Category: Sherlock Holmes

Audio Drama Review, Golden Age Article, Sherlock Holmes

Audio Drama Review: The Judgment of Sherlock Holmes

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The box set begins with Holmes visiting Watson in the early 1920s on urgent business that involves setting down a key adventure that occurred after the events of the Final Problem when Dr. Watson believed his old friend was dead. However, the Society believes Holmes is alive and wants to find him. To do it, they’ll threaten everything Watson holds dear. Watson faces this threat in London while, unbeknownst to him, Holmes is on their trail in Tibet.

This is a rich story spread out over more than four hours. The music and sound design by Jamie Robertson is some of the finest work Big Finish has done, and it makes the story come to life.

The script is meaty. The production successfully mixes mystery, political intrigue, and great character moments in a constantly entertaining story. Watson is pressed to his limit, into taking actions he would not normally countenance. Holmes ends up facing choices that haunt him (and perhaps the world) decades later. We’re also given insight into Holmes’ family and background.

I appreciated the way the villains were drawn. We’re inundated with fictional villainous organizations bent on world conquest that introducing such a group is not in itself remarkable. Barnes does a great job of casting the Society as a fanatical, apocalyptic cult without going over the top. There’s a certain realism to them that makes their fanaticism frightening.

Nicholas Briggs makes a superb Holmes, and nicely manages to distinguish his Holmes from 1892 from that thirty years later. Richard Earl gives one of the best interpretations of Watson I’ve heard and really does well in a story that requires him to carry far more action than is typical for Watson. They’re supported by an absolutely superb supporting cast who don’t miss a beat.

My only criticism is, after the Society’s Plan is dealt with, we’re treated to more than twenty minutes of decompression and clean up and much of that is still in the 1890s. In addition, the fate of Mary Watson was so central to this story but is dealt with in a bit of an anti-climatic way.

Despite these minor issues, the Judgement of Sherlock Holmes is a thoroughly entertaining and well-produced audio drama that shines some light on Holmes’ lost years with a cracking adventure as well as, perhaps, setting the stage for adventures to come.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.0

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Audio Drama Review: The Ordeals of Sherlock Holmes

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To call The Ordeals of Sherlock Holmes ambitious would be an understatement. It’s a collection of four-hour-long, original audio dramas from the life of Sherlock Holmes that spans nearly forty years, has an underlying plot that ties together through the set, yet each story holds up fairly well on its own.

The stories are an interesting mix. The lead off tale is set before Holmes and Watson met and has Holmes having his first meeting with Lestrade in England, while Watson is kidnapped from his unit to care for a dying Englishman in Afghanistan.

The second story is set shortly after Holmes’ return from being presumed dead and after the Adventure of Empty House and a series of great successes which leads to arrogance and a failure that leads to a well-deserved dressing down. The third part tells the reason why Holmes retired so young from Detective work. The final story is set after World War I and finds Holmes and Watson on their way to Europe to apprehend an old enemy only to discover the mastermind behind the entire affair.

The stories are well-written both individually and as a collection. It really hangs together quite well. The acting by the leads is superb as Briggs and Earl really inhabit the roles. The set manages to highlight the warmth and strength of the Holmes-Watson friendship that has survived so much. This combination is a really a pleasure to listen, particularly with stories as strong as these. The music and sound design are also up to the high standards Big Finish has established on all its releases.

Overall, The Ordeals of Sherlock Holmes is a great box set that offers fans of Sherlock Holmes fresh stories that feel true to the spirit of Sherlock Holmes.

Rating: 4.0 out of 5.0

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Audio Drama Review: The Adventure of the Perfidious Mariner

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The Sherlock Holmes Audio Drama The Adventure of the Perfidious Mariner was originally released by Big Finish to coincide with the 100th Anniversary of the Titanic disaster. It’s set during Holmes’ retirement to Suffolk to raise bees. The story finds Holmes estranged from Watson, who is grief-stricken after his second wife died aboard the Titanic. Watson’s visit to Holmes is disrupted by Bruce Ismay, an executive of the line which owned the Titantic. He escaped from the ship alive while many women and children sank into the sea and he was viewed as a cowardly villain. Ismay asks for Holmes’ help because he believes he’s being haunted by a specter–a specter that’s leaving people dead in its wake.

