Kuroshitsuji Kishuku Gakkou hen – Episode 04 Review

「その執事、談合」 (Sono Shitsuji, Dangō)
“His Butler, Colluding”

The way things are going for Ciel is the very definition of one step forward, one step back. He’s in the P4’s inner circle now, but no amount of question gets him any closer to the answers he wants. You can tell the frustration is steadily mounting by how willing Ciel is to throw caution to the wind. That takes some nerves of steel on his end to jump right off into the deep end, asking about Derrick point blank. But if not then, then when? Strike while the iron is hot. Though I suppose if I had a bunch of red tape shit between me and a long, private bath, I’d be itching to get out quick too.

The answer Ciel gets ad nauseum is “The Headmaster did it”, and nobody questions the headmaster. That’s the thing with authoritarianism- people are taught to lose their critical thinking function and blindly accept whatever the leader says. Which is practically an open invitation to abuse of power and other shit. Also, annoying as hell, especially for someone as logical as Ciel.<\p>

While the prefect’s lips are sealed, their eyes are not- their looks alone enough to narrow down the involved parties. They know something, though their drudges do not. McMillan, ever the chatty Kathy, drops more surprising news on Ciel- Derrick wasn’t the only one to get transferred. Apparently, Purple House is where the party’s at, with numerous other boys from Scarlet House receiving the same orders. Derrick himself is quite the mystery (well, beyond his actual disappearance). Nobody can pin down who or what he was- either he is indeed a multifaceted talent (which I doubt, there’s no way he’s a Sebastian) or somebody is spreading rumors to muddy the trail. More likely is that their memories of him are getting confused with the other boys who transferred or dropped out around the same time. Even more suspicious is that everyone talks about Derrick in the past tense. Then, there’s the odd substitute head master who seems to be good friends with gravity. And that monster thing in Violet’s drawing- I certainly hope that’s only coming from his imagination. A peculiar school indeed.

The Purple Prefect, Violet, is a nut, and a hard one to crack at that (though which of the prefects aren’t?). He’s a pill for one, coercing Green into a gymnastic pose under pretext of a sketch that he doesn’t actually do. For another, he’s not terribly conversational- the “don’t talk to me” vibes are strong with that one.

Ciel’s getting nowhere and desperate times call for desperate measures. Namely, committing arson to smoke all of the residents out of Purple House. Drastic to be sure, but what can the school actually do to Ciel? He has Sebastian at his beck and call to manipulate the consequences, not to mention loads of money and the Queen’s backing. With all of that on his side, there’s really nothing to hold him back from making a running kick at the hornet’s nest.

Alternatively, Ciel could have just waited for the annual Cricket tournament on June the 4th. It’s the biggest event at school, with females allowed on campus and a victor’s boat parade in front of the Queen herself. I find it hard to believe that Derrick or the other Scarlet expats would miss out on that, unless the mystery is far more tangled than Ciel would wish. Which often appears to be the case where the Queen’s Watchdog is concerned.

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