Episode 3.1, "The Empty Hearse"

[Carol the Dabbler]

... that's what I couldn't be sure about -- where exactly the ambulance was when they were inflating the air bag ... because it drives away as soon as they start to move. I assume the ambulance was included in the plan, so that's the only purpose I can think of for it ... to somehow mask the presence of Ol' Blue.

The plans seem to be focused on hiding things from John after he gets out of the cab.  Maybe they had originally planned to have the cab take a different route.  If it had come in via one particular side street (Hosier Lane), the ambulance might have blocked his view of the inflation process -- but it clearly did not come that way.

 

[Arcadia]

Guess we'll never know, will we? Oh, well. That's one plot point I can overlook, somehow. John didn't see the airbag, therefore he didn't see the airbag, is how my mind basically works. :p Really, the only thing that truly drives me nuts about the explanation is that the assassin was never a threat to John, because Mycroft's men "intervened." Then why the heck go through all of that!?!?! Just send Mycroft's men to clean up the whole mess, and leave Sherlock in London where he belongs! Arghgh.

[J.P.]

But in that case Sherlock wouldn't be able to go after Jim's network incognito. I think this was the reason for the whole plot. Otherwise Mycroft letting Jim go wouldn't make sense.

[J.P.]

In general TEH is the episode with the best performance bit (John's reaction when he sees Sherlock) and the biggest intellectual plot surprise, when the line about learning Serbian catapulted Mycroft from a arrogant goldfish with influence, who is jealous of his brilliant little brother, into a mastermind and master of understatement, who actually formed Sherlock to what he is. Suddenly all what I've seen so far changed it's meaning. What a feast for the gray cells! :D

 

I'm quite proud of myself that I immediately got the impact of this little dialog. I remember the clank as my jaw hit the floor. My whole idea of Mycroft made a salto, and I must have looked like Sherlock when he'd found the H.O.U.N.D. in his mind palace. KaBOOOOM! Gosh, I love that!

 

There are 3 kisses involving Sherlock in that episode. Wow!

 

Spotted: 1x sniffing. No twiddling?

 

Assorted nitpicks and stuff:

 

1 The impossible bungee jump - with the rope attached at the waist, Sherlock's spine would break. Alone the stunt makes my neck ache. I hope BC will have no trouble with damaged intervertebral discs or something. All bungee jumpers attach the rope to their feet. But I can forgive it, as it was just a fan fantasy.
The bungee jump parts were shot in winter.

2 The mask of Sherlock's face - again, this is so detailed, with brows and lashes rooted into (supposedly) silicon. So much work for a prop that's visible only once. Ben squinted his eyes while the mask was cast, that's why it looks a bit weird.

3 John's watch is terrible Scratched as Darren Brown manipulates it.

4 Anderson seems the only one person who mentions Jim's body. What happened to it? Apparently someone (Mycroft? Lestrade?) was able to cover the whole incident.

5 I like the visual transition from the coffee mugs to John's eyes.

6 There are still flowers on Sherlock's grave, even after two years. I like the scene, it's introducing Mary in a very effective way.

7 The actor playing the torturer has Serbian roots, but I'm not sure about his Serbian. I can give Mycroft some credit - he learned the vocabulary, but the pronunciation is another thing. He could do as a foreign mercenary or something.

8 Parallel journeys: of Sherlock to Diogenes Club and John to 221B. BTW, the way the sequence is cut - the bunker office seems to be indeed in the underground of the Club. It also seems that Sherlock was somewhere else before meeting with Mycroft - probably in a hospital, after the treatment he'd got. Which makes it funny that he gets a shave and the Carpet at the office first. (btw, I would love to see Ben with long hair. There is a photo of him made during the torture scene, but he's a mess in it)

9 Sherlock is definitely channeling Khan with his slick hair and anger. It is hard not to take side with Sherlock here, especially because the way Mycroft had greeted his beaten to pulp little brother is hard to watch. He really seems to enjoy that, and you might think there is some deep rooted hate that shows in his behavior. But Sherlock smiles, so who knows?

10 The way Mrs Hudson shows her anger serving John his cuppa + cookies. I also noticed that as John enters 221B stairway, there is dust shivering in the air, it is shown explicitly later as John enters the living room. Dust seems to be important in that episode

12 the hilarious dialog about John moving on, parallelly to the bitter-sweet dialog between Mycroft and Sherlock: John's got on with his life. What life? I've been away. I also noticed that in that dialogue, it's suddenly Sherlock who seems to focus on the human aspects, while Mycroft keeps trying to talk about work.

13 I like the music theme, as Sherlock watches London from the roof - it is Sherlock's theme but played softer. BTW does anybody know what is that instrument that gives the "Game is on" theme it's special sound. May it be a cymbalom? I always think it sounds Hungarian.

(Okay, went on a little Google trip. Haven't found any verification of my impression yet, but found that Hans Zimmer used the instrument for his Sherlock music? In Zimmer's case the inspiration came from "Gypsy" music, which actually influenced or was influenced by Hungarian/Balkan sound...)

14 the reunion. Again, another symphony of emotions, the confidence as Sherlock enters the restaurant and makes his little expectant father deduction, the confidence that vanishes as soon as he sees John. Then the fantastic (in his own eyes) idea to which John seems to be surprisingly resistant. :D  I wrote enough alreadyabout Martin's acting.

Am I the only one who thinks that Mary knows exactly what John wants to ask her?

