Reception

Reception
Naruto has been well received in both Japan and the United States. As of volume 36, the manga has sold over 71 million copies in Japan,[111] while in 2008 it increased to 89 million.[112] During 2008, volume 43 sold 1.1 million copies becoming the 9th best-selling comic from Japan. Volumes 41, 42 and 44 also ranked within the top 20, but had smaller sold copies.[113] In total, the manga sold 4.2 million copies in Japan during 2008, becoming the 2nd best-selling series.[114] In the first half from 2009, it ranked as the 3rd best-seller manga from Japan, having sold 3.4 million copies.[115] In such period, volume 45 ranked 5th with 1.1 million sold copies, while volume 46 ranked 9th, having sold 864,708 copies and volume 44 at 40th place.[116]

The Naruto manga series has become one of Viz's top properties,[117] accounting for nearly 10% of all manga sales in 2006.[118] ICv2 has listed it as the top manga property from North America several times.[119][120] The seventh volume of Viz's release became the first manga win a Quill Award when it claimed the award for "Best Graphic Novel" in 2006.[118] The manga also appeared in the USA Today Booklist with volume 11 holding the title of the highest ranked manga series on the list, until it was surpassed by volume 28, which claimed the 17th rank in its first week of release in March 2008.[121][122][123] Volume 28 also had one of the biggest debut weeks of any manga in years, becoming the top selling manga volume of 2008 as well as the second best-seller book in North America.[124][125] During its release, volume 29 ranked #57, while the volume 28 had dropped to #139.[126] In April 2007, volume 14 earned Viz the "Manga Trade Paperback of the Year" Gem Award from Diamond Comic Distributors.[127] The manga series also became the top manga property from 2008 in the United States with 31 volumes having been published during the chart.[128] Searches for the word "Naruto" were #7 on the Yahoo! web search engine's list of the top 10 most popular search terms of 2008, and #4 from 2007.[129] Responding to Naruto's success, Kishimoto said in Naruto Collector Winter 2007/2008 that he was "very glad that the American audience has accepted and understood ninja. It shows that the American audience has good taste... because it means they can accept something previously unfamiliar to them."[130]

The series has received praise and criticism by several reviewers. A. E. Sparrow from IGN noted how some manga volumes focus only in certain characters to the point the number of fans increases. He also praised the way that Kishimoto manages to make a remarkable combinations of fighting scenes, comedy and good artwork.[131] The anime and manga magazine Neo described Naruto's character as "irksome", but attributed the series' "almost sickening addictiveness" to its level of characterization.[132] Carl Kimlinger from Anime News Network (ANN) praised the designs of the characters, since every one shows their unique way of acting and appearance. He also noted how even the "goofiest looking character" can act "damn cool" when he fights. However, Kimlinger noted that in some volumes there are several fights, so the plot is not able to develop, however he praised how each of the battles were emotional.[133] The series has also been praised for remaining enjoyable after several volumes by Javier Lugo from mangalife.com, who also praised the antagonists as well as the fights scenes from the manga. Kishimoto's artwork was also commented by Lugo as it makes the story "dramatic, exciting, and just right for the story he’s telling".[134] The start of Part II has been praised in another review by Casey Brienza from ANN. She noted how well the characters were developed as they had new appearances and abilities. Brienza also praised the balance between plot and action scenes allowing the readers the enjoy the volume. However, she noted that it is not frequent that all the volumes have the same quality.[135] Briana Lawrence from Mania Entertainment added that in Part II, the manga feels "adult" since several characters grew up but there are still comedy parts in the series. However, Viz's translations were criticized for being "inconsisent" due to the change of some Japanese terms to English, while other words were left intact.[136]

In TV Asahi's latest top 100 Anime Ranking from October 2006, Naruto ranked 17th on the list.[137] Naruto Shippuden has ranked several times as one of most watched series in Japan.[138][139] The Naruto anime adaptation won the "Best Full-Length Animation Program Award" in the Third UStv Awards held in the University of Santo Tomas in Manila, Philippines.[140] The first of the DVD compilations containing thirteen episodes, released by Viz was nominated at the American Anime Awards for best package design.[141] It also ranked as the third best-seller anime property from all 2008.[142] Naruto was named "Best Full Animated Program" at the USTv Student's Choice Awards 2009 held at the UST Medicine Auditorium on February 19, 2009.[143] In ICv2's "Top 10 Anime Properties" from the first half of 2009, Naruto ranked as the second best anime franchise.[144] The episodes from Naruto: Shippuden have appeared various times in Japanse Anime TV Ranking.[145][146] DVD sales from Naruto: Shippuden have also been good, having appeared several times in the Japanese Animation DVD Ranking.[147][148] The freely streamed episodes from Naruto: Shippuden have an average of 160,000 viewers a week.[149] Naruto has also been 20th among shows and channels from Hulu in February from 2009. In Joost, it was first during the same month. In February, Naruto: Shippuden was first among the animated shows on Joost while Naruto stayed second.[150]

The Naruto anime was listed as the 38th best animated show in IGN's Top 100 Animated Series.[151] Reviewers noted that the primary focus of the series was on the fighting since they consider that the fight scenes are more dedicated than backgrounds. The music has also been noted to be a good match with the fighting scenes though it sometimes interferes with the dialogues.[152] Martin Theron from ANN criticized the series for long fights, but he also noted that most of them break the "stereotypical shōnen concepts." The soundtracks have been praised for enhancing the excitement and mood of the storytelling.[153] Although Christina Carpenter of T.H.E.M. Anime Reviews considered the characters from the series as "likeable", she commented that most of them did not surpass the "stereotypics" that appear in shōnen manga. She also considered Kishimoto "an average artist at best" and derided the poor transition of his artistic style into animation.[154] Despite this, the second reviewer from T.H.E.M. Anime Reviews, Derrick L. Tucker, admitted that when the animators were at their best, they produced "artistic renderings that leave little to be desired on the part of fans of the manga", but concluded the animation was "a mixed bag". He also added that while fights were entertaining, due to the large number of them, the plot takes time to continue.[155] Some critics panned the Battle at Hidden Falls special, as being a throw back to the earliest episodes of the main Naruto series. ANN' s reviewer called it a poor addition to the Naruto franchise that didn't "do the series justice" but may make viewers gain new appreciation for how far the series has progressed since its earliest episodes.[156] Todd Douglass Jr. from DVD talk commented the OVA was good overrall but it still lacked the depth that common story arcs from the series have.[157] Naruto: Shippuden received good response from Activeanime's David C. Jones who commented on the new characters designs and the animation's improvement. Like Lawrence when reviewing the Part II manga, Jones also felt the series to be more serious and more drammatic.[158]

References