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[Sajjaja]

Mary being a super assassin isn't so bad, I was expecting her to be in some shit after "liar" and the pic of her with devil horns in the second episode. CAM's terminator vision is just his mental organization of information, its intentionally Google glasses like to fool the viewer into thinking the info is from his glasses.

The fact that Sherlock resorted to just shooting him the head kind of sucks though. There wasn't much of a mystery as someone else mentioned. Just plot unfolding, and Sherlock shooting his way out after being cornered.

I thought he was wearing contacts after the glasses came off lol.

I agree, I didn't like the fact that this "villain" just came to an end, so suddenly. There wasn't enough tension or a sense of urgency or anything of such. He was pretty much introduced and killed in the same episode and it's pretty shitty. This entire season was pretty much character development rather than actual plot.

Though I am really excited for Moriarty's return (if it is in fact a return), it seems like a cheap plot twist.

If I were to want to get into Sherlock stories and such, where would I start? Is Moriarty as crazy as he is in here? I love this show's take on it and he's so wonderfully acted.

 

[NetMapel]

Guys... guys... now the long wait begins again

 

[Demon Ice]

I lol'd pretty hard at Mycroft playing off Sherlock's sudden reversal of punishment at the end.

"I've only been gone 4 minutes!"

"And I hope you've learned your lesson."


Also CAM was absolutely astounding as a villain. Between that and Mads' work as Hannibal, that is one phenomenally talented family. I also got double trolled with the Google Glasses vision thing, first I thought it was his glasses, then I thought he had a really advanced fake eye, since Sherlock kept referencing his blank, dead gaze. Amazing episode.

 

[MartyStu]

Well... that was... meh.

Ep1- Fun, good character work weak mystery
Ep2- Disjointed to the point of inducing travel sickness, weak mystery
Ep3- Apparently everyone in the SH universe is ranked in DragonBall Z style power levels for intelligence, Krillin had to endure a lot of crap this ep including betrayal from android 18. Goku decided to say sod it and

Spoiler

cap freezer, because you know actions that stay true to the character are for boring people

.

Sherlock is more like Vegeta.

 

[Joni]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minor_Sherlock_Holmes_characters#Sherrinford_Holmes

It is quite funny how each Holmes brother gets dumber compared to the last one.

The mention of the oldest Holmes brother made me wonder: could he be involved with Moriarty, or does the possibility exist of multiple Moriarty brothers? One of the derivitive works of Sherlock Holmes features three Moriarty brothers so they could base this twist on that.

 

[eudaemonic]

That's fantastic


Really enjoyed the episode for the most part. The ending having no immediate discernible consequences was kind of a letdown. I thought the section where after Sherlock got shot was really cool, and Mikkelsen was awesome and killed that role. The section where Sherlock and John went to Appledore was really great until the shooting scene. I assumed that Sherlock had John bring his gun at the end because he expected a situation like that (and that was my assumption as well at that point), but the way Sherlock was confused kind of surprised me (also, they didn't get frisked? I guess you could just say hubris on CAM's part, but meh). I guess we're supposed to assume that the whole "no vault" thing was an unexpected twist for Sherlock? No thoughts on Moriarty yet. Just kind of indifferent until I see what they do with that. Overall there was more in the episode that I liked than disliked though.

For the season, I'd have to say 2>3>1

See... I have a theory about his... disappointment.

(play along with me here... just fantasy speculating)
Yes, he was disappointed but more so because I think he was hoping there would be an actual vault.

I feel like Sherlock shot him out of frustration. He didn't want information about Mary, he probably already looked at the USB John had (asking for Mary's information was a good cover for other intentions), he wanted to figure out what Magnussen had on Moriarty. I think his undercover investigation lead him to believe that Moriarty was indeed still alive but Magnussen was responsible for his "death". As in, Moriarty needed to fake his own death to get away from what Magnussen had in his back pocket against him. If everything was locked in Magnussen's mind though there was no way to get it out of him. CAM already had a plan in motion and there was no negotiation leverage.

Moriarty popping up right after Magnussen, a necessary evil, did not seem a coincidence. He could have been responsible for keeping Moriarty "in check". Now that the cat no longer patrols the house... the rat can do as he pleases with the cheese.

