Sherlock is one of those exceptional shows that will go down in the history of television. The sharply produced cultural phenomenon spawned legions of fans all over the globe and propelled Benedict Cumberbatch into one of our most adored actors whilst solidifying Martin Freeman as one of our best. With a masterful villain, intriguing cases, and such astonishing characters, Sherlock has been the height of TV watching and then some. Everyone was holding their breath for Season 4 after we were left wondering if Moriarty is really back from the dead…
With all this pressure, it seems a bit sad that Sherlock seems to have lost its wind with a lacklustre opening.
Life has changed for both Sherlock and John. After being forced to come back from a speedy exile, Sherlock is immersed into the underground of London again as the threat of a Moriarty return looms. John, on the other hand, has a baby on the way whilst trying to adjust to home-life with Mary. However, they are quickly pulled back into the criminal underbelly when a mysterious death occurs, a broken bust of Margaret Thatcher becomes key to unravelling a bigger ploy. Can Sherlock solve the case before another death arises?
Sherlock strives to be one of the best shows on television. In production design, clever transitions smoothly flowing from location to location as beautiful film-making provides the height of tonight’s episode. Actors are now comfortable in their roles that seeing them is like greeting an old friend. The Six Thatchers brims with character development so astute and poignant that by the finale’s crushing blow, it hits you deep within your soul. Tears well, emotions ebb, and you are immersed into the “devastating” season that was so dutifully promised (guys, we are only one episode in there is going to be more of this.) Yet to balance this, there is clever witty dialogue that snaps in intellectual banter and, though it is lesser, it certainly provides a good few chuckles.
The problem is that the shows creators knew they wanted to deliver this blow early on in the season that they jumped through many plots and leaped over many sharks to get there. The whole episode was garishly rushed as so many elements were thrown into the plot pot. Clearly only serving a purpose to stir up the dynamic, The Six Thatchers sped through so much but never delved further than the shallows. What worked in Season 1 and 2 is the drive of cases and story that it would ultimately grow our characters. But in this episode, they speed through everything and multiple cases to get to the “First Shock” that they negate the cases so easily. It’s disappointing and a bit dull.
To call an opening episode a filler one, (especially with THAT ending) feels a little cheap, but The Six Thatchers actually serves a purpose by tying up all the plots from The Abominable Bride and His Last Vow. With the looming presence of Toby Jones already revelling in a madness that we’re excited to be a part of, The Six Thatchers is just set-up. There’s nothing wrong with that, and Sherlock has had bad episodes before, it’s just they all served a grander narrative whilst still being standalone cases in their own right. For now, the cases have been pushed to one side to toy with Sherlock and Watson; changing the pace but losing the atmosphere it once brooded with.
The biggest hope is that this’ll all come together during Season 4. With Toby Jones, that may certainly be the case.
