Anime: Kuroshitsuji

I’m a big fan of the Victorian age of England. This is not so much because of steampunk (which I am not a fan of for the record) but rather the reality. The clothing, the architecture, the history. It’s a fun era to look into and many people obviously feel the same way. Black Butler takes place in the Victorian era and is a pretty awesome representation of the beauty of this age. From character designs to settings, Black Butler is one of the better looking series I’ve watched. But there are a lot of issues that plague what could have been an otherwise amazing anime. These mostly stem from lackluster characters, as well as a general sense of dullness through the first two-thirds of the series.

Ciel Phantomhive is the heir to a toy making throne. His parents wind up dying in a fire and he sells his soul to a demon to get back at those who have wronged him. This demon, Sebastian, brings together a motley crew of strange folk to work at Ciel’s mansion. As his butler, Sebastian is forced to do everything to make Ciel comfortable, but he also helps Ciel in times of dire need. Ciel works for the queen (he is called the queen’s dog) and tends to get into trouble with the London underworld. Thus begins the menial and semi-entertaining adventures of Ciel and Sebastian.

So, as you can probably tell, I wasn’t impressed with the story at the beginning. There are many story arcs, and none of them are particularly savory. All up to a certain point are flat and uninteresting. The Jack the Ripper thread was okay, the Hound of the Baskervilles-esque adventure was meh, and don’t get me started on the idiotic curry story arc. The first eighteen-ish episodes are very low quality as far as story is concerned.

But there is a certain amount of fun in them. This fun mostly stems from a drinking game I created in the process of watching this called “Drink Every Time There is a Gay Overtone”. Needless to say, you can die of alcohol poisoning playing this game. From the start you can see why there is such a huge female fan base. Sure the male characters are handsome fellas, but the closeness of Sebastian and Ciel, the fact that they all wind up in dresses at some point, it’s all very provocative in a way. And while these moments don’t take away from the anime (this is Clamp we’re speaking of, it is supposed to appeal to a female audience), they definitely will have me shying away from typing in Black Butler on DeviantArt.

But I’ll be the first to admit that Ciel looks good in a dress.

The characters aren’t as exciting as I had hoped a demon and a conceited/rather brutal young boy would be. Ciel is a decent character, but he never really grew on me. Sebastian was also decent, he was a badass, but he was stoic and uninteresting half the time. And his catchphrase (“I’m one hell of a butler”) is just dumb. And the bad guys and good guys that are met along the way in the first two thirds of the series are just the same, uninteresting, borderline boring.

And I haven’t even gotten deep into the curry arc. This arc was FUCKING STUPID! Horrendous! The prince was a pansy. The bodyguard guy was lame. The Iron Chef reference was stupid! It didn’t fit in! It was just plain dumb! The only good part of this arc was seeing the Crystal Palace. That was awesome. Otherwise, this arc is pointless!

After that, the series gets good! Starting with the infiltration of the religious cult, the series went from being merely average to pretty damn good. The angel was cool, the fights were interesting, the plot started to get really intense and fun to watch develop. The plot becomes this kind of conspiracy with Queen Victoria trying to bring Britain and France to war so that England can take over Europe. It’s a cool idea that is played out real well. The angel’s inclusion is a good touch.

But the last episode is a total let down. When you set up an epic battle between a fallen angel and a demon, you expect great things. Instead, we are forced to basically watch ten seconds of Sebastian tearing the angel to pieces. And that’s that. Black Butler has some good action scenes, look at episode two and the fight against the Italian mob. But this was a total letdown. And I couldn’t help but think of the new Sherlock Holmes film when watching the fight. I wouldn’t be surprised if the writer of that film got some inspiration for the movie from Black Butler’s ending.

The end third is where some cool characters show up. As I said, the angel was kind of cool. But I liked seeing who the Phantomhive household workers really were. Meirin was a total dweeb, I thought she was cute and clumsy through the first two thirds, but the last third made me think of her more so as a total hardass. It was the same with many characters. Except Sebastian. When I saw him in heels, I was scared.

Despite all complaints, I enjoyed Black Butler overall. It had a lot of good ideas but didn’t execute them as well as it could have. It’s the perfect example of a merely “good” anime. And it is also a perfect example of a comeback anime. Starts okay, but does become pretty cool toward the end.

Overall, if you like Victorian England, you will surely like this anime. Its attention to detail is immaculate and the world displayed is beautiful. But with a lot of rockiness concerning plot and characters, it is not the amazing anime I was hoping for.

