Fairy Tail: I Created the Magical Internet

Fairy Tail

(styese manga series written and illus Kodansha's Weekly Shōnen Magazine from August 2006 to July 2017, with the individual chapters collected and published into 63 tankōbon volumes. The story follows the adventures of Natsu Dragneel, a member of the popular wizard[b] guild Fairy Tail, as he searches the fictional world of Earth-land for the dragon Igneel.

The manga has been adapted into an anime series by A-1 Pictures, Dentsu Inc., Satelight, Bridge, and CloverWorks which was broadcast in Japan on TV Tokyo from October 2009 to March 2013. A second series was broadcast from April 2014 to March 2016. A third and final series was aired from October 2018 to September 2019. The series has also inspired numerous spin-off manga, including a prequel by Mashima, Fairy Tail Zero, and a sequel storyboarded by him, titled Fairy Tail: 100 Years Quest. Additionally, A-1 Pictures has developed nine original video animations and two animated feature films.

The manga series was originally licensed for an English release in North America by Del Rey Manga, which began releasing the individual volumes in March 2008 and ended its licensing with the 12th volume release in September 2010. In December 2010, Kodansha USA took over the North American release of the series. The manga was also licensed in the United Kingdom by Turnaround Publisher Services, and in Australia by Penguin Books Australia. The anime has been licensed by Crunchyroll for an English release in North America. The Southeast Asian network Animax Asia aired an English-language version of the anime from 2010 to 2015. By February 2020, the Fairy Tail manga had over 72 million copies in print, making it one of the best-selling manga series of all time.

Plot[edit]See also: List of Fairy Tail characters

The world of Earth-land is home to numerous guilds where wizards[b] apply their magic for paid job requests. Natsu Dragneel, a Dragon Slayer wizard from the Fairy Tail guild, explores the Kingdom of Fiore in search of his missing adoptive father, the dragon Igneel. During his journey, he befriends a young celestial wizard named Lucy Heartfilia and invites her to join Fairy Tail. Natsu, Lucy, and the cat-like Exceed Happy form a team, which is joined by other guild members: Gray Fullbuster, an ice wizard; Erza Scarlet, a magical knight; and Wendy Marvell and Carla, another Dragon Slayer and Exceed duo. The team embarks on numerous missions, which include subduing criminals, illegal dark guilds, and ancient Etherious demons created by the dark wizard Zeref.

Natsu and his companions eventually meet an isolated Zeref on Fairy Tail's sacred ground of Sirius Island.[2] Cursed with immortality and deadly power, Zeref wishes to die to atone for his atrocities. A battle over Zeref ensues between Fairy Tail and the dark guild Grimoire Heart, which attracts the attention of the evil black dragon Acnologia. The Fairy Tail wizards survive Acnologia's assault when the spirit of their guild's founder and Zeref's estranged lover, Mavis Vermillion, casts the defensive Fairy Sphere spell that places them into seven years of suspended animation. Later, Fairy Tail wages war against Tartaros, a dark guild of Etherious who aim to unseal a book believed to contain E.N.D., Zeref's ultimate demon. When Acnologia returns to annihilate both guilds, Igneel emerges from Natsu's body, having sealed himself within him in a bid to defeat Acnologia. Although Igneel bites off Acnologia's left arm, Acnologia kills Igneel in front of a helpless Natsu, who departs on a training journey to avenge Igneel.

After Natsu returns one year later, Fiore is invaded by the Alvarez Empire, a military nation ruled by Zeref. Disillusioned by the conflicts performed in his name, Zeref intends to rewrite history and prevent his own rise to power by acquiring Fairy Heart, a wellspring of infinite magic power housed within Mavis's equally cursed body, which is preserved beneath Fairy Tail's guild hall. While battling Zeref, Natsu is informed of his own identity as both Zeref's younger brother and the true incarnation of E.N.D. (Etherious Natsu Dragneel), whom Zeref resurrected as a demon with the intention of being killed by him. Though Natsu fails to do so, he manages to incapacitate Zeref to stop the drastic changes to history his actions would create, allowing Mavis to lift her and Zeref's curse by reciprocating his love, which kills them both.

Meanwhile, Fairy Tail and their allies detain Acnologia within a space-time rift created by the use of Eclipse, Zeref's time travel gate. However, Acnologia consumes the rift's magic to escape, granting him godlike power, which he maintains by bringing the present Dragon Slayers into the rift with his disembodied spirit. Lucy and many other wizards across the continent immobilize Acnologia's body within Fairy Sphere, while Natsu accumulates the other Dragon Slayers' magic and destroys his spirit, killing Acnologia and freeing the Dragon Slayers. The following year, Natsu and his team depart on a century-old guild mission,[3] continuing their adventures together.

