is a Japanese anime television series based on Hideaki Sorachi's manga series Gintama. Produced by Sunrise, the series aired for 201 episodes on TV Tokyo and its affiliates from April 4, 2006, to March 25, 2010. A second 64-episode series, titled Gintama, aired from April 4, 2011, to March 28, 2013. A third 51-episode series, produced by Bandai Namco Pictures, titled Gintamað, aired from April 8, 2015, to March 30, 2016, and a final 51-episode series, titled Gintama., aired from October 9, 2017, to October 8, 2018. Three films have been released: ' (2010), ' (2013), and ' (2021); the last one continues and concludes the events of the television series.
The first 201 anime television series aired on TV Tokyo from April 4, 2006, to March 25, 2010. The first 99 episodes were initially directed by Shinji Takamatsu. Episodes 100 to 105 were directed by Takamatsu and Yoichi Fujita, while the following episodes were directed solely by Fujita.
Aniplex released the series in DVD format. Episodes 1âÂÂ49 were collected in twelve DVDs, released from July 26, 2006, to June 26, 2007. Episodes 50âÂÂ99 were collected in thirteen DVDs, released from July 25, 2007, to July 23, 2008. Episodes 100âÂÂ150 were collected in thirteen DVDs, released from August 27, 2008, to August 26, 2009. Episodes 151âÂÂ201 were collected in thirteen DVDs, released from October 28, 2009, to October 27, 2010.
In November 2008, an agreement was reached between TV Tokyo and the streaming video service Crunchyroll for the latter to stream English-subtitled episodes for free one week after they had aired in Japan; paid subscribers could watch new episodes an hour after they aired in Japan. On January 8, 2009, Crunchyroll uploaded their first episode (episode 129) to the service. Alongside new episodes each week, Crunchyroll also uploaded episodes from the beginning of the series. It was licensed in North America by Sentai Filmworks, with distribution from Section23 Films. The first collection containing thirteen English-subtitled episodes was released on DVD, April 27, 2010. Only 49 episodes were released before the releases stalled. However, shortly after licensing the Gintama film, Sentai Filmworks announced that based on the film's performance, they would consider releasing more of the series in North America, possibly with an English dub. An English subtitled version of the series began airing in the United States on Shorts HD on July 12, 2015. On July 1, 2016, Crunchyroll announced that they would re-release the series on Blu-ray and DVD with an English dub. Hulu began streaming an English dub for the first season on December 1, 2019; an English dub for the second and third season were released in October 2025. In Southeast Asia, the series premiered on Animax Asia on August 26, 2022.
On April 5, 2010, TV Tokyo stations began airing high-definition reruns of older Gintama episodes, under the title . In addition to being broadcast in HD, new opening and ending themes were made. The opening and ending themes for episodes 1âÂÂ9 are and , respectively, both performed Does. From episodes 10âÂÂ26, the opening theme is by Joe Inoue and the ending theme is "Wave" by Vijandeux. From episode 27âÂÂ39, the opening theme is by Chiaki Kuriyama and the ending is "In My Life" by Azu. From episodes 40âÂÂ51, the opening is by Flip and the ending is by Piko.
In March 2010, Fujita hinted that the anime would continue once the staff had enough material to adapt. Shinji Takamatsu said that the TV series "is absolutely not over. It hasn't even begun yet! It will definitely return." In December 2010, Shueisha stated that the Gintama anime would resume in April 2011. , the sequel to the original Gintama anime, aired for 51 episodes (episodes 202âÂÂ252 of the overall series) on TV Tokyo from April 4, 2011, to March 26, 2012. The main staff from the first series returned, with Fujita again serving as director. The episode released on September 26, 2011, features a crossover with the Sket Dance series. Aniplex collected the episodes in thirteen DVDs, released from July 27, 2011, to July 25, 2012.
A second part, , aired for 13 episodes (episodes 253âÂÂ265 of the overall series) on TV Tokyo from October 4, 2012, to March 28, 2013. The main staff once again returned, with Fujita as director. Aniplex collected the episodes in four DVDs, released from December 19, 2012, to May 22, 2013.
The series was streamed by Crunchyroll.
On December 21, 2014, during Jump Festa's super stage event, it was announced that a new Gintama series was being produced. Titled and animated by Bandai Namco Pictures, the 51 episodes (episodes 266âÂÂ316 of the overall series) aired on TV Tokyo and its affiliates from April 8, 2015, to March 30, 2016. Aniplex collected the episodes in thirteen DVD and Blu-ray Disc sets, released from July 22, 2015, to July 27, 2016.
Crunchyroll began streaming an English dub of the first 12 episodes of the series on February 1, 2017. 12 additional episodes were released weekly.
