Sherlock

The worst episode was the one with the wedding. Too much sentiment, too much superficially leaning into the characters instead of the interesting plot we've come to expect from an episode. It reminded me of "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms", the GoT episode, in that it pauses the action for just a bunch of character dynamics. But unlike the GoT example, we haven't spent eight seasons loving and losing Sherlock characters, and we aren't geared up for such an apocalypse as the Long Night. The GoT episode was fulfilling; a deep breath before the plunge; after eight seasons, the moment to savor everything that we needed. The Sherlock episode was a frivolous diversion.\

I liked Mary quite a bit when first she appeared. After several hopeless romances, she appeared to be the one Watson needed. She was clever, fun, loving, and above all -- for my satisfaction -- no ball-and-chain to our dynamic duo. But the revelations were double-edged. On the one hand, she's cooler than we expected, and she scratches John's itch for danger. On the other hand, she seriously hurt him. As long as he feels betrayed and injured, I'll feel so for him. All of this means I wasn't disappointed when Mary died. She was a cool supplement to the show, but unnecessary, and I prefer Sherlock+John as bachelors, like the good old days.

That brings me to my next point. I like the good old days. Why do writers feel compelled to over-advance storylines? I reckon that, ironically, it's a lot of work to keep a good thing going for multiple seasons, and it's easier to change direction. There was a perfection to the first couple of seasons that would be hard to uphold. Inertia be damned, it's easier to give up on that standard and try something new. Writers may also feel that such developments are necessary to keep viewers interested. I think Sherlock benefited from an arc, but I think the writers made the pleasure of the episodes too subservient to the arc of the series. Not enough fun case-solving by the end. Not enough fun Sherlock, in fact, as he gets increasingly sensitive and tragic. The character deserves an arc like the series does, but you have to preserve the pleasure that originally pulled everyone in. I like the episodes that are good old case-handling but that link to a broader arc (Moriarty is involved, John and Sherlock learn a few things about life). That satisfies my craving for the epic as well as my joy in the day-to-day of this show. The last two seasons compromised the pleasure of the episode.

And especially the series finale. It wasn't bad; it was intense, twisted, intriguing; but it wasn't great. It wasn't a cliffhanger, but it wasn't closure. It was rushed -- introducing Eurus just at the end of the last episode, who is a wrecking ball. Eurus is interesting, but it's too late for a brand new wrecking ball. The finale handles too much heavy, volatile stuff, and then it wraps up too easily. It doesn't really feel wrapped up. Tricky thing, ending a series. Timing is important.

It felt too much like Skyfall and Spectre. It's cool to plumb the depths of the erstwhile invincible hero, but only to a degree. At a certain point you're just shattering the dynamic that originally pulled viewers in. The similarities are actually pretty extensive: secret siblings like Spectre, return to the old homestead like Skyfall, torment our invincible hero, whiff on the old pleasure of the series. That's why I liked Quantum of Solace better than those two, last I saw it: it just felt like a good old Bond movie, it wasn't trying to reshape the narrative, over-develop the character, upset the balance. It was just Bond being Bond, if I remember right. Doing Bond things. Bond needs an arc, like Sherlock, but you have to be careful.

The series tripped up a few times, didn't quite end right, was directionally challenged at times. But by and large it was a joy. The first couple of seasons are nearly flawless. As I mentioned in the last post, they aren't striving as high as most series I'd put time into, but they're doing their job really well, and it's a pleasure. I like Sherlock quite a bit. It's like a 4 out of 5 type series.