---

Of course I could be completely wrong and it could be someone else who loved Moriarty and decided to use him for symbolism. There's a lot we didn't see while Sherlock was undercover though. And he was obviously okay with faking to be in love to gain access to an office. Combine that with a desire to play again with someone as intelligent as Moriarty with no concern of the cost - we've already seen him disregard the players for the game itself.

Needless to say, I was delighted to see Moriarty. I had been holding out hope that he was still alive (that death seemed too simplistic for him) because if Sherlock could fake it... why couldn't he?

 

[Veelk]

Moriarty is genuinely back, guys. There is a scene after the credits of the actual actor looking at the audience saying "Did you miss me?"

 

[DBT85]

I only watched all of sherlock in the last week or so, and she they killed Moirarty off I text my gf and said "we don't know for a fact that he's dead". I was talking to the guys at work and said it would be cool if they tested him at the end of this episode.

Seems I've been doing some deductioning myself!

Very pleased he's back, he was fucking perfect.

 

[smokeandmirrors]

Also, has anyone talked about how smoking hot Janine is?

dooooooddddd

dat accent

dat body

dat everything

I was so happy she was back in this episode.

 

[War Peaceman]

I really hope it is a twin or a different face for Moriarty because the guy died. Shot himself in the head in front of Sherlock. He cannot be alive by all rules of narrative, otherwise.

 

[Dennis]

30 minutes into the episode and this is absolutely riveting.

 

[firehawk12]

If he's back, it just makes it look like they made a mistake killing him in season 2.

Either way, this weird way of trying to do what feels like a year in three episodes made the whole season feel so disjointed and the characters very schizophrenic at times.

I really hope it is a twin or a different face for Moriarty because the guy died. Shot himself in the dead in front of Sherlock. He cannot be alive by all rule of narrative, otherwise.

Unless the one that killed himself was a twin/double/clone. Or they go back and just retcon that entire last scene. lol

 

[Niraj]

See... I have a theory about his... disappointment.

(play along with me here... just fantasy speculating)
Yes, he was disappointed but more so because I think he was hoping there would be an actual vault.

I feel like Sherlock shot him out of frustration. He didn't want information about Mary, he probably already looked at the USB John had (asking for Mary's information was a good cover for other intentions), he wanted to figure out what Magnussen had on Moriarty. I think his undercover investigation lead him to believe that Moriarty was indeed still alive but Magnussen was responsible for his "death". As in, Moriarty needed to fake his own death to get away from what Magnussen had in his back pocket against him. If everything was locked in Magnussen's mind though there was no way to get it out of him. CAM already had a plan in motion and there was no negotiation leverage.

Moriarty popping up right after Magnussen, a necessary evil, did not seem a coincidence. He could have been responsible for keeping Moriarty "in check". Now that the cat no longer patrols the house... the rat can do as he pleases with the cheese.

---

Of course I could be completely wrong and it could be someone else who loved Moriarty and decided to use him for symbolism. There's a lot we didn't see while Sherlock was undercover though. And he was obviously okay with faking to be in love to gain access to an office. Combine that with a desire to play again with someone as intelligent as Moriarty with no concern of the cost - we've already seen him disregard the players for the game itself.

Needless to say, I was delighted to see Moriarty. I had been holding out hope that he was still alive (that death seemed too simplistic for him) because if Sherlock could fake it... why couldn't he?

You're not stalking me, are you?

That's an interesting line of thought. Next time I watch it (which will likely be somewhat soon, since I was admittedly half preoccupied by tennis :x), I'll try to view it from that perspective. I'm inclined to believe that he genuinely did want Mary's information (assuming he thought an actual vault was a possibility), just because it would be a means for him to help John, as he would do anything for his 'pressure point.' I don't really have much speculation in regards to Moriarty, but my initial thought was Sebastian Moran, who I remember from the written works to be Moriarty's second in command of sorts. being responsible. Nothing to do but wait I suppose

 

[Dennis]

This shit is off the chart.

 

[War Peaceman]

If he's back, it just makes it look like they made a mistake killing him in season 2.

