Board Thread:Naruto Discussions/@comment-26822192-20200512085001

I don't know about others but I deeply loathe this concept; one of the worst retcons Kishi has ever done. The whole idea that Naruto and Sasuke should be reincarnations of ancient brothers just destroys the themes of the story. It makes their friendship seem fake and something they had no control of and was going to happen anyways. Their relationship is no longer organic and feels meaningless. also makes Sasuke's character seem contrived and silly. Like he never had a choice and he was bound to become a madman. And all efforts of Naruto and Sakura and others meant jackshit.

This thing is even worse with Madara and Hashirama. Both characters were clearly retconned to fit the personalities. And also making Madara another 'sympathetic' villain was cringeworthy. He was such a horrible person from the start (letting his brother die instead of asking for Senju help) that it's hilarious how hard the narrative tries to paint him as well-intentioned. I don't know about others but I enjoyed Madara more as a ruthless cruel villain.

At least his friendship with Hashirama feels fake and dumb and illogical. That one wasn't a loss. Maybe if that part of the story wired Madara and Hashirama hadn't been so rushed and underwritten, things would have made more sense.

I really wish instead of Madara nonsense, we had seen more of Tobirama and Mito. Those two deserved to get more exposure. 