S04.E00: The Abominable Bride

[Penman61]

The other was the remark about the "orange pips" as being used in America to send a warning to someone.  My thought was "really? never heard of that one!", I guess because it only appears in a Holmes story.

 

 

I thought they were referring to orange pits, meaning the seeds of oranges, which is what I thought Sir Whathisname poured out of the threatening envelope as Lady Carbuncle watched (terrible with Brit names, sorry).

 

And I thought that orange-American reference was a meta shout-out to The Godfather-inspired/originated meme that whenever oranges appear in a scene, a character would be killed.

Edited January 2, 2016 by Penman61

[elle]

I thought they were referring to orange pits, meaning the seeds of oranges, which is what I thought Sir Whathisname poured out of the threatening envelope as Lady Carbuncle watched (terrible with Brit names, sorry).

 

And I thought that orange-American reference was a meta shout-out to The Godfather-inspired/originated meme that whenever oranges appear in a scene, a character would be killed.

I didn't know what they were until Sherlock names them as "orange pips".  "The Five Orange Pips" is a Holmes short story by ACD.

 

Never thought about the orange reference being connected to that particular meme.  It would be fun if it was a double shout-out!

[Ceindreadh]

All the comments about Watson knowing that 'Hooper' was a woman and Sherlock not noticing.

I'd just assumed that Sherlock had known, but since she was competent at her job, he didn't feel it was worth mentioning.

(of course that was before we knew this was all in Sherlock's head)

[kmm49]

I thought that Cumberbatch did a very good job with what he was given and he and Freeman's chemistry's still wonderful. Freeman wasn't given much to work with though.

 

I'm getting tired of Moriarty but felt we would get a bigger payoff than we did other than finding out he's really dead but is he really? I wouldn't mind a new villain because I think Moriarty's finally played out.

 

Also, I think Mary's a waste! Why's she even hanging around because she wasn't really important to the story? Sorry I just think Mary should barely be heard or seen not another sidekick to Holmes and Watson.

Edited January 2, 2016 by kmm49

[Brattinella]

I have to agree with you re: Mary.  I still do not trust her, and I find it impossible that H&W have forgiven her and trust her.  She continues to be a jarring presence and she needs to go back to Selfridge's with her paramours.

[festivus]

Loved it. I started suspecting pretty early on that it was some type of dream but they actually gave us our clue right at the very beginning when they showed the clips from the the last three seasons. If it was just a one off set in Victorian times there would not have been any reason to show any clips. 

 

Since most of the episode is set in Sherlock's head it's going to give me a lot to think about before season four. Mainly, why does Sherlock have Mary working for Mycroft and why was there so much talk about when Mycroft was going to die. 

 

I think the only thing I'm confused about is when exactly did Sherlock OD? It's been a while since I saw the last episode. When did he know that Moriarty was "back"? Also why would he have had those drugs with him on the plane.

[TexasGal]

I thought I recognized "Mrs. Carmichael"'s modern counterpart as the pilot on the jet.

 

Of the three women who talk during the Victorian reveal of the conspiracy, I know there was Molly and Jane (though she didn't speak), who was the other woman - the one accompanied by modern day flashforwards?

She was Janine, Sherlock's fake girlfriend/fiancée who worked for Magnussen.

Good catch on the pilot, I knew she had to be someone from the story but couldn't figure out who she was. I thought maybe she was the maid.

[Peace 47]

I think the only thing I'm confused about is when exactly did Sherlock OD? It's been a while since I saw the last episode. When did he know that Moriarty was "back"? Also why would he have had those drugs with him on the plane.

He OD'd before he knew Moriarty was "back," which he didn't learn about until he was on the plane. John looks at the list on the plane and notes that Sherlock could not have taken the drugs in the last 5 minutes. Mycroft then confirms that Sherlock did get high before getting on the plane; Mary notes that Sherlock didn't look high, and Mycroft says that an addict is good at hiding things.

