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Sherlock: The Abominable Bride |OT| 19th Century, My Dear Watson

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hamchan

Member
Really liked it. Great way to link the modern series to the old, paying tribute to the origins of the character, while also not being filler, since pretty important developments happen.
 

Toa TAK

Banned
That was thoroughly entertaining and was pleasantly surprised throughout. Going to be a long wait for the next series. Integrating the Sufferabe movement into it was probably my favorite aspect of this episode.
 
While not near the highs the series has provided before, it was still a very fun and enjoyable time. I particularly liked how they altered things from the show to fit the time period, such as the credits and telegrams.
 

hateradio

The Most Dangerous Yes Man
I actually liked it for the most part.

Sherlock's memory dream palace reminded me of the Animus from Assassin's Creed. :p
 
I hated it. Absolutely the worst episode of Sherlock, period.
Did nothing for the story, and the mystery reveal was utter nonsense.
The actors are so busy and that delays the shooting, and if they are going to waste their time into making episodes like these, then there is no point.
 
Wow, that was great. I loved the old school intro sequence, as well as all the little touches like the
virus in the data reference and John morphing back into 21st century clothes.
As for the story,
I loved the darker and trippier turn the story took towards the end. Drug use, Holmes' ODing and using faces he saw as characters, the layers of reality plot device. My issues with the story are really just with the A-plot going nowhere and just morphing into Holmes' rationalization of Moriarty coming back. I would have loved to see a neater payoff to the whole Abominable Bride thing, maybe one that explained why the suffragette aspect was there in the dream world. The ending though, Moffat cliffhanger aside, was pretty nice, although I really hope this is just a giant fake out and Moriarty comes back somehow, unless this is some sort of final vengeance plot triggered by his death and executed by a rejiggered version of Moran. I'd love to see a Series 4 done with one continuous 3-part story, ending with Moriarty triumphing over Holmes in death leading to a Series 5 where Holmes tries to fix himself after losing.

Now comes the long wait to Series 4 in 2017...
 

Vagabundo

Member
I hated it. Absolutely the worst episode of Sherlock, period.
Did nothing for the story, and the mystery reveal was utter nonsense.
The actors are so busy and that delays the shooting, and if they are going to waste their time into making episodes like these, then there is no point.

really? I'm not the biggest fan of the show, as in I only watch them once so I may forget details, but
Sherlock being high all the time, especally during the mind palaces and him being 100% sure Moriaty is dead are not new?
 

Morrigan Stark

Arrogant Smirk
I enjoyed it but I do kind of wish it was just 100% Victorian. It didn't need to tie into what is coming next.

Oh well, only a billion more years until the next season.
Yeah my feelings exactly. It was fun to watch, but I wish it had really been its own thing. I could really do without the whole drugged out trip/mind palace/dream sequence meta shit.
 

Bluth54

Member
Very much a filler episode, but I thought it was decent enough.

I haven't read the story but I know about that. It still felt out of place and I did not quite understand why that scene was there and what it actually told us.
Maybe it becomes clearer for me during a rewatch.

I figure they just put it in because they wanted to have that scene in Sherlock but they knew it probably wouldn't end like that, so this episode was basically the perfect episode to put it in.
 

beril

Member
I quite enjoyed it even though it's pure self-referential silliness at this point. Feels like Moffat and Gattis are just having a bit of fun with it when they get the chance now. It must be frustrating for them as well having to wait years for the stars to be able to squeeze in a few episodes between doing shitty hollywood movies.
 

Jackpot

Banned
No spoiler tags once the episode has aired.

I haven't read the story but I know about that. It still felt out of place and I did not quite understand why that scene was there and what it actually told us.
Maybe it becomes clearer for me during a rewatch.

His encounters with Moriarty haunt him and dragged him back in to the dream, but was defeated because he has Watson as a partner whilst M is alone. All metaphorical.
 

jufonuk

not tag worthy
I enjoyed that, trying to be too cleaver for it's own good in places but was a fun episode none the less.
 
