Boruto
This article may require copy editing for grammar, style, cohesion, tone, or spelling. (October 2017) |
Boruto: Naruto Next Generations | |
A manga cover featuring three teenagers from Konohagakure and several animals, including a cat | |
ボルト | |
---|---|
Genre | Adventure, fantasy[1] |
Manga | |
Written by | Ukyō Kodachi |
Illustrated by | Mikio Ikemoto |
Published by | Shueisha |
English publisher | |
Imprint | Jump Comics |
Magazine | Weekly Shōnen Jump |
English magazine | |
Demographic | Shōnen |
Original run | May 9, 2016 – present |
Volumes | 4 |
Anime television series | |
Directed by |
|
Written by |
|
Music by |
|
Studio | Pierrot |
Licensed by | |
Original network | TV Tokyo |
Original run | April 5, 2017 – present |
Episodes | 42 |
Anime film | |
Boruto: Naruto Next Generations (Japanese: BORUTO-ボルト- NARUTO NEXT GENERATIONS), also known simply as Boruto, is a Japanese manga series written by Ukyō Kodachi and illustrated by Mikio Ikemoto. Serialized in Shueisha's shōnen manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump, Boruto is a spin-off of and sequel to Masashi Kishimoto's Naruto which follows the exploits of Naruto Uzumaki's son Boruto Uzumaki and his ninja team. An anime television series adaptation directed by Noriyuki Abe started airing on TV Tokyo on April 5, 2017. Unlike the manga that started as a retelling of the film Boruto: Naruto the Movie, the Boruto anime acts like a prequel, before Boruto and his friends became ninjas in a later arc.
Critical reception to the series has been largely positive, with most critics liking the traits of the main characters, most notably Boruto, who, while resembling his father Naruto, still plays pranks and bonds with his peers. Pierrot's anime prequel also earned praise for its use of both new and returning characters. Shueisha has shipped a million units of the manga series as of January 2017.
Plot
Years later after the Fourth Great Ninja War, Naruto Uzumaki has achieved his dream of becoming the Seventh Hokage, married Hinata Hyuga, and oversees a new generation in the Ninja World. They have two children: Boruto Uzumaki and Himawari Uzumaki. Boruto has become a part of a ninja team led by Naruto's protégé Konohamaru Sarutobi, along with Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno's daughter Sarada Uchiha and Orochimaru's artificial son Mitsuki. Boruto meets Sasuke when he returns to the village to warn Naruto of an impending threat. Boruto manages to convince Sasuke to teach him for the upcoming Chunin Exam. During the exam, Momoshiki Ōtsutsuki and Kinshiki Ōtsutsuki, the threat whom Sasuke spoke of, appear and abduct Naruto so that they can use Kurama, a creature sealed inside his body, to revitalize the dying Shinju from the dimension where they came from.
Boruto joins Sasuke and the Five Kages. When they travel to the other dimension in order to save Naruto, Momoshiki turns Kinshiki into a chakra fruit and ingests it in order to become stronger than Naruto and the others. Aided by Naruto and Sasuke, Boruto is able to defeat Momoshiki. Though dying, noting his killer's untapped potential, Momoshiki lives long enough to have a private discussion with Boruto and warns him that he will face much tribulation later on in his life. As Sasuke interrogates a criminal who knows of Boruto's mark, he reveals to Naruto and his underlings that there is a group called "Kara" (殻, lit. The Husk) searching for people with marks.
