#Naruto Part 1 was one great binge, a great introduction to a big world that takes you quickly by the hand through a succession of very intense arcs with many interesting characters and great fights accompanied by great art and sometimes quite creative paneling.

The first arc in the series, known as the Lands of Waves Escort Mission, is a great introduction and a very emotional one. A lot of worldbuilding from the first moment that I enjoyed a lot, and a very solid base for the characters.

The following is one of the best parts of the series, the Chūnin Exams, full of many more characters with incredible designs and completely different personalities that gave rise to many exciting and clever fights which are the absolute peak of this series.

This arc ends with the Konoha Crush, the conflict between Orochimaru and the third Hokage, and the fight between Naruto and Gaara, the most thematically rich fight of the first half because of the many parallels between Gaara and Naruto.

The introduction of Jiraiya and the search for Tsunade to be the fifth Hokage is a very good transition arc that continues to introduce a lot of interesting lore about the characters, and introduces one of the best of what I've seen so far, Itachi.

His backstory and his manipulative personality with the presence he leaves in the little where he comes out, how disturbing he is and all the mysterious nature that surrounds the Akatsuki captivated me from the first moment.

Itachi together with Shikamaru have been my favourite characters of this first part, I see myself partly reflected in them and I like them above all for how different they are from the main cast, I like very much the variety of many characters in Naruto.

And the whole first part ends Sasuke Recovery Mission, an arc that gathers all the good things from the previous arcs and ends with a great climax between Naruto and Sasuke that gave me goosebumps.

I cannot finish giving my general impressions without mentioning the art of Kishimoto, whose designs and aesthetics made me fall in love from the first second and are a key factor in my enjoying Naruto so much. His paneling in fights is quite appropriate in general.

I really liked some dialogues about overcoming that reinforce some of the characters' ideas and make their fights much better, like the one between Rock Lee and Gaara, or others where they talk about the importance of accepting themselves and being loved by others.

In conclusion, the first part of Naruto explores simple themes in a simple way but manages to elevate them with its brilliant fights, art and world. Read Naruto. The first part is completely fantastic, great and fun.

also I'm giving my thoughts while I read on this thread, currently readint the Shippuden part https://twitter.com/iggythustra/status/1332304862126747648?s=20