Naruto Manga/Anime Discussion IV

[Hazard]

Damn, you can feel the badass jumping out of the screen and kicking you in the face.

[Siriel]

Hey, it occurs to me...

Isn't hitting the Jyuubi with Kyuubi and Hachibi chakra, AKA the things it needs to get it's final form, kind of a bad plan?

[Nik Hasta]

I also like that Gai literally throws Lee at Madara. That's a nice touch.

[Robotech Master]

I don't care how corny or whatever it is, but I approve of the Alliance bum rushing them in the form a big ass bird made of mass kyuubi-clad ninjas. That's like, literally the 'Shinobi Alliance Jutsu' right there.

The only thing that could top that is if they finish off the ten tails by all holding hands and spinning around to form a giant kyuubi windwill shuriken while shouting "Giga Shuriken Breaker!"

[Kage Kisaragi]

I wasn't all that impressed with this chapter. In fact i found it kind of meh. Im interested in what could be so important that Sasuke would align with Orochimaru and visit Konoha.

[Kamina]

Oh, it's an asspull,.

I wouldn't necessarily call it an asspull. Not like Kurama hasn't been exploited in the past. We found out he can lend energy to others some ten chapters ago. And like you said, it's necessary. Until now, failure seemed like the only option for this fight.

Hey, it occurs to me...

Isn't hitting the Jyuubi with Kyuubi and Hachibi chakra, AKA the things it needs to get it's final form, kind of a bad plan?

Oh god... the Ten Tails is going to keep evolving as a result of this. Soon it shall have butterfly wings...

I don't care how corny or whatever it is, but I approve of the Alliance bum rushing them in the form a big ass bird made of mass kyuubi-clad ninjas. That's like, literally the 'Shinobi Alliance Jutsu' right there.

Why did they turn into a giant bird-shaped mass of energy? Wouldn't it be more symbolic and fearsome if they turned into a giant fox?

Seriously, who voted on a bird? I would have turned into, like, a jackal or a bear or something, but a bird? Lame.

[Crimson Shadow]

Although Naruto is handing out chakra like free beer at a college party, I don't think this is going to work, this tactic is good for morale among the Alliance but they are about to get messed up. For 2 reasons, Obito and Madara haven't really used an " OMG there is a chance the Ninja Alliance will die" type technique and whatever Sasuke is doing hasn't been revealed yet.

[Robotech Master]

Why did they turn into a giant bird-shaped mass of energy? Wouldn't it be more symbolic and fearsome if they turned into a giant fox?

Seriously, who voted on a bird? I would have turned into, like, a jackal or a bear or something, but a bird? Lame.

You didn't connect the imagery at all?

Neji's death, the recounting of how he once saw his fate as being a bird trapped in a cage but now he thinks differently?

Obito saying Neji was indeed shackled like that and died uselessly?

The Ten Tails arms crashing down on the ground to form giant vertical bars?

The team forming the giant bird as Naruto shouted that Neji's vision is still with them, etc?

Said bird breaking through the "cage?"

Edit: Said horizontal when I meant vertical.

[Miburohunter929]

You didn't connect the imagery at all?

Neji's death, the recounting of how he once saw his fate as being a bird trapped in a cage but now he thinks differently?

Obito saying Neji was indeed shackled like that and died uselessly?

The Ten Tails arms crashing down on the ground to form giant horizontal bars?

The team forming the giant bird as Naruto shouted that Neji's vision is still with them, etc?

Said bird breaking through the "cage?"

Yeah...The thing was not exactly a silent love letter to subtlety.

[Totoro Man]

I'm puzzled by this "Team Sasuke" caption-- because it sure looks like Orochimaru is the one doing all the leading here. oh well, Oro must have joined the team since all of their uniforms match...

[The Dog]

Yeah...The thing was not exactly a silent love letter to subtlety.

And Kishimoto tends to deliver "messages" with all the subtlety of a sledgehammer. Glued to the front of a bulldozer. Being pushed forward by a freight train.

[Ghost]

And Kishimoto tends to deliver "messages" with all the subtlety of a sledgehammer. Glued to the front of a bulldozer. Being pushed forward by a freight train.

Actually, I've found that he can be very subtle, especially when it comes to imagery. Frankly, I think it's what he does best as a mangaka.

[The Drunkard Kid]

Actually, I've found that he can be very subtle, especially when it comes to imagery. Frankly, I think it's what he does best as a mangaka.

For instance, I *think* that Gai and Rock Lee are both subtle references to a martial artist with a distinctive hairstyle, who was also famous for being an actor and a teacher.

That's right, Steven Seagal.

[The Dog]

As a pre-order bonus for Ultimate Ninja Storm 3, you will get this costume:



There's 5 other costumes (for Japanese buyers at least), which include samurai armor Naruto, Road to Ninja Sasuke and Hinata, ANBU Kakashi, and bikini Sakura. Don't know much about their international status...

I for one hope all 6 of them will be available for buying on the XBL/PSN networks.

[Kamina]

You didn't connect the imagery at all?

Neji's death, the recounting of how he once saw his fate as being a bird trapped in a cage but now he thinks differently?

Obito saying Neji was indeed shackled like that and died uselessly?

The Ten Tails arms crashing down on the ground to form giant vertical bars?

The team forming the giant bird as Naruto shouted that Neji's vision is still with them, etc?

Said bird breaking through the "cage?"

I get that there's imagery. I'm just saying that if I were an ancient, immortal samurai armor-donning warlord with strong existential convictions, seeing a giant, flaming, demon-powered FOX charging at me from above would be a lot more terrifying than a bird. :p

In all seriousness, yes, I got the impression of imagrey, but didn't see the symbolism of the "bird and cage". I didn't because I paid very little attention to Neji's long, impromptu backstory flashback in the anime and I only started reading the manga around Part II. Most of what I know about Neji's character are his abilities, and most of that was gleaned from the Wiki. His death scene didn't impress me much either.

And I know I'm sounding rather cold-hearted toward Neji... but honestly, given that hundreds/thousands of ninja died here as faceless mooks, my heart wasn't exactly breaking over Neji - despite his noticeable character development I suppose - so let's say I was Naruto leading the army in that charge, I definitely wouldn't have thought to turn into a bird to represent Neji. Sure, I might say something along the lines of "Screw you Obito, we're still going to stop you!", but I wouldn't have focused all my motivation on the one important ninja that just died.

Yeah...The thing was not exactly a silent love letter to subtlety.

And Kishimoto tends to deliver "messages" with all the subtlety of a sledgehammer. Glued to the front of a bulldozer. Being pushed forward by a freight train.

Alright, alright, I'm embarassed that I didn't see something so obvious. I mean, I saw it, I just didn't "get" it.

As a pre-order bonus for Ultimate Ninja Storm 3, you will get this costume

As a DBZ fan, I got a big laugh out of this.

As a Naruto fan, I'd like to see these downloadable costumes change gameplay - if Naruto has Goku's costume, then alter his Rasengan so it's more like a Kamehameha (or change the name, or make Naruto shout something that Goku would say, or have Goku's seiyuu do Naruto's voice clips for the DLC). And why stop at Goku? I mean, they got Lars from Tekken 6, so why not push the envelope?

If I ever get to lead a game design team for a fighting game, I'd want to look into getting as many permissions for character likenesses as possible.

Nonetheless, awesome.