June started on a cheerful note with the release of the second trailer of Bungo Stray Dogs season 5. While the excitement of the fandom is at an all-time high, given the series is feeding fans well with back-to-back seasons, the fifth season has been announced to premiere on July 12 at 11 pm JST. Aside from that, the trailer also revealed the opening and ending theme songs for the upcoming installment.
Having earlier contributed to the theme songs for the first and third seasons of the series, as well as the Bungo Stray Dogs: Dead Apple film, GRANRODEO will now be providing the opening for the fifth season with the song titled Kurogane no Ori (Iron Cell). On the other hand, the ending theme song is called Kiseki (Trails) by Luck Life. Like GRANRODEO, this band has also previously composed and performed songs for all four seasons and the movie.
As per the trailer, season 5 will resume with the events of the previous one, where the Armed Detective Agency members are still being framed as terrorists. Aside from that, it is evident that Hunting Dogs will now serve a more prominent position in the upcoming season, if leader Ochi Fukuchi’s screentime is anything to go by. Then there’s Decay of the Angels, who currently possess a page of the mysterious book. Fyodor is still stuck within the Meursault prison along with Dazai, so it remains to be seen who will ultimately outwit the other and emerge victorious. With more questions raised than answers given in the fourth installment, the trailer of the upcoming one provides much respite to wondering fans who don’t mind spoilers. So, if you would like to maintain your ignorance, here’s your chance to exit the article, otherwise feed your curiosity well by reading ahead.
Note: This article contains heavy spoilers from the manga.
Bungo Stray Dogs season 5 will cover the events of two manga arcs
Fukuchi lays down his cards; Ranpo’s miscalculation
Much like the first trailer, the second PV of Bungo Stray Dogs season 5 begins with Hunting Dogs’ leader, Ochi Fukuchi, making his speech at the UN General Assembly. The context before this starts with the CTC approaching Fukuchi to approve and administer an “Anti-Terrorism Association.” Although the scene ends up being a comic relief, with Fukuchi barfing and saying he was unable to process the information, the flat refusal he initially gave turned into an affirmative response. However, amidst all this, readers get to know that he is shaken by Ranpo’s live television broadcast, which the people who admire him are unaware of.
This scene gradually transitions to Fukuchi at the UN General Assembly. Long story short, whereas members attending the conference were earlier reluctant to go forward with the approval of the “Anti-Terrorism Association,” they are now incredibly moved by Fukuchi’s fiery speech on countering terrorism by fighting back. But, he proposes that the “Anti-Terrorism Association” will now be called “The Humankind Army.”
Next scene in the trailer sees Ranpo informing the Armed Detective Agency members about how Decay of the Angels will cause the destruction of the country in six days, so before that they must defeat Kamui and steal the page of the book that he now is in possession of. This scene in the trailer may have seen the Great Detective telling it to the members beforehand, as all of them are seen in their trademark clothes at the ADA’s meeting room. In the manga, he says the same dialog to Fukuchi after his speech about “The Humankind Army.”
Plus, Kenji and Tanizaki are seen in this scene, which is not possible since in the manga, the rest of the ADA members (excluding Dazai, Fukuzawa, Kenji, and Tanizaki) had met within Anne’s Room, where Atsushi, Kyoka, Lucy, and Ango were already present. Moreover, Kunikida’s hands look normal in the trailer, but in the manga, he is seen with missing arms until Yosano’s arrival within Anne’s room. The purpose of the latter set of characters’ grouping happened right after the Sky Casino incident where Atsushi lost grip of Sigma’s hand and he fell. However, when he held onto Atsushi, Sigma passed some of the information about Kamui’s identity to him. Following this, Atsushi reveals to the group that the page is with Kamui, i.e., the Decay of the Angels’ leader.
A familiar face enters as Dazai’s enemy; Fyolai’s shenanigans lands up in Nikolai’s deadly duel
The trailer then shifts focus to Meursault’s security control room, where sirens blare and people operating the system scream “warning” (in Japanese). After a brief focus on a crater on the wall, a person wearing jeans is seen walking. As he moves away, several people in uniform are seen on the floor, implying that he might have either injured or killed them on the spot. As per manga, the person in question is Chuuya Nakahara, who will be seen as the ultimate weapon employed by Fyodor to win the deadly game against Dazai. However, Chuuya won’t be his normal self as he would be infected by Bram Stoker’s virus and be turned into a vampire, which is why he won’t have a proper consciousness of his own.
The next scene in the Bungo Stray Dogs trailer is perhaps the most interesting, but the background music suddenly picks up after Fyodor and Dazai exchange words about death. The context here is that Meursault prisoners Dazai and Fyodor have lunch in their respective square cells. After a failed attempt to pass the salt shaker and raw egg to each other, they laugh. But the scene then gets serious (also seen in the trailer) when Dazai somberly declares:
“Is it almost time to do ‘that’?”
When Fyodor enquires about it, Dazai replies:
“Who’s gonna die.”
Fyodor then comments how he thinks it’s “a wonderful idea” and then escapes, after which Dazai falls from a circular portal (courtesy: Nikolai’s ability) and lands on his bottom. What follows next is Nikolai and Sigma’s entry back into the narrative. Nikolai then says how both Fyodor and Dazai will now participate in a “Jail Break Duel,” which would involve the two to inject poison into their bloodstream and trying to make it alive out of the prison using one weapon. While Dazai would proceed with Sigma, later on, it is revealed that Fyodor will participate in the battle with a vampirized Chuuya.
