[Manga] – Fairy Tail – Vol. 1 – 8

Is this just a redo of One Piece with magic?

Eight volumes into Fairy Tail and I’m still not sure what to think of it really. I keep reading but not because I am hooked, rather I am hoping the story itself will get better as I go along.

Initial Impressions – There is no denying the comparison for me; the first couple of volumes of Fairy Tail made me think this is One Piece all over again, but this time instead of pirates, the world is full of magic users.

Why do I think so? Well because I still cannot get over the fact that Natsu and Lucy strongly remind me, even after eight volumes, of Luffy and Nami of One Piece.

Natsu and Luffy aren’t really that different from each other. Barring the fact they have completely different powers, Natsu is a flame-user and Luffy is made out of rubber, both are pretty much interchangeable in terms of personality. Both possess the same familiar quirks and mannerisms. Both are simple minded, head on, and easy going guys. A strong bond with friends (nakama as they like to say) is a very prominent trait between the two. Natsu and Luffy also come off as childish, yet are genuinely good and honest people.

With Lucy and Nami they have that greed mentality, with Nami it’s collecting money, for Lucy it’s collecting Gatekeeper Keys that allow her to summon all sorts of servants to aid her. Both are vain in terms of their appearance as well. During battles, they wish to stay at the back lines, preferring everybody else to do the dirty work. They aren’t cowards per se, more like they want to stay alive. They think before they act unlike their partners.

But in the end, if you don’t watch One Piece, none of this comparison stuff really matters does it? That’s where the similarities end anyway, as Fairy Tail has a strong focus on the guild system unlike One Piece’s pirates, but when you have two prominent characters that remind you of another series, it’s hard to not notice.

The first initial plot lines were actually quite boring, nothing to rave about. The first job requests they take on and the baddies they have to beat up is a snore fest. Hell, even Gray’s little arc proved no better in entertaining me, probably because the bad guy wasn’t that likable to begin with. As the guild versus guild action starts to ramp up, things become much more interesting, albeit typical, but entertaining nonetheless. At least between all the seriousness and even during some battles, Fairy Tail manages to squeeze in some humor. Also Fairy Tail does a very good job in terms of pacing, there’s always something relevant going on, excluding the initial missions they take on that don’t last too long anyways.

The fight scenes have been okay. Nothing in particular has really impressed me, which is sad since a large amount of time is spent from fight to fight. They really need to do something about Gray’s “Ice Make” spells; they are way too static to be visually entertaining. On the other hand, Erza’s Ex-Quip ability is pretty damn awesome; it allows her to change her armor and weapon at will. It’s always a nice visual treat when she switches into something new since most of her armor looks badass. How about Natsu? Sub-standard fire spells if you ask me. Hopefully it gets better. Maybe I’m just too spoiled with animated fight scenes and my lack of imagination isn’t helping at all. Speaking of which, a minor complaint but some of the fight scenes are very hard to follow the way they are drawn.

Visually I think the art is on the okay side. I have become used to this style, since it does resemble One Piece, but the detailing sometimes leaves much to be desired. The drawings become horrific at some points, maybe it’s the media they are printing on because you’d be hard press to find shades of gray as everything reverts to pure black and white. On the bright side I do enjoy the character designs, since they are unique all the time especially in this fantasy setting.

What do I hope to see when I read the upcoming volumes? Well for starters, focusing more on Natsu’s main storyline of finding Igneel would be great, which the last chapters I read hinting that it may go in that direction. More Erza would be just dandy, can never have enough of Erza. I also wouldn’t mind seeing more of the stronger Fairy Tail members and their powers. Really though I am just waiting for the world of Fairy Tail to establish itself into much more than what I have read so far.

Related posts:

1. [Manga] – Alive – Vol. 01-17
2. One Piece – 239 – 240
3. [Manga] – The Breaker – Vol. 1-7
4. [Manga] – Gantz – Vol. 21-25
5. One Piece – 237 – 238