Black Clover Episode 21 Review: Capital Riot

Here in Black Clover, we’ve seen characters break the mold and prove their worth multiple times already, haven’t we? I mean, just Asta has already surprised us a lot with the things he can do! We see it again this time, both his brazenness and a few new characters who don’t want the status quo to limit people!

Japanese Original Episode Title: 王都騒乱

Plot

The chaos in the banquet hall continued, as neither Asta nor some of the nobles wanted to lose to the other! However, their show of power was interrupted when a legion of undead humans suddenly attacked the royal capital, seemingly being controlled by an unknown mage. This should be the perfect chance to set aside differences and work together to protect the kingdom, right?

Episode Highlights

New enemies: Oh dear. Not only does the Clover Kingdom have enemies outside its territory, but some of its citizens have their own qualms against their country! It‘s not surprising though, is it? There’s an amazing discrimination between the nobles and the commoners, after all. They even judge the kind of magic each person wields and how powerful it is! However, I feel like there’s something more to this aggressive foe than meets the eye. Did he really get kicked out just because of his status? Or did he do something wrong? It also seems he has more allies with him, aside from his undead legion.

Fighting at a party: I can’t believe the nobles were so pissed off that they would consciously ruin their banquet! Klaus was already trying to stop them, but they just got mad at him! Was their pride hurt that much they desperately wanted to teach Asta, a rat in their eyes, a lesson? Talk about petty… Unfortunately for them, Asta just kept on hurting their pride more by skillfully negating their attacks! Solid was even made to kneel just after being haughty himself! How embarrassing! Yuno was so confident in his friend that he was waiting for the perfect time to help him, knowing that there’s no way he’ll lose! His judgment was right – those nobles really looked pathetic. That’s why I salute the ones who didn’t accept Asta being there, but had the decency to not chase him away.

Interference: Don’t you think the Vermillion family is more noble that the Silvas? Noelle’s siblings have bullied her all her life, and now they picked on Asta for no good reason other than him being ‘lower’ than them. Those things shouldn’t be what any honorable royal does! But Fueguleon, though he could’ve probably quelled Asta easily, didn’t do that! He helped him get out of that tight spot instead, recognizing them all as the Wizard King’s guests. When I saw a glimpse of just how powerful he is when he clashed mana with Nozel Silva, I became super relieved that he’s sensible! Nozel already looked like a pain to deal with, so I wouldn’t want him to add to the mess. Then there’s Fueguleon’s brother, Leopold, who saw Asta for his capabilities instead of his status, and confidently declared him a worthy rival! These two make me quite hopeful of the nobles (Of course Klaus, Mimosa, and Noelle as well!). I hope we meet more people as properly dignified as them, especially since I don’t want our protagonists to get caught up with any more skirmishes just because they’re ‘commoners’ or ‘different.’

On the defensive: Another reason I’m liking the Vermillion brothers is that I’m pretty sure Fueguleon specifically chose Asta and Noelle to be a part of his team because of their issues with the others, but yet still chose them despite those issues! He may have cared more about defending the capital, but don’t you think the others would’ve put up a fuss in his case? Well anyway, the zombies were too many and unstoppable; I pitied the mages who tried to stop them, and the civilians who were caught in the scuffle! However, this is a great chance to see just why the Magic Knight awardees deserve the recognition they got! Maybe they’ll even recognize the skills of our ‘outcasts’ too!

Charmy’s rogue mission: Okay, I was utterly surprised when Charmy suddenly came out from under the table! When she ran away after being denied by Yami, did she actually sneak away to the banquet? This girl is a bigger fool for eating than we thought! She’s definitely got her priorities straight – disobeying her captain for food, and choosing to eat again first instead of immediately rushing to the capital. Can’t say I blame her. However, why do I get the feeling that she’s not just there to be a gag relief?

Themes & Trivia

Zombie attack: I am betting most of you can’t count the number of series where zombies threaten humanity, right? There’s The Walking Dead, Left for Dead, and even some series that have a similar theme like Attack on Titan. However, there are also some cases where zombies or monsters are just made to be pawns of an even bigger baddie, like what we got now!

Call me Captain: This trope focuses on characters that insist to be called a certain way. Kind of like how Hitsugaya in Bleach always tells Hinamori to call him ‘Captain Hitsugaya’, and how Katsura in Gintama always says ‘It’s not Zura. It’s Katsura.’ We should add Charlotte, the leader, I mean, captain of the Blue Rose, to this list then.

Comments

I’m looking forward to what the next events will bring us! Just from the nobles and commoners, respected and outcast teaming up together and being able to witness their respective prowess, it’s already something to be hyped about for me! Plus, how wonderful it is that the story focuses on this, the characters, without putting the plot aside! Hitting two birds with one stone, introducing new characters by putting them in a crisis, it’s not a unique writing technique, but I always appreciate it every time!

Protect your kingdom!

Of course, Asta just had to run into the Undead Boss himself! Will he be able to defend the little girl all by himself, let alone defeat the enemy? I also can’t wait to see how the other teams are going to hold up and show off!

So as always, let’s hear all about what you thought of this episode in the comments section! And maybe even check out our other Winter 2018 reviews as well!!

NEXT TIME: Wind Magic Dance (魔法乱舞)