Anime (アニメ) refers to the animation style originating in Japan. It is characterized by distinctive characters and backgrounds (hand-drawn or computer-generated) that visually and thematically set it apart from other forms of animation. Storylines may include a variety of fictional or historical characters, events, and settings. Anime is aimed at a broad range of audiences; consequently, a given series may have aspects of a range of genres. Anime is most frequently distributed by streaming services, broadcast on television, or sold on DVDs and other media, either after their broadcast run or directly as original video animation (OVA). Console and computer games sometimes also feature segments or scenes that can be considered anime.
Manga (漫画) is Japanese for "comics" or "whimsical images". Manga developed from a mixture of ukiyo-e and Western styles of drawing, and took its current form shortly after World War II. Manga, apart from covers, is usually published in black and white but it is common to find introductions to chapters to be in color and read from top to bottom and then right to left, similar to the layout of a Japanese plain text. Financially, manga represented 2005 a market of ¥24 billion in Japan and $180 million in the United States. Manga was the fastest-growing segment of books in the United States in 2005. In 2020, Japan's manga industry hit a value of ¥612.6 billion due to the fast growth of the digital manga market, while manga sales in North America reached an all-time high at almost $250 million.
Anime and manga share many characteristics, including exaggerating (in terms of scale) of physical features, to which the reader presumably should pay most attention (best known being "large eyes"), "dramatically shaped speech bubbles, speed lines and onomatopoeic, exclamatory typography..." Some manga (a small percentage) are adapted into anime, often with the collaboration of the original author. Computer games can also be adapted into anime. In such cases, the work's original story is often compressed or modified to fit the new format and appeal to a wider demographic. Popular anime franchises sometimes include full-length feature films. Some anime franchises have been adapted into live-action films and television programs.
Naruto Uzumaki is the fictional protagonist of the Japanese manga series Naruto, created by Masashi Kishimoto. A carefree, optimistic and boisterous teen ninja who befriends other ninja, he aspires to become the leader of his fictional village, Konohagakure. He appears in anime, films, video games and original video animations, as well as a sequel Boruto: Naruto Next Generations, with his son Boruto Uzumaki as the protagonist. Kishimoto initially aimed to keep the character "simple and stupid", while giving him many attributes of an ideal hero, and a tragic past. The author has revised Naruto's image many times, providing the character with different clothes intended to appeal to Western audiences and to make him easier to illustrate. Naruto is voiced by Junko Takeuchi(pictured) in the original animated series and Maile Flanagan in the English adaptations. The character's development has been praised by anime and manga publications, and has drawn scholarly attention. (Full article...)
The episodes aired from October 3, 2007 to December 26, 2007 on TV Kanagawa, with episodes airing later on Chiba TV, TV Aichi, TV Saitama, TV Osaka, and AT-X. The AT-X broadcast was notably late, starting on November 22, 2007, as opposed to the other stations, which started airing the episodes in October. This anime had been under pressure from fans as director Tetsuaki Matsuda has not including information that was in the Manga in the anime. (Full list...)
A clip from the now-lost film Chikara to Onna no Yo no Naka ("Within the World of Power and Women" or "The World of Power and Women") (1933), the first anime to feature a voiceover.
