Why is this whole world so precisely twisted?
What They Say:
Albert invites the brothers to come live at the Moriarty’s estate, but the pair are not warmly welcomed by the other members of the household. Albert grows increasingly disturbed by his family’s intolerance, and resorts to drastic measures.
The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
The first half of this two-part backstory ended with a rather abrupt leap to the dramatic event that reshaped the Moriarty family into that of three brothers of equal standing and mutual respect. This latter half exists to fill in the story between those last two scenes of the previous episode, though it’s more or less what one could infer from the tease we got last time.
One question that the audience likely needed answered as early as possible was how we could be sure that Albert is fully on William’s side – that is, William as we know him, not the original William James Moriarty he replaces. If this episode needn’t take 24 episodes to tell its half of the story, its one most critical function was answering this question with no room for doubt. Albert’s perspective is perhaps the most respectable we’ve encountered yet, a fact which, given how dark it ends up being, shows what kind of story we’ve been thrown into. Albert was raised in an environment that teaches and nurtures the mentality that has turned the rest of his family, and even their servants, into despicable social elitists, and that environment has given him everything he could’ve ever asked for. However, against all odds, Albert has managed to break the cycle, a feat only possible thanks to a unique combination of innate good that’s too lacking in these circles and a curiosity that has led him to experience the world of the less fortunate, ultimately leading him to the ideals of the boy who he would help rise up to become the great Professor Moriarty, at least as this particular story presents it.
Albert’s immediate reverence of William as almost godlike is a bit much, and the measures he’s willing to take against his blood brother William, and soon his entire family and house, all imply some commonality with the orphan William’s almost undeniable degree of sociopathy, an aspect that runs in interesting contrast to the obvious empathy for the less fortunate that brought him to these extremes in the first place. Perhaps a more nuanced story would’ve depicted Albert with a bit more hesitation before committing these unthinkable actions, but the story clearly wanted to move along quickly and ensure we knew that he was on the “good” side of the two evils.
The fact that these brothers have thus far been shown to inflict pain on the arguably more evil gives the series an inherent moral ambiguity that is always interesting to explore. But perhaps its greatest weakness throughout these stories is that even those conflicts are portrayed with a rather black-and-white dichotomy. The way Albert’s family, especially his real brother, treat the poor is somewhat characterized, though given how twisted many nobles have thought through generations of effectively brainwashing, that may not be an unrealistic portrayal. However, it could’ve been an even more challenging story had the old William been less of a moustache-twirling villain, or if our protagonists struggled with the consequences of their “perfect crime” a little more. It’s not hard to see why this path was chosen, though; we get a darkly satisfying catharsis, an extreme sense of schadenfreude that may be most valuable as a means to examine our own morals of how righteous we can view evil when inflicted upon greater evil.
In Summary:
The Moriarty backstory wraps up, bringing with it the full scope of what a brilliant criminal consultant and an almost equally young client can do even as children. It’s intentionally somewhat disturbing, but even if it could use a touch more nuance, it paints a good picture of what to expect from these characters and their ideals. It’s all rather enjoyable in a manner twisted enough to challenge our own sense of right and wrong in a world where everything is just different levels of wrong.
Grade: B-
Streamed By: Funimation
Review Equipment:
LG Electronics OLED65C7P 65-Inch 4K Ultra HD Smart OLED TV, Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K