Wednesday, June 23, 2004
Introduction
12 years ago, a demon fox, under the name of Kyuubi appeared. With one swish of its tail, it could create tidal waves, and decimate mountains. The Kyuubi brought ultimate destruction to the Leaf Village. Many Leaf Ninjas fought to warn off the Kyuubi, however, all attempts failed. Many died, until a hero appeared and sacrificed himself to seal the demon within a child. That hero was called the Fourth Hokage. The story takes place 12 years into the future. The main character, Uzumaki Naruto, was the child whom which the Kyuubi was sealed.

Plot
Perhaps the best part of Naruto is its ability to flow. Although the series can be broken down into sagas and arcs, it flows as though it is a complete point in time, with missions and exams thrown in throughout the series. Naruto is a story about ninjas (shinobis), but there isn't that much blood and gore. There is mild swearing, and little to no nudity (except for the Sexy no Jutsu). Naruto combines humor, adventure, drama, mystery, suspense, and fantasy all into one awesome action-packed adventure.


Characters
The characters are some of the most interesting yet mysterious characters featured in a single story. Each character has their own background, morale, and goal; a reason for which they exist. The main characters of the anime are Uzumaki Naruto, a fearsome young boy with the dream to become Hokage of the Leaf Village, Uchiha Sasuke, a prodigious heir to the Uchiha clan whose one goal is to kill the person who he despises more than anyone else, Haruno Sakura, a pensive girl who is very intelligent, but has yet to show her full strength, and Hatake Kakashi, an eccentric jounin of the Leaf who will protect his comrades no matter what the situation may be. Don't be fooled, there are many more characters from other teams, with other ambitions and personal beliefs. As the story progresses, the characters are introduced. The good thing about Naruto is that there is a plentiful supply of characters who are all introduced in a timely pace.

Animation
Top quality. This is probably one of the best animatied anime out there. The graphics are crisp and clean, and there are hardly ever any graphic mistakes. Though I never recommend judging an anime solely on animation quality, Naruto would definitely receive a 9.5/10 in terms of quality.

Pros

Flow

Nice Storyline

Enjoyable characters

High Quality animation

Cons

Many characters - If you can't remember names, you'll be in trouble.

Sad moments - There are quite a few of them, so if you're an emotional person - you might want to keep the Kleenex box handy.

Addictive. You'll be getting that Naruto wallscroll and Akamaru plushie at your next anime con.
counted stars at 4:37 AM

---