Black Clover is a shonen Manga released in 2017, it was a well-received Anime among shonen fans mainly for its plot and its characterization.
Created by Yuki Tabata, Black Clover is an exaggerated action Anime that shows corruption and the power of magic.
Black Clover started as a weak shonen Anime and has truly transformed into a fan favorite. Black Clover has worked very hard to change a simple cliche plot into a more complex story which makes it worth watching!
What is the Plot of Black Clover?
Black Clover is set in a universe where every human being has magical powers. And when they get to a certain age they are selected by the Grimoire at the Grimoire Acceptance ceremony.
However, our main protagonist Asta is different from others since he possesses no magical abilities. Yet this boy has a strong ambition to become the Wizard King.
In pursuit of his dream, he attends the ceremony in hopes of becoming the chosen one where he receives a mysterious Grimoire ‘The Black Clover’ which imbues him with a kind of magic cutting ability, enabling him to pass unhinged through the spells and weapons of other wizards.
Why should I watch Black Clover?
Even though the starting part seems bad mainly because of Asta’s annoying vocals, the show progressed into the most watched Shonen Anime of 2020.
According to Crunchyroll, Black Clover has the most views in the category of Shonen Anime. Other than popularity you should watch this Anime for its pace, story setting, and characters.
The Pace of the story
Although it has over 180 episodes, Black Clover tends to stick to its story. No fillers, no dragging an action sequence.
The story progresses constantly and the twists and turns are timely created in this series. Misunderstandings and issues are solved quickly without boring the audience. So you will not have to skip any part of this Anime.
Characters
Black Clover has a lot of characters, a huge cast can be pretty confusing at times since none of the characters get time to develop or connect with the audience.
Yet Black Clover pulled it off pretty decently. Every character remained relevant to the story without fillers. Every one of them got their spotlight and a chance to grow and be recognized.
Let’s take the example of Noelle, she was unbearable at the start but as the story progressed, she emerged as a strong warrior. Similarly, Asta’s rival Yuno respects his competitor from the get-go.
Story Setting
Another thing is that Black Clover is set in medieval times in a magical world which has a class system or a powerplay that impacts everyone in the system.
Far better, these characters can go out and explore the world. Aside from the social structure, there is also a magic system with several types of magic.
Is Black Clover a hit?
Black Clover has risen to become one of the most successful Anime or Manga franchises, with millions of fans worldwide since its debut in February 2015.
A large part of this is certainly because it reminds viewers of past shows that they loved, while yet standing on its own as a distinct idea.
| Title | Black Clover |
| No. of Episodes | 170 |
| Duration of an episode | 23 minutes per episode |
| Genre | Action, Comedy, Fantasy |
| Creator | Yuki Tabata |
| Demographic | Shonen |
| IMDb Rating | 8.3 |
| MAL Rating | 8.13 |
Which is a better Anime: Fairy Tail or Black Clover?
Hiro Mashima’s Fairy Tail and Yuki Tabata’s Black Clover are the most prominent magical tales that have mages comprising their entire main cast.
Since, both the series have a lot in common, there is bound to be some sort of discussion among fans about them, their comparison, and which one is better. Mashima and Tabata may source the idea of magic from the same source material but it differs in two areas:
- The way a character learns about magic
- And the extent to which a form of magic is connected to its owner.
But when it comes to the intensity of magic in Anime, Black Clover takes the lead, I’m not implying that it is a superior series but in terms of magic, Black Clover gave more dynamic and sustainability to its story.
The magic in Fairy Tail can be learned by anyone. Lucy and most of the dragon slayers in the Anime learned a handful of magic from the mages with the same powers.
This gives all the characters in Mashima’s Fairy Tail freedom, unlike Black Clover. But at the same time, this freedom makes their powers less unique.
This is especially the case for Lucy, whose Celestial Spirit power is wholly predicated on the keys she carries, as well as the fact that many of those keys (and the spirits tied to them) she got from other Celestial Wizards.
Whereas Tabata wanted his characters to have their magic that speaks about their individuality and was their property only. This is achieved in the Anime by two things:
- Grimoires
- Magic attributes
Grimoires are spell books that users get on or after their fifteenth birthday, containing magical spells that only they may use. They evolve with their users, starting mainly empty and gradually allowing access to more spells as the user progresses.
Black Clover’s animation (at its finest) rivals Fairy Tail’s, while Mashima’s artwork shines brighter in black and white than Tabata’s. It’s a tie when it comes to the characters.
Furthermore, Black Clover goes far beyond Fairy Tail in exploring the consequence of a magical-centric society, bringing discrimination and hierarchies based on magic a prominent issue of the entire story, something that Fairy Tail manages to avoid.
Black Clover also devotes more time and effort to exploring the boundaries and flaws of anti-magic in Asta than Fairy Tail did with its main anti-magic protagonist, Yuka of Lamia Scale.
Hence Black Clover is much better than a Fairy Tail in terms of the magic-centric plot and powers.
Is Black Clover a copy of Naruto?
No, not at all. Like any other shonen Anime, Black Clover does take inspiration from Naruto at some point but Black Clover has stayed true to its commitment and designed characters that are more inspirational than Naruto.
Like the similarities between our main protagonists. Both are young and loud with light-colored hair. The resemblance between Asta and Naruto is obvious.
Both are fantastic rivals who are filled with talent. There’s even a beast that lives within the main character and begins off wicked but eventually accepts him.
The competition between Asta and Yuno is far superior to the fairly nasty rivalry between Naruto and Sasuke. Unlike in the past episodes, Asta and Yuno had nothing but love and respect for one another.
In contrast to Naruto and Sasuke’s insecure competition, both characters actively lift each other and serve as inspiration.
Another point to mention is the female cast of Black Clover. Not only are many of the characters in the series female, but they are also portrayed as strong.
Especially for Noelle Silva, who serves as the series’ main female lead, much like Sakura Haruno did in Naruto. Unlike Sakura, Noelle grows into a very powerful and intriguing character.
Black Clover subverts the typical cliché by having the protagonist has no magical ability whatsoever, but his female counterpart has more than she can control.
First, she was depicted as quite weak since she does not yet know how to handle her immense and overpowering ability. But gradually she becomes the most powerful character.
Conclusion
- Black Clover is worth watching for its characters, plot setting, and pace.
- Although this show and Fairy Tail are compared often, Black Clover takes the lead as a more refined magical story.
- Unlike Naruto, Black Clover gives a more healthy protagonist and antagonist rivalry.
- The female lead is a powerful protagonist unlike Sakura from Naruto.