Series 3 News - the official stuff

[Bakerstreet Irregular]

In the clip it shows John walking into the darkened setting room of 221b. It looks like he is looking at someone who might be setting down, maybe Sherlock is setting in his own chair waiting for him?

[Carol the Dabbler]

Oh, right, I did see that, so it was indoors.  Thanks, Fox!

 

[Carol the Dabbler]

I think the "missing" line of Mary's dialog in that trailer scene is more like, "All right, be careful.  See you later."  Which kind of supports Karie's conjecture.

 

[sherlockandjohn]

 

My thoughts on that subject were summed up completely and eloquently by someone on tumblr, in such a way that I feel it totally useless to reiterate. Instead, I will link to that post if anyone is interested in reading it. (Seriously, it's like he/she took it from my own head!) 

 

http://earlgreytea68.tumblr.com/post/69449616532/thoughts-on-sherlock-in-the-trailer

 

 

Karie, hope you don't mind that I post your link in a character discussion thread? This is good stuff as basis for a discussion on Sherlock's character. I'll find a thread or start a new one, and then post the link to it here, so you can easily find it.

[sherlockandjohn]

I posted the above mentioned character discussion at http://www.sherlockforum.com/forum/topic/115-the-psyche-behind-the-character/page-6?do=findComment&comment=15372.

[T.o.b.y]

I think the "missing" line of Mary's dialog in that trailer scene is more like, "All right, be careful.  See you later."  Which kind of supports Karie's conjecture.

 

Thank you! My ears just couldn't quite catch it.

 

I wonder

 

 

 

 

what's going on in that clip where Sherlock and Mary are on a motorbike. The phone Mary is holding up for Sherlock to see seems to be hers - it's white, while Sherlock, as we know, has a black one. Now, who is texting Mary a countdown? And why?

 

 

 

 

[Bakerstreet Irregular]

 

It has been speculated on this Forum and in some fanfic that Mary Morstan was actually part of Moriarty's web. If Seb Moran is being played as a terrorist bomber, maybe she is supposed to be helping him, but instead she has turned coat and is now trying to help Sherlock stop the bombing and save John at the same time?

 

[Carol the Dabbler]

NOTE:  If you weren't following online spoilers during S3 filming, the following contains some MAJOR spoilers.

 

 

Judging by location reports from on-the-scene fans, posted photos, and casting calls, I am fairly certain that the motorbike scene is part of this sequence of events:

 

1.  John is drugged and kidnapped (again!), in broad daylight, right in plain sight on Baker Street

2.  That night, Mary finds out somehow (via text message? thanks for that bit, T.o.b.y!)

3.  She tells Sherlock, who commandeers a motorbike (there's a lovely photo of that somewhere)

4.  The two of them race off to a park where there's a Guy Fawkes Day bonfire going on

5.  They pull John OUT OF THE FIRE (whew!)

 

 

 

[T.o.b.y]

Thanks! No, I hadn't heard of any of this before. But I don't mind spoilers one bit. Quite the contrary. I think I actually enjoy the episodes more when I know what's going to happen, at least that's what I notice when re-watching my DVDs. There's less suspense getting in the way of my admiration of the acting and the lines and the visuals and various clever details.

 

Now, I wonder how all this is connected to the bomb threat? (Didn't think I needed to spoiler-box that, because it's been announced in the official plot summary...)

[Bakerstreet Irregular]

Could Mary have tapped into the sequence code of the bomb somehow? It has been speculated that she may have been a Moriarty plant from time to time.

[Carol the Dabbler]

I don't recall any official hints that Mary might be a baddie.  I think that speculation comes mostly from the how-can-we-get-rid-of-her-as-soon-as-possible crowd.  I choose to assume she's on our side (so of course I may be in for a nasty surprise).

 

As for the

apparent text messages -- we don't have any idea who they're from, do we?  So they could be from someone who saw John kidnapped and wants to help, though that seems unlikely (why wouldn't they phone the police?).  So presumably from the bad guys.  But we've seen the good guys get phone calls and text messages from the baddies in previous episodes, so why not this time?

 

 

I have no idea how (or even whether) any of that ties in with the terrorist threat (I don't believe the official announcements have specifically used the word "bomb").  That could be a more-or-less separate sub-plot.  Maybe the above is the baddies' way of distracting Sherlock from dealing with the terrorists?

 

 

[T.o.b.y]

I don't recall any official hints that Mary might be a baddie.  I think that speculation comes mostly from the how-can-we-get-rid-of-her-as-soon-as-possible crowd.  I choose to assume she's on our side (so of course I may be in for a nasty surprise).

 

Whew, that's a relief. I couldn't imagine they went that far with the character. I do think they must have done something to make her more interesting than the original, but that would not be difficult at all. So far, they've stuck very close to who belongs on the "side of the angels" in Doyle's world and who doesn't, and Miss Morstan there is as angelic as you can get without sprouting wings and flying off.

 

The above-mentioned crowd is a bit hard for me to understand, but that's okay. I don't have to understand everything. I don't think they'll be very happy with the next series...

 

 

 

What if the text message is from John? He could have gone off on his own to investigate something - after all, that's what Watson does at the beginning of "The Empty House" - and called on her for help.

 

 

[Bakerstreet Irregular]

Nope, I don't believe Mary is a baddy either. I think that also came up in the thread when it was discussed as to who was being blackmailed during this Season three and why.  Maybe that count down and the phone is another out of sequence shot just to keep us guessing?

