Manga Review: Naruto GN 68

Naruto volume 68
Author: Masashi Kishimoto
Viz Media/Shonen Jump
192 pages

Spoilers for the current arc of Naruto, up to chapter 657.

Path: Even as the Shinobi Alliance’s resolve begins to falter in the face of Obito’s overwhelming power, Naruto refuses to give in. But how can he turn the tables with the odds so stacked against him? Can Naruto and Sasuke work together long enough to lead the ninja world to victory?!

The first 90 percent of this volume of Naruto is pretty good. We have shinobi working across village and country lines against Obito, Naruto and Sasuke teaming up yet again in the name of saving the ninja world, and a good amount of action in every chapter. It's a shame the last ten percent had me wanting to throw the thing across the room. Basically, Kishimoto decided that one final boss wasn't enough. No, he added yet another one. And at that point, I nearly screamed.

In this book, all of the action quickly boils down to the fight between Team Naruto and Sasuke versus Team Obito. It's obvious that both Naruto and Sasuke's powers have blossomed in unfathomable ways since they last fought, and their abilities joined together is hard to beat.

Shonen Duet: Naruto GN 67 and One Piece GN 72

Today, I'm tackling two Weekly Shonen Jump titles at the same time: the newest English releases of Naruto and One Piece. 

I would have had Bleach in the mix, but as far as I can tell, volume 62 hasn't been released yet. Which is a shame, as the cover for that book looks great.

Naruto volume 67 by Masashi Kishimoto: Obito has shocked the ninja world by absorbing Ten Tails into himself and transforming into the ultimate jinchuriki. But what is the extent of Obito’s power, and can he even control it? Naruto and Sasuke will have to team up with the revived Hokage to even stand a chance!

This volume is basically more fighting between the allied ninja forces and Obito, who has now become a bigger threat after becoming Ten Tails' schizophrenic jinchuriki and putting his plan of destroying the known world. In response, Naruto and Sasuke and the once dead Hokage make the most unlikely team as they pull out all the stops with improved techniques, pausing occasionally to bicker as they often do.

Book Sprites: Two Shonen, One Reaction

Some times, you have time to write a 1,000+ word review of a single book. Some times, you just don't. For those times, we have Book Sprites, compact book reviews for the discerning reader with no time to lose.

Spoilers for recent events in Naruto and One Piece lay beyond this point!

I've got the newest volumes of Naruto and One Piece, so this post is Shonen Jump heavy. They have two things in common: they're both from long-running shonen series in WSJ and their respective new books are decent but not mind-bendingly fantastic. Although, for two series that have handily passed past fifty volumes and still go on, it's not a bad thing to have less than awesome books.

Naruto volume 66 by Masashi Kishimoto. This volume has the much heralded return of Team Seven: Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura. And while the reunion involves a lot of epic moments in ninja technique and really shows the levels that Sakura and Sasuke have reached since the time skip, it lacks a bit of the emotional resonance I was hoping for.

Manga Review: Naruto GN 65

Naruto volume 65
Author: Masashi Kishimoto
Viz Manga/Shonen Jump
189 pages

Hashirama and Madara: As the battle against Obito and Madara continues to heat up, Sasuke has Orochimaru revive the previous four Hokage! In order to learn the truth, Sasuke will listen to First Hokage Hashirama's tale of how the village was founded. But what will Sasuke's next move be once he gets what he wants?! (Source: Viz Manga)

Spoiler warning: Review will contain some spoilers of events in volume 65 as well as recent volumes leading up to this one.

Recently, every time I open up a new volume of Naruto, I'm worried that it will return to the slump it was in about five books ago. Thankfully, this latest book is not in any slump at all. In the sixty-fifth volume of Naruto, Kishimoto returns to what he does best, integrating the past and the present through flashbacks, and showing how in the world of shonen, he is really underappreciated as a talented storyteller. You think Naruto and think fights, right? This book has fighting, yes, but it has a heart that can be seen through its characters that battles just can't convey.

