'Sherlock' - 'The Great Game': Moriarty the mastermind
The 21st century Holmes reboot ends a very satisfying (and brief) first season
Benedict Cumberbatch in "Sherlock."
The short but sweet three-week run of "Sherlock" concluded on PBS tonight, and the Mark Gatiss-scripted conclusion was in many ways the most fun of the three chapters. The structure with the mini-mysteries suggested that Gatiss and Steven Moffat weren't sure if they'd get to tell more stories with these characters, and were therefore going to stuff as much as they could into the final 90 minutes, and yet it never felt too busy. (For the Holmes scholars out there, were any of those adapated from actual Arthur Conan Doyle stories?)
Then again, the sensational closing sequence with Holmes, Watson and Moriarty would seem to disprove my theory, because there's no way Gatiss would be so cruel as to end things that way if he didn't think he'd get to continue the story in the future, right?
I thought the middle story was a bit thin, but the opening and closing installments of "Sherlock" were just fantastic, and I'm glad they're going to be able to make more before Martin Freeman's tied up with his "Hobbit" duties.
What did everybody else think?
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Login or create a HitFix account Login SignupMahalA
November 7, 2010 at 11:36PM EST Reply to CommentSo you get paid to write little blurbs? Life is just unfair.
November 7, 2010 at 11:39PM EST Reply to Commenthttp://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2010/aug/10/sherlock-second-series-bbc
Fran If Moffat was going for "an absolute psycho" with Moriarty, I think he miscast the actor. He was more annoying than anything else. Still, the end had me swearing like a Deadwood character, thinking how long I'd have to wait for the next installment.
November 8, 2010 at 11:48AM EST
November 7, 2010 at 11:44PM EST Reply to CommentThe Bruce Partington plot was adapted from the original story. They sped it up, but kept the general plot points from it.
Cress Yeah but the substituted the villain Joe Harrison from "The Naval Treaty" instead of the "Bruce-Partington" villain. Also, Holmes stopping to admire the beauty of the stars was reminiscent of Holmes admiring a rose in "Naval Treaty."
November 8, 2010 at 3:29AM ESTRichard Parker
November 7, 2010 at 11:45PM EST Reply to CommentThird Sherlock episode. Disappointing copout. Writer wasted our time. Lacked the imagination to finish the story. AC Doyle would never do that.
MaggieG I don't think it lacked imagination at all. It was a setup for the series to either end there if more episodes weren't ordered or to continue on. Conan Doyle killed off Holmes in a fight with Moriarty on Reichenbach Falls, but brought him back when there was a public outcry (to his own dismay... he had begun to hate the character). I felt the ambiguous ending of this modern-day confrontation with Moriarty was in keeping with that Conan Doyle story (I thought the pool was a tip of the hat to the water of the falls) and with the requirements of modern TV production. Holmes is totally elastic -- quite unrealistic, lovable in his elusiveness, he is easy to ascribe any number of motives and actions to for the sake of plot. I thought the end was quite in keeping with the tone of the book series and the TV series.
November 9, 2010 at 4:59PM ESTnic919
November 7, 2010 at 11:45PM EST Reply to CommentWhile I enjoyed the third episode, I found that I was a little disappointed with Moriarty in the final scenes. His disguise was a great one, but the last confrontation seemed a little overdone. And knowing that Jared Harris is going to be Moriarty in the RDJ movie, I can't help but wonder what his approach will be with that character.
Lee926 Oh boy - Jared Harris? Now, that will make me see the movie - perfection for the role. Of course, I'm a sucker for anything with Harris in it.
November 8, 2010 at 5:16PM ESTI know that "cliffhangers" are just something tv viewers all have to live with (what? since the Dallas days or before, can't recall but I hate them) - so, I'm not surprised they did this kind of ending. Disappointed, yes - but not surprised.
There was an awful lot going on in this outing - will have to go back an rewatch at some point. I know the naval plans story from my readings of the stories but I don't recall it being tied up with all this other stuff -
It will be a long wait till the next episodes - the is was a particularly short "season" - and now I just want more more more.
November 7, 2010 at 11:47PM EST Reply to CommentI'm not a Holmes scholar by any means, but I do know that the "pips" (in the TV show, the beeps at the beginning of each phone call from the human bombs) are a reference to the story "The Five Orange Pips." In the story, a man receives an envelope with five dried orange pips inside as a warning from an evil secret society (I won't say which for fear of spoiling the ending for people who might read it).
I've really enjoyed these three installments and I absolutely can't wait for the next series!