Overall, this production is an emotionally meaty story. Unlike many actors who have played Holmes in the past, Nicholas Briggs makes changes to his characterization to reflect the aging of the character. There are slight changes to his voice, but more to his mannerisms. In one scene, Holmes has deduced Watson’s entire reason for coming. Watson says he doesn’t care how Holmes knew he’d come. Holmes tells him anyway as if on auto pilot. Watson has some great scenes with Ismay. The mystery itself is engaging, but not the main attraction of this story. What makes this tale work so well are the great character interactions and the thorough historical research.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.0

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Audio Drama Review: The Hound of the Baskervilles

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The Hound of the Baskervilles is like the Christmas Carol. You don’t watch or listen to an adaptation to find out what happens but to see how well the creators have captured the story. Big Finish does a superb job of capturing the spirit of the Hound of the Baskervilles in  a very traditionalist adaptation. Amazingly, the entire program was recorded and rehearsed in a single day.

The cast is  wonderful. Richard Earl has got the part of Watson nailed and that’s vital since most of the story centers around him. John Banks and Charlie Norfolk did Yeoman’s work, playing five parts and three parts respectively. They did it so seamlessly, I didn’t know they didn’t have separate actors for each part until I listened to the Extra’s CD. Samuel Clemens is very compelling as Sir Henry Baskerville. And of course, Briggs is great as Holmes.

Of course, what  makes the piece so atmospheric over audio is the sound design and music, coupled with Earl’s narration and they did an incredibly good job in post-production. It captured the spookiness and suspense of the story. Overall, Big Finish does Doyle’s most legendary story justice in a superb adaptation.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.0

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Audio Drama Review: The Reification of Hans Gerber

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The Reification of Hans Gerber is an original Sherlock Holmes audio drama written in the twenty-first century. However, if you weren’t familiar with the Doyle canon, you’d be hard pressed to know that this was written by Doyle himself.

The plot captures the feel and atmosphere of Holmes without retreading over old ground. Holmes is called in to investigate the death of a wealthy man who left behind three nephews and a niece who expect to inherit until the will disappears, then one man is set to inherit. At first, it’s the eldest cousin, but a disowned relative named Hans Gerber emerges to claim the estate. It appears he’s out for more than the old man’s money when one of the cousins is murdered. The mystery is thoroughly engaging from start to finish.

Nicholas Briggs turns in his usual superb performance as Holmes, and Richard Earl plays Watson perfectly in the Edward Hardwicke tradition. One of the reasons the story feels so authentic is the amount of narration and description involved and Earl is a superb narrator. The other outstanding performance was Terry Malloy who plays Inspector Bainbridge, a police inspector who shows an amazing amount of competence.

It’s hard to overstate how much I enjoyed this. Pastiches so often fail to capture the feel of the original or are so busy inserting modern sensibilities and personalities into the story that they feel out of place. The authenticity of the story is outstanding. It’s tour de force  in writing, acting,  and production values.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.0

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Audio Drama Review: Sherlock Holmes: The Final Problem / The Empty House

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The second series of Big Finish’s Sherlock Holmes range kicks off with the adaptation of the two Sherlock Holmes stories. “The Final Problem,” where Sir Arthur Conan Doyle attempts to kill Holmes off,  and “The Empty House,” where Holmes returns.

As writer/star Nicholas Briggs admits, these are not traditional adaptations.  In the previous adaptation, a bonus talking book of “The Speckled Band” was released with a word-for-word reading of that story. This is similar but this production dispenses with “He said.” Otherwise this is a  straightforward, almost word-for-word adaptation of Doyle’s stories with most of it told through Watson’s narration or Holmes narrating to Watson what has happened previously. As such, the strength of these adaptations rest on the strength of the underlying story.

