Review : Fairy Tail

You guys might be wondering why I was so slow with my blog posts this month... right? Well, this anime was the reason as I was busy watching its brilliant 175 episodes! Once I started it I just couldn't stop watching all the separate stories, that were all packed together into "one big objective". Each time there was a different action packed epic adventure that focused on defeating one main "bad guy" or main "multiple bad guys". I found all of the epic adventures to be entertaining and exciting!

From the other shounen and fantasy animes I've seen, Fairy Tail is all its own and soars far beyond the genre's preset standards. The problem with most long shonens, say Naruto, lies with the time wasted in the long arcs or cliches that really offer the show no originality. And while, I'm aware that Naruto and Bleach do run much deeper than those stereotypes, those tend to be the reasons why people avoid long anime. But, Fairy Tail's arcs are considerably shorter and still maintain the depth and excitement of those longer arcs.

I say, this anime is a masterpiece that draws in the first time anime watchers and allows them to embrace the spectacular array of art, sound and story to fulfill their desire of a good anime. It contains a sufficient amount of fan service to keep some happy, a slight tinge comedy and action. It balances these elements of an anime well, incorporating its own uniqueness and there you have it, Fairy Tail! 

Story

Set in an imaginary world, the Earth Land, there exists a Mage Guild called "Fairy Tail." Fairy Tail is stationed in the town Magnolia, residing in the Kingdom of Fiore, and is currently governed by Makarov, Guild's master. Lucy Heartfilia, a 17-year-old girl, wishes to become a full-fledged mage and join one of the most prestigious Mage Guilds in the world, Fairy Tail. One day, out of pure coincidence, she meets Natsu Dragneel, a boy who is transportation-sick, but very cheerful in nature. However, the thing she does not know is that Natsu is the closest connection to Fairy Tail, as he is a Mage in Fairy Tail!

The story in the anime is amusing, but there indeed is not very much plot and most of the things happening seems rather random. But the story is set up on a group of people in a mage guild named Fairy Tail, where the series's main topic probably is the friendship and bonds between them. With a story like this, not having any special plot actually works. Instead of plot, we have fun and interesting small arcs all the time, which never makes Fairy Tail boring! And we all have to remember that Fairy Tail is still on-going, and there is lot of unanswered questions yet to figure out, so it is possible for a deeper plot to pop up in the end!

Also, Life in the guild Fairy Tail consists of various hazardous missions to be taken on for pay. Therefore, punctuated by brawls, meals and lockings of horns between the various guild members in the guild’s fraternity house. Many of these missions are mere odd jobs, but they quickly take on unexpected dimensions. In an early episode, Lucy, Natsu and Happy team up to find and destroy a book named Daybreak, on the orders of the late author’s son. But, the Fairy Tail team uses their magic to discover the truth which was quite different.

A good deal of the time, though, those missions are also throw-down battles between the members of Fairy Tail and other wizards. Like, When Erza shows up, for instance, she drags Natsu and Gray along with her to stop a rival guild from making use of a magic flute that can kill all who hear its playing. And then there’s the internecine fights between Natsu and Gray, Natsu and Erza, Natsu and… well, most of everyone who isn’t Natsu, except for Lucy!

Characters

Each character in Fairy tail is unique in their own way, each being a mage in their guild, they demonstrate fierce loyalty to their nakama and pride in their guild. And its the bonds between all the characters that is really my favorite part of the show. Though so many of them had lost their homes or hope, they band together to overcome any obstacle in their way. And I'm sure many people find those feelings cheesy or strange, but I find it inspiring. It makes me want to find friends like that, and be the best I can be for them. 

So, I'll explain only the main characters to you as there really are a lot of characters in this anime. Natsu Dragneel, is a Dragon slayer who is very gung-ho on going on dangerous jobs and picking fights with his guild members. He was also raised by a dragon called Igneel and was abandoned by him in the year 777 on July 7th. Next is Happy, he is a flying blue cat that is Natsu's buddy. Then Lucy Heartfilia, she is a celestial spirit mage who is very kind hearted but can be cold and rude at times especially with the guild members antics. She ran away from home and is the heir to the Heartfilia family fortune. Then Gray Fullbuster, he is an Ice mage who has an unusual habit of stripping his clothes. Finally there is Erza Scarlet, who can requip into different armors. She was a slave forced to build the death tower but later joined Fairy Tail after she lead a revolt on the people who forced them into labor.

Overall, All of the characters in Fairy Tail are developed to perfection. Even the supporting characters add to the anime and I don't think it would be the same even if it was missing a single character. You really get attached to them and feel for these characters and they make you want to be there next to them, as they experience the "Eternal Adventure," which is what Master Makarov describes to Natsu as the meaning behind the guild name, Fairy Tail.

Animation and Sound

The animation and artwork was good and I really loved it. But, there was one thing that disturbed me a lot, the lack of blood in the fights. I only saw blood on Erza's face once when she was fighting with Jellal but other than that this anime didn't really contain blood. Which made the fights a little unrealistic. And aside from the blood problem, The artwork and animation was decent. Also, a lot of people say that Fairy Tail is a rip off or copy from One Piece. But that is definitely not true! Yes, the art was somewhat similar and yes both series are a lot about their "nakamas", but its two very different stories. Fairy Tail and One Piece are NOT the same and Fairy Tail is NOT a rip off, So please don't compare them.

For the sound, Fairy Tail without a doubt had the most EPIC soundtracks! It made me go "hell yeah, go fairy tail!" every single time when the main theme for their fighting scenes played! They also had an amazing VA cast (In Japanese) with some of the very popular seiyuu's, like Happy's voice actor Kugimiya Rie  and my own favorites, Natsu and Gray's voice actors Kakihara Tetsuya and Nakamura Yuuichi respectively and there were still a lot more amazing voice actors, but that would be too much to list here now. So, Go check out for yourself!

Enjoyment

It's a series meant to be for purely fun and It's the most enjoyable anime I've seen till now. You'll always be smiling or laughing while watching Fairy Tail because it takes a person on an adventure where one finds themselves captivated by the personal relationships they can find between characters and themselves.

Overall, Fairy Tail is an incredibly well-done feel-good show, and while it may not make you think and ponder the secrets of the universe, it's definitely entertaining and even heartwarming at times. But, It ought to be clear that this anime follows in roughly the same mold as the other long-running shows aimed at younger audiences, from Bleach to Naruto to One Piece. And, It breaks absolutely no new grounds, but it doesn’t even try to, and it loses pretty little for not trying. It gives us a lively cast, plenty of energy, non-stop action, good humor, and just enough novelty to be worth the effort. So, If you have free time and want to watch something entertaining I recommend checking out this anime, Peace!

5 STAR ANIME.

Click to view my ratings guide.