Episode 3.2, "The Sign of Three"

[axd123]

***** SPOILER ALERT *****

 

So the second episode of Sherlock Holmes season 3 has come to pass, and quite frankly, I'm blown away.

The high functioning  Sociopath is at it again, solving 2 (arguably 3) cases at the same time. It's bittersweet that Watson's wedding was setting of it. Tensions ran high as the major locked himself in the room, contemplating the possibility of passing into the void, only to be convinced otherwise by Holmes' surprisingly touching arguments.

The man who is never seen wielding the weapon that was never there is trapped simply by deduction. The episode ended with a dance, and a wow.
Please note the pun intended.

The end will leave you feeling happier than what you were initially.

*zoom out camera*

Sherlock walks out into the night, donning the signature overcoat.

[T.o.b.y]

although:I  would really like to know more about the "elephants in the room"-case 

 

Since there is no elephant in any of the original cases (as far as I know), I'm assuming that one was a play on the saying "an elephant in the room".

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elephant_in_the_room

 

Now, what would that be for Sherlock in this episode?

[Caya]

Hello axd123 and to the forum!

 

I see you've jumped right in! It is truly considerate of you to mark your post as a spoiler, but here in this particular thread, this isn't neccessary ... its raison d'être is to discuss spoilers, after all.

 

For future posts with spoileriffic content, we have a nifty spoiler feature on this forum. Carol has posted an excellent how-to here.

[sherlockandjohn]

 

 

- "I had seen little of Holmes lately. My marriage had drifted us away from each other. My own

complete happiness, and the home-centred interests which rise up around the man who first finds himself master of his own establishment, were sufficient to absorb all my attention" (also from "A Scandal in Bohemia")

 

- "I found myself in my old arm-chair in my own old room, and only wishing that I could have seen my old friend Watson in the other chair which he has so often adorned.” (Holmes after his return in "The Empty House")

 

Those two quotes really hit a nerve. They don't have an air of finality in them, but definitely sadness and loss. I could certainly see the inspiration to parts of TSoT in them.

 

Thank you so much for all the quotes  The references are lovely. I get the impression that the original friendship grew every bit as close as the one we see in the TV series. And that the original Sherlock was equally multi-layered and mysterious.

 

The violin part you brought up earlier is so poignant; I can't say how much I love it.

[Undead Medic]

 

/>

You are British, aren't you? Then the BBC's iPlayer should do the trick.

 

Episode 1

 

Episode 2

 

As for getting them to the TV screen, either hook up the computer to the TV via HDMI port, or download them (there's a link below the episodes) and use the DVD player or similar.

yes I am British and have access to iplayer. Thank you I'll give it a go

 

 

BBC iPlayer is also available on Sky+ if you have a compatible box connected to broadband Internet.

[deadmansout]

It really bothers me that the case of the bloody guard or whatever it was called was selected at random when Mary got Watson to convince Sherlock to take on a case, and this was one of the stories selected to tell at the best mans speech at random again, in total coincidence to the fact that it was related to what was going to happen.

 

Considering Sherlock has a ''conversation'' with his brother in his head about how there are no such thing as coincidences during the speech scene I think is no coincidence.

 

Also, I doubt Mrs Hudson would have let the ''girl who dated a ghost'' up into the flat when she knew that Watson and Sherlock were having the stag party and were already drunk.....but that's a small annoyance.

 

[Caya]

Hello deadmansout and welcome to the forum!

 

It's already been pointed out that Ghost Girl was a nurse and should've been able to recognize two inebriated men when she saw them, but you're right, Mrs. Hudson sure should've gently stopped her as well.

 

About that guardsman, that sure was coincidence (and sloppy writing imho) but Sherlock might've arguably solved the Major's case without it. So this one might've been more for the audience's benefit.

[Loekie]

Oh, what a night.
Why'd it take so long to see the light?
Seemed so wrong, but now it seems so right.
What a lady, what a night!  Here we see Molly dancing.

