This is the magic of gintama. Very occasionally, it can feel like its dragging in the long stretches of comedy episodes, but its always worth it because the more time you spend with the characters and world, the harder the serious stuff will hit. Also funny that you brought up Monster because I've also always felt like the two series explore a few of the same themes. Though the big-picture ideas of gintama wont become clear for quite a while still. But suffice it to say, identity and the way people respond to trauma and are shaped by it is a big deal in both monster and gintama. Loving the content as always