15 Lestrade is back on cigs. The way he moves always makes me expect that he will also headbutt Sherlock, but instead he gives him that hug...

 

Then he gets a second (kind of) hug from Anderson with similar awkward reaction:

 

16 Another little editing trick: as we see Mycroft and Sherlock at 221B for the first time, the perspective is suggesting they are playing chess. One could be disappointed that they only play stupid Operation, but I think they play it blind, looking at each other all the time.

17 Mycroft's deduction: talk about obsessive-compulsive. He is far into the line of thought before he even notices what he's doing. :D

18 Lord Moran's vanishing car: what if there were other people on the train with him?

19 on why Sherlock didn't wait for Molly - maybe he assumed she would follow him and retired to his mind underground. Probably he was very surprised at the fish and chips place, standing there with two portions in his hands.

It was Molly who made the decision. Apparently changed her mind, as she was quite eager to have dinner few hours sooner.

 

20 the code Moran gives to the bomb is 051113 - the actual day, 5th Nov. 2013.

 

21 I still wonder who was at Sherlock's funeral, beside his fans and clients. Not his parents. Mycroft?

22 Sherlock's surprisingly social behavior/mood when he brings the champagne to his living room full of people. He seems to enjoy that - what a contrast to the X-mass disaster! He even keeps himself from saying anything about Tom.

[J.P.]

A Study in Faces:

 

 

 

[J.P.]

What continues to astonish me about The Empty Hearse is how quickly it made me switch sides and sympathize with Sherlock rather than John. Until it aired, I was just mad as hell at Sherlock for what he pulled in The Reichenbach Fall, and gleefully anticipated him getting his comeuppance and being made to realize that neither the universe nor John Watson's life revolved around him. Then minutes into The Empty Hearse, I was going "oh poor Sherlock" and wanted nothing more than for John to just be glad he was back and forgive him (for something pretty unforgivable, actually).

 

I guess the torture scene has something to do with that. I still don't like it and don't approve of it, but as a narrative tool to put the audience in the proper mood I must admit it is very clever. It's just such a stark reminder that the great Sherlock Holmes is only a frail human being like any of us, frightfully easy to reduce to a bloody drooling pulp, and that his own brother considers this an entertaining spectacle.

 

 

Although I said I can relate to both John and Sherlock perfectly, after much deliberation (the things we do for this show!), and maybe unpopular, I think I am in Sherlock’s side more.

 

John is reacting 82-18% heart-brain, and Sherlock probably using 7-93% heart-brain (I pick the number from passing East Wind). Not telling John is actually very valid from logical point of view, imho. It’s okay for John to be upset, but your friend is coming back from the dead, the reason he did so was to protect people close to him and to dismantle one of the most dangerous criminal who blew up people for fun. And since John is wearing his heart on his sleeve, who could blame Sherlock for calculating that John might not be able to convince people if he had known, and think of the impact, it would jeopardize the whole mission and purpose.

 

Yes, I agree with both of you. Sometimes I want to ask John: "why can't you just be happy that Sherlock is alive and in one piece after all? He did it to fight the network of the man who put explosives on you! He wanted to protect you!"

I think I would understand. The most hurting aspect about it to John might be just not being reliable or trustful enough in Sherlock's eyes. But we know John is a terrible liar....

 

Waitaminute, what if the information about Irene's beheading was a lie Mycroft used deliberately to test John? Mycroft might have known that Sherlock intervened in Karachi, it was not about telling Sherlock, but about John's ability to lie. Sherlock was the one who was to judge John in that matter, it is possible that he knew what Mycroft had told John at Speedy's.

Does that make sense?

 

Back on track:

 

 

Martin Freeman’s acting is superb in the restaurant; I would have thought that he purposely convinced himself that Benedict Cumberbatch was dead for two years.

 

Amen to that. Nothing ever have such an impact on me. It really blew my mind when I saw it for the first time.

 

 

I love the moment they have in the train carriage. Again, in this situation I would do what Sherlock do, making fun of his face. To my defense, this moment is far more appropriate compared to the restaurant. He had just stopped the bomb and their lives were not in danger anymore. Sherlock seemed to have good sense whenever John is having difficulty expressing his feelings and helps him by making jokes (albeit Sherlock’s style of joking) just like in HLV. Good heavens I wish all my friends do this to me therefore I do it to them; everyone would prefer to be stopped from crying, wouldn’t they? should I start to feel sorry for my friends?

 

It's still cruel making someone believe he will die in a second. But Sherlock thinks only about how brilliant it is. He still has his bad days. On the other hand I'm really impressed by Sherlock's ability to put aside the emotions, even if it is panic. He is certainly scared as he starts to examine the bomb (he might have known there is a switch*, but he didn't know if he could find it on time) and in one second he is thinking about a prank. After his breakdown in HOB he still is able to text John and give him the right incentive to talk to Henry's therapist. Amazing, that man.

And well, John might have screamed and cursed in the underground, but even he has to laugh at the end.

 

I always wonder why Sherlock insists that Mycroft is lonely. Is it because he tries to convince himself that it’s okay to be lonely (even for superior brain)? Love the call back “How would you know” to Mycroft from SIB.

 

This scene is another gem and it makes me curious about Mycroft's private life. In that scene he seems to be for Sherlock, what Sherlock is for average, normal-emotional humans. Someone on a higher level of existence, and hard to understand, but also someone who can have some problems with what he is.

 

 

* somehow I have a problem believing that there are indeed switches on every bomb in RL.

