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joshofstl 's review for:
Naruto, Vol. 1: Uzumaki Naruto
by Masashi Kishimoto
Naruto is an established popular manga series that seems to be having a moment right now, which is why I decided to give the first installment a read. The story follows a young boy who is a pariah in his village as he tries to figure out his place and earn respect among other villagers. There are some serious undertones to some of the storyline, but Naruto is more comedy than drama.
The problem is that the characters themselves are not all that well developed, and few of them seem to possess many redeeming qualities. Everyone is over-the-top, including Naruto himself, who is a hyperactive (and at times aggravating) protagonist. The one major female character, likewise, is depicted as singularly boy-crazy. Maybe some of this reflects the time it was written over two decades ago, but it's still a letdown.
The storyline, likewise, is more a sequence of bombastic battles broken up by adolescent drama. The plotline seems thin. Moreover, the storyboarding can be a little rough around the edges, too: I wasn't always entirely clear just what was happening.
One other note: Naruto is popular among adolescent boys, but it's also worth noting that there is some adult content in the first one that puts it squarely in PG-13 territory. Anyone familiar with Japanese mores won't be surprised, but parents might thumb through it before handing it off, especially if they've got kids under, say, 8th grade.
Clearly the series has proven a commercial success, and there's a reason for that. But this isn't a particularly auspicious start.
The problem is that the characters themselves are not all that well developed, and few of them seem to possess many redeeming qualities. Everyone is over-the-top, including Naruto himself, who is a hyperactive (and at times aggravating) protagonist. The one major female character, likewise, is depicted as singularly boy-crazy. Maybe some of this reflects the time it was written over two decades ago, but it's still a letdown.
The storyline, likewise, is more a sequence of bombastic battles broken up by adolescent drama. The plotline seems thin. Moreover, the storyboarding can be a little rough around the edges, too: I wasn't always entirely clear just what was happening.
One other note: Naruto is popular among adolescent boys, but it's also worth noting that there is some adult content in the first one that puts it squarely in PG-13 territory. Anyone familiar with Japanese mores won't be surprised, but parents might thumb through it before handing it off, especially if they've got kids under, say, 8th grade.
Clearly the series has proven a commercial success, and there's a reason for that. But this isn't a particularly auspicious start.