Remember, Remember, the 10th of November. The end of the Naruto plot.
Sorry that was bit of stretch but I couldn't help myself.
Like so many manga readers of my generation, Naruto was a defining series. Sure there are other incredibly popular manga eries out there (One piece is still going strong), but Naruto was a title that introduced tons of readers to the larger world of anime and manga culture. Even though I stopped reading frequently around chapter 500, I still caught up every so often just to see what was happening, and to lament at how wacky the story was getting (even by Naruto standards). So when it was announced that Naruto was coming to an end on November 10th after 15 years of publication, I couldn't help but feel nostalgic and in strange way look forward to the ending. Partially because it was nice to see some closure, but also because I wanted to see what the last 15 years had been building up to. It was after reading the epilogue that two thoughts occured to me. The first thought that crossed my mind was: "Wow, it's really over". The second was: "Naruto is the manga equivalent of Harry Potter."
Now, what follows isn't a review of the ending, or a essay on why Naruto is ninja Harry Potter... even though he totally is. What follows is my thoughts on the series as a whole, its effect on me, the ending, AND how Naruto is ninja Harry Potter. Yes, it seems like a lot and is incredibly disorganized but bear with me.
I'm going to be Hokage someday!
I've been watching anime since I was five and reading manga since I was ten. So when I first started watching and reading Naruto when I was thirteen, I was already well-immersed in anime and manga sub-culture. But there was something about that spunky blond-haired, blue-eyed ninja and his world that had me hooked from day one. It was cool, excited, exotic, and of course fun. This was also in the days before CrunchyRoll so you had to have different means of getting your animated ninja fix. It also helped that is when I started watching things in the original Japanese, so the anime adaptation just encouraged my obsession. I say obsession because it was a series that I religiously read when a new chapter came out and watched when there was a new episode from Japan online. To go further at my own expense, I posted on fan forums, read fan-fiction, bought character plushies, bought a missing-nin headband, even bought a copy of volume 6 in German when I went to germany because it seemed like a cool souvenir (For the record, I did buy better, more authentic, german swag as well :P).
Looking back on it now, I think I would say it was my first proper fandom. Nowadays, most fans are a part of multiple fandoms. But back then (aka 2005), most gathering spots for fans (translation: tumblr wasn't invented yet) were mostly franchise exclusive... if you wanted to support multiple things the best spot was probably a general fan fiction website. Just as a contrast, the fandoms I'm a part of now are not only far more wide-ranging, but being more mature I'm not as openly fanatical... as fanatical as a hermetic, anti-social teenager could get.
The psychological impact of fandoms aside, the point is that Naruto was that incredibly popular franchise that just kept us going. It was as I've been saying, the Harry Potter of the manga world.
You're a ninja, Naruto
So for some this might come across as a bit of stretch but with the way the series ended and certain key plot elements, you can't help but wonder what inspired Kishimoto and some of his plot desicions.
Resurrection Stone, but not really
While it's a common trope in all fiction for the dead to come back and support the hero... Naruto's constant return of dead characters in the latter half definitely had some striking parallels the last Harry Potter Book, especially concerning Naruto's Parents. Who also happen to die to protect their son, instilling him with the power to defeat the one who tried to kill him in the first place (sort of). Sound familiar? Now of course there are several stories who use this same premise for character development, but I just thought how crazy the similarities were starting to get to me.
Years Later
This section is all about the last chapter of the manga. So if you haven't read it and don't want to know what happens, you'll want to skip ahead to the next line of text with bold font.
Chapter 700 is an epilogue that takes place years after the final battle between Naruto and Sasuke. We see everything living happily ever after, Naruto is Hokage, there are kids everywhere... the future looks bright for Konoha. Funny how similar that is to the ending of Harry Potter, although that ending in my opinion leaves a lot more to be desired.
There's been a lot of divisive discussions online amongst fans about the ending. While some of these might boil down to shipping wars, others bring up more compelling arguements about whether or not this last chapter, the culmination of 15 years of publication; was ultimately rushed. I myself don't agree with that notion. Since unlike Harry's ending, we know there's a future for Naruto.
So is there a point to these comparisons? Not really, expect that it's curious to see the parallels in popular fiction and yet another reminder that another great story has come to an end.
The 'Kings' of Konoha
So while the manga is over, there's still the anime (filled with as much filler as always) and the last movie coming out next month. There's also the side stories and spin-offs coming out next year, so the future is looking bright for Naruto and his comrades. However, it still doesn't change the fact that the story and characters that so many people loved and were affected by is over. As I said before, once the story; in my opinion, took major dip in quality, I stopped reading as frequently. But in the end I could never forget the profound impact of that crazy ninja. As a reviewer of the chapter said himself, for him this was exactly like Harry Potter's ending. To paraphrase his point, "A return to where it all began, and in the end a sudden closing to a franchise that I grew up with." I couldn't agree with him more. In prep for this post, I started watching old episodes and movies from the franchise, and the nostalgia was almost overwhelming. So all I can say now is sayonara Uzumaki Naruto. It's been a great adventure, dattebayo.
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