[Arcadia]

Guess we'll never know, will we? Oh, well. That's one plot point I can overlook, somehow. John didn't see the airbag, therefore he didn't see the airbag, is how my mind basically works. :P Really, the only thing that truly drives me nuts about the explanation is that the assassin was never a threat to John, because Mycroft's men "intervened." Then why the heck go through all of that!?!?! Just send Mycroft's men to clean up the whole mess, and leave Sherlock in London where he belongs! Arghgh.

But in that case Sherlock wouldn't be able to go after Jim's network incognito. I think this was the reason for the whole plot. Otherwise Mycroft letting Jim go wouldn't make sense.

Yeah, but that's my point ... if Mycroft can use his people to take care of Moriarty's snipers, why not use them to take out Moriarty's network? Why send out his loose cannon of a brother, who apparently can't be trusted to live his own life without intervention and creates as many problems as he solves?

 

To circle around and suggest possible answers to my own questions (save you all the trouble :D) :

1. Maybe the reason Sherlock had to be dead was not to go after Jim's network, but to make sure Jim's network didn't come after him and his friends. (Still doesn't explain why Sherlock was the one to go after the network, but I guess he had to have something to do. )

2. Sherlock didn't ask Mycroft's permission, he just took off and did it. Because he had to have something to do.

3. Mycroft has decided John is a bad influence (he's making Sherlock soft!!!) and had to get Sherlock away from him, so came up with this dopey "only the mighty Sherlock can take out Jim's network" plot.

4. ???

 

 

In general TEH is the episode with the best performance bit (John's reaction when he sees Sherlock) and the biggest intellectual plot surprise, when the line about learning Serbian catapulted Mycroft from a arrogant goldfish with influence, who is jealous of his brilliant little brother, into a mastermind and master of understatement, who actually formed Sherlock to what he is. Suddenly all what I've seen so far changed it's meaning. What a feast for the gray cells! :D

 

I'm quite proud of myself that I immediately got the impact of this little dialog. I remember the clank as my jaw hit the floor. My whole idea of Mycroft made a salto, and I must have looked like Sherlock when he'd found the H.O.U.N.D. in his mind palace. KaBOOOOM! Gosh, I love that!

I'm proud of you too! But, um, would you explain it to me? If I ask nicely? I'm afraid I don't understand what you're getting at.

 

There are 3 kisses involving Sherlock in that episode. Wow!

There are? Sherlock kisses Molly, and, um.... that's all I can think of. What did I miss?

 

9 Sherlock is definitely channeling Khan with his slick hair and anger. It is hard not to take side with Sherlock here, especially because the way Mycroft had greeted his beaten to pulp little brother is hard to watch. He really seems to enjoy that, and you might think there is some deep rooted hate that shows in his behavior. But Sherlock smiles, so who knows?

Maybe I mentioned this before? But watching this time, I had a sudden thought.....what if Sherlock knew it was Mycroft all along? Or at least from the moment big brother opened his mouth? The smile might mean Sherlock already knew why Mycroft was there. Although that makes his "Khan" moment less understandable.

 

I don't think Sherlock thinks he was beaten to a pulp; that's all part of the fun and games. I think he was irked that Mycroft was trying to take credit for his rescue, when in his own mind he had everything under control. Maybe he was just trying to annoy Mycroft when he went into Khan mode. After all, annoying Mycroft is his version of golf, isn't it? :P

 

10 The way Mrs Hudson shows her anger serving John his cuppa + cookies.

I also love the way Mrs. Hudson's reaction to John's sudden appearance foreshadows John's reaction to Sherlock ... and John never gets it.

 

Am I the only one who thinks that Mary knows exactly what John wants to ask her?

Nope, I think she knows exactly what's up. Proof again that John can't keep a secret!

 

19 on why Sherlock didn't wait for Molly - maybe he assumed she would follow him and retired to his mind underground. Probably he was very surprised at the fish and chips place, standing there with two portions in his hands......

 Oh, I wish they'd done that. Well, no, it would have spoiled the mood of the scene, but still, I love the idea.

 

I still think "You can't do this again, can you?" was Sherlock's way of acknowledging that Molly had moved on, and "you deserve to be happy" was his way of saying "don't worry, I won't be in the way". He didn't expect her to follow and she, unfortunately, fulfilled his expectations. That's one of the saddest moments in the whole series for me; Molly electing to follow her head and not her heart at precisely the wrong moment. MOFTISSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Waitaminute, what if the information about Irene's beheading was a lie Mycroft used deliberately to test John? Mycroft might have known that Sherlock intervened in Karachi, it was not about telling Sherlock, but about John's ability to lie. Sherlock was the one who was to judge John in that matter, it is possible that he knew what Mycroft had told John at Speedy's.

Does that make sense?

It does to me, although if that's the case, they didn't go anywhere with it. Except to demonstrate to the audience that John's a lousy liar, I guess. But if that was the intent, they didn't really connect the dots, imo. If we have to ascribe hidden motives to Mycroft, think it's more likely that he was fishing to find out what John knew. But the way the scene plays out, I'm inclined to take the whole thing at face value until I find out otherwise.

 

* somehow I have a problem believing that there are indeed switches on every bomb in RL.

You and me both, kid! :D

[J.P.]