Either way, this weird way of trying to do what feels like a year in three episodes made the whole season feel so disjointed and the characters very schizophrenic at times.


Unless the one that killed himself was a twin/double/clone. Or they go back and just retcon that entire last scene. lol

Yeah, there are very few avenues of possibility that don't stretch the plausibility.

 

[firehawk12]

Yeah, there are very few avenues of possibility that don't stretch the plausibility.

What if the canon ending of S2 really is that they were trolling Watson and they ended up making out with each other before Moriarty went into hiding?

 

[Dennis]

My poor heart.

 

[DBT85]

I really hope it is a twin or a different face for Moriarty because the guy died. Shot himself in the head in front of Sherlock. He cannot be alive by all rules of narrative, otherwise.

I never thought he was dead in the first place though.

This is a master criminal, a genius who managed to ensnare the great Sherlock Holmes. So he shoots himself on a rooftop to get one over on Sherlock? What?

You hear a gunshot, and see him laying on the floor with blood around his head. You don't see anything else, you don't see Sherlock check his pulse, or anyone talk about him being confirmed dead or anything.

 

[eudaemonic]

You're not stalking me, are you?

That's an interesting line of thought. Next time I watch it (which will likely be somewhat soon, since I was admittedly half preoccupied by tennis :x), I'll try to view it from that perspective. I'm inclined to believe that he genuinely did want Mary's information (assuming he thought an actual vault was a possibility), just because it would be a means for him to help John, as he would do anything for his 'pressure point.' I don't really have much speculation in regards to Moriarty, but my initial thought was Sebastian Moran, who I remember from the written works to be Moriarty's second in command of sorts. being responsible. Nothing to do but wait I suppose

Heh. Am I not allowed to like things other than Animal Crossing?

Interesting point too... about Moran. I admit I watch this show blind to the novels. Not sure if that harms or helps in this case.

 

[Deaf Spacker]

The Guardian thinks that season four will be next year.

I'm assuming that they are wrong.

 

[Niraj]

Heh. Am I not allowed to like things other than Animal Crossing?

Interesting point too... about Moran. I admit I watch this show blind to the novels. Not sure if that harms or helps in the case of this show.

Of course you can, it was just wishful thinking

Well, in some ways you're probably better off I guess. Though there are obviously a lot of differences, there are some plot points that are very similar, though they're often gathered from multiple places. In 'The Adventures of Charles Augustus Milverton,' for example, Sherlock is hired to retrieve letters from the story's namesake, a blackmailer. He becomes engaged to a housemaid to get closer to him. When Holmes and Watson go to rob Milverton's safe, it turns out he's still there, and a woman who is one of his victims actually shoots and kills him. Granted, this stuff is obviously teased out and expounded upon (and is often much different as I mentioned), but many of those things weren't too surprising for me

 

[NotTheGuyYouKill]

Holy crap. What an amazing finale.

- First off, MORIARTY'S BACK OMGWTF

- The sequence where Sherlock gets shot and starts tripping. Loved it. So fantastic. The entire thing.

- Lars Mikkelsen as CAM. Oh my God, the only person that ties him as the most creepy and sinister villain on television is his brother Mads, on Hannibal. He doesn't even seem like part of the human race. Utterly despicable and revolting, and Mikkelsen plays it brilliantly. He looks at people as if they're ants.

- I liked Anderson continually randomly showing up.

- Not enough Lestrade

- The John/Mary drama and them psychoanalyzing John's chaos addiction. Daaaaaaaaaamn.

- I actually liked Sherlock straight up killing CAM. I think that was his plan the entire time. I really did fall for the glasses thing, but when it turned out to just be his memory, I was like "Whoa!" CAM isn't a villain that Sherlock could just outsmart, but he was someone who was a dangerous, dangerous threat. What other way did he have out of that? I'm coming up blank.

- Moriarty coming back, I think it's a smokescreen. Maybe Sebastian Moran, maybe there are broader things at play, but Jim's dead. It's a red herring.

- Sherlock having a fake girlfriend and real making out and having sex with her. I knew the Woman changed him. John's reactions were my reactions.

- The junkie protege was great.

