1182 replies to this topic

[glidrose]

Did anybody catch what the red letters spelled out in the end credits?

Apparently it was "anemoi", the meeting place of the four winds.

BTW, the "red lettering" only happens in the PBS American version of the closing credits.

[billy007]

If it ends here it ends well.  " the Baker Street Boys"  together doing what they do best together.

If Spectre is the end of of D. Craig's run it ends well.

If Spectre is the end of the franchise for what ever reason it ends well. It was a hell of a run.

[Vauxhall]

An odd finale overall. A largely strange plot when held up together, but some fine memorable scenes all the same, which stand alongside some of the finest moments in the whole series:

Spoiler

Moriarty's helicopter arrival, Mycroft's false criticism of John to provoke Sherlock, Molly on the phone to Sherlock, and the final montage (despite the oddly phrased Mary voiceover)

My Series 4 ranking:
- The Lying Detective
- The Final Problem
- The Six Thatchers

If they are to finish there, it's a nicely wrapped up finale. Apart from poor old Molly.

Enjoyed the music once again, but missed the Bond reference, if someone is able to please point it out? Private message or spoiler tags both fine!

[Orion]

Will say this in as spoiler free way as I can. Electra's theme (I've only myself to blame) appears when we first get an understanding of how much control the villain has.

[Orion]

One i didnt notice at the time but REALLY stands out on the score is Paris' theme from TND plays at the end of the track "Pick Up"

[Matt_13]

An odd finale overall. A largely strange plot when held up together, but some fine memorable scenes all the same, which stand alongside some of the finest moments in the whole series:

Spoiler

Moriarty's helicopter arrival, Mycroft's false criticism of John to provoke Sherlock, Molly on the phone to Sherlock, and the final montage (despite the oddly phrased Mary voiceover)

My Series 4 ranking:
- The Lying Detective
- The Final Problem
- The Six Thatchers

If they are to finish there, it's a nicely wrapped up finale. Apart from poor old Molly.

Enjoyed the music once again, but missed the Bond reference, if someone is able to please point it out? Private message or spoiler tags both fine!

 

Spoiler

Vesper's theme plays when Sherlock destroys the coffin after he gets Molly to say " I love you."

[Orion]

Basically all of Arnold's tragic Bond girl themes make an appearance. Fitting given both composers worked on Bond - in fact it's why they were hired. (Michael Price was Arnold's alternate cues composer for all his Bond scores)

[Dustin]

UPDATE: The Final Problem played better on 2nd viewing. Much snappier and a good enough episode, but still something of a let-down and ultimately ridiculous.

General comments - Too much rot plotting in Sherlock like John Gardner's Bond novels. Motive and logic frequently go out the window.

I've only just now got around to watching this. Am I wrong or have they jumped the shark somehow without me noticing it? Suddenly it felt all a bit too clever and showing off for my taste; perhaps really since Mary's backstory was revealed. While it was still enjoyable this time I thought the effort - also off screen - showed. Or maybe it didn't and I just imagine it.

Definitely feels like the end of the show, no?

[Orion]

They gave it a firmer ending than the previous 3 seasons after a problem they ran into with The Abominable Bride  - Basically the long gaps between series brought about by trying to sync up the schedules of Cumberbatch, Freeman, Gatiss and Moffat meant that many people at the press screening had totally forgotten that Sherlock was on a plane at the end of His Last Vow so spent important exposition playing catch up rather than listening (they added in the "alternativly" recap to remedy this in the episode) - The Abominable Bride in itself was made because it would be 3 years before all cast and crew where available for long enough for a full series 4.Moffat joked that it was mostly down to being a bit an ask to expect the cast not to physcically age for a few years so they can resolve cliff hangers.

 

Similarly, I'd also say that the longer gaps also harm the long story Gatiss pencilled out. If you go back and watch from A Study In Pink, everything that happens, including the something dark in the Holmes family past that made Sherlock the way he is, is set up, but given that was 7 years ago there's no chance anyone other than the die hard fans who rewatch regularly (like myself) would actually realise that - see also The Lying Detective that addresses the ending to A Scandal in Belgravia. 5 years later. It's similar to the Oberhauser thread from SPECTRE in that regard - which expected you to remember the train scene from Casino Royale 9 years later.

[Dustin]

Thanks for that background, seems to explain a lot. I'm probably imagining this - I do not normally follow the yellow press - but here I also felt the chemistry between Freeman and his wife had changed. And it all was trying very hard to be immensely intricate but especially The Final Problem reminded me more of the last episode of The Prisoner.

I like the show but I miss the charm of those early days when they were the underdog and Cumberbatch's coat was the most expensive prop of the whole show and everything was built on strong and clever scripts and solid directing and top acting. I can't help feeling it's perhaps for the best if this indeed is the end of the show.

[SecretAgentFan]

I liked the show during its first two seasons.  But after the (not satisfactorily) explaining of why Sherlock survived I found the rest increasingly tedious and as you said too clever and showing off.

 

Couldn´t bring myself to watch this last season so far since everything I heard about it seems to indicate that it has gotten even worse.

 

For my mind, this is why some concepts just don´t work as a long-story arc: it forces the narrative to jump through too many hoops, dragging lots of things out and turning on itself, just so it can hide big reveals.

 

This is why Bond, IMHO, should never try to do that and concentrate on stand-alone stories.

[Dustin]

Make no mistake, it was still fun to watch, some hilarious scenes and dialogue. But everything had turned a bit loose at the seams, the inner logic of the stories not as stringent as it used to be, sacrificed in favour of doing a - still entertaining - parody of itself.

But the absurd and the scurrilous only ever remain amusing in carefully measured doses; when they become the main attraction the brew is in danger of turning stale. And in this season you can feel the balance slipping, especially by 'tying it all together' and making it 'personal, personal, MORE PERSONAL'...ugh.

The thing is, when they started out on this adventure, Moffat and Gatiss, bringing THE Victorian detective into the 21st century, it sounded like an awful idea, a slapstick revue with custard pie battle at best. But Moffat and Gatiss proved all detractors wrong and paid homage to Holmes in a very serious and touching manner, but with plenty of humour and imagination. The first two seasons are pure joy to watch.

What followed was perhaps just that little bit too much of 'event tv' to keep this spirit of the early days. Sherlock was now rival to other big British success productions, with two stars at the helm behind the camera and two stars in front, and maybe that's all that happened: they had to pack everything into a couple of hours every few years...

[SecretAgentFan]

Oh, yes - the MAKE IT PERSONAL angle.

 

Do people really prefer this to a, well, less personal story?

 

I know I don´t.  It´s the same with so many crime stories in which the detectives almost always have to investigate a case which is linked to their own personal life.

 

In my mind, this "PERSONAL!"-angle is a lame crutch to engage the viewer.  It´s a shortcut and it has been driven far too many times.