[T.o.b.y]

I am surprised at myself, but I really liked the "stag night" (didn't know that expression before - thanks everybody for expanding my vocabulary). One reason is that I have always sort of wished they'd kept the drug angle and shown Sherlock high on cocaine or something like that. Well, they couldn't and I understand why and I also understand why he can't even smoke in the 21st century. But at least I got to see him drunk - hey, that counts as drug abuse in my mind (even if it was John who really sent him over the edge) and now I'm happy, adaptation wise. Also, I for some reason didn't think it all that funny. Sure, I know it was supposed to be hilarious (and why), but to me, it was all rather sad for some weird reason and so I liked it. Especially the "who am I" bit.

[BLS_Pro]

/>It really bothers me that the case of the bloody guard or whatever it was called was selected at random when Mary got Watson to convince Sherlock to take on a case, and this was one of the stories selected to tell at the best mans speech at random again, in total coincidence to the fact that it was related to what was going to happen.

Both episodes of Series 3 have relied heavily on sheer coincidence for storytelling - which is extremely bad.

[Janie]

I've finally seen it for the first time and I don't know what to think. It was funny (too much sometimes), sad, emotional (again, too much for my taste, but well... it was a wedding so I think I can deal with it somehow), and again I was missing a proper case. And I am probably the only one here but I thought the Sherlock's speech was a bit boring and too long. When it was finally getting interesting it was nearly the end of the episode. 

But knowing myself I will like it much better after I see it again

 

(By the way, I really HATED Sherlock's new dressing gown (or whatever it was). I hope we will never see him wearing it again )

[Karie]

In fairness to Sherlock and stag night... I'm pretty out of character when I'm drunk, too! That's what alcohol will do to you. And Sherlock probably doesn't drink much at all (same for John, because of his sister), so they're both lightweights. And they were drinking quite a bit (especially with John slipping shots into their glasses when Sherlock wasn't looking).  Posh and intelligent as Sherlock wants to be, his body can't fight the affects of the alcohol  any more than anyone else's. 

[knipplan]

/>/>/>/>

Okay… After a second viewing I can share my thoughts with you beyond “aaah! Brilliant!” So… (sorry for the very long post!)

 

Lestrade leaving just as he’s about to make a monumental and career-changing arrest because he thinks Sherlock is in trouble. Altogether now – Awww! You could see he was torn for a second because he knew what he was giving up, but helping his friend was more important. I fell even more in love with Lestrade in that moment. I guessed Sherlock needed help with his best man’s speech – the scene when Greg arrived and Sherlock was confused about what was going on was brilliant!

 

Sherlock dancing – thank you, thank you, thank you. I love him even more now too! And the whole scene with him and Mrs Hudson made me laugh, especially when he said he thought his morning tea “just sort of happened”.

 

Sherlock looking at John’s empty chair… heartbreaking. I just wanted to reach into my TV and give him a hug.

 

Sherlock interrogating Mary’s ex – brilliant. Funny, the silly smile made me laugh out loud, and I love how he’s looking out for John.

 

Sherlock with the kid. More hilarity. “I don’t know, I’ll ask one.” Lol!

 

Sherlock ‘flirting’ (for lack of a better word!!) with the bridesmaid. I actually really liked her. When she said “Can I keep you?” I was, of course, thinking, “No! He’s mine! I want him!”

 

My love for Sherlock and Mary’s relationship was cemented in this episode. Loved the scene when they were talking at the wedding about John and the Major. I really, really like her. Which doesn’t bode well for the future :-(

 

Who/What is Redbeard? I have to know!! Childhood pet??

