Naruto

*Reviewed by spcnet

*Note: This anime is still in progress and only 114 episodes have been released at the time of writing this review. The running manga currently has over 220+ chapters.

To say that "Naruto" is one of the latest craze in the anime world would probably not be wrong. In terms of most talked about and most interesting, the only other animes that are really worth mentioning nowadays are "Inuyasha" and "Full Metal Alchemist".

Naruto means "fox ninja" and is the name of our main character, Uzumaki Naruto, a loud-mouthed, mischievous, blond haired kid orphan in the Ninja Academy of Konoha Village. The story starts off with a prologue on the Nine Tailed Fox Demon, causing death and destruction to Konoha years ago. This demon was finally sealed by the Fourth Hokage, who sacrificed his own life in doing so.



Enter the present with Naruto causing mishief yet again--this time, grafittiing the stone carvings of Konoha's Hokages. Iruka Sensei, his teacher and older brother-like friend, punishes Naruto and learns of Naruto's dreams. Naruto aspires to become a great Hokage, a title given to the most powerful ninja of the village, one day and let everyone recognize his worth and existence. Naruto has been shunned by the villagers all his life growing up for reasons unbeknown to him and his rebellious nature was a form of gaining attention.

However, Naruto fails during the junior ninja graduation exam again--having to perform his least favorite ninjutsu (ninja technique), the Replication/Cloning technique. A teacher, Mizuki Sensei, tells him to retrieve the village's Scroll of Seals, mentioning that if he learned the techniques in there, he would be able to graduate.

Naruto does steal this scroll and surprisingly, learns the advanced class Shadow Replication 'Kage Bunshin' technique, which becomes one of his trademark skills. But little does he know is that Mizuki had deceived him to steal this scroll for him. Mizuki lets Naruto know why he is hated by all the villagers at Konoha Village--Naruto happens to be the reincarnation of the legendary Nine Tailed Fox demon that killed Iruka's parents and destroyed the village years ago! Iruka intercepts and in the ensuing battle with Mizuki, Naruto is gratified by Iruka's faith in him, and defeats Mizuki with Kage Bunshin. Iruka declares that Naruto has passed graduation and is officially a ninja. Thus begins Naruto's training and missions as a ninja. We then are introduced to characters like his new sensei Kakashi, his love interest Sakura, and his rival and friend Sasuke. The Chuunin (mid level) ninja exams come up very soon and this brings in many more interesting characters, along with a new villain that leads the story on with more exciting episodes.



Comparisons have been made between "Naruto" and "Dragon Ball Z", however, I think the similarity between the two only lies in the large range of characters. Fortunately, one fight scene doesn't drag on for more than 2-3 episodes and the characters don't talk and talk during a fight. There is also a lot more character development in Naruto, where you glimpse into the motivations and backgrounds of the characters. Compare "Naruto" with another ninja anime like "Ninja Scroll" and I would say "Naruto" is the PG-13 public version--meaning minus most of the gore and nudity but retaining the same appeal for ninjas and their ways.



The numerous ninjutsus and fighting styles of each character were also a highlight. The characters fight in styles that seem tailored to their personalities and there is a wide variety of skills displayed. Some of my favorites would have to be Lee's gym techniques, the Sharingan eye of Kakashi and Sasuke, the frog summoning techniques, and of course, Rasengan that Naruto learns later on. Let's just say it's enough to make collectable cards and card games out of the character stats and techniques.

You'll also grow to like more than one character as the story develops and more of each character is revealed. This is certainly an appeal, since in most animes you watch, there are maybe one to three characters, aside from the main character, who are truly developed or likeable. There are some great personalities in "Naruto", especially characters like Kakashi, Shikamaru, and Lee who are well defined.

Music is another plus point. The battle scene scores, especially Naruto's theme, has a sort of tribal chant to it and will get you pumped up as a duel takes place. Emotional and dramatic scenes are also nicely choreographed with background music. The intro and ending vocals are mostly rock and fits the anime's punkish image.

The flaws of this anime has got to be the flashbacks in many of its episodes. While it sometimes contributes to the story, at many times it felt almost like they were there just to fill up the episode. This is especially gruelling when one episode is only about 20 minutes long and you are watching so many flashbacks.



"Naruto" also falls trap to some of the typical anime cliches, which can be a good and bad thing. In most animes from Japan, the hero is usually likeable because he never gives up, despite great opposition from external factors. He is beaten, but never beat. That can be said about Naruto. At the beginning of the series, he is not the most endearing of main characters as he makes rash, and often idiotic, decisions. But as the series progresses, you'll really find yourself liking him more and more. It is a great mechanism of character development. Another trend is definitely how there is always a character who is cooler and calmer than the main character--Sasuke in this case. The love triangle exists too in that the girl (Sakura) will love the cooler guy (Sasuke) while the main character (Naruto) will love the girl and of course, the cool guy will not really notice the girl. "Naruto" reminded me of "Slam Dunk" where the three major characters fit that type.

Probably my last gripe about "Naruto" is that there aren't too many favorable women characters, aside from Tsunade. Sakura is the main female character but most of the time, I found her quite annoying. She is also one of the weaker ninjas, with no particular special skills or attacks. Her only redeeming factor so far was when she decided to chop off her hair and finally fight to protect Naruto and Sasuke, but that was quite a number of episodes ago already in the anime. How about some women power and ambition for the girl main character?

"Naruto" is definitely recommended for anime fans. It is one of those animes that have a pretty good package, with enough action scenes, comedy, and interesting storyline.
source:www.spcnet.tv