'Black Clover: Sword of the Wizard King' Review: The battle of wits and grits between Asta and the 'four' Wizard Kings
SPOILERS AHEAD
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: The much-awaited Netflix film 'Black Clover: Sword of the Wizard King' was finally released after delay and it delivered everything it promised in its trailer. There are a lot of things to unpack from this movie and a lot of things to look forward to as well. While it promised an action-packed battle between Asta and the Wizard Kings, it also delivered camaraderie, which traces back to its original source material.
While the movie is not without its flaws, it is a commendable part of Netflix to take the risk of straying from the manga and the anime to create a compelling original story. While the presence of Conrad Leto was itself a magnanimous range of threats for Asta and the entirety of Clover Kingdom, it was the resurrected Wizard kings that intensified the battlefield.
A new world order
The story of the movie did not offer something that was not already known. The actual purpose was to deliver action sequences, good animation, and the usual traits of Asta screaming and hollering at his enemies, and it was rightfully done. The movie begins by showing a fight between Julius (present Wizard King) and Conrad who was his predecessor, that took place a decade ago. It showed how Conrad was passionate about creating a new world order and aspired to do so by taking the help of his associates but there is a catch. The beginning of a new world order for him stems from causing mass destruction of life and property. His intention was to destroy the Clover Kingdom which was unjust to many and create a new world where there was no prejudice and discrimination, but he wants to lay the foundation of it over bones and ashes. This causes Julius to use his 'time magic' and conceal Conrad in an attempt to prevent him from causing death and destruction. However, on the way he loses the 'Imperial Sword' to Conrad while trying to conceal him.
Even though ten years have passed but the ambition of Conrad did not change and he surprises everyone in the whole kingdom with the company of Edward Avalaché, Princia Funnybunny, and Jester Garandaros who were three of the most feared Wizard kings of Clover Kingdom. The three kings along with Conrad share the same ambition and that is to create a 'new world order', devoid of oppression and injustice. Conrad simply wants a world where everyone respects one another and starts so by capturing the captains of 'Magic Knight squad' and Julius from the tournament of duels.
The battle of wits and grits
'The battle of wits and grits' summarises the two-hour long spell-binding, action-oriented intense fights that took place between different magic knight squads, Asta and the 'four' Wizard kings. While it was initially assumed that the fight would be mainly between three Wizard kings and Asta, there are actually four of the most powerful kings of Clover Kingdom that were battling Asta and his companions. The spirit of the series and the manga remains in the form of Asta and Yuno always standing by each other and not giving up.
While the story of Asta, Yuno, Noelle, and even his squads was delivered by the manga and the anime series as well but the movie had the potential to deliver a good background story of all four Wizard kings. It would have made it easier for the viewers to understand and acknowledge the factors that may have contributed to their thought process and decisions towards wreaking havoc in the country. While the movie delivers on the action scale and the power of the antagonists, it does end up undermining their struggles and situations that caused the reasoning to change. At the same time, the movie also showcases random comic reliefs to destress the intensity of the battlefield in the form of Charmy and Henry. The ironical perspective presented in the end was that the four Wizard kings who were once considered rebels and shunned from their kingdoms were fighting the new age rebels themselves till their last breath.
Asta could not have won the battle if it was him against the four wizard kings but he was able to do so because of his comrades distracting the three wizard kings in a fight that transcended the use of spells, physical power, and teamwork. It was eventually the collective unity where the wizard kings showed their experience and wits, while the new age knights showed their grits and courage to win back peace for their kingdom. 'Black Clover: Sword of the Wizard King' is available on Netflix from June 16, 2023.