Tag: Naruto
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Rediscovering Shonen Jump anime
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Read More →: Rediscovering Shonen Jump animeWatching anime, I go through peaks and troughs. The start of the year was a peak, but throughout February, I’ve been in a bit of a trough trying to find something new to watch and fall in love with. At some point, I remembered that there’s a whole bunch of Shonen Jump anime that I…
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Childhood's end: Naruto and Pain
Read More →: Childhood's end: Naruto and PainTo compare Naruto now to the naive kid he was when this series began tells us of how much he’s grown since. He’s now the person he always dreamed of becoming, and it’s a joy to behold.
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This is the Naruto I remember
Read More →: This is the Naruto I rememberThere were times when I considered dropping Naruto.
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Naruto & child soldiers / The thrilling tragedy of Kakashi Gaiden
Read More →: Naruto & child soldiers / The thrilling tragedy of Kakashi GaidenDoes Masashi Kishimoto think about how children are depicted in Naruto? Ninja are tools of war, after all, and Konoha trains its children to become ninja; isn’t that wrong? On a base, moral level? Of course, Naruto is intended as entertainment and, as such, there’s a certain amount of distance one feels between it and…
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Naruto Shippuuden episode 82 is a masterpiece
Read More →: Naruto Shippuuden episode 82 is a masterpieceAfter all these years, I still love watching Naruto. I’ll place it on hiatus every now and then, but it still is, and always will be, one of my biggest favourites. This past weekend marked the end of my latest break from Shippuuden, but already, here I am again; writing away. I couldn’t let this…
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About an anime fan
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Read More →: About an anime fanI’ve been an anime fan for no more than 5 years and already I’m starting to feel like I’ve been around forever, yet the truth is that my mere half-decade of devotion barely even scratches the surface, after all, some hardy souls have been following this foreign Japanese stuff for more than 30 years; a…
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Naruto Shippuuden: The return of Orochimaru, stuff happens
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Naruto Shippuuden: The return of Orochimaru, stuff happensThere is perhaps no anime I want to love more than Naruto. I’ve been following this story since 2003 and even if it drags on for another decade, I’ll still be camped out all night waiting for its end. I know full well it’s far from perfect, but by now I’m too caught up in…
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Naruto Shippuuden rises from the ashes! A dramatic return to form!
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Naruto Shippuuden rises from the ashes! A dramatic return to form!I relapsed like a hungry junkie and gobbled up the last dozen episodes of Shippuuden… Why does it feel so wrong, yet taste so good? My name is bateszi and I’m a narutard!
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Naruto Shippuuden – 5 – Keep The Car Running
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Naruto Shippuuden – 5 – Keep The Car RunningThe massive clash of Gaara’s sand vs. Akatsuki’s blonde bombshell Deidara rages ever on while Naruto and Sakura celebrate with a bowl of ramen having again teamed up with their perverted old sensei; anti-social bastard that he is, Kakashi declines their company, no doubt to finish off the latest volume of his favourite romantic yarn…
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Naruto Shippuuden – 1 to 2 – Well worth the wait, my fellow Narutards
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Naruto Shippuuden – 1 to 2 – Well worth the wait, my fellow NarutardsI forgot how damn awesome Naruto is when it gets serious. These first two episodes are brilliant, the new soundtrack is wonderful too; dramatic, epic and even a little nostalgic. It just looks and sounds all grown up. After this and Mushishi, composer Toshio Masuda is fast becoming my favourite anime soundtrack-er. There is an…
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Standing on the brink of a new era, looking back at Naruto
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Read More →: Standing on the brink of a new era, looking back at NarutoStanding on the brink of a new era for Naruto, I’ve turned back the clock to look at my favourite moments from the series; fair warning – hyperbolic fanboyisms ahead. I started watching the show in 2003 with a cheap 15″ CRT monitor and two tinny sound blasters, at the time I wasn’t interested in…
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Naruto – 219 – For the love of god, not long now
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Naruto – 219 – For the love of god, not long nowWe join the “fun” just as Gaara corners the warrior from Takumi, and given his murderous ability, a simple win for the ultra-strong sand man is expected, but the warrior turns to confidently exclaim, as diabolical villains often do, that in fact, Gaara is now “the one cornered! Muhaha…” Naruto arrives on cue just in…
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Naruto – 201 – Weapons of mass destruction
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Naruto – 201 – Weapons of mass destructionIt’s those damn terrorists again! As we’re all aware, the war on terror knows no bounds, and now, not even our anime is safe! The beloved hidden village of the leaf (known to gurning locals as Konoha) has become the target of crafty suicide bombers – who could have suspected berserk eagles with explosives strapped…
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Naruto – 200 – Filling time with ninja
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Naruto – 200 – Filling time with ninjaIt has been a while since I last caught up with Naruto – still its a series I treasure deep within my heart, but these ever enduring “filler dark ages” are even dwindling the concrete enthusiasm I once felt for master Rock Lee and his “spring time of youth”. True to Naruto’s emphasis on fighting…
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The most influential people in your anime fandom
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Read More →: The most influential people in your anime fandomThe ever reliable ICv2 recently posted up a list of the “ten most powerful people in the North American anime industry“. The run down makes for interesting (if a little predictable) reading and sitting at the top is Gonzo’s bestest buddy Gen Fukunaga (of FUNimation), who managed to visciously kill off any competition with his…
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Dr Who inspired by Naruto, eh?
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Read More →: Dr Who inspired by Naruto, eh?Now this is something quite bizarre but looking at the evidence (images above), a recent villain from (the staple of UK sci-fi) Dr Who could well have been inspired by Sasuke’s (from Naruto) “cursed seal” form. It’s easy to dismiss this all as a mere coincidence, but you should note the red eyes (mirroring Sasuke’s…
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Naruto – 188 – Fear the piranhas of death
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Naruto – 188 – Fear the piranhas of deathAs much as I want to be surprised by these Naruto episodes, as much as I want to watch some gripping drama, desperate sacrifices and shocking deaths, it’s not going to happen. I know that, you know that. To complain any more would be a waste of time. With your expectations so low, it is…
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Naruto – 187 – Taste the Flower Ninpo
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Naruto – 187 – Taste the Flower NinpoThe problem with these Naruto fillers is that while they are not particularly good, they are not particularly bad either – they are just by-the-books action adventure. Over this past year Studio Pierrot have become the masters of just filling 22 minutes with the most inoffensive, straight forward ninja action you are ever likely to…
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Naruto – 186 – The episode where Shino laughs
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Naruto – 186 – The episode where Shino laughsThis episode makes a mockery of everything Naruto stands for and as a hardcore fan, there is a guilty voice saying I should be completely offended by it, but honestly, this episode was so off the wall and slapstick funny that I could not help but love every minute of it. The premise is brilliant.…
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Naruto – 185 – Grotesque Pet
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Naruto – 185 – Grotesque PetAnd so begins another 23 minutes of pure time filling anime, Naruto-style. But despite it’s stupid premise, episode 185 wasn’t too bad; at least it was funny. These one-shot episodes are surely more suited to absurd comedy than say last week’s rushed mess of unoriginal drama. I’m sure we all have a mild fear of…
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Naruto – 184 – Ad nauseam
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/ ReviewsRead More →: Naruto – 184 – Ad nauseamThe filler wasn’t supposed to go on for this long. A black hole of 48 straight episodes, 18 hours of pure nothingness; it would be funny if I didn’t love Naruto as much as I do, but as it stands this is a damn travesty. And the frightening thing is, an end to this utter…