However, Big Finish does add some nice touches. There’s an emotional core in these stories that Richard Earl, as Watson, does a superb job of capturing. Briggs turns in a solid performance as Holmes, playing the character perfectly as written, even when he’s being smug in “The Empty House.”  And one of the most interesting and subtle things they do in “The Final Problem”is tell the narration as Watson writing this down, and we hear the pen crossing the paper and the sound of pen will change and become more pronounced at certain emotional points. It’s a simple bit of sound design, but it’s  clever and adds something interesting to the production.

These are solid, dramatic readings with a good soundscape added in. However, given the wealth of material and the countless adaptations of these stories, the appeal of this release is limited and this would be the last time Big Finish used the format for Sherlock Holmes.

Rating: 3.75 out of 5.00

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Audio Drama Review: The Death and the Life

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The Death and the Life is another one-man play starring Roger Llewellyn and written by David Stuart Davies adapted by Big Finish Productions. The story is a mix of fact and fiction as it centers upon Arthur Conan Doyle’s efforts to rid himself of his most famous creation once and for all with the writing of “The Final Problem” and failed.

The play imagines Holmes and his fellow characters reacting to Doyle’s actions and scheming. Doyle’s disinterest is reflected in a hilarious scene where Holmes describes a madcap adventure to a snoring Watson. The story is bolstered by the use of Doyle’s own journals and letters. Another great scene is the one which Holmes learns he’s a fictional character from his arch-rival who is not too pleased that he’s been created by Doyle as a single-use plot device.

With its light comedy and heavy symbolism, The Life and the Death  is a story about a literary creation whose popularity transcended the writer who created him. The play is helped by another strong performance from Roger Llewellyn who manages to perfectly portray all the characters and angles of this very deep and well-written play. Overall, this is another story that’s a wonderful listen for fans of Sherlock Holmes.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.0

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Audio Drama Review: The Last Act

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The Last Act brings Roger Llewellyn’s long-running, Sherlock Holmes, one-man play to audio. The story finds a somber Holmes reflecting on his life and career after Watson’s funeral. It’s an emotional and occasionally heartbreaking performance as Holmes reflects on his friend and his career. “You never appreciate the best things, the best people, until they’re gone.”

Not every moment is somber. There are humorous moments as Holmes will reflect on one of his friend’s oddities or on Lestrade’s unremarkable career that saw him never rise above Inspector.

The play covers a variety of ground. From “The Abbey Grange” to “The Speckled Band” “The Final Problem” and “The Empty House” and The Hound of the Baskervilles and many more, Holmes offers his reflections on his cases and it’s a Tour de Force performance.

I enjoyed the second half far less as it offered insights into Holmes’ dark secrets, including his little discussed childhood. On one hand, this explained Holmes being merciful in one particular case. On the other, there’s a certain modern conceit that tries to explain everything anyone does as a result of some childhood trauma to provide motivation. This can be seen in superhero fiction where so many characters’ origins are being rewritten reflect that sort of trauma. It becomes somewhat monotonous in fiction when no one ever does anything good, noble, or heroic unless a parent was killed or was abusive, or some other trauma occurred to explain it.

I also didn’t like the way Holmes’ drug use was addressed. In the books, Watson claims to have weaned him off cocaine. However, the play insists Holmes’ use continued unknown to Watson and it leads the play into a dour place. While some would argue this is more realistic than the books (which removed the cocaine habit as it became socially unacceptable) and it might be clever to undermine audience expectations by moving from downbeat to depressing, I wasn’t pleasantly surprised by the turn.

Still, the play is well-written even if I have issues with the tone, Llewellyn’s performance as Holmes (and twelve other characters) is pitch perfect and thoroughly engaging. He captures Holmes as a man trying to come to terms with the greatest loss in his life as a lifetime of emotional restraint begins to ebb away. I only wish the play had a more satisfactory conclusion.

