Kuroshitsuji II: The darkness is catching up

Written by Little_Wolf-18 on October 6, 2012 at 11:44 AM

And here we’ve got to do with one anime that fits the paradoxical saying “expect the unexpected”. Unique, entertaining enough, although highly different from its first season (“Kuroshitsuji”), as well as from the manga, and pretty much incomprehensible if you don’t know either. You’ve been warned.

It’s amazing enough to draw a sequel out of an anime that had perfect closure before and not make it the epic fail of the year. Somehow, though, this anime manages, although this season is highly different from the one before.

“Kuroshitsuji II” being shorter and faster than its first season, there’s actually an overarching plot this time. No more sub plots, no more small plots and mysteries, no more maids polishing the handrail of the stairway with shoe polish… Where this might take away from the gothic appeal and dark funniness of the first season, the plot that presents itself is full of deceit, noble demons, some blood and violence (it’s not much, and it shouldn’t actually scare anyone away, but its level of disgusting-ness is something to count in *shakes*), overall darkness, and a bunch of plot twists that throw you around guessing. And for those who’ve been weirded out by the summary, Sebastian and Ciel do take the spotlight again… they haven’t just disappeared into nowhere. Not so our bunch of weird but darkly funny side characters. Most of them get small, if any, appearances, and the new cast, if darkly intriguing and as amazing and dark in psychological design, is far from funny, although more or less realistic… as realistic as something involving a bunch of demons can go. They certainly are individuals, as original as the first season’s characters, and their backgrounds are fitting; however, some come across as pretty sadistic and may be rather off-putting to those who watched the first season mainly for humour.

Next thing that changed, though minor, is the fact that this season is a lot faster than the first one. It’s easy to get what is going on in general, but to catch onto details, you’ll need to pay close attention. It’s still very well executed, with no hiccups in the pacing, and all the mystery makes perfect sense, but paying attention is required.

The last thing that was changed story-wise, and my biggest point of criticism, is the end. It doesn’t leave plot holes, and it does wrap up the whole series well; however, for one, it makes Ciel generic (not wanting to spoiler -.-), and on the other hand, it gives off quite an odd BL impression. Now I’m not usually one to mind that, but seeing as I never saw that much-rumoured appeal before (look, all Sebastian’s up to is eating Ciel’s soul, no matter what kind of implications can theoretically be read from that), it seemed pretty much out of character to me; and those who mind it at all will be put off by the atmosphere. Sigh. They could easily have followed the manga IMO, but I certainly won’t be changing that.

Having said all that, the plot isn’t bad; all the opposite. It’s very well executed, with no hiccups in the pacing, and although it is fast, it’s not that hard to get into if you’ve watched the first season and/or read the manga. The characters, where not yet known, are well designed both visually and psychologically, intriguing as far as the series and its darkness go, and backgrounds and development are fittingly done and respectively create no plot holes or oddities.

The dialogue certainly misses a lot of the first season’s humour, but still is solidly woven with no word too much. Character interaction is in grand known from the first season, but still as intriguing. No change in seiyuu, so everyone known still sounds the same.

Animation and artwork are the same as in the first season, and still stunning. If there’s any change, it’s that the series got even darker. ^^ Music -- background, opening and closer all the same -- to me are a little less remarkable than the ones of the first season, but fit well. No fault to be found in the sound effects. Character design is known by now, but nonetheless remarkable.

As for the entertainment factor, there are still bits of comedy -- mostly Sebby’s lol-worthy facial expressions -- but this, in general, is much darker than the first season and contains a whole lot more crazy insanity. Most of the gothic humour and horror from the first season, as well as most funny side characters, take a background seat. If you were put off by the sadistic humour, and only the humour, of the first season, you might be able to enjoy this more; if you watched the first season for its comedy, this one might get very much borderline in terms of being off-putting. The humour topic aside, though, there’s a whole lot of suspense, mystery, and the characters once again are nothing short of intriguing.

I was hesitant to watch this at first, especially seeing as the summary didn’t gave away anything that smelled like “sequel” at all, but I can say this wasn't a letdown for me. Though I loved how the first season managed to make its darkness funny, I don’t mind descents into unfunny darkness. The characters are intriguing, and the visuals nothing short of amazing. That it’s short but still complete also helps. My only problem with this season lay in its sadism at times. It makes for some intriguing psychological insights, and it’s far less violent than the first season for the longest time, but it’s still something I somehow had a hard time with. I don’t recommend eating while watching this… not even popcorn. And then, I wish they’d stuck to the manga, seeing as the end, as much as it wraps up the series, falls out of its atmosphere completely. But that might just be me, and all these troubles don’t distract from the fact that this is amazing for what it is. Fast-paced with no word and no scene too much; good character cast with intriguing psychological design; great suspense and mystery; plot twists that simply throw you around; amazing visuals; and the music’s good on the ears as well.

Long review cut short? I would love to be able to recommend this to any and all Kuroshitsuji lovers. However, “Kuroshitsuji II” is as different from its first season as a sequel can get, so I’ll rephrase that: Everybody who watched the first season and does not mind a step further into the darkness of both the particular universe and human nature should try this out. I personally like this for its plot and mystery, I love it for its psychological factor, but I can’t help but like the first season just a bit better, if only for its ending and the fact that its violence doesn’t look quite as objectionable. Those put off by the humour before might disagree with me though.

Cheers.