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「おみやげク工スト」 (Omiyage kuesuto)
“The Quest for Souvenirs”
Boruto forgets to buy a gift for Himawari, and proceeds to further dig himself into a hole. After searching for a long time, he finally finds his mark in an exotic store. When Mitsuki implied that he could dispose of the old woman, so that they could grab the sweets, I gave a pretty dark chuckle. Unfortunately, it was a proposition which Boruto immediately objects, albeit for good reason. So instead, Boruto needs to win a game of Shinobi Bout before he can finally claim his prize.
Frankly, I’m surprised that Boruto did not cheat when presented with the opportunity. I know he’s not a bad kid, but as the TV series continues to develop his character, it’s becoming much more difficult to reconcile with what we’ve seen in the movies. While I would like to delve into this topic a bit further, I’m aware that some people may not be familiar with future events depicted by the movie.
One last thing. We’ve seen how Boruto positively influenced Kagura, therefore it’s only fair we get to see the equivalent exchange. After seeing how Kagura goes in an excessively roundabout manner to apologise, Boruto realises that it’s alright to ‘fess up for your mistakes. This results in his decision to be honest with Himawari, something Mitsuki views as strange. If anything, I view it as a step in the right direction.
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「スランプ!! 超獣偽画（ちょうじゅうぎが）」 (Suranpu!! Choujuu nise ga (chou-juu giga))
“The Super Beast Scroll Slump!”
Talk about how friendships can negatively influence you, when Inojin starts calling drawing a ‘drag’. In fact, this attitude is exactly what causes the jutsu problems seen within this episode. Fortunately, Inojin’s parents were there to steady the boat, and guaranteed that it didn’t float astray – even if Sai’s methods were a tad unorthodox.
Inojin’s Plight
Right at the start of the series, I called out Inojin for being dislikable. While such an opinion mellowed over time, this episode did wonders, and humanising Inojin. In other words, I’ve come to like him a lot. We see him undergo a struggle, whereby he cannot properly perform the Super Beast Scroll technique, something which really demoralises him. And even though he seemed like a whippersnapper for trying to cut some corners, I felt really sorry for the kid when he put up a façade of not caring, when he almost considered genuinely quitting.
Yamanaka Parenting
Sai’s largely l’aissez faire approach helped yield this fruitful outcome, allowing Inojin to derive a conclusion that was mostly self-realised. However, I wonder if things would have gone awry if not for Ino’s timely intervention. She puts in a fantastic shift as mother, and guides her son in the right direction, stopping him just short of abandoning the Super Beast Scroll. She managed that, without interfering too much, leaving the labour of Sai’s painstaking efforts intact. Inojin doesn’t quite give up, but still remains unsure.
Sink or Swim
It takes some motivation from Himawari to get Inojin back into his groove. Initially disdainful of her childish doodles, he eventually comes to see the value inherent to her work that he lost sight of – sheer amounts of effort and emotion she had poured into creating it. Witnessing the drawing almost get destroyed rallies up Inojin’s conviction, and he draws with the emotional energy of wanting to rescue someone else’s precious belonging. To me, it says that beyond a prickly pride, he’s a truly good person at heart. When Inojin asks Himawari if she’s okay with expending her precious drawing for the Super Beast Scroll technique, she reaffirms the moral behind the story. Even if her precious drawing got destroyed, that’s okay – she would simply draw it again. Oh Himawari… you’re too precious for this world!
Concluding Thoughts
Single episode filler usually rustle my jimmies. However, these past two have pleasantly surprised me, with Boruto and Inojin having developed as characters. But actually, I want to talk about the closure brought to me, regarding an uncomfortable resolution left behind by the previous generation. I used to think that the relationship between Sai and Ino was a foolish result of Kishi’s naïve attempt at pairing everybody off. However, this episode completely changed my opinion. Why hadn’t I seen it before, that their personalities actually compliment one another? What’s more, it actually leads to some truly wholesome interactions. Despite being busy leading Konoha’s police force, he has time to raise his son, and help out at the flower shop. I didn’t think I’d say it, but even with Sai being socially dysfunctional in many respects, he and Ino probably share the healthiest marriage. As for my favourite from the last generation, I’m personally hoping to see some more moments between Temari and Shikamaru, though it doesn’t seem like we’ll be getting it any time soon.
While next week looks to be a continuation of filler content, I’m hoping that it will be at least somewhat relevant, by leaning towards the formation of ninja trios. That way, we’ll know that we’re embarking on a path towards the Chūnin Exam arc. Anyway, that’s it from me. Until next time!
Preview
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These slice of life episodes are love.
Himawari you are so cute. And seeing other Naruto couple’s marriages just makes Sarada’s home life sadder and sadder.
Show Spoiler ▼
That’s character development for you. I mean, both the movie and the series are originals. For the sake of longevity they have to move all of these characters forward. That and the writers probably just want to go there own way with this series.
I’m actually enjoying these slice of life segments a lot more than I thought I would! These kids are being substantively fleshed out, and we’re getting a real feel for their characters. People who have been reading my posts for a long time will know that I have quite a high valuation of characters when it comes to my own subjective assessments.
And I agree that seeing other couples be happy does throw Sarada’s situation into perspective. At least she isn’t totally alone, and has Sakura to look after her, but she certainly deserves better.
Sounds decent for a filler. But still I’ma skip another 5 EPs to see where Boruto is heading.
https://randomc.net/image/Boruto%20Naruto%20Next%20Generations/Boruto%20Naruto%20Next%20Generations%20-%2033%20-%20Large%2040.jpg
These episodes are utter gold. Quite frankly I think it works!
Provided they keep up a good balance between fleshing out, and advancing the story, I think we’ll be good to go.
I really dont think they should join this timeline to the movie, it does not fit at all. maybe recreate the whole plot if they still want to add that chapter to the anime, but otherwise I’ll start assuming that they are two separate timelines. this Boruto would dirty his clothes and he has, several times.
It’s ironic that you mention that, because the authors are doing the exact opposite. The manga (who starts by retelling the movie’s plot) is already merging with the anime timeline:
Show Spoiler ▼
My guess is that the anime will flesh out Boruto’s antics during the exams to go beyond superficial daddy issues and show-off tendencies.
I think that while a separation would be great. Based on the quality of work so far, the anime production team have shown they can do great stuff with some creative freedom. However, they’ll have to do more to prove that they can deserve the chance to partially separate, and be trusted to rewrite some events in the Chūnin Exam Arc.
It’s a heavy undertaking, that can carry severe repercussions if not properly handled.
The more I see of the old generation acting as parents, the more I love them.
That applies to the Ino-Sai household. As with you, Zaiden, this episode has finally convinced me not only that they do make a good couple, but they have a very healthy family life. Sai may be still socially awkward, but he manages to have a police job, be there for his son and go regularly to Ino’s flower shop to lend a hand and talk together about parenting issues.
Nevertheless, I agree with you: Sai’s plan might have been a very good concept, but lacked in execution. It was Ino who suggested taking Himawari to class, and she gave Inojin the gentle push he needed; without her involvement, I suspect Sai’s plan would have backfired.
Totally agreed. Hinata went along and delivered some perfect banter! To be honest, I would not have expected it either, if you asked me right about the time Naruto ended that she would be this kind of parent.
Makes me wonder if I could be capable of such high level banter if I were to be a parent.