#fairy tail chapter 418

[fire-keys-and-wings]

Chapter 1

Macao arc

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Daybreak arc

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapters 6 & 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Eisenwald arc

Chapter 10

Chapters 11 & 12

Chapters 13 & 15

Chapter 17

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Galuna island arc

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapters 29 & 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

Chapters 35 & 43

Chapters 44 & 45

Chapter 46

Phantom Lord arc

Chapter 47

Chapter 50

Chapters 51 & 52

Chapter 59

Chapter 60

Chapter 61

Chapter 62

Chapter 63

Chapters 64, 65 & 66

Chapter 67

Chapter 68

Chapter 69

Loke arc

Chapters 70, 71 & 72

Tower of Heaven arc

Chapter 75

Chapters 77, 78 & 79

Chapter 80

Chapters 84 & 86

Chapters 94 & 95

Chapter 101

Battle of Fairy Tail arc

Chapters 103 & 104

Chapter 105

Chapter 106

Chapters 107 & 109

Chapters 112 & 113

Chapter 116

Chapters 127 & 128

Chapters 129 & 130

Oración Seis arc

Chapters 131 & 132

Chapters 133 & 134

Chapter 141

Chapters 142 & 143

Chapter 145

Chapter 146

Chapter 147

Chapter 148

Chapters 151 & 152

Chapters 153 & 154

Chapters 156 & 157

Chapters 160 & 162

Chapter 163

Chapter 164

Chapter 165

Edolas arc

Chapter 169

Chapter 170

Chapter 171

Chapter 172

Chapter 173

Chapter 174

Chapters 175 & 176

Chapter 180

Chapter 181

Chapter 182

Chapter 184

Chapters 185, 186 & 187

Chapters 189 & 190

Chapters 198 & 199

Tenrou Island arc

Chapter 200

Chapters 201 & 202

Chapter 207

Chapter 226

Chapter 227

Chapter 228

Chapters 231 & 232

Chapters 234, 235 & 239

Chapter 242

Chapters 243 & 244

Chapters 245 & 246

Chapter 247

Chapter 248

Chapter 249

Chapter 251

Chapter 253

X791 arc

Chapters 254 & 255

Chapter 256

Chapter 257

Grand Magic Games arc

Chapter 258

Chapter 259

Chapter 260

Chapter 261

Chapter 262

Chapters 263 & 264

Chapter 265

Chapter 266

Chapter 267

Chapter 268

Chapters 269 & 270

Chapters 271 & 272

Chapter 273

Chapter 275

Chapter 276

Chapters 277 & 278

Chapter 281

Chapter 282

Chapters 285 & 288

Chapters 289 & 290

Chapter 291

Chapter 292

Chapters 294 & 295

Chapters 296 & 297

Chapter 298

Chapter 302

Chapter 303

Chapters 305 & 306

Chapters 307 & 308

Chapters 310 & 311

Chapters 312 & 313

Chapter 316

Chapter 317

Chapters 318, 322 & 323

Chapter 324

Chapter 325

Chapter 326

Chapter 327

Chapters 328 & 329

Chapter 331

Chapter 333

Chapters 336 & 337

Chapter 338

Sun Village arc

Chapter 341

Chapter 342

Chapter 343

Chapters 344 & 345

Chapter 351

Chapter 352

Chapter 354

Chapter 355

Tartaros arc

Chapters 356 & 358

Chapter 359

Chapter 360

Chapter 361

Chapter 362

Chapters 363 & 364

Chapter 374

Chapters 375 & 376

Chapter 379

Chapter 380

Chapters 382 & 383

Chapter 386

Chapters 387 & 390

Chapter 394

Chapters 395 & 396

Chapter 399

Chapter 400

Chapter 401

Chapter 416

Avatar arc

Chapter 418

Chapter 419

Chapter 420

Chapter 421

Chapter 422

Chapter 424

Chapter 425

Chapter 426

Chapter 427

Chapter 428

Chapter 429

Chapter 430

Chapter 434

Chapter 435

Chapter 437

Alvarez Empire arc

Chapter 438

Chapters 439 & 440

Chapter 441

Chapter 442

Chapter 443

Chapter 444

Chapters 445 & 446

Chapter 447

Chapters 453 & 454

Chapter 462

Chapter 468

Chapter 469

Chapter 471

Chapter 474

Chapter 477

Chapter 478

Chapter 479

Chapter 480

Chapters 483 & 484

Chapter 485

Chapter 486

Chapters 487 & 488

Chapters 489 & 490

Chapters 491 & 492

Chapters 494 & 495

Chapters 496 & 497

Chapter 498

Chapter 500

Chapter 501

Chapters 502 & 503

Chapter 504

Chapters 507 & 508

Chapter 510

Chapter 512

Chapter 514

Chapter 520

Chapter 521

Chapters 522, 523 & 524

Chapter 525

Chapter 527

Chapters 529 & 530

Chapter 531

Chapter 533

Chapter 534

Chapter 535

Chapter 538

Chapters 539 & 540

Chapter 543

Chapter 544

Chapter 545 (final)

[ao3feed-nalu]

Stay

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/XvFrWHy

by UEvangeline

One year has passed and Lucy was feeling as lonely as she ever had. But, suddenly, Natsu is back, and there is nothing she wants more than to make him stay.