Anime plot
In contrast to the Boruto manga where the main cast start as ninjas, the anime starts where Boruto joins the ninja academy and forms friendships. One day, a mark appears within Boruto's right eye, which allows him to see contaminated energy in certain people who start going berserk, attacking other people. With the help of Mitsuki, Boruto manages to find the person responsible for contaminating people's chakra. The anime then enters into another story arc, where Sarada leaves the village in order to find her father, Sasuke, to confirm whether Sakura is her biological mother or not. She and her friend Chocho Akimichi, end up joining forces with Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura in order to defeat Shin Uchiha and his clones, who want to kill Sasuke. The following story arc involves the children from Konohagakure going on a trip to Kirigakure. There, Boruto befriends a ninja named Kagura, who is forced to become part of a rebellion against Konoha. Following this story arc, Boruto and his friends graduate from the academy. Boruto, Sarada and Mitsuki form the new Team 7 under Konohamaru's leadership. Additionally, the anime will retell the events from the film Boruto: Naruto the Movie, but with additional content.[2]
Production
When the Naruto manga ended in 2014, the company Shueisha asked Masashi Kishimoto to start a sequel. However, Kishimoto rejected the idea and proposed artist Mikio Ikemoto, who had been working as an assistant for Kishimoto ever since Naruto's early chapters, to draw it based on the experience Ikemoto had.[3][4] A countdown website was used under the name of "Next Generation" in order to promote the new manga. In December 2015, the Boruto: Naruto Next Generations's serialization was announced.[5] Kishimoto said that he wanted Boruto to surpass his own work.[6] The writer Ukyō Kodachi wrote Gaara's light novel, Gaara Hiden, and assisted Kishimoto in writing the script of the movie Boruto: Naruto the Movie.[7] Besides writing for the series, Kodachi supervises the story of the anime as well. However, for episodes 8 and 9, Kishimoto also acted as the supervisor of the anime.[8] Kishimoto advised Ikemoto not to imitate his own artsyle and instead make his own. While noting long-time fans might be disappointed with the fact that Kishimoto is not drawing Boruto, Ikemoto stated he would do his best in the making of the manga. Ikemoto mentioned he remained optimistic about his artstyle. Kishimoto also revises the manga's sceneario.[9]
Despite having a lighter tone than Naruto, the serie begins by hinting at a dark future. This set-up was purposed by Kishimoto in order to give the manga a bigger impact and a different approach than the one from the Boruto movie. In this scenario, Ikemoto drew an older Boruto, but he believes that once the manga reaches this point, the design might change.[9] Even though Kishimoto is not writing the series, he created multiple characters for the staff to use.[10] While not specifying if Naruto or another important character would die, Kishimoto commented that he would find such an interesting situation and stated that the authors have freedom when it comes to writing the story.[11]
Media
Manga
Written by Ukyō Kodachi and illustrated by Mikio Ikemoto, Boruto: Naruto Next Generations was launched in the 23rd issue of Shueisha's manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump on May 9, 2016. Original series creator Masashi Kishimoto currently supervises the series illustrated by his former chief assistant and written by his co-writer of the Boruto: Naruto the Movie screenplay.[12] A spin-off manga titled Boruto: Saikyo Dash Generations (BORUTO-ボルト- SAIKYO DASH GENERATIONS) was written by Kenji Taira and has been serialized in Saikyō Jump since the May 2017 issue.
Volumes
No. | Title | Original release date | English release date | |
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1 | Boruto Uzumaki!! Uzumaki Boruto!! (うずまきボルト!!) | August 4, 2016[13] 978-4-08-880756-0 | April 4, 2017[14] 978-1-4215-9211-4 | |
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2 | Stupid Old Man!! Kuso Oyaji…!! (クソオヤジ…!!) | December 2, 2016[15] 978-4-08-880827-7 | September 5, 2017[16] 978-1-4215-9584-9 | |
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3 | My Story!! Ore no monogatari...!! (オレの物語...!!) | May 2, 2017[17] 978-4-08-881078-2 | March 6, 2018[18] 978-1-4215-9822-2 | |
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4 | The Value of a Trump Card!! Kirifuda no Kachi!! (切り札の価値!!) | November 2, 2017[19] 978-4-08-881227-4 | - | |
|
Chapters not yet in tankōbon format
These chapters have yet to be published in a tankōbon volume. They were originally serialized in Japanese in issues of Weekly Shōnen Jump.