 

I was thinking, “I really wish we’d seen the scene where John asks Sherlock to be his best man” and then they obliged And the actual scene… Firstly, hilarious. The speech itself, and the flashback to John asking him. But as well as being funny, it was also so sweet and touching. “I want to be up there with the two people that I love and care about most in the world.” Aww! Love them. So much. When Sherlock was talking about his own flaws my heart was just melting, especially when he said he’d never expected to be anyone’s best friend. And how John had saved him. And when he said he and Mary loved him most in the world. Oh, the whole damn thing. Perfect. And when he saw people crying and didn’t understand… “Did I do it wrong?” Bless him. Like John, I wanted to hug Sherlock in that moment!

 

Sherlock learning how to fold serviettes on Youtube. Just… brilliant.

 

THERE WAS ANOTHER HAIR RUFFLE. I hadn’t even dared dream we’d get another one. And we did. *swoon*

 

John calling Sherlock “nurse.”

 

The stag night. I was crying with laughter the whole way through – just brilliant. I never thought we’d get to see drunk Sherlock! And when they were playing Who am I… it just got better and better. “Got it! I’m you, aren’t I?” I bet Benedict and Martin had a riot filming all those scenes. Would love to see some commentary on this ep on the DVD, and hear their thoughts about filming the stag night scenes!

 

When the whole ‘Hamish’ thing came up and Sherlock was shown trying to guess John's name, I was shouting at the telly “We know it’s Hamish, he told us in Scandal!!” so I was very relieved when they showed that bit!!

 

IRENE! So glad she got to have a mini cameo. Short but sweet :-)

 

I liked that John recognised that something was wrong, because he knows Sherlock so well. And of course it was great to hear “Vatican Cameos!” again.

 

Mrs Hudson – “I think you’re a popular choice at the moment dear.” Lol!

 

Molly stabbing Tom with a fork or whatever it was when he said Sherlock was pissed. Being protective of Sherlock

 

I liked all the flashbacks – I think they worked well in this episode, and I liked the way everything came together. There’ll probably be some people who didn’t like the structure of the episode, but I loved it. I wasn’t expecting everything to come together, but I thought it all worked really well.

 

The solution - I had wondered if it was something to do with the belt. But would you really not feel it if you were stabbed with something, however small or thin it was? :-/

 

More Sherlock dancing. Oh, heaven. I want to dance with Benedict!

 

‘The Sign of Three’ – I don’t know if I’m just an idiot and was focussing on other things throughout this episode, but I wasn’t even trying to see the relevance of the title. Then when Sherlock said “three of you” and I realised, it was a real *facepalm* moment. It was so obvious, looking back!

 

Then there was the moment, when Sherlock was smiling and then it faded as he thought about what this news meant for the future… Oh, just heartbreaking. Nice coat action at the end (is that man capable of putting a coat on without making it look sexy?!) but it did make me want to cry seeing him leave the wedding. Beautiful moment. *sniff*

 

So… yes. I loved it. Funny, sweet and sad. It did feel different to other episodes – it was different to other episodes, in a lot of ways, and I’m expecting there will be some criticism for that, and some people who didn’t enjoy it as much. But it was still an excellent episode in my opinion, and it doesn’t always have to be a bad thing doing something a little different. I expect the last episode is going to be more similar to TGG or TRF, more of a thriller type episode with a more continuous plot rather than disjointed stories and moments (even though they all wove together). I only wish I had more time this week for rewatches – I managed seven of TEH before tonight’s episode, which I loved even more. Twice is definitely not enough!

 

Also, did anyone hear Rickman in some words Benedict spoke? Or was that just me?

YES. Everything you said, above, I totally agree. I absolutely loved this episode, every single bit of it! I love how Moftiss let Sherlock evolve and grow as a person. It's so clear to me that Sherlock is trying very hard to be a good man, the good man that John always knew he was. Just brilliant.

 

But the feels though. Oh my. This show will be the end of me. And the worst is yet to come...

[wildwoodflower]

 

And I think that a drunken Sherlock is totally out of character. It's stupid, and not funny, certainly not thirty minutes long.

