Gender: Male
Birthday: October 10
Age: 20s
Height: 177 cm (5'8")
Weight: 65kg (143 lbs)
Dominant Hand: Right
Species: Human
Occupation: Yorozuya (Odd Jobs)
Seiyuu: SUGITA TOMOKAZU (杉田智和)
Sakata Gintoki is the dead-fish-eyed, naturally permed, borderline diabetic protagonist of Sorachi Hideaki's manga, Gintama. He's lazy, has problems controlling his sugar intake and refuses to miss a single issue of his Weekly Shounen Jump. Unlike Goku whose power level is OVER 9,000 or Luffy whose arms can stretch around the globe five or six times, Gintoki's iconic bokuto (wooden sword) is something he purchases through a TV shopping program whenever it breaks. He freeloads off of an old woman named Otose, lives on the second floor of her snack shop and pretty much never pays his rent. I know that this profile is painting the perfect hero of a Shounen Jump manga for you. As a matter of fact, if you're wondering at this point why this is even a character worth shrining, don't worry--I still wonder about that.
But there's more to Gin-san than meets the eye. A veteran of the Joui War, Gintoki originally fought against the Amanto, then known as the fearsome Shiroyasha, a "white demon" whose skills in sword fighting and combat went unrivaled. The samurai ultimately fell in battle and were deemed useless by laws later enforced by these alien invaders, who overtook the Bakufu. Choosing not to continue taking part in a useless rebel cause, Gintoki continues his life after war as a freelancer--living by his own code and doing odd jobs for people around town. Despite all of the flaws listed above and his feigned cowardice, Gintoki's got a surprisingly big heart and will do pretty much any job for any price (usually free, and much to his dismay). When he's not picking his nose over a copy of Jump, Gintoki willingly helps anyone from comrades to complete strangers who are unable to fight for themselves--or maybe just need some cockroaches exterminated.
What kind of soul does this man have? It's really hard to tell, but...I can definitely tell it's shining. I think I'll stand by his side and keep watching it.
--SHIMURA SHINPACHI, CHAPTER 1
Though Gintoki puts up with well-deserved verbal (and physical) abuse on how much of an unmotivated and lazy slob he is, there's also something deep within his character that draws people to him--which is the reason why both Shinpachi and Kagura willingly join him in his mission to help helpless citizens around town and hopefully make a few bucks out of it as well. I think part of the reason these characters (and so many of his fans) admire Gintoki is because despite the fact that he is such a loser, there are times where his true intentions come out and he manages to be the iconic Jump hero we all know and recognize. Though there are things of the past which he's failed to protect, he lives "in the now" and by his own set of rules, not anyone else's. Working at the Yorozuya, Gintoki is willing to help the most helpless of people even if he believes them to be the scum of the earth. The price on that job may be anything from a wad of cash to a chocolate parfait, but more often than not it seems that Gintoki is contented with knowing that he could protect something important to his customer.