Words: 2047, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English

Series: Part 6 of NaLu Love

Fandoms: Fairy Tail

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Categories: F/M

Characters: Natsu Dragneel, Lucy Heartfilia

Relationships: Natsu Dragneel/Lucy Heartfilia

Additional Tags: Hurt/Comfort, Lucy Heartfilia Angst, Happy Ending, Fairy Tail Chapter 418

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/XvFrWHy

[evildeadfan102]

Here is Fairy Tail chapter 418 (Lucy Heartfilia) Image set 2 of 2

(These posts will contain spoilers, to not see them use Tumblr savior and put in FTALIS in the Black list section)

[derikisu]

[mauriooo]

okay but look at Natsu’s expression on this page

he’s just seen his teammate for the first time in a year and instead of shouting like he did with Gildarts, he just breaks out in this smile of pure happiness

and the blushing just sells it he has completely forgotten he’s just beat the members of the top guild in Fiore and is completely focused on the fact that he’s just been reunited with one of his best friends

gah this page makes me smile like an idiot every single time

art © Hiro Mashima (aka one of the greatest people of all time)

[ravewoodx]

Fairy tail chapter 418

[luacridcy]

“Hearts meet after a year apart...”

Chapter 418

Requested by anon

[natsubeatsrock]

My Ten Favorite Chapters of Fairy Tail

I've been going back through the old chapters recently and remembering how much fun I've had reading Fairy Tail. It's easy to forget that there have been chapters that I genuinely enjoyed throughout the series. You’d think, for a guy planning to remake the series in his own image, I wouldn’t like many chapters of Fairy Tail. However, this list has been something I’ve wanted to do for years.

So, to celebrate almost 5 years of blogging and 10,000 posts here, here's my list of favorite chapters throughout the series. Emphasis on my list. A few of my rankings have changed over the years and I acknowledge that a few times in this post.

Number 10: Chapter 417 - Lone Journey II

The month before I started posting on this blog, I did the Fairy Tail 30 Day Challenge. Thinking back, there are plenty of things different from me then and me now. For example, I actually liked Gruvia back then. Of the many things that have changed, it's funny to think that this was, at one point and time my favorite chapter. For a long time, I've considered it to be the best chapter in the series.

What I love about it is that it's a chapter where Mashima shuts his characters up and literally lets their actions speak for themselves. This isn't a particularly unique thing to happen. Obha and Obata did the same thing for most of a chapter of Death Note. However, I love the content of the chapter. I love the connection between Natsu and Gildarts. I love how it calls back to their fight during the Grand Magic Games. I love how we see that Gildarts does care for Cana. 

The reason I've grown to love it a bit less is the difference between my first reading it as I was getting into the series and me reading it in the context of the complete series. I can't ignore how annoying it is that this is the only chapter that exists in between the second time skip. And speech bubbles would have been appreciated during the waterfall scene. Still, it's one of my favorite chapters.

Number 9: Chapter 430 - Operation Purify

Closer to the end of the series, there was a panel of all the dragon slayers that was hailed as one of the best pages in the series. Ehh? It's not bad, but calling it the best in the series is a stretch. I already have my pick for best page locked in.

If I'm perfectly honest, I would have put chapters 430-435 if not for any reason but the sheer hype going through them the first time through. However, aside from only honoring single chapters, this was the only chapter with no flaw big enough for me not to like it, looking back. I mean, Erza single-handedly mowing down forces is bad, but this was after the Kyouka fight.

However, the moment of note is at about the middle of the chapter. Because after a year of separation, going their separate ways, Team Natsu is finally back in action. And they all share the same cry on a single page: “We're all fired up! I'm not even looking at the page and I'm getting chills thinking about it as I write down my thoughts on this chapter.

Number 8: Chapter 418 - Challenger

Natsubeatsrock is a hilariously ambiguous name to have. Since I've started this blog, I've realized just how loaded my URL actually is. It's been assumed to have ties to my series Opinions I'll Probably get Stoned For, either because of the title or because what I'm saying is blasphemy. Funny thing, it could also have been tied to the fact that Natsu is my favorite character and my middle name means stone. Not sure beats would have been the right word to have in the middle, though.

However, my name comes from one of my favorite chapters. After the time skip, we're briefly introduced to Lucy's work during as a journalist. If I were a bigger fan of Lucy, this would be a great chapter for me to have gushed over her growth as a wizard. I especially like that she was keeping track of the members of the guild.