So if he got high before he got on the plane and was informed of Moriarty's return, we can infer that Sherlock was devastated about being forced into exile, loaded up on some drugs to get through that painful tarmac scene from the end of S3, said his goodbyes to John and peaced out. And the reason that I bring up the interpretation that Sherlock is in love with John is because of what Sherlock does after getting high and plopping down on the plane: he, per Mary, pulls up John's blog and starts reading about the time that he and John met. And when Mary calls him on it, Sherlock first shoots an alarmed look at Mycroft, tap dances around a story that he uses John's blog to feel more clever when he has to think deeply, and then Mycroft, ostensibly talking about the drugs, but subtextually talking about Sherlock's explanation, says something like, "You don't expect anyone to believe that, do you?"

Edited January 2, 2016 by Peace 47

[festivus]

Thanks so much. I had kids walking in and out at the end of the program so I wasn't sure on the OD time. So that makes it much more interesting to me that he OD'd before knowing about Moriarty. 

[tankgirl73]

And the reason that I bring up the interpretation that Sherlock is in love with John is because of what Sherlock does after getting high and plopping down on the plane: he, per Mary, pulls up John's blog and starts reading about the time that he and John met. And when Mary calls him on it, Sherlock first shoots an alarmed look at Mycroft, tap dances around a story that he uses John's blog to feel more clever when he has to think deeply, and then Mycroft, ostensibly talking about the drugs, but subtextually talking about Sherlock's explanation, says something like, "You don't expect anyone to believe that, do you?"

 

I think there's a simpler explanation. He had decided by that point to "research" the cold case of the 'abominable bride' by going into his high-mind-palace and that the best way would be to imagine himself there. To make his simulation as real as possible, he needed a backstory for himself in that time frame. So he started with where he and John met and re-located it to the 1890s. If he was 'dancing around' it was just because he was embarrassed about how much the Moriarty thing was getting to him. And, you know, he was high, so not really at his best anyway.

 

Not that the discussion about his sexuality isn't an interesting one that deserves to be had, of course. I just happen to think that this particular scene doesn't really have anything to do with it. The one in his simulation, the conversation with John, that's where the interesting stuff really is.

 

[goodbyeglittergirl]

I have loved ACD forever, so I was really looking forward to this episode. I enjoyed it, but would have liked it more had it been entirely Victorian and not a weird Inception kind of deal. When it started flashing back to modern, I think it lost some momentum and lost some of the fun for me. Having listened to Gatiss speak for a looong time about ACD and the original stories, I can imagine that this was really just an exercise in personal fulfillment for Gatiss/Moffat - which is fine! I did enjoy it and was hit with the sad "no more stories until 2017" realization once it was over.

 

I LOVE Andrew Scott so I welcome any excuse for him to be back. I know the Sherlock's final conclusion in TAB is that Moriarty is good and truly dead but I do SO hope that they will have Scott back, even if it's just in flashes from the mind palace or whatever. 

 

I did love the whole Diogenes scene (with the sign language) and loved that Mycroft was obese - and I say that as a fat person myself. It was just fun to see some original things thrown in there, I enjoyed the calls to original canon like the orange pips, etc. I wish they had used some boltholes in a comical way, because for some reason even just the term bolthole seems so silly to me. When they announced it was going to Victorian era, I figured we wouldn't see Molly or much of Mrs. Hudson, and while we didn't see a whole lot of either one, I enjoyed the moments each one had.

 

I was watching it with 3 people who had never seen a Sherlock episode and probably haven't read any ACD so I had to do a lot of pausing - I look forward to a rewatch so that I can catch some of the stuff I probably missed. 

[elle]

I missed the first few moments of the show, turning on the TV as Watson is explaining about himself and the war.   Was there a modern day preview before this or did it really start at the Victorian time?  I did not know anything about the previous season, so that has been interesting reading.

[elzin]

I can admit there were a lot of valid reasons to not like this episode, but I enjoyed every second of it.  I've been in a foul mood for weeks and it was like the first time I smiled in that time.  I was riveted, and that rarely happens when I watch stuff. Because it should be just a one-off, I don't mind that it crawled up its own ass. Normally I don't like stories where everyone is the same but someone else meta thing, but because of the source material it worked well here. I had forgotten a new one was coming but I had rewatched the three seasons wrapping Christmas presents so I was accidentally well-prepared.

