New Naruto Blu-ray Draws Debate Over Westernized Cover Art

Naruto has been around for decades at this point, and its hero has been through a lot. From difficult missions to even more difficult friends, Naruto Uzumaki has been through it, and that includes the odd art change. After all, the ninja has experienced some less-than-savory designs over the years, and a new one has social media all stirred up.

The debate began when it was announced that Naruto will be getting a triple feature Blu-ray and DVD. The upcoming piece will be distributed by Viz Media for an October 2020 release. But as you can see in the slides below, fans have a lot of thoughts about its artwork.

You can check out some of the reactions to the Blu-ray artwork below, and they aren’t what you would call pretty. The cover art imagines Naruto in a distinctly Western style that you might see in a Marvel or DC comic. The character designs use shading and highlighting to make them pop off the page, but fans are a bit thrown off by the art.

And it should remind fans of such comics. After all, legendary comics artist Whilce Portacio did the artwork for this triple feature. As one of Image Comics’ co-founders, the Filipino-American artist is beloved for his work on titles like The Punisher, Spawn, Iron Man, and The Uncanny X-Men. His art has inspired new generations of comics lovers, but manga fans are still adjusting to Portacio’s take on Naruto.

After all, Naruto is known for his anime aesthetic, but this makeover forgoes all of that history. It is certainly a treat to see Naruto done up this way, but no one expected this art to be used for an official Blu-ray release. Its elevated status has got fans wilding out on social media, but it is up to you to decide whether their reaction is justified.

What do you make of this artwork? Do you like the Western take on Naruto Uzumaki or no…? Let me know in the comments or hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB to talk all things comics and anime!

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