hermina.flatley - 2017-01-08 11:40:11

So freaking good!!

wanda82 - 2016-07-21 17:09:51

Hmm.. i don't know what to say God.. help us
(just adding a few more words so this review isn't short)

kunde.demetrius - 2016-05-09 21:49:12

Finally got around to watching black butler book of circus as the dub came out, i must say, while i thought the first season was good as in just good/alright and be funny at times, as well as not personally liking the second season at all, book of circus is a huge improvement over both of them. 
Compared to the episodic first season (yes i know it didn't follow the manga after a certain point) and ended badly. This one has a solid driving story that continues to flow to the next episode, with good characters i might add, not to mention no real plot holes at all if you watched the previous seasons, the show apart from the first episode does not lag around and has a conclusion that's good with the fact that another season is confirmed for 2017, i have yet to watch the book of murder ova's so i cant say much in regards to that vs this and how it relates this. 
As for animation, its A-1 pictures, that does produce good animation as even excellent at times, tho i may not be a fan of every thing they make *cough*sao*cough* you cant deny the animation quality, in this case, its good but its not outstanding which it doesn't need to be as they are no heavy action scenes to really speak of, however the animation is fluid it never drops below standard. now finally, the music, OH MY GOD, this was an amazing soundtrack, the composer does not really do much anime work or any that i have seen to reference (as he is a more prominent video game composer), the sound were eerie for the most part with epic humming/chanting/ vocal tracks that really give of a dark and epic feel when need and it was fun when needed to be. also the opening and endings are all really good to. 
if you have not seen any black butler before, the original stopped following the manga at episode 15 so i recommend watching till there then watch this and don't even bother with black butler 2.
recommend to all, this one in particular i feel is worth a buy.

towne.astrid - 2016-03-09 21:25:38

The first time I had learned that a third season of Kuroshitsuji would see the day, I have to say I was very excited. Having seen the first two seasons, I really wanted to meet again the characters of this series that knew how to please me by his script rather well developed and its very special characters. Just after the release of Kuroshitsuji: Book of Circus, I launched myself into it without delay. So I was delighted to see Ciel and his elegant and charismatic butler, Sebastian. Since then I have watched every episode and I must say that my opinion is ... somewhat mixed.

But I do not disagree. I loved the idea of adapting a part of the original manga as anime, although I did not fully read. However, I had already read some small excerpts from this arc, so I knew, somehow, history. So we find, almost all the characters in the series, including my favorite, Sebastian Michaelis. Young circus artists are overall good, although they would have deserved to be a little more developed. The episodes follow and manage to keep us in suspense. What I liked most is this dark atmosphere so characteristic of this series. After all, it is the story of a young boy who saw his family die in a fire and a contract with a demon in order to accomplish a vengeance. There is, therefore, nothing very pink in this anime. The graphic quality is, in my opinion, very good and the animation. Thereupon, there is nothing wrong. A-1 Pictures delivers a true visual delight, as were the first two seasons.

However, setting this story in twelve episodes seems a little too tight. It would have taken two or three more episodes to conclude better this season because I have to admit I was a little disappointed by this end almost sloppy. The story had some potential, but it has not been able to fully exploit. After that, it may be the same in the manga, but as I mentioned earlier, I have not fully read this arc. This is, roughly, the only real flaw of this third season. Nevertheless, I must admit that despite some imperfections, everything in this anime is very addictive. Loved rediscover the story and his characters. I put 8 for this season because it could have been much better, in my opinion. Nevertheless, I recommend this anime if you like stories of demons and crime series.

jones.ewald - 2015-02-19 04:39:07

  MEH! this is a good series which has good animation but the part where i feel it was boring is that it seems more like its for girls rather than guys like Free!! where there are barely any female protagonists. also i don't think it  kept up to the first season.

gustave00 - 2015-02-17 04:47:37

The best arc of Kuroshitsuji hands-down. Even from the first episode (that acts as an introduction to those who aren't familiar with the series) Book of Circus stays true to the brilliance that was in the manga. The animations are superb and the characters are translated beautifully. For the character of Ciel, we see everything from fluffy moments of innocence to gut-wrenching instances of despair, and are presented with stunning character development that is largely absent in Kuroshitsuji I and II. Plus it has one hell of an opening. 10/10 

As mentioned in other reviews, it is important to note that this story pretends that the last part of Season I and Season II never happened. 

walsh.salma - 2014-12-14 22:23:14

Story

Black Butler: Book of Circus picks up from episode fifteen of season one of the Black Butler franchise. This means that the second half of the first season and the second season are both completely irrelevant, and I’m extremely happy about this. Black Butler: Book of Circus is by far the best part of the anime franchise.

