Boruto Episode 208

Momoshiki’s Manifestation

Boruto: Naruto Next Generations Episode 208 was fairly decent. The start of the episode was good. But everything after the OP was just alright. I did expect that to be the case, though. I think the preview showed this wasn’t going to be the most exciting episode.

We got to see Boruto’s partial Karma transformation in Episode 207, but I don’t think I really commented on it back then. I’m not a huge fan of it. The flesh-colored horn with the blue stripes looks pretty dumb to me. But at the same time, I don’t particularly like any of the Ōtsutsuki designs.

At least the horns look a bit better on the full Ōtsutsuki clan members because of their pale white skin. That looks way better than the horns we’ve seen on both Boruto and Kawaki. Though I’d say Kawaki’s horn looks better than Boruto’s if I had to choose between the two.

Speaking of Boruto’s partial transformation, though, we did get confirmation of a few things. First, it has definitively been proven that Boruto is Momoshiki’s vessel and not the vessel for some new Ōtsutsuki. That makes sense, but there was a line that cast doubt on that earlier.

Also, we have confirmation via Sarada that Boruto did, in fact, develop a Byakugan eye when he transformed. I touched on why that was odd in the previous episode review. And, I somewhat expected that to be retconned into being a Jougan.

Though, to be fair, I don’t actually remember which eye Boruto’s Jougan is in.

Oh, and as one last thing, I liked that when Momoshiki took over Boruto’s body, he initially started using taijutsu. Momoshiki was a master of taijutsu, so it was cool to see him instinctively rely on that before using the Rasengan to finish off Boro.

Another Look at Kara

When everyone gathered in Naruto’s hospital room, Shikamaru gives us a quick rundown on the state of Kara and what the Leaf knows about them. When this happened, it again displayed the sharp contrast between Kara and Akatsuki as antagonist organizations.

I understand that the Boruto portion of this franchise isn’t going to be as in-depth as Naruto and Shippūden were. But it’s still pretty disappointing to see how the main antagonist groups are treated differently. I want to like Kara more than I do.

Here are some things to consider. The Akatsuki had 10 members while Kara has 9. And out of the 9 Kara members we had at the start, I’d argue that 5 of them are already neutralized and 1 is a non-combatant. Deepa, Viktor, and Boro are dead, Kawaki (and probably Koji) isn’t really a member, and Amado is a scientist.

There were also 161 episodes between the introduction of the Akatsuki and the death of its first member. Meanwhile, that same gap for Kara was only 18 episodes. Now, I understand that Deepa was an anime-only character, but still.

At this point, the only Kara members left to worry about are Jigen, Delta, and Code. Sure, the Leaf Village thinks they have to worry about Koji (and maybe Amado) as well right now. But I don’t think they’re going to have to fight either of them for real.

And, in addition to all of that, the Kara members don’t get anywhere near as much development as the Akatsuki members. For example, we know that Boro led his own cult, but he’s dead now and we really knew nothing else about him, such as his background or where he was from.

Creating Vessels

Since this episode discussed vessels a bit more, it got me thinking about the process by which a vessel is made. Of course, we only know of three vessels, and of those three, we’ve only seen two of them be created. So, there’s a lot we don’t know.

If we look at Jigen as the current vessel for Isshiki Ōtsutsuki, there’s the question of how Jigen came to be in that position. Was he forced into it the same way Kawaki was? Or was he someone who followed Isshiki more like Boro?

And, regardless of who Jigen was to Isshiki, how was it determined that he was capable of becoming a vessel in the first place? Was he simply the only one to survive the process as Kawaki was? Or did he have some quality that made him fit for it like Boruto?

We don’t have a definitive answer as to why Kawaki was the one who survived out of all the other vessel candidates Jigen was preparing. As far as we know, it was pure luck. But with Boruto, it’s been implied that’s not the case. Momoshiki mentions that it’s specifically because Boruto “killed a god.”

I find it unlikely that Jigen was the one to kill Isshiki. This is what leads me to believe Jigen became a vessel in the same way that Kawaki did. Though, if you didn’t know Boruto was the protagonist, would you have expected him to kill Momoshiki? Probably not.

Also, one other question I have regarding Jigen is, “When did he become Isshiki’s vessel?” We know Isshiki was implied to be Kaguya’s partner. Does that mean he arrived on Earth with her? Or did he recently get there. And is Jigen his first vessel, or has he been jumping between vessels for centuries?

Conclusion

What do you think of Boruto: Naruto Next Generations Episode 208? Do you prefer Boruto’s or Kawaki’s partial Karma transformation? Do you like any of the Kara members more than the Akatsuki members? And what are your theories about Jigen as Isshiki’s vessel? Let me know in the comments.

If you enjoyed this review, remember to click the like button ❤️ down below. Also, follow me over on Twitter @DoubleSama so you don’t miss out on any future content. And come join our Discord server if you’re interested in discussing anime with other members of the community.

Finally, I’d like to thank Roman for supporting DoubleSama.com at the Heika tier this month. To learn more about how you too can become a supporter of this blog, check out Patreon.com/DoubleSama.

My review of Episode 209 is available now.