The legacy of the Shonen Big Three remains unmatched even though several years have passed since their debut. As the new era of the anime and manga industry began with shorter and seasonal series, fans appreciate the older generation even more with long-running stories and captivating plots. As one of the biggest Shonen classics, Naruto‘s influence is unmatched even now. Written and illustrated by Masashi Kishimoto, Narutobecame one of the most successful anime and manga franchises of all time. The story of an underdog winning the hearts of those around him and climbing to the top still inspires others.
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Naruto raised an entire generation of anime fans who followed the protagonist’s journey from the beginning to the end. However, as a long-running show, it’s impossible for Naruto to be flawless. Due to years of broadcast, the anime suffered from pacing issues and inconsistent animation. Not only that, but since the manga was also serialized weekly, the anime had to release several filler episodes in between. However, apart from this, there are other drawbacks that stop Naruto from becoming the greatest anime despite having such an exceptional story.
3. Naruto‘s Underwhelming Female Cast Is One of The Worst in Shonen
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Action Shonen has never been famous for having a great female cast, with the few exceptions of One Piece and Bleach. Since the demographic primarily focuses on a young male audience, most creators are infamous for an underwhelming female cast. However, even among those series, Naruto stands out as one of the worst. While there are exceptions with powerful female characters such as Sakura and Tsunade, it takes a lot more than physical strength for character writing to be good. Most of the female characters other than them are often sidelined with little to no plot relevance.
Naruto’s side characters and villains are often considered exceptional, including Itachi, Madara, Nagato, and more. However, with most of the well-written characters being male, the female characters are often sidelined. Even the final villain, Kaguya Otsutsuki, is so controversial that she rarely has any fans. For a series as big as Naruto, having an unpopular final villain is a major flaw in terms of writing and delivery of the plotline.
2. The Unresolved Storylines Are Still Disappointing
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Naruto still causes confusion with many unresolved storylines and unanswered questions. Hashirama’s fate is so famously overlooked in the story that many fans just convinced themselves that the character was so powerful, it was impossible to write how he died. Regardless, a legendary character like him deserved a better ending than fans having to guess what really happened to him.
However, that’s just one example, but there are several instances where the story failed to answer major questions, including the power systems and many other plot points. Whether it was Itachi’s illness or Orochimaru’s sudden change of heart, a lot of the things could be explored better. The final stretch of the story in particular felt rushed with so many things happening all at once.
1. The Plot Twist With The Final Villain Will Forever Keep Fans Divided
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There’s really no way to sugarcoat that the finale is still one of the most divisive moments in anime history. After hyping Madara Uchiha as the finale villain of the story, he turned out to be nothing more than a puppet of Black Zetsu. Madara’s actions were guided by Zetsu in order to free Kaguya Otsutsuki from the eternal prison her sons put her into centuries ago. Even now, the ending often receives mixed reactions, especially in the manga that doesn’t feature an epilogue after the final war.
Kaguya’s last-minute appearance shifted the flow of the story when it was just reaching its finale. With Obito joining Naruto’s side and Madara regretting his decisions, they became victims of Zetsu despite the war they started and the countless lives they took. Not to mention that Kaguya’s appearance happened with zero narrative buildup, and it seemed more like a quick way to set up the story of a sequel rather than ending the main story when it should have.
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