Got into the weirdest debate about filler episodes at a con in Austin.

This guy in a Naruto jacket cornered me near the snack bar. He insisted the Great Ninja War arc had zero filler, not a single episode. I pulled up the list on my phone, showed him the 20+ episodes of flashbacks. He just stared at it, then said 'Those aren't filler, that's essential character lore.' Happened about six months ago, still makes me laugh. Anyone ever met someone who defends filler that hard?

3 comments

3 Comments

seanjackson25d ago

Honestly, @adamk95 is right that you can just skip stuff, but the real issue is when filler messes with the main story's pacing. Like, dropping a whole beach episode right after a major character death just kills the mood. That's what makes people argue about it so much.

adamk9525d ago

Man, it's just cartoons at the end of the day. The guy liked the flashback episodes, you didn't. Calling something filler is just a fan argument anyway. Some people get way too heated about episodes they can just skip. It's not like the anime police are going to arrest you for having a wrong opinion.

wesley_adams23d ago

Yeah, the Naruto flashback thing is a classic trap. My move is to just agree with them on the spot. "You know what, you're right, it IS essential lore." Because what they're really saying is they liked those episodes, and arguing about the definition of 'filler' never goes anywhere. I save the energy for when a show actually puts a filler arc in a place that wrecks the story flow, like in early One Piece right after they enter the Grand Line. That's when you gotta just make a skip list for your friends.