This was Asta’s first real fight working together with fellow members of the Black Bulls, where we get to see his mentor Magna Swing in action and where Noelle begins to exhibit control over her magic. It is also the first fight where we see Asta needing to work with others to win, rather than just blundering on alone. Heath is the first member of the Eye of the Midnight Sun that the Magic Knights encounter. The fight overall is not too impressive, but being as this is one of the first moments of true teamwork among Asta and the Black Bulls, this fight deserves some thought. This fight is a truly inspiring beginning to both Asta and Noelle’s stories of growth!

Right after the Magic Knights are victorious over the undead monsters of Rades’ making, they are suddenly swept away by spatial magic, leaving behind a handful of Magic Knights – including Yuno. Catherine appears to suck up the remaining mana in the villagers left behind, and Yuno steps in to fight her off. Yuno is frustrated by the fight, as Catherine begins to overwhelm him, eventually shutting off all his senses entirely. Though Yuno doesn’t often get to showcase his prowess in magic, this moment is the first that we see the beginnings of his true strength as he calls upon Sylph to help him. This fight is relatively short, but Yuno is able to show off his skill in a one-on-one scenario, with the help of his new spirit friend.

When Rades unleashes his unstoppable undead on the Royal Capital, the Magic Knights that have been gathered for a ranking ceremony step in to protect the citizens. It’s always fun to see other magical abilities in action, and the members of this group include a few of the captains, such as Fuegoleon Vermillion and Noelle’s older brother Nozel Silva. And of course, we get to see plenty of Asta facing the fiercest enemies and meeting new friends/rivals. Even though many of the characters get very little screen time in this fight, it is a refreshing introduction of new magical abilities and another stepping stone to set up the world. With a wide variety of interesting characters to watch, this fight is more like a full-on war!

When the Black Bulls head down to retrieve a magic stone from the Seabed Temple, they knew that the Eye of the Midnight Sun was also looking for the stone. Yet few could have predicted they might face off against one of the members of the dangerous Third Eye, Vetto! Vetto interrupts a good-natured battle royale between the members of the Black Bulls and the guardians of the Seabed Temple, leading the two groups to join together against their vicious enemy. Here, again, we see a number of characters getting their chance to shine, from Magna and Luck Voltia to brother/sister duo Kiato and Kahono, with Yami again stepping in to destroy his opponent in the end. Truly the best end to a season!

Arguably the best fight in the entire first season, Yami’s face-off against the leader of the Eye of the Midnight Sun is enthralling! Up until this point, the members of this mysterious group have seemed ultra powerful, and their leader is certainly intimidating. He rambles on about how the Eye of the Midnight Sun wants to destroy the Clover kingdom and then Yami shows up to set him back a bit. Yami effortlessly blocks attacks by reading his opponent’s ki, and even manages to deal quite a bit of damage back. Yami easily showcases how powerful he is, and says a number of off-putting things during the fight to make you laugh out loud! The animation during this sequence is some of the best, fluid and beautiful, contrasting between the light and dark magic users well.