[T.o.b.y]

Oh, I am sure all they show in the trailer and clips is deliberately confusing. But it's such fun to guess and wonder!

 

I think "Mary might be blackmailed" was an idea of mine... But I didn't mean she'd be a "bad guy", I was just playing with the Milverton theme and combining it with her wedding. "Having secrets" does not have to mean being part of a criminal organization or such like.

 

Speaking of Milverton:

 

 

When Sherlock says it often isn't a question of "who" but "who knows" in that clip where he's attaching stuff to his wall, that made me think "Milverton", or rather "Magnussen", immediately. Maybe what they did with the character was make him a dealer in all kinds of information and general blackmailer, rather than a specialist in social scandals?

 

 

 

[Carol the Dabbler]

 

 

What if the text message is from John? He could have gone off on his own to investigate something - after all, that's what Watson does at the beginning of "The Empty House" - and called on her for help.

If I have the sequence of events wrong, then just about anything's possible.  But it looks to me like at that point, John is still pretty out of it from being drugged, and can't even climb out of the bonfire on his own.  OK, so maybe he's tied up and was only able to get his thumbs free....

 

My bet is still that the baddies sent it.  And I'm already becoming fond of my "it's a ploy to distract Sherlock from the terrorists" theory.

 

 

Speaking of [Magnussen]: Maybe what they did with the character was make him a dealer in all kinds of information and general blackmailer, rather than a specialist in social scandals?

 

I don't think this really needs a spoiler box, since we've been officially told that Magnussen is a take-off on Milverton, and the rest is your speculation.  But I suspect that's a good guess, since social scandals don't appear to be a particularly big deal these days.  Maybe he's in league with the terrorists?

 

[T.o.b.y]

 

 

 

If I have the sequence of events wrong, then just about anything's possible.  But it looks to me like at that point, John is still pretty out of it from being drugged, and can't even climb out of the bonfire on his own.  OK, so maybe he's tied up and was only able to get his thumbs free....

 

My bet is still that the baddies sent it.  And I'm already becoming fond of my "it's a ploy to distract Sherlock from the terrorists" theory.

 

Poor John. That whole plot sounds kind of... strange. Why would anybody try to burn him alive? Holding him hostage, for some reason, I can think of explanations for that, but what good is a dead hostage?

 

So the theory seems to be that somebody is going to use John to put pressure on Mary? Funny that he's known her for a while and this doesn't happen until Sherlock comes back.

 

 

[Carol the Dabbler]

In response to both paragraphs, I would assume they're meaning to put some kind of pressure on Sherlock.

 

[T.o.b.y]

Then why not text Sherlock himself?

[Caya]

What if it is his mobile? It's been two years, he might have invested in a newer model.

[T.o.b.y]

Good point. But do you think he'd choose a white one?

There is one photo from series 3 where he holds a black phone to his ear, but that might of course be part of the Reichenbach Fall resolution scenes.

[Karie]

 

 

My thoughts on that subject were summed up completely and eloquently by someone on tumblr, in such a way that I feel it totally useless to reiterate. Instead, I will link to that post if anyone is interested in reading it. (Seriously, it's like he/she took it from my own head!) 

 

http://earlgreytea68.tumblr.com/post/69449616532/thoughts-on-sherlock-in-the-trailer

 

 

Karie, hope you don't mind that I post your link in a character discussion thread? This is good stuff as basis for a discussion on Sherlock's character. I'll find a thread or start a new one, and then post the link to it here, so you can easily find it.

 

 

 

I posted the above mentioned character discussion at http://www.sherlockforum.com/forum/topic/115-the-psyche-behind-the-character/page-6?do=findComment&comment=15372.

 

 

Awesome, thanks!  

[Carol the Dabbler]

Finally, the BBC has released the official synopsis for episode 3, "His Last Vow" (thanks to Sherlockology for passing it along):
 

 

In the final episode of this new series, written by Steven Moffat, a case of stolen letters leads Sherlock Holmes into a long conflict with Charles Augustus Magnussen, the Napoleon of blackmail, and the one man he truly hates.

But how do you tackle a foe who knows the personal weakness of every person of importance in the Western world?

Benedict Cumberbatch returns as Sherlock Holmes, with Martin Freeman as John Watson, Mark Gatiss as Mycroft, Rupert Graves as Inspector Lestrade, Una Stubbs as Mrs Hudson, Amanda Abbington as Mary Morstan, Louise Brealey as Molly Hooper and Lars Mikkelsen as Charles Augustus Magnussen.

[Carol the Dabbler]

Internet Movie Database has listed a number of cast members for the Series 3 episodes (including a number of names I don't recognize, most of whom appear to be playing minor characters):

 

"The Empty Hearse"

"The Sign of Three"

"His Last Vow"

 

This isn't official, obviously, but IMDb is frequently correct about their advance information.

 

[T.o.b.y]

Thanks! "Miss Sutherland" appears there for The Empty Hearse... Wasn't that the client in "A Case of Identitiy"? The girl who was tricked into falling in love with her stepfather? I wonder whether they've borrowed more than the name.

[Karie]

If I'm calculating the time difference correctly, the showing of The Empty Hearse in the BFI (? I always get that mixed up with BAFTA or something!) should be starting right about... NOW. 

 

This is exciting. I wasn't sure how I'd feel about spoilers until the moment came, but now that it's here, I can't wait! I shall be watching Tumblr like a hawk today. Anyone else?