10 Anime That Tried To Recreate Naruto Magic (And Failed Miserably)
Looks like showing teenagers practicing martial arts is not enough to become the next big hit.
Since its premiere in 2002 (can you believe it's been over 20 years?), Naruto has managed to steal the hearts of millions of anime lovers.
Despite all its plot holes and flaws, Naruto has become the greatest story ever told for millions of fans who still chase that special feeling you get from watching a young ninja's journey to the top.
This, however, proves to be a difficult task. Of course, Naruto's wild success has spawned many anime in the same genre. But even the best of them pale in comparison to the inimitable original, not to mention those that aren't even worth watching.
Here are ten of the greatest examples of shows that tried to be a new Naruto but flopped.
Boruto: Naruto Next Generations (2017-2023)
IMDb Rating: 6.5/10
Naturally, the first anime series to make this list is Naruto's own sequel, Boruto, which seemingly tried to build on the popularity of its parent but largely disappointed fans, which is ironic considering the show's plot revolves around Naruto Uzumaki's son trying to find a way out of his father's shadow.
The spin-off fails on many levels, starting with an unpleasant visual style and poor use of characters, and ending with villains that don't even come close to Naruto's and the twisting of an original fictional universe. On top of that, many episodes feel like boring fillers.
Mushibugyo (2013-2015)
IMDb Rating: 6.6/10
The protagonist of the story is Jinbee Tsukishima, the son of a samurai living in an alternate Japan of the early 1700s, where humans are at war with giant insects. Jinbee's biggest dream is to become the best swordsman in the country, which will sound familiar to any Naruto fan.
Unlike Naruto, the story revolves around traditional disciplines like onmyoji and samurai, and lacks in many areas, including fight scenes, pacing, and character development.
Nabari No Ou (2008)
IMDb Rating: 6.5/10
Miharu Rokujo is an apathetic and cold modern student, who one day discovers (much like Naruto) that his body holds a powerful ninja secret and goes on a journey to protect it. As you can imagine, the show could have been a real treat for Naruto fans, but unfortunately it aimed higher than it could reach.
The plot gets lost in lazy and predictable storytelling and unnecessary twists, and the characters don't seem to develop at all.
Basilisk: The Ouka Ninja Scrolls (2018)
IMDb Rating: 4.7/10
This anime was basically created as a Naruto for adult audiences, with ninja clan wars and lots of fighting, but increased levels of gore. However, the plan didn't work out and those who managed to finish the viewing were left more confused than anything else.
Hands down, this is one of the worst manga adaptations ever, with weird ninja skills, poor writing, and scene switching that makes you dizzy.
Taboo Tattoo (2016)
IMDb Rating: 5.4/10
The main character, Seigi, trained in jujitsu, gets a mysterious tattoo from a stranger after saving him from thugs. Similar to Naruto's seal, the tattoo gives him special powers and pulls him into the middle of a charged conflict.
Despite a promising start, the show quickly drops in quality and instead of Naruto-like action and character development, viewers are treated to generic tropes and excessive, incessant fan service.
Radiant (2018-2020)
IMDb Rating: 6.7/10
The main character of Radiant Seth desperately tries to be Naruto. He is immune to the touch of monsters that fall from the sky and destroy humanity, which makes him one of the few so-called 'sorcerers'.
But the similarity ends there. Unlike Naruto, Seth is a generic nice guy and does little to grab the viewer's attention. The unbalanced tone, the lack of maturity and the numerous filler episodes didn't help either.
Gibiate (2020)
IMDb Rating: 4.1/10
As a martial arts series, Gibiate tries to recreate the Naruto-style action and fight scenes, but doesn't succeed. The story follows a samurai, a ninja and a monk who travel through time to save the world from a virus that turns people into monsters.
Despite an intriguing premise, the development is forced and the writing fails to grab the viewer's attention and make them root for the main characters.
Ninja Collection (2020)
IMDb Rating: 5.2/10
As you can see from the title, the main focus of the series is a ninja theme. Basically, it is a collection of short scary stories about modern ninjas fighting against the spread of darkness.
However, the anime has very low ratings on many fan platforms, and there's a reason for that. You don't get any introduction to the universe or insight into the characters (even the main ones) or the motivation behind their actions, which quickly gets boring. Furthermore, the creepy staff is not that creepy at all.
Maken-Ki! (2011)
IMDb Rating: 5.8/10
Maken-Ki! is considered one of the worst shōnen series based on martial arts, and for good reason.
The story of a horny teenage boy who joins a previously all-girls school and discovers that all the students have magical powers and casually participate in sanctioned fighting matches, unfortunately turned into a tasteless generic fan service show with basically no plot and no visual treats.
Samurai Harem (2009)
IMDb Rating: 5.9/10
Like Naruto, Yoichi Karasuma is a young swordsman and martial arts student living in a remote mountainous area. He becomes so skilled at fighting that his father sends him to the city to begin a new training, to learn to live among people.
And while this sounds like a recipe for a good story, Samurai Harem gloriously fails to deliver a compelling plot, gripping characters, and an interesting ending.