This season was a bit darker than season one, and much more serious. Despite this, it still was a bit humorous and fun, just like the Black Butler we all know and love. It had a better over-arcing plot and a better mystery. It answered many questions that were asked in season one and made more new questions, which I assume are going to be answered in a new season, hopefully.

Everything tied together nicely. Along the way, the mystery that would be answered in the end left some clues that helped predict how everything would end, but not so much clues that it became much too predictable. There were some plot twists thrown in here and there, making this season an enjoyable ride.

This season ended quite well, but did leave questions unanswered. There aren’t any new seasons being planned that I know of, so if this isn’t added on to then the ending is a problem. However, seeing as Black Butler: Book of Circus only just aired this year (2014), it is too soon to tell.

Animation

The animation is a bit different from the other seasons, but it looks better. It has plenty of vivid colors and maintains the beautiful art that it had before. Action scenes are very well-done and as entertaining as always. The opening animation was also really well-done. No surprises here.

Music

The music is a bit different than from other seasons, but it’s just as great. It has many memorable tracks, and all of them fit the dark-comedy atmosphere of Black Butler. There are also many tracks that capture the traveling circus feeling that is unique to this season, and these tracks are actually some of my favorites.

The opening song is amazing. It made it on my favorites list right away. The opening is performed by SID, the band which also performed the opening for season one, and did a great job on both songs. The ending is also quite beautiful.

Characters

Ah, characters, what can I say. Most of what you need to know about the main characters you can find in my review of Black Butler season one. The only thing you need to know about them for this season is that Ciel develops a lot as a character, and he gets a bit more depth, which is always a good thing.

Now, let’s focus on the new characters, the circus performers. These characters are all hilarious and lovable, even with all the plot twists that involve them. They each have distinct and unique personalities, and many of them became new favorite characters of mine. They have plenty if development within only ten episodes, and they all have interesting backgrounds. The best part is that time is taken for all of the character’s backgrounds to be fleshed out, so that the viewers know everything about the new characters. It’s hard not to love and understand these characters, even though they are only there for the season and will likely not make any other appearances if the anime continues.

I would like to note that Ronald Knox, that one reaper from season one, has much more screen time in Book of Circus, and it’s almost as if Grell has a mini-me. Prepare for grim reaper hilarity!

Enjoyment

I enjoyed watching Black Butler: Book of Circus more than I enjoyed season one. Just when I was getting tired of Black Butler, this season came along and made me love the franchise even more than I already did. Any fans of the previous seasons will love this installment.

Recommendation: I highly recommend you watch Black Butler: Book of Circus if you enjoy anything else Black Butler.

Final Conclusion: 10/10

bartell.clement - 2014-09-13 15:01:19

Firstly to clarify, this is not a sequel to the second black butler series. The original anime series stopped following the manga after episode 15 and branched down its own route. This series follows the original manga, so you can think of the rest of the first season and season 2 as an alternate continuity to this.

Firstly the story, the plot follows the 13 year old Earl Ciel Phantomhive and his demonic butler Sebastian Michaelis as they investigate the disappearance of various children and how the 'Noah's ark circus' is somehow connected to it. Due to being a rather short series (only 10 episodes) the series has a very fast pace. 

The animation is very smooth, there is a fine amount of detail put into each character and the outfits, this is due to the series being set in Victorian England, and being British myself, I find all the little details appealing. The animation is smooth, fluid and consistently at a rather high standard.

The sound is easily the weakest part of the show. Aside from the OP and ED, the music is rather forgettable in all honesty.

The characters are easily the series strong point. Firstly, there's our 'protagonist' Ciel Phantomhive who - despite looking like a cutesie shotta, is a very cold jerkass who is wise and intelligent beyond his years. Despite being the hero of the series and "the good guy", the things he does to obtain his goal place him is the hero by default, and dances very close to becoming a villain at times. There's every ones favourite battle butler Sebastian (not Hayate) who is calm, polite, patient and easy to mistake for a nice guy, it's quite easy to forget he's a demon who plans on eating his masters soul when their contract is fulfilled and that their contract is the only reason he's a "hero". If anything, he's an affably evil monster on a short leash. Then there's the crew of the circus themselves, each one is full of life and personality and you will quickly find your favourite (most picking the one known as Joker). Even the characters you'd instantly regard as 'bland' have their own hidden depths.

With this series, there is no black and white morality. Only grey. At times, the heroes do horrid things while some of the villains  are very sympathetic. There is a very high probability you'll get some feels off this series.

In short, while not perfect, this series does what it does well. Although being flawed and needing some improvements here and there (greater number of episodes and a better soundtrack) it's quickly become a favourite of mine.