 

I think everybody is out of character when they're drunk... Although I think I see what you mean - it's unlike him to get drunk in the first place, right? Well, he is a human being. And this is "Sherlock versus real life", as the writers announced it would be. I really liked the game of "who am I". It continued the topic of "who and what is Sherlock Holmes, anyway?" that they began in The Empty Hearse.

 

I'm getting the impression that during the first two seasons, we've seen Sherlock more or less through John's eyes, like we do in Doyle's stories. Watson the narrator portrays Holmes in a certain way: cold, distant, reasoning machine, indestructible, habitual winner, enigmatic etc. But Holmes keeps remarking that it's far from the truth. What if the Sherlock we meet in this season is supposed to be what the writers thought might have been the truth?

 

 

 

speaking of the game of 'who am I?' I couldn't make out the name on Watson's forhead, it looked like m with scribbles. Maybe it was m with scribbles. Can anyone clue me in?

 

[Jalizar]

 

 

And I think that a drunken Sherlock is totally out of character. It's stupid, and not funny, certainly not thirty minutes long.

 

I think everybody is out of character when they're drunk... Although I think I see what you mean - it's unlike him to get drunk in the first place, right? Well, he is a human being. And this is "Sherlock versus real life", as the writers announced it would be. I really liked the game of "who am I". It continued the topic of "who and what is Sherlock Holmes, anyway?" that they began in The Empty Hearse.

 

I'm getting the impression that during the first two seasons, we've seen Sherlock more or less through John's eyes, like we do in Doyle's stories. Watson the narrator portrays Holmes in a certain way: cold, distant, reasoning machine, indestructible, habitual winner, enigmatic etc. But Holmes keeps remarking that it's far from the truth. What if the Sherlock we meet in this season is supposed to be what the writers thought might have been the truth?

 

 

 

speaking of the game of 'who am I?' I couldn't make out the name on Watson's forhead, it looked like m with scribbles. Maybe it was m with scribbles. Can anyone clue me in?

 

 

Madonna, I think.

 

[knipplan]

/>/>

 

 

 

 

 

 

And I think that a drunken Sherlock is totally out of character. It's stupid, and not funny, certainly not thirty minutes long.

I think everybody is out of character when they're drunk... Although I think I see what you mean - it's unlike him to get drunk in the first place, right? Well, he is a human being. And this is "Sherlock versus real life", as the writers announced it would be. I really liked the game of "who am I". It continued the topic of "who and what is Sherlock Holmes, anyway?" that they began in The Empty Hearse.

 

I'm getting the impression that during the first two seasons, we've seen Sherlock more or less through John's eyes, like we do in Doyle's stories. Watson the narrator portrays Holmes in a certain way: cold, distant, reasoning machine, indestructible, habitual winner, enigmatic etc. But Holmes keeps remarking that it's far from the truth. What if the Sherlock we meet in this season is supposed to be what the writers thought might have been the truth?

 

speaking of the game of 'who am I?' I couldn't make out the name on Watson's forhead, it looked like m with scribbles. Maybe it was m with scribbles. Can anyone clue me in?

It was Madonna :-)

[T.o.b.y]

Two more references that just popped into my head:

 

- Jonathan Small is one of the criminals in The Sign of the Four

 

- “I have seen those symptoms before,” said Holmes, throwing his cigarette into the fire. “Oscillation upon the pavement always means an affaire de coeur." (A Case of Identity)

[Slithytove]

It has been suggested that something bad will happen to Mary, but I doubt that the writers will kill her off. I think she'll probably be in jeopardy, presumably because of Magnusson, but I can't see them killing a loveable character so soon, particularly now that she is pregnant. Though John as a widower, bringing up a child with Sherlock's bizarre idea of help, would be interesting but would limit their freedom to go out together on cases.

 

I like Mary, and Amanda Abbington is lovely, but I do think her presence weakens the dynamic between the two main characters. Presumably Conan Doyle felt the same about Mrs Watson, as he kept her firmly in the background and quietly killed her off during the Great Hiatus. Looks like our Mary will play a much more prominent role than her namesake and I am not yet convinced that that is a good thing. Time will tell, no doubt...

