The Raijinshuu have barely gotten anything since their introduction (other than disrespect that is) but I still think they're compelling. All they needed was to be given some kind of purpose, a role in the narrative for them to show their potential. Their eye magic is an interesting and unique, yet underexplored part of the worldbuilding. Their relationship with Laxus is also endlessly intriguing. The idea that he would need a guard when he's practically the strongest member of Fairy Tail's current generation is preposterous and yet, he has one. I would give anything to know how they came to be friends with him and how they got their powers and it just so happens that the sequel is the absolute perfect moment for that to happen, considering all the crazy places that we're taking the worldbuilding. Until then I guess the world just isn't ready to handle so much power and fabulousness.

Wendy is incredible! She's the youngest dragon slayer but she is certainly the most impressive one. What all the others have had years to learn, Wendy has managed to achieve in months! When we first see her, she doesn't even know any offensive spells, which are the only type of spells the other dragon slayers know. She basically brings back Jellal from the dead and saves Erza's life within hours of joining her first mission. She learns not just her offensive spells but also two separate secret dragon slayer art spells unbelievably fast. She's the youngest dragon slayer to activate her Dragon Force and she also uses enchantments to provide invaluable support to her friends. Plus, it's truly a joy to see her grow more confident in her abilities and the strength of her feelings and convictions. While all Fairy Tail members are regularly put through the wringer, Wendy is one of the youngest wizards in the guild but she still braves all the turmoil on par with her friends and finds it in herself to keep moving forward. She's more than proven herself as one of the most capable wizards on the show considering how young she is and how quickly she develops her abilities.

This difference between Silver and Gray and the consequences that Gray ends up facing because of it is a perfect demonstration of how incompatible their existence is. There was really no way for Silver to remain a part of Gray's life even though he was alive the whole time and they came to cross paths again. His help nearly ended up killing Gray more than once. He simply can't fit into Gray's life when his own was taken away and he's only here to be an experiment. Truly, the levels of derangement that must be swirling around in Silver's head at all times (and rightfully so) are beyond intriguing to me.

I find Edolas Gajeel to be the most well utilized one of the counterparts. At first he appears to follow the same pattern that all the others do and be an opposite of Gajeel but I think that he actually shines a light on some of Gajeel's qualities that go ignored such as his keen observational abilities and his intellect. He certainly retains the core characteristics of Gajeel that we know and love since he's very much a rebel with a big heart, who's ready to fight for what he believes in. It's really nice to see how well the two Gajeels work together and the Edolas one is a great way to let us peek under the rough exterior that Earth Land Gajeel has built around himself. If his involvement in the Battle of Fairy Tail didn't already convince us that he has the spirit and heart that make him right at home in the guild, then the meeting with his counterpart certainly hints even more towards that. However, where Edolas Gajeel really stands on his own is in his freelance journalist occupation. Not because I don't believe that Gajeel could be a writer (he's already got a poet's soul and he knows it which is why he's into music), but because he's already found his own way of fighting back against what he perceives to be unjust and he's done it independently, without being part of Fairy Tail. Now there's nothing wrong with the fact that Gajeel needed to be in a certain environment to unlock the best parts of himself that Fairy Tail provided him with but it's nice to see that Edolas Gajeel was apparently slightly more in touch with his inner experiences and didn't need to posture himself a certain way to feel like he's worth something. Like I said, he's still essentially a rebel and a troublemaker but he knows what he stands for and he's comfortable with who he is. Perhaps meeting him also helped Earth Land Gajeel feel more at peace with the parts of himself he was trying to hide before.

I think that keeping Lahar alive would have hugely increased the dramatic tension over the reveal that Mest was always a Fairy Tail member. They started out their crusade against Fairy Tail together and while they both came around, the revelation that Mest infiltrated the Magic Council and was taking intel to Fairy Tail would have been a huge blow to a Lahar that's already shaken to his core by the destruction of the Council (and the idea of the Face devices; it would have been interesting to see his reaction). That coming after Mest convinced him to let Cobra (and the rest of the Oracion Seis) out for real this time could have made him turn on Fairy Tail once again, only calming down when they disbanded anyway and would have caused a real internal dilemma when he sees the new Council understanding the gravity of the situation and helping Fairy Tail while his feelings are still hurt. If he were around, we may have gotten Mest held accountable for the absolute shit storm he stirred when he tried to use Brandish to murder August.

This friendship means the world to me! After her fight with Juvia Meredy has become such a jovial character and it's nice to see her enjoy life when she was so ready to throw hers away just to get revenge for Ultear. Meeting Juvia truly helped her appreciate life and the love she carries in her heart and made her a better person. Juvia becoming friends with someone who was once specifically after Gray and was ready to sacrifice herself just to kill him puts on display the best parts of her character. She didn't empathize with Meredy and her situation just because it was the only way to save herself and Gray; she truly opened up her heart to her and they ended up forming a strong, unbreakable bond where they trust each other explicitly and aren't afraid of sharing their pain once more.

This scene^ alone gives me mental illness. The only times Erza's cried from her right eye were when he got arrested during the Nirvana incident and she thought she'd never see him again and here when it finally sinks in that he's here and they may have a future yet. Truly, they are lost without each other. It's not a coincidence that Erza only decides to open her heart again once she's gone back to the Tower of Heaven, that she claims to have found her strength, yet is still ready to die to kill him because without him there really is no life for her. And Jellal only comes to his senses when she comes back into his life. Erza nearly dies from Cubellious' poison but Natsu manages to save Wendy right after she brought Jellal back and she saves Erza's life as well. The universe literally will not let them live in a world that doesn't have the other in it, and they instantly find each other despite Jellal's missing memory and all the pain that Erza suffered at his hands. Erza's not his sole motivation for atoning for his sins but she's always his guiding light and the best thing about them is that it is mutual as Jellal also gives her strength to move forward, even when they're hundreds of miles apart.

After he snapped out of his derangement, he really demonstrated how deeply he regretted everything that he did and all the pain he caused. Really, Jellal is the one to forgive himself last after everyone he hurt has already forgiven him. He absolutely realizes the gravity of his actions and he worked hard to create a better future. He invested his whole life and energy towards that goal when he could have easily gone with the excuse that Ultear manipulated him when he was still a child and he didn't know better. Yet, that's not what he does. He walked side by side with Ultear on their journey to redemption, forgiving her rather than forgiving himself. What I especially love about him is how he's constantly put in a position of interacting with the people that he hurt the most. Erza, of course, is the one who comes to mind immediately, and she vehemently rejects his notion of sacrificing himself as the easy way out. She is the one, who gives him the resolve to live and find his way back into the light. He has to face the Oracion Seis, who were only exploited by Brain because of him, and he takes full accountability about how his actions affected them but he also doesn't let them use those as an excuse about their own crimes. He atones in the best way possible - by leading them to the path to redemption. And last but not least is the storyline with Kagura. Jellal never allows himself to brush off murdering Simon but his drive to do good overcomes Kagura's anger and resentment of him and she ends up saving his life and clearing his path of her brother's Historia instead, to allow him to protect Erza and the rest of the world. He doesn't just move on from his wrongdoings but he steadily forges a newer, better version of himself along with a better future for everyone else, which really is the only way to make up for his past.