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Sherlock Series 3 |OT| - THE Source for Fiction’s Cheekbone Fetish

K

Krev

Unconfirmed Member
Sherlock has always flirted with overdirection, but this is the episode where it went over the cliff. Really, really bad, constantly detracting from the onscreen drama.

Didn't like the Austin Powers esque cross cutting scene.

Thought the placement of Sherlock's explanation to Anderson was odd. I understand that it was there to heighten the suspense, but if you're going to cut away to something else in the middle of such a crucial moment, it had better be related. The idea of the solution being unsatisfyingly simple in both cases wasn't a strong enough bridge.

I thought the season 2 opener was a lot better. Moffatt seems to be buying into his own hype too much. This show seems obsessed with how clever it is.

I did like all Sherlock's scenes with Molly. Great character moments for both of them. And the restaurant infiltration was hilarious in the classic Sherlock way.
 
C

Cornballer

Member
Deadline said:
‘Sherlock’ Makes Explosive Return To BBC In Series’ Most-Watched Episode Ever

Benedict Cumberbatch came back to life as Sherlock Holmes in The Empty Hearse, the first episode of Season 3 of Sherlock which aired on BBC One on New Year’s Day. The 90-minute installment was the series’ most-watched episode ever in the UK. Overnight ratings show that 9.2M viewers tuned in to learn how the high-functioning sociopath faked his own death in the last episode of Season 2, The Reichenbach Fall — and to witness his reunion with Dr John Watson (Martin Freeman). The Empty Hearse drew a 33.8% share to be yesterday’s most-watched program, peaking at 9.7M viewers, while provisional figures also make it the the most-watched drama of the whole holiday period in the UK. The run-up to Sherlock‘s return has been frenzied, with the BBC providing a host of goodies to fans who have waited nearly two years to revisit the character. A mini-episode titled Many Happy Returns was released by the BBC online on Christmas Eve and as of December 31st had been viewed over 1.5M times across the BBC iPlayer and BBC Red Button with millions more watching on YouTube. The next 90-minute Sherlock Season 3 episode, The Sign Of Three, airs in the UK on January 5th. Season 3 begins in the U.S. on PBS on January 19th. Until then, beware abundant spoilers around the Web.
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.
 
H

Hagi

Member
Quite enjoyed the opener even with the show being truly up it's own arse. It was worth it just to see them interact with each other again. The scene from the restaurant to the takeaway to the cafe was ace. Can't wait till Sunday!
 
W

War Peaceman

You're a big guy.
Krev said:
Sherlock has always flirted with overdirection, but this is the episode where it went over the cliff. Really, really bad, constantly detracting from the onscreen drama.
Click to expand...

Agreed. There were too many visual gimmicks. The coffee cup-eyes. The incessant slow motion. The Edgar Wright style rapid-transitions(probably not the right word for them). It felt eager to impress when it should have been letting the characters get on with business.
 
T

tomato shrub

Member
okay episode, i guess. would have definitely prefered a fullfledged terrorist plot instead of doing a whole episode of comic relief. i mean, i wouldnt mind if they had more than 3...
 
A

Auron_Kale

Member
vcassano1 said:
Agreed. There were too many visual gimmicks. The coffee cup-eyes. The incessant slow motion. The Edgar Wright style rapid-transitions(probably not the right word for them). It felt eager to impress when it should have been letting the characters get on with business.
Click to expand...

I honestly enjoyed it because in a way, it pokes fun at all of the other shows that are guilty of relying on such things rather than telling a story. Sherlock has action, but it's a character drama first and foremost.

You knew something was off within the first three minutes or so because that's not now Sherlock usually presents itself. After all, to borrow the line from Many Happy Returns, "only lies have detail" and it's use of misdirection for the theories was fun I thought.
 
F

Frost_Ace

Member
Some great character moments in the episode but yeah it was a bit over directed which I really don't like. Can't wait to see more!
 
B

Battle Born

Member
That was a great, fun episode. I loved watching Molly helping Sherlock solve crimes. I also liked watching Watson getting angrier when Sherlock kept telling him about all the people that knew his secret.
I look forward to the new episode.
 
M

marrec

Banned
It was a bit over the top... but the dialog and character moments more than made up for it. Cumberbatch and Martin continue to have electric chemistry.
 
A

Auron_Kale

Member
marrec said:
It was a bit over the top... but the dialog and character moments more than made up for it. Cumberbatch and Martin continue to have electric chemistry.
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Again, I enjoyed that it was a bit over the top because I felt like it was poking fun at other shows for 'overdirecting'.

Those two definitely have fantastic chemistry but also, they all seem to have great chemistry with one another. It's great fun seeing them on-screen together.
 