However, if you can't tell, the most important thing in this chapter is Natsu’s return. Unlike a lot of people, I'm impartial to his post-time skip looks. But the idea that Natsu has flames strong enough to destroy the arena and melt clothes is simultaneously hilariously nonsensical, disgustingly overpowered and one of the coolest things that Natsu has done in the series. Period.

Number 7: Natsu and Asuka

Guys. I said that this was my favorite special chapter in the series. Did you really think I wouldn't have it here? I know that I made a chapter review for this a few years back, but I don't mind talking about it again. While I don’t think that this is my favorite omake anymore, it’s still a very solid chapter. 

I still believe it's a great display of how resourceful Natsu can be. I love the extra insight we get into Alzack and Bisca’s relationship. It's the best chapter in the FT Matsuri. And this chapter may have convinced me that Asuka deserves nothing but love and protection. I'm scared about what a potential time skip involving the hypothetical NYCC children would do to her. 

Maybe the worst thing about it is that it only ever gets mentioned because Natsu and Lucy didn't kiss like Asuka wanted them to. However, that's obviously not about the chapter itself and, as I demonstrated when I talked about it, you don't need to mention it to talk about the chapter and the good things about it.

Number 6: Chapter 205 - To Continue Down This Path

Even though I did make fun of my old choices during my go-through of the FT Challenge, there are some choices I'm glad I made even now. Up to this chapter, we don't have a good idea of how strong Gildarts is. Especially if you watched the anime where he has only introduced the arc prior. We know S Class mages are powerful, but Erza seems to think Natsu could beat her and we saw Laxus get defeated, albeit only barely by getting double-teamed. So we’re aware that even S-Class isn't akin to invincibility.

In addition to that, Natsu has been known to edge out victories that make no sense for him to have. Natsu’s next win after this battle holds that to be true. So, even against incredibly high odds, you'd be forgiven for thinking that Natsu would find a way to win.

Which is what makes Gildarts unleashing his power all the more insane. Natsu, a character who has, up to that point, always strived to beat whatever opponent he's faced, realizes that he can't just power through. This chapter forces Natsu to realize how weak he is and is a challenge for him to get stronger in his weakness. Does the series do anything with this? Not nearly as much as it should have. But this is still one of the favorite moments for Natsu.

Number 5: Chapter 507 - Voice

The fact that this is one of my favorite chapters shouldn't come as that much of a shock to people that have followed me for long enough. What might be shocking is that it's one of my top ten favorite chapters, even in my top 5. The fact that Natsu and Gray were fighting for about three chapters before this was stupid to a lot of people who were paying attention. There was no need for them not to be in their right minds and little need for them to take out their frustration on each other. 

One of the big fears I had over this fight was that it would end because their supposed love interests whom they thought were dead would stop them. It would have been hilariously cliche for them to come and immediately stop them from fighting. While I can understand wanting a ship to happen, this isn’t the way I’d want to see my ship happen. I’m even annoyed that their arrival is what gets attention from fans when this is brought up.

Thankfully, Mashima decided to pick Ezra for this role. Feelings over ships aside, Ezra was the person best qualified to stop Natsu and Gray fighting over nonsense, considering that's something she was doing from even before the events of the series started. That Natsu and Gray (and the audience by extension) are reminded of their own reasons for not wanting Erza to cry when they see her tearfully breaking their fight up was an amazing twist on what I expected. To be blunt, Juvia and Lucy could have not shown up and this would be just as impactful, if not more.

This chapter would be much higher up on my favorites if it zeroed in on this aspect. However, the rest of the chapter isn't very important or impressive. It sets up the fight against August by showing the members of Crime Sorciere failing to beat him. It’s not particularly bad, but it’s not better than what was before it.

Number 4: Chapter 415 - That Is The Power of Life

One of the weird trends that all of my favorite anime shares is that they make other people cry for one reason or another. I find that to be a weird trend for me specifically. I wouldn't be shocked to find out that there are people who enjoy crying. However, I'm not a huge crying person. I can count the anime that have actually caused me to get close to crying on my hands and only one of them actually is one of my favorites. However, I can think of three Fairy Tail chapters that definitely pushed me to tears and two are on my list.

The Igneel and Natsu storyline was, like so many things, handled badly. I think that it could and should have been a more relevant subplot/character aspect throughout the series. At the very least, the fact that Natsu seems to have stopped actively looking for Igneel since chapter 1 should have been more directly addressed. That being said, the impact of Natsu seeing Igneel dying is not lost on me. Igneel would have had to go anyway. We learned this chapter that the dragons only had a limited amount of time outside the dragon slayers. So seeing Igneel disappear would have been sad for Natsu anyways.

But having to watch Igneel lose half of his body and get blasted by Acnologia makes the situation feel even worse. It's like someone shooting the family pet after breaking its neck. There was no need for that to happen. Watching as Happy watches Natsu watches Igneel die is sad enough on its own for me. Watching your fave cry over losing his dad after looking for him for so long. 

