Summary
- Improved animation quality in Boruto surpasses the inconsistency of Naruto's original anime, providing a polished viewing experience.
- Boruto focuses on meaningful character development, balancing legacy characters and establishing new ones for fans to connect with.
- The Boruto anime introduces evil and dangerous antagonists, deviating from tragic villains in Naruto, setting up high-stakes encounters.
Boruto was, and still is, the subject of much debate within the anime fandom. Ever since the sequel manga’s anime adaptation was announced, fans have voiced some strong opinions about it. Regardless of the online discourse, no one can deny the mark Boruto is leaving on the anime world. The legacy left behind by Naruto was always going to be a tough act to follow, but Boruto manages to pull it off. The show not only pays homage to the already-established lore, but also expands on a lot of things — maybe a bit too much. Although some may disagree, this deviation is a necessary step to make the show stand out from its predecessor’s shadow.
The way Boruto's handles certain aspects of the anime is more refined and well-paced. There is a lot more going on in the story in terms of plot and action. For all its greatness, not even the staunchest of fans can disprove that Naruto often had pacing issues that dragged on unnecessarily. That’s not to say Boruto is without its flaws, but when the anime hits its stride, it delivers some standout moments.
7 The Animation & Visual Styles
Naruto's Nightmare Fuel Animation Style Is Improved In The Boruto Anime
It’s hard to argue against the quality of the animation in Boruto, especially when comparing it to Naruto. There were certain dips in quality in the original anime and Shippuden that felt almost jarring. A few examples were the fight sequences during the Forest of Death in the Chunin Exam arc — particularly the Sasuke vs. Orochimaru face-off. Then there’s the Naruto vs. Pain battle in Shippuden, which looked rough despite how epic it was meant to be. Even during the Kazekage Retrieval arc, the animation quality dipped.
That’s not to say it was all bad — there were flashes of stunning art and solid animation. But in hindsight, Boruto does come out miles ahead in terms of consistency and polish. In Naruto' s defense, it makes sense that the animation of the new anime is better. The original show is nearly a decade old, and animation tech has made some serious strides since then.
6 More Character Development
A Better Look At Both New & Established Characters
At the end of Naruto Shippuden, when the war ended and Sasuke returned to the Hidden Leaf of his own volition, the fandom wanted to see their favorite characters grow up, and their ships live happily ever after. Boruto fulfills that wish, and fans finally get to see some of their favorite characters in happy relationships. They also get to see some much-needed slice-of-life moments from these characters, post-war — raising kids, mentoring students, and all-around being themselves.
Boruto also does a tremendous job of showcasing the next generation of Shinobi. While Naruto and his friends had their fair share of struggles, Boruto’s challenges feel different — newer, darker, and more layered. Boruto finds a balance between honoring legacy characters without sidelining them, while also giving the new cast enough space to shine. It's building up its own new set of characters that fans are latching onto.
5 Legitimately Evil, Dangerous Villains
Naruto’s Villains Are Tragic, But Boruto's Are Straight-Up Evil
Danzo and Hidan aside, there aren’t many despicably evil villains in the original Naruto. Almost every major antagonist in the show had an element of tragedy in their backstory, which made for some teary-eyed moments. Pain, Zabuza, and Itachi are some of the prime examples of this tragic villainy, and they have excellent writing and development to back that up.
Having said all that, the Boruto anime has villains that aren’t just victims of their own circumstances. They are pure evil, and they do not care one bit about what happens to the shinobi world or to humanity. Some of the major powerhouse threats, like the Otsutsuki clan, consider humanity beneath them — nothing more than fodder and food. This sets up a classic good vs. Evil high-stakes showdown. Another notable group of villains in the same bracket are the indifferent Sentient Human God Trees, who operate on instinct without too much emotional attachment. Their indifferent presence, destructive powers, and newfound independence make them a wild card in the story.
4 Better Filler Content
Shippuden’s Filler Episodes Were A Slog, But Boruto's Feel Like A Breeze
A huge downside to Naruto Shippuden was the number of filler episodes in the anime. While the original Naruto fillers had slower pacing, they still handled the story cleverly and with a lot of care. There were so many episodes dedicated to underused characters that made them shine in a new light. A major standout is the Genou Arc, where every member of the main cast played an important role. The arc had a proper format where it showed a plausible conflict, a realistic plot progression, and finally the resolution of said problem. On the contrary, the filler arcs in Shippuden felt disjointed and uninteresting. The stories were hard to sit through, and fans had to wait a long time for the canon story arcs to return.
Naruto: 11 Best Filler Episodes, Ranked
Naruto has an abundance of filler episodes. These fillers, however, stand out as some of the best in the anime series.
Thankfully, the Boruto anime takes after the original Naruto when it comes to inspiration for filler episodes. In every one of these arcs, fans can feel the tension, and it’s clear that a lot of thought and care went into their creation. Some of them even expand on established lore and give fans more context and depth to the story.
3 The Pacing Feels Perfect
No Prolonged Arcs And Faster Resolutions Of Plotlines
A major gripe fans had with Naruto Shippuden was the pacing. Stories felt either undercooked and rushed, or they had such a slow pace that fans didn’t care. Either way, the pacing and progression were not ideal. The War arc is the best example of this. The build-up and hype for the final arc were epic, and everything felt like it would fall into place. However, the story ended up feeling stretched out — 200 episodes, to be exact. The emotional impact fell flat because everyone watching was spent.
Compare all of that with the much more focused and rapid storytelling in the Boruto anime, and the difference is night and day. Boruto strikes the perfect balance of having enough room for the characters to breathe before springing the next surprise on viewers. Nothing feels stretched out unnecessarily.
2 More Tech Focus & Flashier Combat Scenarios
Naruto Had Grounded Combat, But The Boruto Fights Feel Much More Exciting
At first, Naruto had a fairly gritty jutsu system, and the technological depiction was inconsistent. Most tasks that were carried out used either manual means or relied on advanced-level jutsu. It was the same for combat as well. All the fights had a primal feeling, where the most advanced use of technology was obsolete ninja tools. The supernatural feel was much more prevalent, and this came at the expense of the lack of focus on modern tech.
Boruto: 8 Strongest Scientific Ninja Tools
The Boruto anime series introduced some very powerful scientific ninja tools. These are easily the strongest of them.
On the other hand, the key plot points of Boruto revolve around Frankenstein-level tech horrors. The show places a huge emphasis on science without morality, and even goes as far as to use it in practice by creating ethically wrong sentient weapons. Certain characters, like Ada and her brother Daemon, are just powerful humanoid weapons with existential crises. Every such character in the show shows a clear desire to surpass human limitations and is willing to pay the price for it. These philosophical themes add a richness and maturity to the anime that its predecessor lacks.
1 Himawari Uzumaki
The Secret Weapon Of The Boruto Anime
The character of Himawari Uzumaki is the hidden ace of the Boruto anime, and is known for stealing the spotlight whenever she’s on the screen. She inherits Hinata’s charm, Naruto’s determination, and the raw potential of the Hyuga clan. Plus, with Kurama’s reincarnation now linked to her, she’s a force to be reckoned with.
What's surprising is that she's shockingly composed and mature despite being so young and, on top of that, being Naruto's daughter. She shows a deep sort of empathy that, frankly, a lot of other characters in the show lack. Altogether, she’s shaping up to be one of the most promising and well-rounded characters in the series.
- Release Date
- April 5, 2017
- Network
- TV Tokyo
- Creator
- Masashi Kishimoto
