Yana Toboso

This is the second volume in the Black Butler series and it was even better than the first. There is some mystery and some humor and of course a lot more Ceil and Sebastian.

The London season is waning but a new terror is stalking the streets of London in the dark hours; the terror is only known as Jack the Ripper. Ciel Phantomhive is summoned to London by the Queen to solve the mystery behind Jack the Ripper and clean up the mess this killer has left behind. Of course Sebastian travels with show more him. Can Ciel handle the truth behind the mystery he solves?

There are a million things I am loving about this series. I love the action, the mystery, the humor and the characters. There are some truly hilarious scenes throughout; I especially enjoy poor Ciel being forced to dress up as a lady and dodge his betrothed. I also really enjoyed Sebastian’s quite un-demon-like obsession with cats.

We learn a bit more about how Sebastian came to serve Ciel and about Sebastian’s abilities. We are also introduced to some new and intriguing characters; Madam Red, Lau, and Grelle. Of course we also meet The Undertaker who is one of my absolute favorite characters...he is so odd and strangely omniscient.

I love how the Jack the Ripper mystery is tied into the demonic theme of this book. There are some well done unexpected twists and turns throughout the story.

I also adore the illustration throughout; there is so much wonderful detail and it’s very easy to follow. It’s just an absolute pleasure to read and thoroughly enjoyable. There are also some slightly twisted innuendos throughout, that adults will get and giggle about (and maybe feel a little bad about noticing) but younger readers will probably miss.

Overall I am absolutely loving this manga. It’s a wonderful balance of beautiful illustration, action, humor, mystery, and supernatural elements. The story is full of wonderful characters and unpredictable twists. Highly recommended to manga fans who enjoy a paranormal plot with some quirky and hilarious characters. show less

Horribly racist with a plot that will end with the Indians being put in their place by a British person making the perfect curry, because who makes curry better than a bunch of conquering murderers.

One of the main fears I have with reading a new manga series when I have already watched the anime is that I'm not going to like it. With most that I've read so far, that hasn't (fortunately) been the case.

Black Butler is simply gorgeous. The art was spectacular, and the characters were brilliant. I like the way it doesn't tell you much of anything about Sebastian until the end of the volume, whereas in the anime you know right from the first fifteen minutes of the episode.

Ciel was show more certainly more likeable here than in the anime. I felt that in the anime he whined a bit too much. With all he's been through, I do expect a bit of whining, but in the anime it was, I felt, done in excess. Just one of the few differences between the manga and the anime, I guess.

Definitely cannot wait to get the second volume. I still can't believe that it's taken me this long to start reading manga. What the fuck was I thinking?

Highly recommend! show less

This volume just falls flat for me as it revisits the group of proctors from the boarding school story arc. They didn't make an impression on me during their first appearance, and I recall nothing about their personalities. This volume does little to jog my memory and certainly doesn't make me care about their current situation. The series seems to have reached a status quo of solving a mystery, having an interlude and solving another mystery, with the central mythology not being advanced in show more any meaningful way. I'm afraid I'm losing interest in the increasingly dull adventures of the little rich boy and his demonic butler. show less