They should have kept the "drudges."
Summary:
- Underclassmen obliged to help upper years were called "fags" in the manga.
- First episodes of the adaptation changed the word to "drudges."
- Episode 3 went back to the original name.
Black Butler: Public School Arc (Kuroshitsuji: Kishuku Gakkou-hen) Episode 3 aired last week, on April 27, and the series once again reminded us how masterful Ciel's strategy and plans are.
While the way Ciel tricked Cole was truly exciting, there was another detail in the episode that fans noticed, and that is the word that's mostly used as a slur nowadays, "fag."
It Wasn't Meant to Be a Slur in Manga
In the manga, this word was used to talk about underclassmen who helped older students with various chores. Such duties might include ironing, cleaning, cooking, or other things that butlers usually do.
Although there was no intention to use this word as a slur in the manga, fans were concerned that if it remained the same in the anime adaptation, it might cause quite a controversy among viewers.
The Public School Arc of the manga was published more than 10 years ago, and even back then it wasn't the kind of word that should be said out loud, but right now it's an even more sensitive subject.
Episode 3 Uses the F-Word
The first episodes of the new Black Butler season pleasantly surprised fans by changing "fags" to "drudges." There was a small part of the fandom that was upset by it, since their controversy-craving souls were looking forward to seeing the audience's reaction. But we'd say it was better that way.
However, Episode 3 decided to be more manga-accurate and use "fags" instead of "drudges," which surprised fans once again. It's easy to understand why the series went with "drudges" in the first place, but it's puzzling why it decided to change it a couple of episodes later.
There is an idea that it was just a mistake, and the subtitles are to be fixed in the future, but it's still unknown if that's true or not.
Fans are worried that the choice of this word might backfire for the series and bring it some trouble, and no one wants that, of course. Black Butler is treading on very thin ice with Sebaciel already, so the fandom knows what controversy is very well, no one needs another one.
No matter how close to the original source the "f-word" is, we have to agree that it would be much more sensible to leave it out of the adaptation. So let's hope that the translation will be fixed in the future, and the Black Butler fandom will have some peace.