This chapter marks an important shift in Natsu’s motivation. Whereas before the goal to defeat Acnologia was somewhat unnecessary and unconnected to the main cast, now Acnologia has a target painted on his back. Would the takedown be handled well? Depends on who you ask. This chapter is on this list and that one isn’t.

Number 3: Chapter 9 - Dear Kaby

I'm supposing that the vast majority of people reading that care about me are Fairy Tail fans. At one point or another, we fell in love with this series. There was a specific moment that we decided that this series was worth reading and/or watching days worth of material that varies in quality as the series goes on. This definitely happens for every series, to some extent, but it feels more significant for long-running series. 

This chapter was that moment for me. At the time I first saw the episode this chapter was based on, I knew a fair amount of anime. I had grown up with DBZ, Pokemon, Sailor Moon, and Naruto, among other anime that I don't remember much of. I wasn't aware of what I was getting myself into when I decided to watch this series my younger cousins and siblings were so interested in. However, I figured that, even as I enjoyed the beginning of the series, there was no real reason to think this would be different.

But when I got to this episode, I realized this series was special. This was something I was in for the long haul. Even reading this as a chapter, I still think of how different the end of this arc is, even to other arcs in the series. On the one hand, it deals with the issue of Kaby and his father in an amazingly emotional way. On the other hand, it gets undercut by Natsu’s unwillingness to take the reward for a job they didn’t actually do. Mashima made both work in one chapter and that is amazing.

Of course, there’s a little more at play in this chapter. Natsu gets mad at Kaby’s disdain for his dad’s work, which works amazingly well with his character and search for Igneel. Lucy is revealed to be a writer in her own right. There’s something special about a series called Fairy Tail being told mostly through the lens of an aspiring writer. It's stuff like this that makes this chapter a delight to come back to very early on in revisiting the series.

Number 2: Special Mission: Beware of the Guys Who Show a Keen Interest!

One of the weird trends that occurs in fandoms is shipping the main characters together, regardless of any chemistry they may have with others. However, if writers plan not to put characters that the fandom would otherwise assume will end up together, there are many different ways to handle the way that will play out. In a lot of television I've seen, the two will actually get together, they’ll date for a little and break up for one reason or another. I’m not really a big fan of that.

Things have happened differently in the manga I’ve read with this. In Bleach, the question of liking Ichigo was brought up to Rukia very early on and never addressed. I liked that way, even though plenty of fans were shocked to find out the implications of that statement. But Mashima couldn’t possibly do a better job. Right? Wrong!

I think that tackling the issue of whether or not Lucy likes Natsu in an omake was an interesting decision. It doesn't take away from the main story but it's out there for fans to experience if they really want to. The main takeaway of this chapter was that the idea of Lucy and Natsu getting together is awkward for Lucy and nowhere on Natsu’s radar. Of course, they could those feelings, but not overnight.

Too bad so many people thought this was a sign Mashima would develop a romantic relationship between them. I'm not sure if I could have blamed that one on him. Though, considering his Twitter art antics, he’s not doing much to help keep that break mentality up within fans. Then again, I’m not sure there’s anything Mashima can do on that front.

Number 1: Chapter 100 - To Tomorrow!

If you can't tell a big reason why certain chapters are in my favorites, it's because of how they represent in what the series could have been. I do believe that Hiro Mashima is capable of great writing, even and especially within Fairy Tail. It's just that he does something to mess up what good there is. But that doesn't mean that I can't like something I know is badly written. 

Erza not dying, at least to me, represents a sign that characters important to the narrative were in no real danger of dying. Looking back, it's hard for me not to think about how the explanation for Erza and Jellal surviving is stupid. And Natsu very likely should have lost his fight to Jellal. I could easily see someone saying these are issues with this chapter.

However, for me, this chapter stands out as the single best chapter of the Tower of Heaven arc, arguably the best arc in the entire series. I love how this chapter signifies a shift in Erza’s thinking about her friends. I love how the beginning and end of this chapter deal with Erza’s ability to cry, which was already mentioned in this arc at least twice.

I love how this chapter all but confirms Natsu’s terrible ways of handling death. This matters especially in light of the other people he has lost in his life. Think about how Erza has been portrayed up to this point in the series and you’d find her death to be unbelievable. This was the moment that brought me the closest to crying upon my first reading of the series. I’m proud to call this my favorite chapter in the series.

That’s my list! See you!

[rainladyjuvia]

What chapter of the manga does the anime leave off of?

Chapter 416 - Last Chapter of Tartarus

Chapter 417 - Natsu and Gildarts bond

Chapter 418 - Natsu and Lucy reunite after one year

Chapter 420 - LIT LIT LIT aka, the chapter right after the anime

If you need anymore help just ask! I know most of the Juvia chapter numbers. Although if you’re an anime watcher, you might not want to be on my blog. I draw something for every new chapter of Fairy Tail.