Manga Review: Naruto GN 64

Naruto volume 64
Author: Masashi Kishimoto
Viz Manga/Shonen Jump
189 pages

Ten Tails: With the masked man's identity revealed as Obito, Kakashi's resolve is severely shaken. It will be up to Naruto to inspire his old master to continue the fight. But when Ten Tails is finally awakened, will the entire ninja world be doomed? (Source: Viz Manga)

Spoiler warning: Review will contain some spoilers of events in volume 64 as well as recent volumes leading up to this one.

Here's the great thing about Naruto right now. We've got a world-encompassing ninja war going down, pitting every village possible against Obito and Madara's machinations. Everyone is putting their lives on the lines to protect what's important to them. And unlike some shonen manga which would be holding back on the body count, Naruto has no such qualms. It's war and people are going to die. And that's what happens in this book.

Manga Review: Naruto GN 63

Naruto volume 63
Author: Masashi Kishimoto
Viz Media/Shonen Jump
189 pages

World of Dreams: With the help of Kakashi and Guy, Naruto seems to have found a way around Tobi's invincible abilities. But why do Tobi's techniques seem to mimic Kakashi's so closely? And when Tobi's mask is finally torn off, will the revelation shock the ninja world?! (Source: Viz Media)

Spoiler alert: Post contains spoilers for the various plot twists in Naruto's 63rd volume. Read onward with caution!

In this ongoing Great Ninja War, it's hard to remember that those involved are human beings, with lives and aspirations and personal histories. This is especially true when said people are the antagonists of the story. This volume explores the past of the man we know as Tobi and his true self, as well as why he's fighting the way he is. 

Even though the main battle doesn't progress very much in this book, the sheer amount of Tobi-based flashbacks and plot twists make it one of the most essential reads in the series.

Nine Jinchuriki, Five Kage, One Neon Ninja

Reading Masashi Kishimoto's Naruto Volumes 59-62

Post contains spoilers for the above volumes of Naruto and the current story arc as a whole.

Now aligned with the tailed beasts and his fellow jinchûriki hosts more than ever, Naruto impresses the Allied Shinobi Forces with his newfound strength. But his comrades are not going to leave this final battle with the forces of Tobi up to Naruto alone. As they rush to assist their friend, Sasuke returns. And this time, he’s intent on taking out Naruto once and for all. (Source: Viz Media)

In case you haven't been keeping up with the ongoing adventures of Naruto Uzumaki and his ninja friends, here's a quick and dirty recap: the entire ninja world is at war with Kabuto's zombie army, while Madara/Tobi makes his own moves to put the world into a permanent illusion via a devious genjutsu of his. Nothing is peaceful, everything is in disarray, but good news, the kunai industry is probably making a hell of a profit keeping everyone armed to the teeth on both sides.

Tanjoubi Omedetou, Naruto Uzumaki!

Put on your Village of the Hidden Leaf headbands and eat all the bowls of ramen you can find: October 10th is Naruto Uzumaki's birthday! Naruto, for the few people not in the know, is the star of the Masashi Kishimoto manga by the same name. Uzumaki Naruto is a loud orange-clad ninja whose dream is to become Hokage and kick the ass of anyone who says otherwise. His dreams, however, have been temporarily put on hold due to a great ninja war, his best friend defecting from his village, and the fact that he's still too young to be Hokage. Y'know, minor quibbles.

Naruto is arguably the most well-known shonen manga hero from the past ten years, up there with Ichigo Kurosaki of Bleach and Luffy from One Piece. Viz Media corners the U.S. market on Naruto in both manga and anime form, and today they are celebrating Naruto above all social media platforms with contests and giveaways. Go and check them out!

I wonder how Masashi Kishimoto has spent Naruto's birthday in the past? Knowing the schedule of a manga-ka, probably working on pages for the next chapter of the series! Wait, how old is Naruto now...?

