Jiraiya learned the hard way.
Men that exploit and trample upon relationships tend to face the really bad side of the White Demon, as Housen (strongest Amanto) and former shogun Sadasada find out.
Big Brother Instinct: At one point a one-off character actually assumes he is Shinpachi's big brother. It's also implied that he would kill any guy who tried to shack up with Kagura. In addition, Okita of all people looks up to him as something of a big brother figure, as seen when Gintoki is the first person Okita goes to after Okita's sister asked Okita if he has made any friends outside of the Shinsengumi.
Big Damn Heroes: Usually accompanied by some truly fantastic snarking.
Brilliant, but Lazy: An amazingly skilled fighter who could slice through a legion of enemies in seconds, yet spends his days scrambling after JUMP magazines and lounging about eating sweets.
Charles Atlas Superpower: How else can one describe the human who is able to take on people of mass destruction such as the swordsman possessed by parasite sword who can cut through warships like knife through butter and the mob boss from one of the strongest races in the universe?
Failure Knight: A large part of Gintoki's desire to protect other and the absurd lengths he goes to do it is due to the guilt of believing that he couldn't save or protect anyone during the war. The other part is him being Gintoki.
Friend To All Children: He's willing to go fight a literal deathmatch in a coliseum just to make some children stop crying, in addition to singlehandedly challenging the mob boss of the strongest alien race in the galaxy to reunite a scruffy pickpocket with his mother. It's safe to say that he has a weakness for kids.
Groin Attack: May explain why he can survive many fatal wounds, as most if not all of the damages goes into his groin, including detachments, conversion, and disintegration. Also explains why it's called Gintama.
Heroic Albino: He has white hair and red eyes—although they're green in the manga.
Honor Before Reason: He takes his code of Bushido very seriously and will always do the right thing in the end no matter how dangerous it is, as shown in several arcs like the Gladiator Ring arc.
Lampshaded with the title There Will Be Hell to Pay when a Lazy Man Gets Angry.
Meaningful Echo: He first meets Otose much like he meets Shouyo-sensei—getting food from the dead. Only this time he asks.
My Name Is Not Durwood: Sakamoto always calls him "Kintoki" instead of Gintoki. Gintoki always objects to this, especially since if his name were "Kintoki", the series' title would be "Kintama", which, in Japanese, means balls.
Papa Wolf: He tries his best to take care of Kagura in place of her dad and serves as a heartwarming father figure in the Lone Wolf and Cub parody arc. His reaction to violence being committed near the child is less than calm.
Red Baron: Probably not a good idea to take the nickname "White Demon" lightly.
Red Eyes, Take Warning: Inverted. Despite having deep red eyes, he is not what you'd call a bad guy.
Shell-Shocked Veteran: Lost many of his friends during the Joi war. While he is not out for vengeance, his grief over those losses is implied few times and is never played for laughs.
Technical Pacifist: Actively avoids causing grievous harm, as shown by his weapon of choice (a wooden katana), but has absolutely no qualms about delivering killing blows if it comes down to it.
Third-Person Person: While Gintoki normally uses male pronouns, he occasionally switches to talk like this, referring to himself as Gin-san. He isn't being egoistic or anything when doing that. It's more like that he gets his point across better then. Such as "Gin-san really can't figure out how to separate trash, give him a break," for example.
Trademark Favorite Food: Anything sweet, really, but strawberry milk (!!!) seems to be the most prominent for him, as well as chocolate parfaits and a heap of sweet adzuki beans on rice.
Tsundere: Despite being male, he's explicitly said to have incredible tsundere tactics at least once.
His modus operandi is a similar deviation as well. He's rude and snarky to almost everyone and often scoffs off other people's problems as none of his business. However, when push comes to shove, his kindness and sense of honor pushes him beyond humanly possible limits and the juxtaposition certainly makes him seem that much more awesome.
Verbal Tic: Ends many of his sentences with "Oy", which is Japanese equivalent of "Hey".
Vitriolic Best Buds: With Katsura and Sakamoto. And pretty much all of his friends.
What Could Have Been: He was originally going to be a younger Hijikata. In order to keep from ruining the image of the real Hijikata, the name and design were changed.
White-Haired Pretty Boy: More like White perm-haired pretty boy but he does not fit the personality mold.
Wooden Katanas Are Even Better: Gintoki uses one made out of the wood of a 10,000 year old diamond/adamantine tree, which he calls Lake Toya.
According to Word Of God, all his swords are actually bought through mail order, and it being a present from a wizard is just an urban legend Gin made up for fun.
Somewhat mitigated by the fact that Gintoki uses steel swords when he is up against stronger opponents (i.e. his battles again Night King Housen and Nizo possessed by Benizakura).
Wouldn't Hit a Girl: Zigzagged. He has no compulsion about hitting girls, especially in a comical way, but he indeed never killed one and hesitated long enough at the end of the Harusame arc to let Kada exit the scene, despite being in perfect position to kill her and put an end to her threat.
A 16-year-old samurai-in-training who joins Gintoki in hopes of studying under him. He stays at his family's dojo along with his older sister Otae Shimura. Although he commonly criticizes Gintoki's lazy behavior, Shinpachi comes to regard him as a very important person to him in the same fashion as Kagura.Despite his meek, scholarly appearance, Shinpachi is a more than competent swordsman. He serves as the captain of the "Otsu's Imperial Guard," a fan club devoted to the famous idol singer Otsu and takes his role seriously.
Distracted by the Sexy: He instantly falls head-over-heels for a Moe Moe girl just because she had cat ears. His subsequent lack of judgment ends poorly for him. Although thanks to his friends, it ends worse for her.
Drill Sergeant Nasty: Invoked whenever he takes up his position as head of Otsu's fan club.
The Generic Guy: Shinpachi is most often relegated to the role of straight man, so much so that he's occasionally lampooned as being little more. Later episodes make fun of the fact that his identifying character trait is his glasses, to the point where the cast addresses a pair of glasses as if they're really Shinpachi.
Hollywood Tone Deaf: Otsu-chan's biggest fan? Possibly, but he's nowhere near as good a singer as she is.
House Husband / Team Mom / Seriously. You'd be surprised how many traits he's got down, from his usually calm, caring personality to his occasionally displayed domestic skills, and his determination to protect those he loves. This all despite him being, you know, male. His nondescriptness might actually reinforce this trait.
Despite having a usually calm and caring personality, though, Shinpachi is also well-known—particularly amongst anime viewers—for his shrill and shrieking harpy voice whenever he tries, as the show's commentatingStraight Man, to keep the sanity together in whatever ridiculous situation(s) the characters have gotten themselves into yet again, regardless of often utterly failing in the end.
The Nondescript: Second only to Yamazaki in nondescriptness, yet so much so that it's become a Running Gag that the cast talks to a pair of glasses as if it were Shinpachi.
