Black Clover: How Asta defies the chosen one trope, explained

A popular theme in many shonen anime and manga, which author and illustrator Yuki Tabata’s Black Clover goes against, is not having a protagonist who is a “chosen one.” The label of a chosen one typically refers to there being something special about a character, usually having an inevitable destiny or purpose, or simply by having special circumstances surrounding their existence.

While Black Clover does have someone who can fit into this role in the form of Yuno Grinberryall, he isn’t the series’ protagonist. That role goes to Asta, who certainly does not fit into the chosen one theme seen in many other series. As was once said to him, there’s nothing special about Asta, and that’s exactly what makes him special.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers from the Black Clover manga.

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Asta’s serendipitous luck not indicative of him being a chosen one in Black Clover

How Asta defies the trope

When fans were first introduced to Asta at the onset of Black Clover, his main differentiation from other characters was that he was unable to use magic or mana in any capacity. This was due to his mother, Licita, having an ability which passively absorbed the magic power and lifeforce of people and creatures around her.

Thus, while Asta was in her womb, his magic powers were absorbed by Licita’s body as a result of this unnamed magic ability of hers. In other words, there were no extraordinary circumstances around his birth which removed his magical power. Instead, he not having it is merely a condition for his existence in the world.

Some Black Clover fans may argue that finding Licht’s Grimoire can be viewed as Asta being a chosen one. However, this is an incorrect assessment, as it is a mere coincidence that Asta found the Grimoire in the first place. Even more coincidental is that the Devil Liebe inhabited the Grimoire at all, and even more so is that Liebe happened to be an Anti-Magic devil.

This sentiment is even echoed by other characters in the series, such as the Witch Queen. She literally tells Asta, as if Tabata is speaking to the readers themselves, that there’s nothing about him that makes him special. However, because there’s nothing special about him, he can become special as the only one who can wield the power he does.

Yet this isn’t enough to fit Asta into the chosen one trope, as some Black Clover fans would argue. To be a chosen one, there has to be something inherently special, unique, or irreplaceable about one’s existence. With it being established that this isn’t the case for Asta, he is incapable of becoming a truly chosen one in terms of the traditional interpretation of the trope.

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In summation

Thus, Asta defies or arguably even transcends the trope by being special because he isn’t special. He’s not quite a chosen one, but he’s not exactly interchangeable with any other character in the series that fans know of so far. Such an assessment has even recently been addressed in the series, with Mushogatake Yosuga emphasizing that Asta is the only one who can wield his Anti-Magic Zetten.

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