S04.E16: Hounded

[Athena]

At the urging of Morland’s wealthy associate, Henry Baskerville, Holmes and Watson look into the death of his brother and discover that a witness saw the man chased to his death by a large, glowing animal too fantastic to be real. Sherlock considers intervening when the trauma from the bombing at the morgue negatively impacts ME Hawes’ work.

[AimingforYoko]

Wow, they defied the rule of the guest star. I thought for sure it was Henry.

I liked that they actually followed up with Eugene's trauma. Jonny Lee Miller really is the most empathetic Holmes ever.

[DeLurker]

I don't remember him calling anyone mate before, but he called Eugene that.

And Clyde! Good to see you!

[Driad]

How did I miss Clyde?  When did you see him?

 

The Conan Doyle story "Hound of the Baskervilles" has a character named Stapleton.

[shapeshifter]

How did I miss Clyde?  When did you see him?

You were likely distracted by JLM's tattooed biceps doing hot yoga.

I never before noticed that the CBS weatherman who comes on after Elementary is named Steve Baskerville.

[biakbiak]

Oh lord do I hate the British pronunciation of patent!

[MaryHedwig]

I don't remember him calling anyone mate before, but he called Eugene that.

I don't either, it stood out as significant to me but I am not sure what it means; is it because Holmes is growing and now able to express his affection better or is it because he cares about Hawes more than most people in his world? Or is it because kissing (off-screen, at least that's what I hope is happening) Fiona is softening him up in general?

 

I can't help thinking that Hawes has a better chance of finding a love interest if he moves to a smaller, less-competitive town.  Hopefully one with a good karaoke bar.

 

I don't know what to make of the move from Thursday to Sunday night.  I hope this is not a bad omen.

[GaT]

I wish they would keep Eugene on the show, I like his character.

 

Why is the show moving to Sunday?

[Delwyn]

It's been twenty years since The Oneders and That Thing You Do came into the world, but the second I saw Tom Everett Scott on my screen I had the song stuck in my head. It was necessary to pause the episode and go do something else until the earworm ran its course because I couldn't take any of the proceedings seriously.

 

After Sherlock's confession and goodbye with Eugene, I'm really curious about how JLM as Sherlock perceives the people in his life. I think it's probably the one thing that keeps me on board with the show. The emotional moments and revelations are earned by the performances and keeping much of the characters' day to day personal struggles off screen. His final plea to Eugene felt like the speech he wishes someone had given him (or maybe had received but did not heed) before things got so bad he couldn't step back from that precipice.

 

When they have scenes down in Watson's basement work area or her bedroom all I want in the world is for them to give me a few seconds of her closet set up. The woman has had probably five pairs of shoes in the last four years, but eleventy million outfits. How does that storage situation work? Do the clothes have their own room? Did she blow thousands of dollars on variations of neckties at the end of summer sales or does she purchase them from week to week as she goes? As a costume designer, this aspect really bugs me. I know a certain suspension of disbelief is involved in the premise and its elaborate red-herring/motive issues, but what is the designer's logic behind her character, a human woman, deciding that for the next 9 months she is going to sport every version neck wear she can get her hands on? I'm not even mad - I covet a few of them, but Sherlock notices every detail. Why doesn't he think this is a weird turn of events?

[GaT]

It's been twenty years since The Oneders and That Thing You Do came into the world, 

And I read that as Oh-needers

[Delwyn]

And I read that as Oh-needers

Still one of my favourite jokes in film.

[Blakeston]

When they have scenes down in Watson's basement work area or her bedroom all I want in the world is for them to give me a few seconds of her closet set up. The woman has had probably five pairs of shoes in the last four years, but eleventy million outfits. How does that storage situation work? Do the clothes have their own room? Did she blow thousands of dollars on variations of neckties at the end of summer sales or does she purchase them from week to week as she goes? As a costume designer, this aspect really bugs me. I know a certain suspension of disbelief is involved in the premise and its elaborate red-herring/motive issues, but what is the designer's logic behind her character, a human woman, deciding that for the next 9 months she is going to sport every version neck wear she can get her hands on? I'm not even mad - I covet a few of them, but Sherlock notices every detail. Why doesn't he think this is a weird turn of events?

