The hugely popular manga "Gintama". The anime has been broadcast for a long time, and the live-action movie was also quite popular. A new movie version will be released in 2021, so fans are probably excited. Gintama features a variety of unique characters. One of the characters with a lot of mystery is "Takasugi Shinsuke". Takasugi is a very popular character, but why is he so popular, and what kind of character is he? In this article, we will introduce in detail one of the characters in Gintama, "Takasugi Shinsuke".
Who is Takasugi Shinsuke?
Takasugi Shinsuke is the leader of the Kiheitai. He is an extremist in the Joi movement, and is said to be "the most dangerous man among the Joi patriots." He wears a bandage over his left eye, wears a woman's kimono, and always carries a cigarette (kiseru). He always has a grin on his face, and his mysterious aura makes him an attractive character. He was originally a comrade in the Joi War with Gintoki and Katsura, but after losing their mentor Shoyo, who taught them swordsmanship, he feels resentment towards this world and wants to destroy it all. His sword skills are quite good, and as they fought alongside him, he is comparable to Katsura and Gintoki.
How did you grow up?
Takasugi Shinsuke was born as the eldest son of a low-ranking samurai. He graduated from the prestigious private school Kobukan (same as Katsura), but due to conflicts with the students, he was not getting along with his father either. That was how he spent his childhood, but one day, when he met Gintoki and Shoyo who intervened in a fight, his life changed completely. He left Kobukan with Katsura and entered Shoyo's school, Shoka Sonjuku. Shoyo was later captured by the shogunate, and in order to save him, he joined the Joi War. However, he was defeated, and Shoyo was beheaded and executed. After the war, they each went their separate ways, and Takasugi revived the Kiheitai with Takechi, Matako, Bansai and others, becoming an extremist in the Joi War.
What happened to Takasugi Shinsuke in the Benizakura Arc?
The first long story in the story of "Gintama" where Takasugi is mentioned in detail is the famous "Benizakura Arc". This episode has been made into a movie in both anime and live action, and is quite popular among the long stories of "Gintama", so many people may have seen it. This is the first time that Gintoki and Katsura confront the Kiheitai. At this time, Takasugi was trying to carry out a terrorist act using "Benizakura", but Gintoki and Katsura stopped him. Moreover, it was revealed that Takasugi was secretly working with the space pirate Harusame. As a result, he was parted ways with not only Gintoki but also Katsura. Besides this, Takasugi planned the annihilation of the Shinsengumi in the Shinsengumi Rebellion arc and read Ito's feelings. Takasugi is good at reading people's feelings, and from the early to middle stages of the series, he appeared as a villain.
What about Takasugi Shinsuke in the Shogun Assassination Arc?
Takasugi is often a key person in long stories, but in the Shogun Assassination Arc, he teamed up with Kamui and participated in the Shogun's assassination plan. After attacking the group heading to Kyoto and receiving the news that the Shogun has been assassinated, he fights Gintoki, but is seriously injured by Oboro who suddenly appears. However, he suddenly attacked Oboro's left eye and left Iga with Kamui. The wound was so deep that Takasugi was in a coma. During this time, the Kiheitai was in danger of being annihilated.
Waking Up
After this, he hid in Rakuyo, but was attacked by Harusame and escaped. While fleeing, he was attacked by Harusame and his foothold collapsed, causing him to fall, but was saved by Kamui and woke up. After saving Bansai, Takasugi returned to the battle and fought alongside his former comrades from the Joui War, such as Gintoki, Katsura, and Sakamoto, and overwhelmed Harusame and Naraku's gang. Here, Takasugi learned the truth about Shoyo and the true identity of Hollow, but he clearly stated that his intention to destroy the world had not changed. After that, he entrusted Gintoki to Shinpachi and Kagura and saw them off, and after fighting and defeating Oboro, he took his body back to the Shoka Sonjuku.
What about Takasugi Shinsuke's left eye?
Takasugi Shinsuke has his left eye covered with bandages. This is a remnant of his experience during the Joui War. When he was captured by Naraku along with Katsura, Gintoki was the only one who was forced to hold a sword. There, he was forced to make the ultimate choice of whether to kill his comrades or his teacher. Gintoki made a very difficult decision here, but he cut off Shoyo's head. However, Takasugi had once entrusted Gintoki with the words, "When I die first, I'll leave my teacher (Shoyo) to you." So Takasugi jumped on Gintoki, but his left eye was crushed by Oboro. The last thing Takasugi saw in his left eye was Gintoki shedding tears.
What is the relationship between Yakult and Takasugi Shinsuke?
Takasugi's favorite food (drink) is "Yakult (called "Yakult" in the story). It's a bit surprising. Takasugi has always appeared only in serious scenes in the story, but this is the first time he appears in a comedy part. In the 271st lesson, "It's hard to get into a class reunion if you're late," which became a hot topic due to its mixture of various parodies, a class reunion was held during the Joui era. It was said that the person who held the class reunion was the person in question, but Gintoki, Katsura, and Sakamoto struggled to remember the phantom fifth member of the "miracle generation" who was active during the Joui era. This part is a complete parody of "Kuroko's Basketball."
Takasugi's Appearance
It was also revealed that Takasugi and "Kurokono," the phantom fifth member, were best friends. And finally, Takasugi also appears at the reunion! Or so I thought, but it was Takechi Henpeita dressed as Takasugi. However, Takasugi asked him to deliver a message. For some reason, Takasugi had an unusual love for Yakulco at this time, and he prepared a large amount of Yakulco for the Kiheitai's New Year's party and asked them to secure some Yakulco for himself while he was away. This was the first time that Takasugi, who had always been serious, turned to the funny side, which became a hot topic among fans.
Takasugi is not funny, but...
Even if there is a serious scene, most "Gintama" characters have a comedy element somewhere or turn to the funny side, but before Yakulco, Takasugi had never been depicted in such a way. Therefore, the author even recognized him as a difficult character to handle. However, in the anime, Prince Hata dubbed Takasugi's serious scenes without permission, and Takechi cosplayed as Takasugi before Yakulco, so he has been treated as a comedy by other characters. Shinpachi was also flustered by Prince Hata's lame dubbing, saying, "You'll be killed by Takasugi fans!" The seriousness of the character made the jokes stand out and made the story very funny, which became a hot topic among fans.
Very popular with readers! Takasugi Shinsuke has many fans
Takasugi Shinsuke's appearances increased significantly towards the end of the series, but he didn't appear much in the early to middle stages of the series. However, he was very popular with readers, and he maintained a fairly high ranking, ranking 4th in the first, second, and fourth popularity polls, and 5th in the third poll. Although Hasegawa (Madao) once said, "This guy just wears bandages and doesn't do anything," his appearances increased dramatically before the final character popularity poll, and he rose to third place as a new side of himself was revealed.
【Gintama】Summary of introductions about Takasugi Shinsuke!
That's all for the summary of Takasugi Shinsuke from "Gintama." What did you think? Takasugi is a very popular character in "Gintama," but as the story progresses, new mysteries are revealed and we see that he is a character who becomes deeper and deeper. At first, he appears as an enemy character, but the process of him gradually becoming an ally is also good. Also, in the reunion episode, we get to see a different side of him than usual, which is very refreshing. Takasugi should also appear in the 2021 anime movie, so I'm really looking forward to seeing what new side of him we'll get to see!
