Gintama Episode 216

The moral of the day

And Gintama's random brand of slapstick comedy is back! This episode is split into three sections, all leading up to a device called the "Patriot". Kagura has invited some of her friends over for a "factory tour" of Odd Jobs Gin. The tour doesn't go so well and one of the kids, Daigoro (who many may recognize as the kid that did a "plant study" on Hasegawa some episodes ago), immediately reveals what the Odd Jobs actually do for a living.
For some reason, several other adults are having a difficult time explaining their jobs to a group of kids that same day. At the end of their rope, they all turn to the Patriot for help as a last ditch effort. Each of the adults are then made a fool out of (even Tsukuyo) and proceed to sulk in their own little corner of woe as a result. I was pretty upset that Sougo still wasn't in this (since usually, if Kondou and especially Hijikata are around, Sougo is usually bound to appear), but that's probably because he's one of the few characters in this show that can't be made into a butt monkey (he probably would've shot the kids with his bazooka instead explaining his job with a patriot). Lack of Sougo aside, that whole segment was still pretty dang funny. Especially the part with Hasegawa and Kondou. Just...I can't even explain that scene with words.

Yep, pretty much.

Kids, this is why it's not good to stalk people. On another note, I love that Otae is smiling throughout all this.

I kind of want a Patriot now.

What is this? I don't even...

The adults are all depressed now and Kagura and Shinpachi hatch up a plan to remedy the situation. They decide to make their own "Patriot Factory" and invite a bunch of kids to witness the history of the Patriot. Before they can enter though, the kids are scarred for life by witnessing four consecutive deaths before their eyes. Acting as if nothing happened, Kagura and Shinpachi lead the kids inside and hilarity ensues. Then comes some overly long gag retelling the events that led to the invention of the Patriot. Moral of the story? Don't give up on your dreams! Toilet paper and tissues can get along! With the Patriot!

It would be easier to list all of the stuff Gintama didn't rip-off.

Scarred for life.

I'm guessing that this is supposed to be a spoof of KFC.

 This episode was just filled with lulz. It was nice to have a breather from all those action-packed episodes and return to Gintama's usual comedic pace. The fact that the entire history of the Patriot was told on a conveyor belt starring an unconscious and blood-stained Gin was also pretty hilarious on its own. Seriously, where does Sorachi-sensei get his material? That monkey is a genius! It was also a nice change for the kids to act as the straight man in the second half of the episode instead of Shinpachi. Aside from the Valentine's Day episode, Tsukuyo acting all goofy and not her usual serious self was also pretty amusing.

This show...don't question things.

I couldn't NOT cap this.

This was an overall hysterical episode which, much like many past Gintama episodes, made me lol periodically. And that is a huge accomplishment in itself since there aren't that many gag anime that can manage to make me laugh so much consistently. Heck, I've even laughed so hard I cried in some episodes. Judging by the next episode's preview, we're still a ways from the next serious arc. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for more Sougo!
This episode gets:

1/2