Naruto: The End of an Era

​Honestly I thought I would be able to hold off on writing about anime for a bit, however, when I found this news, I knew I had to make an exception. Lets get right into it and tackle one of my favorite topics – and more importantly, one of my favorite shows – Naruto. 

​It has recently been announced that one of the “big three” anime is coming to an end. After 15 years of manga and anime production, Naruto will be airing its final episode on Thursday, March 23rd. Although I happen to be a bit behind on the series, since I watch it English dubbed, it is still crazy for me to think about the fact that the show is finally ending after a staggering 720 episode run.
 
I happened upon the show in a rather spontaneous fashion. I was at a family dinner and decided to go down into the basement and watch some TV for a bit. Opting for my favorite channel at the time, Cartoon Network, (channel 54 whaddup), I happened upon the American airing of the very first episode of Naruto. I was 8 years old at the time, and captivated by the parallels I saw with Pokémon, in the Nine-tailed Fox. Thus, I began following the show for what would end up being the next 12 years of my life, having never missed an episode.
 
Without Naruto, I would have never become invested in this world of anime. I, like most elementary school kids, watched the classic shows (Pokémon, Yu-Gi-Oh!, and Digimon), but didn’t even realize they were considered anime until I was older. As time went on, I found myself in search of other shows that offered me the same enjoyment I got from Naruto, thus expanding my repertoire and delving further into the anime genre as a whole. I have yet to find an American television show that has offered me so many of my favorite characters and complex storylines – just don’t get me started on the filler episodes. I don’t think I have encountered another show that has been able to make me laugh, cry, and full on sob. Even now, it still remains one of my favorite shows, and always my go-to when I try to get people into anime (it has yet to fail me).
 
However, fear not my friends, for this isn’t exactly the “end” of Naruto, just the end of the Naruto series. Luckily for us, just 12 short days after the end of Naruto: Shippuden, Boruto: The Next Generation will air in Japan. Boruto will follow the next generation of young ninja in our favorite Village Hidden in the Leaves. While it will be a few years until I make it to the Boruto series, as I still follow the English dub, watching it the way I originally did, I cannot wait to see what creator Ukyō Kodachi has in store for us.
 
Well, a bit of a longer post than I was expecting but I had to make sure to try my best and do right by my long time favorite show. Haven’t watched Naruto? Well, luckily for you they have the entire 220 episode original Naruto series on Netflix for all of your binge watching needs; try it – you won’t regret it.