Natsu Dragneel, the protagonist of the popular anime and manga series Fairy Tail, is famous for a lot of things. His reckless nature, his fights with his rival, Grey, and his fire dragon slayer magic. However, the one thing that he is most famous for, which also adds a comedic element to the character, is his motion sickness.
In an interview during the 2008 San Diego Comic-Con, Hiro Mashima, the creator of Fairy Tail, talked about how all the major characters in his magnum opus are based around him, even his main character Natsu. In fact, he revealed that Natsu was based on his own childhood self, except for his dreaded motion sickness.
According to Mashima, he created Natsu based on himself; however, he did not give him his own weakness. Rather, he was inspired by one of his friends to give Natsu his unique ability to get sick every time he travels or to use a particular mode of transformation.
Hiro Mashima’s Main Character is Based on Him
Liveabout.com shared an interview they conducted with Mashima where they talked to him about the Fairy Tail manga, his inspirations for the series, and his future plans. At that time, Fairy Tail did not have an anime adaptation, but still, the manga was becoming quite popular.
During the interview, Mashima revealed that he usually creates characters for Fairy Tail from real-life individuals who are present around him. When asked about who inspired him to create Natsu, the manga creator stated:
“Definitely Natsu. He’s like me in junior high! (laughs) All the other characters are based on my friends, my editors, people I know through work.”
According to Mashima, Natsu was based on the junior high version of the manga creator. This indicates that Mashima’s childhood personality was a lot like what Natsu portrays. Natsu is a goofy, carefree character who is loyal to his friends and loves to get stronger. He always relies on violence and follows the stereotypical protagonist pattern.
Natsu’s Motion Sickness is Based on Hiro Mashima’s Friend
During the interview, Hiro Mashima was asked about Natsu’s biggest weakness: his motion sickness. The manga creator stated that while Natsu is based on himself, his weakness is inspired by one of his friends. He explained that he is actually afraid of heights and airplanes, but that would not have been right for Natsu.
Mashima stated:
“I’m actually afraid of heights and airplanes, but I don’t have motion sickness. A friend of mine has that. When we take taxis together, he just gets sick. On one hand, it’s bad for him, but on the other hand, it’s kind of hilarious. (laughs)”
Natsu’s motion sickness is so extreme that he sometimes gets sick by even looking at or simply thinking about it. It adds a humorous aspect to the reckless protagonist, which makes the series lighthearted. While Natsu gets sick using any kind of transportation, he does not get sick around Happy, his exceed. This is because Happy is like a family to him, and he trusts him with his life.
You can watch Fairy Tail on Crunchyroll.