- I think I might have liked this one more than The Reichenbach Fall.

Also, has anyone talked about how smoking hot Janine is?

Oh God yes.

 

[faceless007]

The pacing felt really weird. Thought things were coming to a climax with the Mary reveal, then it's Christmas and then we're back to CAM suddenly. Even for an hour and a half it felt like this episode tried to do too damn much.

Still, almost everything about the Mary reveal--mind palace, Leinster gardens (nod to Lauriston Gardens?), confession back at Baker Street was phenomenal. The scene when they get back to the flat and John blows up was the most intense of the whole episode for me.

CAM was a fantastic villain and I'm disappointed they killed him so soon, but then it seemed like an obvious solution if everything that makes him dangerous is stored in his head. You'd think he would have planned for that.

Something I didn't get--after he revealed his mind palace he said something like "You two will be arrested for trying to sell state secrets to me." Why would he think that would happen? He knew about the plan between Sherlock and Mycroft already, and Mycroft would never believe that.

Oh, and not really up for more Moriarty. He was good but he served his purpose.

 

[Discotheque]

my dream batman movie is just a reskin of sherlock with some action scenes. it has to be like this!

loved this episode. i do miss the old format of the series, they definitely changed it up big time for series 3 and put bigger emphasis on the characters than the crimes. but i still really enjoyed it.

loved that merry christmas headshot, and sherlock's mind palace when he was shot by mary. as well as obviously the moriarty reveal at the end. the hobo was great too. this show has upped it's humor.

i think martin freeman gives a better performance than cumberbatch though tbh.

 

[Dennis]

Mary never looked hotter than in her assassin outfit.

 

[raindoc]

Three instances of "coming back from the dead" in 2/3 episodes of the same season is a bit much for me, to be honest.
Still enjoyed the ep, but Sherlock resuscithinking himself was horrible.

 

[Cereal KiIIer]

I vastly preferred Sherlock before when he was just a weird no-name guy solving police matters. They lost me.

 

[Truant]

I vastly preferred Sherlock before when he was just a weird no-name guy solving police matters. They lost me.

I somewhat agree. I wish they'd scale it down a bit. I don't mind that Sherlock is famous, but the cases are too big and the stakes are too high.

 

[Ventilaator]

Some little things I didn't like here and there, but overall this was great. I liked how everything that could have been there just because turned out to have a purpose, like Watson suddenly being an action hero at the start of the episode and Sherlock having a girlfriend and a drug addiction.

I wonder where Moffat puts this ability of basic narrative composition when writing Doctor Who

 

[TheKaeptain]

Freeman is the best actor on the show. Amazing episode.

 

[Gambit]

Freeman is the best actor on the show. Amazing episode.

Agreed. I am a huge fan of Benedict's, but it has become ever more apparent that Freeman is the best actor on the show.

Some here complained that Mary being an assassin was dropped and had no consequences. I don't believe that's the case. It will obviously come up again, but John has decided to stick with her. And I love that decision! I think she adds a lot to the show and I'd hate for her to be gone again so quickly. Especially as I want to see two particular scenes with her:
1) I want her to meet Irene. It has to happen.
2) I want her to be abducted by a badguy like the typical damsel-in-distress, only for her to free herself and bring the baddie back to Sherlock.

In the first season I hated Andrew Scott's version of Moriarty, in fact I hated it until Reichenbach Falls. He was awesome there, but I really don't want him back alive. Being in Sherlock's mind palace is enough. I am always extremely torn on his portrayal.

It's a great shame CAM is gone. Since he didn't have a big on-screen build-up in the last two episodes (despite the hints), he now feels like a mastermind-of-the-week. He should have stayed for another season.

All in all, I'd say Sherlock season 3 (for me) had the lowest Highs and the highest Lows. I never found it as bad as Hound, but also never as good as Scandal or the Great Game etc.

List time?

Spoiler

Scandal in Belgravia
Reichenbach Falls
The Great Game
A Study in Pink
His Last Vow
The Empty Hearse
The Blind Banker
The Sign of Three
The Hounds of Baskerville

 

[bigboss370]

I dunno, I didn't really like this season as much as the others...