I think I'm my own worst enemy in enjoying this because Moffat loves to play the con game so much I have no idea when to take him seriously, and I don't really find that constant state of flux any fun or entertaining as a viewer. Like the idea that Moriarty is supposedly dead and although logically I'd say yes it's just damnit Moffat!

I liked the episode up until the last...10-15. I quite liked the suffragette stuff and randomly guessed at the start that I wonder if it was going to be a mind palace thing with Sherlock really trying to explain how Moriarty could have faked his death, only to come to the conclusion there's no way he could since he doesn't believe in the supernatural. Then again we got Joker-esque multiple choice with how Sherlock faked his death (although I think one was meant to THE reason) so you never know.

I feel like they could go the brother angle for Moriarty, if he "survived", but for a lot of the less book-savvy viewers it might feel really cheap, and it sort of would be.
 

Auctopus

Member
The show was okay but I'm not surprised at the luke-warm reaction after Series 3.

To be honest, I think Moffat is one of the most overrated writers currently working and constantly produces bloated plots with dialogue and characters that are too clever for their own good.

Also, the allusion to the Reichenbach Falls fell a little flat due to the subtler references in the finale of series 2 with the same title.

Set/costume production was very good.
 

Ceallach

Smells like fresh rosebuds
I enjoyed the episode. I thought it would be filler and it wasn't. Then again, I could watch Cumberbatch and Freeman eat breakfast for 90 minutes.
 

Curufinwe

Member
Glad to hear some people liked it.

First impressions in here were pretty bleak so that got me worried.

I would have been OK with, and was expecting a 19th century special which didn't have anything to do with the regular series, but what we got was much better.
 

Currygan

at last, for christ's sake
I enjoyed the episode. I thought it would be filler and it wasn't. Then again, I could watch Cumberbatch and Freeman eat breakfast for 90 minutes.

037d23928bb8e181b83fbfe33f2f6f88.jpg
 

Mr_Zombie

Member
I'm going to see the movie this week (in a cinema :D) so I've just want to ask: do I need to watch season 3 first to get everything from the movie and to not get season 3 spoiled by it?
 
I don't really know what the point of this one was
Sherlock is trying to use his mind palace / delusional fantasy to figure out how Moriarty could survive, but instead he ends up battling a non-existent Moriarty for... reasons.

Filming for season 4 starts in April. I'm optimistic we'll be watching Series 4 a year from now.

Holy SHIT is that Molly?!

What in the fuck. It starts in April? God damn. I know each episode is feature film length but the slow pace of production on this show is astonishing.
 

mf.luder

Member
I enjoyed this, as confusing as it was sometimes to follow. I'm a sucker for Moriarty in this series, love his batshit crazy.

I'll need to watch it again and pick up on some things I missed.

Really neat waterfall allusion.
 

Cheerilee

Member
Why did Sherlock have to
OD to realise of course you can't shoot yourself in the head and survive?!

Because
in the back of his mind, Sherlock was aware of one unsolved case where a woman shot herself in the head and conclusively died (she got an autopsy and everything), and yet she conclusively rose from the grave to kill someone (personally ID'd by her husband, with information only she would know), before returning to her grave (100% dead), and popping up occasionally to kill others (which could be dismissed as copycat crimes, if only the original crime didn't defy the laws of nature). He knows that's impossible, but he doesn't have an answer for how she did it.

Then Moriarty shot himself in the head, and now apparently rose from the grave. Sherlock knows Moriarty can't do that, but... Sherlock faked his own death on that same day with The Fall. And Moriarty is Sherlock's equal. Does Moriarty know something Sherlock doesn't? Does Moriarty know how the woman did it? Did Sherlock and Moriarty both fake their own deaths, and Sherlock was simply too slow to see Moriarty's trick?