Rating: 4.25 out of 5.0

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The Top 12 Sherlock Holmes Stories, Part Three

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We continue our countdown of the top 12 Sherlock Holmes stories. (See: Part One  and Part Two.)

3) The Hound of the Baskervilles (1902): It’s no wonder that Sherlock Holmes’ third novel  is  the most often adapted Sherlock Holmes story. It’s rich with atmosphere with its setting on the moor. It also has some genuinely scary moments with the menace of the titular hound as well as some great elements that add suspense such as the escaped convict. If the story suffers at all, it’s from the fact that Sherlock Holmes is off stage for much of the story. But this really gives Watson a chance to shine as both an observer and a man of action.

2) The Adventure The Red Headed League (1890) This is a good concept that comes with a built in moral. A man gets paid a fantastic salary by the Red Headed League for copying pages from the encyclopedia because he has an amazing head of red hair. However, the Red Headed League disappears as quickly as it appeared sending the confused shopkeeper to Holmes.

There are two things that are really fascinating about this story. The first is the idea of a superior intelligence preying on people’s greed and stupidity to victimize another person. This would be revisited (albeit without as much success) in “The Stockbroker’s Clerk” and “The Three Garidebs.” The second thing is just seeing how Holmes puts this whole case together. It’s one of his finest pieces of deduction as Holmes faces a worthy and underrated foe.

1) The Sign of Four (1890): This is one of the best mystery novels of all time. The Sign of Four has so much working for it. It’s a book that was decades ahead of its time. The Penguins Classic edition of this book is only 160 pages. However, it’s tightly written and manages to work so much in. You have a great puzzle mystery, combined with creepy and memorable characters, a fast-paced quick moving story, and even a good action and chase scene. It includes a flashback to the past that reveals what happened in backstory but unlike in A Study in Scarlet, the flashback section is interesting and doesn’t drag on forever.

This story works on so many levels, particularly when you consider how dry and one dimensional detective fiction was for decades after that. While the Sign of Four is often overshadowed by The Hound of the Baskervilles,  from my point of view,  The Sign of Four is the better novel. The Sign of Four was decades ahead of its time. Decades after The Sign of Four, most mystery novels were rather one dimensional puzzle mysteries but The Sign of Four showcases everything a good mystery novel can be and that it was written in the 19th century is a testimony to Doyle’s genius.

That concludes my list. I’d love to hear about yours. Please share about your favorite Holmes stories in the comments.

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Top 12 Sherlock Holmes Stories, Part Two

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We continue our countdown of the top 12 Sherlock Holmes stories. (See: Part One.)

7) The Scandal in Bohemia (1891)

A case that Holmes was mastered in. It’s a clever and satisfying story about Holmes attempt to obtain incriminating leters and a photograph that could compromise the King of Bohemia and his upcoming wedding. The story plays off of Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Purloined Letter” but takes the story in a different direction. The result is a very bold short story, particularly as a choice to lead off the first Sherlock Holmes short story collection.

6) The Adventure of the Six Napoleons (1904)

This is a story that illustrates what sets Sherlock Holmes apart from the Scotland Yard. It’s not just that he finds the right answers.  It’s that he asks the right questions. When a series of burglaries occur involving busts of Napoleon, Scotland Yard concludes that its the work of a monomaniac and sets about finding him but Holmes sees the puzzle of why he’s smashing the busts to be an open question and that leads to a different investigation. Also, I really like the tribute Inspector Lestrade pays to Holmes at the end of the story. It says a lot about Holmes and how his relationship has develop with Scotland Yard over the prior two decades.