[rhosinthorn]

The chained dragon and the celestial princess #1

What inspired me to write Chained Dragon?

Mmmm, a lot of this goes back to when chapter 416-418 came out. My beta can attest to the fact that she and I started tossing around idea after idea, which led to almost all of my Fairy Tail stories being spawned. (There’s another one lurking in my drafts box- a CoLu- so that may someday see the light of day.) I was intrigued by where Mashima was going to take the story, specifically Lucy’s character, and then disappointed when she was kind of written off, and everything she went through put on the back burner.

So, we have an opening for a “Lucy during the timeskip” story, and plenty of ideas to use. But how did Acnologia end up in the mix?

If I remember correctly, that one happened when I was working on Frontlines. Those familiar with Frontlines know that I’ve been teasing an Acnologia/Lucy relationship in the later chapters, but have also been tweaking bits of Celestial Magic Lore to fit my purposes. Those brainstorming sessions kind of spun out into a fic that had Acnologia as a Celestial Dragon Slayer, taught by Draco as a favor, giving Lucy a chance to expand her magic beyond the typical portrayal in the canon material. This then sidetracked into some more fun lore brainstorming, and my beta eventually has to cut me off and make me stick with what I’ve outlined.

[fire-keys-and-wings]

Chapter 1

Macao arc

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Daybreak arc

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Eisenwald arc

Chapter 10

Chapters 11 & 12

Chapters 13 & 14

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 20

Chapters 21 & 22

Galuna island arc

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapters 26 & 27

Chapter 28

Chapters 29 & 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

Chapters 34 & 35

Chapters 36 & 37

Chapters 42 & 43

Chapter 44

Chapters 45 & 46

Phantom Lord arc

Chapter 47

Chapter 50

Chapter 51

Chapter 59

Chapters 61 & 62

Chapters 63, 64 & 66

Chapter 67

Chapter 68

Chapter 69

Loke arc

Chapter 71

Chapters 72 & 75

Tower of Heaven arc

Chapters 98 & 100

Chapters 101 & 102

Battle of Fairy Tail arc

Chapters 103 & 104

Chapters 106 & 107

Chapters 111 & 112

Chapter 114

Chapter 115

Chapters 116, 119 & 122

Chapters 127 & 128

Chapters 129 & 130

Oración Seis arc

Chapters 131 - 133

Chapters 135 & 141

Chapters 143 & 145

Chapter 148

Chapters 151 & 152

Chapters 153 & 154

Chapters 156 & 157

Chapters 160 & 161

Chapters 162 & 163

Chapter 164

Edolas arc

Chapter 167

Chapter 169

Chapter 172

Chapter 173

Chapters 174 & 175

Chapter 178

Chapters 179 & 180

Chapters 191 & 192

Chapters 197, 198 & 199

Tenrou Island arc

Chapter 203

Chapter 207

Chapter 226

Chapter 227

Chapter 228

Chapters 231 & 232

Chapters 235, 237 & 239

Chapter 242

Chapter 251

X791 arc

Chapters 254 & 255

Chapter 256

Chapter 257

Grand Magic Games arc

Chapters 258 & 259

Chapters 262 & 263

Chapter 265

Chapters 271 & 272

Chapter 275

Chapter 281

Chapter 282

Chapters 291 & 292

Chapters 303 & 305

Chapters 306 & 307

Chapters 308 & 310

Chapters 311 & 313

Chapter 316

Chapter 324

Chapter 325

Chapter 327

Chapters 328 & 329

Chapter 331

Chapters 336 & 337

Sun Village arc

Chapter 341

Chapter 342

Chapters 343 & 345

Chapters 351 & 352

Chapter 354

Tartaros arc

Chapters 359, 360 & 361

Chapter 362

Chapter 367

Chapters 368 & 370

Chapter 373

Chapters 374 & 375

Chapter 376

Chapters 377 & 378

Chapter 379

Chapter 380

Avatar arc

Chapter 418

Chapter 419

Chapter 420

Chapter 421

Chapters 422 & 423

Chapter 425

Chapter 426

Chapter 427

Chapter 429

Chapter 430

Chapters 431, 432 & 433

Chapters 434 & 435

Chapter 437

Alvarez Empire arc

Chapter 438

Chapter 441

Chapter 447

Chapters 453 & 454

Chapter 468

Chapter 469

Chapter 471

Chapter 474

Chapter 477

Chapter 478

Chapter 479

Chapter 480

Chapters 483 & 484

Chapter 485

Chapters 489 & 490

Chapters 491 & 492

Chapter 494

Chapters 496 & 497

Chapter 498

Chapter 500

Chapter 501

Chapters 503, 504 & 505

Chapter 512

Chapter 514

Chapter 520

Chapter 521

Chapters 522, 523 & 524

Chapter 525

Chapter 527

Chapters 529 & 530

Chapter 531

Chapter 533

Chapter 534

Chapter 535

Chapter 538

Chapters 539 & 540

Chapters 541 & 542

Chapter 543

Chapter 544

Chapter 545 (final)

[evildeadfan102]

Fairy Tail Chapters 418 to 443 (Lucy Heartfilia image collection set)

[ccrispy]

lucy heartfilia

[macaronibabycakes]

Loving these long haired NaLu babies

I'm so excited for this next arc!