- I really wanted an explanation for how Sherlock faked his death. I'm gonna have to rewatch the ending of season 2 but, if sherlock's brother got rid of the snipers why did sherlock jump?

- Didn't really follow some of the stuff in ep. 2 either, like Sherlock imagining all those women in a room whereas they were online, and then randomly telling them to sit...but not actually being there to make deductions...or being able to figure out their "secret"...

- For Mary being such a perfect shot and "saving" Sherlock's life...he sure flat-lined for a while there >_>
...not to mention the next thing that happens is both of them pile on john as if he deserves to be betrayed by mary, but even sherlock didn't figure her out. Which brings me to another thing...this whole season has felt like Sherlock is off his game. Not as smart or clever as before. Moriarty would laugh at him. Speaking of which...


Moriarty being back would be amazing. Always thought since the recap in ep. 1, if Sherlock can fake it why can't his biggest rival?

 

[DirtRiver]

Loved the episode, was grinning the entire time at how amazing it was.

Only part that bothered me was how Sherlock could have possibly believed the glasses were giving Magnussen the information after having explained John that Magnussen wouldn't risk having computers at Appledore because of how easy they are to hack.

Once the glasses came of, the only reasonable explanation was that he remembered everything. Sure, that doesn't fully entail that Appledore doesn't have any vaults because it doesn't need them, but surely Sherlock would have pondered about the possibility? I think Sherlock was at his lowest in this episode, with regards to his deductive abilities. Not that that is a necessarily bad thing, the episode was great. Also, I think we finally saw that while Sherlock might be brilliant, he isn't omniscient. If you look back throughout this season Sherlock commited a number of mistakes and failed to recognize a number of clues and conclusions.

Can't wait to find out who is using Moriarty to mess with England. I find it hard to believe it really is Moriarty, surely Mycroft and the Secret Service would have inspected Moriarty's body?

 

[User 100115]

I think Sherlock was in his lowest in this episode, with regards to his deductive abilities.

Did you notice when the glasses scene happened, CAM added a new pressure point for Sherlock? Because he was so off his game. It said 'Pressure Point: Morphine (Create file)'

So yeah, I passed that scene off as that: Sherlock was shot and using pain killers, so he's going to be off

 

[TheKaeptain]

It's probably Moriarty's number 2 guy. Forgot his name though.

 

[hamchan]

Disappointed they killed CAM because he was a great villain. He pretty much outmaneuvered and outplayed Sherlock, better than Moriarty ever did. Now Sherlock is a murderer and I hope he doesn't get off for it next season. There has to be consequences.

I liked Moriarty but I feel no excitement about having him back. It feels very been there, done that.
If it's an imposter or Moriarty's brother then that would be good. It'll be more interesting than Moriarty himself, I felt like his character got the perfect amount of time before being killed off.

 

[B-Dubs]

I honestly thought Watson would be the one to shoot CAM for a little while there. I feel like he put it together before Sherlock, that the only way to stop him was to kill him, but didn't have it in him to just do it in cold blood.

 

[lastflowers]

pretty disappointed in general by this season.

 

[TheKaeptain]

I honestly thought Watson would be the one to shoot CAM for a little while there. I feel like he put it together before Sherlock, that the only way to stop him was to kill him, but didn't have it in him to just do it in cold blood.

Sherlock asking if Watson had his gun leads me to believe that Sherlock already knew what he was going to have to do. He just wanted to confirm it.

 

[Gawge]

I thought the first half hour of the episode was really good, and it felt back on form. The whole Mary being an assassin thing wasn't that amazing - and it kind of feels like the first two episodes suffered specifically for that one moment.

The second half, excluding some good funny bits, and the Moriarty thing - was disappointing for me. Stuff just happened, it wasn't towards solving something that the audience was trying to guess. Then, in the end, he just shot him? Sure, it was a cool(ish) moment, but not a remotely satisfying conclusion.

It just feels like the whole season focused on setting up characters for results which were not worthwhile (and were obvious moves). Then again, i'm not particularly enjoying character development for it's own sake in this show (as I usually do in every other show that I enjoy). I enjoy a good laugh from a Sherlock and Watson interaction in a heated moment to lighten the mood - but I don't want to see his wedding, and them going out for a drink. I wanted mysteries and puzzles, and they came in occasional, small parts this season.