Production[edit]Author and illustrator Hiro Mashima

After finishing his previous work, Rave Master, Hiro Mashima found the story sentimental and sad at the same time, so he wanted the storyline of his next manga to have a "lot of fun."[4] His inspiration for the series was sitting in bars and partying with his friends.[5] He also described the series as being about young people finding their calling, such as a job.[5] Mashima drew a one-shot titled Fairy Tale that was published in Magazine Fresh on September 3, 2002, which served as a pilot. Mashima's later concept for the serialized version involved Natsu as a fire-using member of a courier guild who carries various things on assignments.[6] Mashima then came up with the idea to have different types of wizards hanging out in one place, and eventually coerced his editor into allowing him to change the concept to a wizard guild.[6] The title was changed from "Tale" to "Tail" in reference to the tail of a fairy, which the author said may or may not prove to be a "pivotal point."[6] Mashima stated that while he tried to consider both his own interests and the fans' on what would happen next in Fairy Tail, the fans' took precedence.[5]

Fairy Tail (stylized in all caps) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Hiro Mashima. It was serialized in Kodansha's Weekly Shōnen Magazine from August 2006 to July 2017, with the individual chapters collected and published into 63 tankōbon volumes. The story follows the adventures of Natsu Dragneel, a member of the popular wizard[b] guild Fairy Tail, as he searches the fictional world of Earth-land for the dragon Igneel.

Plot[edit]See also: List of Fairy Tail characters

Production[edit]Author and illustrator Hiro Mashima

Fairy Tail (stylized in all caps) is a Japanese manga series written and illus Kodansha's Weekly Shōnen Magazine from August 2006 to July 2017, with the individual chapters collected and published into 63 tankōbon volumes. The story follows the adventures of Natsu Dragneel, a member of the popular wizard[b] guild Fairy Tail, as he searches the fictional world of Earth-land for the dragon Igneel.

Plot[edit]See also: List of Fairy Tail characters

Production[edit]Author and illustrator Hiro Mashima

Plot[edit]See also: List of Fairy Tail characters

Production[edit]Author and illustrator Hiro Mashima

In the period between Rave Master and Fairy Tail, all but one of Mashima's assistants left, and the artist said making sure that the three new ones knew what to do was the hardest thing throughout the first year of serialization.[7] Mashima described his weekly schedule for creating individual chapters of Fairy Tail in 2008: script and storyboards were written on Monday, rough sketches the following day, and drawing and inking were done Wednesday through Friday; time in the weekends was for Monster Hunter Orage, a monthly series Mashima was writing at the same time. He usually thought up new chapters while working on the current ones. Mashima had six assistants in 2008 that worked in an 8,000 square feet (740 m2) area with seven desks, as well as a sofa and TV for video games.[4] In 2011, he stated that he worked six days a week, for 17 hours a day.[8]

For the characters of the series, Mashima drew people he had known in his life. In establishing the father-son relationship between Natsu and Igneel, Mashima cited his father's death when he was a child as an influence.[9] He took Natsu's motion sickness from one of his friends, who gets sick when they take taxis together. When naming the character, the author thought western fantasy names would be unfamiliar to Japanese audiences, so he went with the Japanese name for summer; Natsu.[4] Mashima based the reporter character Jason on American manga critic Jason Thompson, who interviewed him at 2008's San Diego Comic-Con, and another on an employee from Del Rey Manga, the original North American publisher of Fairy Tail.[10][11] He based the humorous aspects of the series on his daily life and jokes his assistants would make.[9]

Media[edit]Manga[edit]Further information: List of Fairy Tail volumesSee also: List of Fairy Tail chapters (volumes 1–15), List of Fairy Tail chapters (volumes 16–30), List of Fairy Tail chapters (volumes 31–45), and List of Fairy Tail chapters (volumes 46–63)

Written and illustrated by Hiro Mashima, Fairy Tail was serialized in the manga anthology Weekly Shōnen Magazine from August 2, 2006, to July 26, 2017.[12][13] The 545 individual chapters were collected and published into 63 tankōbon volumes by Kodansha between December 15, 2006, and November 17, 2017.[14][15] In 2008, a special crossover one-shot between Fairy Tail and Miki Yoshikawa's Flunk Punk Rumble, titled Fairy Megane (FAIRYメガネ), was published in Weekly Shōnen Magazine. It was later included in Fairy Tail+, an official fanbook released on May 17, 2010.[16] Another crossover with Mashima's first series Rave was published in 2011.[17] A special issue of Weekly Shōnen Magazine, published on October 19, 2013, featured a small crossover between Fairy Tail and Nakaba Suzuki's The Seven Deadly Sins, where each artist drew a yonkoma (four-panel comic) of the other's series.[18] An actual crossover chapter between these two was published in the magazine on December 25, 2013.[19] A two-volume series called Fairy Tail S, which collects short stories by Mashima that were originally published in various Japanese magazines through the years, was released on September 16, 2016.[20][21] A one-shot chapter is set to be published in Weekly Shōnen Magazine on July 3, 2024.[22]

The series was licensed for an English-language release in North America by Del Rey Manga.[23] The company released the first volume of the series on March 25, 2008, and continued until the release of the 12th volume in September 2010. After Del Rey Manga shut down,[24] Kodansha USA acquireFairy Tail (stylized in all caps) is a Japanese manga series written and illus Kodansha's Weekly Shōnen Magazine from August 2006 to July 2017, with the individual chapters collected and published into 63 tankōbon volumes. The story follows the adventures of Natsu Dragneel, a member of the popular wizard[b] guild Fairy Tail, as he searches the fictional world of Earth-land for the dragon Igneel.