[luacridcy]

Could you coloring the last page of Fairy Tail chapter 418?

Posting it now! Hope you like it:)

[natsubeatsrock]

My Incredibly Unpopular Thoughts On: Nastu

Unfortunately, this the final edition of “My Incredibly Unpopular Thoughts”. This has been a fun series to write and is part of the reason I’ve gotten to where I am in the fandom. Some of my favorite posts to have made are parts of this series. And so, I’ve decided to finish this series off by talking about my favorite character.

Let me be clear. This doesn’t mean that I’m done talking about Fairy Tail here. I just feel that it’s finally time to retire this series. If you can’t tell, it’s been fairly infrequent and writing these kinds of posts are a pain to write. I started this particular post in March and coming up with the right words to say for everything I wanted to talk about was harder than I would have thought. I want to spend my time working other smaller projects/”mini-series”.

I don't talk about my namesake much on this blog. Sure, I mention things about him whenever I talk about his ships or my want for an apology. However, I haven't said anything about my own personal thoughts about Natsu in a long post dedicated to just him.

So, in honor of Fairy Tail ending (months after this is coming out) and hitting 9,000 posts, I've decided to get as many of my thoughts on my favorite character as I can write down and available for the public eye.

First things first, I haven’t said this in a while, so I might as well. The reason behind my URL “Natsu beats rock” comes from chapter 418. If you remember, Natsu’s flames after the time skip were hot enough to melt the rock structure of the stadium. Hence, Natsu is so powerful that he’s able to beat rocks. 

Literally every other meaning behind the name you can think of, including my other series “Opinions I’ll Probably get Stoned For”, came along after the fact. And the name for that series was just because I was afraid of being attacked for the stuff I was going to be saying. Looking back, there’s an additional reason for this name: Natsu is so overpowered, he can melt destroy rocks. Though, in hindsight, I believe that the name @natsubeatstime would achieve that end a lot clearer, thanks to chapter 536.

Before the cut, I want to bring back an issue I mentioned the last time I said anything about doing something before a cut in this series. Do I think Natsu is the main character? To many people, this feels like a stupid debate, but I'd venture to guess different people will probably think different answers. Surprisingly, this is a big debate in the fandom: Is Natsu the protagonist or is Lucy? There is a lot of back and forth on this subject and many people you know are probably on different sides of this debate.

When I did my post about Lucy, I gave my own answer. Technically, they both are important, but I take preference to Natsu. I stand by that so that's done.

Onto two of Natsu’s most important relationships: Igneel and Happy.

Natsu’s relationship with Igneel suffers from a serious issue with Mashima’s writing of Fairy Tail. There's no focus on it. It's supposed to be a serious and important thing to Natsu, but it's hard to get that when we see no focus on that. Now, a simple solution to that, and a big inspiration for last year's Nali week post is that Natsu gave up on the idea of finding Igneel again. I this gets hinted at a few times, but it should have been more implied throughout the series. There are some more things I have to say about this, but I plan on doing so in other posts.

Natsu and Happy have the best friendship in the series. I think it's to the point that Lucy doesn't seem near as close to Natsu as Happy. And between them, Naruto and Kurama, Ichigo and Kon, and even Haru and Plue, they have my favorite bond between the main character and his nonhuman companion. (I was going to make a ship joke here, but I didn’t because of course. Instead, why don’t you look at this link of someone educating me on Kinabra lore.)

Though one thing about their dynamic strikes me as weird. Often Happy will test Natsu like he's the younger of the two. I get that Natsu isn't the most mature and this kind of thing happens in real life with siblings. But Natsu hatched Happy from an egg. You think he'd think twice before talking down Natsu the way he often does.

Now before I talk about ships, I want to acknowledge that there are people who would rather Natsu specifically not end up in any romantic relationships at the end of the series. I think that is a totally valid wish and, considering that’s the ending we got, I want to say that I have no problem with it. I get that Natsu is one of the big champions of the bonds between guilds and romance has never been a huge aspect that's been explored on his end, not that I would say it's been ignored. 

So seeing Natsu end up alone but happy would be totally fine with me. I'm kind of sad my ship(s) didn't happen, but as long as Natsu is happy, I have no reason to be sad. And from what I can tell, he's ecstatic to go on the Century Quest. As a general rule, character happiness should be prioritized above fan happiness. You can be mad that certain things didn’t happen. However, as long as your favorite characters are alive and happy, that’s usually what should matter most.