 

My favorite description was on twitter that said something like it was like watching Inception and Clue at the same time.

 

Also, did anyone else notice the Terry Pratchett shout out? At the end someone said something about a Monstrous Regiment. Since Pterry died since the last new Sherlock, I figured this was a tribute to him, as it doesn't seem a common enough phrase I've heard it outside of Discworld.

[xqueenfrostine]

And I feel really stupid, but can someone explain the lists Sherlock gives to Mycroft every time he uses again? I really missed the point of that somehow.

It was almost certainly for medical reasons in the event Sherlock overdosed. Knowing exactly what drugs were taken and how much can save someone's life, so Sherlock keeping a physical list would be helpful if Mycroft found him passed out or otherwise nonresponsive.

[Chaos Theory]

I liked it a lot.  I tend to me in the minority and really like Mary but though Moriarty was kinda boring.  Honestly I never understood why people hate her so much.  It always felt like pure misogyny to me.  Watson's wife needed to be a good little wife and not get in the way or be too smart.  Definitely not be strong and self assured with her own past.

Edited January 3, 2016 by Chaos Theory

[j5cochran]

Also, did anyone else notice the Terry Pratchett shout out? At the end someone said something about a Monstrous Regiment. Since Pterry died since the last new Sherlock, I figured this was a tribute to him, as it doesn't seem a common enough phrase I've heard it outside of Discworld.

 

I think it was actually intended as a shout-out to the novel of the same name by Laurie R. King. She has written a series of books (the twelfth to be published in April 2015) about Mary Russell, an Anglo-American orphan who meets the retired Sherlock Holmes in the 1910s. I actually like the books, but YMMV.

[Kate the Great]

There were a couple of other references that I caught but had to look up to be sure they were such.  One was "a seven-per-cent solution.", which I remembered as a title to a story, which it is, but not an ACD story but one written in the 70s as a lost manuscript of Watson.  However, the phrase itself appears in a Holmes story.  The other was the remark about the "orange pips" as being used in America to send a warning to someone.  My thought was "really? never heard of that one!", I guess because it only appears in a Holmes story.

 

 

Tiny addition: the pips are also canonical in BBC Sherlock too. Moriarty uses cellphone pips in "The Great Game," to signal Sherlock's next case in line.

 

I'm in the 'more Andrew Scott is always a good thing' camp, so I liked that he had a solid presence in the special -- it gives me hope that they're not done using him for Moriarty in the show.

 

I liked the mindscrew aspects too, which for me is what the show excels at. YMMV, but for me S3 was a dud compared to the first two, and this felt like it was closer to form.

 

Cinematography: I liked the meditating/grasping at notes sequence. Nothing groundbreaking for the show, but it was elegantly shot.

 

Also giggled at Lestrade's muttonchops for a solid ten seconds. 

 

And Mrs. Hudson's "I'm your landlady, not a plot device!" was a nice meta bit that I only remembered now.

 

This relates to Arthur Conan Doyle canon, but I'm spoilering it just in case, since it has to do with potential future Moriarty back-from-the-dead problems, seeing as they haven't written off Andrew Scott:

From Wikipedia: "The stories give contradictory indications about Moriarty's family. In his first appearance in "The Final Problem", Moriarty is referred to as "Professor Moriarty" — no forename is mentioned. Watson does, however, refer to the name of another family member when he writes of "the recent letters in which Colonel James Moriarty defends the memory of his brother". In "The Adventure of the Empty House", Holmes refers to Moriarty on one occasion as "Professor James Moriarty". This is the only time Moriarty is given a first name, and oddly, it is the same as that of his purported brother; to wit The Valley of Fear (written after the preceding two stories, but set earlier), Holmes says of Professor Moriarty: "He is unmarried. His younger brother is a station master in the west of England." " -- So I have to wonder if the "it's never twins" is a shoutout to that, very possibly? I could see the twin thing being apropos for Moffat and Gatiss's ACD pastiches, anyway.