- "The Vessel" (器, Utsuwa)
- "Blue" (青, Ao)
- "The Hand" (手, Te)
- "Puppets" (人形, Ningyō)
- "Scientific Ninja Tools" (科学忍具, Kagaku Ningu)
Anime
At the Naruto and Boruto stage event at Jump Festa on December 17, 2016, it was announced that the manga series would be receiving an anime project,[20] which was later confirmed to be an anime television series adaptation that would feature an original story.[21][22] The anime series, supervised by series creator Ukyō Kodachi, would be co-directed by Noriyuki Abe and Hiroyuki Yamashita, with series composition by Makoto Uezu, animation produced by Pierrot, character designs by Tetsuya Nishio and Hirofumi Suzuki, and music co-composed by Yasuharu Takanashi and YAIBA. The series premiered on TV Tokyo on April 5, 2017.[23] Viz Media has licensed the series in North America.[24] From episodes 1 to 26, the first opening theme is "Baton Road" by KANA-BOON. From episode 27 onwards, the second opening theme is "OVER" by Little Glee Monster. From episodes 1 to 13, the first ending theme is "Dreamy Journey" by The Peggies. From episodes 14 to 26, the second ending theme is "Sayonara Moon Town" by Scenario Art. From episode 27 onwards, the third ending theme is “I Continue Walking” by Melofloat.[25]
Light novels
A novel entitled The New Konoha Ninja Flying In the Blue Sky! (青天を翔る新たな木の葉たち!Se, iten o Kakeru Aratana Konoha-tachi!) was released on May 2, 2017.[26] A second one was released on July 4, 2017, under the title A Call From the Shadows! (影からの呼び声!, Kage Kara no Yobigoe!).[27] The third novel, Those Who Illuminate the Night of Shinobi! (忍の夜を照らす者!, Shinobi no Yoru O Terasu Mono!), was released on September 4, 2017.[28]
Reception
The manga has been generally well received in Japan, with the compilations appearing as top sellers multiple times.[29][30][31] It also has one million copies in print as of January 2017.[32] The manga's first volume has also sold well in North America.[33][34]
Rebecca Silverman from Anime News Network admitted Boruto appealed to her despite never having gotten into the Naruto manga. She praised how the writers managed to deal with the protagonist's angst without coming across as "teen whining" as well as how Sasuke Uchiha decides to train him. Amy McNulty from ANN found it appealing to fans of the original Naruto series, stating that while Mitsuki does not have a large role in the story, his side story helps to expand his origins. Nik Freeman, another writer from the same site, criticized Boruto's lack of development while comparing him with his introduction in Naruto's finale, and that there were multiple differences between the reasons why both the young Naruto and Boruto vandalized their city. Nevertheless, Freeman liked Mitsuki's backstory as he did not feel it rehashed stories from the past.[35] Reviewing the first chapter online, Chris Beveridge from the Fandom Post was more negative, complaining about the large focus on Naruto and Boruto's poor relationship and the rehash elements of Boruto: Naruto the Movie while also criticizing the adaptation of Kishimoto's artwork. Nevertheless, he praised the relationship between Naruto and Sasuke as well as the foreshadowing of an older Boruto fight.[36] Melina Dargis from the same site reviewed the first volume, commenting that she was looking forward to the development of the characters despite having already watched the Boruto movie and was also pleased by seeing Mitsuki's role in his own side story.[37] Leroy Douresseaux from Comic Book Bin recommended it to Naruto fans, explaining how the new authors managed to use the first volume to establish the protagonists' personalities.[38] Melina Dargis from the Fandom Post was impressed by the apparent message of the series as she found it was trying to connect to modern audiences with its themes such as parental issues and the use of technology, in contrast to Naruto.[39] Leroy Douresseaux liked how Boruto's character had already started developing by the second volume of the series as it helped readers appreciate him more.[40]
The anime was popular with Japanese readers of Charapedia who voted it the ninth best anime show of Spring 2017.[41] IGN writer Sam Stewart enjoyed the focus on the new generation of ninjas and the differences between them and the previous generation. He also praised the return of other characters like Toneri as well as famous "Eye Techniques".[42] Crunchyroll's Brand Manager, Victoria Holden, joined once to discuss whether Next Generations could live up to the success of the old series while still reviewing previous episodes of the series.[43] Stewart enjoyed the characterization of both Shikadai Nara and Metal Lee, seeing their relationship and accidental fight as interesting to watch, and he liked that Next Generations managed to improve itself with each episode.[44] Beveridge enjoyed the series' first episode, remarking that he felt Boruto's characterization was superior to the one from the manga.[45] In a more comical article, Geek.com writer Tim Tomas compared Boruto with the series The Legend of Korra as, while sharing themes with its prequels, they were still different.[46] Sarah Nelkin considered Boruto as a more lighthearted version of the Naruto series, but Amy McNulty acclaimed its 13th episode for the focus on a subplot that had been developing ever since the first episode and how the revelations from it made the series darker.[47][48] Stewart agreed with McNulty, commenting on how the developers reached the climax of the anime's first story arc. The characterization of the revealed villain further impressed the reviewer.[49] Allega Frank from Polygon noted that during the start of both the manga and the anime, multiple fans were worried in regards to a flashforward; in this sequence, an older Boruto is facing an enemy named Kawaki who implies Naruto might be dead, so his fate left them worried.[50]
References
- ^ "The Official Website for Boruto: Naruto Next Generations". Viz Media. Retrieved October 24, 2017.