Manga Review: Naruto GN 57 & 58

Naruto volume 57 & 58
Author: Masashi Kishimoto
Viz Media/Shonen Jump
192 pages (v.57) & 208 pages (v.58)

Madara of the Akatsuki joins the fray on the battlefield. His powerful attacks, and a secret plan, take their toll on the Allied Shinobi Forces. Naruto and Bee rush to help their friends, but the leader of the Cloud Village will do anything to stop Naruto from risking his life—even if he has to fight Naruto to do it! (Source: Goodreads)

Spoiler warning: This review contains spoilers for the 57th and 58th volumes as well as the current story arc of the Naruto manga. Read with caution!

It's the Fourth Great Ninja War and Naruto has started to look like Bleach in the sense that the bodies are hitting the floor at a rapid pace and every corner of the ninja world is part of this struggle. Even as the various villages have allied together to fight the Akatsuki, it's not looking good for our protagonists. That is, until Naruto finally joins the fray. Finally! In these two volumes, Naruto takes back the spotlight and once again rules his own series.

Manga Review: Naruto GN 55

Review warning: Post contains spoilers for Naruto volume 55. Read with caution!

Naruto volume 55

Author: Masashi Kishimoto

Viz Media/Shonen Jump

200 pages

The Great War Begins: Evil masterminds Kabuto and Madara instigate a skirmish with Naruto and friends on Turtle Island. The Allied Shinobi Forces prepare to attack, but are they ready for Kabuto's horde of reanimated dead ninja?!

This feels like the volume that should have came after fifty-three, quality wise. After a rather lackluster and spotty as hell fifty-hour, this latest volume brings back the story-telling and action that marks Kishimoto’s skills as one of the best shonen manga-kas in Weekly Shonen Jump today. With the return of many supporting characters to the main arc and the start of what looks to be a multi-volume ninja war, it’s clear that Naruto is finally back to form.

Manga Review: Naruto GN 54; Bleach GN 38; One Piece GN 60

It seems like fate (or perhaps hitsuzen) that I should get volumes of the holy trinity of Weekly Shonen Jump titles at the same time, right? So naturally, I’ll review them all in the same post!

Review warning: Post contains spoilers for Naruto, Bleach, and One Piece's latest volumes. Read on with caution!

Naruto volume 54

Author: Masashi Kishimoto

Viz Media/Shonen Jump

192 pages

Viaduct To Peace: Naruto and his team engage in an intense battle with the Akatsuki organization as both sides seek the power to determine the future of their land. Internecine fighting weakens the Akatsuki, but will their dark forces sideline Naruto?

Maybe the previous volume set my expectations too high, but this latest book was only pretty good. Considering how much is going on at this point in the story, however, ‘pretty good’ isn’t good enough. 

For a story that should be going full-steam into an oncoming ninja war, it’s being hampered by a bloated cast and too much going on at once. Kishimoto is having a hell of a time juggling all his characters and plot threads, and it shows.

Manga Review: Naruto 53

Naruto volume 53

Author: Masashi Kishimoto

Viz Media/Shonen Jump

192 pages

The Birth of Naruto: Naruto faces his inner demons at the Waterfall of Truth! Can he tame the darkness inside himself while still retaining his biju's power? An important figure from his past shows up during the struggle to relate the history of his family and village, revealing astonishing new information about Naruto and Nine Tails!

Spoiler warning: Spoilers abound for the Naruto series so far in the following review. Read on with caution!

Few people do training story arcs like Masashi Kishimoto. Sure, for the longest time it seemed like Yoshihiro Togashi of Yu Yu Hakusho fame was the shonen manga-ka most (in)famous for his training arcs, which were usually very long and very multi-layered, but recently Kishimoto has shown us what he can really do with some age-old genre tropes, and what comes out of all of this is volume fifty-three of Naruto, in which Naruto fights himself and then fights inside himself, only to find some unexpected assistance from a character I did not expect to see return any time soon. This volume is not so much the birth of Naruto – though it is that too – as much as the rebirth of Naruto, in which he embraces who he truly is and uses it to his own advantage in some incredible character growth that is much needed after what seemed like volumes of the young man struggling with his own self-identity. In short, if you are a fan of the series' title orange-clad character, this is a volume of Naruto to marvel and enjoy and possible get a bit teary over.

Read the rest of my review after the jump!