If they do an episode where Sherlock confronts Joan about her neckwear addiction, I'll die of happiness. Or even better, if he asks her if she has an alibi for the night of the big tie heist.

I have to say, I've never bought that Joan would be a huge clothes horse, especially when it comes to her more outlandish outfits. She's a no-nonsense person with a very subdued personality, who generally seems to loathe flashiness.

[Primetimer]

Elementary takes on The Hound Of The Baskervilles, but the most important moment has nothing to do with any dogs.

Read the story

[12catcrazy]

I've only been watching this show for about two years and I really enjoy it.  I hope that moving to Sunday night isn't the "kiss of doom"  for this show.   In New York, the Sunday 10 pm shows often get cancelled because football, golf, name-your-sport, runs over so long that they just dump the 10 pm show and go straight for the news.    It's not a good time slot for a show to be in, but I'm crossing my fingers that it's going to be around for a while. 

[basiltherat]

It was so touching that Sherlock not only sacrificed his reserved-ness, but his friendship to give Eugene a wake-up call. He has respect for his abilities, much the same way we found out early on that all other detectives were "not-Bell" I think all other MEs will be "not-Eugene."

[thuganomics85]

A little bit disappointed the "Hound" ended up not being a Hound of any kind, but I enjoyed their take on the Baskerville case.  Always great seeing both Tom Everrett Scott and Michael Gladis and both weren't the killers!  Sure, the former knew about his brother's patent-jacking and the latter was into whores, but still!  Yay, show!  I knew you had it in you!

 

Loved that they brought back what happen to Eugene episodes back, and how it effected him.  I'm glad he's taking time off, but I hope this isn't is last time on the show.  Sherlock's talk with him was well-done and Jonny Lee Miller was really great in that moment.

 

Clyde is back!  Briefly, but I'll take it!

 

So, the show is now going over to Sundays, huh?  Doesn't really make a difference to me since I have to watch it On Demand no matter what, but I hope this doesn't mean the show is on it's way out yet. 

[Bookworm13]

This is pure speculation on my part, as I fell asleep about halfway through and didn't see previews for the next episode, but the move to Sundays could be because of March Madness, and then going back to Thursdays when it's over, unless they specified permanently. I hope it's not a ratings issue, though, because this is one of the only shows I look forward to watching anymore, and I'll be bummed if it gets cancelled. 

[sinkwriter]

I was going along just fine, but when Sherlock called Eugene "mate" and told him he couldn't watch him spiral like Sherlock once had... oh, the lump in my throat... 

 

Come back someday, Eugene! You will be missed.

Also... I may need to take up yoga again. 

[MisterGlass]

 

The Conan Doyle story "Hound of the Baskervilles" has a character named Stapleton.

 

And Barrymore, like the company partner.  And cigarette butts played a role in the mystery.  I was most excited that there was an actual glowing dog, and it appeared to be a dogue de Bordeaux.  I didn't anticipate the beast being a robot.  And yet it wasn't as scary as the actual pack mule, or the cheetah.

 

I like Eugene, and if this does end up being the end of him on Elementary I'm glad he got a nice send-off.  I like Sherlock reaching out to him.

 

Always happy to see Clyde.

[aemom]

After Eugene's potential girlfriend was blown up, I was rather disappointed that it wasn't addressed in subsequent episodes. But I can see that they were winding up for the big reveal about a fair bit of time passing and how he wasn't coping well. It's these callbacks that really make me love this show.

I still don't really see how the mechanical "dog" would have been able to run that fast at the park, but sometimes you have to suspend belief to enjoy a tv show.

[frenchtoast]

And Barrymore, like the company partner.  And cigarette butts played a role in the mystery.  I was most excited that there was an actual glowing dog, and it appeared to be a dogue de Bordeaux.  I didn't anticipate the beast being a robot.  And yet it wasn't as scary as the actual pack mule, or the cheetah.

 

I like Eugene, and if this does end up being the end of him on Elementary I'm glad he got a nice send-off.  I like Sherlock reaching out to him.

 

Always happy to see Clyde.