 

J.P., on 18 Jul 2015 - 10:06 AM, said:

In general TEH is the episode with the best performance bit (John's reaction when he sees Sherlock) and the biggest intellectual plot surprise, when the line about learning Serbian catapulted Mycroft from a arrogant goldfish with influence, who is jealous of his brilliant little brother, into a mastermind and master of understatement, who actually formed Sherlock to what he is. Suddenly all what I've seen so far changed it's meaning. What a feast for the gray cells! :D

 

I'm quite proud of myself that I immediately got the impact of this little dialog. I remember the clank as my jaw hit the floor. My whole idea of Mycroft made a salto, and I must have looked like Sherlock when he'd found the H.O.U.N.D. in his mind palace. KaBOOOOM! Gosh, I love that!

I'm proud of you too! But, um, would you explain it to me? If I ask nicely? I'm afraid I don't understand what you're getting at.

 

 

Well, I was a complete ACD virgin watching the show for the first time. This virginity robbed me of the in-universe red herring of Mycroft introducing himself as Sherlock's archenemy (implying that he is Moriarty), but gave me the fantastic surprise of TEH.

 

Until that moment I was convinced that Mycroft is just a normal human being who worked his way into being the British Government (hence the "goldfish with influence"), that his resentment comes from feeling inferior of his little genius brother (-> jealousy) and the fact that he had to deal with Sherlock's extravagances his whole life. Imagine a normal teenager having to take care of little Sherlock and being taken into responsibility for every sophisticated prank he played. What a nightmare it had to be, and Sherlock didn't seem ever to grow up.

 

Well, then I hear:

SHERLOCK: I didn’t know you spoke Serbian.

MYCROFT: I didn’t, but the language has a Slavic root, frequent Turkish and German loan words. (He shrugs.) Took me a couple of hours.

SHERLOCK: Hmm – you’re slipping.

MYCROFT (smiling tightly): Middle age, brother mine. Comes to us all.

 

Well in that moment I KNEW: Mycroft was the real genius super-brain learning a language in few hours (being slower than before, because of age) He was the superior one and it was Sherlock showing jealousy. His superiority lied not only in better intellectual abilities but also in the fact that he didn't show that, covering his real talents behind the arrogance of a powerful government official. Suddenly some lose elements fell into their places and I was confronted with fully different power play between the Holmes Bros. I had to go back and watch S1 and S2 from a different perspective, and it was almost like watching a new show. :D "It was the sofa, Sherlock" - to the canon experts it was probably a hint that BBC Mycroft was also the smarter one like in the canon, but I just overheard this line at the first viewing, because it made no sense to me. What an amazing thing - the perception.

 

Later it became clear to me that Sherlock's arrogance and showing off is probably an effect of Mycroft's influence. Because Sherlock was desperately trying to to keep up with Mycroft all his life, and him trying constantly to impress people is indeed still trying to impress his big brother. Without Mycroft Sherlock could grow up as probably smart but quite normal young man. To be honest - most of his abilities can be trained. He is like a Kung-Fu master of deduction. It also might show why Sherlock is so afraid of emotions - because he is not Mycroft, who apparently is able just to ignore them (or maybe doesn't experience them at all).

 

So, that's my TEH epiphany in a nutshell. A coco-nut-shell. A quite big one. Sorry for showing off again. -_-

[Shadow Dweller]

Which beg a question, how many language Mycroft speak of? :D

[Arcadia]

 

 

J.P., on 18 Jul 2015 - 10:06 AM, said:

In general TEH is the episode with the best performance bit (John's reaction when he sees Sherlock) and the biggest intellectual plot surprise, when the line about learning Serbian catapulted Mycroft from a arrogant goldfish with influence, who is jealous of his brilliant little brother, into a mastermind and master of understatement, who actually formed Sherlock to what he is. Suddenly all what I've seen so far changed it's meaning. What a feast for the gray cells! :D

 

I'm quite proud of myself that I immediately got the impact of this little dialog. I remember the clank as my jaw hit the floor. My whole idea of Mycroft made a salto, and I must have looked like Sherlock when he'd found the H.O.U.N.D. in his mind palace. KaBOOOOM! Gosh, I love that!

I'm proud of you too! But, um, would you explain it to me? If I ask nicely? I'm afraid I don't understand what you're getting at.

 

 

Well, I was a complete ACD virgin watching the show for the first time. This virginity robbed me of the in-universe red herring of Mycroft introducing himself as Sherlock's archenemy (implying that he is Moriarty), but gave me the fantastic surprise of TEH.

 

Until that moment I was convinced that Mycroft is just a normal human being who worked his way into being the British Government (hence the "goldfish with influence"), that his resentment comes from feeling inferior of his little genius brother (-> jealousy) and the fact that he had to deal with Sherlock's extravagances his whole life. Imagine a normal teenager having to take care of little Sherlock and being taken into responsibility for every sophisticated prank he played. What a nightmare it had to be, and Sherlock didn't seem ever to grow up.

 

Well, then I hear:

SHERLOCK: I didn’t know you spoke Serbian.

MYCROFT: I didn’t, but the language has a Slavic root, frequent Turkish and German loan words. (He shrugs.) Took me a couple of hours.

SHERLOCK: Hmm – you’re slipping.

MYCROFT (smiling tightly): Middle age, brother mine. Comes to us all.