Moriarty has literally gotten inside Sherlock's head.
 
What in the fuck. It starts in April? God damn. I know each episode is feature film length but the slow pace of production on this show is astonishing.
I wouldn't worry about it- the Beeb would just put it on the shelf until New Year's next year. That's Sherlock's slot by this point.

Cumberbatch is busy with Doctor Strange between now and then.
 
Because
in the back of his mind, Sherlock was aware of one unsolved case where a woman shot herself in the head and conclusively died (she got an autopsy and everything), and yet she conclusively rose from the grave to kill someone (personally ID'd by her husband, with information only she would know), before returning to her grave (100% dead), and popping up occasionally to kill others (which could be dismissed as copycat crimes, if only the original crime didn't defy the laws of nature). He knows that's impossible, but he doesn't have an answer for how she did it.

Then Moriarty shot himself in the head, and now apparently rose from the grave. Sherlock knows Moriarty can't do that, but... Sherlock faked his own death on that same day with The Fall. And Moriarty is Sherlock's equal. Does Moriarty know something Sherlock doesn't? Does Moriarty know how the woman did it? Did Sherlock and Moriarty both fake their own deaths, and Sherlock was simply too slow to see Moriarty's trick?

Moriarty has literally gotten inside Sherlock's head.


That's actually a great explanation, thankyou. Makes sense.

He still could have put a blood packet in his head and done the ball under the arm to cut his pulse.
 
I found it pretty middling.

Maybe it would have been better if it was a hour long because it felt really slow and with a lot of filler as is
 

Mrbob

Member
Watched this on PBS last night. First time I've seen Sherlock, thought it was cool. Going to catch up on the series on Netflix now. I picked up some spoilers but whatever, not going to deter me from watching from the beginning.
 
Because
in the back of his mind, Sherlock was aware of one unsolved case where a woman shot herself in the head and conclusively died (she got an autopsy and everything), and yet she conclusively rose from the grave to kill someone (personally ID'd by her husband, with information only she would know), before returning to her grave (100% dead), and popping up occasionally to kill others (which could be dismissed as copycat crimes, if only the original crime didn't defy the laws of nature). He knows that's impossible, but he doesn't have an answer for how she did it.

Then Moriarty shot himself in the head, and now apparently rose from the grave. Sherlock knows Moriarty can't do that, but... Sherlock faked his own death on that same day with The Fall. And Moriarty is Sherlock's equal. Does Moriarty know something Sherlock doesn't? Does Moriarty know how the woman did it? Did Sherlock and Moriarty both fake their own deaths, and Sherlock was simply too slow to see Moriarty's trick?

Moriarty has literally gotten inside Sherlock's head.
Additionally, I think
Mind Palace Moriarty represents all of Sherlock's dark, fatalistic tendencies which were threatening to destroy him only now he has this other good, stable aspect to counter them, represented by Watson.
 

bengraven

Member
Great episode. The last 30 minutes were a bit jarring and a bit too meta to be cheeky, but I thought it was still fun.

Pretty obvious why this all ties into Sherlock.
He realizes Moriarty is more than just one person. It's a group of people.
That's something we've all suspected since even Season 1.
 

Hyun Sai

Member
Great episode. The last 30 minutes were a bit jarring and a bit too meta to be cheeky, but I thought it was still fun.

Pretty obvious why this all ties into Sherlock.
He realizes Moriarty is more than just one person. It's a group of people.
That's something we've all suspected since even Season 1.
You... You think Moriarty
has a twin ???
 
D

Deleted member 231381

Unconfirmed Member
Brilliant episode, partner and I loved it. The concept of Sherlock attempting to reconstruct a similar faked death to Moriarty's in his head as a means to solving Moriarty's mystery was very clever, and a good way to segue into the Victorian sphere. Freeman really pulled off the change with aplomb, too.
 
Really enjoyed that even though it just brought back the itch for the next series.

