Gintama doesn't need a plot to work, it just needs Gintoki broke and confused while everything around him descends into absurdity. A flower-viewing spot becomes the excuse for rock-paper-scissors violence that escalates the way only Gintama can escalate things, where the joke isn't the setup but what the show commits to afterward. This special proved the manga's chaos could actually translate to animation, that you could take a comedy chapter nobody expected to matter and make it the thing that convinced everyone the whole series was worth adapting.

Gintoki and his broke companions Shinpachi and Kagura head out to enjoy the cherry blossoms in spring, only to find themselves in a ridiculous turf war. The Shinsengumi show up and insist that Gintoki has taken the spot they meant to use for flower viewing. Neither side will back down, and the argument quickly spirals into a frantic showdown settled by a brutal, over-the-top take on rock paper scissors. Meanwhile, Kotarou Katsura, leader of the Anti-Foreigner Faction, wants to restore the pride of the samurai, who have lost their swords and status since the alien Amanto arrived. He plans to strike at the Shinsengumi with a giant mecha. The special is a collection of short comic stories that mixes action, comedy and sci-fi.