I’ve been trying to write about the new series of Sherlock for a long time now. Before the series started, I had this feeling that I would get to write a super positive, warm, happy feelings review of Sherlock. Thus, I have been trying to avoid actually writing this review cause it’s not going to be what I expected. And so, here it is: I didn’t love it.
I somehow feel disappointed in myself. The first two series of Sherlock were beyond amazing; they were inspired. Looking back, I should not have expected such a high standard from a show that had been on hiatus for two years. There is no way that Sherlock could have sustained it’s own power and ambitions after so many years. Then again, I could never have predicted the show it became: goofy, light, and dizzying.
With all this said, I didn’t hate the third series. I liked it. But there is a noticeable absence in my heart for the show I once loved. Series three felt different, and while I understand why, I still don’t like it.
My thoughts on the three episodes are jumbled:
“The Empty Hearse” made our human and flawed Sherlock into a superhero. He returns to England after essentially living a Bond-esque life abroad, fighting the foreign baddies. He sweeps back into his city first with a view over the rooftops (very literally a scene from Bond’s Skyfall) and with a sweet but silly re-appearance in John’s life. The rest of the episode continued to spotlight Sherlock as some sort of action star – he’s on a motorcycle! He’s saving John! He’s dismantling a bomb! He saves London! I honestly felt like I didn’t know this version of Sherlock.
Granted, there were some truly stunning moments in this episode. First and foremost, I LOVE that we still technically don’t know what happened. The three versions we get (the spring rope and the epic hair shake/Molly kiss, the amazingly homoerotic moment between Moriarity and Sherlock, and then Sherlock’s own recount of the Lazarus deal) were all brilliant, entertaining, and fan-coma-inducing (this should be a word – Tumblr, get on that). But as Anderson quickly points out, even Sherlock’s own version of the event doesn’t fully pan out. And thus, it is still unresolved. But as John points out, it doesn’t really matter how he did it. He did it, it happened, and he’s back.
Mary was a refreshing bit of air in this episode. Amanda Abbington truly did the impossible; she made Mary seem like she’s bit there all along and thus fits in perfectly. Benedict Cumberbatch’s own parents appeared in a lovely moment where we finally meet Sherlock’s own parents. Mycroft and Sherlock share a wonderful exchange over Operation and and an endearing deduction of a winter hat.
Most of my problems with this season lie in “A Sign of Three.” This episode is light and charming but told almost entirely through uneven flashbacks that were, frankly, exhausting. The episode starts out wonderfully with an amazing scene centered around Lestrade. It sinks very quickly after that. Instead of building towards John and Mary’s wedding, we head straight there. Sherlock begins his speech (which was, as has already been detailed in many, many articles, totally brilliant, tear-jerking, and emotional) and from there we are taken to too many other points in one very long story. First up, we see have John asking Sherlock to be his best man (which, I admit, was fantastic and just right), then the Bloody Guardsmen tale (which features one of the worst and dizzying bits of editing I’ve ever seen in my life), then John’s Stag Night, and then Sherlock’s deduction of the Mayfly Man! Phew, exhausting. Oh yeah, and all of that is told via flashback at various points in Sherlock’s best man speech.
Obviously, it didn’t work. There was no reason for the story to be told this way. Each story distracted from one another, and mostly just deteriorated Sherlock’s speech. Not only was it told ineffectively, but it also unraveled into an uninteresting resolution: the Mayfly Man was the photographer at the wedding and he was responsible for secretly killing the Guardsmen and he was after John’s old army lieutenant! There were many problems with this episode, but’s this army lieutenant that bothers me most. He comes out of nowhere, he’s the unassuming victim of this messy story, and he’s saved by Sherlock, Watson, and Mary. But here’s the thing: I don’t care about him. We barely even talk to him before we realize he’s dying and then miraculously saved. The episode was almost saved from some adorable Sherlock moments and the introduction of Jeanine, Mary’s maid of honor who was hilarious and actually appreciated Sherlock.
