Review of Black Butler: Book of Circus
This is probably my favorite season out of all the seasons of Black Butler (current to date: Book of Atlantic) and its pretty straightforward why. I'll probably just go down the line of all the requirements though. Story: Its nothing special really; Ciel and Sebastian have a problem from the Queen and they're supposed to stop it. No ifs ands or buts. I've seen many people complain that the story is incoherent from the second (which we don't talk about) and the first season, but its not really hard to put together. There are many guidelines on many websites that say after the Curry arcin the first season, STOP and then go watch Book of Circus. That's how the manga goes.
It follows the manga almost to an exact T (which is good because this is also one of my favorite manga arcs) with a few unimportant things missing here and there. The plot to it is good and it still very important and enjoyable. There's many things that are vague, but the further you go on into Black Butler is the more you understand what you missed from this arc. Reading the manga, everything from flashbacks to certain wording the characters use are important.
Art: Very colorful. I don't know if different people worked on the art or if it was just the change with the times, but the art is very polished throughout all 12 episodes.
Sound: Both sub and dub are good (sounding exactly like the first and second season for both). The same voice actors and even the same band does the opening like the ones before it. There's nothing much to praise and there's nothing much to critique. The opening and the ending songs are very good.
Characters: Its Ciel and Sebastian. If you liked them before you'll like them now because frankly, they don't really change. The Noah's Arc Circus crew are very enjoyable from the beginning to the end. The only thing that deserves a lot of praise is the fact that the servants in the Phantomhive household get backstory and more time to show who they really are (we saw a little in season one, but that hardly counts compared to this). It happens in the anime enough for you to not question it, but I completely understand why they didn't add those parts because they were long chapters on their own. Either way it was very nice to see them more than the bumbling idiots they were in the first (and even the second) season.
Overall Enjoyment: Like stated before, this is one of my favorite arcs in the manga, and it was very nice to see it adapted amazingly and not butchered. The only thing that stops me from giving it a 10 is the fact that neither the anime nor the manga are finished yet. Depending on the ending is if I'll bump this up or down, and the manga is nowhere near finished either.
Truly, if you like Black Butler, then you're going to enjoy this season. Its nice to see one of my favorite mangas get the Fullmetal Alchemist treatment and it being done well. Remember to watch the first season to whatever episode the Curry Bun arc ends, and then go to Book of Circus.