It’s so tricky to even ship in this fandom without someone getting bent out of shape. When you think on it, every character has some flaw that would deem them incapable of being with the other and branded ‘problematic’ or unhealthy.
In this case, we’re talking William, who we hardly get to comment on since his appearance is so scarce. Save for the Circus Arc, but even then he’s quickly shoved to the side in the plot. His presence at that circus was merely to serve as a clue to Sebastian and Ciel that something really was going on with children going missing everywhere this troupe went.
For canon, we see Will at end of Jack the Ripper, Noah’s ark circus, end of Campania, and the end Green Witch arcs. The worst we see him act is on JtR, in which this dude stands and stomps on Grell’s head, drags him by the hair, yada yada. What Will did isn’t as severe as the shit Sebastian dealt upon our lovely redhead. But see…that wouldn’t count for what we’re talking about. That was a FIGHT with a possibility of the loser getting seriously injured or dying. Same would go for what William did to Sebastian at the circus. He was on defense. The abuse people are tagging William with is the kind that exists between relationships both platonic and/or romantic.
As for William actually being an abusive character: Unpopular opinion: I really don’t think he is. Look up Boke and tsukkomi in Manzai (a form of Japanese comedy). And you’ll find that William fits into being a Tsukkomi. Totally. And everyone else is his Boke. Except instead of a paper fan, it’s his rod of a death scythe… And this type of comedy carries on in just about ALL forms of Japanese media. I see more real depictions of abuse in the yaoi and bl’s that I read than in this franchise alone. So yeah, if you tag William as abusive, you’re going to have to tag every anime/manga character you see giving hits over the head as ‘abusive’. And slaps, stabs, and whacks with his trusty rod I can see him do to ANYONE. Human as well. We can’t forget the time he tried to snip at Ciel’s heels for stepping over his property line. One could say he’s just as ruthless with his scythe as Grell and Ronald are.
My point is, he’s not doing these actions to gauge someone of their sanity (and the actions he does towards Grell and other reapers don’t traumatize them as such either), which is what serious abuse does. This is where people tack on far too much reality to a completely fictional shonen manga with a high charge of fantasy(let’s not forget, William is classified as a supernatural/mythical character). What I see here are people getting FAR too off track about Will’s character and painting him to be something he really isn’t JUST because he whacks over his supporting character’s heads. (Again..look up Manzai) It might just take a good knowledge of Japanese media in general to see it.
Stern, firm boss, that gets after his subordinates for mistakes? Yes… Do I think he would actually physically and/or emotionally abuse his colleagues or romantic partners enough to cause severe trauma/PTSD (like people constantly accuse him of)? No. Unless he’s being defensive, I can’t see him the equivalent to a suspect in domestic violence/murder. I can’t see him wanting to hurt someone just for the sake of hurting or torturing them until they don’t have a mind of their own anymore. No I don’t think he’s that much of a sociopath.
Aaaaand getting back to the OP: You’re right. William has never killed anyone…that wasn’t on his to-die list. I find the reason why he’s so stern and bossy is because he wants to leave his punishment. He follows all the rules and makes sure others do because he wants to ascend and repay for the crime of taking his own life. And simply hates people, reapers, and demons getting in his way and holding him back from his goal. He’s just a man desperate to end his own punishment of being a reaper.
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