I’ve been contemplating writing a review for the Boruto manga for a few days now. Simply because I feel discouraged that it won’t really have an effect on anyone - it seems like the majority of users on MAL are fine with judging the series based on the first 10 chapters - which was the movie recap. It totally isn’t. Imagine judging One Piece or Bleach purely on their first 10 chapters. Unfortunately the harsh scoring system won’t change anytime soon - So I hope it wouldn’t discourage new readers. If you’re interested please continue to read further and I hope I convince you to
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give Boruto a go.
I consider myself a Boruto fan - my review for the anime is first on MAL - I’m quite happy to see such a positive reaction to it.
There are several unfortunate things the Boruto manga has going for it - most of it is beyond its control. Yes it’s monthly. Yes it started with a recap of the movie. Yes the art in the beginning was awful - but above all of that - it’s the unfair comparison to Naruto.
This isn't another Naruto, fans should stop comparing. Boruto: Naruto Next Generations is a great, and, different spinoff. It’s simply an addition to the Naruto universe. If you’re one of those who don’t want to see Naruto’s story continue - especially with a new generation - it’s fine. Just don’t hate on it unnecessarily just to fit in. Boruto is meant to be different - but it doesn’t mean it’s bad. It’s actually darn good once you move past the first 10 chapters - especially the last 8 have been absolute high quality.
In terms of storyline - once you get past the movie arc - It genuinely gets intense and fascinating to see each chapter unfold. This is the story of Boruto and his journey. It’s not like the typical journey we’ve seen in Naruto - simply because the series starts with Boruto having everything and knowing only of peace - but little by little - things will slip away from him - as shown in the future scene at the very beginning of chapter one. We’re already seeing hints being dropped as to why he’ll end up going rogue.
You have new and original concepts introduced to the Shinobi world, specifically, technology and new incredible abilities. The future of Boruto is bright. I can’t wait to see them explored. As a die hard Naruto fan, this takes me back to Naruto Part 1.
As for technology- It’s genius really. Just look at how much our world has changed in the last 10 years. I’m loving the idea of new concepts being added to the Naruto Universe - and they totally make sense. Please don’t judge it from the movie. It’s totally different and a breathe of fresh air. Keep an open mind.
One of the biggest drawbacks is what I call the “Umbrella” of Naruto and Sasuke - two historic characters who are on levels well and truly above everyone else. How can the series have any consequences if those two are around? Well, without revealing any spoilers, rest assured! I’ll address this in more depth in the “Character” section below.
Kodachi has added to the Naruto universe brilliantly. It doesn’t feel like a rehash but it feels new and exciting. Something I haven’t been able to say since the Pain arc. There’s so much going on. It’s incredible.
Now onto artwork - as stated above -Don’t expect a similar style of art to Kishimoto’s. It’s not meant to be that way. Ikemoto has improved greatly from the beginning of the series. It’s different but beautiful! I recommend you check out some of the latest cover pages.
It does start off iffy but major appreciation to Ikemoto for improving at a fast rate. Hopefully he can keep it up for the manga to become weekly.
Here we go - Characters - if you look on paper you’d think most of the new generation are carbon copies of the previous ones. a few are, a few aren’t. Main trio is a different case. Boruto is such a unique character to the usual Shounen protagonists - he doesn’t follow the usual ‘I’m gonna be the best at this!” mentality. He’s someone who starts off with everything. He has no troubles to begin with - aside from proving himself to his Dad - and don't let that fool you thinking he lacks resolve - he has that but yet to find it. All that will change in due time as indicated very early on the series. He’ll come to meet a crossroad: to either become a ninja hero like his father or a rogue hero like his idol Sasuke. The latter is more likely if the opening scene is something to go by. Isn't that intriguing though? Don't you, as a reader, want to know how it all ended up that way? It's truly breathtaking stuff.
The manga as a whole is the journey of how that will unfold and the implications it’ll have on the supporting cast and the Naruto Universe.
We also have Sarada - a female Uchiha aspiring to be Hokage - imagine that - an Uchiha Hokage. Incredible. She’s determined, skilled, and thoughtful.
