The not-such-a-disaster that is the Naruto Anime (Spoilers)

[Zankaru Zelladonii]

Confessions is finally animated?! YES! If only I did not know kishi would completely ignore this chapter from now on.... I will do my best to enjoy it anyways.

[Magnificate]

That was the first episode I watched since quite some time, two years in fact. It was bad.

Is it just me or did the animation style change? Hinata always had those shiny hair? Flashbacks felt very uninspired. Seriously, should do better than generic rescue-from-bullies. Since we know there will be no resolution, the episode felt kinda pointless.

Still, liked the Twin Lions jutsu animation.

[Zankaru Zelladonii]

Bleh, why did they have to add dialogue to try and flesh out the scene? The manga was dramatic, that was just... not as good I guess.

Pretty ok fight scene though, heavy emphasis on ok.

Bah, im just going to watch the next one for the kyuubi breaking out, then no more anime again.

[doc.exe]

That was the first episode I watched since quite some time, two years in fact. It was bad.

Is it just me or did the animation style change? Hinata always had those shiny hair? Flashbacks felt very uninspired. Seriously, should do better than generic rescue-from-bullies. Since we know there will be no resolution, the episode felt kinda pointless.

Still, liked the Twin Lions jutsu animation.

Pardon me if I say I completely disagree. It may be my Hinata's fanboy side talking, but I found the episode to be great.

I agree that the change in the animation style was a bit jarring (apparently it was done by another studio), but in the case of the flashbacks, I believe the stylization meshed well with Hinata's character (specially considering the entire episode was almost a love letter to her). The only part when I disliked the animation was at the beginning of the fighting scene, but overall I found it to be well implemented.

As to the flashbacks, I think they helped to give momentum to the conffession and the fight, something I personally believe the manga lacked (it was just too sudden there in my opinion). Admittedly, the part with the bullies was cliched, but everything else was fine. Not to mention that (putting aside the discussion on its canonical value) we finally have an actual image of Hinata's mother, as well as a quasi-official version of the fight with Hanabi where Hinata's status as heiress was disgraced.

And the fight against Pain itself...

Unlike the fiasco unfulfilling version that the mangaka and his stupid macho complex gave us, where Hinata was brutally stuffed in the proverbial fridge just to trigger Naruto's 6 tails transformation, this fighting sequence actually made her justice as a character. Rather than blindly charge against an opponent that she knew she had no chance of defeating, she selected the most sensible option: Disabling Pain's chakra receivers to liberate Naruto. Not to mention she actually managed to hit Pain and the final part when she refused to surrender reaffirmed her determinator status. The entire scene was even more dramatic in the anime than in the manga, IMHO.

As you said, the fact that the conffession issue is still unresolved makes a part of my soul as a fan bleed. But overall, I believe this episode just reaffirms something that I have been saying too often recently: The animation team is doing more justice to the characters of this series than their own creator.

[Zankaru Zelladonii]

I dont understand what she was trying to do by breaking the rods. Even if somehow those rods can no longer channel pein's chakra after being snapped, which I think would be odd since they are just solid rods to focus his chakra as far as I can tell, naruto is still pinned to the ground by multiple rods.

Pulling the rods out, yes good idea, just breaking them in half just does not seem to do accomplish anything.

But then I guess you cant really do much when adding in things when the manga outcome is written in stone.

[Nasdaq]

Not only does the animation team do more justice to the characters, they also seem to have a shipping streak a mile wide; of course, this goes both ways, as they accentuate both of the primary ships for Naruto, but I can't say I'm disappointing by this episode. It's given me my muse back, so that makes me happy.

Also, this hold some significance as it was this chapter of the manga that got me to really pick up and read it; I'd never bothered with Naruto much, I knew the characters, liked the pairings, and whatnot. When I'd heard Hinata had died, I actually went and read, and watched, the whole thing to catch up, and finding out she wasn't was a nice surprise for a new fan. Looking forward to the future, and the likely futile hope that Kishi will make up his mind and actually resolve the pairings.

[doc.exe]

Indeed, it could even be stated that the animation team is managing the romantic subplots better than Kishimoto himself. I wonder if that means the issue of this chapter will be somewhat acknowledged briefly in future episodes rather than just painfully ignored.