M

marrec

Banned
Auron_Kale said:
Again, I enjoyed that it was a bit over the top because I felt like it was poking fun at other shows for 'overdirecting'.

Those two definitely have fantastic chemistry but also, they all seem to have great chemistry with one another. It's great fun seeing them on-screen together.
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I really didn't have a problem with the direction, better than a dour and serious return with zero frivolity.

Though a few times when he went into this 'mind palace' it looked like something out of Star Trek TOS.
 
X

xandaca

Member
Auron_Kale said:
I should go back to sleep for a bit (I have work today) but here you go.

Oh and here's the link for The Sign of Three trailer.
Click to expand...

Is it just me or is that Irene Adler on Sherlock's arm outside the church (in the 3D swoopy shot with all the confetti)? Would be fun to have her back, if only because Lara Pulver is so outrageously lovely it counteracts the mild irritation everytime someone mispronounces her character's name (it should be the classic British pronounciation of Irene, Iree-nee, apparently).
 
A

Auron_Kale

Member
Quick said:
#TeamLestrooper
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Damn right Quicky, damn right.

marrec said:
I really didn't have a problem with the direction, better than a dour and serious return with zero frivolity.

Though a few times when he went into this 'mind palace' it looked like something out of Star Trek TOS.
Click to expand...

It did and funny enough, I didn't mind the holodeck-ness of that. It was a bit more fun than when he'd go to his Mind Palace in S2.

xandaca said:
Is it just me or is that Irene Adler on Sherlock's arm outside the church (in the 3D swoopy shot with all the confetti)? Would be fun to have her back, if only because Lara Pulver is so outrageously lovely it counteracts the mild irritation everytime someone mispronounces her character's name (it should be the classic British pronounciation of Irene, Iree-nee, apparently).
Click to expand...

People on tumblr/youtube were commenting about that. Personally, I'm just going to wait and see but it'd be fun if it happened.

Oh and available on the BBC Shop: I Don't Shave for Sherlock Holmes t-shirt. And they have all the sizes in case you were wondering.
 
P

Prompto

Banned
Great episode. Only complaint was, as others have said, there wasn't a lot of detective stuff going on. Also was Sherlock faking his death in such an elaborate way basically only to convince Watson he died? The sniper was taken care of and so was Moriarty. Wouldn't it have just been easier to let John in on it?
 
A

Auron_Kale

Member
Prompto said:
Great episode. Only complaint was, as others have said, there wasn't a lot of detective stuff going on. Also was Sherlock faking his death in such an elaborate way basically only to convince Watson he died? The sniper was taken care of and so was Moriarty. Wouldn't it have just been easier to let John in on it?
Click to expand...

But then
I wouldn't have seen them getting kicked out of three different restaurants because John kept hitting Sherlock. That headbutt was epic fun.

To be honest, I think everyone but John, Mrs. Hudson & Anderson were in on it. :p
 
K

Krev

Unconfirmed Member
Auron_Kale said:
Again, I enjoyed that it was a bit over the top because I felt like it was poking fun at other shows for 'overdirecting'.
Click to expand...
Poking fun at itself? It was all an extension of the visual flourishes that have been in this show since the first episode of season one.

The camera going down Mrs. Hudson's throat was the nadir. What the fuck?
 
A

Auron_Kale

Member
Krev said:
Poking fun at itself? It was all an extension of the visual flourishes that have been in this show since the first episode of season one.

The camera going down Mrs. Hudson's throat was the nadir. What the fuck?
Click to expand...

The show itself is pretty self-aware so again, I don't mind having some fun with it at times and this episode is no different than the others.

I do get that it does bother people though I hope it doesn't diminish their enjoyment of the show.
 
K

Krev

Unconfirmed Member
Auron_Kale said:
The show itself is pretty self-aware
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That's another thing that bothered me. The shot-outs to the online community were distractingly ingratiating. Pulled me right out of the episode.

I'm being very negative in this thread, but I'm a big fan of this show and I really wanted to love it. Still, it was fun and the show has seen much worse episodes (Baskervilles, I'm looking at you) and I don't doubt that they'll pull off something brilliant again before the series is done.
 
A

Auron_Kale

Member
StopMakingSense said:
More like the way he basically instantly sorts it out in his head, then immediately pissed off because he was wrong about the whole ting.
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I think he was in on it actually - in Many Happy Returns he seemed to do a lot of deflecting - so the reunion was not so much as that but more like 'Why didn't you tell me you were coming back sooner'.

When Sherlock said that he was letting things slip, I think it meant that Greg might've let on a bit more to Anderson than he should've.