Nathaniel
November 7, 2010 at 11:49PM EST Reply to CommentWhy did Sherlock offer Moriarty the missile plans? That was unclear to me.
Christy It was bait.
November 8, 2010 at 1:26AM ESTEldritch
November 7, 2010 at 11:53PM EST Reply to CommentNot a Holmes scholar, but I have visited my library because of this series. The first Holmes novel is _A Study in Scarlet_ which seems to correlate to the pilot episode, "A Study in Pink."
Kendra
November 7, 2010 at 11:55PM EST Reply to CommentI enjoyed the third episode a lot with its series of mini-mysteries.
The Moriarty reveal didn't come as a surprise to me. And he was a tad over-the-top. I think he worked better when he was unseen.
November 7, 2010 at 11:59PM EST Reply to Commentas mentioned in first sherlock thred, really did not care for moriarty here.
isaacl
November 8, 2010 at 12:20AM EST Reply to CommentI've really enjoyed this series, and once again, as in the first episode, the editing and soundtrack effectively ratched up the tension in the final moments to a tingling degree.
gb
November 8, 2010 at 12:33AM EST Reply to CommentI enjoyed Sherlock more than the last season of Doctor Who that Moffat was in charge of. I didn't like the second episode as much as the first and third. The commentaries on the DVD are very interesting with Moffat and Gatiss showing how much they enjoy the Sherlock stories and what parts of the episodes came from what story.
November 8, 2010 at 12:48AM EST Reply to CommentThere were some ways the mini-mysteries connected to the Canon, like Cadogan West died the same way Wesley did, in 'The Bruce-Partington Plans.' But throughout the whole episode there were so many references to the Canon! It was so exciting. XD The Five Orange Pips, then they had little references like Sherlock asking about Mycroft's diet (he was overweight in the Canon) and saying 'You see, but you do not observe', which is from A Scandal in Bohemia. The part with Moriarty and Sherlock when M says "Everything I have to say has already crossed your mind" and S replies "and probably my answer has crossed yours" is from 'The Final Problem.' He uses the 'Homeless Network' the Holmes had the Baker Street Irregulars & Holmes has refused knighthoods. The bit about the solar system is from A Study in Scarlet. I'm sure there are others, but those are all I can think of off the top of my head.
Some people don't like Moriarty, but I think Andrew Scott is doing a fantastic job. Brilliant, yet crazy...and I'm glad he's Sherlock's age instead of an old professor. Makes me more of a peer, I think.
I do hope they release a soundtrack for this show!
Bring on Season 2!
November 8, 2010 at 1:15AM ESTAnd the line "I am lost without my blogger" is an updated "I am lost without my Boswell" from A Scandal in Bohemia.
Cress Also, Sherlock saying that Molly has gained weight was an altered version of Holmes (in Scandal in Bohemia) saying that Watson gained weight after his marriage.
November 8, 2010 at 3:31AM ESTklg19 The other echo of "A Scandal in Bohemia" was Holmes' observation that the stationery on the letter was Bohemian (then immediately clarified with "Czech Republic").
November 8, 2010 at 12:34PM ESTYes, the stories themselves are very faint echoes, but there are lots of echo-y references dropped into them (the most obvious being "pips"--is that what the English call beeps??).
klg19 Oops: sorry, @David Ragsdale! I didn't see your mention of the stationery directly below this...
November 8, 2010 at 12:36PM ESTDavid Ragsdale
November 8, 2010 at 12:58AM EST Reply to CommentThe missile plans plot was adapted from "The Adventure of the Bruce-Partington Plans" and hit the basics of that story (it was originally secret submarine plans). The beeps that Holmes referred to as pips come from "The Five Orange Pips." Holmes shooting at the wall comes from "The Musgrave Ritual." Some of the confrontation between Holmes and Moriarty comes from "The Final Problem." The analysis of the stationery at the beginning is adapted from "A Scandal in Bohemia."
Dean Winchester
November 8, 2010 at 1:03AM EST Reply to CommentAnyone have any insight into why the actor playing Moriarty seemed to be doing a half-American half-Scottish accent? I found it off-putting rather than sinister.
Dale Cooper I'm not too sure if it was half and half. I have a feeling that it was just a normal Scottish accent. You should hear Cillian Murphy speak normally. It's really quite bizarre. But then again, he's Irish, so I don't know.
November 8, 2010 at 2:27AM ESTAmy It was an Irish accent. Andrew Scott is Irish, and I think Moriarty is an Irish name, also.
