User blog:IamJakuhoRaikoben/Chapter 515: I Am You... You Are Me, Review.

Review
Okay, so I loved this chapter. It's one of the few this entire arc that I enjoyed from start to finish. I don't really care much for Irene, but I must admit her backstory moved me. I was a bit worried when we figured out Irene was from the past that we could be in for some major bullshit, but I think Mashima pulled this off pretty well. Mashima has never been one to plan his manga, so his plot developments can be kinda hit or miss. With that being said, it's nice when something that he thinks up works, for the most part, well in the narrative. Irene's backstory really deepens her character for me. Given all the pain and suffering Irene had to endure, it's no wonder that she's a psychotic bitch now. Not to get too deep and philosophical, but during my freshman year I wrote a 10 page paper on cycles of abuse and violence. It's easy to judge someone on how awful a person they are (and you rightfully should), but it's always interesting to see what drove the person to that point. Or at least, I think it is. ( .___.)

Another upside of this chapter is that it puts an end to all of the "Erza's a Dragon Slayer" theories. She's just a human woman... who happens to have a shitty mother.... who happens to be a Dragon. XD Bad Jokes aside, this chapter was also good in that it deepened Erza's backstory without any retcons. Since Erza ending up in Rosemary Village was never explained, it was wide open for Mashima to do whatever he wanted with it and I like the route he took with it. All in all, this was a great chapter. All Mashima has to do now is end the fight with Erza and Irene in a good, non bullshit way and I'll be happy. P.S.: I don't know what Erza's bunny armor does, but it looks dope. XD