I did hear about this show through a couple of television promos and my friends. After so many years, I finally got to watch Naruto and this turned out to be one of the best things I've done in my life. I have never identified with a shounen protagonist more, and even supporting characters have been written with care and brilliance. The first episode itself hit me in the feels when I realized I wasn't the only one who as a kid did stuff to get people to pay attention and care for me. This is the point where the creator Masashi Kishimoto as well as the animators teased me the start of something epic.

Naruto is an out-and-out action anime, filled with stylish martial arts fight sequences, with tones shifting occasionally between intense and lighthearted, depending on the backdrop and buildup. It still amazes me to date how one can come up with such a fantastic fight choreography and draw it with hand, and that too a number of times to deliver the right product! The music is simply out of the world and suits every bit of where it happens to play out. Especially "Orochimaru Theme", which surprised me when I heard Hindi words in it! The animation is beautiful for its time of creation, and the writing is splendid.

The characterization is what sets Naruto apart from other shounen anime and maybe even makes it the best in this category. It captures both the excitement of being a child as well as the pain of being lonely, with finesse. The tonal shifts between dramatic and humorous are beautifully done, as a result of which you'll be on a roll-coaster ride of emotions throughout the show. Plus, being jam-packed with action means Naruto also delivers some of the greatest battles ever written and drawn in the history of anime. The depth in the writing reflects in the dialogues as well, many of which end up going down in history as life-changing quotes. No doubt, the voice acting is top notch, especially for the protagonist.

Watching this show on a daily basis made me so engrossed that it really smashed my heart into a million pieces whenever I saw kid Naruto crying. It still makes me emotional to think what he had to go through when he was younger, and how strongly he rose to achieve his goal of being accepted by everyone. This has taught me so many integral life-lessons I wish I could learn as a kid, but it's never too late. One word for the fillers as well: Please don't skip them! I know that there's minimal to no manga canon story after episode 135, but the fillers provide a fantastic character development for less-used characters such as Hinata and Tenten, and are still pumped up with exciting action sequences. So watch the whole thing, all the 220 episodes, and only then you can comment how good of an anime Naruto is.