Black Cloveris a battle manga set in a fantasy worldwhere magic is commonplace, and people’s roles are decided by how powerful their magic abilities are. The main character is Asta, a young man who cannot use magic but still yearns to be the Wizard King, the most powerful magic user in the Clover Kingdom. When he receives a grimoire that gives him the power to summon swords that nullify magic, Asta takes the first step on his journey to achieving his faraway dream.
Black Cloverbegan its serialization inWeekly Shonen Jumpin 2015, then received an anime adaptation in 2017 by the studio Pierrot. The anime ran for 170 episodes, ending in 2021 in the middle of the Spade Kingdom Raid arc. Despite the series' enduring popularity, there seem to be no plans of bring the anime back, even though the manga is still going strong. In fact, the manga has now reached its final arc, making fans wonder if theBlack Cloveranime will ever make a return.
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Where The Anime Ended
The anime’s fourth season consisted of only sixteen episodes, covering the very end of the Elf Reincarnation arc, the Heart Kingdom Joint Struggle arc, and the very beginning of the Spade Kingdom Raid arc. These final episodes concern the kidnapping of several important figures by the Spade Kingdom, and the resulting mission to rescue them. In order to gain the power necessary to fight against the Spade Kingdom, Asta learns about and meets with the devil Liebe, who has been lending him his powerand is the source of his anti-magic. The final episode ends with Asta befriending Liebe, and the two of them begin training so that they can learn to better synchronize their powers.
Around this time, the anime was coming very close to running ahead of the manga, which was just barely managing to stay slightly ahead. Instead of implementing a filler arc or slowing down the pace that chapters were adapted, the anime came to an end instead so that the manga could continue to stay ahead. The Spade Kingdom Raid arc ended up not finishing until mid-2022 in the manga, with the still-unnamed final arc not starting until much later that same year.
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Is There Enough Content To Justify A Continuation?
The last chapter that was adapted in full by the anime is chapter 270, although a few pages of chapter 272 were also adapted in that same episode. The manga continued trucking on with updates every week, aside from a months-long hiatus once the Spade Kingdom Raid arc concluded. Over 80 chapters of the manga have been published since the anime’s conclusion, with more to come on the way.
While having over 80 chapters to adapt might be enough to justify a continuation for other anime series, it might not be enough for a series likeBlack Clover.Black Clover’s original run was not a limited one or two-cour run, but instead aired continuously from week to week. As a result, it would be unlikely that Pierrot would pursue a continuation unless there was enough content for a year’s worth of episodes. While it’s not out of the question forBlack Clover’s anime to switch to cour-based serialization, it all depends on what the studio decides it wants to do with the adaptation.Pierrot is also busywith the adaptation ofBleach: Thousand-Year Blood War, meaning they may not have the time to focus on a possibleBlack Clovercontinuation.
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When Should We Expect Black Clover’s Return?
Black Clover’s first feature film,The Sword of the Wizard King,is set to be released in Japanese theaters and Netflixlater this year. Aside from that, however, it’s likely that fans of theBlack Cloveranime will have to wait quite a bit longer to see more of the series. While it may be tempting to hope that the presence of new material may encourage the start of a new adaptation, it’s more likely that Pierrot will wait until the manga’s completion before considering continuing the adaptation. With the manga completed, the studio would have a better understanding of how much material they have to adapt, and they wouldn’t run the risk of accidentally overtaking the manga if it’s already finished.
It’s not certain when exactly theBlack Clovermanga will end, but the fact that it is in its final arc does signal that an ending is sure to come within this year or the next. Even after it does end, it’s not likely that Pierrot will immediately start working on an adaptation, though it is also possible that they could start working on an adaptation even before the manga ends. Regardless, this ultimately means thatBlack Clover’s continuation is unlikely to come for at least a few years. However, at least fans will be able to have an incredibly refined adaptation of what will most likely be the end ofBlack Clover’s story.
