"Best animation in the Big 3": Naruto fandom's claim outrages One Piece and Bleach fans

Modified Apr 14, 2024 11:50 GMT

Ichigo Kurosaki, Naruto Uzumaki and Monkey D. Luffy (Image via Sportskeeda)

Naruto, Bleach, and One Piece have been dubbed the "Big 3" anime since their inception. They each have the largest fandoms around. Needless to mention, the debate regarding which might be the best in what aspect continues to rage on even today.

Each series is unique in its own way and puts forth a number of different things that justify its position in the top three. Comparing them on points such as story, character roster, overall message, etc. could take forever. A recent post on X has added to the debate, comparing the three on the grounds of best animation.

Naruto fandom places show's animation over One Piece and Bleach

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A post on X by a member of the Naruto fandom, @hypareyli2, suggested that Masashi Kishimoto's anime adaptation had superior animation when compared to Bleach and One Piece. The series which began airing on October 3, 2002, is directed by Hayato Date and produced by Studio Pierrot and TV Tokyo.

It aired 220 episodes before drawing to a close on February 8, 2007. But the wait for the next bit was very short, with Naruto Shippuden beginning its broadcast on February 15, 2007. 500 episodes and truckloads of emotion later, it ended on March 23, 2017.

Throughout the course of the 700 episodes, Studio Pierrot remained in charge of animation. Their work is largely considered outstanding, and the massive fandom stands testament to the same. However, Bleach and One Piece too continue to be excellent in their own respect.

Thus, the comment on X by the Naruto fandom seems to have not sat well with Bleach and One Piece fans.

Fans share their disagreement on social media

Ichigo Kurosaki and Monkey D. Luffy (Image via Sportskeeda)

In response to the post, fans from the other two fandoms were swift to take to social media to share their opinions. Many disagreed with the statement, putting their own favorite shows ahead or simply dismissing the claims.

"It was definitely bleach what?" a user wrote.

"You have to make it specific to cater to naruto just because bleach and one piece have better animation" another fan opines.

"One Piece’s only competition is One Piece" a netizen writes

A lot of comments were in favor of Tite Kubo's Bleach. Many felt that Studio Pierrot did a better job with that than with Naruto, at least in the initial stages. One fan even went ahead to write that One Piece was competing with itself in this regard.

The debate wore on with people also bringing up the point of fillers. A section of fans felt that the animation improved only after what felt like an endless run of fillers. There might be some truth to the statements as Kishimoto's series does have quite a few filler episodes.

"ahh yes best animation after a years worth of filler each time" one fan commented.

But then Naruto isn't the only series to have fillers. Many other anime such as My Hero Academia, Hunter x Hunter, Dragon Ball, Fullmetal Alchemist, and even Bleach and One Piece have come with fillers.

"Other two cant even be compared" a fan posts.

"It's not even close. Bleach had the stiffest animation, One piece a super goofy, Naruto was straight up gorgeous art" one netizen writes.

"Who even thinks otherwise?" another post reads.

However, the Knucklehead Ninja's backing stood strong, with a number of them chiming in and strongly agreeing. One fan called the series' animation "gorgeous art" and another opined that there was no comparison in this regard. They believed that their beloved series was ahead thanks to Pierrot's exceptional efforts.