And the dog chased Stapleton out on the moors and was lost/drowned, much like how the robot dog/mule was caught by the pool. I was very pleased with how they took some interesting stuff and kept the general idea--the Baskerville inheritance and trying to obtain it--and adapted it. Because I agree with the recapper, I'm not a big fan of the Hounds novel, or any of the novels really. The stories work better. I appreciate that the writers drop in stuff that canon fans will recognize but it doesn't derail the story or contort itself too much to be so tied to it.

 

Also, I was quite teary when Eugene came to say goodbye. I love how these characters are real people, not caricatures and I can connect with them. I loved the call back to the first time we met Eugene was Sherlock explaining to Joan that he played chess with him. 

 

Even if we don't get a 5th season, I'm glad we got these four, because I really love this show. It may not THE.BEST.SHOW.EVER, but it's warmth and thoughtfulness mean a lot.

[ratgirlagogo]

 

I hope that moving to Sunday night isn't the "kiss of doom"  for this show.   In New York, the Sunday 10 pm shows often get cancelled because football, golf, name-your-sport, runs over so long that they just dump the 10 pm show and go straight for the news.    It's not a good time slot

All the Sunday night shows are a mess because of sports overruns.  The nightmare that was trying to record The Good Wife!  And now we're going to go through it with Elementary, a show I much prefer.   Arrgh!  It's the worst night of the TV week for those of us who DVR everything.  I'm gritting my teeth in advance.

[tvfanatic13]

Wait, what ? It is moving to Sunday? When? The kiss of death isn't nearly as bad in the spring without football though. And my other favoraite, Madam Secretary, rocks Sunday.

[MaryHedwig]

And my other favorite, Madam Secretary, rocks Sunday.

As did Downton Abbey.

[shapeshifter]

Wait, what ? It is moving to Sunday? When? The kiss of death isn't nearly as bad in the spring without football though. And my other favoraite, Madam Secretary, rocks Sunday.

It seems the Sunday CBS shows are taking a short break and returning March 20th (when Elementary will begin on that day of the week) whereas the Thursday CBS shows (like The Big Bang Theory) aren't airing again until March 31st because of sports. So Elementary will have a brief, one-week hiatus by airing on Sundays, rather than a 3 week break by airing on Thursdays.

I will leave it to other, more network-production savvy posters to determine whether this indicates support for the show by the network or not.

Edited March 13, 2016 by shapeshifter

[MisterGlass]

Huh. That is a baroque bit of scheduling.  I think most people will assume it's on hiatus and be puzzled later when they find out they missed two episodes that were being shown on Sundays.  That does feel a little like burning up episodes.  Unless the show is so often DVR'd that they don't think it matters...?

 

 

It may not THE.BEST.SHOW.EVER, but it's warmth and thoughtfulness mean a lot.

 

That's a unique thing this has brought to the Holmesian shared universe.  We've seen Sherlock cold, calculating, sarcastic, witty, debonair, and heroic in a number of adaptations.  Making an effort to interact in a human way with someone other than Watson?  Growing his social circle over time to include multiple friends?  This is positively subversive.

[orza]

Elementary pretty consistently has the highest % gain in the live+7 ratings on the CBS schedule. It gains between 90% to 100% viewers from the initial live airing. CBS has ordered 24 episodes of the show for the past three seasons. Networks only order extra episodes for shows they are happy with. If CBS has again ordered 24 episodes they need to move the show to Sunday to have time to air them all before the end of the season. Sunday is the big TV night of the week. A move from Thursday to Sunday is a good thing. Elementary fits better thematically with the Sunday shows than tacked onto the Thursday comedy block.

[possibilities]

Whatever the reason, I'm happy to have Elementary on the air during the Great Basketball Distraction. I also have more going on Thursday night than Sunday, so I like the change to Sunday.

 

I wish I understood what makes Clyde so charismatic. I was soooo excited to see him. They must be lighting him a special way.

 

I do think it's a brilliant writing trick that this show makes characters like Eugene feel so significant, even when they get hardly any screen time. Or maybe it's the directing and acting, with JLM and LL react to the small players with focus and intensity, that gives the show this quality. I don't know what it is. But it makes it seem like much more than a procedural, when really it's pretty much a procedural.

