Black Butler (anime)/Headscratchers

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.


Ciel's Sympathy Points in Anime vs. Manga

  • I've seen it mentioned a few times that Ciel is portrayed more sympathetically in the manga than in the anime. Could I get some specifics? I haven't noticed any of this, but I've only just finished marathoning them both so I might've missed something.
    • Honestly, I would disagree and assume that this is just fanwank. I think that if you look at the first few volumes that the anime, erm...addapts, he's more sympathetic in the anime, simply because he gets more speeches and doesn't do anything too heartless. Since the manga is ongoing, it naturally allows for more development and angst. However, progressing through the manga, he commits some pretty heinous acts, to the point that a lot of fans who see past his charm have a hard time agreeing with and sympathizing with him. I know I do. I think saying stuff like that is just a way to get people to read the manga, to be frank.

Angela and Pluto

  • Why do Angela and Ash, who are so obsessed with destroying everything dirty and impure that they try to burn down London, have such a close relationship with Pluto, who is a demon dog?
    • This is just a hypothesis but I think they want to eliminate sins and negative feelings. Pluto acts like a dog, not like a human: he's not evolved enough to feel hatred and commit sins.

Sebastian and Matilda

  • Didn't Sebastian rape Matilda? People act like it was consensual.
    • I should say more along the lines of seduced. I didn't see anything implying that it wasn't, aside from the bit where he squashes the bug behind her, and that seemed more like an excuse to be suddenly swoon-inducingly close to her than it was any sort of implied threat. I practically swooned from that, and I was sitting across the room, and not on the same side of the camera as them.

Why was the anime made so early?

  • Okay so, the anime adapts the manga faithfully up until after the Jack the Ripper arc. ... that's only about 4 or 5 episodes in! Plus, there's a second season!? Two full seasons of 90% filler!? Did it come out too early for the producers to get ahead of the manga?! I know the manga is popular and Japanese broadcast standards are not kind when a show is put on hold lest it loses its time slot... but couldn't they have waited longer so the hardcore fans would only need to see 4 episodes?!