A review by cyanide_latte
Black Butler, Vol. 5 by Yana Toboso

funny lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

Mmm, the tonal shift from the previous volume to this one is certainly something. This feels very Saturday Morning Cartoon levels of "and then everything was neatly resolved with a Happily Ever After close-out, all in a neat 22 minutes with commercial breaks~!!" It isn't necessarily bad per se, but it certainly gave me a bad case of whiplash. I'm also wincing at the way this didn't age well, re: Sebastian winning the curry cook-off. I get why it had to happen that way, I do, but the British bias coupled with the Indian characters and bearing in mind the history of colonization that was even addressed last volume, it doesn't leave the one with the best feeling afterwards. Again though, I know this is Yana's earlier work and she was making a good faith effort here, so I can have some grace. Still though...that's a low-key yikes from me.