That being said, I am a multi-shipper for Natsu. It's probably worse than you think. I've said this before, but I want to expand on my thoughts a bit. I have three big ships for Natsu that I like: Nali (Natsu and Lisanna), Natza (Natsu and Erza), and Navia (Natsu and Juvia). I've done enough posts on this blog defending and explaining my thoughts on the first one, so I want to explain why I like the other two for a bit.

It's kinda funny how I've done so many Natza asks but I haven't explained my own reasons for liking it. I don't think you always have to explain why you like or dislike a ship. But when you're not a fan of the popular stuff, you almost have to have a good reason why.

I really like the bond that Erza and Natsu have. Even in just the recent arc, we see Erza trusting Natsu more than the people around her. And yes, this arc made me like it more, but I've always liked the bond these two have and wouldn't mind seeing them get together.

And, I don't know about you, but I don't remember bathing with my siblings. Especially with my sisters.

The next one might be an out there choice for a lot of people. Of all the popular Natsu ships out there, Navia probably seems like the most out there one to people who don't like it. However, I have a few reasons to like it.

For one, and this will sound especially weird given a lot of my posts, they're two of my favorite characters. As much as I rag on her, I think that if Juvia mellowed out earlier, she'd probably be my favorite female character or even Fairy Tail character just by virtue of being a relevant female water mage with blue hair. Yes, my first edition of this series (which I won’t link here because my writing from then is not the best) was about how I don’t like how her character is handled. However, it was done through the lens of that being my only real issue with her.

To that point, there are a lot of people who say that, aside from Gray, Juvia would have no character so it's weird that people would like her if that aspect of her were gone. Consider that people also accuse Natsu of having no character now, so that's not that big an issue for me. And from what I can gather, there are plenty of people who do like Juvia even though they don't like Gruvia.

Another reason I like this ship is that I think that, if Juvia is the way she is because she's been starved of real love, I think that one of the few people in the series that could fill that void. I think that stuff like in Day of the Fateful Encounter, Rainbow Cherry Blossoms and the anime version of Natsu and the Dragon Egg show that Natsu is capable of going above and beyond to do things to people that are important to him. (Even as the whole Tartaros conclusion thing shows how he can mess with those bonds without much of a second thought.) I could only imagine how that would go with Juvia.

And something, something, water-fire dynamic.

Under them is basically any other ship Natsu is in. Now, I feel the need to stress this point because I don't think that people will understand how bad this is if I just say it like I just did. Someone was even worried that I would only talk about the popular ships when I said I would talk about the Natsu ships. To put it simply, if you're genuinely willing to write down a scenario where Natsu ends up liking pretty much anyone who has had an appearance in this series, there is a strong chance that I will accept it as a possible ship for Natsu. The reason why is simply because I’m genuinely interested in how people would imagine Natsu would end up in all kinds of relationships. (Even as many of these stories, admittedly, end in smut that I end up skipping over.)

To illustrate this point, here are some of the ships I've found myself liking one way or another:

Natsu and Levy: because if Natsu’s life depended on a book, she's the mage I'd have picked to save him.

Natsu and Meredy: because they both have pink hair

Natsu and Ikaruga: because being enemies and dead are easily written around in series, anyway

Natsu and Brandish: case in point for the first point

Natsu and Sayla: case in point for both and we might as well considering our obsession with END (we’ll get there)

Natsu and Gray: because this is basically the only way I'd believe Gray is a tsundere

Natsu and Mirajane: because shipping one of the Strauss sisters with Natsu doesn't mean I can't ship the other sister with him

Natsu and Cana: because I'd support a universe wherein Gildarts is Natsu’s father in law

I think you get the point.

Keep in mind that there are exceptions. For example, I don't ship Natsu with Wendy, both because I don't like the Wendy ships and obvious other reasons. Natsu and Mavis was a ship I saw someone make, but I don't think Natsu and Zeref need another reason not to get along. Also, I wasn't too thrilled about the Anna joke in the last chapter. So, while I am open to different options, I have my limits.

Also, and I’m kind of weirded out by having to explain this at all, this doesn’t mean that I support all these ships happening at the same time. I’ve seen people hear a term like “multi-shipper” and think that it means support for infidelity or harems. It just means that I like the idea of multiple ships for Natsu as possibilities.

The best way I can explain multi-shipping, especially given my explanation for feelings of Natsu ships, is like ice cream. My personal favorite ice cream is chocolate chip cookie dough. However, that doesn’t mean that I only eat chocolate chip cookie dough. Sometimes, I’ll have another type of ice cream, even if chocolate chip cookie dough is available to eat. The fact that I’m eating some mint chocolate chip or french vanilla ice cream doesn’t mean I suddenly don’t like chocolate chip or even that I like whatever flavor I’m eating more. It means that I’m open to the idea of eating more than just one flavor of ice cream. This analogy fails in the sense that you can have multiple ice cream flavors at the same time, but hopefully, you get the idea.

