Sherlock: Difference between revisions

'''Three 90-minute dramas form the initial run, starting July 2010 on [[BBC 1]]:'''

'''Due to the high ratings and critical response, [[BBC 1]] commissioned a second series which aired in January 2012:'''

[http://twitter.com/#!/steven_moffat/status/158680970130751488 A third series was commissioned at the same time as the second]. It is scheduled to begin filming in [http://www.digitalspy.com/british-tv/s7/doctor-who/news/a382427/steven-moffat-on-doctor-who-sherlock-and-his-bafta-special-award.html January 2013], and is expected to air in the UK later that year. Both series aired on PBS in the United States as a part of their ''[[Masterpiece Theatre|Masterpiece]]'' programming block, and it is expected that the 3rd series will be run in the same fashion.

* [[Actor Allusion]]:

** One of the books Sherlock pulls in attempting to crack the book cipher is [[Charles Darwin]]'s ''On The Origin of Species'' -- Cumberbatch played Joseph Hooker in the Darwin biopic ''Creation''.

** Remember Sebastian Wilkes (Bertie Carvel) from "The Blind Banker"? According to him, he and Sherlock graduated from the same university. Watch Hawking and have your minds blown. He's not lying.

** John also spends an early scene is the second season finale wearing a bathrobe with a towel slung over one shoulder.

** During the "memory palace" scene in "The Hounds of Baskerville," one of the words displayed is Ingolstadt, a German city that features prominently in ''[[Frankenstein]]''. Benedict Cumberbatch alternated the two lead roles in Danny Boyle's stage adaptation of the novel.

* [[Aerith and Bob]]:

** Sherlock and John. Mycroft and "Anthea".

** Irene Adler has two: "I know [someone with an important job]... or at least I know what he likes" and "Let's have dinner."

* [[Celebrity Paradox]]: The series is set in a 21st century where the [[Sherlock Holmes]] stories were never written and never made their significant impact on popular culture. This was actually something of a roadblock to filming the Baker Street scenes at the actual Baker Street, due to the plethora of Holmesian landmarks on the street today, leading the production to use North Gower Street to fill in instead.

* [[Character Blog]]: See [[Logging Onto the Fourth Wall]].

* [[Character Development]]:

* [[Destination Defenestration]]: Sherlock captures a CIA [[Mook]] who had attempted to beat Mrs. Hudson for information. He then calls Lestrade about having a break-in, and tells him to bring an ambulance because the man fell out of the window — and promptly throws the man out the window. Repeatedly.

* [[Diagonal Billing]] for Cumberbatch and Freeman.

** Also in "The Hounds of Baskerville," John is reluctant to interview their client's therapist until Sherlock sends him a photo of her.

{{quote| '''John:''' ''(with characteristic [[Deadpan Snarker|deadpan snark]])'' Oh, you're a ''bad'' man.}}

** John's comment on Sherlock "{{spoiler|ripping his clothes off in a darkened swimming pool}}". For the unassuming public, a fun nod to the [[Ho Yay]].

** John directly addresses the homoeroticism in "A Scandal in Belgravia"—

** There is no way, none at all, that the jumper John is wearing during the Christmas interlude wasn't inspired by the fandom's appreciation of John Watson's cuddly jumpers.

** When Sherlock and Irene first meet, one of her first comment is about his razor-sharp cheekbones, saying she could cut herself slapping that face. Those cheekbones have their own little fandom.

** Lestrade's first name — Greg — makes its first in-universe appearance in "The Hounds of Baskerville," when John greets him. Sherlock, who's always called him "Lestrade," is genuinely confused and assumes "Greg" is some sort of alias.

*** Giving Lestrade the first name Greg, which is not Canonical, is most likely a reference to Inspector Gregson, a character from the original stories who often competed with Lestrade and shows up in very few, if any, of the recent retellings.

* [[Foregone Conclusion]]: As anyone remotely familiar with Holmes canon is well aware, John and Sherlock {{spoiler|''will'' be reunited after the events of "The Reichenbach Fall".}} The only questions left are: 1) How long is {{spoiler|this incarnation of The Great Hiatus}} going to be? 2) How hard is {{spoiler|[[Anger Born of Worry|John going to punch Sherlock]] when they're reunited}}? and 3) {{spoiler|''How in the hell did Sherlock pull it off??''}}

* [[Foreign Money Is Proof of Guilt]]: Justified. Sherlock suspects a car dealer of having lied about travelling overseas. He sneaks a peek in the man's wallet and sees a Colombian banknote, the final clue he needs to solve the case.