Critic's Log - Earthdate: April 5, 2013. Review #44: Black Butler (Kuroshitsuji)

Greetings Ladies and Gentlemen, I would like to properly introduce myself. My name is Giovanni and I will honor whatever requests you give me regarding what animes to see. I will also review what is requested because I want to honor your requests and be of valuable service to you while I review the specific anime you requested. I will try to be perfectly honest in what I think of the anime I'm reviewing and I will analyze it to the best of my knowledge. A while back, my fair master has requested that I review an anime called "Kuroshitsu., uh... Kurohitsu...No... Kurotsuji...*Ahem* Pardon me, I cannot pronounce it, why don't I just call it "Black Butler" Ah yes, now that was simpler for me to say. I shall honor my master's request because you see, I am simply one hell of a critic. , Would you care for a cup of tea while I review Black Butler?

One of the noble families of England known as Phantomhive has one hell of a butler named Sebastian Michaelis. He has unquestionably perfect knowledge, he is well mannered, and he is talented with materials, martial arts and much more. But for some reason, he serves a 12-year-old noble boy named Ciel Phantomhive.

To be technical, this is a A-1 Pictures production and the animation is damn gorgeous in this show and it doesn't disappoint. There are a couple bumps in the road in the progression of Black Butler but it does merit the acknowledgement of having good animation. They would later be responsible for the animation of popular titles such as Fairy Tail and a hugely popular recent anime called Sword Art Online. I'll get to those animes eventually. The animation is Black Butler's strong suit. What does impress me about the animation in the show is how well detailed this show looks. The backgrounds, the sceneries, and even some effects are animated and detailed gorgeously. So Black Butler is good for this.



The music for Black Butler is done by Taku Iwasaki. I know I might be stretching this a little for saying this, but... I find Iwasaki-san to be the male equivalent to Yoko Kanno. I actually find him to be extremely talented in the music department when it comes to Anime. Look up his career and I'll bet you'll be surprised on what he has worked before and since Black Butler. I know Yoko Kanno is extremely popular in the community of anime fans, but I do think some of her stuff may have sound too similar to certain musical compositions or songs while Iwasaki-san sounds mostly original. But I'll just say that whatever Yoko Kanno produces sometimes may just be homages to something she's heard. A bonus for me is that he shares the same birthday as I do. I am getting off subject, am I? Anyway, Iwasaki-san's score really fits the show because the music sounds like it is used in the right era that the music is supposed to be based on. I like the Orchestral sounds that Taku Iwasaki inserted into the show, and Orchestral tends to be epic music even though Black Butler isn't necessarily epic, but it does give a nice touch for Black Butler. It makes the show more elegant and I think that's what the intent of the show was aiming for and it sure hit the chords well. The score isn't perfect though but it's still worth listening to. I will say that the opening is catchy and both closing themes are great too.

When it comes to voice acting, let me make this clear... This show is extremely fitting and superb in the English dub because of the fact it is set in England. But to the credit of the original Japanese cast, they must be mentioned too because the original Japanese case is superb as well. Daisuke Ono was terrific as Sebastian and he plays the role elegantly. Also, another seiyu worth mentioning is the voice of Ciel Phantomhive which is played so damn well by Maaya Sakamoto. Out of all the roles Sakamoto-san has played, Ciel Phantomhive is probably a character she was picked to voice beyond her call of duty. I have never heard her play a male role, especially a 12 year old and make it sound nothing like her (for the most part). What I can say is...is that her performance as Ciel Phantomhive is terrific and definitely worth noting about. Jun Fukuyama is also in this show and he plays the lovely Grell Sutcliff. Other worthy seiyus would include Junichi Suwabe as the Undertaker, and Romi Park as Madam Red. On the side of the English Dub, J. Michael Tatum proves that he is one hell of a voice actor in his role as Sebastian (Can I stop using the "One hell of a..." phrase?) He really nails Sebastian in the dub. Brina Palencia is also pretty good as Ciel Phantomhive. Daniel Frederick is terrific as Grell Sutcliff and I hope to hear more of his stuff. He's very underappreciated. The other Voice Actors and Voice Actresses that are worth mentioning would have to be Chuck Huber as Ashe, Colleen Clickenbeard as Angela, Ian Sinclair as Baldroy, Jerry Jewell as Lau, and Lydia Mackay as Madam Red. The only characters I had a bit of a problem was John Swasey as The Undertaker, it didn't really have the same charm that his Seiyu counterpart had. Also, there's Monica Rial's slightly ear-grating voice as Mey-Rin, although to Monica Rial's credit, she wasn't terrible in this show and she's not a bad voice actress. They could've done something a little different for Mey-Rin's voice for the dub. The Japanese cast is superb and so is the Dub. This is really a show that can be seen in both versions. Colleen Clickenbeard did pretty good as ADR director from the first episode to the seventh, that is until Ian Sinclair took her place for the remainder of the show for reasons I don't know why but I can tell you this is that their ADR directing led to Black Butler having... you guessed it! One hell of a dub.