Onto Mitsuki - the son of Orochimaru. Mitsuki is the definition of mysterious. We don’t quite know his intentions or motivations. The connection to his Father is also troubling. He’s also ridiculously powerful. Of course you then have the “supporting” main cast but I won’t get too much into them.
Remember these are kids of the greatest generation of Shinobi - Heroes of the 4th Ninja War. Of course they'd be powerful early on - It's pure genetics!
Remember earlier I wrote about the umbrella that is Naruto and Sasuke - well rest assured. We’ve already had new characters introduced who are scary powerful and with abilities we haven’t seen before. It’s clear that they upped the ante setting up more complex challenges for the main cast and the older generation. Without getting into any spoilers there’s a certain new dodgy characters that have their own plans - which makes things fascinating to read. Even their designs is amazing to behold. Fun fact, it is based on the Spanish Inquisition from the 15th century.
Kawaki. It seems rash to talk about someone who’s never appeared aside from one iconic scene at the very beginning- but that is also the reason why. His name is already synonymous worldwide just for that. So his character is intriguing. Who is he? Friend or foe? What happens that’ll lead to “that” scene? His design is so unorthodox even in the Naruto Universe. Props to Kishimoto, Kodachi, and Ikemoto for being even more original - Something that’s unbelievably difficult considering how the Universe has been on-going for 20 years. I can't wait to see more of him in the future.
With Boruto you have to look passed the surface and focus on the subliminal moments. As I said in both my review for the anime and manga.
In terms of enjoyment - I love Boruto and the community surrounding it online. I enjoy reading the manga on a monthly basis discussing theories and upcoming chapters. It is consistently great. Once you get around Chapter 15 and above It is a rollercoaster of a ride.
Overall, I stress patience. It needs time to create it’s own success - but it’s surely heading there. Great and rising sales in Japan are proof of that. I hope it can become weekly soon but I’m glad nonetheless that it exists. It had definitely added to the Naruto Universe - Kishimoto would be proud.
Alternative TitlesSynonyms: Naruto Gaiden: Michita Tsuki ga Terasu Michi, Naruto: The Path Lit by the Full Moon Japanese: BORUTO-ボルト- -NARUTO NEXT GENERATIONS- More titlesInformationType: Manga
Volumes: 20
Chapters: 81
Status: Finished
Published: May 9, 2016 to Apr 21, 2023
Theme:
Martial Arts
Demographic:
Shounen
Serialization:
V-Jump Statistics Ranked: #125822 2 based on the top manga page. Please note that 'R18+' titles are excluded. Popularity: #106
Members: 127,528
Favorites: 3,573 Available AtResources | Reviews
Filtered Results: 24 / 59
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Your Feelings Categories May 15, 2018
I’ve been contemplating writing a review for the Boruto manga for a few days now. Simply because I feel discouraged that it won’t really have an effect on anyone - it seems like the majority of users on MAL are fine with judging the series based on the first 10 chapters - which was the movie recap. It totally isn’t. Imagine judging One Piece or Bleach purely on their first 10 chapters. Unfortunately the harsh scoring system won’t change anytime soon - So I hope it wouldn’t discourage new readers. If you’re interested please continue to read further and I hope I convince you to
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Sep 8, 2016
Okay, I will update this when the story gets into NEW content, whenever that will be. For now, however, I will simply give it a 5/6, because it's nothing but a recap of Boruto: Naruto the Movie, currently.
NEW REVIEW DETAILS BELOW (SPOILERS FOR AFTER THE CHUNIN EXAMS): So, the series has come a long way since the start. The art is better, the story is great, and fans wait each month for it. THE STORY: The story now focuses on Ninja Tech, with the villains utilizing it in various ways. While this may sound blasphemous to the original Naruto, that is the point. It has basically become ... Sep 29, 2023
I don't have much to say, just that I'm a HUGE fan of Boruto...