- ^ "Boruto Anime Reveals New Visual for Upcoming Chūnin Exam Arc". Anime News Network. December 17, 2017. Retrieved December 17, 2017.
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(help) - ^ Kishimoto, Masashi (2005). Naruto, volume 6. Viz Media. p. 106. ISBN 978-1-59116-739-6.
- ^ "Masashi Kishimoto X Ikemoto Full Interview English". Weekly Shonen Jump. Spiralling Sphere. July 31, 2016. Retrieved October 24, 2017.
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(help) - ^ "Viz's English Shonen Jump to Publish New Boruto Manga, 1-Shot". Anime News Network. Retrieved June 2, 2017.
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(help) - ^ "Boruto Manga Gets Anime Project in April 2017". Anime News Network. Retrieved January 7, 2017.
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(help) - ^ "Boruto -Naruto the Movie- Reveals Naruto, Sasuke Designs". Anime News Network. Retrieved June 28, 2017.
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(help) - ^ "Ukyou Kodachi Talks about Kishimoto's Extremely Carefull Supervision of Boruto". Spiralling Sphere. June 1, 2017. Retrieved October 26, 2017.
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(help) - ^ a b "Le manga de la semaine: Mikio Ikemoto commente Boruto, le spin-off de Naruto" (in French). BFMTV. Retrieved January 14, 2018.
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(help) - ^ "Jump Festa 2017 Interview – Masashi Kishimoto And The Future Of Boruto: Naruto Next Generations!". Otakukart. January 31, 2017. Retrieved May 2, 2017.
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(help) - ^ Aschcraft, Brian (May 8, 2017). "Sounds Like Naruto's Creator Just Talked About Killing Off A Character". Kotaku. Retrieved July 16, 2017.
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(help) - ^ "Naruto Spinoff Manga Boruto Launches on May 9". Anime News Network. March 14, 2016. Retrieved December 26, 2016.
- ^ Boruto―ボルト― 1 [Boruto: Naruto Next Generations 1]. Shueisha (in Japanese). Retrieved December 26, 2016.
- ^ "Boruto, Vol. 1: Naruto Next Generations". Amazon.com. Retrieved December 26, 2016.
- ^ Boruto―ボルト― 2 [Boruto: Naruto Next Generations 2]. Shueisha (in Japanese). Retrieved December 26, 2016.
- ^ "Boruto, Vol. 2: Naruto Next Generations". Amazon.com. Retrieved February 25, 2017.
- ^ Boruto―ボルト― 3 [Boruto: Naruto Next Generations 3]. Shueisha (in Japanese). Retrieved April 15, 2017.
- ^ "Boruto, Vol. 3: Naruto Next Generations". Amazon.com. Retrieved July 24, 2017.
- ^ Boruto―ボルト― 4 [Boruto: Naruto Next Generations 4]. Shueisha (in Japanese). Retrieved October 16, 2017.
- ^ "Boruto Manga Gets Anime Project in April 2017". Anime News Network. December 17, 2016. Retrieved February 23, 2017.
- ^ "Boruto: Naruto Next Generations Anime Reveals Promo Video, Key Visual, Returning Cast (Updated)". Anime News Network. December 17, 2016. Retrieved February 23, 2017.
- ^ "Boruto: Naruto Next Generations Anime Features Original Story". Anime News Network. January 26, 2017. Retrieved February 23, 2017.
- ^ "Boruto: Naruto Next Generations Anime Reveals More Cast, Staff". Anime News Network. February 23, 2017. Retrieved February 23, 2017.
- ^ "Viz Media Licenses Boruto TV Anime, Plans Simulcast (Updated)". Anime News Network. March 23, 2017. Retrieved March 23, 2017.
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(help) - ^ "Scenario Art Performs New Ending Theme For Boruto: Naruto Next Generations Anime". Anime News Network. June 1, 2017. Retrieved June 6, 2017.
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(help) - ^ "TVアニメと連動した忍者学校での物語を小説化!『Boruto -ボルト- -Naruto Next Generations- Novel 1』本日発売!" (in Japanese). Shueisha. Retrieved June 15, 2017.