 

Well in that moment I KNEW: Mycroft was the real genius super-brain learning a language in few hours (being slower than before, because of age) He was the superior one and it was Sherlock showing jealousy. His superiority lied not only in better intellectual abilities but also in the fact that he didn't show that, covering his real talents behind the arrogance of a powerful government official. Suddenly some lose elements fell into their places and I was confronted with fully different power play between the Holmes Bros. I had to go back and watch S1 and S2 from a different perspective, and it was almost like watching a new show. :D "It was the sofa, Sherlock" - to the canon experts it was probably a hint that BBC Mycroft was also the smarter one like in the canon, but I just overheard this line at the first viewing, because it made no sense to me. What an amazing thing - the perception.

 

Later it became clear to me that Sherlock's arrogance and showing off is probably an effect of Mycroft's influence. Because Sherlock was desperately trying to to keep up with Mycroft all his life, and him trying constantly to impress people is indeed still trying to impress his big brother. Without Mycroft Sherlock could grow up as probably smart but quite normal young man. To be honest - most of his abilities can be trained. He is like a Kung-Fu master of deduction. It also might show why Sherlock is so afraid of emotions - because he is not Mycroft, who apparently is able just to ignore them (or maybe doesn't experience them at all).

 

So, that's my TEH epiphany in a nutshell. A coco-nut-shell. A quite big one. Sorry for showing off again. -_-

 

Thank you! It is all perfectly clear to me now. The reason I was confused is, that was one of the few things I knew about Sherlock Holmes, that he had a smarter brother. So that surprise was rather spoiled for me, actually. Oh well, it's all good.

 

Which beg a question, how many language Mycroft speak of? :D

As many as he needs to, I imagine! :p

[J.P.]

 

Which beg a question, how many language Mycroft speak of? :D

Oh, maybe not so many, because 1 he usually doesn't do legwork.  2 the world speaks English anyway. 3 He deletes those which he doesn't need anymore.

 

BTW, in the interview I posted HERE Mark G states he doesn't speak any foreign language. :D

[Van Buren Supernova]

I thought I was ready to defend the big blue because I remembered that the big blue and John was moving in circular motion (so tbb was hidden from view because it was 180 degree away from him), then I checked TEH again and yes, you guys are right, tbb came from the direction that is visible to John and furthermore, the yellow ambulance wasn't even on the spot when the taxi passed. Well done!

..Unless it was deflated when he passed, but then he would hear the noise (I have a lilo and it's very noisy!

Wait.. unless someone was dancing on the left side of the cab so that he looked that way...what would be so interesting then...a cow...dancing cow?

(I think someone said in another thread the sanity ship had sailed)

 

Anyway I do believe the big blue is the best scenario that Moffiss could come with, the color of the scene is real compared to the other two scenarios, but at the end they decided to leave it open because they know thay can't please everyone and of course, to keep us busy and crazy during the hiatus.

 

 

Arcadia:

There are? Sherlock kisses Molly, and, um.... that's all I can think of. What did I miss?

Let me guess... first kiss with Molly on Anderson's scenario, real kiss on the cheek with Molly again, and almost kiss with Moriarty? Only one is real though.

 

I also love the way Mrs. Hudson's reaction to John's sudden appearance foreshadows John's reaction to Sherlock ... and John never gets it.

And John also explained to Mrs. Hudson how it got harder and harder to pick up the phone, which was similar to what Sherlock's said that at first he did want to contact John. And.. John never gets it also.

 

I still think "You can't do this again, can you?" was Sherlock's way of acknowledging that Molly had moved on, and "you deserve to be happy" was his way of saying "don't worry, I won't be in the way". He didn't expect her to follow and she, unfortunately, fulfilled his expectations. That's one of the saddest moments in the whole series for me; Molly electing to follow her head and not her heart at precisely the wrong moment. MOFTISSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!

So, what do we learn here? Heart or head? Head or heart? I'm confused and my heart hardly listen to my head anyway.

 

Shadow Dweller

Which beg a question, how many language Mycroft speak of? :D

Provided Mycroft is 40 years old, he has 14610 days.

Spent 30% to grow up and do miscellaneous things he need to survive: 4383 days.

Do minor government work 20%: 2922 days.

Exercising 25%: 3652.5 days.

Visiting Baker Street and kidnapping John 10%: 1461 days.

Which left 2191.5 days, say 191.5 is margin of error plus korean election,

he has 2000 days to learn new languages, which average 5 hours, he might need lesser time when he was younger but not every languages has Slavic root and frequent Turkish and German loan words.

2000:5, The answer would be 400 languages.

Yes, he might delete it but I supposed not, languages are important for his job and he doesn't need to learn forensic, poison or astronomy because he is not the world's only consulting detective. And ohh, he never emptied his recycled bin folder.

 

WHAT HAVE I DONE?!?!?!

 

 

Edit: oh my..wrong calculation.. 2000 days is 48000 hours..!!!!

[J.P.]

 

WHAT HAVE I DONE?!?!?!

 

You earned a title: The Nut of the Week and a .

[Van Buren Supernova]

 

1 The impossible bungee jump - with the rope attached at the waist, Sherlock's spine would break. Alone the stunt makes my neck ache. I hope BC will have no trouble with damaged intervertebral discs or something. All bungee jumpers attach the rope to their feet. But I can forgive it, as it was just a fan fantasy.

I thot BC indeed did the stunt with bungee, but there were multiple ropes, and he didn't jump as high as Bart.

(I think it's fun to be actor to have chance to do this kind of stunts)

 

9 Sherlock is definitely channeling Khan with his slick hair and anger. It is hard not to take side with Sherlock here, especially because the way Mycroft had greeted his beaten to pulp little brother is hard to watch. He really seems to enjoy that, and you might think there is some deep rooted hate that shows in his behavior. But Sherlock smiles, so who knows?

