Tag Archives: Sherlock

There’s Something about Mary (Watson)

The Season Three finale of Sherlock has been legally shown in the US. Why does Britain torture us by holding it back? (Question: Is it still wrong to stream from dubious sources, even if you are a paying member of PBS? Answer: Probably not wrong, but still illegal.) My episode  recap is up over at Happy Nice Time People and the gist is — WOW as John Watson might put it on his blog. It was totally awesome and I say that despite some minor criticisms of the first two — like the time the screen went white when the tube-bomb was about to go off and suddenly we’re in a flash forward? sideways? back? — who knows with  Sherlock was explaining to Anderson how he faked his death (Was that a shout out to Lost?) and also the rest of the tube-bomb scene with John saying some very unJohn like words and Sherlock turning the off switch (spoiler) — that was pretty lame,  and then the cold open first minutes of The Sign of the Three, when we got Greg and Sally running around on a case that had absolutely nothing to do with anything and was all an elaborate set up for a lame joke about Sherlock’s being best man. But there was nothing like that in the finale. Just non-stop surprises, shout-outs, and some of the best and funniest lines and dialogues on either side of the pond.  [SPOILER ALERT:]Some haters critics will complain that Sherlock forgave Mary too easily for shooting him, that even if her intent had been to stop him and she was an excellent shot, he still could have died and seemed to have a pretty long recovery, but that’s Sherlock. This is a man who would have taken a pill offered him by a serial killer just to prove a point. He got that she’d done it to protect John and anyone who’d go to such lengths to protect John is worth protecting or at least forgiving.

So go over to HNTP and read the recap, or go to PBS and watch it now — free and legal — on your favorite electronic device.

(Marion doesn’t spend all her time watching television. She also writes novels and novellas. You can buy her entire oeuvre for less than a grande fancy coffee drink at Starbucks.)

Unlocking Sherlock’s Secrets

Nine more days to the US Premiere of Sherlock on PBS, which means ten more days till the folks over at HappyNiceTimePeople (Wonkette’s prettier sister) start running my recaps. Meantime, the Brits have now completed two thirds of a three episode third season of Sherlock, while we poor Yanks must suffer or become video-outlaws. There was a lovely seven minute webisode as if we weren’t already salivating at the prospect of the return of our boys – Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman as Holmes and Watson. This Sunday, PBS will be throwing another bone our way when it premieres Unlocking Sherlock, a 57-minute retrospective and teaser, featuring interviews with the cast and creators. More good news – it’s already available online LEGALLY at PBS.

What do we learn from this special? First and foremost, the reason there are so many shout-outs and references to the original Author Conan Doyle stories is because series creators Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss are major “fanboys” – so says Benedict Cumberbatch.

There’s a brief history of Conan Doyle’s career, and a shout out to his medical professor, Dr Joseph Bell, a genius diagnostician on whom he based his great detective (though no mention of the television series, Murder Rooms, a fictionalized account of Bell’s adventures, which is available in the usual places.)

Did you know that Holmes and Watson are the most portrayed literary characters ever? There’s footage of earlier cinematic attempts including silents and a version shot on the streets of London with Conan Doyle’s blessings.

Continue reading Unlocking Sherlock’s Secrets