Writing in the 'Arts & Leisure' section of Sunday's New York Times, Mike Hale praised a number of Cartoon Network anime series contending that 'Naruto, Full Metal Alchemist & Samurai Champloo put the vast majority of American-made cartoons to shame and can hold their own with most live-action prime-time TV.' 

According to Hale, 'The typical American cartoon these days...is about arrested adolescence (with preternaturally wise children sometimes on hand to provide a point of view), while the best Japanese cartoons, on the other hand, are about coming of age, with all the traditional narrative arc and character development that implies.  In fact, what's most satisfying about them is just how traditional they are, at a time when American children's cartoons seem trapped in some sort of post Hanna-Barbera hipster echo chamber.'

Hale compares Naruto to Buffy the Vampire Slayer (another portrayal of a rebellious, talented outsider) and Samurai Champloo to a 'high-class teen movie' like Crazy/Beautiful transported to 19th Century Japan.  In addition to Full Metal Alchemist, Hale also singles out Satoshi Kon's Paranoia Agent and Gainax's Fooly Cooly (FLCL) for praise.