Why People Don't Like Fairy Tail: Is It Justified?

I have been holding off on making this, but I want to tackle the topic of Fairy Tail and why people consider it to be one of if not the worst battle shonen series. 

More importantly, if it is warranted criticism or if people are just dogpiling on the series because everyone else is. 

Spoilers For Fairy Tail

Why All The Hate?

Looking at Fairy Tail you can see that it definitely is a by the books shonen. One dimensional characters check, friendship trumping all check, lastly, tons of fights check. 

It is easier to list all of the things that Fairy Tail does the same as opposed to what it does differently than other series. That's definitely one aspect people loath the series as there is no good reason to pick up the series if there are vastly more compelling stories out there in the genre. 

Next, let's look at the characters, all of the characters are very one-note. You've got Natsu who is the rambunctions main character that is always looking to fight and prove he is strong. Or the villain Hade's, the former Fairy Tail headmaster that believes in dark magic just because, and decides to attack the Fairy Tail guild. 

Other battle shonen would choose to give some interesting insight into the main character or antagonist. Like in Hunter x Hunter we have Gon's loss of humanity and Mereum's newfound humanity. 

Any sort of character nuance to differentiate themselves would be fine but Hiro Mashima does not give any of that in his series. 

However, the biggest issues people have with Fairy Tail are the fights and the lack of stakes.  Almost every fight any o the main characters get into they will magically win and the explanation we get is because they believed hard enough.

The example I think highlights this problem the most is Natsu vs Jellal in the Tower of Heaven Arc. 

Looking at Natsu vs Jellal, the big problem with this fight is that Natsu was losing and was all out of energy. Being a fire dragon slayer one of the ways he can get more energy, other than just believing, is by consuming fire. But, in this fight Natsu decides to eat raw lacrima crystals, which are magic crystals that are extremely volatile, which in turn supercharge Natsu and make him able to go head to head with Jellal. 

There is no setup or training Natsu did to be able to do this, so it comes out of nowhere and shows that pretty much he can win any fight just because.  

To add to the lack of stakes, the most egregious issue is the lack of death. This is not a Fairy Tail exclusive issue as many battle shonen have this issue, but it is one of the worst offenders.  

For example, also in the Tower of Heaven arc we have Natsu and Erza essentially being hit by a magic nuke and for all intents and purposes should have died. We hear multiple people say that the explosion can wipe out an entire country so there is no good reason they should live. And as we find out they do in fact live, we are given zero reasons as to why, other than just because.

Is The Hate Justified?

Now, I wouldn't say that people should not like the series as that is ultimately up to each person to decide. However, it is clear to anyone that read the series that the problems are glaring. 

I would say at the very least Fairy Tail can serve as a guide on what you should not do when making a battle shonen. 

Take-Aways

• Just don't do anything Fairy Tail does.
• Make sure there are stakes to your story otherwise, there is no point in reading it. 

That's all I have, for now, have a great day!