November 8, 2010 at 2:50AM ESTMcCormick Yes. Irish.
November 8, 2010 at 3:24AM ESTTickletock Not just an Irish accent but a real Irish accent as opposed to the travesty of an accent that appears regularly on American TV. (Sorry - been watching some early Angel. Still cringing at Liam's "accent.")
November 8, 2010 at 6:43AM ESTEd W It sounded to me like an Irish actor badly attempting an American accent.
November 8, 2010 at 7:36AM ESTAs to the episode, it was decent but not enough Sarah who was a great addition last week and we didn't see enough of this week. As the commenter below noted, the idea of Watson as Moriarty blew away anything that followed after that moment.
VoxArcana I got the impression he was intentionally jumping all over the board with his accent - part of being a master in disguise plus just plain bonkers.
November 8, 2010 at 11:29AM ESTfrabjous In particular, it sounded to me like a northern Irish accent - closer to the way working-class people sound in Belfast than how they sound in Dublin.
November 8, 2010 at 11:57AM ESTSarah He was clearly trying to be a bit odd, but if you listen to any of his interviews you'll realize his actual accent sounds a lot like that.
November 20, 2010 at 2:09AM ESTLove your name btw Dean Winchester. Fight the fairies!
Smaug It's a Dublin 4 accent. A particularly obnoxious (nouveau(?))-riche accent from SoCoDu (South County Dublin), with a pronounced mid-atlantic twang. Google Ross O'Carroll-Kelly for more information. I don't know if it's the actor's real accent. If not, it's very well done. If so, how embarrassing for him!
January 22, 2013 at 6:00PM ESTMark S.
November 8, 2010 at 1:31AM EST Reply to CommentI like Sherlock and Watson. But when the show moves to other characters (as it did in the second episode), it's boring. I'm of mixed feeling about Moriarty. I like the idea more than the execution
nic919 I think that I was disappointed with seeing Moriarty because the idea of Watson being Moriarty for that brief moment was pretty spectacular and so anything else was a let down.
November 8, 2010 at 2:16AM ESTcgeye Megadittos -- that was surely the greatest mind-frak I'd evah seen -- until I remembered the earpiece M.O. of the bomber. Feh.
November 9, 2010 at 3:03PM ESTGreg Thank you nic919. I had actually pondered that Watson was Moriarity, and it seemed to briefly make sense--who knew Holmes better, after all? And the idea that he could've been right under our noses made my heart leap.
November 14, 2010 at 6:33AM ESTAlas, it wasn't to be. The real Moriarity I saw coming from the beginning...was hoping the show would do something more interesting. But I loved the episode anyway.
Gus Stone
November 8, 2010 at 2:40AM EST Reply to CommentBrilliant! Loved it! Finally something to look forward to watching on television. Just enough of Conan Doyle to be Holmes and Watson and just enough L&O/CSI to modern and manic. Great job! Can't wait for the follow up (please so more than 3 - its torture to wait).
Bill Manning
November 8, 2010 at 10:44AM EST Reply to Comment3rd installment was great. I agree it wasn't cluttered. I liked all 3 episodes. The second was not as dynamic as the other two, but was still captivating. I was only troubled by the acrobat killer, shades of It Takes a Thief and the acrobat cat burglar - but heck everyone borrows from older films
cbinkc
November 8, 2010 at 1:15PM EST Reply to CommentWrite a comment...
cbinkc Sorry about the blank comment. I've noticed references from multiple stories, letters kept on the fireplace with a knife, etc. One observation I had was Sherlock's reaction after Moriarty left and he got the vest off Watson. He was not as calm and collected as he had been a few seconds earlier, and acts a little "rattled". This makes me think of The Adventure of the Three Garridebs. In that story Watson accidently gets shot in the leg, and Holmes is very upset about Watson is distraught after it happens. He hits the shooter, draws blood and warns the man if anything had happened to Watson he would not have left the room alive. Another reference would be the adventure of the devil's foot. It only happens a few times but if something happens to Watson, he is no longer cold and calculating and shows a little emotion in regards to Watson.
November 8, 2010 at 1:41PM ESTmaclau1
November 8, 2010 at 2:53PM EST Reply to CommentGreat series. I'm glad the producers didn't try to recreate Holmes in 19th century London. It's been done well, many times, and poorly the last. With so many of the BBC series ending in the States, and American TV being crap, this could see a long run.
Moriarty was over the top but believable . A consulting criminal in the US could win the White House in two years!