5) The Speckled Band (1892)

This was actually Doyle’s favorite of his stories and there’s plenty of iconic moments. The mystery and the solution to it are the stuff of nightmares. It’s a story with a lot of suspense and a thrilling conclusion. I also love Dr. Grimesby Roylott’s take on Holmes, “Holmes the meddler. Holmes the busybody. Holmes the Scotland Yard Jack-in-office.” It’s a classic scene of a man trying in vain to deflect Sherlock Holmes with invective and antics. Roylott makes for a fantastic villain and that makes this a particularly enjoyable read.

4) The Silver Blaze (1892)

Sherlock Holmes’ search for a missing race horse seems seems a simple enough problem at first with a mysterious stranger having been seen in the area on the night the horse disappeared, and its trainer was killed. The solution is far different than we imagined and is extremely clever. This is a wonderfully constructed mystery and was the only Holmes story cited by Father Brown creator G.K. Chesterton in his essay on how to write detective fiction. This is also a story where Holmes solves the case  with a nice dramatic flourish, withholding the solution to Watson, the owner, and Inspector Gregory until the day of the big race.

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The Top 12 Sherlock Holmes Stories, Part One

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The Sherlock Holmes stories are remarkable. While there have been some innovators in the detective genre in past 90 years or so that have added new wrinkles and and twists to the genre, Doyle’s work stands up as must-read for serious mystery fans.

There were countless genius detectives solving crimes, but none are loved or revered like Sherlock Holmes. While there were a few stories that didn’t work and some people read struggle with the Victorian setting, the Sherlock Holmes canon of fifty-six short stories and four novels has stood the test of time remarkably well. Which of them are the best?

Over the next three weeks, I’ll post my list of the top twelve Sherlock Holmes’ stories:

12) The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle (1892):

This is one of the definitive holiday detective stories. This murderless mystery is a great puzzle that begins simply enough after a man lost his hat and a Christmas goose.  It really starts with what seems like an incident that seems like it should be beneath the notice of the great Sherlock Holmes but is really a fascinating puzzle. Doyle shows that while some mysteries involve sensational or salacious details, it’s not always necessary. I also love how the ending is both consistent with Holmes’ character and appropriate for the spirit of the Season.

11) The Devil’s Foot (1910):

The story tells of Holmes and Watson visiting Cornwall for a rest. However, Holmes  is pulled into investigating a mysterious death and insanity that afflicted a family. It is a haunting and chilling story that manages to merge the right elements of horror and the detective story. Great atmosphere throughout and a satisfying resolution makes this a winning story.

10) The Empty House (1903)

Sherlock Holmes was a character not even his creator could kill off. The “Empty House” is a wonderful story that tells us what really happened when Holmes faced Moriarty in, “The Final Problem” and then sets Holmes against the deadly Colonel Sebastian Moran. This was a great story to welcome Sherlock Holmes back to literary life.

9) The Adventure of the Naval Treaty (1893):

A truly engaging mystery. It manages to have major stakes with British national security, while also present a more personal problem for a young diplomat for whom the disappearance of this treaty has cast a shadow over his career. The story is engaging with some great clues, a great conclusion, and Holmes wrapping it all up with a theatrical flourish.

8) The Problem of Thor Bridge (1922)

This story of a seemingly sweet and benevolent governess facing a charge for murder is one of the best of the later Sherlock Holmes stories. The “Problem of Thor Bridge”  is engaging and the solution is classic. While many 1920s Holmes stories are disliked by fans and critics alike, this one is a true gem.

Continued Next week…

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Book Review: The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes

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“The Case-book of Sherlock Holmes”  is  the very last Sherlock Holmes short story collection, published in 1927. It is a proverbial mixed bag. There are some stories in the book that are essential reading for Holmes fans (“The Problem at Thor Bridge” and “The Sussex Vampire”), and then there are some of the weakest stories in the Canon (“The Lion’s Mane”, “The Blanched Soldier”, and “The Veiled Lodger”), and then others that range between average to fairly good.

“The Problem at Thor Bridge” is simply one of Holmes’ best cases. There’s so much in the story and the solution is classic. The same thing goes for “The Sussex Vampire” which presents Holmes a problem that’s evocative of the supernatural but with a surprising natural solution that is pretty emotional in its own right.

