Black Clover Reminds Shonen Jump Why Action Manga Still Need Romance

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Warning! Spoilers ahead for Black Clover 332!

The highly anticipated return of Black Clover to Shonen Jump features quite a few major gems that many readers have been waiting a long time for. So, it's definitely saying something that the best moments are fueled by romance, proving just how much Shonen Jump's other action manga would benefit from incorporating these romantic elements.

Romance eludes most Shonen Jump titles, and many of these stories that have gone on hiatus would never waste precious space on the subject in their comeback chapter. After a one-month break, the majority of One Piece 1054 introduced a whole new enemy who immediately starts attacking the poor inhabitants of Wano after having just gotten rid of Kaido. Even Blue Exorcist's return didn't include any romance after nearly one year of no new chapters, though that was because Rin and Shiemi are in completely different places.

Related: Black Clover Could Be Setting the Stage for a Sequel Series

But in Black Clover 332 by mangaka Yūki Tabata, three major moments are all driven by romantic elements. Mimosa and Noelle separately fret over their feelings for Asta but are drawn together to watch as Asta proposes one last time to Sister Lily and gets rejected. Meanwhile, Yami finally learns that Charlotte likes him romantically and begins to rationalize why Charlotte has been acting the way that she has for years.

These moments beat some of the other bombshells of the chapter including when Asta is recognized in an important ceremony, the confusing opening scene that creates the impression that there are somehow two Luciferos, and the cliffhanger where the next big bad just walks up behind Asta. The scenes with Mimosa and Noelle, while adorable, continue