Samurai / Yamato Nadeshiko: Yeah, he's both gender roles; a competent Swordsman-in-Training and 'Imperial Guard' captain that is also caring and domestic.
Seemingly an innocuous, carefree young girl of Chinese descent, Kagura is actually an alien belonging to the Yato Clan, one of the strongest and most bloodthirsty of the Amanto races. Because of her Yato blood, she is extremely strong and an incredibly fierce and capable fighter, able to singlehandedly take down multiple fighters, crush vehicles with her bare hands, and regenerate from wounds sustained in combat. She came to Earth to earn money for her family, and to escape her violent Yato heritage, which she staunchly rejects.Kagura and Gintoki's relationship is very much a father-daughter one and she is highly protective of him, often affectionately referring to him as Gin-chan. Kagura also has an unusually strong appetite and is often seen devouring mountains of food or complaining that she's hungry. She is often seen with or riding atop of her gigantic pet dog Sadaharu.
Analogy Backfire: At one point she compares Gin, Shinpachi and herself to a human body (i.e. they work together well and have to stick together), but claims that Gin and Shin are the left arm and leg, and she is the white blood cells. The others are less than reassured after being told that they're a pile of bloody, disembodied limbs.
And Call Him George: She kills any cute animal she keeps (like say, a rabbit) by hugging them when she sleeps. (Both Gintoki and Shinpachi were unsure whether to laugh or cry at such a story). Averted later when she gets Sadaharu, who is normally aggressive and deadly, and has the tendency to bite on anyone's head to draw blood, but for someone like Kagura, is the perfect pet.
Berserk Button: Like Gintoki, any attempts to hurt her friends will be dealt with severely.
Big Eater: Her tastes are rather plain though, befitting of her childish behavior.
Big Sister Instinct: She loves Otae, addresses her extremely respectfully, and hugs her a lot.
Boobs of Steel: Inverted. She is among the physically stronger female characters of the show but she hardly has any breasts to speak of.
Cain and Abel: Her brother Kamui. He seems rather indifferent but Kagura is still sore over the attempt to kill their dad and the abandonment.
Can't Stand Them, Can't Live Without Them: She really loses her temper when she pretends to run away and no one really seems to notice, but in the end she misses them and comes back, justifying it by saying that she's the only one who could put up with Gin and Shinpachi.
Chronic Pet Killer: Played for laughs. Like in episode 65, where she crushes her own beetle in agitation. Happily averted with Sadaharu, who's big enough to survive it.
Foe Yay: She doesn't like Okita much, but she can feel this kind of vibe coming off of him towards her, and they get along fairly well when they're not fighting.
Pretty Freeloader: After her introduction story, she got Gintoki to take her in by punching (and cracking) the wall next to him. Now, she lives with him as a coworker/daughter-of-sorts, sleeping in his closet.
Red Oni, Blue Oni: Red Oni to Okita's Blue Oni. They compete at everything, but are more than willing to team up against rampaging robots that ruin a festival for them.
Slasher Smile: Shown only once, during Yoshiwara arc. And it was permanently on her face when her Yato instinct and inner bloodlust took over. Since her brother and father also have this kind of expression when "getting serious" it's probably an ethnic trait that... runs in the blood.
Superpowered Evil Side: She's far more ruthless when her Yato instincts take over. Case in point: Abuto's utter curb stomping at her hands. Unlike Kamui, however, Kagura's not predominantly violent by choice, and her trying to maintain control over her Yato instincts is one of her greatest goals.
Tomboy: Often very crude and blunt in her manner of speaking.
Unstoppable Rage: Only invoked once thus far when Shinpachi is mere seconds from death and her innate Yato instincts are awakened, turning her into a rampaging monster.
Unusually Uninteresting Sight: No one ever seems to find the presence of an ultra-rare alien worthy of comment, even though she's apparently identifiable on sight as otherworldly.
Verbal Tic: Ends many of her sentences with "aru", a typical speech pattern for Chinese characters in Anime (which is translated as "uh-huh" in the Viz licensed volumes).
A huge dog that was abandoned on their doorstep by a pair of Miko sisters. At first Gin and Shinpachi weren't too keen of the idea of Sadaharu living at Yorozuya, thanks to his habit to chew on anything smaller than himself (including humans), but as the time has passed in series they have become attached to him too and he has become tamer and friendlier towards everyone as well, even letting Kagura ride on his back regularly. Shinpachi and Gintoki too, when the situation is serious enough and they need to get somewhere fast.Sadaharu was named after Kagura's first pet rabbit which she accidentally killed while having a nightmare. After that incident, she vowed to never go near animals again, were the same thing happen again. Since Sadaharu is pretty strong himself, she doesn't have that problem with him. After seeing how important that is to Kagura, Gintoki agrees to take him in.
Big Friendly Dog: Subverted as everyone but Kagura turns into a Chew Toy when he's around. Sadaharu's strength and aggression makes him ideal for the superhumanly strong Kagura, who has crushed several pets to death in the past.
Voiced by: Susumu Chiba (JP), David Wald (EN, movie)
Commander of the Shinsengumi. A goofy, but good-natured and honorable leader who has won the respect and admiration of his subordinates. Despite appearing completely incompetent, he takes his job seriously and will not hesitate to make tough decisions in order to protect his comrades and the people of the country.The members of the Shinsengumi are fiercely loyal to him and he shares a particularly close bond of friendship with Sougo Okita and Toshiro Hijikata. Okita often remarks that Kondo's nice attitude is also his weak point as he never takes notice of a person's negative traits.He has a crush on Shinpachi's sister, Otae Shimura and stalks her, to which she responds by repeatedly beating him senseless.
Animal Motifs: The gorilla, by way of what people usually call him.
The Big Guy: His association with the gorilla might come from the fact that he's indeed the tallest and most muscular of the Shinsengumi
In the early epiodes, the gorilla name is referenced because of his ridiculous body hair.
Butt Monkey / The Chew Toy: Kondo faces stiff competition from other characters for this title, but the show refuses to give him a break. He's gone so far as to earn the nickname "Gorilla-san," a title which even he sometimes uses to refer to himself. A Butt Monkey with more emphasis on the "monkey".
Idiot Hero: Considering the tone of the series and the fact he's the leader of the Shinsengumi, Kondo's a standout at this: he constantly has to ask Hijikata what other people are saying, for instance.
Large and in Charge: He's the tallest and the biggest of the Shinsengumi. And yes, he's the boss.
True Companions: The Shinsengumi is forged through bonds of friendship and loyalty, so much so that even grim-faced and sadistic warriors like Hijikata and Okita would toss away their lives to protect their commander.
Undying Loyalty: The recipient of this from the Shinsengumi.
