One of the series that has been released in the States in recent years is Naruto. For a long time, I dismissed the series as a Dragonball Z-ish clone, filled with non-sensical story elements to fill the time when they weren't engaged in a battle for the fate of the world. I am glad to say that this is not the case. Despite Naruto's outwardly similar orange jumpsuit and spiky hair, Naruto is not Son Goku, and the similarities pretty much stop there.
The basic premise is that Naruto is an orphaned ninja who desires to be the leader of his ninja clan, and along the way him and his classmates have adventures. Pretty standard for shonen (boy manga), but the series so far has been completely gripping, leaving us eager to view the next DVD. (We've watched through volume 5 thus far, which ends at episode 20).
There are two editions of Naruto available -- one is the english-only dubbed version (which is what we've been watching), while the other is the uncut Japanese version. The edits mostly have to do with the opening/closing credits and removal of some scenes of blood and explicit toilet humor.
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