November 9, 2010 at 3:31PM ESTchasebc
November 8, 2010 at 3:19PM EST Reply to CommentI enjoyed the show, but Moriarty hit me the wrong way. I didn't really feel the menace from him I wanted to feel during such a key confrontation. And I hated his delivery of the "everything I would say has already crossed your mind." line, which is absolutely classic in the original canon.
And I don't recognize any of the mini-mysteries from the storied besides "The Bruce-Partington Plans" when the man was placed on the train roof. But they short-sheeped that story quite a bit.
cgeye As much as it pains me to say this, he was too queer.
November 9, 2010 at 3:07PM ESTAs in, if he's playing at being flaming, he continues to do so after the need for disguise is over -- and if he's really queer, and uses his effeminacy to trigger homophobic panic in straights, then he should know Holmes is beyond that -- he doesn't care, so why use it? He's more uncomfortable about needing someone at all, without worrying about gender.
Jim's vacillation between anger and flouncing just seemed unthought, which for a man who doesn't draw an unconsidered breath, doesn't hew to character.
Action_Kate I have to agree with you, cgeye. I was disappointed in Moriarty, and couldn't quite put my finger on why -- you explained it very eloquently. There was very little foreboding or malice from Moriarty here, from the man who is supposed to be able to out-Sherlock Sherlock. He was "let's throw mannerisms at the wall and see what hits" crazy, instead of calculatingly diabolical.
November 13, 2010 at 5:34PM ESTConsidering how crackling his plots were, Moriarty himself was a distinct letdown.
Rick
November 8, 2010 at 9:51PM EST Reply to CommentI very much believe that the ending was written without the cliffhanger, and Gatiss had Moriarty walk back in at someone's suggestion.
A Viewer
November 8, 2010 at 11:25PM EST Reply to CommentI like the modern day twist to the stories but I didn't care for the cliffhanger ending (did Doyle ever do this?) and was greatly disappointed with the choice for Moriarty--he's just not menacing enough for me. I hope Sherlock comes back along with the Poirot stories too. And now my new tv boyfriend is Martin Freeman--I love everything about him and yes even his portrayal of Watson.
Mathematician Perhaps the greatest and most literal cliffhanger in literature is at the end of Doyle's "The Final Solution." Both Sherlock and the Professor go over the Reichenbach Falls in Switzerland. Doyle did not want the series to go further, but public demand forced him to bring Holmes back (but not Moriarty). If a series pickup on the TV show was unsure at the time of filming, maybe this possibly explosive cliffhanger was a homage to the original Sherlock's creator.
November 9, 2010 at 4:16PM ESTMathematician I meant to write "The Adventure of The Final Problem." Sorry.
November 9, 2010 at 4:34PM ESTJim S
November 9, 2010 at 12:20AM EST Reply to CommentMy main complaint is that in two of the stories, the villains walks up and introduces himself. The cabby literally delivered himself to Holmes' door. If he didn't case not closed.
Moriarty set Holmes up with the crimes. If he didn't no story. Even when Holmes solved the riddles, he was no closer to Moriarty. The villain has to walk up and introduce himself. Why? He's CRRRAAAZZZYYYY. Only motive that works. Holmes is no threat until Moriarty sets up the meeting. The crimes Holmes solved, the missing husband, dead talk show host or missing Vermeer, would have gone unpunished. Why were they problems? Seems like you're cutting off your revenue stream to spite your face. All in all, sloppy on the part of the writers. CCCCRRRAAAAZZZZYYYY villain doesn't equal great villain, Joker aside, plus he's got that one locked up.
cgeye I think that Moriarty was impatient -- he was revealing his participation in all those crimes, *and* revealing himself to his trigger team, to do it -- just to see the look on his schoolchum's face.
November 9, 2010 at 3:13PM EST*That's* the key -- all these years, whilst Sherlock was being brill, Jimbo was seething at not getting that worldwide recognition. His ego demanded no less than risking his empire, just to get recognition from Holmes.
Remember that Holmes could have ended a supercriminal's reign, merely by letting the bomb go off. Watson wouldn't hesitate, if Holmes and his ability to find a better solution weren't involved. That's the cliffhanger -- will Holmes let his selfishness/instinct for his fabulous brain's survival win, or do what's right for the world?
November 9, 2010 at 1:48AM EST Reply to CommentI love Andrew Scott's Moriarity. If you've seen him before I think you're probably appreciating him more. I saw him recently in Foyle's War & he was outstanding. Looking forward to more of him next time.