The chain-smoking "Demonic" Vice-Commander of the Shinsengumi who has garnered an infamous reputation for his ruthless, no-nonsense attitude both on and off the battlefield. Since he's the one usually left in charge of the operation, he takes his work seriously and is fiercely loyal to his commander, Isao Kondo, and the Shinsengumi as a whole.Cucumber cool for the most part, Hijikata is respected and feared by his subordinates, as he's responsible for implementing the 45 Regulations (on pain of seppuku). His swordsmanship is second only to Okita, although he ran into difficulties on discovering his sword was possessed.Hijikata is also obsessed with mayonnaise and has a tendency to smother anything he eats under a mountain of it, in addition to carrying a mayonnaise jar-shaped cigarette lighter. Under his callous, brazen exterior, Hijikata is genuinely compassionate and cares as much about the people he protects as Gintoki. He regards both Gintoki and Okita as not only rivals, but close friends.
Actor Allusion: In one episode, when one of the other characters try to goad him into saying "LET'S PARTY!!"
Big Brother Mentor: Hijikata had one, his half-brother Tamagoro who died not long ago. He sort of becomes one for Tetsunosuke.
Blood Knight: Before he met Kondo he would often get into fights for no reason, leaving a bloody trail wherever he went. There are still traces of it left.
Et Tu, Brute?: Towards Okita who framed him with Itou's help in order to have him demoted.
Evil Weapon: Carries a cursed sword that houses the spirit of an otaku which manifests by taking over his body and reducing him to a helpless, childish, anime-obsessed coward.
Mr. Fanservice: Has a kinda large and devoted female fandom, always places highly in the character polls, and generally acts cool and attractive (such as when he was chosen as the perfect host).
Playing Cyrano: Meet the master of epic, manly FOLLOW-UP WRITING!!!
Red Baron: Just like with Gintoki, you probably don't want to mess with the "Demonic Vice-Commander."
The Rival: Closest thing to a recurring rival Gintoki has.
Sand In My Eyes: Usually averted, as he doesn't attempt to make excuses for crying over non-emotional movies (such as My NeighbourPedro and Alien VSYakuza), but this trope is played straight at the end of Mitsuba arc. Gin, sitting nearby, hears him muttering to himself.
"These crackers are so spicy... Damn. They're so spicy it's making my eyes water..(sob) So spicy..."
Trademark Favorite Food: There's a reason why people refer to him as Mayora. He'll put a heap of mayonaisse (to the point it resembles s**t) on everything, even dessert and coffee.
Quoting Okita: "He basically elevated normal food into dog food"
He also tries to make the embarrassing things the show puts him through look cool, only to fail.
What Could Have Been: He was originally set to be the (much younger) protagonist of the series, but the author backed out early in the design process, because he respected the real-life basis for Hijikata too much to ruin his image by making him a character in a gag manga. The end result of trying to preserve his "coolness" was the Hijikata we all know and love.
The 18-year-old captain of the first squad and widely-regarded as the best swordsman in the entire Shinsengumi. He tends to be light-hearted and somewhat childish, though his speech is heavily deadpan. Unlike Hijikata or Kondo, he seems to take his position for granted and is often seen slacking off or napping.Okita displays a strong dislike of his comrade Toushiro Hijikata, and continuously tries to embarrass, wound, or even kill him whenever he has the chance in order to take his rank of Vice-Commander. He also holds a deep grudge towards Toushiro for having left Mistuba, Sougo's beloved sister, and holds him accountable for her never being able to find happiness before her death. His violent tendencies and habit to torture others mentally in glee have caused his comrades to label him a "sadist," a title which he actively embraces. Nonetheless, he still thinks of Hijikata as his friend and also holds Gintoki, whom he addresses as "boss," in high regard.
All Girls Want Bad Boys: He's a hit with the ladies despite openly being a jerk to them. Hijikata notes how frighteningly talented he is at being a host.
Belligerent Sexual Tension: Often with Kagura whom he deliberately provokes and teases whenever given a chance.
Berserk Button: Do not hurt Kondo or his sister in front of Okita.
BFG: His weapon of choice is a freakin' Bazooka. In an era where most people are wielding swords, it would seem to make for some fairly one-sided battles. However, he does use swords for serious battles.
Devil in Plain Sight: He's always ready to mess with Hijikata, yet no one else, save for Kagura and Gintoki, seems to notice or even care.
Calling Your Attacks: "Sadomaru" really is a beetle? Seriously? Even with the purple eyebeams?
"Eat this! SADO BEEEEAAAMMMM—-!!"
Even Jerkassery Has Standards: Sadistic as he is, he shows utter contempt towards the bosses of the death match arena and enlists help from Gintoki & co to bring about their downfall. Can also be counted as a Pet the Dog moment for him.
False Friend: Sometimes towards Hijikata whom he's not above backstabbing or setting up.
Foe Yay: He gives off this vibe regarding Kagura, who's arguably his 2nd favorite target for his pranks.
Nobume too. There's no telling whether they want to use their swords for killing each other or something else.
Heroic Comedic Sociopath: Technically a good guy, at least later on, but that doesn't stop him from torturing suspects, blowing up buildings at the slightest provocation, or trying to backstab his teammates.
Historical In-Joke: Like his namesake, Okita's a prodigy with the sword. However, Sorachi inverted his relationship with the Vice Commander from Heterosexual Life Partners to (extreme) Vitriolic Best Buds. Also the real Okita Soji died from tuberculosis; in Gintama it's his sister instead.
Kid Samurai / Teen Genius: While not anywhere close to the age where he could be considered a "kid," he is significantly younger than the rest of the Shinsengumi members. And is the captain of the 1st squad, making him not only the leader of the foremost battle unit, but third in the overall chain-of-command.
Knight Templar Little Brother: Despite being the little brother, he dearly loves his big sister, Mitsuba, and will do anything to make her happy. Screw things up for her, especially by using her wedding as a way to do illegal business, and you're DEAD, as Kuraba would have told you from his bisected exploding car.
Jerkass: Proud owner of the nickname "Prince of Sadists."
My Sister Is Off Limits: Very protective of his older sister and basically forbids anyone he doesn't trust near her. This includes Hijikata.
One-Man Army: In the Rokkaku Incident, he's credited for killing most of the enemy rebels (possibly 33 out of... 33). Later in the Itou Arc, he easily takes down an entire train car full of enemies with nary a scratch. Granted this is a show full of One Man Armies, but Okita is fully capable of taking down the most and the worst opponents.
Pet the Dog: Has his own arc dedicated to it. Where he still manages to be a Jerkass.
Red Oni, Blue Oni: Blue Oni to Kagura's Red Oni. They compete at everything, but are more than willing to team up against rampaging robots that ruin a festival for them.
Sleep Mask: He was first seen using one to sleep while on-duty, and it's become iconic of his character ever since.
Verbal Tic: Often ends his sentences with -desu zee or -desaa, which are polite ways for young men to assert their masculinity.
Vitriolic Best Buds: Everyone is under the impression that Hijikata and Okita are bitter rivals always looking for an opportunity to take the other's head, but in truth, they share a strong bond of friendship.
It should be noted however that Sougo does hold Hijikata accountable for Mitsuba's death.