Plot[edit]See also: List of Fairy Tail characters

Production[edit]Author and illustrator Hiro Mashima

Plot[edit]See also: List of Fairy Tail characters

Production[edit]Author and illustrator Hiro Mashimad the license and began publishing Fairy Tail volumes in May 2011.[25] They published the 63rd and final volume on January 23, 2018.[26] Kodansha USA began publishing a larger omnibus version of the series in November 2015. Called Fairy Tail: Master's Edition, each installment corresponds to five regular-sized volumes.[27] They published the first volume of Fairy Tail S: Tales from Fairy Tail on October 24, 2017.[28]

The manga has also been licensed in other English-speaking countries. In the United Kingdom, the volumes were distributed by Turnaround Publisher Services.[29] In Australia and New Zealand, the manga was distributed by Penguin Books Australia.[30]

Spin-offs[edit]

Eight spin-off manga series based on Fairy Tail have been released. The first two series—Fairy Tail Zero by Mashima and Fairy Tail: Ice Trail by Yūsuke Shirato—began with the launch of a monthly magazine titled Monthly Fairy Tail Magazine on July 17, 2014,[31] and ended in the magazine's thirteenth and final issue published on July 17, 2015.[32] A third series, Fairy Tail Blue Mistral by Rui Watanabe, ran in Kodansha's shōjo manga magazine Nakayoshi from August 2, 2014, to December 1, 2015,[33] while another, Fairy Girls by Boku, was released in Kodansha's Magazine Special from November 20, 2014, to August 20, 2015.[34] Kyōta Shibano created a three-part meta-series titled Fairy Tail Gaiden, which was launched in Kodansha's free weekly Magazine Pocket mobile app.[35] The series began in 2015 with Twin Dragons of Saber Tooth from July 30 to November 4,[36] continued with Rhodonite from November 18, 2015, to March 30, 2016,[37] and concluded with Lightning Gods in 2016 from May 4 to September 14.[38] Fairy Tail: 100 Years Quest, a sequel to the original manga, began serialization on Magazine Pocket on July 25, 2018. It is storyboarded by Mashima and illustrated by Atsuo Ueda.[39][40] Another spin-off, Fairy Tail: Happy's Heroic Adventure by Kenshirō Sakamoto, began on July 26 on the same app.[40] On June 27, 2018, Mashima announced another spin-off manga for the app, Fairy Tail City Hero, written and illustrated by Ushio Andō.[41]

All eight Fairy Tail spin-off manga, including all three installments of Gaiden, are licensed for English release by Kodansha USA.[42]

Anime[edit]See also: List of Fairy Tail episodesThe Funimation staff and voice cast of the anime at the 2011 New York Comic Con, from left to right: Todd Haberkorn (Natsu), Cherami Leigh (Lucy), Colleen Clinkenbeard (Erza), Newton Pittman (Gray), and Tyler Walker (ADR director).

A-1 Pictures, Dentsu Entertainment, and Satelight produced an anime adaptation of the manga. The anime, also titled Fairy Tail and directed by Shinji Ishihira, premiered on TV Tokyo on October 12, 2009.[1] The series ended its run on March 30, 2013,[43] with reruns beginning to air on April 4, 2013, under the title Fairy Tail Best!.[44] Forty-one DVD volumes containing four episodes each have been released.[45] The Southeast Asian network Animax Asia aired the series locally in English.[46][47] On January 18, 2011, British anime distributor Manga Entertainment announced on Twitter that the company would release the anime series in bilingual format at the end of the year.[48] On April 21, 2011, they had confirmed that the first volume with 12 episodes would be released in February 2012;[49] however, they later announced that the first volume would be released on March 5, 2012.[50] In 2011, North American anime distributor Funimation Entertainment announced that they had acquired the first season of the ongoing series.[51] The series made its North American television debut on November 22, 2011, on the Funimation Channel.[52] The anime is also licensed by Madman Entertainment, who streamed and simulcasted the series on AnimeLab in Australia and New Zealand Melanesian R Kodansha's Weekly Shōnen Magazine from August 2006 to July 2017, with the individual chapters collected and published into 63 tankōbon volumes. The story follows the adventures of Natsu Dragneel, a member of the popular wizard[b] guild Fairy Tail, as he searches the fictional world of Earth-land for the dragon Igneel.

Plot[edit]See also: List of Fairy Tail characters

Production[edit]Author and illustrator Hiro Mashima

Plot[edit]See also: List of Fairy Tail characters

Production[edit]Author and illustrator Hiro Mashima

The series was licensed for an English-language release in North America by Del Rey Manga.[23] The company released the first volume of the series on March 25, 2008, and continued until the release of the 12th volume in September 2010. After Del Rey Manga shut down,[24] Kodansha USA acquired the license and began publishing Fairy Tail volumes in May 2011.[25] They published the 63rd and final volume on January 23, 2018.[26] Kodansha USA began publishing a larger omnibus version of the series in November 2015. Called Fairy Tail: Master's Edition, each installment corresponds to five regular-sized volumes.[27] They published the first volume of Fairy Tail S: Tales from Fairy Tail on October 24, 2017.[28]

Spin-offs[edit]

All eight Fairy Tail spin-off manga, including all three installments of Gaiden, are licensed for English release by Kodansha USA.[42]

A-1 Pictures, Dentsu Entertainment, and Satelight produced an anime adaptation of the manga. The anime, also titled Fairy Tail and directed by Shinji Ishihira, premiered on TV Tokyo on October 12, 2009.[1] The series ended its run on March 30, 2013,[43] with reruns beginning to air on April 4, 2013, under the title Fairy Tail Best!.[44] Forty-one DVD volumes containing four episodes each have been released.[45] The Southeast Asian network Animax Asia aired the series locally in English.[46][47] On January 18, 2011, British anime distributor Manga Entertainment announced on Twitter that the company would release the anime series in bilingual format at the end of the year.[48] On April 21, 2011, they had confirmed that the first volume with 12 episodes would be released in February 2012;[49] however, they later announced that the first volume would be released on March 5, 2012.[50] In 2011, North American anime distributor Funimation Entertainment announced that they had acquired the first season of the ongoing series.[51] The series made its North American television debut on November 22, 2011, on the Funimation Channel.[52] The anime is also licensed by Madman Entertainment, who streamed and simulcasted the series on AnimeLab in Australia and New Zealand Melanesian Region (Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu), Polynesian Region (Cook Islands, Niue, Samoa, Tonga, and Tuvalu).[53] Funimation announced that the ninth installment would get the DVD/Blu-ray release on March 25, 2014.[54]

On March 4, 2013, Mashima announced on his Twitter account that the anime would not end yet,[44] and confirmed on July 11 that a sequel series was greenlit.[55] The sequel series was officially confirmed in Weekly Shonen Magazine on December 28, 2013, with a special edition chapter.[56][57] The sequel is produced by A-1 Pictures and Bridge, featuring character designs by Shinji Takeuchi; the original series' voice actors also returned to the project along with director Shinji Ishihira and writer Masashi Sogo [ja].[56] The official website for the sequel was launched on January 7, 2014.[58][59] The series premiered on TV Tokyo on April 5, 2014, and was being simulcast by Funimation Entertainment.[60][61] The second series concluded its run on March 26, 2016.[62]

On March 22, 2016, Mashima announced via Twitter that another Fairy Tail series was being developed.[63] On July 20, 2017, Mashima confirmed on Twitter that the final season of Fairy Tail would air in 2018.[64] The final season of Fairy Tail aired from October 7, 2018, to September 29, 2019.[65][66][67] A-1 Pictures, CloverWorks, and Bridge produced and animated the final season,[68][69] which ran from October 7, 2018, to September 29, 2019. for 51 episodes.[70][71]

Following Sony's acquisition of Crunchyroll, the dub was moved to Crunchyroll.[72]

Original video animations[edit]

Nine original video animations (OVAs) of Fairy Tail have been produced and released on DVD by A-1 Pictures and Satelight, each bundled with a limited edition tankōbon volume of the manga. The first OVA, "Welcome to Fairy Hills!!",[JP 1] is an adaptation of the manga omake of the same name, and was released with Volume 26 on April 15, 2011. The second, "Fairy Academy: Yankee-kun and Yankee-chan",[JP 2] is also an adaptation of the omake of the same name, and was released together with Volume 27 on June 17, 2011.[73] The third, "Memory Days"[JP 3] was released together with Volume 31 on February 17, 2012,[74] and features an original story written by series creator Hiro Mashima.[75] The fourth, "Fairies' Training Camp", is based on chapter 261 of the manga, and was released with Volume 35 on November 16, 2012. The fifth, "Exciting Ryuzetsu Land",[JP 4] is based on chapter 298 of the manga and was released with Volume 38 of the manga on June 17, 2013. A sixth OVA, titled "Fairy Tail x Rave"[JP 5] is an adaptation of the omake of the same name and was released on August 16, 2013, with Volume 39 of the manga.[76]

Theatrical films[edit]

An anime film adaptation of Fairy Tail, titled Fairy Tail the Movie: Phoenix Priestess, was released on August 18, 2012.[77] It was directed by Masaya Fujimori, and its screenplay was written by anime staff writer Masashi Sogo [ja]. Series creator Hiro Mashima was involved as the film's story planner and designer for guest characters appearing in the film.[78] To promote the film, Mashima drew a 30-page prologue manga "The First Morning"[79], which was bundled with advance tickets for the film.[80] The DVD was bundled with a special edition release of Volume 36 of the manga on February 13, 2013, and included an animated adaptation of "Hajimari no Asa" as a bonus extra.[81] The film was aired on Animax Asia on March 23, 2013.[82] Funimation has licensed North American distribution rights to the film.[83] The English dub premiered at Nan Desu Kan on September 13, 2013, and was released on Blu-ray/DVD on December 10, 2013.[84]

A second anime film was announced on May 15, 2015.[85] On December 31, 2016, the official title of film was revealed as Fairy Tail: Dragon Cry, which was released on May 6, 2017, in Japan.[86]

Video games[edit]

An action video game for the PlayStation Portable, titled Fairy Tail: Portable Guild,[JP 6] was unveiled at the 2009 Tokyo Game Show.[87][88] The game was developed by Konami Examu Games inc. and was released on June 3, 2010. Two sequels to Portable Guild have also been released for the PlayStation Portable—the first, subtitled Portable Guild 2, was released on March 10, 2011; the second, Fairy Tail: Zeref Awakens,[JP 7] was released on March 22, 2012. The characters Natsu and Lucy also appeared as playable characters in the crossover video game Sunday VS Magazine: Shūketsu! Chōjō Daikessen for the PSP in 2009.[89]

Two fighting games, Fairy Tail: Fight! Wizard Battle[JP 8] and Fairy Tail: Attack! Kardia Cathedral,[JP 9] were released for the Nintendo DS on July 22, 2010, and April 21, 2011, respectively.[90] In 2016, a browser game developed by GameSamba titled Fairy Tail: Hero's Journey was announced to be open for closed beta testing.[91]

On September 5, 2019, it was announced that a role-playing video game titled Fairy Tail, developed by Gust and published by Koei Tecmo would be released for PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and Steam on March 19, 2020, worldwide;[92] the game was later delayed to June 25.[93] The game was then delayed to July 30, 2020, in Japan and Europe, and in North America on July 31, 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[94] A sequel, Fairy Tail 2, was announced for release in winter 2024.[95]

At the end of 2021, Mashima approached Kodansha Game Creator's Lab to hold a contest looking for video game proposals based on Fairy Tail with the winning work receiving $132,300; $88,200 of which came from Mashima himself. The games had to be created for platforms such as Steam, iOS and Android, and Kodansha would distribute the winner, with the profits shared between Kodansha and the developers.[96] In March 2023, it was announced that three titles were chosen as the winners.[97] The roguelike deck-building game Fairy Tail: Dungeons was released via Steam on August 26, 2024.[95] The sports action game Fairy Tail: Beach Volleyball Havoc followed on September 16, 2024.[95] Details on the third, Fairy Tail: Birth of Magic, will be revealed at a later date.[95]

Audio[edit]

The music for the anime was composed and arranged by Yasuharu Takanashi. Four original soundtrack CDs have been released, containing music from the anime: the first soundtrack volume was released on January 6, 2010,[98] the second volume on July 7, 2010,[99] the third soundtrack volume on July 6, 2011,[100] and the fourth soundtrack volume on March 20, 2013.[101] Character song singles were also produced; the first single, featuring Tetsuya Kakihara (Natsu) and Yuichi Nakamura (Gray) was released on February 17,[102] while the second single, featuring Aya Hirano (Lucy) and Rie Kugimiya (Happy), was released on March 3, 2010.[103] Another character song album, entitled "Eternal Fellows," was released on April 27, 2011. Two of the songs from the album, performed by anime cast members Tetsuya Kakihara (Natsu) and Aya Hirano (Lucy), were used for both OVAs as the opening and ending themes, respectively. Other songs on the volume are performed by Yuichi Nakamura (Gray), Sayaka Ohara (Erza), Satomi Satō (Wendy), Wataru Hatano (Gajeel), and a duet by Rie Kugimiya (Happy) and Yui Horie (Carla).[104]

An internet radio program began airing on HiBiKi Radio Station on February 11, 2012, featuring anime voice actors Tetsuya Kakihara (Natsu) and Mai Nakahara (Juvia) as announcers.[105]

Reception[edit]Manga[edit]

By February 2020, the Fairy Tail manga had 72 million collected volumes in circulation.[106] In France, the series had sold over 7.7 million copies by 2018.[107] According to Oricon, Fairy Tail was the eighth best-selling manga series in Japan for 2009,[108] fourth best in 2010 and 2011,[109][110] fifth best of 2012,[111] dropped to ninth in 2013,[112] to seventeenth in 2014,[113] and was fifteenth in 2015.[114] The fifth volume of Fairy Tail was ranked seventh in a list of the top ten manga, and the series once again placed seventh after the release of the sixth volume.[115] About.com's Deb Aoki listed Fairy Tail as the Best New Shōnen Manga of 2008.[116] Fairy Tail won Best Manga Series of 2008 at the 2009 Anime & Manga Grand Prix held by French magazine AnimeLand.[117] It also won the 2009 Kodansha Manga Award for shōnen manga.[118] At the 2009 Industry Awards for the Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation, the organizers of Anime Expo, Fairy Tail was named Best Comedy Manga.[119] It also won Best Shōnen Manga at the 2009 Japan Expo Awards.[120] Volume 9 of the manga was nominated in the Youth Selection category at the 2010 Angoulême International Comics Festival.[121] On TV Asahi's Manga Sōsenkyo 2021 poll, in which 150,000 people voted for their top 100 manga series, Fairy Tail ranked 65th.[122]

Reviewing the first volume, Carl Kimlinger of Anime News Network (ANN) felt Fairy Tail followed standard shōnen action manga tropes, writing "the mix of goofy humor, face-crushing action, and teary-eyed sap is so calculated as to be mechanical."[123] Carlo Santos, also of Anime News Network, agreed in his review of volume three; having positive views towards the art, particularly the action scenes, but citing a lack of story and character development.[124] By volume 12 Santos suggested that Mashima's true talent lies in "taking the most standard, predictable aspects of the genre and somehow still weaving it into a fun, fist-pumping adventure."[125] Reviewing the first 11 volumes, ANN's Rebecca Silverman wrote that while the art in the early arcs of Fairy Tail may not be its best, the stories arguably are. She also praised Lucy and Erza as strong female characters.[126] Her colleague Faye Hopper was more critical, calling the manga a "somewhat mediocre shounen series [that] pushes enough buttons" so as to make her want to read more.[126]

Kimlinger, Silverman, and A.E. Sparrow of IGN all felt Mashima's artwork had strong similarities to Eiichiro Oda's in One Piece.[127] While Sparrow used the comparison as a compliment and said it had enough unique qualities of its own, Kimlinger went so far as to say it makes it difficult to appreciate Mashima's "undeniable technical skill."[123][128]

Anime[edit]

The anime has also received a positive response from critics and viewers alike. In Southeast Asia, Fairy Tail won Animax Asia's "Anime of the Year" award in 2010.[129] In 2012, the anime series won the "Meilleur Anime Japonais" (best Japanese anime) award and the best French dubbing award at the 19th Anime & Manga Grand Prix in Paris.[130]

In reviewing the first Funimation Entertainment DVD volumes, Carlo Santos of Anime News Network praised the visuals, characters, and English voice acting, as well as the supporting characters for its comedic approach. However, Santos criticized both the anime's background music and CGI animation.[131] In his review of the second volume, Santos also praised the development of "a more substantial storyline," but also criticized the inconsistent animation and original material not present in the manga.[132] In his review of the third volume, Santos praised the improvements of the story and animation, and said that the volume "finally shows the [anime] series living up to its potential."[133] In his reviews of the fourth and sixth volumes, however, Santos praised the storyline's formulaic pattern, though saying that "unexpected wrinkles in the story [...] keep the action from getting too stale," but calling the outcomes "unpredictable".[134][135]

airy Tail (フェアリーテイル, Fearī Teiru, romanized as FAIRY TAIL in Japan) is a Japanese manga series by Hiro Mashima. The series was first serialized in the Weekly Shōnen Magazine on August 2, 2006, which ran 545 chapters through July 26, 2017. The individual chapters are being collected and published in tankōbon volumes by Kodansha, with 63 released as of November 2017. An anime produced by A-1 Pictures, Satelight, Bridge, and CloverWorks later was released in Japan on October 12, 2009 and ran for 328 episodes until September 29, 2019. The series follows the adventures of the Celestial Spirit Mage Lucy Heartfilia after she joins the Fairy Tail Guild and teams up with Natsu Dragneel, who is searching for the Dragon Igneel.

The series was first licensed for an English language release in North America by Del Rey Manga (a child company of Kodansha & Random House) on July 28, 2007. From March 2008 to September 2010, they released the first twelve volumes, with the first volume being released on March 25, 2008. On October 4, 2012, Kodansha and Random House announced that they will shut down Del Rey Manga, and that Kodansha USA will be licensing and taking over the publishing of certain ongoing titles. Kodansha USA took over and released the manga commencing from the 13th volume starting from May 10 of 2011. As of February 2020, Fairy Tail has over 72 million tankōbon volumes in circulation worldwide.

Contents1Plot2Manga3Anime3.1Music3.2Original Video Animations4Films5Novels6Video Games7Reception8ReferencesFandom TriviaQuizAre You A Master of Guild Facts?5 questionsCheck out more quizzes at Fandom TriviaAdvertisementPlot

Lucy Heartfilia, a traveling Mage, meets Natsu Dragneel, a Mage looking for his foster parent, a Dragon named Igneel, with his best friend, Happy, a blue, talking and flying cat. Shortly after their meeting, Lucy is abducted by Bora of Prominence, who was posing as Salamander of Fairy Tail, to be sold as a slave. Natsu rescues her and reveals that he is the real Salamander of Fairy Tail and has the skills of a Dragon Slayer, a form of Lost Magic. He offers her membership into the guild, which she gladly accepts. They, along with the armored Mage Erza Scarlet, Ice-Make Mage Gray Fullbuster, and Happy, become a team performing various missions offered to the Fairy Tail Guild.

Manga

Cover of the first Fairy Tail volume

Main article: Volumes and Chapters

Fairy Tail is a weekly manga written and illustrated by Hiro Mashima. The series was first serialized in the Weekly Shōnen Magazine on August 2, 2006. The individual chapters are collected and published in tankōbon volumes by Kodansha, with the first one being released on December 15, 2006. During its many years of serialization, the series has had many specials such as omakes and crossovers. In addition, the official Fanbook, Fairy Tail+ was released on May 17, 2010, in Japan.

The series was first licensed for an English language release in North America by Del Rey Manga (a child company of Kodansha & Random House) on July 28, 2007. From March 2008 to September 2010, they released the first twelve volumes, with the first volume being released on March 25, 2008. On October 4, 2012, Kodansha and Random House announced that they will shut down Del Rey Manga, and that Kodansha USA will be licensing and taking over publishing of certain ongoing titles. Kodansha USA took over and released the manga commencing from the 13th volume starting from May 10 of 2011.

Anime

Main article: Episodes

Cover of the first Fairy Tail DVD volume

An anime adaptation co-produced by A-1 Pictures and Satelight, directed by Ishihira Shinji and debuted by TV Tokyo premiered on October 12, 2009. The series went on hiatus on March 30, 2013, with 175 episodes, 41 DVD volumes, 6 OVAs and 1 animated film. The anime once again resumed on April 5, 2014 again then ended on March 26, 2016 with 277 episodes released. The third and final season of the Fairy Tail anime was announced on July 24, 2018 and it later aired from October 7th, 2018 to September 29, 2019 with the series having 328 episodes, 63+ DVD volumes, 9 OVAs, 2 animated movies at the the time of the final episode; the anime done by the collaboration of A-1 Pictures · CloverWorks/Bridge producing the anime.

Animax Asia broadcasted an English dubbed version of the Fairy Tail anime starting on September 30, 2010, but only covered the first season, up to episode 48. It aired in some parts of Asia and in the Philippines, where they initially used the Hong Kong based English dub, but later on changed to the original Japanese audio. The anime series won Animax Asia's "Anime Of The Year" award. Currently, FUNimation Entertainment has been licensed to Fairy Tail for a North American release in English dub[1] and has distributed season 1, season 2 and, currently season 3. Currently, Fairy Tail can be viewed on Apple TV, Prime Video, Hulu, and Crunchyroll.

Music

As of March 2013, five original soundtrack CDs have been released, with 4 pertaining to the anime and 1 exclusive to the Movie. Fairy Tail Original Soundtrack Vol. 1 was released on January 6, 2010, containing 36 songs from the anime. Fairy Tail Original Soundtrack Vol. 2 was released on July 7, 2010, also containing 36 songs. Fairy Tail Original Soundtrack Vol. 3 was released on July 6, 2011, and unlike the previous albums, it contains 30 songs. Fairy Tail Original Soundtrack Vol. 4 was released on March 20, 2013, and features 2 CDs, with the CDs containing 24 and 27 tracks each. The Fairy Tail Movie Soundtrack contains 29 tracks. The music for the soundtracks was composed and arranged by Yasuharu Takanashi.

In addition, the Intro and Outro themes of the Fairy Tail Anime were released under 3 Volumes featuring all 14 Openings and Endings. Character singles were also produced, with 4 Character song collection volumes released in total. The first character song single featuring Natsu and Gray, was released on February 17, while the second single, featuring Lucy and Happy, was released on March 3, 2010. The 3rd and 4th Volume features Team Natsu, Wendy, Carla and Gajeel singing various Image Songs together.

Original Video Animations

The first anime side-story was released exclusively on DVD alongside the limited edition copies of Volume 26 on April 15, 2011. The first anime adaptation of the manga side story "Welcome to Fairy Hills!!" involves Lucy noticing a mysterious hand-written request in which the client is looking for an object located in Fairy Tail's female dormitory, Fairy Hills. To ensure that the job is not a prank, she goes to verify it. Once she reaches the dormitory, she learns that the client is Hilda, the dorm's head, who asks her to find a "shining treasure" while wearing an embarrassing cat outfit.

The second OVA released, titled "Fairy Academy - Yankee-kun and Yankee-chan!" was bundled alongside the limited edition copies of Volume 27 and was released on June 17. 2011. In the story, Mashima parodies another Weekly Shonen Magazine manga, Miki Yoshikawa's Yankee-kun to Megane-chan, by putting the Fairy Tail characters in a school comedic setting.

The third OVA released, titled "Memory Days" was bundled alongside the limited edition copies of Volume 31 and was released on February 17, 2012. The plot revolves around Team Natsu being sent into the past by a mysterious Magic book and must return back to their own time before time runs out, in which they will be trapped in the past permanently.

The fourth OVA released, titled "Fairies' Training Camp" was bundled alongside the limited edition copies of Volume 35 and was released on November 16, 2012. The plot revolves around the Fairy Tail Mages training for the Grand Magic Games, with Team Natsu and co. training by the beach.

The fifth OVA released, titled "The Exciting Ryuzetsu Land" was bundled alongside the limited edition copies of Volume 38 and was released on June 17, 2013. The plot revolves around the Fairy Tail Mages visiting the leisure resort, Ryuzetsu Land, the after the battles and events of Day 3 of the Grand Magic Games.

The sixth OVA, titled "Fairy Tail x Rave" was bundled alongside the limited edition copies of Volume 39 and was released on August 16, 2013. The plot revolves around the world of Fairy Tail and Rave Master all encountering in one location.

The seventh OVA, titled "Fairies' Penalty Game" was bundled alongside the limited edition copies of Volume 55 and was released on May 17, 2016. The plot revolves around Team Fairy Tail A and B Team rekindling their side bet from the X791 Grand Magic Games.

The eighth OVA, titled "Natsu vs. Mavis" was bundled alongside the limited edition copies of Volume 58 and was released on November 17, 2016. The plot revolves around Erza recruiting Natsu's help in order to cheer up their First Master, Mavis.

The ninth OVA, titled "Fairies' Christmas" was bundled alongside the limited edition copies of Volume 59 and was released on December 16, 2016. The plot revolves around some of the Fairy Tail members partying in Lucy's apartment for the Christmas holiday.

Shinji Ishihira directs the OVA's at A-1 Pictures Inc. and Satelight, just as he had for the television anime series. Similarly, the television anime and first original anime DVD's series script supervisor Masashi Sogo and character designer Aoi Yamamoto are also involved.

Films

Poster of the first Fairy Tail film

An anime film adaptation of Fairy Tail, titled Fairy Tail: Phoenix Priestess (ＦＡＩＲＹＴＡＩＬ鳳凰の巫女, Fearī Teiru Hōō no Miko) was released on August 18, 2012.[2] It was directed by Masaya Fujimori, and its screenplay was written by anime staff writer Masashi Sogo. Series creator Hiro Mashima was also involved as the film's story planner and designer for guest characters appearing in the film.[3] A 12-minute prologue to the movie, Prologue: The Sunrise, was released as an extra on the DVD release of the movie, and was bundled along with the Special Edition of Volume 36 of the Manga, first released on February 15, 2013.

A second anime film adaptation of Fairy Tail, titled Fairy Tail: Dragon Cry (ＦＡＩＲＹフェアリー　ＴＡＩＬテイルＤＲＡＧＯＮドラゴン　ＣＲＹクライ Fearī Teiru Doragon Kurai) was released on May 6, 2017. It was directed by Tatsuma Minamikawa, and its script screenplay was written by both Hiro Mashima and Shōji Yonemura. Series creator Hiro Mashima was involved with the film's story planner and rough sketch of the movie exclusive characters along with 193 handwritten drawings that will be imposed in the film.[4] Fans who pre-ordered tickets were gifted with an exclusive art and storyboard book that contained the makings of the movies, as well as a guide to background information from the voice actors.

Novels

Cover of the first Fairy Tail light novel

On May 2012, the first Fairy Tail light novel was published, titled Kokoro ni Yadoru color (心に宿るcolor, The Color Residing Within the Heart). The story was written by Miu Kawasaki, while Mashima was responsible for the art. It consists of several different stories, concluding with a return to the world of Edolas. The stories are chronologically set after the Edolas arc and before the Tenrou Island arc.

On August 2014, a second novel was published, titled Dai Matou Enbu Sonogo, Sorezore no 1-nichi (大魔闘演武その後,それぞれの1日, Fairy Tail 2: After the Grand Magic Games Each Individual Day). Miu Kawasaki repeated being responsible for the story, while Mashima again was responsible for the art.

On October 2015, a third novel was published, titled Ōedo Fairy Tail (大江戸フェアリーテイル) by Ren Kanan, which Mashima was responsible for the art.

On March 2016, a fourth (and third in the collection by Kawasaki) novel was published, titled Fairy Tail 3: Trouble Twins (ＦＡＩＲＹ　ＴＡＩＬ３　トラブルツインズ), again written by Miu Kawasaki, which followed the same subtext pattern as the first two published by him.

On March 2017, a fifth (and second by Kanan) was published, titled Fairy Tail in Wonderland (不思議の国のフェアリーテイル) by Ren Kanan.

On November 2017, a sixth (and third by Kanan) was published, titled Wish on a Star (ＷｉｓｈｏｎａＳｔａｒ) by Ren Kanan.

AdvertisementVideo Games

An action video game for the PlayStation Portable, titled Fairy Tail Portable Guild was unveiled at the 2009 Tokyo Game Show.[5] The game was developed by Konami and was released on June 3, 2010. A sequel was also released, titled Fairy Tail Portable Guild 2 and was released on March 10, 2011. Fairy Tail Zeref Awakens was also released for the PlayStation Portable which encompasses the story from the Oración Seis arc arc up until the Tenrou Island arc. It was released on March 22, 2012.

Titles released for the Nintendo DS include Fairy Tail Gekitou! Madoushi Kessen and Fairy Tail Gekitotsu! Kardia Daiseidou and were released on July 22, 2010, and April 21, 2011, respectively, with the latter's story following the story of The Battle of Fairy Tail arc up until the Oración Seis arc.

Four titles were released as mobile game apps which include Fairy Tail Brave Guild released on December 11, 2013, Fairy Tail Brave Saga released on September 30, 2014 (Android) & October 14, 2014 (iOS), Fairy Tail Goku • Mahō Ranbu released on December 4, 2015 (Android) & December 15, 2015 (iOS) and Fairy Tail DiceMagic released on January 16, 2019. A web browser game was also released on January 29, 2018, titled Fairy Tail Hero's Journey.

An action-RPG video game for PlayStation 4 (PS4) , Nintendo Switch and PC via Steam, titled Fairy Tail was developed by GUST Studios and was released on July 30, 2020, in Japan and July 31, 2020, worldwide. The game encompasses the story from the Tenrou Island arc arc up until the Tartaros arc.

Reception

In Japan, the fifth volume of Fairy Tail was ranked seventh in a list of the top ten manga, and the series once again placed seventh after the release of the sixth volume. It also won the 2009 Kodansha Manga Award for shōnen manga. It has also won the Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation's Industry Awards in 2009 for best comedy manga. Fairy Tail has also won the Best Comedy of the Year in 2009.

Fairy Tail: I Created the Magical Internet

Table of contents

Volume 1

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