Manga companies encourage authors to stretch out their series for as long as possible because they want to make more money when they have a popular series. However, all shows must come to an end no matter how long they go on. But, sometimes, when an anime is so popular, it receives a sequel, which is precisely what happened with Naruto, producing Boruto: Naruto Next Generations, which follows Naruto’s son.
Unfortunately, fans didn’t receive Boruto the same way they did with Naruto, as many fans despise the sequel series and everything about it. While Boruto does have its good moments, it isn’t a great anime, with many issues plaguing the adaptation. This list will rank the ten biggest reasons why Naruto fans dislike Boruto, ranked on the level of outrage based on fan opinion, criticism, and how much it ruined the show and the original series.
10
Childish Tones
Initially, the series feels like it’s for younger kids.
Naruto is a must-watch anime, which is why most fans eagerly started Boruto with high expectations. However, they were met with a childish kids’ cartoon that felt nothing like the original series’ darker and more serious content. While this was tied to filler, the episodes focused on the daily adventures and wholesome content with little action or stakes, making the show feel childish.
Luckily, this complaint slowly died off the longer the show continued, with the anime now focusing on darker material with more action. While fans are grateful for the more serious tone now, the early episodes of Boruto felt like they were made for elementary students. It didn’t make a good first impression and had fans revolting. Compared to the original series, early Boruto delivered a tone that didn’t resonate with an aging audience.
9
Character Designs
Ugly designs for new and old characters.
While it may not be necessary to the show’s content, many viewers find character designs and art styles important. Many fans have dropped shows with bad art styles, but some praise an anime because of its art. This new anime introduced a revamped art style and vastly different character designs to match the futuristic and peaceful time the series is in, but it didn’t click for many fans.
Naruto fans have many problems with the characters, but it starts with their appearances. Whether it be new or old characters, viewers weren’t a fan of these weird designs. This complaint is entirely subjective, but many fans have voiced their displeasure. Many designs feel like copied and pasted versions of old characters, while the rest don’t feel like Naruto character designs. New characters look like they are filler, with many fans finding them ugly and unappealing.
8
Unlikeable/Forgettable Cast
Side characters aren’t developed and are boring.
This complaint has two sides, and another reason is discussed later in the list. A side cast is critical in every anime, with some shows’ best aspects relying on a colorful bunch of characters. However, Boruto’s cast is less than reputable, making the same mistakes as Naruto’s. The series introduced multiple trios of ninjas, but most of them were bland, unlikeable characters.
Naruto has many beloved characters, but Boruto barely has any, with most fans disliking the entire side cast. These characters are boring and uninspired, relying on tropes or typical developments. None of them feel like characters in a ninja world, and when they have some personality, it comes across as annoying. Maybe it’s because they don’t get any focus, but the Boruto sidecast is highly lacking.
7
Doubled Down on the Otsutsuki’s
They made the main antagonists the boring Aliens.
Many fans remember the conclusion of Shippuden and how Naruto ruined its final arc with the plot twist of Kaguya Otsutsuki. The alien ninja came out of nowhere, highlighting the worst of the franchise. Instead of moving on, Boruto doubled down on the Otsutsuki Family, making them yet again the main villains in Boruto, where they intend to finish where they left off and create the Divine Tree.
The Otsutsuki brought a new era of Naruto that abandoned what made the series great. Kaguya was a horrible villain, and the rest of her clan wasn’t any better. Each member was dull and simply powerful, adding nothing but cool fights and spectacle. While it is flashy, it took the series in the wrong direction. Boruto had lots of potential, but weak villains and missed opportunities threw the series down the drain.
6
Abandoning the Ninja Way
There is less ninjutsu and more technology/overpowered attacks.
This complaint isn’t as tangible as many of the others, but it is just as valid. The Ninja Way describes the original series’ tone, feeling, and aesthetic. It felt like a show about ninjas with realistic methods, a power system, and a world. The end of Naruto started going out of control, but Boruto solidified the franchise as no longer about typical ninjas. The powercreep got too large and technology became too present in Boruto.
The overpowered characters lead to more epic moments in Naruto, but that’s the only good it does. The power scale was a shortsighted development, making fans excited because of the spectacle, but they quickly buried themselves in a creatively limited hole. The technology is so uninspired and contradictory in a ninja world, making it feel like the show abandoned what made everyone fall in love with Naruto.
