Before sharing my reviews I want to give a shout-out to everyone out there who hasn't given up on their dreams. To those born with a lifelong journey of grit, bonds, and the fire to never give up. I pray your dreams and visions comes true đđź
Here's the deal, just like everyone else I didnât grow up watching it. My first real encounter with Naruto was a lazy weekend scroll through Netflix. I was curious how something that started in the early 2000s remained so popular. Then I read that Naruto topped Netflixâs anime charts in 2024 with 330 million hours streamed. Wow!! That's a bomb đŁ
That shocked me. A show ending in 2017 still crushing it nearly a decade later? I clicked play, not expecting fireworks. But the next thing I knew, I was watching a blue-haired kid boot a giant frog and say, âBelieve it!â â and I was interested and hooked.
Naruto revolves around Naruto Uzumaki, a brash, solitary orphan who has the dreaded Nine-Tails Fox (Kurama) sealed up in him. Being labeled an outcast, he has two dreams, acceptance and the desire to be Hokage, the strongest ninja, and the leader of his village.
Trained hard, made blatant errors, suffered devastating defeats, and established, seemingly indestructible, friendships with other characters, such as Sasuke and Sakura, Naruto battles foes and himself, more specifically, during the long and epic follow-up, ShippĹŤden. He struggles against the forces of evil in the form of his foes Pain, the Akatsuki and Sasuke which are some of the dark themes that he is exposed to which are war, revenge and redemption.
Among the things that I adored in Naruto is the fact that the anime is about
1.Bonds and friendship: The bonds in Naruto are what hold it together. Naruto and Sasuke, or Naruto and Team 7, demonstrate how the wounds can be healed by trust, forgiveness, and loyalty even in the most extreme cases.
Stopping the Cycle of Hate: Obito losing and Madara seeking revenge, to Pain and his philosophy Naruto is a story about how hate can cause more suffering, and how by treating it with compassion one can stop this vicious cycle.
Redemption: Characters such as Gaara and Sasuke associate their dark past to a brighter future- it shows that no matter how lost one is, he can always come home.
Legacy and Dreams The Will of Fire
What holds Konoha together is the so-called Will of Fire; to bequeath hope, protection and courage to the next generation, to Naruto as well.
I could relate to Naruto with part of my personality because Naruto is an underdog that does not give up despite being underestimated.
When Naruto pardoned Sasuke I remembered pardoning one whom I believed I could not. When Gaara opens his heart as Naruto extends his hand to him, I feel the strength of giving compassion.
And when Kakashi decided to grow instead of get bitter- wow. That struck. You do not have to be a tragedy.
Naruto didn't just entertain meâit carved lessons into me:
Fight your battles, even if itâs painful.
Protect your people, even when it costs.
Believe in yourself, even if the world doubts.
Let go of hate, even if itâs justified.
Grow through connections, not isolation
One of the significant impacts of this Anime is the 250 million manga copies sold. This anime is a perennial top-seller. Naruto topped Netflix in 2024 with 330 million viewing hours. And it still holds cultural weightâfrom rapper references to athlete Nike collabs
Naruto is not just anime, it is the journey of emotions. It is all about explosive ninja action and heartfelt philosophy and raw pain. It poses questions like who are we, who do we aspire to be and who would we defend.
Watching Naruto is like becoming an adult--with losses, with achievements and with wounds that remind you to constantly move on. Itâs messy. Itâs beautiful. It is life with all its ardor and faults.
So in case you want a series to believe in, to remind you why it is worth hoping, start with Naruto. May it break your heart, raise your spirit and make you believe again.
Thumbnail is designed by me on pixelLab and other images are screenshot from the movie