Naruto Shippuden: Set 3 Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.0
Audio		3.0
Extras		0.5
Overall		3.0

Naruto Shippuden: Set 3 Blu-ray Movie Review

Naruto Shippuden: Set 3 continues the action-packed adventures of the sequel Naruto anime. Created by Masashi Kishimoto, Naruto Shippuden is an action-adventure ninja epic with comedy alongside fan-favorite characters. Naruto Shippuden features original character designs by Yasuaki Kurotsu – the fun and heartwarming designs that have made the characters so iconic.

Naruto Shippuden features series production by Pierrot (Kimagure Orange Road, The Mysterious Cities of Gold), Shueisha (Black Clover, Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War), and TV Tokyo (All Purpose Cultural Cat Girl Nuku Nuku, Black Clover). The animation is produced by Pierrot (Black Clover, Flame of Recca). Naruto Shippuden: Set 3 also features series production by Fukashi Azuma (Vampire Knight, Mon Colle Knights) and Tomoko Gushima (The Prince of Tennis, Saiyuki Reload).

Originally broadcast on the Bandai Channel (Kids Station, TV Tokyo), Naruto Shippuden: Set 3 features voice-work by Junko Takeuchi, Chie Nakamura, and Noriaki Sugiyama. Fans of action anime series will enjoy the series adrenaline-packed adventure. Naruto Shippuden: Set 3 continues to offer audiences the fun sense of whimsy the series has mastered.

The journey is never over for Ninja Naruto. The adventures continue as Naruto begins a new and exciting mission. Naruto is now working with Kakashi for a new series of training practice. With Kakashi helping to lead Naruto on his new training journey, Naruto discovers that despite all of his strength and abilities – Naruto still has a lot to learn. The Ninja way is never easy and the journey is one full of epic surprises.

The Land of Fire is a new hot spot locale where Kakashi discovers new dangers and a new enemy. Furido is a dangerous Rogue Ninja with incredible skills and strength. Furido begins an assault of the senses against the Village Hidden in the Leaves – using the expert Lightning Style Jutsu. There is much at stake as Naruto and Kakashi find the mission ahead full of surprises. Can Naruto continue to level up as a Ninja and be the hero capable of stopping Furido?

The characters are at the heart of Naruto Shippuden. Naruto Shippuden continues the journey of the characters that made the original Naruto series such a popular fan-favorite. The character designs by Hirofumi Suzuki (Road to Ninja: Naruto the Movie, The Last: Naruto The Movie) and Tetsuya Nishio (Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex 2nd GIG, Boruto: Naruto Next Generations) are excellent, providing some wonderful merit to the series production. The designs are true to the manga and manage to bring the series forward in a compelling way.

The animation is one of the greatest strengths of Naruto Shippuden. Naruto Shippuden features series art direction by Norihiko Yokomatsu (Road to Ninja: Naruto the Movie, Call of the Night) and Shigenori Takada (Yu Yu Hakusho: Ghost Files, Flame of Recca). The animation is an essential ingredient to the anime series. The anime series just wouldn’t be the same without the animation style or the quality artistry it provides. The animation is true to the manga roots and brings the cast of characters to life. The animators do a great job providing engaging animation for the action spectacular and the series aesthetic vibes all the better as a result.

The score composed for Naruto Shippuden: Set 3 is by -yaiba- (New Fist of the North Star, Boruto: Naruto the Movie), Musashi Project (Naruto the Movie: Legend of the Stone of Gelel, Naruto the Movie: Ninja Clash in the Land of Snow), Toshio Masuda (Ninja Girl & Samurai Master, Excel Saga), and Yasuharu Takanashi (The Ambition of Oda Nobuna, Fairy Tail). The score is a big part of the production. The original music adds a lot to the series tone and the action-scenes are all the more effective as a result. Without the score, the ninja fight scenes wouldn’t hold as much weight or merit.

The cinematography by Atsuho Matsumoto (Naruto, Queen's Blade: Rebellion) is a highlight of the Naruto Shippuden series, providing a good backdrop for the visuals. The cinematography is lush and adds so much outstanding artistry to the animation. The cinematography highlights the animation and its colorful aesthetic.

Written by Junki Takegami (Naruto, Pokémon) and Yasuyuki Suzuki (Naruto, Speed Grapher), Naruto Shippuden: Set 3 provides more adventure for series devotees. The action continues with the series continuing to explore the ninja way. Fans know what to expect – the journey of Naruto is one with plenty of excitement.

Directed by Hayato Date (Naruto, Flame of Recca), Naruto Shippuden: Set 3 provides more fun for devotees with the director continuing the series with more adventures with the beloved characters. Director Date understands the franchise and audience expectations, delivering an impressive aplomb of action for series enthusiasts. The journey continues.

Naruto Shippuden: Set 3 Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Released on Blu-ray by VIZ Media, Naruto Shippuden: Set 3 is presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded high-definition in the original television broadcast aspect ratio of 1.78:1 widescreen. The release is an upconverted and upscaled presentation from standard definition material. The source provided isn't native high-definition. The release still showcases issues with jaggies and edge artifacts and other presentation anomalies that are present in the standard-definition source material.

The Naruto Shippuden presentation is underwhelming to say the least. The animation source quality looks dated – and the animation clearly comes from average standard-definition source material. The source material clearly showcases flaws of the era with the encode quality providing only modest upscaling. The upscaling from standard-definition is underwhelming compared to a native high-definition presentation. An unfortunate drawback to the source material and the nature of the presentation upscaling.

Naruto Shippuden: Set 3 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The release includes a selection of lossless audio options: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 and Japanese DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (with English subtitles). The Naruto Shippuden: Set 3 release showcases the original sound direction of Yasunori Ebina (Date A Live, Naruto). The audio quality capably reproduces the dialogue and sound design. The audio clarity is acceptable and provides a reasonable presentation quality. While the audio doesn't sound as crisp or detailed as the best lossless audio presentations do, it is serviceable alongside the standard-definition video upscale.

Naruto Shippuden: Set 3 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The release includes a nice o-card slipcover. The slipcover is provided on the initial print run. The slipcover features the same artwork as the key art highlighted underneath the slipcover. A nice supplement to the package design, the slipcover helps the set look nice on a shelf.

On disc supplements include:

Storyboards includes 5 click-through pages of storyboards from episode 74.

Art Gallery includes 17 click-through illustrations.

Clean Opening and Ending Videos:

Opening Credits (HD, 3:02)

Ending Credits (HD, 3:01)

Trailers (HD, 00:41)

The supplemental package could have been improved significantly. The set could have been more well-rounded with audio commentaries, behind the scenes featurettes, cast/crew interviews, photo galleries, and more. The release is lackluster in the supplemental department and isn't even as rounded out as the previous box-set (which at least included a bonus interview). By comparison, the third set takes a step backwards with fewer extras instead of adding more into the mix.

Naruto Shippuden: Set 3 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Naruto Shippuden: Set 3 provides more action-packed fun for fans of the anime series. The ninja journey of Naruto continues. The set provides more exciting adventure with the beloved fan-favorite leading characters. The Blu-ray release provides a upscaled high- definition presentation (from standard definition). The Blu-ray set also includes lossless audio encoding. The release has a small selection of supplemental features. Fans of the series may wish to consider adding the release to their Naruto Shippuden collection. Despite the set having some notable shortcomings, fans may wish to indulge.