Long-ass post about ladyjessamyn and I gushing about Naruto's character development

[timepiececlock]

ladyjessamyn: (OMG! He is NOT denser than a brick! He's just stubborn! He's actually very clever, I think)
rashaka:I agree! Naruto plays a part for most of his life and stupidity is an element of the "happy idiot" laughing mask. He is clever in an inventive way. I don't think he's bright the way Sakura is bright, but in a different way. Once he approaches something as a problem he needs to solve, then his cleverness and adaptability comes out.
ladyjessamyn: Exactly! The nice thing about Naruto, as a series, is all the different kinds of intelligence we see. We see Sakura's kind of intelligence. She grasps concepts quickly and easily, and we can assume she has book smarts, as well, I think. Then there's Shikamaru's kind of intelligence; strategic problem solving. And then there's Naruto who, as you said has cleverness and adaptability.
ladyjessamyn:He also has imagination, I think. He finds creative ways out of things.
rashaka: Yep. Imagination is by far his strongest trait-- the ways he finds to combine his moves into a complex multi-level scenario is awesome.
ladyjessamyn: Yes!
rashaka: Like in the chuunin exam with Neji. and Kiba.
ladyjessamyn: Exactly! And, of course, there's the fact that he does not give up.
rashaka: the never-give-up thing I've seen in a lot of anime leads, so that's old news for me, but I like something about the way that Naruto's attitude not to give up feels more real because of everything he's experienced so far. It's not just a character "type". I’m just constantly amazed by how much I *love* Naruto as a character.
ladyjessamyn: Me too! I usually do not like main characters this much, I almost always fall in love with a supporting character in a series. But I totally adore Naruto. And I just love him MORE as time goes on.
rashaka Exactly!
ladyjessamyn: Yes, very true. About Naruto's determined attutide seeming more real because of what he's been through in his life. Because, yeah, you're right a lot of anime leads have die hard determination, but I very rarely feel it like I do with Naruto.
ladyjessamyn: I mean, like...when he he's going to do something. I totally believe he will find a way to do it. And I actually care about him finding a way to do it. which I don't usually when it comes to anime lead characters.

rashaka: Yes. I agree completely.
I think his attitude is really balanced by the fact that he's not as happy-go-lucky as he pretends to be. a lot of anime characters with that cheerful determination are portrayed as always being that-- that attitude is what they are at the core, and it makes them "good" and able to redeem others. Tohru Honda's an example of that, though I love her for other reasons.
rashaka: Anyway, with naruto, his determination is what drives him, but you know that he wasn't always that way, that he's had to *choose* to embrace determination and not to give up. That's what his character change from episode 1 when he was tricked by Mizuki through the wave country arc was about.
rashaka: when he became a genin Naruto was at a crossroads in deciding what kind of ninja (i.e. adult) he wanted to be, and he chose to get over his pain and really REALLY starting going after the Hokage goal.
rashaka: he stopped being a prankster and started seriously improving himself. I think that's why I empathize with his determination... we know the stuff he has gone through to get to that point.
ladyjessamyn: Yes. So true.
rashaka: And when he says he's going to do it, like you said-- I totally believe it. And the reason that Naruto can redeem people like Haku and Gaara is not because he's pure goodness incarnate, but because he used to be as angry and lonely as they were and he recreated himself, and chose not to be that kind of person.
ladyjessamyn: Yes, exactly! And this is why I get sort of annoyed when people try to reduce him to a hyperactive loud mouth...I mean, he was at first I guess, but he's been so much more than that for so long, I don't know how people can look at him and see only what he was in the first episode.
rashaka: I agree. I'm also really really anticipating more character-centric scenes from the manga, cause I want to see how his personality has developed. It already looks like some of his hyperness has been tuned down... but then it's been lower for a while.
rashaka: I'm betting some of the things we see will be more visible in him now.

ladyjessamyn: Yes, very true. I'm looking forward to this week's manga chapter...I was thinking some Naruto development might be shown since he's the only still standing against Itachi. (Though, I kind of expect Kakashi to get up...he can't be knocked out that easily!)
ladyjessamyn: I really want to see some flashbacks of Naruto's training with Jiraiya, too.
rashaka: yes!
rashaka: I want them to say "Jeraiya taught naruto all his secrets and now the boy kicks ass like those fuckers'll never believe."
rashaka: but of course he'll keep a lot of it secret because, weirdly, Naruto doesn't brag. About important stuff, anyway.
rashaka: He didn't even brag to Sasuke when he learned the Rasengan.
ladyjessamyn: "Jeraiya taught naruto all his secrets and now the boy kicks ass like those fuckers'll never believe."
Heeeee! That would be awesome.
ladyjessamyn: Yes! He really doesn't brag, does he? Especially not lately.
rashaka: no, he doesn't. I mean, he makes claims that he's going to be hokage, and he does brag that he'll win when he was in the exam (but who doesn't go to a tournament saying "You're going down buster!"?), but he doesn't say "I'm the best, I can do this, I can do that."
rashaka: He brags that he's "better than Sasuke" to Sasuke and Sakura and Kakashi, but that's borne out of rivalry, not a bragging nature. And usually it's more putting Sasuke down than building himself up.
rashaka: Actually, any real bragging he did was done mostly in the wave country arc.
rashaka: I noticed that after the forest exam and chuunin exam he's not laughed at other people as much either. It's like... wave country taught him what it was like to fight real ninjas, and the chuunin exam taught him to respect the efforts of his peers.
rashaka: And then the third died and Kabuto betrayed them all and stuff, and Naruto's just rapidly matured beyond most of that crap.
ladyjessamyn: That's so true. All of it.
rashaka: Gah. he's not an angel or something, but he's just changed SOOOO much when you stop and think.
ladyjessamyn: Naruto's character development has been amazing. Beautifully done, really.

Comments

Joining the Naruto love-fest

[helga-b.livejournal.com]

It's interesting you're comparing Naruto to Tohru, because that's what I've been doing in my head lately. Not because their character development is alike - it isn't, as you point out - but because, for lack of a better way of explaining it, the similar feel of the characters. There's something so genuine about the both of them.

A defining moment for Naruto and his development as a character for me was his telling Neji he'd change the Hyuuga when he becomes hokage. To me, that was the best sign that he really does take the hokage dream seriously. And it wasn't just something he said, you just know that he really meant it too.

*also looking forward to much development and ass-kicking soon*

Re: Joining the Naruto love-fest

[rashaka.livejournal.com]

defining moment for Naruto and his development as a character for me was his telling Neji he'd change the Hyuuga when he becomes hokage. To me, that was the best sign that he really does take the hokage dream seriously.

That ranks in my top 10 Naruto moments for me. I loved that, even wrote a ficlet about it on ff.net.

Re: Joining the Naruto love-fest

[helga-b.livejournal.com]

Definitely a favorite moment. I'm going to have to look up that fic.

Re: Joining the Naruto love-fest

[rashaka.livejournal.com]

http://www.fanfiction.net/s/2036918/1/

The first part is a drabble, the second part is just for shits and giggles. :)