Fear The Neo Armstrong Cyclone Jet Armstrong Cannon – Gintama Mid-Season Review

While I realize that I did a post on this wonderful little show only a mere two episodes ago, the events of the last two have really kicked things into gear. Any concerns I had about the show holding back or falling short have as of now been alleviated. Gintama still maintains that beautiful balance of humor, action, and touching moments. As things appear to be darkening for those of the Kabuki District, we see the interactions of the defenders of Earth and the Liberation Army from both their location in space as well as on the ground in Edo itself.

We left off with the return of our favorite boys in blue black, the Shinsengumi returning to Edo to police the city as the end draws near. While they seem to have not improved all too much, we find a not so subtle reminder that not only is Japan the land of the samurai, but also of the ninja. Through the use of Flame Haze, which ignites gun powder and prevents the use of firearms, as they will then discharge automatically and explode, the Oniwaban helped protect our favorite idiot cops from aerial annihilation. When the Liberation Army opts to instead use long range artillery to burn away the haze, it is the machines of Edo who rise to the occasion and save half the world. The Gintoki android replacement Kintoki and our favorite Dragon Quest loving android Tama, along with all of the robots of Gengai, move to arm the ultimate weapon. I am of course referring to the dick joke from over a decade and almost 300 episodes ago, THE NEO ARMSTRONG CYCLONE JET ARMSTRONG CANNON!

Dick jokes aside, this cannon does serve to defeat the Liberation Army’s battleships in one fell swoop, albeit at a great cost. The Neo Armstrong Cyclone Jet Armstrong Gengai Cannon is different from the Neo Armstrong Cyclone Jet Armstrong Cannon originally used to open up Edo to Amanto occupation. This one releases a series of nanobots that shut down all technology, including Gengai’s robots, Kintoki, and Tama. Having come to understand that only they could power this and give the beleaguered defenders of Edo a chance, they gave their all and more, sacrificing their lives to the ones they’ve lived with all these years.

After this valiant sacrifice, the initial forces of the Liberation Army was slaughtered when deprived of their technological advantage and forced into close quarter combat. Needless to say, the people of Edo were not happy. The Liberation Army however does still maintain a numerical advantage and through guerilla tactics and splitting the massive forces of the enemy, the Shinsengumi and Oniwaban brought the fight to the Liberation Army. However, all parties involved were fully aware that without further intervention, the Liberation Army would be victorious. This brings us back to our negotiators, the Shogun and Sakamoto, who put on a tough act knowing full well that they couldn’t keep it up for long. Cut to the cast being held in the brig along with Admiral Shijaku and impress upon him their prior planning and splitting of their forces for just such an occasion. Now we are brought to Zura, who while leading the secondary force, find themselves caught by the escaping ship of Prince Baka, who had absconded from Earth with a myriad of animals to save them from extinction. Of course, as his pets. Among those, are several breeds of dogs, including Underdog Hasegawa, and a hidden breed, known as the Joi Rebels. We then find ourselves at a cliffhanger wondering what will come next. The loss of Tama and even Kintoki came as surprisingly heavy hits, but with the greater potential for even more long time and meaningful characters to die, we have to be on our toes for what the creators of Gintama may consider as a proper sending off. So again, I’m psyched for how the show seems to be going and am very optimistic it will come to an end that will satisfy all fans, long term and recent. Let me know what you think and if you have any further desire to read more about Gintama but not necessarily watch/read it, check out some of my other articles and other articles we’ve got here on Black and Yellow Otaku Gamers.