These Japanese do love Western detective fiction and, of course, no one would dare to skip the masterpiece of Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle in particular. This is understandable, because Holmes is one of the most popular detective characters in the whole world. After all, there are far too many movie adaptations around the whole world. Unfortunately, many people seem to miss another genius that you can analyze over and over again and find something new about him, someone who is not less charismatic and talented than Holmes himself. Someone who could have been even more of a genius than Holmes, had he not been a villain. Of course, I mean Professor James Moriarty, the ‘Napoleon of the crime world’, a professor of mathematics and the person who gained recognition of Sherlock Holmes.

For some reason, this particular character is often forgotten. And this is something Japanese mangaka decided to fix in 2016 and make a story about the youngest professor of Durham University (Sherlock Holmes: The Unauthorized Biography), a brilliant mathematician and a criminal, William James Moriarty. No, this is not a mistake. Rather, Conan Doyle himself was mistaken, (and, most likely, he simply did not think of it) when he gave the two Moriarty brothers the same name.

‘Watson does, however, refer to the name of another family member when he writes of ‘the recent letters in which Colonel James Moriarty defends the memory of his brother’. In ‘The Adventure of the Empty House’ (1903), Holmes refers to Moriarty on one occasion as ‘Professor James Moriarty’. This is the only time Moriarty is given a first name, and oddly, it is the same as that of his purported brother. In the 1914 novel The Valley of Fear (written after the preceding two stories, but set earlier), Holmes says of Professor Moriarty: ‘He is unmarried. His younger brother is a station master in the west of England.’ In Sherlock Holmes: A Drama in Four Acts, an 1899 stage play of which Doyle was a co-author, he is named Professor Robert Moriarty.’

What is the point of quoting the book, if we are talking about the anime adaptation? But the anime was created only thanks to the masterpiece of Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle, which means that facts like the name of the main character should be taken into account. So what do we have? Three Moriarty brothers, who are united by one name - James. How can you tell them apart? Make ‘James’ a middle name. This is how Albert James Moriarty, William James Moriarty and younger brother - Lewis James Moriarty appear.

Story
‘The end of the century before last, the British Empire rules the world, and the class system is the heart of this system. And then suddenly James Moriarty appears - a young man who wants to destroy the evil arising from class discrimination and create an ideal country, where there will be no place for oppression and your social status will be nothing, an empty sound.’ Moriarty the Patriot offers a new look at the world of Conan Doyle (the story is made in such a way that ‘A Study in Scarlet’ and ‘A Scandal in Bohemia’ are only small parts of Moriarty's big plan), and the unsightly side of the aristocracy that treats ordinary people like cattle or wild animals, which is why, while watching the anime, you can involuntarily begin to agree with the protagonist’s worldview, who does not even deny that he is ‘evil’. However, is evil done in the name of good truly evil? If this is evil, then who decided it? Maybe this was decided by the evil itself, which must be destroyed. Those who have read Conan Doyle will encounter many familiar names in the anime. Sherlock Holmes and John Watson, Colonel Sebastian Moran, Fred Porlock, etc… and the best girl, Mrs. Hudson.

Overall
I am disappointed. But I do not want to share my criticism(salt) with you and I think that the mangaka and the people responsible for the anime adaptation could have made a much better research; there are far too many flaws that are beyond obvious. But I forgive you, Japan. Though, you could have followed Yukimura Makoto example and made a better research. Anyways, this was, indeed, a very unusual watch and I would highly recommend to each and every anime fan to give it a try. No question about it, there are flaws, but there is something enjoyable about this anime adaptation.