Most of the worst stories came towards the end of the book. Both “The Blanched Soldier” and “The Lion’s Mane” were attempts to tell Holmes’ adventures from Holmes own perspective. While “The Blanched Soldier” was slightly better of the two, both stories were somewhat dry and uninteresting tales that it was hard to care about. The biggest failing of  “The Veiled Lodger”s is that Holmes really does nothing. He describes a mystery and then has one of the perpetrators tell him what happened. While Holmes did say something very wise in response to that, it wasn’t really a detective story.

Looking at the rest of the stories:

“The Mazarin Stone”: Told in third person, I actually thought it was a pretty fun story showing Holmes cleverness. It was a similar story to the Dying Detective, but I liked this story better.

“The Creeping Man”: This is a bizarre story and I know some people really don’t like it because it’s almost into the realm of speculative fiction, but I thought it was carried off fine and is a classic mix of horror and the detective genre, though good luck trying to guess as to what’s happening.

“The Three Garidebs”: This is once again a story that calls to mind previous adventures. In it, a man with an unusual last name stands to make a fortune just for his last name, but he brings in Holmes to discern the truth of the business. This story is not as good as “The Red Headed League” but is actually better than “The Stockbroker’s Clerk.”

“The Illustrious Client”: This isn’t a whodunit but a challenge for Holmes to stop the marriage of a naive woman to a scoundrel. This is a very well-executed story where Holmes is put to the test.

“The Three Gables”: This story of a bereaved mother receiving mysterious offers to buy her house is a very good and enjoyable story.

“The Retired Colourman”: This is actually a pretty enjoyable story though Holmes doesn’t seem as warm towards Watson in a few places. The solution is a good change of pace, if perhaps a bit melodramatic.

“Shoscombe Old Place”: The last Holmes story by Doyle and its solid. Its clearly not at the high quality of Doyle’s prime but Holmes gets a pretty engaging case with a clever and unexpected solution revolving around a race horse and the odd behavior of the lady of the manor.

Overall, this is a must for mystery fans even if Doyle is clearly past his prime as a writer in this one.

Let me add that this Oxford edition I read really was splendid and added to the reading experience. The explanatory notes section was helpful to me reading this as an American in the 21st century, as so many phrases that I’d have just glossed over or imagined what they meant. There’s also a copious amount of introductory information that provides some great background on the book and is a great resource if you can get a hold of it.

Rating: 4.0 out of 5.0

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Book Review: The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes

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This book is the proverbial mixed bag. There are some stories in the book that are essential reading for Holmes fans (The Problem at Thor Bridge and the Sussex Vampire), and then there are some of the weakest stories in the Canon (The Lion’s Mane, the Blanched Soldier, and the Veiled Lodger), and then others that range between average to fairly good.

“The Problem at Thor Bridge” is simply one of Holmes best cases. There’s so much in the story and the solution is classic. The same thing goes for the Sussex Vampire which presents Holmes a problem that’s evocative of the supernatural but with a surprising natural solution that is pretty emotional in its own right.

Most of the worst stories came towards the end of the book. Both “The Blanched Soldier” and “The Lion’s Mane”  were attempts to tell Holmes’ adventures from Holmes own perspective. While “The Blanched Soldier” was slightly better of the two, both stories were somewhat dry and uninteresting tales that it was hard to care about. “The Veiled Lodgers” biggest failing is that Holmes really does nothing. He describes a mystery and then has one of the perpetrators tell him what happened. While Holmes did say something very wise in response to that, it wasn’t really a detective story.

Looking at the rest of the series:

“The Mazarin Stone”: Told in third person, I actually thought it was a pretty fun story showing Holmes cleverness. It was a similar story to the Dying Detective, but I liked this story better.