What Could Have Been: was originally going to be female so that the Shinsengumi would have at least one girl. Her basic design was reused for Otsu, and her "fighting with an umbrella" gimmick was given to Kagura.
Yandere: At least some of his behaviour towards Hijikata stems from his belief that Hijikata "stole" Kondo's attention from him. In the Itou arc, he calmly states that he's more than willing to backstab and kill anyone who gets too close to Kondo, because "the place at Kondo's side is mine."
A member of the Shinsengumi, he handles intelligence work, often serving as a spy. He's often seen with a badminton racquet (sometimes during sword training, when Hijikata's more likely to beat him up for it). Shinpachi and Yamazaki have a bit of a rivalry, being the more plain and generic guys on their respective teams, but they're good friends nonetheless.
Beware The Nondescript Ones: It's easy to overlook Yamazaki, but you have to remember that this guy tends to do all the reconnaissance missions for the Shinsengumi, usually alone. Then there's him being the one behind all the paranoia in the Popularity Poll Arc. Oh, and then there's ANPAN SPARKIIING.
Butt Monkey: He gets hurt a lot, especially by Hijikata. Also, despite his popularity, the author stated that Yamazaki will never be on the cover of any Gintama manga volume. Notably, after being spared by Bansai during the Itou Arc, he spies on the Shinsengumi, thinking that they're holding a funeral for him. It turns out that the funeral is being held for Matsudaira's pet, with Yamazaki being treated as an afternote.
Cloudcuckoolander: After surviving an entire month only eating anpan...
The Nondescript: Aside from his Badminton, he's acknowledged in-universe as a very plain and generic guy. He uses this to his advantage against Shinpachi (himself another nondescript) during the OwEe arc, playing pixellized vomitTetris in such a boring and non-flashy manner that he made fewer mistakes. And he states that one of the reasons he's the best undercover agent of the Shinsengumi is because he is so easily overlooked.
An infrequently recurring character, he is the daimyo who acts as the direct superior to the Shinsengumi and reports to the Shogun. He's often regarded as a dangerous, paranoid nutcase who resorts to violence at the first sign of provocation and sees potential assassins everywhere around him. In addition, he is extremely protective of his daughter, Kuriko, often ordering the Shinsengumi to assist him in shadowing any dates she goes on.Although appearing to be an unstable lunatic, he is highly devoted to his job. Unlike Kondo, he is unable to sympathize with the Shinsengumi on a personal basis as he is not in direct command of them, but he holds the safety and well-being of the country and its people in high priority.
Conspiracy Theorist: Believes that people who wear sunglasses are usually assassins, even though he himself wears them in addition to other abnormal things such as the idea that righteousness is what makes up 80% of old men and the police being not more than a branch of the mafia community.
Gintoki's tough-as-nails landlady. "Otose" is just her alias, and her real name is Ayano Terada.She owns a snack-bar and is usually helpful towards those in need. Up until the Kabukicho Arc, she mostly remained in the backgorund, often giving precious advice or taking in Tama, Catherine or Hinowa's son temporarily.Despite constant arguments over Gintoki's inability to pay his rent, she is confident in his defense of her. She is apparently one of the four "emperors" that rule the Kabuki District and has the personal title "Empress of the Kabuki District," mainly because of her good relationships and channels... and Gintoki.
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Despite her often blunt attitude, she sincerely cares for the Yorozuya and her employees, Catherine and Tama (even though Catherine's very introduction into Gintama was trying to steal from Otose) , going as far as to call them her family. This kindness was more obvious when she was a young woman, as she secretly fed poor children food from her job (and got fired for it).
Pet the Dog: Among other examples, she is shown many times ripping into Gintoki for not paying her each month's rent on time, yet she cuts him some slack a few times all the same.
Killed Off for Real: Subverted! In chapter 300, she got stabbed by Jirochou... but in the next chapter, it's revealed that she survived, to the relief of many fans who thought Sorachi would actually go through with it. In fact, it was part of Jirochou's plan to keep her alive in the first place.
Never Mess with Granny: Her title "Empress of the Kabuki District" should tell you that this is one old lady you do not want to mess with.
Non-Action Snarker: Despite counting on the Yoroyuza for her own protection since she is just too old to really make an impression in a heated physical fight, she does gibe at them a lot.
Protectorate: Otose first met Gintoki while offering meat pies at her husband's grave. She let grubby-looking Gintoki eat them and for this favor, Gintoki promised to protect her until she joins her husband.
Earlier, Tatsugoro (Otose's husband) with his last words entrusts her safety to Jirochou.
Undying Loyalty: Be it Gintoki himself, Catherine, Tama or pretty much anyone who knows her well, she inspires this due to her kind and caring self underneath her apparent toughness.
A former member of the Anti-Foreigner Faction. Since his wife's death he has done everything he could to be both a father and a mother to his son. He is the also the owner of an okama cabaret bar, and most of the crossdressers are formerly of the Faction as well. In his first appearance he tried to transform Gintoki and Katsura into crossdressers too until they helped him out.
Papa Wolf / Mama Bear: Dont put a finger on Teruhiko if you want to live.
Slight subversion in that by doing so, Kada forced Saigou to attack the Yorozuya even though he and his faction doesn't really want to. Of course, once the Yorozuya rescue him...
Perma Stubble: In case he wasn't obvious enough already.
Also known as "Kujakuhime" ("Princess Peacock"), she is an Amanto who operates most of the gambling outfits in Kabukicho.Manipulative, vain and highly territorial, she runs her casino with an iron fist and isn't very close to the other "Emperors" of Kabukichou. During the Kabukicho arc, it is revealed that she is actually linked to the Space Pirates known as Harusame and that her intentions are far from benevolent.
Absurdly High Stakes Game: If you dare to cheat in her casino, only luck, literally, will save you from death.
The Baroness: A sexpot type. She's very good-looking and rather domineering despite her delicate appearance.
Evil All Along: Revealed to be this in the Kabukicho arc.
The Unfought: After Gintoki and Jirochou destroy her whole Harusame militia, she stands completely defenseless before them but both are so worn out they collapse before even making an impression on her. She leaves the scene, defeated but alive, promising to come back and avenge herself.
The last Emperor of Kabukichou to be revealed in the series. A former member of the Anti-Foreigner Faction, currently a yakuza. Grew up with Otose, he ended up befriending her future husband. Due to the fact that he also loved her, he backed down, allowing Otose to marry his best friend. When Otose's husband died protecting Jirochou from a bullet, Jirochou took it upon himself to protect Kabukicho.
Anti-Hero: A vigilante in his youth, and one of the big reasons why Kabukicho hasn't been taken over by Harusame over the years as an adult. Type IV on average, sliding to a Type III at his best.
Badass: He is probably one of the strongest humans.
Charles Atlas Superpower: During his fight with Gintoki, Jirochou punched Gintoki so hard that he flew through a row of tombstones, crashing hard into a stone wall.