Oh.. I like his look at that scene so much, and no coincidence I really like his potrayal as Khan.

Actually in my mind, I don't think Sherlock is traumatized by the torture at all, everything physical seems just like another unimportant things to him, unlike the time he was traumatized when he doubted himself in HOB.

And I also believe that Mycroft is not that sadistic to enjoy his torture, he couldn't intervene sooner because he doesn't have the physicallity to defeat the torturer?

Having said that, it's very bad of him to say to Sherlock,"do you have any idea how it's like, Sherlock, going under cover?" Really Mycroft? Sherlock doesn't know how it's like? You are supposed to be smart!

 

16 Another little editing trick: as we see Mycroft and Sherlock at 221B for the first time, the perspective is suggesting they are playing chess. One could be disappointed that they only play stupid Operation, but I think they play it blind, looking at each other all the time.

I remember loving it so much that I replayed the scene for couple of times.

 

 

19 on why Sherlock didn't wait for Molly - maybe he assumed she would follow him and retired to his mind underground. Probably he was very surprised at the fish and chips place, standing there with two portions in his hands.

:lol: :lol: :lol:

Three portions? They would order two, and one extra portion free of charge?

Can anyone imagine Sherlock putting up a shelf?

 

  

21 I still wonder who was at Sherlock's funeral, beside his fans and clients. Not his parents. Mycroft?

22 Sherlock's surprisingly social behavior/mood when he brings the champagne to his living room full of people. He seems to enjoy that - what a contrast to the X-mass disaster! He even keeps himself from saying anything about Tom.

Yes, he was very nice not to say anything to Tom. It must be very difficult :lol:

 

I think I would understand. The most hurting aspect about it to John might be just not being reliable or trustful enough in Sherlock's eyes. But we know John is a terrible liar....

Yes...! He is overreacting isn't he? XD

 

 

On the other hand I'm really impressed by Sherlock's ability to put aside the emotions, even if it is panic. He is certainly scared as he starts to examine the bomb (he might have known there is a switch*, but he didn't know if he could find it on time) and in one second he is thinking about a prank. After his breakdown in HOB he still is able to text John and give him the right incentive to talk to Henry's therapist. Amazing, that man.

 

In the middle of everyone panicking he was also able to think logically and reveal Frankland's disguise.

 

 

About realizing that Mycroft is smarter than Sherlock, I was at the same page with you. Not knowing that character, I think TEH was the first time I'm aware about that.

[Van Buren Supernova]

 

I always wonder why Sherlock insists that Mycroft is lonely. Is it because he tries to convince himself that it’s okay to be lonely (even for superior brain)? Love the call back “How would you know” to Mycroft from SIB.

 

Possibly my favorite scene in the whole episode! And what IS Sherlock implying? That Mycroft is lonely? Or is he telling Mycroft that having friends is okay? Sherlock's more sweet-tempered with Mycroft in this scene than he usually is, is he realizing that he may be the closest thing to a friend his brother has? Also love the wink he gives Mrs. Hudson.

Good point, I never see it that way before, that Sherlock feel sorry for Mycroft that he is the closest friend that Mycroft has. I guess being dead exposed that Sherlock has a lot of friends, some kind of Tom Sawyer scenario.. 

[Van Buren Supernova]

 

 

WHAT HAVE I DONE?!?!?!

You earned a title: The Nut of the Week and a .

I might be nutter because I like the title. :lol:

 

Another thing about this episode..

Is that mean that John is the ultimate headbutter?

Sherlock headbutted Frankland, he won.

Sherlock headbutted CIA agent, he won.

I can't remember, but I guess there is one more.

Then, John headbutted Sherlock, and John won!!

 

Or does headbutter always win against headbutt-ee?

XD

[Carol the Dabbler]

... the only thing that truly drives me nuts about the explanation is that the assassin was never a threat to John, because Mycroft's men "intervened." Then why the heck go through all of that!?!?! Just send Mycroft's men to clean up the whole mess, and leave Sherlock in London where he belongs! Arghgh.

 

The only way I can make everything fit together is by assuming that Sherlock was hugely oversimplifying things, possibly even to the extent of mentioning a few things that never actually happened.  And/or Mycroft told Sherlock some things that were not, strictly speaking, true (such as that intervention, since Sherlock didn't actually witness it).  And I think that's roughly where Moftiss intended to leave us.  It's a clearly a flawed explanation, so we don't dare take any specific detail at face value -- but it's the best explanation we're ever gonna get.

 

Back to the question of why Sherlock chooses Anderson to hear his explanation:  Well, to be fair, he first tried to tell John, who wasn't having it.  He isn't yet well acquainted with Mary.  Molly has another focus in her life.  A good bit of the explanation involved questionable activities, so best not to involve DI Lestrade.  Mrs. Hudson would've listened and then said, "That's nice, dear."  And Mycroft already knows.  So I guess that does kinda leave him with Anderson, doesn't it? 

 

4 Anderson seems the only one person who mentions Jim's body. What happened to it? Apparently someone (Mycroft? Lestrade?) was able to cover the whole incident.

 

I think so. The police seem to know about Moriarty's death (since Lestrade is apparently already aware of it too) -- but the reporters talking about how Sherlock's name was cleared never mention it, so apparently it's been kept hush-hush, and the body is still in a cooler somewhere.  Or buried in Sherlock's grave (along with the stunt double?).

