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「恋とポテチ…!!」 (Koi to Potechi…!!)
“Love and Potato Chips!!”
Chou Chou’s gluttony made me crave some crisps. In case you didn’t know, crisps is what we call potato chips over in the United Kingdom. In the middle of watching this episode, I took a break and took a brief excursion to the nearby supermarket. Not that people would necessarily be familiar with British brands like Walkers and Jacobs, but I did enjoy my paprika flavoured pringles and mini cheddar bites. I know I’ve made it as the stereotypically lazy university student, when the aforementioned snacks ended up becoming my entire lunch.
Episode Impressions
The moment Magire made this angry face, I knew we were in for another week of dark chakra troubles with Magire as the victim. I guess it could have been worse…? While I find myself being super critical of Magire for stalking Sumire, I can’t help but wonder who wouldn’t abuse the power of invisibility. As much as I would like to outright say I’m a moral and upstanding person, there’s that niggling doubt saying I would abuse invisibility for sure.
Anyway, I’m really glad we didn’t get a generic story where Boruto comes as the knight in shining armour to Sumire’s rescue. Instead, we get a generous serving of Chou Chou as she proceeds to take the stage and resolve the issue with her love of food! Not forgetting Boruto and Denki in the first episode, Chou Chou’s conversation with Magire also showed that the dark chakra shroud can be dissipated via means other than combat, namely utilising the strongest technique to ever appear across the franchise – Talk no Jutsu.
Although I felt the delivery of Chou Chou’s moral lesson was quite cringe-worthy, what she said overall was pretty valid and it gave her much needed space for character development. Rejection or failure is not the end of the world – upon further introspection, a person can always work on changing themselves for the better. Despite coming across as superficial and self-centred, Chou Chou is a kind-hearted and sincere person who does not seem particularly conscious about her weight. Having said that, Magire’s possession might not have happened, if Chou Chou hadn’t cruelly jebaited him into a rejection she knew would happen.
Throwbacks
Seems like one of the kids looks up to the Sixth Hokage. Either that, or he’s trying to hide a big fat lip and buck teeth. Another pretty great throwback was Boruto hypothesizing about the possibility chakra monsters, but it seems rather odd that their existence isn’t established for both him and Shikadai. What I find interesting is the inference that for whatever reason, the story of the Tailed Beasts might not be taught to the newer generation. Or it’s all being planned as part of their later education, though it does seem really peculiar that it doesn’t come up as a widely-known legend or myth told to children. Maybe it’s an oversight on the part of the production committee, so it remains to be seen exactly what is going on here.
Concluding Thoughts
Though lacking in sophistication at times, Boruto is fundamentally a kids show. Whereas we grew up with Naruto, the current young kids in Japan will grow up watching Boruto, and the older audience members like us stick around to see how it spiritually continues from Naruto. It’s fairly natural to expect attempts at conflict resolution which may seem facile or childish. What I hope is that these conflicts grow steadily into more serious matters, pushing the new generation to mature and improve their application of Talk no Jutsu in order to deal with future issues.
The plotline with the dark chakra shroud is beginning to drag on in my opinion, so it is a relief that judging by the preview for next episode, Boruto will finally be telling people about his special eye. Only he’s turning into a complete chuunibyou over it. Himawari’s voiceover was hilarious and it was crazily cute when she expressed concern at how her older brother was turning into a weirdo!
I really do look forwards to seeing how Boruto will challenge the preconceived notions that the shinobi world has always had about the Byakugan in terms of the science behind how it is inherited – even if what he has is not a bona fide Byakugan. Hopefully this potential development would help end the cycle of people being possessed every week.
NOTICE
I will be on exam leave next week. Unfortunately, I haven’t found an available person to continue coverage of Boruto, although a mysterious challenger has agreed to take up Tsuki ga Kirei for me. This means it is more than likely that you will get a double post for Boruto in two weeks. Apologies in advance.
Preview
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You should improvise that jutsu’s name since its not pure japanese. Make it “Hanshi/Kaioai no jutsu”, if not then “Conversation(al) jutsu sounds cool.
Hey Atsu! While you raised a really good idea, Talk no Jutsu is already the common way that anime and manga fans on the internet casually refer to it. That’s why in my mind, I find it difficult to imagine anything other than ‘Talk no Jutsu’ when it comes to describing this power.
Honestly, this episode was refreshing and built on half the cast at once (except for Sarada and those not involved).
What probably struck me a lot is Boruto blushing even more madly than Sumire ever did. The kid DEFINITELY takes after his mom.
It’s ironic that the stalker genes have not manifested in Boruto already…
Wait until they manifest in Himawari. She will stalk her onii-chan and make sure he’s doing okay, as well as keeping an eye out to ensure he isn’t getting up to no good.
Cho-Cho is love, Cho-Cho is life.
The series is praiseworthy because, having to face the introduction of tons and tons of characters from the beginning and realizing that most of them are underdeveloped and too similar to their parents, they make a strength out of such weakness with a carefully calculated ensemble balance with varying focus in each episode. But Cho-Cho? Of all the new generation kids, she must be the most unique and one who can hold whole scenes alone.
