I have been thinking for some time now. Fairy Tail has to be a parody of your typical shonen.
Not direspecting the manga in any way. Quite the contrary actually. Mashima knows that shonen MCs rely on the power of friendship/determination. He just brought it to its max with this. We don't see it because Fairy Tail does it so shamelessly but the power of friendship is the most important fuel for a MC.
Bottom line is I have a new found respect for Mashima who knows what's up and does not sugarcoat it with other lines. Friendship is EVERYWHERE.
Proof they're going to just keep killing the most powerful beings on the planet with the power of friendship. Series is so fucking bad that he can't deviate from the worst cliche in anime
They underestimated the power of their friendship and their bond. I know people hate that, but Hiro Mashima does it right, and he's aware of it too. Anyways, can we talk about the fact that Natsu easily fought a mind-controlled Happy and Makarov, but could not bring himself to fight a mind-controlled Lucy? Sure he tried, but he wasn't trying his best.
Aquarius beating everyone was one of the best parts, plus she can only be summoned in water so she needed to be in her attribute to fight. Lucy wasnt able to use her too many times cause she couldnt keep her in check from magic and trust. So seeing them together again is such a treat