 

[Darth Sonik]

Loved the episode, was grinning the entire time at how amazing it was.

Only part that bothered me was how Sherlock could have possibly believed the glasses were giving Magnussen the information after having explained John that Magnussen wouldn't risk having computers at Appledore because of how easy they are to hack.

Once the glasses came of, the only reasonable explanation was that he remembered everything. Sure, that doesn't fully entail that Appledore doesn't have any vaults because it doesn't need them, but surely Sherlock would have pondered about the possibility? I think Sherlock was in his lowest in this episode, with regards to his deductive abilities. Not that that is a necessarily bad thing, the episode was great. Also, I think we finally saw that while Sherlock might be brilliant, he isn't omniscient. If you look back throughout this season Sherlock commited a number of mistakes and failed to recognize a number of clues and conclusions.

Can't wait to find out who is using Moriarty to mess with England. I find it hard to believe it really is Moriarty, surely Mycroft and the Secret Service would have inspected Moriarty's body?

Great end to an expansive & experimental third series.

That encounter was all about presenting himself as no threat to CAM, his grabbing for the glasses and being hooked up to the morphine, was there to make CAM underestimate & misunderstand Sherlock, to his ultimate cost.

 

[FantasticMrFoxdie]

Hot damn that was great.

Mikkelsen was a brilliant villian.

Had to screencap these because they were funny:

 

[B-Dubs]

Hot damn that was great.

Mikkelsen was a brilliant villian.

Had to screencap these because they were funny:

Porn preferences? He really does do his homework.

 

[Kelpie]

I loved the lead up to the end but those last 20 minutes or so almost ruined the episode for me. I hate that Sherlock was the one to shoot CAM but I realize someone had to do it. I don't know, maybe I'd feel better about it if it had a cheesy flashback to him making his vow.

- Sherlock having a fake girlfriend and real making out and having sex with her. I knew the Woman changed him. John's reactions were my reactions.

I don't think anything happened between Janine and Sherlock. In the hospital visit scene she said something like "just once would have been nice" and then Sherlock said he was saving that for marriage.

 

[B-Dubs]

I loved the lead up to the end but those last 20 minutes or so almost ruined the episode for me. I hate that Sherlock was the one to shoot CAM but I realize someone had to do it. I don't know, maybe I'd feel better about it if it had a cheesy flashback to him making his vow.



I don't think anything happened between Janine and Sherlock. In the hospital visit scene she said something like "just once would have been nice" and then Sherlock said he was saving that for marriage.

Marriage? Is that a new nickname for Irene?

 

[VanquishUK]

Spoiler

Sherlock's level of intellect kind of pitiful compared to everyone else now. CAM seems to have had a more impressive Mind Palace, Mycroft is just better, and Moriarty managed to outsmart him (apparently). Poor Sherlock.

 

[Napoleonthechimp]

Redbeard

 

[Jables Swan]

Another amazing episode. What a season. Bring on more and more Sherlock please.

 

[Napoleonthechimp]

Spoiler

Sherlock's level of intellect kind of pitiful compared to everyone else now. CAM seems to have had a more impressive Mind Palace, Mycroft is just better, and Moriarty managed to outsmart him (apparently). Poor Sherlock.

Well Mycroft was always portrayed as being smarter than Sherlock, but... he's always asking for Sherlock's help AND the image of Mycroft that always seems to be better is just a figment of Sherlock's mind.

Let's not forget that Moriarty and CAM are completely lacking in morals which likely means their intellect is untethered.

 

[VanquishUK]

Well Mycroft was always portrayed as being smarter than Sherlock, but... he's always asking for Sherlock's help AND the image of Mycroft that always seems to be better is just a figment of Sherlock's mind.

Let's not forget that Moriarty and CAM are completely lacking in morals which likely means their intellect is untethered.

I always thought that the reason Mycroft asked Sherlock for help is because a) He has more important things to take care of. and b) He doesn't like field work. It's mentioned multiple times that Mycroft is more intelligent, even by Gatiss himself.