Black Butler, Vol. 1
Just a stone’s throw from London lies the manor house of the illustrious Phantomhive earldom, its master one Ciel Phantomhive. Earl Phantomhive is a giant in the world of commerce, Queen Victoria’s faithful servant . . . and a slip of a twelve-year old boy. Fortunately, his loyal butler, Sebastian, is ever at his side, ready to carry out the young master’s wishes. And whether Sebastian is called to save a dinner party gone awry or probe the dark secrets of London’s underbelly, there is practically nothing Sebastian cannot do. In fact, one might even say Sebastian is too good to be true . . . or at least, he is too good to be human . . .
User Ratings and Reviews
5 Stars Bad Butler
If Hellsing had a younger, cuter brother, it would be Sebastian.
I would highly recommend this to Hellsing fans,
or just fans of good manga in particular.
Eagerly awaiting the next volume.
4 Stars Toboso easily juggles comedy, action, and mysticism with the merest hint of boys’ love
Sebastian is the loyal butler at the Phantomhive residence. He serves the current master of the house, 12-year-old Earl Ciel Phantomhive. As is fitting for an earldom, there are multiple servants, but none are as devoted or as good at their job as Sebastian. But is the butler too good to be true, or just too good to be human? In Toboso’s manga, the traditional master/servant roles take on a creepy new meaning, leaving readers intrigued by the relationship between the calm butler and the powerful young earl. And it’s no doubt that they are the main focus of the story. The petulant young earl is obviously a damaged boy, but we don’t find out why here. Readers just learn the beginning of his life and see his dark, brooding personality. Sebastian, by contrast, is the quintessential British butler, perfection beyond belief. The other servants are all witless and inept, used purely for comic relief.
Toboso easily juggles comedy, action, and mysticism with the merest hint of boys’ love. Indeed, with the first half of the book, the story seems like it is going to be simply humorous with a slight paranormal twist. In the second half, however, readers discover that the earl and the butler have a relationship that will prove to be eternal. Not much more than that is said, however, so readers will be eager for volume two to learn more. The setting is faux Victorian, where top hats, pocket watches, and ball gowns exist alongside cars, cellphones, and machine guns. This allows Toboso to draw frills, beautiful costumes, and romantic locales without worrying about anachronism. The action scenes at the end of the book are easy to follow and dramatic and creepy at the same time. To spice things up even further, Toboso makes both Ciel and Sebastian bishonen, or beautiful boys, of the type often found in boys’ love comics or girls’ romance manga. This element allows female readers to read into the relationship between master and servant, attracting readers who might not otherwise pick up an action title such as this. But the effect is so subtle that it will not take away from readers who just want to read this for the humor and action.
Violence in the form of gunplay and hand-to-hand combat, as well as the occasional pratfall, makes this for older teens and the mystical elements seem likely to grow darker over the life of the series. Though not much is said about who Sebastian really is, readers are given plenty of clues by the end, and they will want volume two to confirm their beliefs. Give this to fans of gothic tales like Vampire Knight by Matsuri Hino or Godchild by Kaori Yuki (both from VIZ) and they will thank you!
– Snow Wildsmith
2 Stars Maybe I Just Don’t Get It
For the past few years, all of my overseas anime buddies have been gushing about this manga
and it’s anime adaptation. Since I don’t read scanslations, all I could do was sit around
and wait for somebody to be kind enough to license it. Soon enough, the great Yen Press ended
up snagging up the rights to it. Excited that I would finally be able to get my hands on this
manga, I rushed down to my local Borders after school on the day of it’s release. When I got
home, I started reading voraciously. And that’s when a funny thing happened.
I stopped reading it half-way through.
Folks, it is my solid opinion, as a long-time anime fan (and this may get me attacked by the
anime fangirl hoard) that this is nothing but an attempt to lure lonely fan girls with promises
of boy’s love and frilly, lacy things. There is no plot, no substance, and absolutely no attempt
to be witty whatsoever. It’s all meant to pander to all of the ugly cliches that haunt today’s
girls’ manga.
In the end, I ended up finishing this volume, but I don’t plan to buy any following ones, because
there are no prevalent plot threads or intriguing characters. The only thing I was able to get out
of this volume is the fact that there’s some spoiled little brat (who is the walking embodiment of
shotacon fetish, by the way) who hires a demonic butler to serve him food, and fight enemies.
That’s it. It doesn’t get any more complex than that. Oh, yeah, did I mention that the butler is
highly effeminate and looks like the walking embodiment of a “seme” in any given yaoi manga? Because
he is, and he does.
The only saving grace of this manga is the art, which is very lush and rich in textures. Every little
detail is drawn with the utmost precision by the author, and uses very little screentone, which is
always a good thing.
Other than the art, though, this was one of the most painful experiences I’ve had of reading a manga
volume in recent memory. It was pretty to look at, but left me with a feeling of tedium and vexation
after finishing it. Unless you just want to look at the pretty pictures, read an actual GOOD fighting
butler manga, such as “Hayate the Combat Butler”, and avoid this.
5 Stars Black Butler, Vol. 1
I’ve read the scans on [...] up to chapter 44 and I have to say, it’s going to get better and better. This first volume, in my opinion, is great. I saw a few errors in the translation but otherwise it was very nice.
The artwork is beautiful (but as the series goes on, it will get better. The mangaka’s - the artist of the manga’s - art improves with each volume). If this volume doesn’t set a good first impression, hang in there and wait for the next volumes because things will pick up.
If I had to rate the plot for this volume it would be a 8/10. When I first read it I thought to myself that the mangaka seemed a little pedophile-ish. A 12-year old boy with a young man/devil as his butler seems a little strange to me. (That and the fact that the mangaka has written a shonen-ai - light boy on boy romance - manga as well.)
The characters have the typical varied personalities. (A maid who is a klutz and has a thing for Sebastian, a gardener who is very adorable, and a cook who cooks meat with flame throwers.)
Overall, Black Butler is definitely something to give time. The start might be wobbly for some but it has potential.
5 Stars The Right Dose of Mayhem and Humor– Welcome to 19th Century England
As a person who usually enjoys mangas and animes that make her think and have dark, depressing stories, it was odd that I ever set foot into Kuroshitsuji. I would normally never get a kick out of something so light and airy as having someone’s butler fight another person solely to avoid homework (although I do understand the notion and temptation). It’s child’s play. Next.
Except I couldn’t stop reading it when I first started this manga on Onemanga. The artwork is beautiful and the story is set in one of my favorite time periods ever– Victorian London. Although, I would not recommend you read Kuroshitsuji for the value of learning. Toboso has no qualms with breaking the time bounds of Victorian London (even creating a spoof of Nintendo in the series), but then neither did Kaori Yuki. However, Toboso is more vocal about it. At any rate, she is not creating a story meant to follow strict Victorian guidelines; she is writing a story about a 12-year-old master and his butler.
Only the butler isn’t all he seems. The element of the occult is first presented in the first volume, but it’s not as strong; it’s a tantalizing treat. I would suggest if you’ve only read the first volume to hold on. Toboso did not introduce the plot of her manga yet and there is so much more to this manga than the first volume showcases. Hang in there. If you love the occult, a little bit of Victorian (if you don’t mind a dash of modern reality splashed in), Count Cain/ Godchild, and stories that are dark and twisted, then you will love this tasty morsel of a treat. And trust me, I’m picky about what mangas I indulge in.
Filed under: Top Graphic Novels