Edited January 3, 2016 by Kate the Great

[beeble]

I loved it. I was a little disappointed that we were jolted back into the stark, ugly present but I enjoyed the actors' give and take on the plane so much that I got over my grumpiness quickly.  Hey Moriarty! Good to see you.

One quibble: John Watson is a doctor, and he really didn't know that Holmes was a drug user? 

[praeceptrix]

Also, did anyone else notice the Terry Pratchett shout out? At the end someone said something about a Monstrous Regiment. Since Pterry died since the last new Sherlock, I figured this was a tribute to him, as it doesn't seem a common enough phrase I've heard it outside of Discworld.

I think it was actually intended as a shout-out to the novel of the same name by Laurie R. King. She has written a series of books (the twelfth to be published in April 2015) about Mary Russell, an Anglo-American orphan who meets the retired Sherlock Holmes in the 1910s. I actually like the books, but YMMV.

I suspect that the show, Sir Terry, and Ms. King are all making reference to "The First Blast of the Trumpet Against the Monstrous Regiment of Women," an extremely mysognyinistc pamphlet written by John Knox and directed at Mary Stuart (& Elizabeth Tudor & Queen Mother Catherine de Medici): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_First_Blast_of_the_Trumpet_Against_the_Monstruous_Regiment_of_Women

[elzin]

I suspect that the show, Sir Terry, and Ms. King are all making reference to "The First Blast of the Trumpet Against the Monstrous Regiment of Women," an extremely mysognyinistc pamphlet written by John Knox and directed at Mary Stuart (& Elizabeth Tudor & Queen Mother Catherine de Medici): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_First_Blast_of_the_Trumpet_Against_the_Monstruous_Regiment_of_Women

I've never heard of that. I tried to google MR before I posted, but all I got were Pratchett references. Thanks.

[WatchrTina]

 

I would hate to have been watching with a new viewer.

Oops.  You are so right.  I really enjoyed it but now I'm really glad I did not convince my sister's family to watch it with me Saturday night (where I was visiting).  They would have hated all the bits that I liked so much (the inter-cutting between the two time lines, the mystery-within-a-mystery, the mind palace hijinks.)

 

I accept the criticisms that some have leveled at this being just a gimmick -- a Christmas Special sojourn inside Sherlock's drug-tripping mind palace, while the actual story arc of the series advances only five minutes.  But as a devoted viewer I take that as a Christmas present to me -- a goody to tide me over until the next series airs.

 

My only complaint is Monthy-Pythonesque Fat Mycroft.  I get it (now) that his appearance is a manifestation of Sherlock's smoldering resentment of his older, smarter brother but when I first saw him I just thought, oh now WHY would you do that?  On the other hand I loved it when Molly showed up masquerading as a man.

 

I'm sitting down to watch it for a second time and I must say I'm glad I read this board first.  You've given me a lot of things to look for in the 2nd-go-round that I missed on the 1st viewing.  That's one of the things I've always like about this show.  The episodes are sometimes better the second time . . . like a really good soup is better the second day.

Edited January 3, 2016 by WatchrTina

[ganesh]

Fat Mycroft is canon as well. 

[Brattinella]

Really??  In the books?  I'm gonna have to go re-read (poor me!).

[HauntedBathroom]

Isn't there a reference to Sherlock!Mycroft having lost a lot of weight just before A Study In Pink? I'm sure I remember Sherlock mentioning at one point how frustrating Mycroft must have found having his jaw wired shut, as he couldn't talk.

[ganesh]

Fat Mycroft is in the books, and it was mentioned here too. 

[Pallas]

Fat Mycroft worked for me as Conan Doyle canon turned a little on its ear, like Holmes's drug use. In the original stories, Mycroft's chronic obesity and Sherlock's occasional cocaine binge are both presented as unfortunate, indulgent and unseemly, but not deeply neurotic or deadly. The emphasis is more on the (addict's own) rationale -- Mycroft's torpor; Sherlock's ennui -- than on the addiction, and Watson serves up those rationales at face value. Still, even while half-justifying and half-deploring Holmes's drug use, Watson betrays a strain of distress. It's a rare note of subtext in his narration. 

