Name: Black Clover: Sword of the Wizard King
Director: Ayataka Tanemura
Released: 2023-06-16T12:30:00

Black Clover: Sword of the Wizard King continues the story of Asta when a former Wizard King with a plan to destroy the kingdom returns to enact his dream. The film is streaming on Netflix.

Story

10 years after he was sealed away, Conrad Leto returns with the Imperial Sword to destroy the world and create a new one in his image that will be inhabited by only those that he considers worthy.

To help him, he brings back three former Wizard Kings, Edward Avalaché, Princia Funnybunny, and Jester Garandaros. They attack the Clover Kingdom and effortlessly subdue Julius and some of the captains.

Asta, Yuno, and many of the survivors band together to fight back and with help from all of his friends, Asta vanquished Conrad and the other kings to bring peace to the kingdom.

Positives

The animation is crisp and brilliant, as is expected from an established anime such as Black Clover. The way each spell is rendered is very impressive and enchanting.

The music is similarly high tempo and complimentary to the visuals. Animes rarely get their score wrong and this is yet another example of a fantastic blend between sound and sight.

Negatives

There is just too much exposition. The major battles are filled with either character going into a tirade about their motivations and it’s just too much to keep up with.

The story isn’t all that unique either, with “villain destroying the world to create something better” an idea that has certainly been done before. Add to the fact the film spends so much time providing context or depicting a character giving a rousing speech and it feels like a slog.

Verdict

Black Clover: Sword of the Wizard King is a follow-up film to the Black Clover series but as a stand-alone film, it isn’t the strongest offering. There are some great action sequences but beyond that, it doesn’t really impress with its dialogue-heavy narrative. Fans of the show might enjoy the series due to bias but that is not what the film should be aiming for.