Board Thread:Naruto Discussions/@comment-31278419-20170331010234/@comment-734582-20170426163530

CyberianGinseng wrote: There is a time to celebrate a work of art and there is a time to be honest about it's faults. The OP asked what would we change if we could about Naruto. My list consists of things I find incredibly annoying and things I would've like to have seen. It's just my opinion; it doesn't have to be anybody else's. I'm not one of those people who goes around constantly bashing Naruto, but if you can't look honestly at something you appreciate and acknowledge its flaws then you don't really appreciate it at all. I'm not blaming you. But in most of people's breakdowns it wasn't hard for me to see what they liked about it, since most people (myself included) tend to take out as much of what they hate while doubling down on what they liked. In your case, i couldn't figure out what drew you to it.

I mean, i don't disagree about stuff like the Jiraiya training (although considering other people's troubles with Naruto, it must've taken a hell of a lot of effort just to get some strategy in Naruto's head). I never stop being baffled that it took 330 chapters to discuss something as fundamental as a nature release (and explaining the nature of the KKG, despite being introduced in one of the first arcs). CyberianGinseng wrote: He obsessed over Naruto and Sasuke's "friendship" as the major theme of the manga, but failed to actually put the "friendship" on panel. I've always seen it as a mutual understanding. They were too stubborn to admit that they were similar, but deep down they were aware of each other's pain and shared a connection that they hated to admit existed. I don't think Kishimoto intended it to be a friendship the more traditional way we see friendship.