Rodney Mateo

One of the most iconic anime ever that would have many kids secretly stay awake to catch the re-runs. Does Dragon Ball Z hold out as well as it did back in the days?

Screaming to the top of your lungs until one’s hair turns yellow. This is known as a Super Saiyan and is said to boost the power of those who transform. Dragon Ball Z may contain the most popular character in all of anime. Goku is an absolute beast when it comes to raw power and he loves to fight strong opponents. Being basically a Japanese superman, he used his powers to fight for what is right.

Goku crash-landed onto earth when he was a baby. He was sent from planet Vegeta, which exploded due to an evil space tyrant. Goku comes from a warrior race named the Saiyans, who were bred for battle. Due to his aggressive race, Goku was a handful for the man that adopted him. Through love and affection, Goku became a loving boy. He fell in love with martial arts and began to train. When Goku accepted his humanity and made a life on earth, three Saiyans came to bring him back and claim the world for the tyrant that blew up planet Vegeta. Goku is the only person on earth strong enough to face these alien foes.

Goku (Sean Schemmel) is a happy go lucky man, who is always itching for a fight. He is constantly training to keep the peace. Vegeta (Christopher Sabat) was the prince of the planet Vegeta until Frieza (Linda Young) blew it up. Vegeta was spared and was forced to work for Frieza. Vegeta ends up staying on earth, becoming Goku’s rival and strongest ally. Goku was trained by the man who adopted him but when he passed away his main teacher was Master Roshi (Mike McFarland). Joined by Goku was Krillin (Sonny Strait), who was also a pupil of Master Roshi. Later on, Goku would have two sons, Goten (Kara Edwards) and Gohan (Kyle Hebert) ,who aspire to be as strong as their father.

I have never wanted to scream at the top of my lungs to power up, but this show makes me want to. Story-wise the show is mediocre at best with the same plot of the story is fighting stronger villains to save the world. The villains throughout the show have the worst and most bland motives for doing what they do. Goku is just a bad character. If his attitude was on another show, that show would get canceled. He does not learn from his mistakes and he is just downright dumb. The best character in the series is hands down Vegeta. He is the only character that truly develops through the show. Vegeta’s main goal is to surpass Goku, who always seems to be step-up in front of him strength-wise. He goes from a murderous planet conquering person to a devoted father, who has saved the earth countless occasions.

The bad in the show seems to work in favor of it. The action is fast-paced and interesting to watch. Each character has a different fighting style that allows characters to be unique with their own flavor. The action uplifts the mediocre story and makes this show enjoyable to watch. There are countless moments in the show that will give the toughest of skin goosebumps. With movies, games, and new shows for this franchise still coming out today. It is not going anywhere for many more years to come.

Do you agree with me? Comment down below, share with your friends, and join the debate.

Anime may be an unfamiliar topic for most people. Maybe it is because they do not have enough time to watch or can’t get into the median. Is Naruto a good anime to get your feet wet in this genre? Keep reading and find out if Naruto is the anime to get you hooked on anime.

Those who know nothing about Naruto at least know the signature Naruto run with the hands behind your back stretched out and leaning forward a bit. In the show, the running technique looks cool when they run into action. But in real life, it couldn’t be further from goofy. As one who has attempted to run like this in gym class, I can say that it is not the most effective method trying to run faster. Though it was goofy and had no physical gain, I did it because I am a nerd and have a love for this show.

Before the advancement of technology in the world, the population was dominated by the way of the ninja also known as shinobi. Taking place in the great nation of Konoha, in the powerful village named Hidden in the Leaf. Home to many great ninjas who protect and defend the village from other invading villages. The story revolves around a boy named Naruto who was cast aside and looked down upon from his fellow villagers. Through all the hardships, Naruto vows to be the Hokage of the Leaf village.

This is a character-based show with over fifty characters that all revolve around Naruto and his life. The main cast is the ninja squad called team seven. Naruto Uzumaki (Maile Flanagan) was cursed with the nine-tailed fox after he was born. The nine-tailed fox is a beast that destroyed the Leaf village. Cursed with this beast, Naruto is shunned throughout the village and is seen as an outcast. He doesn’t let that stop him from wanting to be the Hokage of the Leaf village. After going to ninja school, Naruto is out on a team to perform missions that will benefit the Leaf village. His rival and squadmate is Sasuke Uchiha (Yuri Lowenthal). He lives with the burden of being the last of his clan after they were all slaughtered by a rogue member of their own clan. Sasuke’s sole purpose in life is to avenge his family and kill the one who killed his family. Sakura Haruno (Kate Higgins) is madly in love with Sasuke but gets rejected every time. She won’t let the rejections stop her from being the best ninja she can be. She is constantly rejecting Naruto’s love proposals since she only has eyes for Sasuke. Kakashi Hatake (Dave Wittenberg) is their sensei as well as the team captain. He teaches the young ninjas what being a shinobi is really all about. Kakashi loves to read romance novels but doesn’t let that fool you, he is one of the greatest ninjas in all of Konoha. He is feared among the other nations, he was deemed the nickname of the copy ninja due do his ability to copy his opponent’s techniques.

The greatest aspect of this show is the character development. Naruto started as this eight-year-old kid, who pulled of pranks to be noticed, then became to be the greatest ninja in the world. Following his journey, from childhood to adulthood, is something special to watch. It felt as if I was growing with him as the show progressed. There are over fifty characters in this show and each one is as important as the main four characters. Naruto is constantly being challenged by members of his village and out of it. About every character has a story arch to them which allows the audience to truly fall in love with each character. Naruto may be the main character but is nowhere near to my favorite. Falling in love with characters that are considered a side character is great. The show does not make any character useless to the plot. Though the action is great, especially with the hand to hand combat, the character development with each and every single member of the cast is what makes this show great and memorable.

Naruto is worth the watch even if it is 720 episodes and a third of those episodes are filler that has nothing to do with the main plot. If you can stomach those fillers and the length of the series, then it will be a fun time. It is like a gateway drug to the world of anime, once a person gets hooked on anime there is no coming back. It is a great show to start the addiction, a healthy one if time management is a good skill of yours. Naruto is action-packed and makes one care for the characters enough to shed some tears during emotional moments.

Do you agree with me? Comment down below, share with your friends, and join the debate.