[Zain]

Is it just me or does Cam's message sound incredibly fishy? I mean, it's almost too obvious to state it, but... poppet is an older spelling of the word "puppet". I know I see things that fit with my theory but... it fits. While it is a term of endearment, it could be interpreted that way, too. Cam's her puppeteer. And he's reminding her through his words of who's in charge and who's dancing to whose song. The mention of her family probably is essential, too. A reminder of what's at stake. I still think she's being blackmailed into keeping an eye on John. Or rather, Sherlock. I believe he's not after her, instead he's using her.

 

It's almost too obvious (reaction to pregnancy, Guy Fawkes Incident..), and that's what's worrying me. I seriously will be disappointed if she's not at least somehow involved. 

[knipplan]

I know people have focused a lot on Sherlock and wether he's in or out of character this episode. So I just wanted to say I absolutely loved John and what Martin Freeman did with the character during the episode. Martin is a brilliant actor and he nailed every scene. It's so touching how John tries to tell both himself and everyone else that nothing will change once he's married and yet he's aware they probably will. There were so many fantastic John-moments; the whole stagnight, Sherlocks speech and that last conversation on the dancefloor.

 

Brilliant writing, brilliant acting. What a show!

[BLS_Pro]

"How can you not remember which room?  You remember everything!"
"I have to delete *something*!"

I am afraid to ask what Sherlock had to delete in order to remember how to make the Swan and Syndney Opera House!

[julia5]

Just watched the episode again and Mycroft's "Redbeard" reference reminded me of how Sherlock wanted to be a pirate when he was a kid....so I did some googling and found this: http://thenorwoodbuilder.tumblr.com/post/72490130551/conspiracy-theory-of-the-day

 

Here's the crux of it: "what if Mary were living under a fake identity to escape some kind of hold Magnussen had over her, a hold he could take advantage of in order to use her against Sherlock (and John)? What if Mycroft, having kept John under surveillance for the two years of the Great Hiatus, had investigated Mary, too, and Mary’s past, and discovered the connection - or at least that her identity is a fake? What if Mycroft told this to Sherlock far before the wedding, and warned him more than once not to get attached to her, not to cultivate hopes for John’s future happiness, not to get ‘involved’, and were now remembering his brother of the (real) situation?"

 

*goosebumps!* 

[aely]

This episode has a lot of feels - it made me laugh a lot, cringe a fair bit and I also sniffled for Sherlock on his own at the end.

 

My satellite feed went wonky halfway through the stag night bit so I missed a couple of minutes - going to re-record the repeat to double check I haven't missed anything important.

 

What's piddling me off about this series is that I haven't been able to watch any of the episodes as broadcast - New Years Day I was travelling, and I was working the night shift on Sunday. I'll be working nights again this weekend too.

 

In fact, I've not seen any of my 'must watch' telly as it was aired in the last 2 months - I was working when the 50th anniversary episode and the Christmas episode of Doctor Who were broadcast, not to mention the more regular things.

[Carol the Dabbler]

Haven't read this, because I haven't seen this episode yet -- but here are Sherlockology's comments (complete with spoilers) on "The Sign of Three."

[bborchar]

I really liked the change in dynamics this week.  A very well written episode, and even better acted by BC.  He runs the gamut of emotions (for Sherlock, at least), and it wasn't the stereotypical wedding story at all.  Great character development which I appreciated.  And no, I've never been the type of person who demands the 'mystery of the week' be at the forefront of the episode.

 

I have a feeling that all of these good feelings will be swept out from underneath us in the next episode (given the ominous signs in this episode as well as the trailer for next week's episode), so I am going to enjoy basking in the glow of a mostly happy ending before the emotional crush comes our way (although, I will say: I have been, and still am, most excited about 'His Last Vow'...I think it's going to be amazing).