Disappeared Dad: He is the Disappeared Dad to Pirako, having left her and her mother to protect Kabukicho from the shadows.
The Faceless: For a while, before his proper appearance in the Four Devas arc.
Good All Along: The biggest reason Kada (and, by proxy, Harusame) hasn't taken over Kabukicho yet is because of the influence his faction has had all along.
Shinpachi's violent and unhinged older sister. She runs the Kakidōkan Dojo, the family dojo, with her brother, working part-time as a bar hostess to pay for the upkeep.She is usually addressed as "Otae", although Kagura always addresses her as anego ("big sister" in Japanese informal speech), and the Shinsengumi call her nee-san ("big sister" in Japanese formal speech), which the usual honorific used to refer to a samurai leader's consort.Despite her sweet face and cheerful demeanor, she is one of the most brutal characters in the show. She often delivers sound thrashings to Isao Kondo and Gintoki, or well, anyone else, whenever they anger her.
Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: A variation. She isn't exactly malevolent but she does put a front of kindness and sweetness to hide her much less pleasant real self.
Cute and Psycho: Tae (or Otae as she's more known) can be somewhat Tsundere, but she also flies into a crazy, violent fit at the slightest disturbance while still acting the sweet older sister. (Add the fact that she shares a voice actress with Shmion of Higurashi no Naku Koro ni, and well...)
Does Not Like Men: A subtle one. But she clearly has no interest in men whatsoever, despite being courted by many handsome or high-status guys (including Kondou), and only seems genuinely well-disposed towards like-minded females such as Kagura. Which leads to...
Ambiguously Lesbian: There is clearly something going on betwseen her and Yagyu, but nothing is confirmed as of now. It would explain many things though.
Stepford Smiler: Viewed in-story as this by Shinpachi and Kyuubei.
Yamato Nadeshiko: Mercilessly subverted. She has many characteristics and attributes, including the (apparent) prim attitude and the naginata, but her true self is anything but this since she can hardly cook and is very violent otherwise.
A close acquaintance of the Yoroyuza Gin, introduced as an official working for the Bakufu. After an incident with Amanto dignitary Prince Hata, whom he was assigned to serve and protect, he fled. He has consequently become homeless, jobless, and a heavy drinker and survives pretty much the same way Gintoki and his pals do: doing pretty much anything he can get paid for.He is often referred to as "Madao," which stands for "totally useless middle-aged man" in Japanese. In the English translation, it's "dork", which stands for "dumb old retarded kook."
Cool Loser: Despite being called out on his inability to crawl out of his homelessness, he is still part of the Yoroyuza's entourage and they consider him a friend.
Cool Shades: Subverted. Although he starts off as a high-ranking official in the government, he becomes less cool and far more loserly as the series goes on. On the other hand, they sorta invoke the image of Gendo Ikari, whom Fumihiko Tachiki also voices.
In a hilarious demonstration, during the Ryugu palace arc, he is shown to have the fighting power of something around 600K (K for kelp, and regular humans possessing roughly 360 times K, Shinpachi had 364). That is, until he drops his sunglasses and it's revealed that device was reading data from said sunglasses and his actual fighting power was a mere 1K, i.e. on the same level as kelp. "It's true, Madao is nothing more than a pair of sunglasses."
Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: Who would've though a laid-back, easy-going homeless guy would hold such a fierce streak in times of need?
Cats are Mean: The least you can say about her is that she's... bitchy.
Christmas Cake: The reason why she looks different than most other female characters might be due to her being an older woman. She's also a spinster, as everyone is quick to point out.
Tama is a female android found as a disembodied robot head in a trash can one night by Gintoki and Kagura. She was named by Kagura, who was obsessed with eating egg on rice at the time. She seems to have some rather strange main functions, such as acting as an interactive interface for a Dragon Quest game.Tama was originally a robot servant created by Dr. Hayashi to provide his sickly daughter with a companion. Hayashi tried to implant the personality of his daughter, Fuyo, into Tama, but the experiment killed his daughter in the process. He gradually became wracked by grief and his intentions became more and more selfishly twisted after the event. Tama came to possess the element known as the "Seed", and is therefore capable of human emotion in addition to retaining some of Fuyo's personality.After the events of the Android arc (in which she was introduced), Tama was fully reconstructed and has since been employed at Otose's snack house where she is always seen working alongside Otose and Catherine.
Laser-Guided Amnesia: Both when she is first discovered and after the Android arc comes to a close.
Losing Your Head: The state she is initially found in and consequently named (as an egg-cracking device nonetheless).
Replacement Goldfish: The entire point of the Fuyo Project was for Hayashi to implant his dying daughter's personality into a robot host. It ends in disaster.
Retro Gaming: She comes across a virus that, among other things, reduces her to an 8-bit sprite.
A crazy inventor who can repair any kind of machine. He is often concerned about his son who he often wishes to have raised better.He is the one to put Tama back together and helped a lot in taking down the army of robot-maids.
A former comrade of Gintoki during the Joi war. Even after the Amanto take-over of Japan, Katsura continues to resist the Amanto, and has amassed a band of followers known as the Anti-Foreigner Faction, which is in continuous, direct conflict with the Shinsengumi.Although his initial methods were more violent in nature, Katsura has since come to believe that there are people important to him in Edo, and decides that he no longer wants to destroy the country. He and his faction now seek a way to bring about change without causing needless bloodshed.Since he is a wanted man, Katsura is often seen wearing disguises (which are always completely ineffectual). Katsura sometimes works odd jobs to raise money for his terrorist activities and is often seen trying to coerce Gintoki into assisting him with his eccentric endeavors. He is always accompanied by his pet, Elizabeth, whom he cares deeply for. Gintoki often calls him "Zura," to which he will typically respond with "Not Zura, it's Katsura."
Badass Long Hair: Sometimes. Ironically, one of his most badass moments occurred when he and Gintoki fought against Takasugi and the Harusame pirates, at which point he had short hair due to it being cut off earlier.
Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: A highly capable and lethal warrior, on par with Gintoki, completely obscured by the fact that he is always seen with a giant duck by his side. His strength is such that during the Benizakura arc, Gintoki tells Nizo that "there's no way in hell Zura would lose to him."
Bunny Ears Terrorist: His actions and reasoning are often incredibly eccentric and strange but he's displayed a shocking amount of competence in managing to evade the Shinsengumi day-after-day. Need I also point out that he fought side-by-side with Gintoki during the Joi war?
Now that he believes his role has been taken over by Kyuubei, his new catch phrase is "I am/was on standby the entire time."
Cloudcuckoolander: He thought that Gintoki could hide from some ronin in an empty tin can, keeps Elizabeth as a partner without so much as a single question (completely ignoring the fact that it's just a guy in a costume*
and when a similar-looking person switches places he doesnt notices at all
), and fends off attackers using poisoned fried rice and curry as a weapon. Heck, when he had a Newtype reaction, he can only say completely nonsensical things!