I dont understand what she was trying to do by breaking the rods. Even if somehow those rods can no longer channel pein's chakra after being snapped, which I think would be odd since they are just solid rods to focus his chakra as far as I can tell, naruto is still pinned to the ground by multiple rods.

Pulling the rods out, yes good idea, just breaking them in half just does not seem to do accomplish anything.

But then I guess you cant really do much when adding in things when the manga outcome is written in stone.

Actually, if you watch the scene carefully, it's clear she was trying to remove them by hitting them rather than breaking them. It's just that some of the rods were cut in half by the strength of the attack rather than get out of Naruto's body. But, if I'm not mistaken, by the end of the sequence only the rods in his shoulders and hands remained.

[Magnificate]

Pardon me if I say I completely disagree. It may be my Hinata's fanboy side talking, but I found the episode to be great.

No problem here, just difference of opinions. I too happen to like Hinata and support Naruto/Hinata pairing.

As to the flashbacks, I think they helped to give momentum to the conffession and the fight, something I personally believe the manga lacked (it was just too sudden there in my opinion).

Well, I'd say, that if there was little build-up in the previous episodes, then sudden would be better. :D

Not to mention that we finally have an actual image of Hinata's mother, as well as a quasi-official version of the fight with Hanabi where Hinata's status as heiress was disgraced.

True. Hanabi kicks ass. :D

The animation team is doing more justice to the characters of this series than their own creator.

Yeah, it's one of the reasons I like some of the filler episodes even despite their relatively poor story and plotholes. (For example the Trapmaster episodes.)

[MEKristian]

At least the Staff can admit to their Hinata-love.

[Flux_Blade]

Actually I liked the manga chapter much better than the anime episode. First off, I really liked how they animated the twin lions justu and the spar with Hanabi and Hinata. And if it was just a stand-alone episode, the fight between Hinata and Pain was done really well.

I liked it better in the manga how Hinata followed his example to improve herself, especially because it makes her someone that believed in him that didn't need to be physically saved.

Also, my one problem with the fight between Pain and Hinata is the two are at a high strength ability. Ignoring Kishi's other problems with females, it sort of reminds me the ability difference between Naruto and Kakashi during the bell test. Genin-Jounin Chunnin-Kage.

[doc.exe]

Yeah, it's one of the reasons I like some of the filler episodes even despite their relatively poor story and plotholes. (For example the Trapmaster episodes.)

Agreed. If some of the worst filler arcs like the Mizuki arc or the Raiga arc have at least one redeeming quality is that they give characters like Ino and Chouji or Lee and Tenten some time in the spotlight.

I liked it better in the manga how Hinata followed his example to improve herself, especially because it makes her someone that believed in him that didn't need to be physically saved.

Well, being kind of fair, Naruto actually failed to save her. It could probably be stated that his determination to not give up in front of the bullies was what inspired her rather than his attempt to rescue her.

At least the Staff can admit to their Hinata-love.

Agreed.

[Darkandus]

Just watched the latest episode. It can be summed up with three words.

What.

The.

Fuck.

The art! MY EYES! Did they blow their entire budget and had to hire elementary school children or something? The expressions and landscapes at some points were so bad it literally looked like someone had spent a minute drawing and colouring them in MS Paint.

Now, onto the good. Despite the "art" the fight between Ninetails Naruto and Pain was pretty good. And given how badly the Kyuubi has been portrayed in the recent chapters of the manga I'll forgive and, dare I say it, even enjoy the machine gun fire, Missile spam, Nuclear explosion, Lasers and Meteor rain.

[doc.exe]

Agreed. The fight was awesome, but the art... Oh, my eyes! The art!

It was so bad that at times it even make the fighting look like some old Loney Tunes cartoon. That stylized animation may have worked well in the chapter dedicated to Hinata, but not in the chapter dedicated to showcase Naruto's 6-8 tails forms blasting on Pain.

At least, from the preview, it looks like next chapter will be a return to the usual animation style.

[Darkandus]

Some of the hilariously bad bits.

Spoiler: show

He gets nailed into the ground.

Spoiler: show

Pain getting his Sonic on.

Spoiler: show

Every time I see it I can't help laughing.

[MEKristian]

Looks like Pain has surpassed Naruto in "looking cool".

[doc.exe]

*Shudders at the amount of memetic mutation this episode is going to create.*

At least the part inside Naruto's mindscape looked well.