Some anime series seem like they’ll never end. When it comes to shows like One Piece, the lengthy titles show no sign of stopping even after reaching 700+ episodes. As for franchises like Dragon Ball, the iconic stories start-and-stop time and again thanks to new shows. Naruto finds itself grouped with the latter as Masashi Kishimoto’s story continues to live long after its manga wrapped. And, despite the odds, fans are starting to warm up to Naruto‘s newest show.
Videos by ComicBook.com
In April, Boruto: Naruto Next Generations premiered shortly after Naruto: Shippuden ended its long run. The latter series ran between 2007 and 2017, accumulating 500 episodes exactly before it wrapped. The show acted as a sequel to the first Naruto anime, but its status as a manga adaptation helped fans accept the show. Sadly, Boruto had no such thing to prop it up, and fans were rightly skeptic about the anime.
After all, Boruto would no
t have been the first anime sequel to make a quick grab for cash. Plenty of spinoffs and sequels have pervaded the anime industry, and not all of them have given it their best. Shows like Soul Eater Not! and Dragon Ball GT have been lambasted for their shoddy production, but Boruto is starting to turn fans in its favor.
So far, Boruto has kept fans on its good side through sheer consistency. The show has been busy laying out new characters and establishing relationships between its leads. Legacy characters like Naruto and Shikamaru have had a large presence in the show, tying Boruto back to its humble roots. Rather than focusing on all-out action, Boruto has balanced fight sequences with adolescent drama as Boruto goes head-to-head against puberty. The slice-of-life dynamic reeled fans in as it was tonally different than anything Naruto managed to offer. And, now, the anime is gearing up to tackle its first big plot hurdle.
The latest episode of Boruto saw the titular hero plead for his family to recognize there was something special about him. Fans have noticed the ninja wield a strange ocular jutsu from time to time, and Boruto has made it clear that the power will play into its overall story. Desperate for answers, Boruto seeks help from his Hyuga family to no avail, but that won’t stop the boy. Boruto is ready to figure out what his rare power means for himself and his ninja career – and fans admit the plot point has caught their interest.
The slides below feature some of the best Boruto responses from the anime’s recent episodes, but the series seems set on capitalizing on its promise. The anime has got fans feeling nice about its leads already; Now, Boruto just needs to give audiences a readers to buy into its story.
โ
Boruto really feels like it’s own story even though it is the next generation of Naruto. I love it.
โ vl clementine vl (@DeeTheSage) May 24, 2017
โ
the Boruto anime has no business being this good
โ Lynt (@Lynt_) May 31, 2017
โ
On the note of Boruto I have to say that aside from actually being pretty fun the most surprising thing about is that it looks well…GOOD pic.twitter.com/LfmYsa7rQu
โ Jairus Infinity (@Divinenega) May 31, 2017
โ
#Boruto has been really good. You can tell they’re trying to fix some things they wish they would have done in Naruto
โ Chris (@bmancs4) May 31, 2017
โ
Boruto is soooooo GOOD!
โ Ge?rge (@TheMissingToast) May 20, 2017
I highly recommend it even if you’ve never seen Naruto before. It’s great for new and old fans. ??
โ
Boruto so good imma just say fuck it and read the manga
โ jupiter’s native (@chrisismatter) May 19, 2017
โ
boruto is actually rlly fun and theyre so smol and cute its good
โ Nate? (@takehirako) May 19, 2017
โ
I gotta say, the animation in Boruto has been looking really great. It’sโ really impressiveโ.
โ Joe Angel (@mrjesparza) May 17, 2017