Here's a really extreme example: he once went out for a pleasant bicycle ride... through a safari park, just because he wanted to see the animals' paws up close—while everyone that has a lower ranking than him wants to kill him.
Cosplay Otaku Terrorist: He's so single-mindedly incompetent at disguising himself that it might just be something he does for fun.
"He likes his pet alright, but he loves his costume, uh-huh." As Kagura put it once when he showed up in Captain Harlock cosplay for the second time. Live on television, no less. Using Captain Katsuura as his alias.
The Comically Serious: Subverted because we see him doing something utterly stupid or weird more times than we see him be serious, but he remains perfectly serious during all of his appearances.
Lampshaded during the Popularity Poll arc, where he challenges Hijikata and Kyubei (Kyubei especially) for having the same character type as him, claiming that there can be only one.
Even Evil Has Standards: He may want to kill the Shogun, but he will not do it when the Shogun is naked and has his dick out aiming at him. In fact he insist Kondo protect him!
Historical In-Joke: A lot of his characterisation is based on Kido "Running Katsura" Takayoshi, who lived a lot longer than most rebels by virtue of clever disguises and running away when he needed to.
In one chapter he hides from the Shinsengumi with a ramen shopkeeper named Ikumatsu, and falls in love with her. The real-life Katsura met his wife, Ikumatsu, while in hiding from his enemies.
Likes Older Women: Has a thing for older women, according to Gintoki. There was also the incident with Ikumatsu...
Lovable Coward: He can fight, but he will run away from losing battles, as indicated by an early flashback in which he tries to persuade Gin to do the same. (See Historical In-Joke above.)
Paper-Thin Disguise: Whether he dresses up as a priest, as Captain Katsura (Dattebayo/Believe it!), or as Katsuo, almost nobody (excluding Gintoki & co.) ever seems to recognize him, despite baring his unaltered face in plain sight. A lot of times, he doesn't even bother going for secrecy:
After accidentally stepping on a kid's toy, disguised as a priest.
Moreover, when he's interviewed by Hanano, he's outraged with the network altering his voice, obscuring his face with a mosaic, and using an alias instead of his real name. Instead, he has them stop, using only a pair of gag glasses as a disguise, and he even takes those off just to eat some ramen.
Red Baron: It's probably a good idea to not take someone with the nickname "Young Noble of Terror" lightly.
Traumatic Haircut: In the Benizakura arc. It's grown back the next time we see him.
Elizabeth
Voiced by: Shinji Takamatsu, Tohru Furuya (in Episodes 234 & 235) (JP), Andrew Love (EN, movie)
Katsura's right hand... duck/penguin-costume-guy-thingy. Originally a present from Sakamoto, Elizabeth hangs around with Katsura, who doesn't even think twice about treating it like a dear friend (and not some person in a costume). It almost never talks, preferring to communicate with signboards (which it uses as weapons, whenever necessary). Real name is General Eren, and belongs to the mercenary race of Renho.Or not, as there are (at least) two Elizabeths; General Eren is apparently a temp who fills in on Mondays.
Author Avatar: It has been revealed that underneath the costume is the director, although this is obviously a gag exclusive to the anime adaptation.
Homage: Elizabeth seems to like dressing up as a reference to Golgo 13, while Eren is a complete shout out to Amuro Ray. Heck, they even pilot the same Gundam and are voiced by the same person.
Paper-Thin Disguise: Elizabeth's appearance already seems like a costume, but look at Elizabeth when it's running, and you'll see flippers being worn by hairy legs. More obviously, when its mouth is open, you can see either glowing eyes or a man (the director).
A former comrade of Gintoki during the Joi war. He is perpetually cheerful and upbeat even in the most dire of situations. Despite his goofy nature, Sakamoto is actually a successful businessman and pilot with a private, well-equipped defensive business fleet, the Kaientai. Sakamoto's goal is to use trade to improve relations and negotiations between Earth and the Amanto in order to bring about freedom in a peaceful manner.
Badass: He fought alongside Gintoki and Katsura during the war but he gets bonus points during the Renho Arc, where he gets most of the Renhos to join their side by working out a business deal. Ah hah hah hah.
Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: Remember that he did fight with Gintoki against the Amanto, just like Takasugi and Katsura. He also was able to build up a big multi-planet company, the Kaientai.
The Gunslinger: Now prefers a pistol to the sword he used to wield during the Amanto war. Definitely a shout-out to the historical Ryōma Sakamoto, who was also a master swordsman and entrepreneurial genius.
The Pollyanna: Rare Male Example. He can somehow find an optimistic explanation for waking up to being eaten by a giant dog.
"(...) Must've sweated while I was asleep too. Eh? Why's everything going red? ...Oh yeah...I was drinking tomato juice."
"Look, there's a limit to positive thinking, okay?!"
Running Gag: Always refers to Gintoki as "Kintoki", which replaces the "silver" kanji with "gold" kanji. Much to Gintoki's annoyance.
Strange Minds Think Alike: Seeing as he was the one who gave Elizabeth to Katsura as a gift, it's probably safe to assume that these two are the only ones who operate on the same wavelength.
Urban Legend Love Life: There's a brief mention that he can "only handle Earth women" in the manga, but we never actually see any evidence one way or another.
Technical Pacifist: He doesn't like pointless combat and would rather avoid unnecessary violence. But if you challenge him, all bets are off.
Verbal Tic: Ends many of his sentences with the suffix "-o" which is an informal way of emphasizing the whole sentence.
Wide-Eyed Idealist: Believes there is a way to bring about peace in a non-violent manner whereas Gintoki has succumbed to indifference and both Katsura (initially) and Takasugi have resorted to terrorism to bring about change.
Sakamoto's serious, down-to-earth second-in-command, and the real leader behind the Kaientai.Competent and reliable, Tatsuma usually leaves her in charge of everything while he's away... which is 90% of the time. A Running Gag in the series is her trying to find him.
A female ninja and member of the Oniwabanshū nicknamed Sa-chan. She meets Gintoki when she falls through his roof during a failed mission and has since become infatuated with him, much to his chagrin. Her feelings for him seem to be encouraged, as she enjoys being put down and threatened by him, due to her blatant masochism.
Though there's plenty all throughout the series of her tied up or begging Gin to bang her or spank her (etc.) the best example has to be a later episode where Gin inexplicably switches bodies with Sadaharu. Sada-Gin then encounters Ayame and lifts his leg on her, in broad daylight, in public, and her reaction is, "YES! DO IT! DO IT NOW!" Too kinky indeed...
Weapon Of Mass Destruction: Her glasses become these in the chapter 321 of the manga when Gengai "reapir it's".
Hattori even says "Dude, I’m not even entirely sure if we should classify those as eyewear or weapons of mass destruction."