If there are any problems with the show, First off are the characters. Most of them seem a little underdeveloped and some minor characters are a bit interesting too. That's pretty much that. Sebastian is pretty cool but he isn't developed well as I hoped he would. He does get interesting near the end of the first season of Black Butler. Ciel on the other hand is actually interesting and developed pretty well for the most part. All the other butlers such as Mey-Rin, Baldroy, Tanaka are also fun to watch but not developed fully. But to Black Butler's credit, the characters were never boring and they were in fact fun to watch, it's just Black Butler suffers with some poor character development. The Villians are okay and somewhat interesting too but they have the same issues has some of the other characters that I also mentioned. It's a take it or leave it thing regarding characters for this show. Also, there's Grell Sutcliff. He surprisingly develops pretty well for the most part and let's face it... Without him, this show would have been somewhat boring. He really brings fun on the silver platter. Grell really puts the Ho...um...uh... Let me try to re-phrase this, uh... ah yes, he puts the Homicidal maniac character type to good use, even if he isn't evil. I almost slipped out a gay slur that could offend someone in the LGBT community and I decided not to say it. Please know that I've seen plenty of pictures where people have said that Grell puts the "Homo" in homicidal maniac, it was just an example. Ah screw it, please forgive me for saying all of this. One minor nitpick is that Black Butler has a slightly similar premise to Hellsing. Except Sebastian is nowhere as delightfully fun to watch as Alucard. I don't think Black Butler heavily ripped off Hellsing but I do see just one shard of similarity between the two. I take that back, they are both set in England as well.

Another big issue I have with the show is the story. Albeit of the fact that there is a mystery that does get brought up often. Ciel's character arc is pretty good, but there is a part of the show where they somehow reveal the Queen of England's dark shadow which I thought was a little interesting even though it was a bit farfetched. The show does get a bit interesting from time to time but you have to be really patient until the story does pick up. The thing that strikes me about Black Butler is that it does seem to be a decent anime but I have a hard time admitting this. Toshiya Shinohara may not be a big name anime director but This is actually a somewhat above average series. Sure, Black Butler has some underdeveloped characters and an average story but what really shines is the animation and the music. Half the show is elegantly handled. So I guess it is sort of cheating that the show is good for having a fitting soundtrack and great animation while the problems are the story and characters which are essential to a fictional work. I may like this show but I don't like it the same way as some people do. Believe it or not, you really have to see this show. If you just want good animation, you've come to the right place, if you are looking for a great story with great characters, you might have to look somewhere else, but regardless... you have to at least check this out to see whether you're invested in the show or not. I am looking forward to the second season of Black Butler, but until then. I bid you adieu...

Black Butler is available from Funimation, The manga by Yana Toboso is available by Yen Press.

With all that said, Black Butler may not meet up to your expectations but it does have great animation and a soundtrack that is mostly pleasant. It may not have a fully intriguing story and it may not have fully developed characters on this silver platter for your exquisite tastes but I can promise you that if you are looking for an anime to pass the time, you really should take a taste-test for this elegant treat.

I give Black Butler a 7.7 out of 10, it is GOOD!

Feel free to comment below, now if you'll excuse me.., I must report to my master that my task is finished. Farewell for now.

This fujoshibait anime was super popular when it first aired, by ticking all the right notes. Cute boy, sexy butler, dark atmosphere, and some mystery in the background. I will admit that Sebastian is the coolest anime butler of all times. I mean, what other candidates were there? That irritating indecisive harem shit archetype one from Hayate no Gotoku, or maybe those trash from Ladies versus Butlers? No sir, the competition was low to begin with and dear Sebastian wins while still making breakfast for his master. As a character, I found him to be the tuxedo wearing offspring of Alucard from Hellsing and Enma Ai from Jigoku Shoujo. Battle frenzied and imba in battle like the former, and sends people to hell by making contracts with them like the latter. Plus, he is made of the stuff that makes fujoshis scream like they are being teased in their privates by all the members of a k-pop band. And then there is Ciel, the frail and cute shota with an attitude, who gets to be carried around by Sebastian in his lap like a good doggy every five minutes. Yeah, great service there, people. Along with them, every important character in this series is like a model agency graduate with debatable sex and sexual preferences. All part of looking gaunt enough to keep watching even if you don’t like the plot one bit. And why would you? There is hardly any.

