Black Clover Episode 6 Review: The Black Bulls

Meeting new people is always exciting, but also scary! Even more so, if the people you’ll meet have unpleasant rumors surrounding them! So in this week’s Black Clover, we find out just what kind of squadmates Asta will have to get along with from now on! After all, the citizens of Clover Kingdom have a nasty tendency to judge others!

Japanese Original Episode Title: 黒の暴牛

Plot

Now we know that one of the great ways to be hospitable to a new member is to literally make them feel warm, like sending a fireball down their way! Good thing Asta’s sturdy, or he would’ve died even before he officially became a member of the Black Bulls! However, though he survived that, now he needs to convince them all that he’s worthy to be a part of the team!

Episode Highlights

Welcome: Looks like Yuno and Asta both got some…amazing welcomes, huh? The former, as expected, already got dissed for his status as soon as he got there. Makes me want to see him one up them all, just like the other guys who looked down on him! Meanwhile, the latter got a literal explosive welcome! It wasn’t aimed at him, though, which is good because at least they weren’t actually trying to kill him. Then again, the other members were too busy with their own business that it’s like he didn’t exist anyway! So, the greatest squad, the Golden Dawn, are probably snooty elitists (I know we’ve only seen that one person aside from the captain, but if all of them in the squad are nobles like him, just imagine the others, right?), and then the Black Bulls are crazy weirdoes. Quite interesting to see what adjectives can be used to describe the other squads, right?

The Black Bulls: Did anyone else realize that every single member of the Black Bulls fits into an anime trope? We got the genki protagonist, the delinquent, the bloodthirsty cutie, the alcoholic onee-san, the gluttonous girl, the flirt, the sis-con, two quiet ones, and the badass boss. If you add in the other newbie, she can be the mysterious girl! They can have their own chaotic show at this rate! No wonder they’re infamous, especially regarding the amount of destruction they cause on missions! But then again, I feel like what Finral said is true: they’re all good guys despite their…quirks. They even looked adorable when they finally noticed Yami and all went to greet him! Could it be because they’re indebted to him? Or is he just a really amazing leader who gets along with them well?

Initiation: Ah, I somehow expected that they would be testing Asta before he could ‘officially’ join their ranks, but I think it was more to see what he can do. It all seemed like they were just playing: making him do exercises and then a baseball game! At least, by the time he summoned his huge weapon, everyone’s attention turned to him and it just made me so happy! Even the most distracted of the bunch stopped to watch what would happen! And he surprised everyone, even himself, by deflecting Magna‘s attack back at him, which was no easy feat! Whether or not that was only a lucky shot, you really can’t help but be proud of Asta, more so now that he’s warmly welcomed in his new squad despite what everyone thought! Now, I wonder how Yuno’s initiation went…

The other newbie: Aside from the Black Bull’s kooky personalities, the other thing that surprised me was the girl we saw in episode 4! I know the opening already showed that she’s Asta’s fellow squad member, but I still thought that as a royal, she was already set to be in the Silver Eagles or the Golden Dawn like the other nobles, that’s why her brother said she didn’t need to take the exam! But was this rowdy squad actually where he decided to put her in? Or maybe there’s more to the story that we haven’t seen yet? I also thought she’d give off a more pleasant vibe because of how she acted in her first appearance, but is it me or did she seem…snobby?

Themes & Trivia

Ragtag bunch of misfits: The show said so itself that there’s not a single decent member in the Black Bulls, so this trope definitely fits them to a tee. That’s why it’s not surprising that our underdog protagonist would belong in this kind of group. There are other shows that focus on the group of outcasts, like Class 3-E in Assassination Classroom, Sanzo’s group in Saiyuki, and the Armed Detective Agency in Bungo Stray Dogs, to name a few.

Initiation Test: There are many organizations that make you take a test or a challenge before letting you join them. Some are like entrance exams or ability tests like in the novel Divergent! This is expected, especially if the group has only the best of the best. However, there are some initiations that have nothing to do with that, like hazing in fraternities or rituals. If you want to know the some of the weirdest welcoming ceremonies, here’s a list!

Comments

Despite being a really crazy episode, it was also refreshing! It was nice to see new faces, and exciting to discover what else there is to them! I was also thrilled when they accepted Asta at the end, even though he didn’t really have any magic powers, but only his sword and his physical abilities to show off. His horizons are expanding, and I can’t wait to find out how they will help him grow. Hopefully, Yami constantly scolding him to shut up will also control his shouting, but that’s a long shot since it’s part of his personality. Oh well!

A new family?

Looks like the next episode will be about the mysterious girl, and I’m eager to know what’s her deal! Will she get along well with Asta and the other members? It also seems that the orphanage folks will hear about Asta and Yuno’s fates! How will they react once they find out Asta beat their expectations?

Until we find the answers to all those questions next week, let me know what you thought of this episode first! Do check out our other Fall 2017 anime reviews afterwards as well!

NEXT TIME: The Other New Recruit (もう一人の新人団員)