 

Alternately: in his Abominable mind palace, while verging on an overdose, Sherlock projects his addiction onto his brother. He does so with John at his side, spelling out modern medicine's prognosis, and with "the bet" standing in for "the list": a private understanding between two brothers, one the addict and one the observer. In his fantasy, Sherlock also seems loftily bemused by the Diogenes Club's entirely masculine, sterile and silent domain, but soon enough clearly longs for its safety when being questioned by John about the ways of his heart.

 

In the stories, Watson seems to see Holmes's alienation as inalienable. Watson may wonder at it and even now and then, suggest to Holmes the pleasures of domestic life...but without much dismay or hope of change. Watson seems to assume that Holmes's alienation -- as opposed to his drug use -- is a given: at worst, the price human nature extracts for human genius. 

 

I think that Sherlock agrees with Sherlock's secret recognition of himself as an addict, and at same time, argues with his self-diagnosis as a "high-functioning sociopath." The series aims to connect his addiction with his alienation, and to present that alienation as Sherlock's mortal enemy. "The war we must lose," as Sherlock's Mycroft tells Sherlock, is not only the battle between men and women: it is the flight from intimacy, and the fight against love. 

[WatchrTina]

Okay I just watched it a second time and I have a few questions and comments.

 

Question 1:  Are we supposed to recognize Watson's housemaid?  She's a projection of Holme's imagination, she's impertinent (for a 19th century housemaid) -- is that scene supposed to represent Sherlock's mental imagining of a19th century men overlooking and being oblivious to the hard work and intellect of the women around them?  She re-appears in the scene with the hooded women -- right after Watson brags that he "wasn't fooled" by Molly Hooper's masquerade as a male coroner (she leans into his line of sight.)  Are we supposed to recognize her from the 21st century or is Sherlock just projecting that John has no idea what the women in his life are up to (an echo of all of Sherlock's projections of his mixed feelings about Mary.)  Why is she in the story?

 

Question 2:  Who is Mr. Melas?  in the scene with Fat!Mycroft, after Sherlock leaves Wilder says "Mr. Melas to see you Mr. Holmes."  This is all happening in Sherlock's head so he must know who Mr. Melas is.  Do we?

 

Question 3:  Are we supposed to recognize Lady Carmichael?  That's not the same actress who played Irene Adler, is it?

 

And now a list of tiny things I liked:

 

I liked the "Memento Mori" (the drawing that looks like two women close up but looks like a scull from a distance).  I think those actually were very popular in that time frame.  It was a really nice touch and showed up in the background in a couple of strategic places.

 

In the scene where Watson is guarding the broken window, he goes to great pains to light a candle.  Despite this it never crossed my mind that Sherlock's having a flashlight was anachronistic.  That's just one of the little hints that went over my head the first time.  Similarly when Lastrange tells Mrs. Hudson to wire him if there is any change, she replies "Yep" which is a wonderful little one-syllable anachronism seasoning that scene.  I only caught about half of those hints the first time through.

 

Best use of a sound-effect:  When Lady Carmichael's house begins to spin as a transition from one scene to another listen to the sound effect -- it sounds like the creaking of a wooden mechanism, like a water wheel.

 

Best line "I'm an army doctor, which means I could break every bone in your body while naming them."

 

Interesting line "Since when do you call me Johm?"  Sherlock replies "You'd be surprised."  I haven't read all the books but I'm guessing from that comment that literary Holmes never calls Watson by his first name in the books and I presume Watson in the book would never actually say "Sherlock!" the way our modern John does.  Is that right?