“The Creeping Man”: This is a bizarre story and I know some people really don’t like it because it’s almost into the realm of speculative fiction, but I thought it was carried off fine and is a classic mix of horror and the detective genre, though good luck trying to guess as to what’s happening.

“The Three Garidebs”: This is once again a story that calls to mind previous adventures. In it, a man with an unusual last name stands to make a fortune just for having his last name, but he brings in Holmes to discern the truth of the business. This story is not as good as “The Red Headed League” but is actually better than “The Stockbroker’s Clerk.”

“The Illustrious Client”: This isn’t a whodunit but a challenge for Holmes to stop the marriage of a naive woman to a scoundrel. This is a very well-executed story where Holmes is put to the test against a clever adversary who is a master at manipulating the sympathy of women.

“The Three Gables”: This story of a bereaved mother receiving mysterious offers to buy her house is a very good and enjoyable story with a satisfying solution.

“The Retired Colourman”: This is actually a pretty enjoyable story though Holmes doesn’t seem as warm towards Watson in a few places. The solution is a good change of pace, if perhaps a bit melodramatic.

“Shoscombe Old Place”: The last Holmes story by Doyle and its solid. Its clearly not at the high quality of Doyle’s prime but Holmes gets a pretty engaging case with a clever and unexpected solution revolving around a race horse and the odd behavior of the lady of the manor.

Overall, this is a must for mystery fans even if Doyle is clearly past his prime as a writer in this one.

Let me add that this Oxford edition I read really was splendid and added to the reading experience. The explanatory notes section was helpful to me reading this as an American in the 21st century, as it gave meaning to so many phrases that I’d have just glossed over or imagined what they meant otherwise. There’s also a copious amount of introductory information that provides some great background on the book and is a great resource if you can get a hold of it.

Rating 4.0 out of 5.0

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Review: Sherlock Series 3

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After an obligatory two year hiatus, BBC’s Sherlock returned with the third series of 90 minute Sherlock movies where we find out what happened at the end of Series 2 in The Reichenbach Fall where viewers seemed to witness Sherlock Holmes committing suicide in order to save the lives of his friends.  I expressed in great detail my issues both with The Reichenback Fall and with the first and last episodes of the series. So how did the third series of 90 minute episodes go?

“The Empty Hearst”: Sherlock Holmes has his completely expected return from the dead in this episode, after Watson apparently stood across the street and watched him commit suicide in the last Series 2 episode which was based on “The Final Problem.” Of course, the “The Empty Hearst” has the solution to how Holmes avoided death as well as two other theories that were propounded by in-world theorists. While some doubt is left as to whether Holmes is telling the truth, the theory propounded is as ludicrous as that provided by the theorists and just makes me hate the Series 2 finale even more.

The good news is that “The Empty Hearst” doesn’t focus on the absurdity of the way this played out, leaving the explanation for the final twenty minutes of the show. This episode’s main focus is Sherlock’s return to Baker street and his relationship to Watson. Here, I have to give respect to the writers for giving Watson realistic reactions to this turn of events, which leads to Watson assaulting Sherlock not once but four different times.

Sherlock shows some character development. He remains socially clueless, particularly as he expected Watson to be ready to pick up right where he left off and had no conception that the people in his life would at any point move on with him gone. He also professes his love to a woman, only to find she too has moved on and gotten engaged..

The main mystery to occur is kind of left hanging for most of the episode and is resolved in plenty of time, but there’s a hint that events in this episode were only part of a far greater threat with the focus in this episode being on the relationship and establishing the character. I also appreciated how Doyle stories worked into this episode. A sidebar case that Holmes quickly solves in this episode is based on, “The Case of Identity” while the main mystery borrows from the non-Holmes Doyle mystery, “The Lost Special.”

Overall, I found the episode fun, which wasn’t something I said a lot about the Series 2 episodes.

Grade: A-

“The Sign of Three”: It’s the wedding day of John Watson and Mary and Sherlock is the best man and he has to give a speech and boy is out of his element as he begins a meandering speech that’s at time offensive to many members of the audience and at times awkward.

