“I Was Really Happy That The Circus Arc Was Adapted Into An Anime. All The Staff, Thank You Very Much!”

It's Phantomhive in a uniform.

Please do not repost. I posted it in twitter

That Butler, Escorting

Lineart and coloring: Nami

Original art: Toboso Yana, Kuroshitsuji: Chapter 145

People still believe it's Astre ? 😭

Another poll

If you think it's a name not listed here, please comment your selection in the notes, and I'll factor it in. Serious "legit" name choices only, please... not the "terrible" names.

Human is much more evil than devil himself.

Undertaker

Ciel going for a midnight snack

A Theory on Ciel’s Real Name

A question we’ve all been pondering ever since Yana revealed Ciel wasn’t actually Ciel.

I’ve had this theory in mind for a while but after a few of the recent chapters I decided this theory might be very possible.

What if Ciel’s real name is Finnian?

First off on the cover page of Chapter 132 we can see Vincent reading this book called ‘Fenian Cycle’ to the twins.

The Fenian cycle is a collection of short stories centering around this character called Fionn mac Cumhaill (his name is translated to Fionn in modern Irish but was also known as Find and Finn in old Irish) and his warriors the Fianna. Basically, Fionn is the son of the the late Cumhaill (the former leader of the Fianna) and was always on the run and in hiding as a child from the men who slain his father. The current leader of the Fianna did not want Fionn to take his rightful ownership as the leader of the Fianna. This can parellel with how Vincent was slaughtered and how Our Ciel was always seen as the weaker and timid child compared to Real Ciel who was depicted as the braver and stronger of the two. Not to mention Real Ciel is the rightful heir to the Watchdog title and the Earl of Phantomhive, not Our Ciel. It is also worth noting that in the recent chapters where Real Ciel has mysteriously and grandiosely reappeared he seems to have this underlying vendetta to get his title back. To make things simpler, it’s as if Real Ciel is trying to 'steal’ Our Ciel’s 'title’ as the Queen’s Watchdog and although he is the rightful heir, Yana has made us all read through and experience Our Ciel carrying out the Watchdog duty so in a way, we are able to empathise with him as being the 'rightful’ person to do this job and that this duty 'rightfully’ belongs to him.

What follows from the story is that Fionn showcases how great and omnipotent he really is and eventually regains his leadership of the Fianna and spends the rest of the story roaming Ireland, carrying out the duties of the Fianna. This parallels greatly with Kuroshitsuji as Our Ciel proves he is capable of the Watchdog title and being an earl. He is calculating, dexterous, and vigilant. And we as readers watch as he masterfully carries out the Watchdog duties throughout each arc.

What I’d like to point out next is this:

Notice that look of surprise on Our Ciel’s face in the left hand corner panel when he sees Finny. I interpreted this as Our Ciel seeing a reflection of himself (or his past self) in Finny somehow. Both of them were kidnapped and locked up and used as 'lab rats’ for heinous, nefarious reasons.

I think Our Ciel also recognised the distant, faraway look in Finny’s eyes as somebody who has gone through an equally heartwrenching, dark experience as he has.

Granted, they both also watched as their loved ones/close friends were brutally murdered right before their very eyes.

This was Finny when he watched a doctor gun down two of his fellow inmates:

And this is Our Ciel watching his twin brother, Real Ciel (whom he seems to have a very close relationship with based on the flashback chapters) getting stabbed right before him:

I found it really interesting how similar Yana drew both of these panels when showing how both these characters witness the murdering of their loved ones/close friends (especially the eye panels where she highlighted the pure shock in them). 

There are other interesting parallels that could possibly hint that Our Ciel’s name is actually Finnian. Both Finny and Our Ciel were branded (one with a slave mark and the other with a tattoo) to indicate whom they belonged to.

And in this sense, it shows how both were being treated as mere objects instead of actual human beings.