There's something about the Naruto and Boruto universe that completely captivates me, so any new content they deliver, I'm going to love! I can admit that it does have its issues, and technically speaking, it's not as fantastic as Naruto. But I can say for sure that out of all the manga I currently follow, Boruto is the ONLY one that gets me hyped up like crazy (counting the days until the next chapter). I believe Boruto gets a lot of unnecessary hate, and a big part of the blame lies with Twitter (or ... May 30, 2021
When I see most of the negative reviews are from 2 or 3 years ago I just wanna burst out laughing because whatever bad opinion you had about the manga at the time is sure to be wiped by now if you kept on reading.
I also notice that most of the bad reviews come from people who only read half the manga and dropped it, funny isn't it ? Anyways, I got nothing to add, most people hating the manga are just anime haters salty because it's not as dark as Naruto was, which is intended because the finality of Naruto was LITERALLY the end of ... Jun 13, 2020
This series gets too much hate in my opinion. Anime yeh i can understand but the reviews for the manga are awfully harsh. The manga is actually quite entertaining, the plot is moving, there's climax and good fights. People just blindly hate because of the anime and because it's not as good as Naruto. I have high expectations for the future of this series and will hopefully live up to it's expectations and become as good or hopefully better than Naruto. What I will say this series needs is a training arc, boruto is just quite strong from the get go. He needs a training
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Apr 28, 2021
Outstanding, yes I said it. I don't like writing reviews about unfinished works but I think this one is necessary.
Boruto is amazing, the character designs are amazing, especially the inners of Kara, they give a vibe of an actual villain. the MC design is good and so is the design of the other characters. The plot is unpredictable, good and somehow works unlike the stupid, hollowed and boring storyline of the prequel. They build up a story based on important elements of the original work that were ignored or straight up were a plot hole and mix it with new topics and effects; that's a ... Jan 5, 2021
Boruto manga is good tbh its just people hate it because naruto isnt the mc anymore and the anime is shounen and its dumb to call naruto a shounen show if he's 32 years old already tbh this manga is good the artstyle is improving and it has good plot twist that i didnt expect tbh
idk why people hate it because of the anime being slow and didnt know the manga exist? Also stop comparing naruto to boruto they have different story tho it has its own uniqueness and both are cool 10/10 ... May 24, 2021
Yeah Boruto is easily the Animanga that gets the most hate. Why is it so? It´s because of these naruto fanboys that can´t accept the fact that Naruto,Sasuke and co ain´t the Mc´s anymore. And that Boruto was "annoying" at the begginning. Is the hate deserved? Hell no
Story (8/10): The Story has a very good setup and if it is executed well it can easily surpass the Story of Naruto. Art (9/10): I really like the Art it is not very detailed but the Fights are very good and easy to follow. Overall the Art is very good. Characters: (9/10) The new Characters and the Main Cast ... May 30, 2024
Is this better than Naruto? No. Is this still a good manga? YES
I understand that many people who read this series believed that the characters gained powers too quickly and that the power scaling is insane. This series is supposed to be like that. It is a SEQUEL to Naruto. Read the title of the series. It would not be a story worth telling in a new manga if there was not bigger circumstances, more powerful protagonists and villains. When I am rating this series in my mind, I keep thinking back to DBZ and DBS compared to the original DB series. Was the power scaling ... Dec 7, 2023
SPOILER FREE REVIEW - I could talk a whole lot more if I was to reference anything specific but I want people to experience it properly!
People are quick to jump on the bandwagon with Boruto hate. I get it, their favourite characters aren't what they used to be. However, these same people also forget to mention that this series and the original Naruto are different stories. That being said. This is one of the series you have to come to your own conclusion for. The general fanbase of Naruto are haters for how they 'nerfed' their favourite characters. (quotations because its not nerfing if every ... Sep 26, 2018
For me the boruto manga tries to do something different. We know boruto will lose everything making it aloth more interesting. With the inclusion of kawaki in the recent chapters you get aloth of foreshadowing of the events that will come. Ikemoto's drawings get better every month and he really puts in his own style. He likes to draw big panels which leads to less text and plot. this wouldn't be a problem if the manga was weekly but that's the biggest problem. The manga is monthly making the wait extremely long and with only 40 pages a month and a cliff hanger almost every
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Oct 2, 2020
Boruto is one of the most dissed franchise. Everyone has heard it, and thinks it is bad. But reading the manga put a whole new spin. I believe you should read the manga as it quite good, and contrasts Naruto quite a bit. Unlike the people who blindly hate on it, I think that it has great potential. The main problem is that everyone has watched the anime which has 5 episodes that are cannon, and all other 130 episodes are filler.