A skilled ninja originally from the Oniwabanshu, acquainted with Ayame. He's a big fan of Weekly Shonen Jump, just like Gintoki—once he and Gintoki fought to the death over the Jump Christmas double issue (which turned to be a double issue of Akamaru Jump). Despite his great skill, he's unfortunate enough to have the runs. Even more unfortunately, Ayame loves taking advantage of that fact...
Ass Shove: Poor guy, always getting this treatment from Ayame...
Brilliant, but Lazy: Similar to Gintoki in combat skill and in obsession with Jump. What's he doing when Jiraiya beats Gintoki during the two's first encounter? Laying back on top of a nearby container, reading Jump, claiming he didn't see anything and that he wouldn't get involved, albeit with good reason, citing his father's own clash with Jiraiya. What he does do later on is take down a bunch of mooks single-handed. But off-screen, alas. This troper, misguidedly, wanted to see him be awesome.
Butt Monkey: Like Kondo, only with emphasis on the butt part rather than the monkey part. Further paralleled by how he's often beaten up by Ayame, as Kondo's beaten up by Otae.
An aristocratic young lady who was brought up as a male in order to succeed her family's clan. She dresses and behaves like a boy due to her upbringing. She was close friends with Otae Shimura when they were children, and lost her left eye protecting her when they were young. The incident also left her with the determination to become stronger and improve her skills.
Does Not Like Men: Not that she hates men, but she's bad with being touched by one, however slightly. More often than not, she'll hurl any such unlucky guy. Even if that guy's the Shogun!
Voiced by: Koji Yusa (JP), Blake Shepard (EN, movie)
A steadfast servant of the Yagyu clan who personally looks after Kyuubei. He is extremely dedicated to the point of obsession in his concern for his young master's well-being. He goes to great lengths to ensure that no misfortune ever befalls her, much to her annoyance. In return, Kyuubei is usually indifferent to Tojo's excessive attention, although she has stated on one occasion that she has never liked him from the beginning and never shys away from responding with physical abuse.His obsession with making Kyuubei happy is most pronounced when he repeatedly tries to force her to wear gothic lolita outfits, claiming they suit her perfectly. Despite his radical approach to caring for his master, he geninuely has the best of intentions for both Kyuubei and the Yagyu family. He is generally incredibly calm and composed in both appearance and mannerisms although he easily becomes agitated whenever anything concerning his master is brought up.
Battle Butler: As he is a part of the Yagyu clan and has been entrusted with the safety of its successor, he is a highly skilled combatant.
Berserk Button: Ah, he sure loves eating his raw egg yolk on his rice... but when the yolk breaks...
Elegant Gothic Lolita: Obviously not one himself, but he really likes imagining the sight of Kyuubei wearing these. She typically responds by blowing said outfits up whenever he buys them for her.
Eyes Always Shut: A part of his perpetually calm demeanor. If they do open, however, the whites of his eyes are actually black, and his pupils either glow with an unearthly green, blue or red.
Fan Disservice: The less is said about his crossdressing incident, the better.
Keigo: He generally speaks in a very polite manner, using masu and desu instead of the short dictionary forms usually employed in normal male-speech.
Mentor Ship: Probably never going to reach this point and always played for laughs, although the 7th opening has drawn comparisons between his relationship with Kyuubei and Kondo's equally unrequited relationship with Otae.
It's more likely that Tojo wants Kyuubei to confide in him than pursuing anything like a romantic relationship. However, considering Tojo's overprotectiveness and imagination of Kyuubei in gothic lolita clothes, Kyuubei does have good reasons to keep some distance from him.
Then explain why his Virtual Girlfriend resembles Kyuubei. (His explanation: "She's not my girlfriend, she's my mother!" Before proceeding to having his diaper changed by Virtual Kyuubei)
Trademark Favorite Food: He has an obsession with beating a raw, unbroken egg yolk on his rice for meals and has been shown to fly into a rage if the yolk breaks.
The father of Kagura and Kamui, he's another of the last members of the Yato clan. He travels the galaxy as a famous alien hunter. Like all Yato, he fights using an umbrella. He is one of the few characters able to overpower Kagura. He first appears when aliens go berserk in Edo, and he uses the opportunity to take Kagura away with him, despite her desire to stay with the Yorozuya. He relents after fighting an especially powerful alien off together with Gintoki.He's appeared rarely afterwards, first via a letter, warning Kagura about Sadaharu, and then via his own day in the spotlight. He appears again after Gintoki defeats Housen, warning him about Kamui, who now wants to fight Gintoki himself.
A Day in the Spotlight: He gets an episode where he helps liberate a planet from its rampant environmental computer. It's really a hair growth shampoo commercial.
Badass Family: A lot easier to pull off when you're from the Yato clan, yet he's undeniably a badass dad. Fighting evenly with Housen for days, while Gintoki barely survived fighting Housen to a standstill, even with some help from the Hyakka? Blocking a Wave Motion Gun with his umbrella? He more than qualifies.
Disappeared Dad: He is Kagura and Kamui's Disappeared Dad. He left Kagura with her dying mother after an incident with Kamui: Kamui tried to kill him, and Umibouzu tried the same in retaliation. The only thing stopping him from doing so was Kagura. He left, afraid that Kagura might one day turn on him too, and that he would kill his own daughter.
Dodgy Toupee: He insists otherwise, but everyone can see it. However, hair or no hair, he is undoubtedly a Badass.
The leader of the Hundred Blooms of Yoshiwara, a law-enforcement squad of Yoshiwara that consists of all females, deployed by the Night King Hosen. A competent Action Girl, she is also known as the "Courtesan of Death", which means she doesn't serve as a geisha, rather she protects them from unsavoury patrons and general aggression. She scarred her own face to display her refusal of classic femininity.Despite initially appearing to be a bitch, she becomes quick allies with Gintoki and the Yorozuya who were successful at bringing out her nicer inner self and thanks them for it. Her loyalty and home lies with Hinowa who looked after her when she was a child.
A Mother to Her Women: And how! As the leader of Yoshiwara's law enforcement squad, she harbored prostitutes who were cast out (and consequently marked for execution) for bearing children and gave them a home as members of the Hundred Blooms.
Armor Piercing Suplex: Don't grope her, like Gintoki accidentally does, unless you want this treatment. Played straight with actual slapping (bare minimum) when she's drunk (hoo boy...).
Broken Bird: Her troubled past with her mentor left her emotionally scarred.
Defrosting Ice Queen: Even though she claims to be a bitch, meeting Gintoki and his friends made her unveil the kind and considerate woman she is inside.
Fashionable Asymmetry: Her kimono is slitted on one side and she is missing the opposite sleeve.
Never a Self-Made Woman: Despite the fact that she eventually went beyond her own limits thanks to her sheer will, she owes her fighting skills to her master and also was unable to defeat him unaided.
Verbal Tic: Not in the strictest sense of the term, but the manner in which she speaks is based off of oiran speech, which makes sense given her position in Yoshiwara.
