One Piece and Black Clover fandoms clash to determine who has the better protagonist

One would not expect Black Clover and One Piece's fandoms to begin a fight between each other, yet this is precisely what is happening right now on social media. This began with a simple Tweet that compared Luffy and Asta's achievements, calling them the best current Shonen Jump protagonists.

Luffy's fans were unhappy with this comparison, believing Asta is not as iconic and beloved as One Piece's cover boy. Asta's fans became enraged by the disrespect shown to their protagonist, which ended in a heated debate on Twitter. Continue reading to learn more about the argument between these two fandoms on Twitter.

Disclaimer: This article reflects the author's opinion.

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One Piece fans became enraged after Black Clover was compared to their series on Twitter

How did the controversy start?

Yesterday, Twitter user BEE_LEE15 tweeted an image of Luffy next to one of Asta, claiming these two protagonists were helping the Shonen Jump magazine stay popular. Immediately, One Piece fans started replying to this tweet, saying Black Clover is far from being as iconic as One Piece.

For many months, One Piece fans have criticized Black Clover for the lack of deaths the manga had in its last arc. The criticisms reappeared yesterday, as most called Asta a protagonist for little kids, as his series does not have any high stakes.

Others criticized the author of the original tweet for their lack of research. The user claimed that Black Clover and One Piece were Shonen Jump's best sellers. While this is true for One Piece, which sits at the top of Shonen Jump's best-sold mangas, Black Clover sadly did not make the cut and did not even appear in the top 20.

The Black Clover fandom did not sit around while their series was being disrespected, taking to social media to defend their favorite anime. Asta fans affirmed that Oda is just as kind to its heroes as Yuki Tabata, giving the example of the scarce deaths that occurred in the Wano arc that ended a few weeks ago.

While these two factions argued, several fans of both series denounced the debate. These fans wanted both sides to stop disrespecting each other, affirming that both series were iconic. According to them, both mangas deserve their spot as Shonen Jump's iconic protagonists.

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Are the criticism against Asta valid?

An example of how the One Piece community reacted (Image via Twitter/ @ClearlyNotPC, @Geo_AW, and @itsluxsky)

Since its release, Black Clover has quickly become one of the most beloved Shonen mangas of the last decade. At first, many fans were discouraged by the personality of its protagonist Asta, who often tends to be overtly excited and aggressive. Nonetheless, as the years have gone by, Asta has slowly become one of the most iconic protagonists in Shonen Jump's magazine.

Sadly, he is still years from being compared to a decades-old icon like Luffy. Oda's story has been a part of billions of lives throughout the twenty-five years it has been in circulation. Asta is not a flawed protagonist, he is just too recent to be compared to one of the former Big Three.

Asta still has a long way to go (Image via Studio DLE)

In terms of sales, there is no denying that Black Clover is struggling to achieve the numbers its author expected. The manga has not been selling well these last couple of months, which is a shame since fans are praising the latest arc.

On the other hand, One Piece is selling better than ever, going as far as breaking its own sales record. The twenty-fifth anniversary of the series, its newest movie, and the news of this saga being the last one have exponentially increased the hype amongst fans of the series.

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Final thoughts

Luffy believes in Asta (Image via Toei Animation)

With the evidence we have at the moment, comparing Black Clover's success with One Piece's does not seem adequate. The manga is far too recent to have the same appeal as Luffy's series. Still, this does not mean Asta's journey deserves less respect, as both franchises have enjoyable plots and unique characters.

The One Piece fandom should have never started attacking Black Clover fans because of an innocent tweet. Both series have their strengths and weaknesses, and millions of fans want to have a good time through their favorite manga.