Naruto: Why Boruto Taking a Hiatus Is All But Inevitable

If you are into Naruto, there is no doubt you have heard of Boruto by now. The hit anime got its start years ago once Naruto: Shippuden wrapped, and it has explored the Hidden Leaf during times of peace. With Naruto Uzumaki sitting as Hokage, the sequel tells the story of his son Boruto, and the family's trials have kept fans entertained. However, the Naruto anime seems to have lost its way with Boruto as of late, and it is time we admit a hiatus is all but inevitable.

The problem plaguing Boruto has been around for as long as the anime has been on the air. We have Boruto filler to blame for the mess. To date, more than 250 episodes of Boruto have been released, and more than 70% of them are seen as filler content. This is because the Naruto episodes cover story arcs from outside the manga, and the Boruto manga is hardly keeping up with how much content the show drops.

After all, Boruto: Naruto Next Generations is a monthly release, and it has 77 chapters to its name. It doesn't take a genius to see why the Naruto anime has been forced to conjure up so much filler for Boruto. There is not enough mainline content to keep the anime afloat, and despite the anime's top-tier writers, audiences have not been wowed by Boruto filler for a long time.

This supply issue would not be a problem if Boruto was animated seasonally, but that is not how Studio Pierrot handles the title. Like the Naruto anime projects before it, Boruto is an annual title, so episodes are released weekly. This schedule does not give Naruto the time to release enough content for Boruto to adapt. And to make things worse, the back-to-back episode drops are a nightmare for anime executives. You can see the anime team's strain each week given how sloppy any given episode of Boruto looks. And after digging itself into a hole, Boruto: Naruto Next Generations can only alleviate the issue by taking a hiatus.

Luckily, the Naruto anime is about to tackle an act that paves way for a Boruto hiatus. The show began its Code arc this month, and that story is currently being explored in the manga. Boruto seems ready to embark on a time skip after this arc wraps, so Naruto will take one step closer to the action we saw in the flash forward of Boruto episode one. If that skip occurs, the Boruto manga could get a leg up on its story should the Naruto anime go on hiatus. All the show would need to do is stay off the air long enough for the manga to release several chapters. So while you may not want to hear it, a Boruto hiatus is just about the only thing that can keep the anime on its rails now. 

Do you believe it would be for the best to put Boruto on air? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section below or hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB.