There are many problems with Fairy Tail, but most of them begin with the same factor. Natsu. The problems with Natsu branch out from the fact that he hasn't changed in any significant way, nor has he been lastingly affected by any event in the series to date.
Every single character in the series have lost someone significant to them. Lucy, her father; Grey, his parents & Ur; Erza, Simon & Jellal(both temporarily and repeatedly); Wendy...you get the point. Natsu, gets none of that. Sure, he 'lost' Igneel when he was about ten, but that was only because he had been sealed into Natsu's gut...oh! Lisanna...except she's still alive too. As is his brother, who was only revealed to be such around 500 chapters in. His family, he didn't know because he was stillborn(or near enough).
Then there's the power ups that he gets. To be fair, having a power-up is a common trope, so it's fair enough that the main character would get one. The problem is though, that Natsu keeps on getting them, while no-one else does(until Tartaros-other dragon slayers). The problem lies with the mechanics of them. Dragon Force is fair enough, 'Dragon Slayer gets the power of a dragon if he eats a magic of the same type'. The issue, is the rest of them. start with 'Lightning Fire Dragon Slayer Mode'. It was shown that when a dragon slayer 'eats' magic of a different type, they get very sick. That means that Natsu, or any other dragon slayer for that matter, shouldn’t have access to any 'element 2 element 1 dragon slayer modes'.
Then, if that wasn't bad enough, now we have 'Fire Dragon King Mode', which we are told is due to the accumulation of Igneel's residual magic and will be completely unusable after said magic is gone. But, the very first thing that happens after Natsu drains it against his brother(still yet to be revealed at the time), he uses it again. Oh, can't forget that he used it to one-shot a 'God' either.
The problem with the power-ups, along with the mechanics, is that they prevent the development of Natsu's mentality. In anything, whenever you run up against a wall, you look for other ways of getting around it. The power-ups in Fairy Tail, while understandable from a narrative perspective, however annoying in their arrival, prevent the mages in Fairy Tail from growing in terms of how they approach battle. The problem that that causes is that by its very nature as a shonen, Fairy Tail(the guild) keeps on running up against enemies that are harder to beat.
Which brings us to the other characters. The power levels in Fairy Tail are stagnant. Which, can of be expected in a shonen, because you'll end up with the bruisers, the middleweights, and the rest. The problem with Fairy Tail is that all three groups have increased in strength at the same rate, as the enemies have gotten stronger by leaps and bounds. Then there’s the overreliance on the belief that Natsu, can save them from anything, despite the fact that he isn't the strongest mage in their guild.
The Problems With This Series!
There are many problems with Fairy Tail, but most of them begin with the same factor. Natsu. The problems with Natsu branch out from the fact that he hasn't changed in any significant way, nor has he been lastingly affected by any event in the series to date.
Every single character in the series have lost someone significant to them. Lucy, her father; Grey, his parents & Ur; Erza, Simon & Jellal(both temporarily and repeatedly); Wendy...you get the point. Natsu, gets none of that. Sure, he 'lost' Igneel when he was about ten, but that was only because he had been sealed into Natsu's gut...oh! Lisanna...except she's still alive too. As is his brother, who was only revealed to be such around 500 chapters in. His family, he didn't know because he was stillborn(or near enough).
Then there's the power ups that he gets. To be fair, having a power-up is a common trope, so it's fair enough that the main character would get one. The problem is though, that Natsu keeps on getting them, while no-one else does(until Tartaros-other dragon slayers). The problem lies with the mechanics of them. Dragon Force is fair enough, 'Dragon Slayer gets the power of a dragon if he eats a magic of the same type'. The issue, is the rest of them. start with 'Lightning Fire Dragon Slayer Mode'. It was shown that when a dragon slayer 'eats' magic of a different type, they get very sick. That means that Natsu, or any other dragon slayer for that matter, shouldn’t have access to any 'element 2 element 1 dragon slayer modes'.
Then, if that wasn't bad enough, now we have 'Fire Dragon King Mode', which we are told is due to the accumulation of Igneel's residual magic and will be completely unusable after said magic is gone. But, the very first thing that happens after Natsu drains it against his brother(still yet to be revealed at the time), he uses it again. Oh, can't forget that he used it to one-shot a 'God' either.
The problem with the power-ups, along with the mechanics, is that they prevent the development of Natsu's mentality. In anything, whenever you run up against a wall, you look for other ways of getting around it. The power-ups in Fairy Tail, while understandable from a narrative perspective, however annoying in their arrival, prevent the mages in Fairy Tail from growing in terms of how they approach battle. The problem that that causes is that by its very nature as a shonen, Fairy Tail(the guild) keeps on running up against enemies that are harder to beat.
Which brings us to the other characters. The power levels in Fairy Tail are stagnant. Which, can of be expected in a shonen, because you'll end up with the bruisers, the middleweights, and the rest. The problem with Fairy Tail is that all three groups have increased in strength at the same rate, as the enemies have gotten stronger by leaps and bounds. Then there’s the overreliance on the belief that Natsu, can save them from anything, despite the fact that he isn't the strongest mage in their guild.