Shin Soukoku vs Kamui; the rage of the Hunting Dogs
Coming back to the trailer, as the main battle of the upcoming season wages, the stance that Atsushi takes will result in him getting his leg cut off by the swift slash of Fukuchi’s sword. The scene is significant as prior to this, Fukuchi accompanies Ranpo and Atsushi to the ship under the pretense of helping them and, by extension, the Armed Detective Agency. However, when Ranpo uses his Ultra Deduction ability after wearing his glasses, he realizes that he had miscalculated because Kamui is none other than Fukuchi, whose charisma and influence on military, government, and civilians had led to his upstanding in the society – a perfect guise for him to carry out his terrorist attacks without being caught.
After Ranpo uses Poe’s book to get himself into it so that he can protect himself, he exposes Kamui’s identity and warns Atsushi of Fukuchi’s dangerous weapon-enhancing ability. As the opening theme song by GRANRODEO plays in the background, Atsushi and Akutagawa (in his full-body Rashomon suit) are seen going all out against Fukuchi, who uses his sword’s enhanced speed and strength to attack them.
What follows next are a series of small clips giving brief glimpses of what will follow into this season. Among them are Hunting Dog members Teruko and Tetcho. In the manga, the setting is at an airport where after Fukuchi looks for Aya (who hides inside Bram Stoker’s casket) and hears an explosion from outside. On the other end, Ranpo tells Atsushi in Anne’s room how it is easy to “repel” the European authorities, and all it would take is “one second” to bring them down. However, as the ADA accomplish their mission, Ranpo acknowledges how he could be outwitted by Fyodor, and true to his words, the British officers suddenly die due to internal bleeding. As the plane makes its way to crash into the airport, Kunikida sees Teruko driving a van, on whose hood Tetcho stands and launches an attack at the plane. With the slashing of his extended sword, the plane shatters, and the delivery that was supposed to be received by the Hunting Dogs ultimately lands in Fukuchi’s hands. In one of the panels, Kunikida informs Ranpo that “the enemy has achieved their final goal. We’re defeated.”
On the other hand is Tachihara, who was seen in season 4 to have finally realized the effects of the book and how the ADA members are being framed as terrorists. The trailer also sees him throwing a sword at someone. In the manga, he battles against Fukuchi when he discovers that his superior is the infamous Kamui. Briefly, viewers also notice Port Mafia’s leader, Ogai Mori. Although he won’t have much screen time in Bungo Stray Dogs season 5, he will probably be seen in Tachihara’s flashback. Here, Mori will craftily reveal that he already knew about Tachihara being a Hunting Dog member by placing the latter’s uniform cap on his head.
Fukuzawa’s ‘betrayal’; Atsushi dons Rashomon once again
The focus then shifts once again to Atsushi and Akutagawa’s battle with Fukuchi. From brief flashes of Fukuzawa and Fukuchi’s younger selves, it will be revealed in Bungo Stray Dogs season 5 how Fukuchi and his childhood friend shared the same path and destiny until Fukuzawa didn’t join him to the battlefield. At one point in the manga, Fukuzawa reveals to Ranpo that he feels sad knowing Fukuchi must be lonely since the ADA’s president found his “path” in life first. It is thus presumed that what Fukuchi had thought would sustain his and Fukuzawa’s future ended with the latter’s ‘betrayal’ by choosing an avenue different from his.
The ending of the Bungo Stray Dogs season 5 PV sees the ADA once again, but this time within Anne’s room. Interestingly, Kunikida’s arms seem to have been restored/regenerated, which may be due to Yosano’s ability. In the manga, this scene shows how the presence of five ADA members (excluding Kenji and Tanizaki since they were not in the manga panels) is important to surpass even the greatest adversaries. The brief scene of Dazai with his tan coat flapping in the wind is perhaps a modified scene from the manga where the mentor comes into Atsushi’s memories to remind him of his capabilities as a fighter and to find solutions with what he has at his disposal immediately.
The last scene of the trailer is the collaboration of Atsushi and Akutagawa, which quickly implies that the latter will once again lend his Rashoumon to the ADA member. Using this ability, Atsushi then attacks Fukuchi.
While this is where the trailer ends, this battle will end with the death of Akutagawa. However, he will be vampirized by Fukuchi, who would be impressed by his skills and abilities. Following this, the vampire Akutagawa will attack Higuchi and turn her into one of his kind. From here onwards, a chain reaction would follow that would see most of the Port Mafia members being infected by the virus. What feels mysterious is Chuuya’s vampirization, who remains out of the manga’s events most of the time. Moreover, him assisting Dazai, his former partner, raises further questions. On the other hand, Kenji’s backstory will be delved into, while Atsushi will finally gain the courage against Teruko and walk out of the room to face his enemies. Another interesting sub-plot will be that of Bram Stoker and Aya Koda.
Akutagawa’s sacrifice; the ambiguous fate of Port Mafia
As evident from this spoiler article, Bungo Stray Dogs season 5 will officially cover the Kamui Revelation Arc, which happened between chapter 79 and 88. However, the PV also shows that it will cover the ongoing Vampire Infection Outbreak Arc. Since it’s an incomplete arc as of now, it may so happen that Studio Bones will cut the season short after some grand revelation or cliffhanger. The most likely scenario would be Chuuya’s entry as a vampire, as anything beyond that, such as his and Fyodor’s drowning or Dazai meeting his former partner after he jumps from the floor and injures himself fatally, would require much elaboration. Unless the season 5 is aiming for an anime-original ending, it is likely that the season will end inside Meursault.