So if we are supposed of correlate the past to current times will that mean the cute medical girl will be in on the
"Moriarty group"
 

RDreamer

Member
Brilliant episode, partner and I loved it. The concept of Sherlock attempting to reconstruct a similar faked death to Moriarty's in his head as a means to solving Moriarty's mystery was very clever, and a good way to segue into the Victorian sphere. Freeman really pulled off the change with aplomb, too.

I like it conceptually, and I had fun with the episode, but I kind of feel like the one big thing it missed out on was the actual payoff to what it did. Reconstructing a similar faked death in his mind in order to solve the present problem is brilliantly fun but it's hard to see it as a compelling narrative arc if you don't actually see him solve the present problem. I think that's partially why there was a bit of backlash against the episode as a whole. The other thing adding to that is that it purported to be very self contained with the victorian era stuff and then ended up being even less contained than some other episodes (because of lack of payoff at the end).
 

tomtom94

Member
I like it conceptually, and I had fun with the episode, but I kind of feel like the one big thing it missed out on was the actual payoff to what it did. Reconstructing a similar faked death in his mind in order to solve the present problem is brilliantly fun but it's hard to see it as a compelling narrative arc if you don't actually see him solve the present problem. I think that's partially why there was a bit of backlash against the episode as a whole. The other thing adding to that is that it purported to be very self contained with the victorian era stuff and then ended up being even less contained than some other episodes (because of lack of payoff at the end).

This. It's compounded by the fact that the conclusion to the mystery and 'the war that we must lose' is cut off to tie into the season 4 narrative so we don't get a proper conclusion for that either.
 

Quick

Banned
Gatiss' transformation to a heavier Mycroft (more along the lines of Doyle's description) caught me off-guard. Such a contrast to the health-conscious modern version. But that said, I didn't think Doyle's depiction of Mycroft is that "heavy".

I like the little attention to detail with Mycroft's appearance, not just with the fat suit prosthesis, but also with the yellowing eyes and arcus senilis. At least, I could see it.
 
D

Deleted member 231381

Unconfirmed Member
I like it conceptually, and I had fun with the episode, but I kind of feel like the one big thing it missed out on was the actual payoff to what it did. Reconstructing a similar faked death in his mind in order to solve the present problem is brilliantly fun but it's hard to see it as a compelling narrative arc if you don't actually see him solve the present problem. I think that's partially why there was a bit of backlash against the episode as a whole. The other thing adding to that is that it purported to be very self contained with the victorian era stuff and then ended up being even less contained than some other episodes (because of lack of payoff at the end).

It makes sense that you can't see him solve the present problem, though - you don't see him solve the past problem. As dream-Moriarty says, it's just too neat, too easy; and Sherlock knows this - in his dream he digs to find the second body and it isn't there, and this is important because we know Moriarty's body was never found either. We don't know the secret of the Abominable Bride yet because she clearly holds the secret to Moriarty, too. I guess if you just wanted a standalone episode, that would be disappointing; but it sets up a structural question for the series to pursue magnificently.
 

zsynqx

Member
Ended up really enjoying it even though it did become a bit convoluted towards the end. I found the bride plot to be very well done and at times quite scary :p The sign language and fat Mycroft scenes made me crack up as well. Definitely a massive improvement from last season which I found to be generally disappointing.

Also Andrew Scott (Moriarty) was brilliant as always
 
I really liked it until it was rudely interrupted by modern Sherlock an hour in.

After that point I found it hard to invest in either story - the Victorian story lost a lot of impact once it was revealed to be a dream, and then it disappeared. The modern plot was too rushed to tell much of a story, and definitely wasn't worth aborting the previous hour.

Frankly, I think it would have much preferred subtle hints in the background with a modern times reveal in the end, or have it be a 100% Victorian spinoff episode. The structure of the episode went to complete shit after the reveal and needed to be handled differently.
 
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