A fourth Gintama series was announced in September 2016. Titled , it aired for 12 episodes (episodes 317âÂÂ328 of the overall series) from January 9 to March 27, 2017, on TV Tokyo and its affiliates. The staff from the Gintamað anime series returned to reprise their roles. Aniplex collected the episodes in four DVD and Blu-ray Disc sets, released from April 26 to July 26, 2017.
A second cours, adapting the skipped comedic arcs taking place before the events of the Shogun Assassination arc, titled , aired for 13 episodes (episodes 329âÂÂ341 of the overall series) from October 2 to December 25, 2017. Aniplex collected the episodes in five DVD and Blu-ray Disc sets, released from January 24 to May 30, 2018.
The final story arc of the manga was adapted into a 26-episode twin-cours, titled , with its first 12 episodes (episodes 342âÂÂ353 of the overall series) aired from January 8 to March 26, 2018. The second 14-episode part (episodes 354âÂÂ367 of the overall series) aired from July 9 to October 8, 2018. Aniplex collected its episodes in nine DVD and Blu-ray Disc sets, released from June 27, 2018, to February 27, 2019.
Crunchyroll streamed the series.
', known in Japan as , a retelling of the Benizakura arc of the manga, premiered in Japan on April 4, 2010.
A second film , with a script written by Sorachi, premiered in Japan on July 6, 2013.
A third film, ', known in Japan as , premiered on January 8, 2021. It adapts the finale of the original manga, combined with new story elements. It was preceded by an anime special , tied into the film, which premiered on January 15, 2021, on the dTV online service, with the second episode released on January 20.
A fourth film, , reanimating the Yoshiwara in Flames story arc (episodes 139âÂÂ146), premiered on February 13, 2026.
Three compilation films, featuring scenes not included during the television broadcast, were released in 2023 and 2024 as part of the "Gintama 20th Anniversary Project", with a limited three-week screening in Japan. The first film, titled , premiered on November 10, 2023. It encompasses episodes 244âÂÂ247 of the anime series (Gintama). The second film, , premiered on June 21, 2024. It encompasses episodes 257âÂÂ261 of the anime series (Gintama': Enchà Âsen). The third film, , premiered on November 22, 2024. It encompasses episodes 253âÂÂ256 of the anime series (Gintama': Enchà Âsen).
The 65th and 66th volumes of the manga were bundled with an original animation DVD (OAD) each; the volumes were released on August 4 and November 4, 2016, respectively. Both OADs adapt the manga's Love Potion story arc.
Gintama has been featured several times in the Japanese TV ranking, with the first two episodes having a rating of 5.6. DVD sales of the series have also been featured in the Japanese anime DVD ranking various times, while the third DVD of season 3 ranked ninth in the Japanese Amazon.com Top Ten list of best sellers DVDs of 2008. In August 2008, TV Tokyo announced that Gintama and Naruto "contributed to robust sales of overseas rights in the last fiscal year which ended in March." In a poll from Puff, Gintama won in the "Best Animation" category. The DVD of the Gintama OVAs became the top-selling OVA in Japan in 2009, having sold 61,226 units two weeks after release. In the Oricon survey "2009's Top-Selling DVDs in Japan", the same DVD topped the "Animation/Special Effects DVDs" category with a total of 76,000 units sold. The CD soundtrack Gintama The Best received the "Animation Album of the Year" award from the Kinema Junpo's DVD Navigator Japanese magazine.
Gintama has received both positive and mixed responses. Although the humor was noted to have improved after the series' introduction, some jokes were difficult for reviewers to understand due to their roots in Japanese culture and references to other series. The notes on the DVD releases were criticized for lacking explanations of cultural jokes. Additionally, critics stated that the quality of the humor is inconsistent across the first episodes, with some scenes being so deep that some viewers may abandon the series. The quality of the series was found to improve as the series continued, as viewers would not be intimidated by its large number of episodes. The characters were praised due to their knowledge that their tendencies "break the fourth wall", while the female characters were found appealing based on their unusual qualities. The series has been noted for its ability to shift between comedy and drama without a loss of quality.
Episode 232 of the anime series featured a negative portrayal of a character parodying a particular politician: the then Minister for Government Revitalisation, Renhà  Murata. This resulted in the rerun of the episode being cancelled on AT-X. Series supervisor Shinji Takamatsu explained that TV Tokyo canceled the rerun on its own. Renhà Â's representative denied having objected to the episode, although a report from the newspaper Mainichi Shimbun stated the affected party contacted TV Tokyo. When the story arc the episode belonged to was completed, Takamatsu expressed doubts concerning the arc's release in DVD format.