** Cumberbatch mentioned in one interview that one thing he did to prepare for the role was to [[Dyeing for Your Art|lose a small amount of weight]] to get that "so focused I forget to eat" look. Since it gave us those cheekbones, no one's complaining.

** In "The Blind Banker", Sherlock tells Molly he doesn't eat when he's working, as digestion only slows him down.

* [[Gender Blender Name]]: John's lesbian sister Harry, short for Harriet.

* [[Gender Flip]]: Harry is based on the original Watson's brother, "H.W."

* [[Hannibal Lecture]]: [[Subverted]] in "A Study in Pink". Played Straight in "The Great Game".

* [[Have I Mentioned I Am Heterosexual Today?]]: John to Irene in "A Scandal in Belgravia." Although he finally gives up that ghost an episode later. See [[He Is Not My Boyfriend]] and [[Mistaken for Gay]] below.

** This happens so frequently to John that by "The Hounds of Baskerville" he seems to have given up on correcting people.

** In "The Reichenbach Fall", Sherlock walks out on an investigative reporter badgering him for an interview. As he heads for the door she shouts "So, you and John Watson, just platonic? Shall I put you down for a no on that too--" and that's when Sherlock rounds on her.

== K-O ==

* [[Kick the Dog]]: Sherlock does this with Molly a few times. Well, he skirts the line, but what he does at the Christmas party crosses the line.

* [[Knighting]]:

** In ''The Great Game,'' Sherlock claims to have turned one down. [[Noodle Incident|Again]].

* [[Laser Sight]]: In "The Great Game," the visible dots are used to intimidate the hostages {{spoiler|and later John and then Sherlock himself}}. These were also foreshadowed in the dénouement of "The Blind Banker".

* [[Late Arrival Spoiler]]: The promos for season 2 show who Moriarty is when [[The Reveal]] was part of the cliffhanger at the end of season one.

** Moriarty seems to be able to see the text messages superimposed on the screen in "A Scandal in Belgravia".

** In ''Scandal'', John could be addressing the show's fandom itself when he says, "Who the hell knows about Sherlock Holmes, but for the record — if anyone out there still cares — I'm not actually gay."

'''Sherlock:''' No they're not, why are they? }}

* [[Lipstick and Load Montage]]: Irene Adler goes through one as she is waiting for Sherlock to arrive in "A Scandal in Belgravia". Juxtaposed with Sherlock's own, more unorthodox, preparations, which involve getting Watson to punch him in the face.

** Irene's house, on the other hand, invokes this trope, especially when she and Sherlock find themselves in an enormous pristine room, with what seems to be very little other than a posh sofa and a fireplace/mirror.

*** The chances are that it's her workplace, not her actual home.

'''Mycroft:''' All lives end. All hearts are broken. Caring is not an advantage, Sherlock. }}

* [[Mad Bomber]]: The plot of the third episode, although it ends up being less mad and more part of a [[Evil Plan]].

* [[Manipulative Bastard]]:

** Sherlock, like many sociopaths, is a skilled manipulator. He's a very good actor (he can cry on cue) and he knows what parts he needs to play in order to get someone to do what he wants. This includes rather shamelessly exploiting Molly's crush on him in "The Blind Banker" to prove a point to Lestrade's replacement for the episode.

** In the very first episode, Sherlock exclaims, "the game, Ms. Hudson, is on!" Doubtlessly a modernized version of "the game's afoot!" no?

** Probably unintentional, but the inclusion of a character named Molly has gotten some children of [[The Nineties]] thinking of ''[[The Adventures of Shirley Holmes]]''. It may have also fueled some of the [[WMG|WMGs]] that Molly is Moriarty or is involved with him.

* [[The Nameless]]: Mycroft's [[Sexy Secretary]]/PA, who introduces herself as "Anthea" to John, but later, tells him that isn't her name. It's implied she changes it when she gets bored.

* [[Narrowed It Down to The Guy I Recognise]]/[[Not-So-Small Role]]: Some viewers saw the identity of Moriarty coming due to this trope.

** This was started at the very beginning, when Watson looked up Sherlock online and said, "You said you could identify a software designer by his tie, and an airline pilot by his left thumb?"

** Not to mention the real human skull on the mantlepiece at 221B. Sherlock sheepishly explains to John that it belongs to a friend- "... When I say 'friend'..." And that's it.