5
Rushed Plot
Speeds through essential moments.
Story and plot aren’t what most fans watch battle shonen for, but nonetheless, it is still vital to any series. Naruto had plenty of time to develop the story and its characters from the original series to Shippuden. Boruto isn’t at that level of episodes yet, and most of the story is filler, but the story is already in the endgame phase, and the characters are overpowered, rushing through the plot effortlessly.
They rushed the plot to the point where the entire story feels recycled, with the Boruto and Kawaki plotline being very reminiscent of Naruto and Sasuke in Shippuden. Boruto is already one of the strongest characters in the series, and he is still young, which makes it an unbelievable development that detracts from the story. The series wants to get to the good stuff immediately after foreshadowing Kawaki’s betrayal, but it only gave Boruto horrible pacing.
4
Character Involvement
It only focuses on Boruto and Kawaki.
Like father, like son never applied to an anime more than this common complaint. Like the original series, the Boruto anime focused too much on a few characters to the point where the plot felt recycled. It makes sense that Boruto is the main focus, and the characters get some spotlight, but for the most part, the expansive side cast doesn’t do anything.
Naruto had a promising side cast, but unfortunately, it squandered its potential, and that same issue is present in Boruto. Fans would think they would learn from their previous mistake as it was one of the most significant flaws in Naruto, but unfortunately, all the Boruto side characters barely get any shine. Most get a couple of episodes to showcase their talents and development but are then sidelined for the rest of the show. Boruto, Kawaki, and occasionally Naruto and Sasuke are the main focus, with everyone else being irrelevant.
3
Too Much Filler
Over half of the show isn’t canon.
Many anime get too far ahead, rivaling the manga in pace, so what many studios do is introduce filler arcs and episodes. These are non-canonical stories made up by the anime staff and aren’t considered important or to have actually happened. They made Boruto immediately after Naruto ended, meaning there are abundant filler arcs and episodes, taking up over 70% of the show.
Filler doesn’t have to be a bad thing; in fact, there are many great filler arcs and episodes, specifically in Naruto. Unfortunately, Boruto doesn’t continue the trend, delivering wacky and dull filler arcs that many fans skipped or made them drop the show entirely. Boruto has around 180 filler episodes, and these storylines range from Cho-Cho wanting to be an actress to geese defeating the main characters, making for the worst batch of fillers in any anime.
2
Annoying Protagonist
No one likes the star of the show.
While fans would argue that the story/plot is the most critical aspect of anime, the protagonist arguably has the most vital role in a story. This was evidently true with Naruto, one of the most beloved protagonists in anime and the reason why many fans loved the show. However, the titular protagonist of the sequel is nowhere near his predecessor, being an annoying little runt through most of the series.
At the beginning of the series, Boruto was an annoying, bratty, whiny, and spoiled kid, always complaining about his father. Whether he cheated or cut corners, Boruto was everything Naruto wasn’t, and for the worse. While he isn’t the same bratty child, he still never worked for much and is one of the strongest characters, making him a symbol of hatred in the anime. Fans hated him at first because he was annoying, always complained, was spoiled, and never worked hard, but they hated him later because he didn’t earn his strength. His rise to prominence flies in defiance against the core themes of Naruto, making fans wish he had an excellent teacher in Naruto.
1
Ruined Legacy/Original Characters
Sabotaged the original cast.
While Boruto is a big problem of the series, he isn’t the biggest complaint about this sequel series. Many fans’ biggest issue with Boruto is how it ruined the original characters and tarnished the legacy of the series. This entry combines the complaints about how this show ruined the entire franchise and how Boruto ruined the established characters in the show. While fans can argue if Boruto ruined the Naruto franchise or not, the series definitely ruined the characters in the sequel.
Fans claim Boruto ruined Naruto’s legacy by ignoring key facts in the original anime. From Naruto’s not honoring his word to Nagato to Otsutsuki’s diminishing the original ending, many things in Boruto take away from Naruto. However, the bigger complaint is the treatment of legacy characters. Naruto and Sasuke are horrible fathers, Hinata and Sakura are housewives, and the rest of the cast are insignificant and living boring lives. Naruto is one of the best anime ever, but them getting nerfed for Boruto’s development is a hindrance to the franchise. Whether or not this anime ruined the franchise is still up for debate, but Boruto didn’t do it any favors, now existing as the defective bastard child that no one wished existed.
