Let the games begin!

——

Chapter 276 fast-tracked us to yet another game in these great magical games. This time around we were treated to seeing the manga’s most compelling entities, the Dragon Slayers, take part. Oddly, it was surprising that they weren’t actually battling but rather playing a game of getting to the front of the chariot first. It was the first time we were able to see the other Dragon Slayers in action, the second generations who had killed their own dragons before. How did they do?

Well the chapter was one of comedy and I laughed because of the Dragon Slayers, Gajeel, Natsu and Sabretooth’s Sting. Part of this was hilarious just for the sake of all Dragon Slayers now having Natsu’s motion sickness. In the past it didn’t ever seem as if Gajeel had it, but now he does. Could Laxus, a fake Dragon Slayer, also possess it? 

This setup enabled us to spend time getting to see them interact which was fun. I honestly felt that Sting probably isn’t an antagonist, and based on this may even end up teaming up with Gajeel and Natsu whenever the actually calamity in the arc starts. 

With Fairy Tail winning that and Natsu out for the count, the next chapter focused on showing a different match. It was one of comedy and led to a laughable moment, but ultimately felt like filler.  The real attraction was the next Fairy Tail fight, as we saw some force is behind the fighting arrangements. Unfortunately, they are not prone to being perfect and chose Elfman instead of Erza. 

I thought it was pretty funny. Though I wasn’t an Elfman fan, seeing him made me a bit excited for the next fight. Erza would have been compelling to see based on the previous encounter with Bacchus, the competitor.

Most intriguing was the Charle issue and the premonition. What is it that is so dire that she doesn’t want to believe it? Even more so, what is the presence that Natsu detects? The outside of the games events continue to creep up and seem vastly appealing.

Overall, this was a decent chapter that felt alright following with the Dragon Slayer one. All that is missing from this arc so far is continuous epic action.

GO Rating (average): 4/5

[mangastream]