Edited January 3, 2016 by WatchrTina

[Kate the Great]

I also thought Lady Carmichael was Irene, and actually commented to a friend that Lara Pulver was looking considerably older all of a sudden, surprisingly for someone who's my age and who looked my age in 2012. She's Catherine McCormack, who was born in 1972, so that explains the age difference -- but she really does look like Lara Pulver plus a few years.

 

Mr. Melas is the guy who comes seeking help in the Greek (or Geek, in BBC Sherlock) Interpreter: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Adventure_of_the_Greek_Interpreter-- so since the Geek Interpreter was already a case (I think Sherlock was dissing the name alongside the Speckled Blonde in a prior episode) he'd recognize Mr. Melas.

 

Also, while I'm tossing out links and connections, Emilia Ricoletti (or more likely her husband) is doubtless an ancestor of http://sherlocked.wikia.com/wiki/Peter_Ricoletti, who was mentioned captured in the solved-cases montage at the start of Reichenbach, though we haven't seen him in person (yet).

Edited January 3, 2016 by Kate the Great

[ganesh]

Holmes and Watson only use last names in the books. There's one "Boswell" reference iirc. TV-Holmes has been getting rather dour for me. Book-Holmes was practically jovial when "the game was afoot" and it was always clear (to me) that he liked having Watson around during those times. In the books, it's when the cases dry up that Holmes turns to the drugs, which is why I think tv-Watson was ticked and said, 'never when on a case.'

[jack63kids]

One of the very best things about BBC's Sherlock is the witty one-liners that are so quotable. The Abominable Bride certainly had a few those along with some delicious 'clues'—and by clues I don't just mean to Sherlock's cases, but also to other things going on the wider story arcs.
I'm particularly keen to hear what people have made of Mycroft's notebook and his jottings.

REDBEARD
1  0  0  0
0  -1  0  0  n
0 0 -1 0
0 0 0 -1

611174
Vernet?

Scarlet Roll M...
V - E= 0/O
V x E= 2B/2E

 

If anyone could see better on their screen, I'd be grateful.

I've heard some amazing theories about DNA and all kinds with the vector.

[Kate the Great]

Vernet is also from Greek Interpreter:

In Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes story "The Adventure of the Greek Interpreter" Holmes claims to be related to Vernet, stating,"My ancestors were country squires... my grandmother... was the sister of Vernet, the French artist.", without further clarifying whether this is Claude Joseph Vernet, Carle Vernet, or Horace Vernet.

Between that and "Melas," I feel pretty sure they're going to actually use portions of the case next season. If you Google, someone has (possibly!) figured out the number beginning with 6, but as it's more of a spoiler (for a different ACD story), I don't want to post it here.

 

PS: Good to see you, Jack! Hahaha.

Edited January 3, 2016 by Kate the Great

[ganesh]

Yeah, but it's going to be over a year. No one is going to remember any clues and hints. 

[Peace 47]

I'm particularly keen to hear what people have made of Mycroft's notebook and his jottings.

REDBEARD

1 0 0 0

0 -1 0 0 n

0 0 -1 0

0 0 0 -1

611174

Vernet?

Scarlet Roll M...

V - E= 0/O

V x E= 2B/2E

If anyone could see better on their screen, I'd be grateful.

I've heard some amazing theories about DNA and all kinds with the vector.

I read an interesting post elsewhere (edited to add a link that I finally found: link) where the equations are speculated to represent in mathematical form quotations from the original stories: "one fixed point in a changing age" and "conductor of light." Something about how the vectors are a mathematical representation of a fixed point in 4 dimensions (including time) and the energy equation depicts light in a vacuum, where it travels best.

This person notes that Reddit people saw that Mycroft's notebook said "scarlet rollm[...]" and that rollmops are are a pickled herring dish, hence, "red herring."

This person had a screen shot of the notebook on their blog. Their post is responding to the speculation that some of the numbers are a designation for a genetic disease, which this person is able to dismiss.

Edited January 3, 2016 by Peace 47

[Kate the Great]

All right, that hint is at http://finalproblem.tumblr.com/post/136467917360/its-not-611174-in-mycrofts-notebook-its

[Actionmage]

REDBEARD

 

I thought that Redbeard was explained as a childhood dog of Sherlock's/ the Holmes family's. I feel more than that may be spoilery. I believe it was explained in His Last Vow.

