At long last, episode number 31 of Naruto Shippuuden aired yesterday and the day before that the much anticipated episode 144 of Bleach aired as well. These are two of the, if not most, popular anime series airing at this time and they have both experianced rather lengthy delays that have left fans clamoring for more.

Naruto, the precursor to Naruto Shippuuden, is perhaps the most noticeable example, while it is true that other anime series have had to create what are referred to as “filler” episodes so that the creator has time to progress the manga further, it has never before gone to the extent that it did in this series. The majority of season 6 and the whole of seasons 7 through 9 were created in order to give Kishimoto Masashi time to progress the manga further along since the anime series had nearly caught up with the manga. None of the stories in the anime appear in the manga and yet it gave fans a chance to get some much needed and sought after back story to their favorite characters. I have honestly lost track of the number of times I have watched episode 151: Moe yo Byakugan! Kore ga watashi no nindou yo!, in which Hinata not only grows a backbone but thoroughly kicks everyone’s butts. Not to mention the fact that I have faithfully watched and rewatched Anko’s arc so many times I actually wore out one disc and had to re-burn the episodes onto a new one.

Bleach has also had to resort to adding filler episodes, most notably, the Bount Arc (episodes 64 through 109) which consisted of two whole seasons, and recently episodes 128 through 135 that were created exclusively for the purpose of buying Tite Kubo more time to write the manga. On top of these delays in the series, both series have had noticeable gaps in times where their normal programming was disrupted in favor of specials.

The filler episodes, if done correctly, can give insight to characters and other avenues of plot development that would otherwise have been ignored, but to what purpose do the airing delays serve? Are they meant to ferment interest in the subject or is it merely a station’s disregard for fans?

Personally, I can handle some delays and there have been times where I truly enjoyed filler episodes. But for the most part I find myself being put off and a bit disgruntled. The only cure I have found is to immerse myself in fanfiction and fanart. Sometimes I will create these fanworks, more often then not though I go off in search of other’s works.

Now I know there have been times where I stopped tuning in for shows due to delays and fillers, but is it possible that others have been completely put off as a result of these? Have you ever felt disgruntled or put off? Tell me.

Last 5 issues of FAnime Friday:

• Issue #15, October 12, 2007: New Series to Look Out For
• Issue #14, October 5, 2007: Perfect Girl Evolution
• Issue #13, September 28, 2007: Venus Versus Virus
• Issue #12, September 21, 2007: Kaze no Stigma
• Issue #11, September 7, 2007: Give it up for the Minor Characters

Read the rest of the FAnime Friday issues on the FAnime Friday page! ^_^