Bottom Line Up Front: It is easy to be disenchanted by typical shonen pitfalls, but if you can get past issues such as abundance of fillers and flashbacks, Shippuden actually has some memorable events which make it worthwhile to watch. It is not the Mecca of anime that it is made out to be by young teens, however it surprisingly has depth when you least expect it.
Highs: Humor at times, easy to like protagonist for his abundance of imperfections, periodically deals with mature issues despite its' "innocence", death of "good" characters, interesting story
Lows: Superficial at times, over use of filler and flashbacks, adolescent fanbase catering degrades series overall
