Anime

I used to say that if someone went through Naruto and removed all the shitty fillers and cut out some of the endless repetitions that made every fight take three to four episodes it'd be much better.
I enjoyed the manga more.

I watched the first couple of episodes, but it didn't grip me.

Might come back to it at some point, often I won't like something at the time, and then later on I'll get it.

I think it was one of the more prominent animes broadcasted on North American TV, so it was formative and feels nostalgic for many of us who watched it at that time. Then transitioning post TV to internet and anime steaming sites, it became almost a rite of passage for fledgling anime fans. I recall that era of the "big 3" Bleach, Naruto, DBZ I believe. It was likely the first introduction of many westerners to Anime and Japanese culture in general. Thoughts of that show remind me of simpler times.

Shippuden is when the show really takes off though, with multiple memorable arcs, characters, and moments. Yes, most every character is flawed in some way, but I think a good protagonist usually has flaws which they grow and overcome, etc. Without watching Shippuden you never see the growth. If the show isn't for you, that's fair but I think it was kind of a perfect storm at that time period for many people and left a lasting impression.

Yeah! Believe it!

Heard an expression for storytelling in Portuguese once that kinda translates to "street fight" - when the story writer doesn't know how to proceed so he throws whatever. Kinda like deus ex machina trope, but more chaotic. Shippuden, the further it went, the more it gave me that impression. And I'm not watching/reading Boruto, the movie from right after Shippuden was already bad enough.

Recently there was also some critique of Bleach on here. I used to watch things like Naruto, Bleach, Fairy Tail, etc when I was young. I do really think you need to be quite young and naive and excited by dumb action in order to enjoy this type of anime (as I was back when I watched those). They are also very long, so for an adult with not that much time you would be much better off watching a bunch of shorter anime than to commit to such big one. In my experience all those types of long running shounen have bad writing, massive plot holes, terrible romance, dragging out the plot, power creep, etc. Those shows are definitely overrated in my opinion.

Watch the pirate version with all the filler cut and better subtitles / editing

Every famous anime is more or less overrated tbh

The filler was awful but even skipping it, the plot was still not great. It seemed like it just got plot cancer at some point and never recovered. Too many uchihas at the center of everything. Lots of characters that got completely forgotten about. Super OP stuff just being pulled out of people's butts on demand. I was anime only and hear the manga was better, but the only thing that pushed me to finish that show was sunk cost fallacy.

In my opinion? Yes. But I feel the same about most mainstream anime. Dragon Ball, Demon Slayer, Jujitsu Kaisen, etc.

I think the original series is pretty damn amazing. Shippudden has its ups and downs. Even if you ignore the (bad) fillers, the ending is just trash. On the other hand, it has the best moments of the show and lots of great characters getting lots of screentime, so its hard to ignore.

(I don't know shit about Boruto 😁)

It's overrated, but it's more than a good intro to anime for a child. Growing up, I really liked it. Looking back, it's not groundbreaking as far as anime as concerned. Also, it was all downhill after the Pain Arc.

Shippuden is actually what made me like Naruto. I didn't really care much about it before and after that. I would say it's a very good show, but I agree that a lot of people over exaggerate how great it is. That said, I would recommend you continue on at least to Shippuden, as it's the best arc IMO.

Really long shounen action series are always overrated, and I've seen a fair number. Good anime series with over a hundred episodes are very rare in any genre, though.

I wouldn’t say it’s overrated, but Naruto is written for kids that are the same age as Naruto. I grew up watching Naruto when I was the same age as Naruto, and for me it was the best show I had seen at that time. It’s a show that gives kids good life lessons and direction, while mixing in some sick battles and usually manages to keep the main cast on close to equal grounds in any fights they find themselves in.

I didn’t start watching Shippuden until this past year, and to me it starts pretty great. Naruto comes back as the same doofus you know and love, but with a hint more maturity now. What’s great for me is that it feels like you’re back where you left off when Sasuke first leaves. Plus, now the villains, the Akatsuki, mostly in the background for ages start showing up to cause trouble front and center.

I went from loving Naruto, to hating Naruto, and back to Naruto again while on my journey of growing. To me Naruto is great not because it’s some perfect show, but because it has characters with realistic flaws that you would expect from someone that age. It’s great to me because it serves as a great reminder for how to get back on the path you want to be on in life. The minor/background characters all feel so interesting, and really come together to make the show feel special, like it could be your hometown.