History YMMV / BlackButler

* EvilIsSexy:
** Again, Sebastian. Because who doesn't love a {{bishonen}} BattleButler who never fails to look suave even after violently murdering his enemies?
** Ciel, for some of the younger fans. Sebastian may do all the work but Ciel makes all the plans and calls the shots.
** Claude as well, especially since he's essentially Sebastian's {{expy}}.
** [[spoiler: Hannah, especially in her demon outfit]].
** Don't forget about Grell, especially in some of her outfits in promotional materials.
** [[spoiler: Undertaker...when his bangs are pushed back, of course.]]

** Sebastian and Ciel, ''the main characters'', are also both notoriously [[BaseBreakingCharacter divisive,]] particularly for those who are reading the manga and have gone through now 200 chapters and counting of little to no character development [[labelnote:Explanation]]Sebastian and Ciel were shown to develop into who they are now through flashback chapters, but as far as moving forward in the story they have changed little from when they were introduced nor have they come close to the SeriesGoal of getting revenge on those who called the attack on the Phantomhives. [[/labelnote]]

*** [[spoiler:Madam Red]] is a serial killer driven by envy, but the story attempts to soften it by her sympathetic backstory, [[spoiler: making [[DisposableSexWorker her victims]] look unsympathetic in comparison to her, her motherly love of Ciel which led to her undoing, Grell betraying and killing her [[AlasPoorVilain in quite the brutal fashion,]] and the beautiful way Ciel said his goodbye to her]] so she still ended up well liked.

*** [[spoiler:Madam Red]] is a serial killer driven by envy, but the story attempts to soften it by her sympathetic backstory, [[spoiler: her motherly love of Ciel which led to her undoing, Grell betraying and killing her [[AlasPoorVilain quite the brutal fashion,]] and the beautiful way Ciel said his goodbye to her]] so she still ended up well liked.

*** [[spoiler:Madam Red]] is a serial killer driven by envy, but the story attempts to soften it by her sympathetic backstory, [[spoiler: her motherly love of Ciel which led to her undoing, and the beautiful way Ciel said his goodbye to her,]] so she still ended up well liked.

*** Additionally, some have found Grell's behavior to be so over the top and at times stereotypical to the point of viewing her more as a drag queen or a cross dresser rather than as a woman. Again, it seems in time this has died down.

** The ending of chapter 135 has sparked this reaction in two ways. First you have the fans who [[IKnewIt already guessed the twist]] vs those who [[WhamEpisode thought it came out of left field]]. Then, there's the fans who [[GratuitousRape think it was completely unnecessary]] and hate the entire thing, versus those who applaud YT because [[TrueArtIsAngsty they view the horror conveyed in the chapter as a testament to her skills as a writer]].

** [[MST3KMantra Being willing]] to deliberately self-inflict this is considered almost required to enjoy this series given how many of the important characters having some pretty nasty traits.

*** Even Mey-Rin, Bard, and Finny aren't completely immune to this given they become extremely cold, jerkish, and sadistic respectively when handling intruders and enemies. Their case, however, is more easy to gloss over given these moments are pretty rare and are further backed up with DarkAndTroubledPast.

** [[MST3KMantra Being willing]] to deliberately self-inflict this is considered almost required to enjoy this series, because of the important characters with nasty traits.

*** Ciel is extremely ruthless and perfectly fine with manipulating and killing people if he sees it fit, and yet he's just as adored by the fandom as Sebastian is.

* EnsembleDarkhorse:

** In episode 6 of the first season, Sebastian states that he is quite confident in fist fighting before [[NoHoldsBarredBeatdown beating the ever loving stuffing out of Grell]]. His Japanese voice actor, Creator/DaisukeOno, would later voice two characters well known for [[CurbStompBattle their]] [[ExtremeMeleeRevenge over-the-top]] [[RapidFireFisticuffs violent beat-downs]], but with plenty of yelling [[{{LightNovel/Durarara}} IZAYAAA!!!]] and [[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure ORAORAORA!!!]] thrown in.

** Sebastian and Ciel, ''the main characters'', are also both notoriously [[BaseBreakingCharacter divisive]] now, particularly for those who are reading the manga and have gone through now nearing 200 chapters of little to no character development [[labelnote:Explanation]]Sebastian and Ciel were shown to develop into who they are now through flashback chapters, but as far as moving forward in the story they have changed little from when they were introduced nor have they come close to the SeriesGoal of getting revenge on those who called the attack on the Phantomhives. [[/labelnote]]

* LoveToHate: Sebastian and Ciel are a VillainProtagonist duo who are both willing to stoop to unbelievable lows during their missions, and yet that's part of the reason why fans love them so much.

* TheProblemWithLicensedGames: The [=DS=] tie-in game is just a collection of mini-games that barely count as games.

*** One particular line from Claude has him note in the lines of how Ciel has traversed through much darkness yet his soul remained uncorrupted. Is Ciel simply a very resilient individual, or was his soul already a shade of black to begin with?

*** Sebastian is a demon who won't think twice about committing heinous deeds and his end goal is basically to [[SapientEatSapient cannibalize]] Ciel, [[SoulEating only even worse]], but he's still liked by most of the fanbase.

*** Sebastian is a demon and his end goal is basically to [[SapientEatSapient cannibalize]] Ciel, [[SoulEating only even worse]], but he's still liked by most of the fanbase.

*** Undertaker is popular despite that among other things, [[spoiler: some see very [[ILoveTheDead weird implications]] about his mortician job...]]

** Boxchan,[[note]] A play on the words "box" and "bocchan," the latter of which is Japanese for "young master" and the title Sebastian and the servants use to address Ciel[[/note]] [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin for any time in season II that]] [[GirlInABox Ciel is in a box]].

*** One particular line from Claude has him note in the lines of how Ciel has traversed through much darkness yet his soul remained uncorrupted. Is Ciel simply a very resilient individual, or was his soul already a shade of black to begin with?

*** One particular line from Claude has him note in the lines of how Ciel endured much darkness yet his soul remained uncorrupted. Is Ciel simply a very resilient individual, or was his soul already a shade of black to begin with?

* ShipSinking:
** Done in episode 7 of the second season in regards to the [[spoiler:Ciel/Alois and Claude/Alois ships when Ciel stabs Alois in the stomach and tries to stab him in the head but is stopped by Claude (though he struggles with Claude and Sebastian in an attempt to get back to Alois's side so he can kill him) and when Claude proceeds to completely ignore Alois's pleas for help after getting a taste of Ciel's blood.]] And in episode 8 [[spoiler: Alois practically confesses his love for Claude who smiles and holds his face tenderly before crushing his skull]].
** Though, the [[spoiler:Claude/Alois]] ship seems to be at least partially restored in episode 12.
** The anime showed Grell getting a crush on Undertaker. Shortly after, they met in the manga and developed an instant dislike for each other after Undertaker scratched Grell's face.
* ShipsThatPassInTheNight: Lizzie and Snake.

** The [[spoiler:sex scene between Sebastian and Beast]] can be this, especially due to the stilted and unfeeling nature of the scene to which some have compared to sexual harassment and even assault. This also goes for [[spoiler: the similar scene in the anime between Sebastian and the nun.]]