At this point in the season, I was feeling very confused. These two episodes did not go together; there was no link or really any association between the two. Now, I have no problem with a show that features multiple storylines or various bad guys, but this literally felt like two episodes from two entirely different shows. “His Last Vow” both solved this disassociation and continued to pull the episodes apart, all at the same time! If “The Empty Hearse” was the thrill-seeking action episode, and “A Sign of Three” was the charming romantic thriller, then “His Last Vow” was the intense, non-stop drama.
I’m hesitant to say that I loved “His Last Vow,” but it was definitely my favorite of the three. This pulse-racing thriller centered around business man Charles Augustus Magnessen and blackmail tactics aimed at Mycroft Holmes. We also learn that Mary Morstan is not who she says she is: she’s a former assassin who’s just as infuriated with Magnussen as Sherlock. Throughout this episode, we’re lead to believe that Magnussen has an impressive vault filled with the world’s dirty laundry. Sherlock and Watson arrive at Magnussen’s home to get their own peak into this vault and to clear Mary’s name, only to discover that Magnussen’s vault is actually…….his own mind palace. While this is an interesting twist, in this specific instance, it just doesn’t hold up. We’re told at the beginning of the episode that Magnussen is essentially one of the most powerful men in the world because he can blackmail almost any person through their “pressure points” that he and only he knows. He claims that he doesn’t need evidence to bring someone down in print. But I would argue – yes, yes you do! Not only this, but we never actually see Magnussen bring someone down. This audience can’t fear him as Sherlock, Mary, and Watson do unless we actually see him at his worst.
Despite all of this, Magnussen was still an interesting and memorable foe (most notably his ‘face flicking’ towards the end of the episode) who provided plenty of intriguing moments. Though much of this episode was focused on this baddie, the real star of “His Last Vow” was Miss Mary Watson. From the moment she shot Sherlock to her final wave as Sherlock’s one-way plane departed, Mary owned this episode. Her scenes with John were entrancing and emotional. To be honest, I wish this was one whole episode on it’s own.
This season of Sherlock was pretty light on the deductions, but it turns out they were saving this for the final episode. When Mary shoots Sherlock, Sherlock quickly goes into his most intense deduction of his career in order to prevent his own death. What follows is the best ten minutes I’ve seen on television all year. Everyone here gets their turn: Molly and Anderson push Sherlock towards survival, Mycroft sassily schools Sherlock at his own bullet status, and we finally learn about Redbeard. And then, of course, Sherlock makes it into his own vault as he very nears death: deep down in the basement of his subconscious, we find a straight-jacketed Moriarity. Deepset, crusty-eyed, batshit crazy Moriarity. Andrew Scott only appears for a grand total of three minutes, but he deserves every award in the book for it. His few lines are the stuff of nightmares. Suffice to say, Sherlock doesn’t die, but he should near death every episode because that was the most entertaining television one could ever ask for.
And then, lo and behold, we end with Moriarity. As Sherlock flies off to a likely death as a punishment for murdering Magnussen, Moriarity takes over every television in England to ask every British citizen “Did you miss me?” Yes, Moriarity, I did, but you died. I’m not sure where showrunners Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss are going to take series four, but there’s one thing I’m truly, truly hoping for: keep Moriarity dead. I loved his as much as anyone, but we watched him put a bullet through his head. He’s dead. His six episodes ended brilliantly and perfectly. So let’s keep him dead, shall we?
Okay, that was a lot. Clearly, I’ve got a lot of feelings on three ninety-minute episodes. But as Tumblr, Twitter, and every single entertainment publication under the sun has shown me, everyone else in the world has just as many feelings about these episodes as I do. With that said, please share your comments with me! I know that a lot of what I’ve said here isn’t exactly popular opinion, so please let me know what you think of these episodes, my view on said episodes, or even just how much you love Benedict Cumberbatch’s face (I love his face very, very much).
The Nerdy Girl 