Black Clover: Season 2 / Episode 4 Screencap Credits - @PasTPourChien SB - Ayataka Tanemura & Tessai Izumi ED - Ji-Eun Park & Toshihiro Maeya This is the review that’s going to disappoint a lot of BC fans and THOSE PEOPLE, but I’m saying this from the heart, and I’m being completely serious. I genuinely had to think this one over, because my rating is so low that people might actually think I’m joking. Tanemura and Tessai are handling the SB work, while Park and Maeya are taking care of the ED side. On paper, it sounded like Tanemura’s work would be the highlight of the episode, and to be fair, it absolutely shows in the first half. Unfortunately, things begin to fall apart when you consider the compositing choices and how poorly they clash with the vision the episode directors were trying to establish. The decision to turn the Nacht fight into a monochromatic colour palette is an absolute shame. You can barely appreciate the incredible storyboards and animation because the compositing actively works against them, undermining so much of the effort put into these sequences. It’s genuinely frustrating to see such strong animation work lose its impact because of the way it’s presented. That said, the episode isn’t entirely devoid of quality. There are some genuinely great sequences, with flashes of impressive direction and action storyboarding, even if these moments are few and far between. However, the episode also highlights the problems that arise when too many inexperienced animators are involved in a production. The sheer number of animation directors speaks volumes about the difficulties behind the episode, and while I understand that the production schedule certainly didn’t help, having experienced animators in key positions is crucial to achieving a more cohesive result. The biggest downgrade, by far, comes from the compositing and DOP choices. Honestly, I can barely put into words just how questionable some of these decisions are. The second half, particularly Izumi’s section, was the most underwhelming part of the episode in terms of storyboarding. The direction felt considerably less engaging, and the compositing did absolutely nothing to elevate the material or bring out its full potential. I also think the episode directors failed to bring everything together into the kind of cohesive vision this episode desperately needed. There was clearly a lot of ambition behind the production, and the underlying animation talent was there to support it. Yet the final product falls painfully short when it comes to execution and polish, particularly on the DOP side. The drawings from Takeda and Zhang remain incredibly strong, which makes it all the more disappointing that the colour choices and overall art direction end up being the episode’s biggest downfall. Overall, this is easily my least favourite Black Clover episode so far. I genuinely struggle to comprehend how something with this much animation talent behind it could turn out so disappointing. The episode has its moments, and I’m not going to pretend that everything about it is bad. However, the inconsistency in the animation, the lack of cohesion between the direction and compositing, and the questionable visual choices ultimately prevent it from coming together as a complete episode. There’s a clear distinction between having great animation and successfully putting together a great episode. Unfortunately, this one is a perfect example of that difference. The raw talent and ambition are evident, but the compositing choices are frankly abysmal in their execution, and the overall presentation fails to do justice to the work underneath. OH also the cinemascope and OP choices is genuinely stupid. I do not know why they keep doing this but it goes against it because narratively it doesn't even make any sense for them to add this. I really hope they stop doing this because if this becomes a reoccurring theme. It will be very obnoxious. A huge amount of potential, flashes of brilliance, but an ultimately disappointing execution. RATING: 5.5/10 #BlackClover #ブラクロ

If these are his corrections im already disappointed lmao. I have my doubts but lets see