Considering how when you Google ‘Mecha Naruto,’ you get
dozens of images of the character in a new game before you see any of him in
the episodes he actually debuted in, I have a crazy suspicion that this two-parter
might’ve been concocted just to establish that particular bonus skin.
If so, it certainly
fits. I was more eager to pick this ‘special episode’ up because
it was presented as something fun and self-contained that you could just drop
into without having to get entangled in the latest dour SHIPPUDEN mega arc. C’mon --
it’s called “NARUTO VS. MECHA NARTUO?” The shenanigans practically write
themselves.
Well, it’s a lot less fun - - and far more convoluted - -
than the title would suggest.
The special makes a few obvious homages to
Western characters. Mecha Naruto is created in a laboratory powered by a kite
in a thunder storm, and the sequence might as well be taken shot-for-shot from
any iteration of FRANKENSTEIN. The mech goes on to basically serve as an Iron
Man armor for our titular ninja boy to wear, right down to having an in-helmet,
holographic HUD that lets us see Naruto’s manic expressions as he pilots.
What’s weird is that all of this sounds wonderfully absurd, but plays rather dourly, even when the show’s attempting to go
for jokes. Seriously, there’s a sight gag where Mecha Naruto gets down on his
hands and knees and literally starts sucking Regular’s Naruto’s Chakra energy in from
waist level. It’d be funny if anybody made a double entendre, but the whole
production feels so rushed, it’s like they forgot the punchline they set up. Thus, the scenario just seems… awkward.
‘Rush’ is really the write word here, because a lot of the
potential fun seems to be spread out by Naruto getting manically carted through
his home town and running into what felt like dozens of names from his roster
of friends. It feels less like a tribute special, and more like the crew just
throwing in as many familiar faces as they can just to fill air time. I kept
watching these guys awkwardly scurrying about, carrying Naruto in a
protective cart, and wondering how it didn’t feel as funny as it ought to.
Well, if the aim here was as mercenary as the Google search
suggests, than I think I’ve already answered my own question. This doesn’t
really feel like ‘filler.’ It feels like spam for the game..
Watch "the Directive to Take the Nine-Tails!" and "Naruto vs. Mecha Naruto" and decide for yourself, then read our take on the previous batch of episodes.
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