Moreover, one compelling fact is that both Our Ciel and Finny were the only ones to survive their horrendous ordeal (I’m not taking Real Ciel into account because as of now we are unsure as to whether he actually survived or was revived or is some form of developed Bizarre Doll, although I would place my bet on the latter as there is no possible indication whatsoever that he could’ve survived). In addition to this, in order to escape from their cruel captors they both sought to killing them.

This was the doctor that shot Finny’s fellow inmates:

And I think this panel speaks for itself:

So I assume this was one of the reasons why Our Ciel spared Finny’s life on that day and hired him as a Phantomhive servant. Finny reminded Our Ciel of himself (or again, his past self) in terms of how they were both victims of human greed and savagery.

I found other interesting links that could possibly hint at Our Ciel’s name being Finnian. One of them is how both Our Ciel and Finny are caring, selfless individuals who tend to think about the people around them first rather than themselves (in Our Ciel’s case, I suppose this trait was more dominant before the kidnapping and the whole cult event that ensued).

Also, Our Ciel was depicted as a naïve, wide-eyed innocent child which is basically Finny in a nutshell.

And here’s a bonus picture of a̶ ̶c̶u̶t̶i̶e̶ Our Ciel getting really mad because Real Ciel told him that it was silly to believe in something he hadn’t seen before (and if you do believe in Santa then by all means you do you).

What really striked me is how similar Finny is compared to the younger version of Our Ciel. I’ve already cited the evidence as shown above but this revelation only further strengthens my belief that Ciel’s possible name could be Finnian.

I think it’s also worth mentioning that out of all the servants Finny seems to be the closest to Our Ciel and remember, Finny was the only one who saw through Real Ciel when he first entered the manor.

I also find it interesting how Finny was the only one that Our Ciel allowed to be near him and to tend to him during the Emerald Witch Arc. 

During this time Our Ciel had broken down completely and reverted into the part of himself whom he vowed he’d never be anymore. So why was Finny the only person who was allowed to be near Our Ciel during his extreme mental breakdown? Even Sebastian whom Our Ciel seems to 'trust’ the most was rejected and thrown aside. Well, I’d like to think that was because Our Ciel could relate to Finny in some way. Since I’ve mentioned how similar younger version of Our Ciel and Finny actually are, considering how Our Ciel has relapsed into his 'old’ self, 'the one who died on the altar’, I’d assume he found comfort in Finny because Finny represented him. He allowed Finny to stay because Finny could understand and empathise with him. Kind, innocent, selfless, and caring. These were all prevalent traits Our Ciel possessed before he was tortured by the cult. And these are all the traits that Finny possesses after he was rescued from the lab (granted, I’m sure Finny had kindness and a sense of closeness with his fellow inmates but these characteristics did not have the opportunity to grow or nurture until he was rescued by Our Ciel). What’s also interesting is how Yana illustrates Our Ciel and Finny’s relationship being far more prominent than with the other Phantomhive servants. 

With the way this is worded, I can only assume it was Our Ciel who actually invited Finny and not vice versa so this shows that he feels comfortable in Finny’s presence. Again we are presented with parallels between these two characters and I’d like to think that it’s not all just a coincidence. 

Bonus indications that Our Ciel is actually a Finnian/Finny:

1) I’m probably being a little too far-fetched here but both Our Ciel and Finny had injections during their time in captivity.

I know it’s kind of a “So what?” point but knowing how Yana loves to add in obviously ridiculous and ridiculously obvious hints I thought this was worth taking note.

2) Take a look at this panel.

Judging by how Our Ciel says “Um…” before stating his name I assume he hasn’t prepared himself for a situation like the one unfolding before him to occur. Also, he was unprepared for the first test that he had to pass through in order to become recruited as one of the circus members. He had no idea as to how or when Sebastian would help him until his darts were surprisingly hitting the target after every single throw. This means that Ciel was utterly and completely unaware of how things would play out when he arrived. So, back to my original statement, the fact that he paused and THEN claimed his name was Finnian could be an instinctive and reflex statement as again, he was caught off guard and responded with the first thing that came to his mind. Why Finnian? Perhaps because that was his name?

