REVIEW: ‘Bungo Stray Dogs’ Episode 54 — “Hero War, Gang War”

The stakes continue to rise in Bungo Stray Dogs Season 5 Episode 4, “Heroes Go To War,” with the Armed Detective Agency on the ropes in their battle against the Decay of the Angels. Ouchi Fukuchi has turned out to be a seemingly invulnerable villain, and Atsushi is left to take him on alone after the apparent death of Akutagawa. It remains to be seen how Fukuchi would possibly be stopped, but the Agency won’t go down without a fight.

After watching Akutagawa die in front of him, Atsushi is only barely able to escape his battle with Fukuchi. In fact, the only reason Atsushi is able to get away at all is because of a timely appearance by some guards who unintentionally distract Fukuchi just long enough for Atsushi to get out of range of Amenogozen, Fukuchi’s ultra-powerful space-time sword. It seemed a bit odd that the only way Atsushi could get away from an unstoppable villain is because of an unrelated distraction, but Fukuchi’s reasoning for not just killing the guards and giving chase does make sense in the context of what is happening and starts to show some cracks in his ability.

Meanwhile, to the surprise of virtually no one, Akutagawa isn’t completely dead. Or, at least, he doesn’t stay that way for long in Bungo Stray Dogs Season 5 Episode 4. It turns out Fukuchi has been storing a vampire named Count Bram away for times like this, so he unleashes an unfathomably large vampire apocalypse by converting Akutagawa into a vampire and letting him wreak havoc. Having a vampire named after Bram Stoker is par for the course for Bungo Stray Dogs, naming characters after their literary counterparts. The name choice actually makes a lot more sense than the general introduction of vampires, but I’m willing to give this time to play out before I completely write it off as too cheesy and out of place.

What I am enjoying is the sheer awesome power of Fukuchi’s sword Amenogozen. Fukuchi is confronted by Tachihara, one of the members of the Hunting Dogs also working with the Port Mafia, after Tachihara suspects Fukuchi of being behind everything that is taking place. Tachihara has the ability to control metal, making him the perfect candidate to nullify Amenogozen and even use it for his own benefit. It actually works for a moment too, and Fukuchi seems like he is about to lose in devastating fashion before the blade suddenly appears through Tachihara’s chest.

At first, it felt like an extremely overpowered ability being used to cheaply get a character out of a pickle. However, it serves as a really neat opportunity for Fukuchi to show just how brilliant he is and how hard it is going to be to stop him. The fact that he can send messages to himself from the future and use those subtle messages to unravel what is happening so he can preemptively stab his sword into the future to save himself is as incredible as it is hard to make sense of. It’s a wild ability that bends space, time, and viewers’ brains, and it makes Fukuchi an imposing villain with seemingly no weakness.

Fukuchi isn’t just imposing in small-scale battles, his master plan is unfolding all over the world as nation after nation falls to the vampires he helped create. Seeing the world crumble around them pushes the United Nations to activate their ultimate weapon, something I have no doubt Fukuchi was planning for all along. Just how this all will pan out is yet to be seen, but it’s impossible to see how the Armed Detective Agency or anyone else can truly stop Fukuchi.

Bungo Stray Dogs Season 5 Episode 4 does such a great job of laying the groundwork for what comes next by establishing just how dire things really are. The battle of swords and wits is at the forefront throughout the episode while the world falls apart. The stakes are high and the challenge is looking impossible, but that shouldn’t stop the Armed Detective Agency from somehow finding a way to stop Fukuchi and save the world.

Bungo Stray Dogs Season 5 Episode 4 is streaming now on Crunchyroll.