YOUR MANGA MINUTE SPECIAL - NARUTO, PART 3

[MattBrady]

by Troy Brownfield

In parts one and two of our look at VIZ Media’s Naruto, we took stock of the basic appeals of the series and ran through the settings and overall background. That leaves us but one area of primary focus: the characters. In this final installment of our Naruto close-up, we’ll check in with four of the major characters, and give potential readers a touch of background in case they’re interested in checking out this increasingly popular series. I’m deliberately leaving some pieces of information vague or incomplete to allow the curious to discover certain major points for themselves.

And with that . . .

Naruto Uzumaki: As we’ve noted previously, the series opens with protagonist Naruto as a twelve-year-old boy who aspires to be the hokage, or primary ninja, of his village. He’s been branded a social outcast because of circumstances beyond his understanding that tie into a village tragedy from soon after his birth. Growing up without a family and without much love, Naruto develops into a reckless braggart, the kind of kid who acts without any regard for the consequences. Originally a prankster who did everything he could for attention, Naruto finally found a dedicated sensei in Iruka Umino, a man with a past which tied to Naruto’s own. At the opening of the series, Naruto has actually failed his ninja exams twice, but machinations from others push toward an unusual success.

Sasuke Uchiha: Naruto is eventually assigned to Team 7, one of several three-person groups of academy grads that serve under a Jonin-sensei. The other male member of the team is Sasuke of the respected Uchiha clan. A young man with special abilities, a tortured past, and a burning desire for revenge, Sasuke comes across as aloof and disdainful of Naruto. Their rivalry and further interaction becomes one of the foundations of the series.



Sakura Haruno: The female member of Team 7, Sakura forms the apex of an attraction/unrequited crush triangle with Naruto and Sasuke. While Naruto crushes on her, she only has eyes for Sasuke. While this might seem like a somewhat stereotypical depiction of a teenage girl, Sakura’s character develops in a number of ways from this initial introduction.

Kakashi Hatake: The Jonin-sensei of Team 7, Kakashi remains one of the most popular characters in the series. He has a striking, unusual appearance (most of his face, including his left eye, is covered by a mask, while his lopsided Leaf Village headband allows his grayish hair to jut crazily to one side). That left eye houses his Sharingan, which allows him to copy the techniques of others. A tactically brilliant teacher with his own style, Kakashi pushes his students toward teamwork.

Inasmuch as it’s the action that drives the story, it’s really character that drives the action. Like its spiritual predecessor, the Dragon Ball series, Naurto allows characters to develop and reflect mid-fight, acknowledging their weaknesses and emotional flaws that must be overcome to achieve balance and victory. The pace is fast and steady, and the additional element of humor shouldn’t be forgotten.

Taken as a whole, the runaway popularity of Nartuo really can’t be overstated. It’s extremely unusual for graphic novels of any type to chart so highly on Booklist, and yet Naruto regularly vaults past the competition from all print types and genres when the new books debut (volume 13 debuted at #25 on the USA Today best-seller list for all publishing). One imagines that volume 14, now due in May, will rise handily as well. For my part, I find it to be very enjoyable, and I’m curious to see where ultimate end, likely years away, will lead.

Next time in Your Manga Minute, we’ll return to reviews. And boy, do we have a bunch coming.

Troy Brownfield writes a bunch of stuff for Newsarama.

[olokin]

first post!

naruto rules!!

[Blaaat]

Only recently (in Japan) has the Naruto become truly interesting before that it was a fairly typical shounen

[durkadurka]

Kakashi is the Batman of the Naruto universe.

[Ricardo]

Usually when I talk to my friends about Naruto I compare it with Dragonball. What I always say is that the characters are much more complex in Naruto. Heck... The main character's main trait in Dragonball is that he wants to be stronger. Why? Just because!

Naruto wants to be stronger because he thinks this will bring him the love and attention denied to him in his childhood. And even that is changed through out the series as he grows and understands what the philosophy of his village is and what it means to be a leader in this setting. A lot can be said about other characters as well.

[connorfan]

Naruto rocks... my gf makes fun of me because I'm a Naruto/Hinata shipper.

[Kolimar]

Ach, I wanted more information. Particularly considering this is the final installment. That said, nice job giving us the basics.

[Kolimar]

Originally Posted by Ricardo

Usually when I talk to my friends about Naruto I compare it with Dragonball. What I always say is that the characters are much more complex in Naruto. Heck... The main character's main trait in Dragonball is that he wants to be stronger. Why? Just because!

Absolutely wrong. Goku wants to be stronger and a better fighter primarily because of his Saiyan warrior nature and he loves fighting but also because he feels the need to protect his family, friends and his adoptive planet.

[NightRiver]

Originally Posted by Kolimar

Absolutely wrong. Goku wants to be stronger and a better fighter primarily because of his Saiyan warrior nature and he loves fighting but also because he feels the need to protect his family, friends and his adoptive planet.

Doesnt matter, Dragon Ball is "teh suxxors!!"

I was really into Naruto manga a few years ago, but stopped reading it. Seeing the new fighting game for Wii, I want to get back on board. I wonder how far the english manga is.

[Silence]

The English manga is less than halfway through the story to date (volume 13 in English versus volume 37 in Japan -- and still ongoing).

[Kolimar]

Originally Posted by NightRiver

Doesnt matter, Dragon Ball is "teh suxxors!!"

Yeah... Thank you for that brilliant critique...

[olokin]

Originally Posted by Kolimar

Absolutely wrong. Goku wants to be stronger and a better fighter primarily because of his Saiyan warrior nature and he loves fighting but also because he feels the need to protect his family, friends and his adoptive planet.

Dragonball's success paved the way for Naruto. In fact I think Naruto's rasengan (his first powerful move) is a homage to Goku's kamehameha.

[Joan17]

I have to say that I totally love him, it took some episodes but it happened and by now I can't imagine why I had a hard time getting used to him.
See that others are hooked as well
http://www.thenarutogang.com/do-you-like-naruto-22.html