⭐Naruto Episodes 90 & 91: Watch Along & Analysis

The OP is still the same, but there are just some new images now that we have been officially introduced to Tsunade.

This get's explained in more detail later in the series, but since it already happened I can explain this: The Reanimation Jutsu that Orochimaru uses has the option of keeping the memories and personalities of the reanimated and also can erase personalities and Orochimaru controls their movements. Remember this happened with the First and Second Hokage, they both got reanimated and started wondering what was going on, then Orochimaru inserted in them kunai knifes with tags that basically put them under his direct control. So in a way if Orochimaru would reanimate Tsunade's brother and lover he would let them have their personalities and memories, which is what Tsunade would want.

Orochimaru told her the whole truth because she knows his deception tactics and it would of resulted in a fight so he played it logically

I think we have all had a moment in tsunade’s shoes where we are so grief stricken that you have those dreams of life still with those loved ones and she is given that choice to have them back for a price I can’t say if anyone else would take it but I can say orochimaru knows how to get what he wants

Tsunade calls Naruto's new jutsu Rasengan(Spiraling Sphere I believe). The exact time-frame and all that isn't really spelled out in detail, and her age when her brother Nawaki was killed isn't stated specifically, but she's definitely in her mid-late teens, maybe 16-19, and she's in her late 20's when Dan is killed. So it has been more than 20 years since Dan was killed by this point. A less fun fact, both Nawaki and Dan were killed in the Second Shinobi World War, meaning Tsunade suffered spending the decade growing to adulthood through trauma on the frontlines of the same war between their deaths as well. I think it's fair to give her a pass on just considering Orochimaru's offer.

Denver Gray

Whew, finally all caught up. First off, the depth of your reactions and discussions is fantastic. As for tiers and whatnot, that really is the best way to look at characters in this series. Linear power is basically pointless and a terrible ninja with a special ability could beat a Kage in the right circumstances. So instead of thinking Person A is stronger than Person B so that's pretty much that, it's better to think Person A sits in this tier and can win or lose to people in similar tiers because of strength, ability, strategy, circumstance, or luck. For example, yes the 3rd Hokage would have been in the top tier under ordinary circumstances, above Orochimaru, but age and surprise easily make up the difference. But I think they've made it fairly clear that Itachi is at least a tiny bit scary to absolutely everyone, regardless.

Denver Gray

Final comments: I love these two episodes because they are so filled with character. Between the bar scene, the ‘fight’, and the flashback we get the entirety of each of these characters. I love character writing like that. (yet another reason why Inuyasha is my favorite anime) We see those flashbacks from Orochimaru’s perspective later on. It’s… informative to say the least. Also, whoever said Kishimoto doesn’t know how to write women wasn’t paying attention. The only characters people actually complain about are specifically the three tween girls. And even then, beyond maybe a few maybe annoying lines(most of which are meant as gags), I just don’t understand the problem. … in fact, I don’t think I have ever seen any evidence of an actual gender divide in the Naruto world now that I think about it. I mean, I can think of more women medics than I can men but besides that I can’t think of one thing(and even then Medics are more valuable than average soldiers)... Huh, weird.

Regarding tiering Itachi I would place him on tier two but higher up on tier two than Orochimaru. (keep in mind this is just a system I personally use that I got from some old Star Wars versus video channels). Think of Orochimaru as tier 2b while Itachi is tier 2a. Kisame(the shark man) I would put on tier 1c but I don't know if he could beat Itachi simply based on how their skills stack up(for example: Itachi is more a genjutsu/taijutsu fighter which is a good counter against Kisame's blade). The question is whether or not Itachi's skill can overcome Kisame's raw power, which would be a lot like comparing a fight between Naruto and Sasuke.

Thank you for the Sakura speech. It was very cathartic. Anyways here is the comment you missed: This isn’t relevant till the end of the first series but so you’re aware many people will recommend you watch shippuden episodes 119-120 during the break between naruto and naruto shippuden because those episodes were shown in the manga in between the two series(why they didn’t do that for the anime I don’t know). Personally I would also recommend watching shippuden episodes 127-128 right before episodes119-120(and the rest of Shippuden). (I would also include the first hokage's backstory before both of these, but unfortunately you can't do that without making an edited video). Functionally it would serve the same purpose as the other two episodes and would give a bit more buildup for certain events. But it's not the canonical placement of them and will introduce you to certain things a bit sooner than you otherwise would, so just do whatever you think is best. Also, regardless of what order you watch it in, I recommend stopping at 19:36 (hulu version) on episode 128 for reasons I can’t discuss until much much later. You won’t be missing anything I just think removing it will make a later scene slightly more impactful. (edit: I have been going back and forth on this last point so again do what you think is best)