Summary
Black Clover and Naruto share shonen traits, idealistic protagonists, and character archetypes reminiscent of Don Quixote. Black Clover creatively uses and redistributes the shonen formula in Naruto to create a familiar yet unique story. Calling Black Clover a derivative of Naruto ignores the success of the shonen formula that both series embody, contributing to their popularity.
Black clover is a successful and long-running shonen series, but despite its praise, Yuki Tabata's work has not been immune to criticism for having many similarities to other popular shonen predecessors, especially Naruto. However, after immersing himself in the series in preparation for the yet-to-be-announced fifth season of Black Clover, I failed to see the problem.
I only recently started diving into this. Black cloverBut knowing how much I love shonen battle manga and anime, mainly Naruto, along with a magic-focused gimmick, I knew I would enjoy it. I wasn't disappointed, immediately captivated by the manga's fantastic background art and Yūki Tabata's character designs, along with a thrilling anime adaptation.
Black Clover began serialization as a Weekly Shonen Jump series in 2015, before Switching to a seasonal publishing schedule with Jump Giga starting December 25, 2023Since then, the film has grossed millions of dollars, garnered a loyal fan base, and even dominated the airwaves online.
Being a shonen battle manga, the series is easily compared to other series in this popular genre, especially since many of them, including Black Clover and Naruto, are best-selling stories in the genre.
The similarities between Black Clover and Naruto are immediately noticeable.
However, that is not the whole picture.
Both Naruto and Black Clover deal heavily with themes of empathy and social acceptance, and overall, it's easy to draw conclusions.
As a Naruto fan since the series debuted in North America, I fully acknowledge my viewer bias and innate tendency to compare other shonen fighting anime to it, and Black Clover is no exception. The similarities are countless.from the brave, idealistic, outcast protagonist Asta to his more talented rival, Yuno, and they expand outward from there. Asta wants to be the Wizard King, Naruto wants to be the Hokage. Both Naruto and Black Clover have deep themes of empathy and social acceptance, and on the surface, it might be easy to draw conclusions.
However, the similarities don't stop there; Many other comparisons can be made if you look closely enough.. Yami teaching Asta about ki in chapter #48 is reminiscent of Asuma teaching Naruto about wind release techniques in the Akatsuki Suppression Mission Arc. Naruto starts the series as a hopeless loser, while Asta seems to have no magic in a society where magic is everything. There are even similarities between Yami from Black Clover and Itachi Uchiha from Naruto, but his traits, and other similarities, are purely coincidental for a pretty good reason.
Black Clover and Naruto are examples of the Shonen formula
Similarities are everywhere in this genre, and they work for a reason.
Black Clover has a lot of likable characters who, while beautifully drawn and charmingly executed, are examples of common anime stereotypes, especially Asta. The series can easily be defined in terms of TV Tropes as “a young man from the countryside who wants to become a master of whatever his universe considers Serious Business”. Black Clover is not derivative of other series in any way or form that is not authentic, and Naruto owes much of its success to a similar appeal..
Black Clover's formulaic gimmicks extend into themes seen in countless manga and anime, including the beach episode in chapter #57.
Without going into too much detail, these ingredients, combined with a gimmick that is sure to appeal to a mass audience (in the case of Black Clover, it's the magic knights), ensure longevity and popularity. Luffy's desire to become the Pirate King in One Piece is a prime example. This is part of a general trend alluded to in other popular series where Manga authors are motivated to create best-selling manga, and not letting a popular manga series end.
Calling Black Clover a derivative is shortsighted.
Don't hate the player, hate the game
Black Clover is another manga and anime that is made to express metaphors and portray relatable, lovable characters because It is a formula for success in many ways.. However, the pressure to create and maintain a weekly release schedule has shown its negative effects in Black Clover, especially from the Elf Reincarnation Arc onwards, limiting detailed backgrounds, changing linework, and favoring larger panels, as Shonen Ouji has closely observed on YouTube. In fact, Boruto's illustrator Mikio Ikemoto feels the same way, as evident in the switch from Weekly Shonen Jump to monthly V Jump, a commonality between Boruto and Black Clover.
To say Black Clover is a derivative work is to miss the whole picture, as these comparisons are very easy to make between shonen series.
Black Clover like Naruto is a result of the latter helping to solidify the success of the shonen formula, and It will only become more frequent as more series are introduced.with anime and manga becoming more popular. To say Black Clover is a derivative work is to miss the point, as these comparisons are easily made between shonen series. Black Clover's detailed, distinctive art and plot execution can be seen as appealing to Naruto fans, rather than a pale imitation. In fact, its extremely idealistic protagonists are more appealing to readers, and they are more popular in many places than anime and manga.
Asta and Naruto: Modern-Day Don Quixote
The well-intentioned fool archetype
Asta and Naruto are examples of “Idiot Heroes,” but their extremely idealistic traits, such as befriending even the most dangerous of potential enemies, come across as quixotic. The origin of this trait, Don Quixote, refers to its protagonist, Alonso Quijano, whose chivalry drives him to do good deeds, but is considered delusional by those around him. This tendency, combined with some humorous antics, creating a popular manga and anime hero archetype appears in other Japanese media, such as Ichiban Kasuga in Like a Dragon.
Naruto is an outcast with the deadly Nine-Tailed Demon Fox Kurama sealed within him, while Asta was born without magic and harbors the ominous Liebe, but neither is hopeless. The possibility of this trait becoming widespread is no surprise, because people like funny and idealistic heroesand spend millions of dollars at the box office every year to see the latest formulaic entry from a given cinematic universe. That's what sets the shonen battle anime formula apart from, say, the world of seinen manga, where the formula dances somewhere along the lines of gorgeous artwork and philosophical musings that serve as fodder for video essayists.
Black Clover makes creative use of archetypes found in Naruto
A familiar recipe with a little spice
Comparing Black Clover to Naruto unfairly might skew our view of the former, but when we see The way it actively improves or redistributes the formula is fascinating. I think Noelle's character borrows traits from Naruto, such as her massive magical reserves, her outcast status despite her notable lineage, and her realization of the friends who trust her in chapter #58. Asta has absolutely no aptitude for magic, instead training himself for close combat, making him an ace once he gets his grimoire, makes me think more of Rock Lee as the main characterBut again, that's a shortsighted view.
Any unfavorable comparisons between manga are quickly dispelled when we understand that this is the nature of popular manga series, as Black Clover and Naruto are not the only examples. In fact, Naruto's creator, Masashi Kishimoto, has cited Godzilla as an influence and even cited Yu Yu Hakusho as inspiration for Naruto's shadow clone technique. In the creative field, this is a common phenomenon and focuses on static events such as the similarities between Naruto And Black clover much less interesting than the unique content in their stories and artwork.
Source: TV Tropes, Shonen Ouji, Crunchyroll