- ^ "『Boruto -ボルト- -Naruto Next Generations- Novel2』7月4日発売!マンガ本編の前日譚!アカデミー編ノベライズ第二弾が登場!" (in Japanese). Shueisha. Retrieved June 15, 2017.
- ^ "『Boruto -ボルト- -Naruto Next Generations- Novel3』9月4日発売!マンガ本編の前日譚!TVアニメでは明かされなかった委員長・スミレの物語、収録!" (in Japanese). Shueisha. Retrieved July 30, 2017.
- ^ "Japanese Comic Ranking, May 22–28". Anime News Network. Retrieved July 5, 2017.
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(help) - ^ "Japanese Comic Ranking, December 12–18". Anime News Network. Retrieved July 5, 2017.
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(help) - ^ "Japanese Comic Ranking, August 1–7". Anime News Network. Retrieved July 5, 2017.
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(help) - ^ "Boruto: Naruto Next Generations Anime Features Original Story". Anime News Network. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
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(help) - ^ "Top 300 Graphic Novels Actual--April 2017". ICv2. Retrieved July 9, 2017.
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(help) - ^ "Top 1000 Graphic Novels--2017, Part 1". ICv2. Retrieved January 27, 2017.
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(help) - ^ "The Spring 2017 Manga Guide Boruto Vol. 1". Anime News Network. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
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(help) - ^ "Boruto Chapter #1 Manga Review". The Fandom Post. May 10, 2016. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
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(help) - ^ "Boruto Vol. #01 Manga Review". The Fandom Post. May 19, 2017. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
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(help) - ^ "Boruto: Naruto Next Generations Volume 1 manga review". Comic Book Bin. April 3, 2017. Retrieved April 3, 2017.
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(help) - ^ "Boruto Vol. #02 Manga Review". The Fandom Post. October 16, 2016. Retrieved October 18, 2017.
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(help) - ^ "Boruto: Naruto Next Generations Volume 2 manga review". Comic Book Bin. September 24, 2017. Retrieved October 20, 2017.
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(help) - ^ "Japanese Fans Choose the Spring 2017 Anime Worth Watching". Otaku USA. May 7, 2017. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
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(help) - ^ "Boruto: Naruto Next Generations Episode 8: "The Dream's Revelation" Review". IGN. May 25, 2017. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
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(help) - ^ "Can Boruto Live up to Naruto's Legacy?". IGN. May 25, 2017. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
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(help) - ^ "Boruto: Naruto Next Generations Episode 3: "Metal Lee Goes Wild!"". IGN. April 20, 2017. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
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(help) - ^ "Boruto: Naruto Next Generations Episode #02 Anime Review". The Fandom Post. April 5, 2017. Retrieved June 2, 2017.
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(help) - ^ "What To Expect From Viz Media For the Next 3000 Years". Geek.com. October 10, 2016. Retrieved June 1, 2017.
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(help) - ^ Nelkin, Sarah (May 16, 2017). "Boruto Is Basically What Naruto Would've Looked Like if the World Had Been at Peace". Anime Now. Archived from the original on June 12, 2017. Retrieved May 18, 2017.
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suggested) (help) - ^ McNulty, Amy (June 28, 2017). "Boruto: Naruto Next Generations Episode 13". Anime News Network. Retrieved June 28, 2017.
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(help) - ^ "Boruto: Naruto Next Generations Episode 13: "The Demon Beast Appears!" Review". IGN. June 29, 2017. Retrieved June 4, 2017.
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(help) - ^ Frank, Allega (April 6, 2017). "Boruto premiere leaves fans nervous about Naruto's fate". Polygon. Archived from the original on April 8, 2017. Retrieved July 4, 2017.
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External links
- Official website Template:Ja icon
- Boruto (manga) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia
- Boruto (anime) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia
- Wikipedia articles needing copy edit from October 2017
- Manga series
- 2016 manga
- 2017 anime television series debuts
- 2017 anime television series
- Adventure anime and manga
- Anime series based on manga
- Anime spin-offs
- Comics spin-offs
- Manga adapted into television series
- Naruto
- Sequel television series
- Shueisha manga
- Shōnen manga
- TV Tokyo shows
- Viz Media anime
- Viz Media manga