...I wish I liked this series better than I do. Aspects of it, and a few entire arcs, are great enough that I want the whole thing to be a masterpiece. But as it stands, there's just too many things I dislike about the series for me to pursue it any further. This is long, so if you want a short version of this review, there's a TL;DR at the bottom.

Viewed holistically, it isn't bad by any means; I can understand why it has so many fans. I don't care much for fanservice (as much as I like bishonens), but for those who do, or at least don't mind it, this series would certainly appeal to you. Beyond that, there are aspects of astounding quality here. For one, I can't praise Toboso's art enough. The art style is my favorite of any manga I've seen or read. The costume and character designs are incredible; most impressive to me is that she never falls into the trap of giving every bishounen the same design with a different hairstyle, but rather, they all look like individuals, and you can discern each character's personality and role from their appearance alone. Many of the characters- my favorites being Sebastian, the Noah's Ark Circus crew, and Sieglinde Sullivan- are legitimately unique and interesting. The series also raises interesting moral dilemmas, and by showing characters that are willing to do the worst of the worst, Toboso also manages to showcase the best of the best. That's a difficult balance to strike.

Frankly, the Noah's Ark Circus Arc is the best I've read in any manga (and I read Fullmetal Alchemist). Were I able to rank arcs on their own, I'd rank that one a perfect 10 in every category... and not even just because I love circuses. What I mentioned above about the worst and the best acts and traits of humanity is never pulled off with more pensive elegance than it is in this arc. It's tragic, it's somber, but it definitely makes you think. And Joker, for the record, is one of the most fascinating I've ever come across. He's a firm moral grey zone, but you come to understand exactly what makes him tick. I'd love to see HIM as the main character in something. And, for the record, I'd rank the next two arcs- the murder mystery and the cruise with Elizabeth- an 8 or 9; the former for its mystery, the latter for how well it develops Elizabeth and the Undertaker's characters.

Then why do I only rank the series a 6 out of 10 if I have so many good things to say about it? Well... for me, the things that DON'T work about this series massively hold it back. For one thing, I don't care for many of the characters, or any of the arcs aside from the three I mentioned. In the former respect, the two worst offenders for me are Grell and Ciel. I love Grell's design, but her personality has always *greatly* annoyed me. After her first few appearances, the most interesting aspects of her character (mostly her struggles with gender identity) are underexplored at best and played for cheap gags at worst. Even so, Grell's combat skills are still something to behold; I do like watching her fights, and she's not a major enough presence to ruin the story for me as a whole. Ciel, however, certainly is.

Let me say this. Usually, a tragic backstory- especially one as brutal as Ciel's- will get me pretty far with a character; if I feel for you, I want to watch you, support you, see you overcome and see you succeed. And I'm not against revenge plots; in fact, I rather like them, especially when they play up the vengeance-seeker's emotions. But there's something about Ciel I just can't have any pity for. It's not purely his willingness to do awful things- despite his actions, I thought he was at his best in the Circus arc - but moreso a matter of personality. Sure, *at best* he's cold, impersonal, and entitled, but most of that's understandable given his backstory... it just doesn't create a character I feel compelled to support in any way. The reason I like Ciel in the Circus arc is because you see him struggle with the weight of his actions; he shows a sort of emotional vulnerability that isn't really seen again. But if he doesn't seem to care about anything, why should I?

Ciel aside, it's hard enough to care about some of these plotlines. Aside from the three arcs I mentioned, the stories range from boring to outright annoying. The Red Butler arc has some serious pacing issues; the Indian Butler arc feels pointless (and gives us Agni and Soma who, while I think they're fun, add almost nothing of value to the overall story); the Public School arc feels like straight-up wish fulfillment and rips off the best points of the Circus and Luxury Liner arcs without adding anything new to the table, making it just feel stale; and the Emerald Witch Arc, aside from giving us Sieglinde (who is legitimately great) and some much-needed moments exploring Sebastian's motivation, quickly becomes tedious and overstays its welcome. None of these arcs made me drop the manga, however. That dubious honor goes to the Blue Cult, which gave us the cringe-inducing Victorian 1D equivalent comprised of four characters from the Public School arc. I didn't think anything from the School Arc provided enough story potential to be brought back into things. It just contributed to my feeling that things had gotten stale which, combined with the pacing (yet again), made me abandon ship altogether.

I've heard about some of the major story developments since I dropped the series, but none of it piques my interest enough to return to it. That's not to say I won't ever do so; I simply don't care enough to bother right now.

TL;DR: Great characters and art can't outweigh an unlikable protagonist, weak plotlines, and stale formulas. In my opinion, you can (and should) read the Circus, Murders, and Liner arcs, but nothing else is all that worthwhile. Factoring everything together, I'd have to weigh the average to a 6.

Anyone who bothered to read this review, keep in mind: these are all just my opinions. If you like the series, don't let what I say ruin it for you. I more write this for anyone who's considering picking this up as a newcomer; if any of the details I mentioned would be deal-breakers for you, it's good to keep that in mind.