Review of Fairy Tail

The year is 2016, and nearly every major Shonen anime/manga is coming to an end. Bleach is done and dusted, Naruto packed up late 2015 and we are not too sure how much life 'the king of Shonen' One Piece has left in it. But at 265 episodes and counting (I am presuming another season has been announced...), Fairy Tail shows no signs of stopping (at least not in the manga!)! The show centers around how magic can be used for everybody's personal life, and how select groups make guilds of magicians to take up quests people are too afraid of doing themselves. Ones such guildis Fairy Tail, the strongest of them all. As the show progresses, we are introduced to the wild and wacky characters Fairy Tail has in it's ranks.

The 'main four' we focus on are Natsu Dragneel, Lucy Heartfillia, Grey Fullbuster and Erza Scarlett. Natsu is the lead man, and a 'dragon slayer magic' user, taught to him by his adopted father Igneal, who is also a dragon. Igneal left Natsu when he was young, and only left him a scarf, which he wears ALL the time! Natsu is inseperable from his pet talking cat, Happy and hates any type of moving transport. His rivalry with Grey is considered one of the all time best anime bromances.

Lucy Heartfillia is a new member to Fairy Tail, and a 'celestial' wizard who uses keys to call upon spirits that are embodiments of the 12 gemini star systems. She is a lovely girl, but her try hard, do hard, work hard ethic has put her in the middle of many battles. We are still not too sure whether she has a crush on Natsu or not, but it is heavily implied that the two are quite fond of each other.

Grey Fullbuster AKA that naked man, is an 'ice-make' magic wizard, who can make anything out of ice as long as there is a decent amount of water nearby. Cocky, arrogant, and ready to do what he wants in a heartbeat, Grey also has a soft side for his friends. Juvia Lockster definitely has the hots for him, and is seen gawking at him whenever he takes off his clothes subconsciously (yes, this happens....a lot!).

And finally, Erza Grey. The fierce knight wizard who can change her armour and swords at a blink of an eye. If your lucking for video game look alikes, both personality wise and look wise, she reminds me of Lightning (Claire Farron) from Final Fantasy XIII. Her atitude gives her a natural leader impression, although most of the guild fear her so much.

There are many more characters in the show; Juvia Lockster is Grey's creepy water magic stalker, Happy is Natsu's pet talking cat, Elfman, Lissana and Mirajane are magicians that can let spirits take over there body, and then we have Makarov who is a friendly old man...unless he spanks you...

The first few arcs made me fall asleep though. The fight scenes were good, but the story around them was just so bad. It was like watching Gintama. Not saying that IS bad, but this anime showed more comedy then story in those episodes. In fact, it was not until the Tower of Heaven arc I really got interested in. The later arcs like the Battle for Fairy Tail and the Tenrou Island arcs are even better, and after the time skip we have the best arcs of them all.

Pros:
-It brings a unique blend of comedy and story, rivalling that of Gintama (a little too close to Gintama...)
-Magic being used in anime is completely unheard of unless it is a magic girl anime. This changed that stereotype.
-One of the 'big four' Shonen anime that are known worldwide to non-anime fans.
-Arcs are very different. You don't know what you are expecting next!

Cons:
-The show relies too much on humour as a redundancy plan. They have too much comedy over action, which makes it a Gintama knock-off
-Some of the characters are really bland. I can't stand Gajeel or Loke!
-It is currently unknown when the next season will air...if it will air

Stamp of Approval:
-I give each anime I review a stamp of approval. A rated-BAD stamp means I would skip it, rated-Meh means I would watch it only if you have watched my reccomendations below, rated-Shining! means you should stream it to see if you will like it, rated-Golden! means you should buy this no matter what, and if it gets a certified ++ rating, it is one of the best anime I have ever laid my eyes on.

For Fairy Tail, I am going to give it a Rated-Shining! It is a great anime for Shonen fans, but for those who want a short series your in the wrong place. FT is a great anime, but I would leave it if your not ready for a commitment.

Reccomendations:

One Piece - 'King of Shonen' One Piece! Luffy the pirate takes on the world for his quest to become the Pirate King!

Yu-Gi-Oh! - In a time when card games are the next big hobby, a young boy is taken over by the spirit of an ancient Pharaoh to save the life of his Grandfather...and the world!