Naruto is finally over, its had its ups and downs, including a very long list of problems, but is it bad or good? In a sense, it's kind of both:
Naruto had undoubtedly had a great influence on the manga culture, helping spread anime/manga to the west after Dragonball Z and setting up a new generation of readers. 15 years later, it finally finishes. But I've noticed one trend I wished would end already, is it bad because it's too popular? Its a shounen on shounen jump that practically uses shounen elements religiously. Being one of the "big three" its going to get flak for being
...
"too popular" or "overhyped", but I will ignore that and look at it more objectively, or at least, as much as possible.
The Story - 5
The story, progressively, started getting worse. There was too much set up with little to forced pay off. Many plot elements got changed over time, such as Shikaku being the soul of a priest rather than the one tail, so nearing the end of the series, these inconsistencies made the story very hard to follow. The rapid change of main villains also didn't help and ruined the flow of the series. However, in certain arcs, when the pace and flow of the series really got rolling, things were good; but these moments, especially in Shippuden, were easily broken down by flashbacks and exposition periods. There may have been good moments, but the constant changing of lore and plot devices, really screwed the overarching story. Although the ending was satisfactory, to a degree.
Art- 7
The art is probably the best thing going for the series...kind of. There are some inconsistencies; a lot of times, especially late in the series, there are noticeable errors and improper face designs. But the improvement of the art style, when done right, is noteworthy, but stagnated quite a bit about half-way through Shippuden.
Characters-4
This was probably Kishimoto's weakest point, once again, especially in Shippuden. The characters were set up really well in the original series, somethng I noticed when re-reading. They all had their relationships and pasts integrated very well in to their character and the growth was apparent. But, trying to make them mature, was very hard for Kishimoto, especially female characters. Not only that, but with such great build-up, Kishimoto also wasted characters in Shippuden, to the point where no one else mattered besides Naruto and Sasuke. There are a few noteworthy characters: Jiraya, Tsunade, Itachi, Pain, Gaara, etc. but most others were just shounen tropes personified in Shippuden, even more so than in the original series. This also leads to his rushed villains problem and how the main characters change depending on which one their fighting. It's kind of disappointing, because Kishimoto is very good at setting things up but just as infamous in failing the execution.
Enjoyment-8
This is where Naruto shines the most, but only to those knowing what they're getting into. If you know this is a shounen, especially one in Weekly Shounen Jump, then you better expect friendship power-ups and believe in yourself's galore. But just because these elements have been overdone, does not immediately make them bad. You take what you get, this series wasn't fooling you, it practically advertised it. In terms of generating hype for battles, well most of them, Kishimoto is not so bad. Like I said earlier, although there are flashbacks and calm periods, when the pacing gets going, so does the hype. The one thing that many have a problem is that it changed styles and themes when transitioning to Shippuden. It went from being about ninjas to being more about Jesus saving the world things. But even that isn't too bad. They give a decent excuse for it and all things considered, a mangaka can interpret things however they please. If you don't like shounens like this, you'll probably not enjoy this series so well, but I have to say, you NEED to know what you're getting yourself into. I do not recommend it to anyone looking for something different in a shounen, such as FMA or Trigun, this is the Dragonball Z type of shounen with higher trope power levels, and this is what you should be expecting going in.
Overall - 6.5
When I first read Naruto and got to Shippuden, I actually dropped the series. I didn't give it a chance. I also kinda became a Naruto hater, mainly because I so loved One Piece. But after a friend, a Naruto-fanboy, begged me to give it a chance. I took it. Of course, throughout the experience, I noticed all the problems all the things and I constantly complained..yet I still continued to read. It was something about it that kept me hooked and I didn't know why. But one day, upon re-reading the series again, I had a realization. It was interesting. I wanted to see what Kishimoto would do, I wanted to see his silly plot changes, his uber-shounen-believe it fights, I wanted to complain about his mistakes, hating on Sakura or other characters, the world, the jutsus and different forms. It had a certain charm that made you want to criticize it, dared you to. If you've read a shounen it practically begged you to compare it. This perplexed me in such a way I didn't understand. The series is a mess, but a fun mess for any shounen reader. That is why if you read shounens, you should give Naruto a try. But if you're looking for a masterpiece or something great, look elsewhere.
Nov 6, 2014
Naruto is finally over, its had its ups and downs, including a very long list of problems, but is it bad or good? In a sense, it's kind of both:
Naruto had undoubtedly had a great influence on the manga culture, helping spread anime/manga to the west after Dragonball Z and setting up a new generation of readers. 15 years later, it finally finishes. But I've noticed one trend I wished would end already, is it bad because it's too popular? Its a shounen on shounen jump that practically uses shounen elements religiously. Being one of the "big three" its going to get flak for being ... |
