Mozart English Subs update

【Related post: Mozart BD/DVD and Eng Subs announcement】

Dear everyone,

Still on hiatus here, but just dropping in to update about the English subtitles I plan to make for TOHO's Mozart! 2021.

The BD/DVD went on sale on the 10th of December, and some of us might already have received this masterpiece. I have started on the subtitling process and it should be done in not too long. Please click the link above for more information about how to get my subtitles (when it's done)

Disclaimer and maybe call for help: But!! I do wish to add that I don't have a working disc ripper anymore, so I shall be subtitling the musical's screenrecord (which is 1080p and proper sound quality! Just... you will at the beginning and the end see my mouse activating and deactivating the recording). If anyone has the musicals properly ripped... please do help me out if you feel like it (haha...that's embarrassing...(^罒^;;)づ )

A good friend of mine and I are always saying that Yunbastian has this extra layer of punchability to him that other Sebastians don’t have.

We largely credit this AGGRAVATING intonation he uses sometimes. Often when Yunbastian speaks, it is in a tone of condescension, a mocking tone.

In this post, I would like to unpack how this punchability adds flavour to Kuromyu. Of course including gifs is the best I can do here, but as this post is about Yunbastian’s tone, I recommend listening back to the audio when you have time (*´▽｀*)ノ🎧

Incongruity in Tone and Spoken Words

In the post ‘That Actor, Influential II, I explained how Sebastian’s style of speaking while using formal vocabulary heightens the insolence in his mannerisms. It is very clear that the less respect Sebastian has for someone, the more condescendingly he behaves.

Yunbastian was sassy from the beginning, but it wasn’t until Noah’s Ark Circus where he started to REALLY get under your skin. At the very beginning of the manga, O!Ciel primarily fulfilled the role of the damsel in distress to Sebastian, to the point that the demon even boldly told his master that he “had no other talents than getting himself abducted”.

It was not until the Circus Arc where O!Ciel started to actually show the competence that would make him worthy of the title ‘the Queen’s Watchdog’. And accordingly, it probably wasn’t until the Circus Arc where Sebastian started to have heartfelt respect for his master.

Respect Level: Pretty Low

Before the start of the case Sebastian greets his master not unlike any other morning. He brings the boy his tea, still asking whether the flavour suits his palette. On surface level, this is of course formality. But the tone in which Yunbastian spoke the words almost made it sound like a rhetorical question. The simple phrase might as well have been: “How is the flavour, my Lord? Happy now? Or are you going to make me ‘open my hands’ again?”

Likewise, when he brings news that the Queen ordered O!Ciel to investigate the circus, Sebastian immediately comments on ‘circus viewing’, thereby equating his master’s mission to a recreational trip.

Unsurprisingly, until that point in the manga, we saw how all O!Ciel’s cases were solved by Sebastian, while O!Ciel’s involvement was usually limited to being a passive participant.

“It is the perfect weather for circus viewing,” is a neutral phrase. But once spoken in Yunbastian’s tone, the scene becomes one wherein the demon is making a passive-aggressive jab at his master’s passiveness. “Don’t worry, you just watch the show on your lazy behind, while I do the rest of the job for you.”

“For her ‘cute little boy’” has always been meant as Sebastian taunting his master. But in context of Yunbastian’s passive-aggression, it is likewise as though he is not just reminding his master that he’s a small child. Instead, it seems like Yunbastian was telling him that his cuteness might be what the Queen values in her Watchpuppy most.

Indeed. What qualities should the Queen have valued at that point in time?

In the Kuromyus, Sebas also functions as the narrator as some spectators would not be familiar with Kuroshitsuji at all. In the lines where in Yunbastian explains what ‘The Queen’s Watchdog’ is, he emphasises the impressiveness of this title.

Very notably, Yunbastian does not specify that it is his master who is ‘impressive’, but merely his name. Yet again, it was as though he was reminding the boy that he was merely born with his social status, but that otherwise he did not earn that reputation. “That is what it means to be a Phantomhive” too is but a neutral phrase, but within context, it might as well have been Yunbastian reminding O!Ciel that being a ‘Phantomhive in name alone is not enough’.