 

added:

I put "vernet" into Bing and there could be a couple of interesting ideas just in the first page or so. There are a father and son pair of French painters, one born in the Louvre! There is a company that makes magic. There is a network for education facilitation. There is a consulting company. There is a luxury hotel. Yes, these real life versions of actual companies  probably won't actually be a part of the story, but there is always the possibility that one of the Vernet paintings has a part to play.

 

Edited January 3, 2016 by Actionmage

[rereader2]

Yeah, but it's going to be over a year. No one is going to remember any clues and hints. 

 

Every person who obsessed over how Sherlock survived the fall will have every clue and hint memorized, not to mention argued over and analyzed to death!

[Peace 47]

I thought that Redbeard was explained as a childhood dog of Sherlock's/ the Holmes family's. I feel more than that may be spoilery. I believe it was explained in His Last Vow.

Redbeard came up twice in the special. The first time was in the dream, when Sherlock and John are on the stakeout in what I thought was a greenhouse, but I read subsequently is the estate's aviary. Just as Sherlock and John end their conversation about "impulses," a dog can be heard, and Sherlock mutters, "Redbeard?" And then of course it appears again in Mycroft's notebook at the end of the show.

Before S3 started, Mark Gatiss tweeted some hint about "Redbeard" and the diehard loyal fans worked overtime to speculate about the meaning. The first time that it was mentioned in the show was at John's wedding when Mycroft was warning Sherlock not to get involved in John's business and said, "Remember Redbeard." Then, when Sherlock was shot in "His Last Vow," Sherlock found Redbeard in his mind palace and cuddled with him for a moment.

Based on the special, there has got to be more to Redbeard than meets the eye. Why bring up this dog twice more?

[ganesh]

I wasn't one of them. 

[Brattinella]

Dear God, did I miss a Speckled Blonde pun??

[benteen]

I really enjoyed it.  It was confusing at times and self-indulgent but it's always a joy to watch and the acting was top-notch, particularly Martin Freeman.  I liked the gender bending Molly Hooper.  When they did that recap in the beginning, I had a feeling we might see the present day.  Loved the references to the original stories.  Even the Seven Percent Solution stuff.

Edited January 4, 2016 by benteen

[Myrrhine]

I enjoyed it, but it's not my new favorite or anything. My least favorite moment was the flying leap from the falls. Super cheese!

I liked 19th-century Mary and the jokes about Mrs. Hudson in the Strand stories. Honestly I loved almost all the jokes and double talk about the Strand stories. I thought Moriarty was kind of boring.

[StatMom]

Isn't there a reference to Sherlock!Mycroft having lost a lot of weight just before A Study In Pink? I'm sure I remember Sherlock mentioning at one point how frustrating Mycroft must have found having his jaw wired shut, as he couldn't talk.

I don't remember it in Pink, but I just recently noticed on rewatch that in Great Game, Sherlock snarkily asks Mycroft how his diet is going. I never would have even noticed it before seeing him in the fat suit.

[benteen]

I thought the scene where Watson asked Holmes about why he is alone was excellent.  Very well-acted.

[cardigirl]

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pip

 

It's the fourth definition.  Pip = seed.

 

I enjoyed this, but after waiting so long for a new episode, I guess I should have rewatched the latest season to prepare for this special.  I will rewatch, but the first watch left me disappointed.  Not sure why.  Maybe I was thrown by the back and forth of the reality vs Sherlock's 'dream.'   

 

I love this take on the Sherlock stories and usually am not disappointed at all, so to be even a little let down is discouraging. 

 

Maybe it will make more sense when the next season comes along. 

[Tara Ariano]

In case you missed it, here's the Previously.TV post on the episode!

 

Sherlock Is Back (In Time)!
For its holiday special, Sherlock makes it actually special by going all the way back to the Victorian era. Cue the hat!

