Holmes of Kyoto Episode 5: The Lost Dragon

In this episode, we have another mystery to solve, where Holmes displays his supposed detective skills. These skills, rather than seeming like genuine observation and investigation abilities, appear to be more like random guessing and being right simply because the plot dictates he's correct. This anime definitely tries too hard to sell him as a detective, but it doesn't provide the necessary evidence to make us believe he can actually notice so many details just by observing his surroundings. The villain's motivations are incredibly silly and empty, and the way they let him go is ridiculous. It's also absurd how he reveals his entire plan once cornered, like some kind of Scooby-Doo villain. This anime should ditch the poorly executed mysteries and just focus on being a Kyoto tourism brochure, which is the only thing it does well.

In this episode, it feels like Holmes finally meets his own "Moriarty." This anime has been surprisingly enjoyable. It's not groundbreaking by any means, but it's consistently entertaining. The case itself is decent, nothing particularly special, but I think the episode is mainly focused on introducing the main antagonist. Overall, it was a good episode.

The dynamic between Holmes and Akihito is joyfully magnetic since they have friction between them, so it becomes that much satisfying that they find even ground, especially since Holmes have bias against him. Not to mention, those unfamiliar with Kyoto gets to know a bit more of the tourist spot and culture. But most importantly, we get to dive into Holmes' character a bit more that give better picture of how he views things. However, the deductive reasoning is a bit contrived and ridiculous, while there's barely anything to investigate that Holmes hasn't already figured in a glance.