Respect Level: Still Pretty Low

Sebastian cannot lie, that much is clear. When he spoke the phrase “the current master [……] grow sick,” it had always been the truth, but in Yunbastian’s tone, it sounded like a cathartic outlet of the brutal truth.

Respect Level: Growing. Albeit Slowly

The incident with the snakes sadly does not take place in the musical (because of the producers’ terrible priorities), so we did not have the pleasure of seeing Sebas using the snakes to ‘teach his master a lesson’.

Without any chance to show off Sebas’ most notable rebellion against his master, Yunbastian had to find some way to tell the audience that he did not fully respect his master’s order.

Though subtle, Yunbastian settled with a long pause before saying ‘yes, my lord,” and finally disappearing into the darkness with a sceptical look on his face.

Respect Level: Not Too Bad

After the entire investigation wherein O!Ciel proved to Sebastian he knows what hard work is, he earned some of the demon’s heartfelt respect.

In the scene where O!Ciel proclaims to Doll who he is and what his title means, these words link back directly to the beginning of the musical wherein Yunbastian mocked the emptiness to his master’s name. In contrast however, Yunbastian does not show any rebellion or disagreement here.

Contrast this to Yunbastian’s reaction to O!Ciel’s similar proclamation in Lycoris 2015, before he had earned any of Sebas’ respect. ⇊

Respect Level: Decent

It does not mean that Yunbastian will stop his trademark taunting™ after the boy has earned himself a decent level of respect. But the things for which the demon taunts him for has changed.

Now the target of Yunbastian’s mocking is no longer his master’s incompetence, but more generally, his ‘foolishness’ as a human.

In the final stage of the musical, Yunbastian asked his master why he was showing such an ‘uncharacteristic’ level of kindness. O!Ciel gave a clinical answer, explaining the motivation behind his actions to be part of his job - the job he had just proven himself worthy of.

Presumably, Yunbastian had a good hunch as to what the true answer was, but because he had some respect for his Lord, he decided not to challenge the boy any further. Instead, he simply closed the topic off with a rhetoric “is that so, my Lord?”

Tango on the Campania

Seeing the continuation of one character across different stories is incredibly rare in stage media. This is part of the reason why Furukawa treasures the role of Sebastian so much. Kuroshitsuji gives him much more areas to explore than with any other production, after all.

In Tango on the Campania, Sebas is of course still Sebas, so the taunting continues. The taunting is picked up again from where it was left in the previous musical, Noah’s Ark Circus. Here Yunbastian only teases the boy for the misfortune of his own doing, rather than his incompetence.

When his mocking is met by his master’s scornful look, Yunbastian immediately stops, presumably for the respect he has for him.

This is in stark contrast with Yunbastian’s attitude earlier in the chronology. Before, Yunbastian might have stopped the taunting, but never without a provoking smirk or some other big attitude.

Reacting to Feedback

Likewise, there is also a steep contrast between the ways in which Yunbastian reacted to feedback. At the beginning of their contract, Yunbastian would obey, but in words only.

Later in the timeline, we see how the boy criticised his butler for his style. Sebastian replied: “I am very sorry, it was quite an emergency.” Furukawa could have opted for the same passive-aggressive tone he is known for, but he did not. Instead, he spoke the phrase genuinely.

Submission

Sebastian’s contract dictates his submission, but naturally he is not submissive. Seconds after the forming of their contract, Yunbastian said: “give me any order, my little Lord,” but it was clear as day that he considered himself far superiour. The tone in which he spoke was as though he added: “if you dare.”

Contrast this to the Campania Arc. Not only did Yunbastian say the same phrase in a much more genuine tone, it was even preceded by him reminding his master of their master-servant relationship.

Here we can see how Yunbastian has grown from the passive-aggressive rebel to a willing servant who has respect for his master.

In Conclusion

To me, Yunbastian’s punchability adds a layer to understanding how he is this all-powerful demon who has been stooping for humans for who knows how long. It makes it more explicit how his servant guise is simply that - a guise - for the untameable beast he is.

Yunbastian is more jaded and has a long history of rebellion behind him that is less visible in other media. However aggravating, Yunbastian would simply not be the same without his punchability.