[twoods]

I was hoping there were werewolves involved as an ode to Tom Everett Scott playing one in American Werewolf in Paris. He has aged very well, and now I want to see That Thing You Do!

Poor Eugene. I'm glad they brought up the explosion and his impact on the death of his friend/potential girlfriend.

[jhlipton]

A little bit disappointed the "Hound" ended up not being a Hound of any kind, but I enjoyed their take on the Baskerville case. 

 

I was most excited that there was an actual glowing dog, and it appeared to be a dogue de Bordeaux.  I didn't anticipate the beast being a robot. 

 

Was he "glowy dog" an English Mastiff?  I thought that mastiffs were much bigger, but this:

looks about the same.

 

I appreciate that the writers drop in stuff that canon fans will recognize but it doesn't derail the story or contort itself too much to be so tied to it.

 

I ws happy when they showed the ID of Charles Baskerville, and delighted that the fortune descended from Hugo!

[ElectricBoogaloo]

And I read that as Oh-needers

Still one of my favourite jokes in film.

As in "I wonder what happened to the O'Needers!"

[theatremouse]

Huh. That is a baroque bit of scheduling.  I think most people will assume it's on hiatus and be puzzled later when they find out they missed two episodes that were being shown on Sundays.  That does feel a little like burning up episodes.  Unless the show is so often DVR'd that they don't think it matters...?

There was a clip annoucning the move to Sunday the second the episode ended, so one either needed to change the channel/stop paying attention immediately to miss it, or have DVRed it and have the very end cut off. Or DVRed and not cut off the end but stopped right away, but then if one were DVRing, as you mention, the move probably won't interfere anyway.

[ratgirlagogo]

 

if one were DVRing, as you mention, the move probably won't interfere anyway.

It always has interfered for us, and we DVR almost everything.  Even if the show is part of our scheduled series, while it picks up the first showing on the new night, it doesn't and can't adjust for sports overruns.  In order to get the complete  Good Wife we've been recording the perfectly dreadful CSI  Cyber too just to make sure we always get the entire GW.  So much so that Mr Rat and I have speculated that CBS  did this deliberately to beef up CSI Cyber's ratings.

Edited March 13, 2016 by ratgirlagogo

[johntfs]

It always has interfered for us, and we DVR almost everything.  Even if the show is part of our scheduled series, while it picks up the first showing on the new night, it doesn't and can't adjust for sports overruns.  In order to get the complete  Good Wife we've been recording the perfectly dreadful CSI  Cyber too just to make sure we always get the entire GW.  So much so that Mr Rat and I have speculated that CBS  did this deliberately to beef up CSI Cyber's ratings.

 

That's one of the reasons I still VCR instead of DVR or DVD.

[Texasmom1970]

You were likely distracted by JLM's tattooed biceps doing hot yoga.

I know I was is there anything hotter than him all sweaty doing yoga as Clyde hangs out in the background?! I think not.

 

I am not only shallow that one scene where he told Eugene he was at a precipice and not going to let him go over. The look on JLM's face, he totally killed that scene, made me teary eyed!

[TV Anonymous]

I wonder why several posters here wrote that the move to Sunday was temporary? My understanding is that the move is permanent for this season - not just for March Madness - as Rush Hour will take Thursday night over.

[theatremouse]

It always has interfered for us, and we DVR almost everything.  Even if the show is part of our scheduled series, while it picks up the first showing on the new night, it doesn't and can't adjust for sports overruns.  In order to get the complete  Good Wife we've been recording the perfectly dreadful CSI  Cyber too just to make sure we always get the entire GW.  So much so that Mr Rat and I have speculated that CBS  did this deliberately to beef up CSI Cyber's ratings.

I didn't mean the sports couldn't still ruin your day. I just meant if you didn't see the tag in this episode saying "moves to Sundays!" right at the end, if you DVR the show, a DVR would notice the move to Sundays whether a human noticed or not. Sports'll mess with you any day of the week.

[MisterGlass]

 

I wonder why several posters here wrote that the move to Sunday was temporary? My understanding is that the move is permanent for this season - not just for March Madness - as Rush Hour will take Thursday night over.

