In SHERLOCK, Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman return for another bold take on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s iconic detective.
As all SHERLOCK fans know, we have been waiting two years for the next episode from the popular TV series and on New Year’s Day Sherlock and Holmes once again graced our screens for a one-off special that offers an alternate timeline version of Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman‘s detectives. There has been a lot of hype surrounding the episode and the response has been positive, but in some ways, it was rather frustrating – and confusing.
Sidestepping the narrative cliffhanger from 2014’s “His Last Vow”, in the one-off episode we are taken back to 19th Century London where we see Holmes and Watson in a more traditional take on the Sir Arthur Conan Doyle characters, which will please fans of the traditional version of the series.
In THE ABOMINABLE BRIDE, the cast of SHERLOCK play variations of their 21st Century characters. This slaveringly awaited return was the third time a fresh episode has aired on New Year’s Day. Before the episode even aired, it was expected to draw blockbuster ratings and enjoyed a simultaneous release in cinemas and the United States.
THE ABOMINABLE BRIDE was once again brought to the screen by series creators and writers Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat. Holmes and Watson travel back to 1895 to battle the ghostly “Abominable Bride” — where we see a dead woman in a wedding dress, prowling the streets of London with murder in mind. We find our 19th Century Holmes and Watson at the outset of their partnership followed by a fast-forward to the mysterious title case. This version of Holmes is much less manic than Cumberbatch’s modern adaptation and is portrayed in the traditional interpretation of the character.
Amidst all the goings-on in the episode, we learn the 19th Century Holmes injected himself with a solution of cocaine and the audience is transported to 21st Century Holmes to his exile from the cliffhanger ending of 2014’s “His Last Vow”. It is at this point that it is discovered that the entire case has been a construct of Holmes’ memory palace as he tries to deduce how Moriarty could be back from the dead.
Watson, Mycroft, and Mary Morstan are with him on the plane, as we learn the special up to this point has occurred in the five minute time from the end of the last episode to now. Holmes admitted that he had taken various drugs, but thanks to “The Abominable Bride” case, he may now be able to work out how to stop Moriarty’s resurrection.
Following on from this, we are then transported back to Holmes’ 19th Century dream before shooting back to the contemporary setting as it shoots even further back to the historical Holmes’ showdown with Moriarty. However, it is hard to be heavily invested into the mystery and perilous circumstances as the audience is aware that it is all taking place in Sherlock’s head.
We do learn that the ghostly bride committed her crime via the work of a cultish group of women looking for equal rights. They may seem familiar and that is because they are the women who have been wronged over the last three series of SHERLOCK.
Despite being seen as a standalone, one-off SHERLOCK special, there are links, if not a teaser, for what is to come in the new 2017 series. The 90-minutes of the fever dream plot episode had more twists than Christmas lights and it did boast a playfully witty script that will satisfy fans with the references to both the original stories and modern-day series.
I enjoyed this hour and a half for what it was, but it could have been so much more, as there are a number of inconsistencies at the beginning that could have been jarring and it was, on occasion, rather confusing. Maybe Steven Moffat was trying too hard to outwit the viewer and twist what should be a perfectly simple ‘whodunit’ into a plot of labyrinth complexity? Who knows. It doesn’t completely make sense – but as we learn, it really isn’t suppose to.
Verdict