** At the beginning of "The Hounds of Baskerville", Sherlock returns to the flat wearing blood-spattered clothing and carrying a harpoon longer than he is tall. Apparently there was a pig involved? And that's all we get...

*** Presumably alluding to the Doyle story "The Adventure of Black Peter," in which Holmes casually strolls to the breakfast table with a harpoon and starts chatting about how hard it is to spear a dead pig.

** Mycroft gets this combined with [[Break the Haughty]] in "A Scandal in Belgravia". He's actually shown ''shaking'' in fear and despair after realizing {{spoiler|the Bond Air mission had been compromised due to his own hubris}}.

** Sherlock a few times in the ''"The Reichenbach Fall."'' {{spoiler|Notably when he death-glares Moriarty during his [[Wounded Gazelle Gambit]] and practically screams at him to stop. And then again while giving John his suicide "note". There were tears dripping onto his coat}}.

* [[Obfuscating Stupidity]]: {{spoiler|Moriarty}}, with a side of obfuscating sexuality thrown in. His obfuscating stupid/gay fake persona makes a seemingly pitiful attempt at obfuscating clumsiness. Which may make this a very rare case of ObfuscatingObfuscation.

* [[Oh Crap]]:

{{quote| '''Stamford:''' I heard you were abroad somewhere getting shot at- what happened?<br />

'''John:''' ... I got shot. }}

** Sherlock's uncanny abilities and intelligence lead people to forget that Watson is both tough enough to be a soldier and smart enough to be a doctor.

** In "A Scandal In Belgravia" Sherlock Holmes ''himself'' is overshadowed by the awesome that is [[Chessmaster|his]] [[Guile Hero|older brother]] [[Magnificent Bastard|Mycroft.]] Here, and in one scene in particular, he's reduced to a "naïve, lonely man desperate to show off", revealed to {{spoiler|not be Moriarty's main target at all,}} played for a sucker with a classic {{spoiler|[[Damsel in Distress]] ploy that Mycroft describes as "textbook"}} and referred to in all sorts of ways that range from the dismissive to the insulting: "Mr Holmes, the Younger", "Junior", "the clever detective in the funny hat", "The Virgin". Heck, even a case he spent some time on was solved by the brilliant Mycroft in seconds, and another case, {{spoiler|that of the Düsseldorf air crash and the missing victim, was actually part of something ''orchestrated'' by Mycroft.}}

{{quote| '''Sherlock:''' That -- uh -- thing that you did -- that you offered to do -- that was -- um -- good.}}

* [[Preemptive Declaration]]: Sherlock informs Lestrade over the phone that the robber fell out the window. ''Crash.''

{{quote| [''Silence'']<br />

'''Sherlock:''' Shut up.<br />

** Lestrade does a lot of this. In ''A Study in Pink'' he makes it clear that he's got no intention of investigating who shot the cabbie. It's somewhat implied that he already knows, especially after Sherlock figures it out as well in the most obvious and unsubtle fashion ever. Otherwise, we have to conclude that Lestrade honestly thought this guy must have been shot by "an enemy", possibly an even bigger crazy lunatic than himself, but shrugs it off with "eh, well, got nothing to go on." In ''A Scandal in Belgravia,'' he makes a point of simply ''walking away'' from an incident where Sherlock {{spoiler|beats a CIA agent within an inch of his life and throws him out a window.}}

** Sherlock, until ''A Scandal in Belgravia,'' seems to have had no idea that Molly had a massive crush on him.

* [[Setting Update]]: To 21st century London.

* [[Sexy Secretary]]:

** {{spoiler|Moriarty}} is actually able to fool Holmes' initial scan of him, by placing subtle but key clues in the way he dressed, his appearance and behavior. Holmes did seem rather perturbed when he finds out he was duped.

** Irene Adler is able to foil Sherlock's scan as well, but rather than doing so by placing him red herrings (''à la'' Jim), she simply gives Sherlock [[Naked First Impression|no clues at all]].

{{quote| '''John''': Now people will ''definitely'' talk!}}

** Even ''Mycroft'' likes to insinuate, and he knows Sherlock better than anyone / has cameras in the flat.

** In the third episode, a shout out to [http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A490420 ''Jim'll Fix It''].

** Both the [[Establishing Shot]] of Baker Street in the first episode and the layout of Sherlock's flat are essentially a modern day versions of their counterparts in the Jeremy Brett series. In the case of the apartment it's right down to the arrangement of the furniture.

