Somehow I’ve become addicted to Naruto, and I can’t stop watching it. I think the only way I’m going to stop is if I run out of episodes.
Naruto is kinda of anime based on manga – It’s a cartoon. The comic books (manga) come out every so often, telling the story of Naruto Uzumaki, a ninja from the hidden leaf village, also known as Konoha. Ninjas in this story are usually helpful people, unless they are specifically evil, and Naruto is in training to become the Hokage - the leader of the village. Although he’s such an idiot sometimes, his chances at Hokage are pretty slim.
What’s tricky about Naruto is that he’s a kind of an outcast because when he was very young he had the spirit (?) of the nine-tailed fox sealed inside him. The nine-tailed fox is a legendary evil figure, killing villagers wantonly. His chakra - ninja superpower essense - is very strong, and because it is sealed inside Naruto, Naruto occasionally has the opportunity to make use of it, often to amazing and beneficial effect.
Naruto might not be the brightest Ninja in training in Konoha, but he is the most enthusiastic. His enthusiasm is often what gets him in trouble with his fellow genin (the first level ninja rank), and he’s often rushing into situations that he should really give more thought to. I hope that as the series continues, Naruto learns to keep this under control, but that might adjust his character too significantly.
One of Naruto’s driving passions is to keep his friends safe. During his early training, he was teamed up with Sakura and Sasuke. Sakura hasn’t been of much use during the initial episodes, but I think she may factor in more heavily as she progresses in her healing training. Sasuke, on the other hand, has amazing skills, being the last of the Uchiha clan. Sasuke’s vendetta against his brother for killing the rest of his clan has consumed him, leading him to join Orochimaru, an evil ninja who, in addition to planning on destroying Konoha, wants to use Sasuke’s body as a vessel for his own soul when the opportunity is ripe.
There is so much going on in this series that it’s hard to write about. At first, I thought it was just a simple little cartoon, Dragonball-Z-style, where they recap most of last week’s episode with standing around posturing and exposition. But it really has some interesting character development, and it’s never just as simple as a couple of guys duking it out to increase some unseen power level.
One of my favorite interactions is between Naruto and Hinata. Hinata has a crush on Naruto, and has taken many of his ways to heart. She trains obsessively to be like Naruto, and is always calling on memories of his passion to bolster her own strength and resolve. Whenever Naruto pays her too much attention she blushes and feints. And of course, Naruto is oblivious to the whole situation.
I’m in the middle of the 8th season of episodes. Actually, I’m on episode 183. There is only one more season of Naruto available to watch after this one, and then I’ll be caught up to the series as it airs in Japan. I got caught up in Naruto by watching the marathon that Cartoon Network had a few weeks back, which was only the first couple of seasons, but dubbed versions. I made the mistake of looking online for more episodes and found many seasons worth, all subbed.
The subbed versions are better for content. I particularly enjoy the informational data that they provide when a character says something odd. For example, they explain many of the puns, which are mostly removed from the dubbed versions. Also, they’ll use the actual names of food eaten, but describe the food a bit better in a separate subtitle, rather than just convert it to some dumbed-down version like they do when they dub it. They also don’t remove the profanity, of which there is just the right amount, I think.
I’m looking forward to more of the series, and am particularly interested in learning why Sasuke’s brother killed the rest of their clan. I have come to expect in this series that there are reasons for everything, even if they haven’t mentioned it specifically.