A former comrade of Gintoki and Katsura during the Joi war and a major antagonist throughout the series. He leads a radical branch of the Anti-Foreigner Faction called the Kiheitai (Demon Soldiers Army) and is known amongst the Shinsengumi as one of the most dangerous criminals. After the war ended, he vanished and has since gained a deadly reputation due to his assassination of many of the Bakufu's main officers.Unlike Katsura, he believes that the only way to save the country is to destroy the "rotten" post-Joi war world. His resentment and overwhelming spite drove him to strike a partnership with the space pirates Harusame in order to eliminate the Bakufu.
Knight Templar: Believes that the eradication of everything is the only way to save the country.
Manipulative Bastard: So far, he's actually shown a fair amount of restraint when it comes to his Kiheitai, but he's not above igniting munity among the Shinsengumi by manipulating one of their advisors.
Nietzsche Wannabe: Arguably the only serious character in the entire series.
Regarded as one of the strongest swordsmen in the country, Bansai serves as second-in-command of the Kiheitai. He carries a shamisen which doubles as a tool for garroting or tying up his opponents.On top of being famous as a skilled swordsman, Bansai is also a talented songwriter. He works as a music producer under the name Tsunpo and the pop idol Otsu's newer songs are written by him. Overall, Bansai is shown to have an extremely calm demeanor, although he is capable of violence when necessary and appears to take an interest in potential challenges to his skill.
Anti-Villain: Arguably this, after sparing Yamazaki's life and after confessing to Takasugi that he'd "fallen in love with the heroes' song."
Finish Him: The Itou arc contains a rarely-seen subversion in that Bansai is the one playing the part of the reluctant party given the command and ultimately chooses to spare Yamazaki's life. It appears that, despite his ruthless swordsmanship and the fact that he's a high-ranking antagonist, he is more than capable of showing mercy.
Headphones Equal Isolation: Subverted. He wears them to show his innate connection to music, which he uses as a means of judging a character's personality and fighting style.
Keigo: He ends his sentences with de gozaru and uses the humble first person pronoun sessha. Remind you of anyone, de gozaru? Turns out he was named after Gensai Kawakami, one of the four notable assassins of the Bakumatsu period, whom Kenshin himself was inspired by.
Instrument of Murder / Senseless Violins: Shown in his fight with Gintoki, Bansai can use the strings from his shamisen to restrain people. Also, said shamisen has a katana hidden inside of it.
Verbal Tic: As noted above, he uses "-de gozaru", an ancient suffix mostly used by Ronins and other types of rogue swordsmen to mark hostility and masculinity without being rude.
Villains Out Shopping: Although he works with Takasugi in the Kiheitai, he's also a songwriter who's written songs for Otsu Terakado while off-duty.
A member of the Kiheitai who is skilled at using firearms rather than swords. She wields a pair of pistols and is known as the "Red Bullet" for her honed sharpshooting skills. She is extremely loyal to Takasugi to the point where it appears she has a crush on him. She is quick-tempered, easily agitated, and prone to screeching when upset.
Unfortunate Names: As Kagura is quick to point out, Mata is slang for crotch.
Takechi Henpeita.
The strategist of the Kiheitai and mainly a background character.Notable for his strange fetishes and his usually brilliant assessment of situations. He can fight but his abilities are lesser than most big players of the Kiheitai.
Glass Cannon: Can fight but has little resilience.
An advisor to the Shinsengumi who serves as the main antagonist of the "Shinsengumi Discord" arc. Initially introduced as a ruthless, power-hungry tactician, he is revealed to be a traitor, secretly allied with Shinsuke TakasugiHe considers himself a rival to Toshiro Hijikata and manages to get him suspended from the Shinsengumi, later attempting to assassinate Kondo.
Rewarded as a Traitor Deserves: Threatened with, as Bansai openly states that they have no use for someone with such morals. Itou is saved by the other Shinsengumi though.
The ruler of Yoshiwara and a high official within the Harusame Space Pirates. He is of comparable strength to Umibouzu, the most powerful alien hunter in the universe, one of the few who opposed Housen. He founded the 7th Division of the Harusame, of which Kamui later would become the youngest leader.
Badass: He is so badass even his fellow Yato feared him. He also fought Umibouzu for THREE DAYS the reason they stopped was because Umibouzu had to go to the bathroom.
Kagura's older brother. He is the leader of the space pirates Harusame's 7th squad. He left his family after challenging his father and cutting off his left arm. Although he is almost always smiling cheerfully, he is in fact a violent fighter who lusts for blood, like the majority of the Yato clan.
A popular Idol Singer Otsu, who's sung multiple hit singles with surprisingly foul lyrics ("Where the hell is your mother from?"). When she started her singing career on the streets, Shinpachi was the first to cheer her on, and he's continued doing so as the leader of her fan club ever since.
A reporter and weather forecaster for Oedo News, well-known and loved for her cheerful disposition. It isn't elaborated until later, but she uses fortune telling in both her weather and horoscope predictions, which are always very accurate. It's mentioned in the series that she gets married, and that she later gets divorced. The latter is the focus of one arc. Gintoki has a crush on her.Her real name is Crystal.
The swordmaster who taught Gintoki, Katsura and Takasugi everything they know. He was unjustly accused of trying to raise an army and executed by the government, in return for saving his students' lives.
The Obi-Wan: Considering how Shouyou-sensei taught Gintoki, Katsura, and Takasugi everything they know about the path of bushido and the amount of respect those three still have for him in return, Shouyou-sensei definitely qualifies despite appearing only in brief flashbacks.
Also known as the Great General, he is the ruling Shogun of Edo in the Gintama world. He is a close-friend of Matsudaira.
Butt Monkey: It's amazing how a man who could order to execute any person he wish can achieve such big levels of humiliation and pain in just a few seconds/a few panels after his appearence. It's a record even for Gintama standards!
Beware the Quiet Ones: Wielding lots of political and military power? Check. As if that's not obvious enough, in avalanche arc, even though he was still constantly abused (and ended up naked, again), you got to respect a guy who was able to survive frigid cold (naked), have his (naked) testicles bloodied thanks to having Gin using him as a speeding (naked) snowboard, able to find a shelter (naked), facing a bear with his bare (naked) hands and win, turn it into a winter clothes, and ended up rescuing Kondo (semi-naked) and the rest of the casts.
Voiced by: Kouichi Sakaguchi (JP), Andrew Love (EN, movie)
An Amanto prince that regularly visits Edo. He likes collecting unique and dangerous animal/alien species and when there is a Monster of the Week episode, he's usually the one at fault.He really has little idea of how repulsive the rest of the characters find him.
Authority In Name Only: We haven't actually seen his planet. Or see him do anything other than be an idiot.
The strategist of the Kiheitai and mainly a background character.Notable for his strange fetishes and his usually brilliant assessment of situations. He can fight but his abilities are lesser than most big players of the Kiheitai.