** In "A Scandal in Belgravia," the 1,895 hits that John's blog gets stuck on is a Shout Out to Vincent Starrett's poem "221B," which ends with the words "and it is always eighteen ninety-five". Particularly appropriate to a TV series that's reimagined the characters in modern times, given that the poem is about how Holmes and Watson are timeless.

** At one point in "A Scandal in Belgravia", John Sherlock and Irene are in 221B, and Sherlock says that he put her phone into a safe-deposit box. John's suggestion that "Molly can get it, and then have one of your homeless network members bring it here" is reminiscent of the final act of ''[[The Maltese Falcon]]'', when Sam Spade leaves the titular artifact in a safe-deposit box, mails the ticket to another box, and then calls his secretary to get first one than the other, and bring it to his office, where he and the other principal characters are waiting.

** At the beginning of "The Reichenbach Fall," Watson's statement that {{spoiler|"My best friend, Sherlock Holmes, is dead"}} sounds very familiar to Rose Tyler's [[Doctor Who/NS/Recap/S2 E12 Army of Ghosts|This is the story of how I died.]]

** Moriarty's claim to be an actor hired by Holmes echoes ''[[Without a Clue]]''. Moriarty's so [[Genre Savvy]], he's probably [[Celebrity Paradox|seen it]].

** Also in "Hounds", Sherlock analyzes words like John Anderton analyzed dreams in ''[[Minority Report]]''.

** In "A Study In Pink" Sherlock and Watson walk past a hair salon on Charlotte Street en route to a cafe where they plan to stake out the killer. This places the cafe on Rathbone Street, which they must then run down in a chase scene. Basil Rathbone played Sherlock Holmes in over a dozen films.

* [[Shown Their Work]]: It has been pointed out by Moffat and Gatiss that, save for the actual setting, you will ''never'' see a more faithful adaptation of [[Sherlock Holmes]] put to screen, because the showrunners are [[One of Us|a couple of]] [[Running the Asylum|Holmes fanboys]] themselves. Even the setting update itself is more authentic than fans think; at the time the stories were written, Sherlock Holmes was a modern man on the cutting edge of science and technology, as he is in this series. ''Sherlock'' viewers are getting essentially the same experience the original readers did when the stories were first published.

* [[Sibling Rivalry]]: Sherlock and Mycroft.

* [[Take a Third Option]]: The serial killer in the first episode {{spoiler|forces people at gunpoint to choose one of two pills, identical but one deadly and one safe.}} When he gives Sherlock the choice, Sherlock chooses {{spoiler|the gun, which he recognized as a fake. Real guns are expensive and this guy's just a cabbie}}.

** And then subverted: {{spoiler|having admitted that the gun was a fake, the serial killer [[Manipulative Bastard|talks Holmes into taking the pill anyway.]]}}

* [[Tall, Dark and Snarky]]: The Holmes brothers. It devolves into a hysterical genderflip of [[The Glorious War of Sisterly Rivalry]].

* [[Tan Lines]]: Used in Sherlock's deductions on a couple of occasions, particularly in Sherlock's initial scan of John.

* [[Visual Pun]]: After John berates Mycroft, {{spoiler|actually Irene Adler}} for kidnapping him ''again'' instead of just ''phoning him'' because of his "bloody stupid power complex", we then see John was driven to the disused ''Battersea Power Station.''

* [[Wasn't That Fun?]]: Sherlock and John have an important one of these after a chase, as John realizes his limp actually is psychosomatic and going on Sherlock's little adventures makes him forget the pain. The moment doesn't last long.

** John Watson, like the original, was invalided out of the Army after being injured in Afghanistan. The more things change...

** {{spoiler|Also part of the plot in "A Scandal in Belgravia".}}

** {{spoiler|The fight in the planetarium}}, what with the garbled recordings in the background accompanied by Mars from "The Planets" and the flashing colourful lights and all. Then again, the fact that {{spoiler|the lights are also flickering when The Golem sneaks up behind Sherlock}} makes it somewhat Nightmare Fuelish.

** ''Sherlock makes a pot of tea.''

** Watson's ASBO is unheard of after the second episode, though Inspector Lestrade and/or Mycroft probably have enough experience working with Sherlock to guess what really happened and quietly get it overturned.

** What was up with that head in the fridge in "The Great Game?"