Remember watching your favorite Anime like Dragon Ball and One Piece on Cartoon Network/Toonami or Disney/Disney XD? That is the time when the watching journey of many Anime fans begins.
Anime is filled with a storyline that draws the attention of viewers and keeps them guessing about what comes next. Anime has become a great relaxation and distraction tool for hardcore anime lovers.
But do weebs know? This one of the most and beloved anime became a pain in the neck for the most anticipated channel, Disney.
No, not One Piece or Dragon Ball, then which anime makes Disney regret its decision? Why Anime gave Disney a headache? Read the article to know the answers.
Also Read: Broken Heroes: 6 Naruto Villains Who Make One Piece, Dragon Ball, Bleach Antagonists Look Like Wimps
The Anime Headache for Disney
The anime which makes it hard for Disney to premiere is Naruto: Shippuden. The anime is about a boy named Naruto who trains to become the Best ninja and most of all, “hokage” of the Hidden Leaf Village.
Although when Cartoon Network aired original Naruto anime, they enjoyed considerable success. The series was a rating powerhouse and gained immense popularity among kids. And after the introduction of Naruto: Shippuden, the network needed to reacquire the rights.
However, after seeing the extreme growth Disney decided to outbid Cartoon Network for the anime series. The network decided not to make a counterbid after Disney made the offer, and it was fair and easy for Disney to attain the rights of the show.
But after acquiring the rights, Disney never knew the show will become such a hassle for them.
Also Read: Boruto Chapter 81: 6 Shinobi Who Would’ve Been a Better 8th Hokage after Naruto Than Shikamaru
The Reason Why Naruto: Shippudden Became a Problem For Disney
Despite its massive success on Cartoon Network, Naruto was the first anime series to be broadcast on daytime TV with a TV-PG rating. This classification of TV-PG allowed for more violence, edgy and mature humor, and even a bit of language slides.
Not just did Disney outlook this, but Naruto: Shippuden was a more violent sequel, featuring action sequences that would easily secure the show a TV-14 rating if presented uncut.
As Disney is primarily known for their family-friendly content and Viz Media would dub the show uncut. Disney was compelled to head to the editing room and remove many sequences.
They edit out multiple things like the use of the Sexy Jutsu and the Pervy Jutsu in the first episode became Cutie Jutsu and Hottie Jutsu. More clouds were also added to the Sexy Jutsu to conceal the nudity, now covering everything below the naked girl’s head.
All swear words were removed or redubbed, blood was digitally removed, and extreme violence scenes were cut from the anime. Several episodes would have three to four whole minutes cut from episodes.
Naruto: Shippuden premiered on Disney XD in October 2009, and after 98 episodes it got canceled, Disney has rejected more frequent violence shown in later episodes.
The show moved to Adult Swim’s Toonami block in January of 2014, where episodes are shown uncut and range from a TV-PG to TV-14 rating, the series still going on a weekly basis until the series ended in 2024.
Source: GameRant