Then we have Joker responding with, “That’s a grand name,” and we know for a fact that Vincent mentioned this:

The fact that Joker says 'grand’, not 'beautiful’ or 'nice’, could indicate that even he himself has not heard of the name often (if ever) and is amazed by how a mere 'pageboy’ could possess such a name. Moreover, the word 'grand’ itself has royal connotations to it, giving one the impression of something majestic and glorious just like how the Phantomhives are perceived as.

So there you have it! Of course, this is all mere speculation and nothing is confirmed, some of the points made could also be bias on my part so you may take this with a grain of salt. As always, you are free to tell me your own opinions on this if you want! Thanks for reading~

The Promised Neverland is based on an old and rather popular trope. It would be like saying Squid Game is the blueprint of survival genre.

any thought about the parallel that exists between the promised never land and on going subarc of black butler?

Hey Anon!

None, because I never read or watched TPN and I don't intend to any time soon, if ever. :))

Additionally, I'm relatively against drawing parallels between series, when TPN seems at best an inspiration for Yana-sensei (like Sherlock Holmes was for the Murders at Manor arc), who's a writer known to explore widely and in depth the tropes she uses for settings (Ducky or chibi once translated a few twitter posts about this, but I can't find it right now).

Also, please remember that, aside from TPN and as I explained here, this orphanage arc mostly seems to act as a parallel and a continuation of what was introduced in the circus arc and I'd like to remind everyone that TPN was written way after Kuro's circus arc.

Lastly, I have war flashbacks of fans drawing comparisons from one series to explain or theorize about another (the whole Femtoneki horror trip from back when TG:Re was still on going and some examples in Kuro fandom as well), as if writers can't use similar tropes without this meaning they copy each other (a concept I find extremely snooty of fans). So while other fans are free to do as they please, I'd rather just read Yana's work as Yana's work, no offense!

My opinion though! As always, other people are free to do entirely as they want! :))

Have a nice day, Anon!

I actually think the best way for Soma to "avenge" on RCiel is for him to find out the twins' issues, realising RCiel is just like past him to Mina, and actually forgiving him: like I want to see Soma telling R!Ciel off right into his face that he's just an immature and insecure child who struggles and failed to control his beloved brother and has no worth to be avenged on, then return to Bengal after claiming he'll always be his little brother's friend no matter how pissed off RC might be...

Hey Anon! Nah, nah, as much as I want Soma to become our!Ciel’s Agni, I really hope he helps taking real!Ciel’s operation down and won’t forgive him.

To explain: I definitely agree with you that, even though the main theme of this series is revenge, it is slowly demonstrated to be a painful and dangerous path that won’t bring any good, even less comfort or solace. 

Therefore, our!Ciel, Soma… following the revenge path will only bring them more pain, in a similar fashion to UT who won’t be able to move on and heal by focusing on the past (bringing back dead loved ones) rather than on the present/future (saving our!Ciel from Seb and protecting the rest of them++). 

That’s why I agree with you that it’s not good development for Soma to be the one killing the twin out of revenge for Agni, simply because he indeed will gain much more solace by helping our!Ciel (”becoming his Agni”) with realizing that he belongs with his family and friends as who he is. 

In other words, we don’t know what Soma understands about the current situation yet. However, because revenge brings nothing good, trying to achieve it would lead him into a dark abyss that he probably won’t come back from. 

That doesn’t mean that Soma has to forgive real!Ciel though. Agni’s death was unnecessary, unfair and extremely violent. Besides, real!Ciel is an antagonist who, because he’s dead, is far beyond redemption. Therefore, the narrative won’t benefit from anyone forgiving him. 

I hope I managed to explain properly. Thanks for passing by and have a nice day. :))