This isn’t the whole episode as the wedding speech serves as a framing device to discuss a fantastic locked room case involving a guardsman who was nearly stabbed to death, Sherlock attempting a stag night out that has Holmes’ best calculations of how to avoid getting drunk go horribly wrong, and a case of many women who are dating a ghost. Both cases are not completely solved but they’ll have to be or they’ll be at murder at Watson’s funeral.

The human element continues to be big this series and that’s a mixed blessing. On one hand, the fondness of the two main characters for each other and the real buddy nature of the relationship. On the other hand, this episode does tend to meander a bit, and I feel like the story got lost somewhere for about half an hour.

In addition, some of the moments didn’t work. Watson and Holmes getting drunk by mistake was supposed to be cute. The way it was portrayed was just stupid.

But on the awesome side of the ledger, I liked how they managed to have a physical portrayal of Holmes doing an online chat and then we got taken actually inside Holmes’ head to see how he was reasoning. It was a great moment and a good solution to the case. Far from perfect, but I still enjoyed it.

Grade: B

“His Last Vow”: While the title of this story is inspired by the short story, “His Last Bow,” the basis for the plot was “The Adventure Charles Augustus Milverton.” In this version, foreign newspaper baron Charles A. Magnussen holds blackmail over the heads of nearly every one of any importance in the Western World. They try to make him even more disgusting by having him lick a woman he was blackmailing and urinating Sherlock Holmes’ fireplace (subtlety thy name isn’t Stephen Moffat.)

Sherlock manages to finagle his way into Milverton’s estate only to find someone very close to him and Watson about to kill Magnussen.

Beyond that, I can’t go into much more without spoiling it and I don’t want to spoil it. The program features some great developments in the relationship between these three characters: John, Mary, and Sherlock. In the first episode of the series, Watson was told that Sherlock was a great man and might even become a good one, and you have a sense that he’s growing towards that end. The reveal of where Magnussen’s files are hidden is a bit of a surprise as well.

Of course, there are a few bumps in the road. Sherlock toys with a woman and proposes to her to get into Magnussen’s apartment. This was something that was extrapolated from Doyle’s original story. And then there’s the end of the episode where he once again crosses a line as he did (or seemed to do) at the end of Series 2. However, I found his action while wrong, to be quite believable. I think the Sherlock Holmes of the nineteenth century probably would have done the same thing facing similar circumstances. In the 21st Century Holmes’ case, his actions were to keep the vow he made to protect John, Mary, and their child at the end of the previous episode thus the name of the episode.

Some critics have pointed out that this story lacks a satisfying whodunit feel to it. Well, so does Doyle’s original story, so I can’t fault the writers too much on how this ended up. In the end, this episode was a powerful story of evil, honor, forgiveness, and love

Grade: A-

Overall:

I was delighted by Series 1 of Sherlock, I was repulsed and irritated by much of Series 2. Series 3, on the other hand, really surprised me.

I never expected the emotional depth of this series. After Robert Downey Jr’s portrayal of Holmes as a selfish egotist who made Watson’s wedding and marriage difficult, I never expected Cumberbach’s Holmes that would be intelligent enough to extend his absolute dedication to John Watson to his new bride. (As an aside I have to wonder whether the Downey pictures, the CBS series, and the BBC series don’t play off one another to some degree.)

This is a series where the cases were rarely as flashy, but there was some great substance in each episode. The production team topped themselves in making Sherlock’s though processes themselves look great.

Despite my complaints about Milverton’s over the top disgustingness, this series actually was less full of blood, guts, and shock value than the previous two series.

At times, the episodes were padded and they could lose focus, but overall I’m fairly happy with this series and looking forward to Series 4.

Rating: 4.25 out of 5.0

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EP0984: Sherlock Holmes: The Empty House

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John GielgudSherlock Holmes returns from the dead to solve a locked room murder.

Original Air Date: April 17, 1955

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