Moriarty the Patriot, Volume 2: 03/11/20

Moriarty the Patriot, Volume 2 by Ryōsuke Takeuchi and Hikaru Miyoshi (Illustrations) contains the Noahtic arc which introduces the brothers Moriarty to their future rival, Sherlock Holmes. From there it does a rather straight up re-imagining of A Study in Scarlet (1887).

Noatic arc is unique to the manga/anime. The canon introduction of Moriarty is frankly underwhelming. Most of his brilliance and nefarious motivations are informed attributes. His main goal was to kill off Sherlock Holmes so Arthur Conan Doyle could go off and write other projects — and you know how well that worked out!

Ryōsuke Takeuchi and Hikaru Miyoshi instead create a meeting that comes before the canon timeline. Set on the Noahtic ship — named after Noah — it's William James Moriarty's magnum opus to lay bare the inequities of the British class system and take down a specific aristocrat, known for hunting the poor on his estate for sport. For reasons unknown to him, the Noahtic has drawn the attention of a young consulting detective, thus setting up their first meeting.

The pivotal scene takes place at the base of a grand stairway. How both men react to the staircase gives each man the chance to learn everything they need to about each other. For fans of the canon and pastiches, the staircase scene is fun. Even before Sherlock utters a word, it's clear who he is by how he's standing and how he's sizing up Moriarty who is struck by the mathematical beauty of the staircase. Props, therefore, must go Hikaru Miyoshi's character designs and skills at conveying personality through stance.

The Study in Scarlet redo that starts off in volume 2 and creates the cliffhanger for volume 3, is titled "A Study in Sherlock." The primary goal, though, of bringing together Dr. Watson and Sherlock at 221B Baker street, is beautifully and humorously met.

Volume 3 in English translation releases on April 6, 2021. The manga in the original Japanese is up to volume 13, with volume 14 also releasing in April.

Five stars

Comments (0)