With Bleach canceled and Naruto ended, fans of shonen action series might feel a little abandoned. At least, unless they're willing to dive into all 900+ episodes of One Piece. One Piece is eternal.
Fortunately, even though the shonen series of old are gone, there are plenty of new ones that can still give everyone their much-needed fix. Like Yūki Tabata's Black Clover, one of Weekly Shonen Jump's newer series that began back in 2015 and got its anime series in 2017.
It's been going for some time now, but it didn't hit its stride until well after many had already checked out. If you're thinking of jumping back in, this article is made for you.
10 SO WHAT'S THIS STORY ABOUT AGAIN?
Black Clover is about Asta, a young orphan from a small village in the middle of nowhere called Hage. More than anything in the world, Asta wants to become the next Wizard King, the head military leader of Clover Kingdom, to help protect the land and offer aid to his hometown.
The problem is, though he exists in a world of magic, he has no aptitude with magic whatsoever. Fortunately for him, in a moment of extreme duress, he manages to summon his own grimoire, a black book with five leaves which summons a massive sword which can cancel any magic sent at him.
9 IS ASTA ALWAYS SO LOUD?
Yes and no. For those people who gave the first episode a try, they likely walked away feeling like their ears were about to bleed thanks to Gakuto Kajiwara’s portrayal of the protagonist. He gave Asta a loud, shrill voice that felt like he was constantly screaming in everyone’s ear.
While this is probably accurate to what creator Yūki Tabata had in mind, it’s not exactly the easiest thing to deal with. Kajiwara absolutely tones it down in future episodes, and while Asta never stops yelling, it’s not nearly as shrill and annoying as it was in the first episode. Even as early as the second episode, there’s marked improvement.
8 WHO'S THE SUPPORTING CAST?
Right after gaining his magic grimoire, Asta hurries off alongside Yuno to take the Magic Knight Exam. Though Asta manages to pass the tests fairly easily by taking out other mages when he’s challenged, ultimately none of the other Magic Knight Guilds care to bring him in.
Asta’s path to becoming the Wizard King is jeopardized until he’s taken in by Yami Sukehiro, leader of the Black Bulls. They’re a group of misfits who were all unable to join up with other guilds thanks to one aspect of their personality or background; some are hard drinkers, others are battle maniacs, others are “commoners”, but have all found a home with the Bulls.
7 ANY STANDOUT CHARACTERS BESIDES ASTA?
Viewers are going to want to pay particular attention to Noelle. Much of Black Clover’s story involves an (albeit light) discussion of the differences between classes in their world, the royals, and the commoners. Noelle’s a royal but because she can’t control her magic, she’s treated like an outcast even by her own family.
Noelle eschews joining the Silver Eagles (her family’s guild) to join the Black Bulls and slowly learns what it means to be a Knight and protect the people, before eventually becoming a powerful mage in her own right. Where the anime is now, she’s just as much a protagonist as Asta is.
6 MAGIC KNIGHT GUILD? THIS SOUNDS LIKE FAIRY TAIL.
Close, but not exactly correct. This is an example of how the execution of a thing is generally more important than the idea itself. In Fairy Tail, mages join mage guilds but are essentially freelancers and are allowed to do whatever they want. They take on occasional missions but don’t work for the government, they work for themselves.
In Black Clover, the Magic Knight guilds are literally the military arm of Clover Kingdom. A lot of their time is spent fighting terrorists, roving bands of thieves, and protecting the citizenry. They’re even in close competition to decide who’s the best and most efficient Magic Knight guild.
5 WIZARD KINGS? THIS SOUNDS LIKE NARUTO, TOO.
Yeah, this one’s harder to get away from. Without a doubt, Asta’s goal to be the Wizard King is straight up identical to Naruto’s desire to be the Hokage. Naruto wanted to become the Hokage largely so he could get the respect of the village, something he’d been denied from his childhood.
Asta wants to become Wizard King to protect the Clover Kingdom initially, but over time he’s bothered by the social stratification occurring in the country and seeks to become Wizard King so he can have the power to make the changes necessary for people outside of the royal capital.
4 IT'S A LITTLE DIFFERENT, BUT SOME STUFF IS THE SAME. SO WHERE'S ASTA'S RIVAL?
Asta’s primary rival is Yuno, another orphan who grew up in the same orphanage as Asta. The two of them have both vowed to be the Wizard King, meaning they’re constantly competing to impress their superiors. There’s obvious respect between the two, but since they’re always attempting to one-up one another, there’s also a ton of smack talk.
Yuno’s special attribute is Wind and he is gifted with a four-leaf clover grimoire, making him one of the most powerful rookie Magic Knights. Still, the show always makes it seem like Yuno’s working just as hard as Asta despite his gifts, so it never feels like he’s just being handed his victories.
3 SO EVERYONE ELSE HAS COOL POWERS, DOES ASTA GET ANYTHING BESIDES A SWORD?
Asta’s sword allows him to negate the magical abilities of anything it comes in contact with, but that can be limiting, especially since the sword is larger than he is. Later on, Asta gets a different sword that allows him to absorb magic, which is pretty cool in itself.
Plus there’s a special power-up form Asta receives in the second half of the series which channels the anti-magic itself through his body, allowing him to experience great increases in his strength and speed. Overall, Asta’s very straightforward combat-wise and his victories come more through teamwork and wise tactical choices over special abilities.
2 WELL, WHO'S THE VILLAIN?
The Eye of the Midnight Sun, a terrorist group with an intense dislike for the Clover Kingdom and the royals who run the land. Without giving away any spoilers, they very quickly manage to take advantage of weaknesses in the Magic Knights’ security, doing everything from invading the royal capital without the Knights' knowledge to also stealing hidden magical relics.
They have powers unlike anything seen by the Clover Kingdom, and even manage to surpass some of the Magic Knight guild’s leaders, the Magic Knight Captains. Ultimately, they play the part of a physical representation of karma for the Clover Kingdom’s desire to constantly place the King and the royal families above the commoners.
1 WHO'S THE COOLEST CHARACTER?
By a very, very wide margin: Mereoleona. She becomes the leader of the Crimson Lions and immediately stands out even amongst a bunch of already established characters. She bursts onto the screen as a larger than life character who steals the show in every scene she’s in, and she has a habit of helping everyone around her be better versions of themselves.
Mereoleona is easily one of the strongest Magic Knights we’ve seen in the show, and might possibly be the strongest “good guy” operating on the show, full stop. Her first serious battle is easily one of the best the series has ever had, and things just get better from there.