n Pseudo-Victorian, Ciel Phantomhive is a twelve-year-old, Earl to the Phantomhive household. Owner of a famous toy factory, and Queen Victoria’s faithful servant with tremendous responsibility on his shoulders. Fortunately, his loyal butler, Sebastian, was ready to carry out his young master’s wishes. Apparently, there is nothing Sebastian cannot do. Some may argue He is too good to be believed.

Black Butler is a manga with slow pace and lowbrow humor. Readers will find this story disappointing. The plot is not driven by a strong narrative, and the character development is lackluster. The story’s unrealistic situations and characters hinder reader engagement.

Considering the series’ beginning, it’s shocking to see how effectively the setting and characters are introduced, even though the plot in volume one ends on a less exciting note.

Almost all side characters were painfully dull and superficial. In summary, Ciel has a guest over and Sebastian serves dinner; Ciel’s fiance arrives to dance; and Ciel gets kidnapped and rescued by Sebastian.

The end of volume 1 reveals Sebastian to be a demon. With a simplistic and predictable plot, the story lacks suspense or surprises. The characters are all one-dimensional and lack depth or development.

Overall, this volume is meh. I’ll continue reading because I recall it becomes more enjoyable in the later volumes. I’m still interested to see where the story goes, and I’ll give it a few volumes to see if it picks up. I’m hoping for more depth and more suspense in volume 2.