 

5 I like the visual transition from the coffee mugs to John's eyes.

 

Good -- so they didn't waste all that time and planning.!  :D

 

But I don't like it. At all. It strikes me as somehow trivializing John's grief.  (And judging by the DVD commentary, I'm not alone.)

 

10 ... as John enters 221B stairway, there is dust shivering in the air, it is shown explicitly later as John enters the living room. Dust seems to be important in that episode

 

Dust is eloquent!

 

Am I the only one who thinks that Mary knows exactly what John wants to ask her?

 

Apparently not! (And if he'd been heading anywhere else with that elaborate build-up, he'd have deserved what he's about to get.)

 

18 Lord Moran's vanishing car: what if there were other people on the train with him?

 

Oh goody, a brand-new question! The Train Guy told Sherlock that the driver of that train had apparently been bought off, so he was presumably in on the whole disappearing-car thing. Maybe he could have timed his train's arrival at all stations so that another train had already picked up the last passengers after the station's entrance gates had been closed for the night -- so that the platforms would be empty (except for Moran, who was presumably hiding).

 

20 the code Moran gives to the bomb is 051113 - the actual day, 5th Nov. 2013.

 

Cool!

 

21 I still wonder who was at Sherlock's funeral, beside his fans and clients. Not his parents. Mycroft?

 

Well, John obviously. (Otherwise he wouldn't have known that Mum and Dad weren't there.) Yes, Mycroft, one would assume -- keeping up the pretense. Molly (who would have been nervous enough about what Sherlock was headed into that she wouldn't've had much trouble passing for grief-stricken). Lestrade, Dimmock, and several other police (though perhaps not Anderson and Donovan). Mrs. Hudson of course. Mike Stamford. Henry Knight. And if the funeral was not a private affair, then lots and lots of fans, former clients, and curious onlookers.

 

Sometimes I want to ask John: "why can't you just be happy that Sherlock is alive and in one piece after all? He did it to fight the network of the man who put explosives on you! He wanted to protect you!"

 

But does John know that? I don't believe we ever saw it explained to him (other than "Moriarty had to be stopped"). And at the time, he was (understandably) kinda hung up on why Sherlock had kept him in the dark for two years.

 

[Carol the Dabbler]

Waitaminute, what if the information about Irene's beheading was a lie Mycroft used deliberately to test John? Mycroft might have known that Sherlock intervened in Karachi, it was not about telling Sherlock, but about John's ability to lie. Sherlock was the one who was to judge John in that matter, it is possible that he knew what Mycroft had told John at Speedy's.

 

Well, the Holmes Brothers' national sport is clearly Fooling John! But I keep changing my mind -- first this:

 

... my current favorite theory is that Mycroft was telling the truth the first time, she really was in the witness protection program over here.  Mycroft changes his story not to protect Sherlock from the truth (Irene's dead), but rather to keep John from the truth (Irene's alive).  (Telling him the witness-protection story first and then -- with seeming hesitation -- telling him the Karachi story makes it much more likely that he'll totally swallow the second version, doesn't it?)  And then, yes, in that case, the rescue is Sherlock's little fantasy.

 

Note that either version is consistent with canon, since Watson believed Irene was dead.

 

... and then less than a year later, this:

 

... I am (currently) very fond of the idea that Sherlock actually did fool Mycroft.  So both of the stories he told John are true -- the official story (which absolutely everyone believes except for Irene and Sherlock) is that she's dead -- but Sherlock spirited her away into some kind of witness protection program (presumably his own homemade version), and there she will presumably stay.

 

 

 

* somehow I have a problem believing that there are indeed switches on every bomb in RL.

 

Seems like a reasonable precaution. That particular bomb isn't just a hodgepodge of spare parts with an alarm clock strapped to it, it's a very professional job. So I'm perfectly willing to believe that it had all the bells and whistles, including a switch (to allow some flexibility to the person arming it). No idea whether real terrorists tend to think that way, though.

 

10 The way Mrs Hudson shows her anger serving John his cuppa + cookies.

I also love the way Mrs. Hudson's reaction to John's sudden appearance foreshadows John's reaction to Sherlock ... and John never gets it.

 

Well of course he doesn't -- he's a doctor, not a plot device!

 

Can anyone imagine Sherlock putting up a shelf?

 

To be precise, he says "I helped him put up some shelves" -- which could have amounted to simply standing there being tall and holding the shelf in place while the shop owner fastened it to the wall.

[J.P.]

Re: "Can anyone imagine Sherlock putting up a shelf?"

 

Well... Yes. Kind of.

Sherlock, give me the water-level. No - that's... that red one that looks like a ruler. Thanks. No, I'm not going to take a correction for the wall that's one degree off from vertical... And I don't care that it's 5mm off from the middle of the wall... The screwdriver, please. SCREWDRIVER, Sherlock! Are you in your Mind... Whatever again? No, that's a gouge. Well, OF COURSE I have ALL my tools in one box because... I have only one box. Dammit... You know what? Hold the ladder. Shall I fall down, don't try to catch me, just check the pulse and call the ambulance... What do you mean a cab would be faster? To Bart's? For God's sake, Molly does only POST MORTEMS!

[Arcadia]

Arcadia:

There are? Sherlock kisses Molly, and, um.... that's all I can think of. What did I miss?

Let me guess... first kiss with Molly on Anderson's scenario, real kiss on the cheek with Molly again, and almost kiss with Moriarty? Only one is real though.

