Fairy Tail Vol. #9
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January 23, 2010
by: Adam Beck
Loke takes center stage, but will it leave room for Natsu and friends?
Manga Description: FADING WIZARD
Stylish wizard Loke is the ladies' man of the Fairy Tail guild. But now he's suddenly broken up with all his girlfriends, claiming he simply doesn't have the time! It turns out that Loke's life may be about to end, and Lucy, a freshman, is the only one who can save him! But what can a first-year wizard do that an experienced wizard can't?
Manga Review
Content: (This section may contain spoilers)
I love Fairy Tail. It’s a book you can read over and over again and never get bored. It may not be the most intellectual or engaging experience, but it is something that anyone can read and enjoy. While I do think the ninth volume a bit slow at times, the overall outcome of things is positive for the series, allowing it expand and grow even more.
Let’s get this out of way right at the beginning: while the last two volumes have been packed to the brim with action, this volume has almost no fighting. There is a pillow fight, but does that really count? There are two major plot points through the novel—both of which follow Lucy—and two random adventures mixed in. The first event is connected to the Phantom Guild scenario as Lucy goes to confront her father over his attempts to get her back. This is probably one of the slower events of the novel, but it does develop Lucy’s character quite a bit as she stands up to her powerful father. The thing I enjoyed about this scenario is not Lucy’s overwhelming courage but the back-story and seeing why she dislikes her father so much. It’s an event that made me sad to see such a poor father figure, but I had a bit more respect for Lucy after it.
The second portion of the novel almost fills half of the book, which focuses mainly on Loke, a underdeveloped character frightened of celestial wizards. I enjoy Loke's story; the series is filled with intriguing characters and it's more interesting to hear some of the characters’ individual histories, rather than just following the main characters through their jobs. Even so, I’m still waiting to hear about Cana’s past. Fairy Tail is generally well known for its action and comical behavior, but this book has a completely different tone as it leans more on the serious side. Loke isn’t exactly who he seems to be and this twist in the series is a fairly big one, one I could have not predicted. But even though this centers on Loke, Lucy steps in and takes most of the attention away. While I am absolutely absorbed in the fantasy behind Loke’s past, it is Lucy’s passionate and caring personality that makes this scenario what it is: a fantastic outlook on the world of Fairy Tail.
This may be something random but, one character I’m already beginning to get attached to is Juvia. We saw her fight Gray in the last volume and fall deeply in love with him; her crazy heart filled antics made the fight very entertaining. This time around, she is, in a way, stalking Gray in a very comical fashion. Having her peek her head out and stare at Gray while he’s working, only to quickly hide when he turns his head, is so cute. Sadly, this is the only comical portion of the ninth volume. The rest of the novel does contain some humorous moments but most are worth more of a chuckle than a howl. I suppose it has been awhile since we got anything remotely funny—considering the last volume didn’t really contain any comedy other than a short Juvia moment—but it certainly could have been executed a little better.
Artwork: Artistically, Fairy Tail leans on the more comical side with some well proportioned characters who are constantly drawn over the top. There is a good balance between the two as drawing something a lot more comical than detailed occurs only when necessary. Key characters, and even meaningless ones, are drawn with striking detail, but only in clothing accessories and figures; only focused characters get the full treatment. There is a good variety of clothing and everything flows perfectly. The environments are also wonderfully rendered and range from beautiful mountains terrains to nostalgic waterfalls. I think without the cartoony, yet detailed, art style of Hiro Mashima, Fairy Tail would be nothing but another adventure manga.
Translation: The folks at Del Rey have done another fantastic job translating their properties. I could not find any overlooked sound effects, spelling errors or grammar mistakes throughout my time with Fairy Tail 9. Sound effects are presented in the original Japanese text with an English-translation nearby. One thing that does stand out is the number of exclamation marks; at times, there are just too damn many and they sometimes don’t flow with the artwork, dropping the comical value of the panel. Luckily there are only a few instances of this. The overall translation is solid and even comes with a couple extras! These include an afterword message from Hiro Mashima, more (left to right) reader questions answered by Lucy, Mira Erza, and even a special guest, fan artwork, and an untranslated look into the next volume.
The Bottom Line: The ninth volume of Fairy Tail is far from bad, but it does have some boring and slow moments that don’t feel necessary. I’m mainly talking about the random jobs the group takes on; they try too hard to get a laugh out of you, and end up only embarrassing themselves. Thankfully, Loke’s story and even Lucy’s confrontation are well done and will keep your interest in the book. With strong visuals, a great English-translation and two large events that dive more into the supporting characters, it is hard to not recommend this to anyone.
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Content |
The second half of the novel is both interesting and moving, but the rest drags behind. |
7.5 |
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Art |
A good balance between characters and environments while not skimping on the details. |
9.0 |
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Translation |
Excellent translation with plenty of extras… they just have to loosen up on the exclamation marks. |
9.0 |
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Verdict
Fairy Tail is an absolutely entertaining property that continues in the ninth volume. While there are moments that can drag, the drastic switch to a more serious tone really puts a new look on things. In the end, this may not be the best iteration in the series, but it does open up more possibilities for other characters.
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7.5
[not an average]
+ Loke’s story is absorbing.
+ I love the fun artwork.
- Does slow down quite a bit.
- Fans may not enjoy the serious tone.
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