Naruto - Another DBZ or something more?
So I’ve been watching Naruto 
patiently anxiously waited for each new episode.
Unfortunately, the pacing wasn’t fast enough, so I got a hold of the Naruto manga
There were very few filler episodes at first. Almost every episode advanced the original story and kept it interesting. But the fillers that were there, were awful. Animation was shoddy, characters uninteresting, and exemplified all the worst aspects of the series. The fights between ninjas were epic at first. Employing clever tactics and abilities that were genuinely smart, well choreographed and thought out. The filler episodes, and ultimately all the later episodes of the series, became boring slugfests where the most powerful won, or the overly cocky lost. This is where the DBZ (Dragonball Z) comparisons come in. Standoffs where ninjas talked about who was more powerful became the norm. Characters would battle through injuries that in past episodes would’ve ended their lives. Because of all this, the big ending to the series between the two main characters felt weak and less impressive than the battles in the beginning.
So while I loved the series at first, it started to trail off. The worst part of the whole series, is even after the end of the manga story arc is reached, the anime continues on. Pure filler for over a year. I tried watching a few of the episodes but I just couldn’t get myself to do it.
There is a shining light at the end of this tunnel though. Naruto Shippūden (essentially the same thing as Dragonball being followed up with Dragonball Z), starts three years from where the first left off and has been filler free so far. It’s more mature and serious than the original was for the most part. So far it’s been following the manga, albeit at a very slow rate. I’m hoping they keep it at this pace though, even if it slows the series down, they won’t have to revert back to all the filler episodes that hurt the first series so much.
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YUH. I used to love Dragonball Z. My friend was a nut and had all the bootleg seasons. He let me borrow them and I was really hooked. Since high school my TV watching has really declined, but I might have to try to get back into something like this. Could be good fun.
Chris Fehnel on December 31st, 2007 11:10 am
I use to watch Dragon Ball Z every day - but I never got into any of the newer series or the spin offs. Though there are a few Anime movies that are near and dear to my heart (like: Princess Mononoke, among others).
Colin Devroe on December 31st, 2007 11:13 am
@ Colin
Mononoke is one of my favorites. Howl’s Moving Castle and Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door (Cowboy Bebop Movie) are also great.
@ Chris
It’s being dubbed on Cartoon Network, and it’s at about episode #115 or something last time I checked.
Sameer Barkawi on December 31st, 2007 11:17 am
Great show, just started watching Naruto Shippuden. What about Spirited Away Colin?
Bryan on January 2nd, 2008 2:08 am
Shippuden is well done so far. Seeing all the old characters and how they’ve grown is really fun. The only problem is I’m stuck waiting for the newest episode each week now.
Sameer Barkawi on January 2nd, 2008 4:09 am
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An interesting point. I LOVE Naruto, but lately it’s all been filler and crap. >:[ I haven’t even been watching it lately. Am I the ONLY girl that watches Naruto for the plot and not the guys?…BTW, Mononoke Hime, Hauru no Ugoku Shiro, and Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi are all AWESOME movies!! =D Anyways, let’s hope Naruto gets back on track!!!
Retsu on January 3rd, 2008 5:30 pm
Retsu, you’re certainly one of the few. Also, how far into the series are you? If you’re far enough into the series, after episode 130 or so, you can probably stop watching it. The last half of the series (of the 290 episodes or so) are utter garbage plot wise. It’s fun to see all the characters in new situations, but if you like good plots, you should probably just look into Shippuden for the actual continuation of the story.
Sameer Barkawi on January 4th, 2008 12:11 am