Then there's Nalu.

I don't like it.

At all.

It’s just the worst. 

If by any chance you haven't seen it, I've already explained why in great detail in another post.

Though I will say one problem I have with Nalu fans that I didn't mention there is how negative towards Natsu they are. I don't deny that Natsu is dumb. I think he's a bit smarter than we give him credit for, but I also feel that Natsu is incredibly inconsistent in those regards. That being said, no one overplays it like the Nalu fandom. And if I'm perfectly honest, it feels like they have to. How else can you explain him not getting a clue that Lucy likes him? It's obvious that he just doesn't know she likes him. At least, that’s the narrative...

Other than the obvious problem I should have with this, my problem with this is how Mashima would have done it. When Kishimoto did it with NH, I was kind of okay with it considering there was enough to convince me it was possible. I can't afford the same grace to Nalu since finding out it wasn't the original plan.

While we're talking about Natsu fan interpretations, another thing I don't like fans doing is making E.N.D. versions of Natsu. I kinda get making him look kind of like a dragon, similar to the stuff in Dragon Cry. But I find it weird that fans romanticize Natsu becoming E.N.D. Especially when it comes to shipping art for Natsu. The conceit of Natsu’s transformation could prove a ship as canon is disturbing to me. And in case you’re wondering, no this isn’t just a Nalu thing. I can only think of two good versions of E.N.D!Natsu ship material, both for Nali. Even then, I'm wary of the way it was done there as well.

The weird thing about all of this is that Natsu was already END. All throughout this last arc, Zeref was referring to Natsu as END. What many people might be imagining is an Etherious form of Natsu, which still would be weird to romanticize. However, that's not what people are thinking about drawing and writing. They’re imagining Natsu turning into an entirely different and demonized version of himself that he’s unable to control, kind of like stereotypical werewolves.

In general, I feel like the big problem with the Natsu fandom, specifically the Nalu side, is a lack of good arguments. I get wanting to defend your favorite character, but it gets to a disturbing level of stupid at times. While some might assume I'm biased because I'm not a Nalu shipper, I'd like to share some of the arguments made for him:

Natsu can't be ace because he's constantly sexually assaulting Lucy.

Natsu shouldn't apologize to Lucy because leaving a note for her was enough.

Lucy has finally gotten used to Natsu groping her. That's totally a good thing.

Stone Age Omake was totally in character for Natsu.

The entire reason Natsu helped Lucy to bring the guild back together was to apologize to Lucy.

I know some of you reading this might think these arguments are valid. Unfortunately, this is my incredibly unpopular thoughts on Natsu. Not yours.

I honestly don't feel capable of defending Natsu on many of the points critics have with him. I agree that his fights can be stupid and he's overpowered. I think that he's written all over the place. If you asked me a year ago, I'd say he's of average intelligence but now I think that, again, it's all over the place. I'm not sure how to judge his small moments of genius alongside his other amounts of idiocy. If there's anything I'm known for talking about Natsu, it's my criticism of his non-apology to Lucy. In fact, if you Google this blog, one of my posts on that will probably show up. I've checked.

So, why is he still my favorite character? I can justify him being my favorite character when I started this series. I fell in love with him after Dear Kaby, just as I fell in love with the series and I enjoyed seeing how he dealt with stuff. And I was nowhere near as aware of his faults, in addition to the series’, up until more than halfway through my first year doing this blog.

But why, knowing everything that I know about the series and especially about Natsu, would I still say Natsu is my favorite character?

Because despite anything I know to be wrong with him, I still enjoy rooting for him. I still feel pain whenever he gets sad. I love both his sub and dub voice in the anime and Funimation’s work on the dub has made watching him do stuff even more fun. I know that sounds more like a description of what you do for your favorite characters, but knowing everything I do about Natsu and not being able to stop my love for him is exactly why I consider him to be my favorite character.

The more I think about it, I feel like my feelings about Natsu are a symbol of my feelings for this series as a whole. As much as I know this series isn't good and I could be spending my time talking about a better series, I still can't pull myself away from this series.

And believe, I would have if I could. However, I’m finishing this next to a folder of untyped essays for Fairy Tail and it’s fandom close to four months after it’s ended. I’ve even started working on how I would rewrite the series.

In Conclusion:

Natsu’s not the best-written character in Fairy Tail. However, I have a lot of love for him as one of the main characters of one of my favorite series. It’s like they were made for each other.

Thanks to all of you for supporting me and the other editions of this series. A special thank you to those people who gave me other topics to discuss regarding Natsu than the ones I had originally planned. If you didn’t see your topic, I haven’t ignored it. You might just see it show up in a future post. 

See you!