 

Oh.  Don't I feel dumb! :P I guess I was thinking of REAL kisses!

 

 

Actually in my mind, I don't think Sherlock is traumatized by the torture at all, everything physical seems just like another unimportant things to him, unlike the time he was traumatized when he doubted himself in HOB.

And I also believe that Mycroft is not that sadistic to enjoy his torture, he couldn't intervene sooner because he doesn't have the physicallity to defeat the torturer?

That's basically my take on it as well ... everything else is transport, after all. He probably deleted the memory. ("Torture? What torture?")

 

 

The only way I can make everything fit together is by assuming that Sherlock was hugely oversimplifying things, possibly even to the extent of mentioning a few things that never actually happened.  And/or Mycroft told Sherlock some things that were not, strictly speaking, true (such as that intervention, since Sherlock didn't actually witness it).  And I think that's roughly where Moftiss intended to leave us.  It's a clearly a flawed explanation, so we don't dare take any specific detail at face value -- but it's the best explanation we're ever gonna get.

Yup, they're actually doing us a kindness, giving us something to discuss all these years ... :P

 

 

18 Lord Moran's vanishing car: what if there were other people on the train with him?

Oh goody, a brand-new question! The Train Guy told Sherlock that the driver of that train had apparently been bought off, so he was presumably in on the whole disappearing-car thing. Maybe he could have timed his train's arrival at all stations so that another train had already picked up the last passengers after the station's entrance gates had been closed for the night -- so that the platforms would be empty (except for Moran, who was presumably hiding).

 

Or the driver simply didn't open the door to that particular car at any other stop?

[Carol the Dabbler]

18 Lord Moran's vanishing car: what if there were other people on the train with him?

Oh goody, a brand-new question! The Train Guy told Sherlock that the driver of that train had apparently been bought off, so he was presumably in on the whole disappearing-car thing. Maybe he could have timed his train's arrival at all stations so that another train had already picked up the last passengers after the station's entrance gates had been closed for the night -- so that the platforms would be empty (except for Moran, who was presumably hiding).

Or the driver simply didn't open the door to that particular car at any other stop?

 

  :facepalm:   Arcadia, William of Ockham would be so proud of you!

 

[Carol the Dabbler]

Sorry!  For those who didn't major in math or philosophy, William of Ockham was a medieval scholar who popularized the principle generally known now as Occam's Razor.  Basically, it states that if there are several possible explanations that could fully explain something, then the simplest one is most likely to be correct.

 

[Arcadia]

 

18 Lord Moran's vanishing car: what if there were other people on the train with him?

Oh goody, a brand-new question! The Train Guy told Sherlock that the driver of that train had apparently been bought off, so he was presumably in on the whole disappearing-car thing. Maybe he could have timed his train's arrival at all stations so that another train had already picked up the last passengers after the station's entrance gates had been closed for the night -- so that the platforms would be empty (except for Moran, who was presumably hiding).

Or the driver simply didn't open the door to that particular car at any other stop?

 

  :facepalm:   Arcadia, William of Ockham would be so proud of you!

 

Boo-yah! :D

 

I'm so happy, here I was feeling all jealous about Van Buren's Nut of the Week prize.....

[Van Buren Supernova]

Well... Yes. Kind of.

Sherlock, give me the water-level. No - that's... that red one that looks like a ruler. Thanks. No, I'm not going to take a correction for the wall that's one degree off from vertical... And I don't care that it's 5mm off from the middle of the wall... The screwdriver, please. SCREWDRIVER, Sherlock! Are you in your Mind... Whatever again? No, that's a gouge. Well, OF COURSE I have ALL my tools in one box because... I have only one box. Dammit... You know what? Hold the ladder. Shall I fall down, don't try to catch me, just check the pulse and call the ambulance... What do you mean a cab would be faster? To Bart's? For God's sake, Molly does only POST MORTEMS!

 

 

I would let him catch me, although mostly he would just look on as I land with a thud.

Wait..there is a hole in the plot.. why would you want to put a shelf when it's only accessible by ladder? And of course one degree off from vertical is unacceptable. Those eyeballs put on that would start rolling!

 

 

 

Boo-yah! :D

 

I'm so happy, here I was feeling all jealous about Van Buren's Nut of the Week prize.....

Wait.. but I heard Nut of the Week is the most prestigious and sophisticated award nowadays. XD

[Arcadia]

 

Well... Yes. Kind of.

Sherlock, give me the water-level. No - that's... that red one that looks like a ruler. Thanks. No, I'm not going to take a correction for the wall that's one degree off from vertical... And I don't care that it's 5mm off from the middle of the wall... The screwdriver, please. SCREWDRIVER, Sherlock! Are you in your Mind... Whatever again? No, that's a gouge. Well, OF COURSE I have ALL my tools in one box because... I have only one box. Dammit... You know what? Hold the ladder. Shall I fall down, don't try to catch me, just check the pulse and call the ambulance... What do you mean a cab would be faster? To Bart's? For God's sake, Molly does only POST MORTEMS!

Wait..there is a hole in the plot.. why would you want to put a shelf when it's only accessible by ladder?

 

 

 

Boo-yah! :D

I'm so happy, here I was feeling all jealous about Van Buren's Nut of the Week prize.....

Wait.. but I heard Nut of the Week is the most prestigious and sophisticated award nowadays. XD

 

Actually, it sounds more like something you'd receive in the mail....