Also, kudos to the series for not falling into the “Stalking For Love Is OK” trap. Here it was shown as pathetic at first and terrifying later. If you’re not a vampire in Twilight or a Mary Sue in a badly written fanfic, stalking won’t get you anywhere. Also, facing the challenge head on may not work either. Sometimes, failure is really the only option, and you have to learn to live with it. Cho-Cho was cruel, but right on the money.
And before anyone says “But it worked with Hinata!”, she was equally doomed to get nothing until she started talking to Naruto face to face and standing besides him… not several metres behind him. And even at worst she was less harmless than an invisible stalker with no sense of personal space.
Indeed. Your words made me remember The Invisible Man by H. G. Wells, where the protagonist gets drunk on power and fantasizes about imposing a Reign of Terror. Still, in the ninja world that should be one of the most useful techniques around.
I’m pretty glad that for the most part, the parents have remained relatively uninvolved with the general ongoings within Boruto. Given that the parents’ characters have already received ample construction from appearances in the Naruto series, it would be very easy for them to dominate the screen if they were to make an entrance. Hence I appreciate that the likes of Naruto, Hinata, Shikamaru and Temari have been used sparingly to excellent effect.
Chou Chou is pretty fantastic, but I personally want to see more Inojin and Mitsuki, especially Inojin who I feel like I misjudged pretty heavily. He’s a particularly interesting one, because I think he has inherited both the best and worst qualities exhibited by his parents. This contradiction produces an intensely controversial character that, taking inspiration from Chou Chou’s food analogy, makes Inojin a sweet and sour character. The mix of tastes make it even more delicious.
I think I have to echo the scepticism Boruto voiced as to how far ahead Chou Chou had actually anticipated things. To me, she just seemed to spontaneously go with the flow in a natural manner, using her strong intuitions to guide her through these events. Though I do suppose that means I agree with you, that she was cruel but right on the money.
Given his record with Sasuke, Orochimaru was my pick for worst stalker in the Naruto franchise. Extra points due to the fact he’s a grown ass man stalking young kids. Needs to be sent to some sort of rehabilitation centre to fix his bad habits. Here’s hoping Mitsuki can help redeem him.
Definitely, not letting the grown ups hog the spotlight has been another good point of the series. It’s not just that it leaves enough room to the children to be their own characters, but it makes their appearances more memorable, like Konohamaru’s in episode 4. Shino is the only one who actually gets more screentime… but it’s not as if he was hogging it in the original series.
I think Inojin has benefitted and will likely benefit a lot from the series. He was rather nondescript in his original appearance in chapter 700 of Naruto and didn’t make as many appearances in extra material as Cho-Cho, for example. Now he has more chances to shine.
Well, there’s this extra chapter written by Kishimoto… I think there’s hope.
And so, I feel this is one way where Boruto succeeds where Dragonball Z failed: properly passing the torch. Where even in DBS the grandpa is still the protag, this is leading up to properly keeping focus
Also, let’s remember, Hinata’s stalking wasn’t MEANT to win. Sakura was the lead character, the mangaka just could not get the story to work with her despite trying repeatedly. There are a number of interviews about this. Hinata was not intended to win in the end, so she’s not some morality lesson about stalking being okay.
a voyage to the corner of the globe is a real trip.
Guesst I didn’t know that something spherical and rounded like a globe could have corners.
You know, I’ll have you know, that I know that a voyage to the corner of the globe is a real trip. Maybe if you went outside instead of commenting on this trash ass weebsite.gov you would learn that for yourself. Ocean man, the crust of a tan man abide sand, soaking up the thirst of the land. Show Spoiler ▼
Show Spoiler ▼
No thanks. I get motion sickness pretty easily and it’s easily the worst with planes and boats. Plus I never really watched Spongebob Squarepants, so can’t really comment on the song lyrics. Apologies if the meaning is flying entirely over my head.
https://randomc.net/image/Boruto%20Naruto%20Next%20Generations/Boruto%20Naruto%20Next%20Generations%20-%2007%20-%20Large%2007.jpg
Unlike her father, who had a hard time making friends when he was young, it is good that Chōchō has plenty of friends. Not to sound rude but, in real life, girls who are fat have a hard time making friends.
https://randomc.net/image/Boruto%20Naruto%20Next%20Generations/Boruto%20Naruto%20Next%20Generations%20-%2007%20-%20Large%2015.jpg
First a hug, is a kiss coming?
https://randomc.net/image/Boruto%20Naruto%20Next%20Generations/Boruto%20Naruto%20Next%20Generations%20-%2007%20-%20Large%2035.jpg
Faces, priceless, I hope the kid cleans up that mess he made.
Quite enjoy the contrast between Chou Chou and Choji’s school lives. Maybe it helps Chou Chou is more chubby than obese, though I would largely but it down to her greater amounts of confidence compared to Choji.
The Boruto x Mitsuki doujins write themselves man. I particularly like how indifferent Mitsuki seems.
Awesome reactions faces asides, I only just noticed Shikadai spewed out his drink. I was pretty confused that he was eating noodles at a burger chain, but upon closer inspection, that would completely explain it XD