I give full marks to character figures and backgrounds, meaning the overall artwork. Victorian England looks very interesting and besides some minor anachronisms, it is very realistic in how society was running back then. High amount of detail and decoration, smart camera angles and uses of lighting and shading, plus many wonderful sceneries to just stare at how beautiful they are. Studio A-1 does wonders when it wants to. But not when it comes to animation since movements tend to have many still panels, jerky movements, low frame rate and sometimes annoying chibi comedy moments that ruin the immersion.

As for the story, unlike Sebastian, it’s very weak. The premise is about Ciel becoming a boy detective and selling his soul to the devil in order to get revenge on the dudes who killed his family. It’s also about Sebastian looking cool and that’s pretty much all of it. Ok, it’s not THAT bad but it doesn’t exactly care much about plot progression. Mystery exposition is rushed, the chain of events is loose and happens whenever the author fancies it, and the showdowns ain’t exciting at all. Want a breakdown of most episodes? Ciel is looking for a criminal, goes somewhere, meets someone, a crime happens and it is revealed the guilty one was the guy he just met. So his life is in danger and tells his butler to fix this mess because they will be late for tea time. And then it’s over, Sebastian is simply unbeatable and doesn’t even need to use strategy in battle. It’s just brute force. Basically, the detective and mystery aspects of the story are simple and come down to magic nonsense. As for the ending, there isn’t one, there are more seasons after it where the objective matters less and less. In fact, the second season is completely filler. So yeah, you end up watching it just for Sebastian giving Ciel a spongebath.

Let’s not kid ourselves, the selling point of the series is Sebastian. The anime itself is named after him. As long as you are satisfied watching him doing cool stuff with his underage sex partne…err, I mean master, then the rest become trivial. Beyond that it’s just some comic relief characters to poke fun at, which get backdrop stories at some point and gain half an extra dimension to their personality. They are not entirely stunts, basically. But since all that always happens out of the blue, lasts 5 minutes, doesn’t affect the main story, is hardly ever mentioned again, and it’s usually ridiculed by bad jokes, well, that’s as important as painting with watercolors out in the open during a heavy rain.

As a whole it is not an anime that will be remembered for anything other than its main character ass-serving Ciel. Fujoshis can adore it all they want and can decorate the ceiling above their beds with doujin pictures of those two. The rest of us normal folks have better things to watch.

Be advised this is no in-depth review of Kuroshitsuji. Since there is no review yet I just want to give you a short impression on the show to give you a chance to decide whether you'll give Kuroshitsuji a chance or not.

Might contain minor spoilers.

Kuroshitsuji is quite a fascinating show. It toys around with your regular mindset of "good" and "bad" and actually manages to maintain an interesting storyline throughout the show, with an ending that leaves you reflecting on itself for quite a while. Mixed together with a good main cast this show is definitely capable of leaving a good impression. Some questions are still left unanswered though, and regarding the character of Sebastian Michaelis you'll have to accept you'll never know the whole story behind him.
As for the visuals, Kuroshitsuji leaves little to complain about. The characters are all nicely drawn, as well as the scenery. Some facial expressions seemed awkward, but considering we're talking about some supposedly 500 year old Death-Gods it's more than acceptable. The sound, on the other hand, is a different thing. It fitted the current situation on screen most of the time, but it's nothing to keep remembering forever. Just your average-ok-soundtrack. Moving along to the story and the characters, I have little to complain. Depending on your preferences though, you could have the impression the show starts off a little slowly. Ciel's reasons for forming a contract with the daemon later known as Sebastian are explained throughout the show, climaxing in a story-twist and resulting in a final battle in the last four episodes. But aside Ciel, Sebastian and the main villain, the other characters are poorly developed. In the second half of the show, Ciel's employees for example receive one extra episode to explain their backgrounds and that's about it. You actually can say the show solely focuses on Ciel, and, respectively, Sebastian.
Also I am not quite sure about the target audience of Kuroshitsuji. Whilst having a whole lot of comedic relief I found parts of the show to be quite subliminally brutal, and there are also a few scenes containing sexual themes (check ep17, 12:32).

Concluding what I've just said, Kuroshitsuji is a show you should definitely give a try, but keep in mind that the show focuses entirely on Ciel's revenge so there won't be many sidetracks and the upcoming sequel will be a totally different show.

Whether this review was helpful to you or not, some comments and rating would be nice. Thanks