[Julie23]

I can't help it, I loved every minute of Holmes and Watson quipping and crime solving. The dialog was excellent - even the hints that we were in Sherlock's mind were well done. Acting, goes without saying was excellent. So sad I have to wait another year to see them anew again. I may re-watch there first three seasons, just because I didn't realize how much I missed this show!

[call me ishmael]

I enjoyed this for the various shout-outs to the stories although I agree that it got a bit overwrought in the end.  And I have never been all that pleased with what they have done with Moriarty who was. I think, intended to be more of a logical, emotionless machine (I thought the recent Robert Downey movie version was better).  But I did enjoy that they took the dialogue of the imagined scene in 221 Baker Street (with the guns) almost verbatim from the beginning of ACD's version of "The Final Problem."

 

Nicholas Meyer wrote the 1970s version of The Seven Percent Solution which I think had Holmes meet Freud. One of the tips that something was off was that the Victorian flashbacks were too early for Holmes to have known about a Viennese alienist concerned with sexuality.

 

It may just be me but I also thought that the opening shots of Victorian London and the final shot of Holmes looking out the window were homages to the Jeremy Brett version.   Those episodes always started and ended with almost identical shots. 

[Pattycake2]

Loved most of it, but I do get tired of the Gatiss Mycroft.  Yes Mycroft was smarter than Holmes, but his mind was so far reaching, he couldn't be bothered checking out theories.  He had others do the leg work, if necessary.  Mycroft was described as corpulent as he moved very little - his rooms, his club, his office   He wasn't continually one upping Sherlock neither was he a refugee from My 600 lb. Life.  Gatiss ego.

[Conan Troutman]

I'm in the 'more Andrew Scott is always a good thing' camp, so I liked that he had a solid presence in the special -- it gives me hope that they're not done using him for Moriarty in the show.

 

I usually love Andrew Scott's take on Moriarty, but somehow he didn't feel menacing enough for me this episode and came off more like a pants-off crazy lunatic, less like an incredibly dangerous lunatic. I guess he works better when he presents an actual threat and not just represents some threat that's not really coming from him (in this case, Sherlock getting lost too deep in his drug induced trip). Hopefully, when Sherlock will be dealing with the remains of Moriarty's criminal empire and whatever post mortem plot Moriarty's come up with before his suicide, that will work again as the threat will be coming directly from Moriarty.

 

I'm still torn on whether I like the whole "it all happened in his mind(palace)" thing or would've preferred a strictly off-canon episode. One the one hand, it functioned well as an appetizer for next season and made sense. On the other hand, it devalued the actual case and I found the ending rather meh because of that (the part where they're digging for the corpse felt somewhat superfluous, too).

 

But the individual parts were more than enough to compensate for those weaknesses. The dialogue was fresh and sharp as usual, some of the scenes were just hilarious and it was just great seeing the guys (and girls) back together.

[tessaforever]

It may just be me but I also thought that the opening shots of Victorian London and the final shot of Holmes looking out the window were homages to the Jeremy Brett version.   Those episodes always started and ended with almost identical shots. 

Yes! I looooved that version - Jeremy is the best SH ever. 

 

So maybe I was looking too hard for the meta, but when Mycroft and Sherlock are talking, and one says "in a nutshell" and Mycroft says "surely you know that phrase?" (or something similar), was that a reference to Hamlet? I saw Benedict as Hamlet in the live theater broadcast back in October so that was fresh in my mind (Hamlet says "O God, I could be bounded in a nutshell and count myself a king of infinite space, were it not that I have bad dreams." in Act 2 Scene 2). Nice reference if it was purposeful, both for Benedict and for Sherlock.

 

Definitely an uneven episode - the 1890s were so beautifully done (props to costumes, set, and, well, props) and the acting was excellent as usual. But the flashforwards were jarring and Moriarty just felt so campy, like a Victorian Hannibal Lecter, not a villainous criminal mastermind.

 

Speaking of the theater, my friend and I are going to go see this tomorrow night on the big screen - I'm super excited! Hope to notice details that I didn't in the TV viewing.