 

I missed the announcement because I had to watch the ep on cbs.com, which still has the show listed for Thursdays, and I misinterpreted the discussion here and thought the move was temporary.  This article from January suggests it's for the season.

 

 

Was he "glowy dog" an English Mastiff?  I thought that mastiffs were much bigger, but this:

 

The dog in the book was probably an English mastiff mix, but the dog in the episode looked much more like the French mastiff/dogue de bordeaux.  He also looked a bit young to me.

[snarktini]

If they do an episode where Sherlock confronts Joan about her neckwear addiction, I'll die of happiness. Or even better, if he asks her if she has an alibi for the night of the big tie heist.

I have to say, I've never bought that Joan would be a huge clothes horse, especially when it comes to her more outlandish outfits. She's a no-nonsense person with a very subdued personality, who generally seems to loathe flashiness.

 

YES. Even if Joan were a clothes horse -- which I don't see, either -- I still can't stretch can't explain all the silly bows and ties. I want Joan to be effortlessly chic!

[Vermicious Knid]

No woman over 40 should be wearing floppy bows.

 

Actually, no one should be wearing them at all.

[MissLucas]

Maybe all the bows and neckties are Joan's attempt to emulate Sherlock's buttoned up style? She did say (after her boyfriend was murdered) that she wanted to become more like him.  I always take the buttoned up shirt as sartorial short-cut for 'emotionally repressed' and since we haven't seen Joan returning to the dating game this is what the odd wardrobe choices this season are all about.

On the other hand: Sherlock is definitely no longer as buttoned up as he used to be so I would appreciate the wardrobe department giving JLM's neck some breathing space.

(And on the third hand: this post might be better placed in the newly opened wardrobe thread.)

[Mama No Life]

Last we saw Clyde he was hibernating in the fridge, yes?  So I guess he's emerging from his sleep in the hot yoga room?

 

JLM killed it, as always. Why he doesn't have a slew of awards is beyond me.  Guess that's just network TV vs the big boys...

[DeLurker]

Well the change to Sunday did not seem like a big deal...until I realized that there would be no Elementary tonight.  Actually, there's not much on tonight that is of interest on any channel.  Time to surf Netflix...

[DeLurker]

Happily, I found a couple of episodes on another channel since the show is in syndication now. 

[sinkwriter]

 

Well the change to Sunday did not seem like a big deal...until I realized that there would be no Elementary tonight.

 

I'm definitely missing it. I don't usually watch it Thursday night, but it's always a thing to look forward to on Fridays (I usually watch it at my desk while having my lunch -- or supper, depending on how much work I have to do -- come to previously.tv for the episode review, read everyone's comments, and then get back to work). Today's going to feel a little empty without it. Booooo.

 

Is it going to be on this Sunday?

Edited March 18, 2016 by sinkwriter

[roseha]

I believe  the show will be on tomorrow the 20th.   I just caught up with this episode and I agree that it was excellent.  I wasn't that motivated to see it beforehand just because the film of Baskervilles is the only Sherlock Holmes film I've actually seen (well apart from the John Barrymore silent of 1922 which takes a lot of liberties!) and I thought the story might be too familiar but from what little I remember this was different enough that it didn't matter.  The storyline with Sherlock and Eugene was so moving and beautifully played by both actors.  I also loved seeing Clyde again, and got quite a kick out of seeing in that same scene the tabloid headlines from the New York Ledger - the obvious substitute for that famous rag, the New York Post, in countless episodes of Law and Order. 

 

I don't think Sunday is a bad move for the show per se, at least it will be following other dramas instead of CBS' rotating group of Thursday sitcoms. and I watched both Law and Order CI and Leverage on Sunday until they ended.  Sports will be a problem though.  I did watch this week's show On Demand over my Roku and the sound seemed unusually tinny - I was having trouble hearing all the voices.  Anyone else notice this?

[mccartygirl]

On 3/13/2016 at 5:04 PM, Texasmom1970 said:

I know I was is there anything hotter than him all sweaty doing yoga as Clyde hangs out in the background?! I think not.

 

Okay, I thought I was the only one that loved see JLM shirtless or all sweaty doing yoga. Loved him since Hackers. And seriously, WTF, Clyde was there?? I didn't know that until I saw the forum.