Krev said:
That's another thing that bothered me. The shot-outs to the online community were distractingly ingratiating. Pulled me right out of the episode.

I'm being very negative in this thread, but I'm a big fan of this show and I really wanted to love it. Still, it was fun and the show has seen much worse episodes (Baskervilles, I'm looking at you) and I don't doubt that they'll pull off something brilliant again before the series is done.
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Gotcha and I can see that since social media is much more prevalent now than it's ever been. So the fact that fans are much more vocal/supportive can have it's ups/downs in how shows are done now.

It's good to be critical of something you like, since it's always a good thing to stay balanced rather than be overly zealous.
 
K

Krev

Unconfirmed Member
Did anyone else think Anderson's breakdown scene felt like a supervillain origin story?
 
S

Sickbean

Member
I know this is a really basic question but I honestly can't remember why Sherlock had to fake his death in the first place (specifically it seems he only needed to convince Watson as everyone else knew!)
 
A

Auron_Kale

Member
Sickbean said:
I know this is a really basic question but I honesty can't remember why Sherlock had to fake his death in the first place (specifically it seems he only needed to convince Watson as everyone else knew!)
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All part of Moriarty's plan to destroy Sherlock. If he didn't fake his death, the three people he cared about (John, Mrs. Hudson & Lestrade) were going to die.

So in all... Sentiment.
 
M

marrec

Banned
Auron_Kale said:
All part of Moriarty's plan to destroy Sherlock. If he didn't fake his death, the three people he cared about (John, Mrs. Hudson & Lestrade) were going to die.

So in all... Sentiment.
Click to expand...

Well it was also a great way to take the heat off so he could do his dirty work.
 
U

User 100115

Banned
The whole 'Sherlock keeps hearing John in his head' is actually a thing that was sorta a fanfic trope. So either Sherlock fans are good at guessing what is going to happen, or it was another fan shout out. (If it continues we'll know, but likely won't since he basically has John back now)

It made me make horrible noises because he was hearing bad things from John (and it was making him reign in his behavior)
 
P

Prompto

Banned
Auron_Kale said:
But then
I wouldn't have seen them getting kicked out of three different restaurants because John kept hitting Sherlock. That headbutt was epic fun.

To be honest, I think everyone but John, Mrs. Hudson & Anderson were in on it. :p
Click to expand...
Oh yeah I dont mind it too much since that scene was great lol. This was the funniest episode of the series without a doubt.
 
N

NotTheGuyYouKill

Member
I loved how hilarious this episode was. John continuing to kick Sherlock's ass was hilarious. F*cough* was great. Felt like jokes were hitting every thirty seconds, I loved it. Sherlock's parents! The fan club! Oh my God, the Sherlock/Moriarty stuff, Good Lord, haha. Fucking loved this episode. Oh, and the kissing Molly bit in the opening, LOL

Krev said:
Did anyone else think Anderson's breakdown scene felt like a supervillain origin story?
Click to expand...

Now that you say it, it did seem creepy. At the time, I thought he was just laughing in relief cause Sherlock being alive lifted such a heavy burden off of him, and he was just genuinely happy.
 
M

marrec

Banned
I feel like they could have gone two ways with this episode. Super self-serious or jovial.

I think, joviality was perfect. Only Sherlock would make a joke out of faking his own death for 2 years so it makes sense that the episode was much less self-serious than previous ones.
 
A

Auron_Kale

Member
dalin80 said:
Will pay internet cookies for a 'ooohh you bastard' message tone.

That line was absolutely nailed.
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The delivery is what made it for me. Again, Graves' Lestrade is one of my favorite portrayals in this adaptation and both the delivery & scene were perfect. He looked like such a badass there really.
 
U

User 100115

Banned
marrec said:
I feel like they could have gone two ways with this episode. Super self-serious or jovial.

I think, joviality was perfect. Only Sherlock would make a joke out of faking his own death for 2 years so it makes sense that the episode was much less self-serious than previous ones.
Click to expand...

I really, really enjoyed the fact that there was some heavy joviality mixed in with a lot of serious moments, though. I think they did a great job of it, honestly. If the episode was all angst and seriousness the entire time it would have been a nightmare to get through. But the humor made it work so damned well. And made the more serious conversations really pop.
 
K

Kuraudo

Banned
Series is going to end with Watson realising Sherlock actually did die and that everything since the restaurant has been a fantasy borne out of his deep commitment issues, right?
 
Z

Zeouterlimits

Member
Yeah, the episode did have issues, especially the non-Sherlock and Watson bits, but that expression on Watson's face at the reveal.. that was glorious.
 
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