Story 8/10 Now the story is quite unique. Unlike Naruto, the story does not focus on Boruto becoming the Hokage, but starting as a ... Aug 8, 2021
The boruto manga is really great! So far it's better then the anime cuz come on it's written by kodachi( from chapter 1 to 52) And know kishimoto is writing thee manga. So ofc it's gonna be great!...... But whenever the anime starts adapting the manga they make some really good changes that makes the anime as well... LIke mitsuki using purple lightning in the manga but changed to snake lighting in the anime( in their battle against ao). Cuz it makes no sense mituski knowing or how to purple lightning then so ya the changes anime makes to the manga is really great.... And
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Mar 5, 2021
Preface
Do not judge this manga based on the first 10 chapters or the anime. It is almost completely differently paced, detailed and explained after the 10 chapters and is separate from the anime. Whilst the anime is beginning to converge into the manga more, it is still different and I believe the anime has done a bad job at hitting what the manga had already hit. The anime is about Boruto and his friends developing through the increasingly harsh ninja world with otherworldy threats and that is the key point, it is about Boruto and his friends developing. The manga however is about how the ... Dec 25, 2020
Naruto spoilers btw
A lot of people have very negative views on Boruto, this can be attributed to the Anime and its shaky start. Unlike the anime there is obviously little filler and begins later on, just before the chuunin exams. in that sense, imagine the first ~50 episodes of Boruto's anime almost fully filler, like the ending ~100 of Naruto. Characters like Denki, the rock dude, and many of the students haven't been introduced in the manga. this is of course, to let the manga progress but since the manga is monthly it is likely that the Boruto anime will be full with filler. Hence, you ... Sep 11, 2024
For a long time I was influenced by the hatred around Boruto and that's why I avoided him as an anime, but after reading Naruto, I thought that I'm quite interested in how bad it is, and surprisingly, it's NOT BAD AT ALL! I have read terrible manga and this one is not one of them. So far, I'm still reading Boruto and I think it's fun, exciting, and offers something new. I recommend reading it to anyone who expects shit from this, because I think they will be surprised.
I look forward to every chapter so far. drawing 8/10 Story 8/10 Apr 3, 2025
I think everyone thinks with their heart too much.
I hear from every Naruto fan that this is the worst thing ever, that its not like Naruto at all, and that this should have never been made. While everyone is entitled to their opinions they are just plain wrong! Boruto's whole point is to not be like Naruto. I personally think that this manga is able to use the Naruto universe to dive into another cool story. While the anime is generally bad and makes it harder to like the character's, the manga is straight to the point and shows a lot of cool fights and ... May 10, 2022
Listen, The anime is terrible, the anime has tons of fillers and it really makes it hard to watch boruto, however, the manga is getting interesting Chapter 67 - 69 (Current) is just super good, like the story is starting to get really interesting during the code arc and I'd gladly read this manga till I die so in short, this anime was really really really bad, but the manga is starting to get really really interesting, so yeah, keep reading the manga cause the anime is super boring
... Jun 3, 2021
It's pretty much impossible to not have heard of the hate that the Boruto anime gets, and as much as the anime adaptation deserves it, the manga sure doesn't, but it still gets affected by it. This series keeps alive Naruto and continues on as its legacy, and as much as there are some reasons to hate on it, the exaggeration is way too much.
The Boruto series shows us (most of) our favourite characters from the Naruto series, but in a whole new light. This series brings light to a new side of our childhood heroes, that we may have looked up to, but ... Nov 29, 2023
To start I'm just going to say I recommend this. By no means is this a great manga, nor is it trying to be. I think it knows exactly what it is. It's just a story to add on to the Naruto-verse. I'm fairly new to reading manga, so I think the art style is fine, but I've heard some complaints about it, still nothing too bad though. The real reason I recommend this, though, is because it is much better than the anime. Sure the canon parts to the anime aren't bad, but the filler is really hard to watch. It feels like a
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