While most series receive some kind of acclaim for a major milestone,Black Clover’s10th anniversary hasn’t been celebrated at all.It’s a shocking and heartbreaking omission for the beloved series, and it might sadly be understandable. Even thoughBlack Cloverhas quickly become a mainstay series for many shōnen lovers, its recent serialization changes have squarely put the series on the back burner.
Black Cloverwas, at one point, sharing the cover ofShōnen Jump,the biggest manga publication in the world, alongside fellow titans of the art formBleach, One Piece,andDragon Ball.Since it has been transferred to the seasonalJump Gigamagazine, the series' popularity has plummeted. It’s disappointing to see such a great series suffer from issues entirely unrelated to the plot of the series, and with no major publication celebrating the series' 10th anniversary, it doesn’t look like it’ll get better soon.
Black Clover Is An Amazing Series
It Has Quickly Become One Of The Most Popular Shōnen Franchises Around
Before it was sent toJump Giga,Black Cloverwas a massively popular series. On MyAnimeList.com, one of the internet’s most popular anime and manga ranking sites,Black Clover’sanime sits comfortably as the57th most popular anime series of all time. 57th place might not seem impressive, but this ranking putsBlack Cloverabove the likes ofChainsaw Man, Spy x Family,and evenTengen Toppa Gurren Lagann.
Black Clover’smanga holds an even higher ranking on the same website, coming in as the 33rd most popular series on MyAnimeList.com. This ranking puts it aboveHaikyuu!!,one ofthe best sports anime of all time,Soul Eater,andBlue Lock.There are no shortage ofBlack Cloverfans, and even still, the series finds itself at an all-time low.It’s a sad change of events for what was once a hugely successful series.
Recent Serialization Changes Have Seriously Hurt The Series
One Release Every 3-4 Months Is Brutal
There have been no changes to the story ofBlack Clover.From the beginning, it was a solid and reliable shōnen series about Asta, a magic-less peasant in a world that values magic and status above all else. The story has always been straightforward, with some ofthe best fights in anime history, amazing characters who believe in each other, and a great plot that works perfectly for the characters within it.
A lot of other anime series suffer the same problems asBlack Cloverbecause of issues on-page. A character will make an unpopular decision, the series will go in a boring direction, or anything else that makes the series itself weaker.Black Cloverhas never had any of these issues, making the decline in popularity even more hurtful.
There’s one clear reason as to whyBlack Cloverisn’t nearly as celebrated as it once was: its move toJump Giga.Manga publisher Shueisha’s main publication isWeekly Shōnen Jump,the most popular manga publication in the world by some margin. At one point,Black Cloverdominated the publication. Due to personal issues, the creator ofBlack Clover,Yūki Tabata, wanted more time in between each publication.
Black Clover’s Best Fight Is So Good It Became My Favorite Moment in All of Shonen
Black Clover is filled with exciting battles, but one is not only arguably the best in the series but also became my favorite moment in modern shonen.
The series was then moved over toShōnen Jump Giga,the sister publication toWeekly Shōnen Jump.The biggest difference between the two is the publication schedule. RegularShōnenJumpseries are published on a weekly basis, butJump Gigais posted seasonally. That means thatBlack Cloverwent from around 50 publications a year to less than 5.
It’s a monumental change for the series as the franchise was looking to enter it’s final point in the story, and it looks like it all but killed the hype surroundingBlack Clover.
It Used To Share The Cover Of Shōnen Jump With One Piece, Bleach, And Dragon Ball
On February 15th, 2025,Black Clovercelebrated its 10th anniversary. The series debuted on February 15th, 2015, and was one of the most entertaining shōnen series around. Surprisingly, there was no celebration of such a grand achievement.
Black Clover And My Hero Academia Borrow From Naruto, So I Don’t Get Why One Anime Gets More Hate Than the Other
Black Clover and My Hero Academia both take a lot of inspiration from Naruto, so why doesn’t My Hero Academia get the same flak as Black Clover?
Black Cloveronce took the front cover ofShōnen Jumpalong with behemoths of shōnen likeOne Piece, Bleach,andDragon Ball.Each of those series got tons of celebration and accolades during their runtime.Black Clover’sAsta is even included in a lot ofthe bestShōnen Jumpcovers of all time,showing that while it might not be as popular as it once was, it was one of the biggest series for a long time.
It’s truly unfortunate that a series likeBlack Cloverdidn’t get any celebration for its 10th anniversary. Shueisha didn’t issue a statement, Tabata didn’t create a special cover, and nobody else really even acknowledged such a huge milestone for any series.
When a series likeOne Piecehits a milestone, everyone celebrates it. Mangaka Eiichiro Oda even created an entire movie to celebrateOne Piece’s1,000th episode. While 1,000 episodes might be the greatest milestone in anime history, 10 years of publication for a series likeBlack Cloverdeserves a little attention too.
The Future Of Black Clover Is Looking Bleak
Mangaka Yūki Tabata’s Personal Issues Changed The Series' Fate
There’s not much to do about the future ofBlack Clover.Creator Yūki Tabata made the decision to move his masterful series to the seasonalJump Gigain order to give himself the time he needed to come up with a proper ending for his series. While nobody knows exactly why he made the decision, many cite his personal issues as the leading factor.
Boruto and Black Clover’s Comebacks Get a Disappointing Update
The return of Boruto and Black Clover’s anime has finally gotten an update in a long time, but there is a major caveat.
A lot of mangakas suffer from physical or mental health issues when working so tirelessly on their series.Hunter x Hunterhas been on dozens of hiatuses because creator Yoshihiro Togashi suffered from chronic back pain while working on the amazing series. When he was working onYu Yu Hakusho,Togashi said that he suffered from tons of sleepless nights and chronic chest pain as well, showing just how stressful it can be to create top-tier manga on such a tight schedule.
Yūki Tabata’s wife has also suffered from some health issues. Chapter 364 ofBlack Cloverwas delayed because she was released from the hospital and Tabata wanted to spend some time with her and take care of her. There’s nothing wrong with putting health issues above the publication of a manga, and it makes Tabata’s decision even more heartbreaking, as with his health and his wife’s on the line,he didn’t have much of a choice in the first place.
10 Funniest Black Clover Moments
With many amusing and quirky characters, Black Clover is one of the most entertainingly funny shonen, and these are its most hilarious moments so far.
With the omission of a celebration for one ofBlack Clover’sbiggest milestones, and no real change looking to come, the future ofBlack Cloverlooks bleak. The series' popularity plummeted, and even though its closing in on its final arc, the end doesn’t look like it’ll come any time soon.
