Best episodes (ranking)

[sherlockandjohn]

Reichenbach

Study in Pink

Hounds

Great Game

Scandal

Blind Banker

 

That part is not hard for me at all. Where it gets difficult is placing the new episodes... and what's strange is that I find myself obsessing about it a bit. I really want to rank them (for some reason I don't understand), but I seem to change my mind about them ever so often. Mostly the first two.

 

On one hand I love The Sign of Three, especially the most serious part of Sherlock's speech, as well as the whole 'end of an era' theme (okay, I both love and hate that... sniff!). The humor and mystery are great, too. I started out by ranking this episode as my favorite, because the parts I love, I really love. On the other hand - and I don't really know how else to describe it - occasionally the amount of humor and sentiment just feels too much.

 

Mostly, though, I just find myself completely conflicted as to how I feel. I cannot figure out how I feel about Sherlock's humanisation, the reunion, or Mary being an ex-assasin, or Sherlock standing up for her... and the list goes on. I guess my conflicted emotions is part of why I've been compelled to watch the three new episodes as many times as I have.

 

All of this being said, my love of series 3 far outweighs my dislike of it.

[Carol the Dabbler]

Yup.

 

[T.o.b.y]

That part is not hard for me at all. Where it gets difficult is placing the new episodes... and what's strange is that I find myself obsessing about it a bit. I really want to rank them (for some reason I don't understand), but I seem to change my mind about them ever so often. Mostly the first two.

... my love of series 3 far outweighs my dislike of it.

 

Ditto for the last part. I have a few problems with the plot, but the characters are increasingly wonderful and the dialogue is always great, the acting is just as good as ever and the whole thing is quite a treat for the eyes, so in all, I've gotten very much used to series 3...

 

The Sign of Three was the only new episode that appealed to me right away, though. Both The Empty Hearse and His Last Vow had to be watched at least three times before I really liked them. I do, though, now, especially the last one. I have to respect something that fueled that much discussion and thought. And I love Sherlock in it. Sherlock high, Sherlock pretending to make love to Janine and then ignoring her existence once she's out the door, Sherlock dying, Sherlock figuring out Mary, Sherlock facing Magnussen, Sherlock the desperate hero... This could go on, but don't worry, it won't.

[cellisis]

maybe i should instead to put 'Sign of Three' as my least ftavourite, switching place with 'The Blind Banker', though the latter has so silly carton like bad guys and deserve to be at the last place.

 

i watched 'The Blind Banker' again, and like the first half basically, but cannot get over the carton chars from the plot...

 

as to 'Sign of Three', i felt really betrayed by the show which is supposed to show how clever and super intelligent Sherlock is, even in a wedding or normal situation, but the writers seems to rather portrait him to be as silly as ordinary people, and get stupidly drunk and cannot even think clearly about the case and resolve it until the last minute. i almost feel like Sherlock is no longer the one and only Sherlock we know but a different person. i watched it a few times, but every time i felt the same about this episode.

 

the point is that what we like about Sherlock is because he's superior than all of us in intelligence and attention to details and deductions, and he's not an ordinary person like the rest of us. but this season, we start to see so many weaknesses on Sherlock side, especially in 'The Last Vow', when he's over matched by his opponent, and yet keep making mistakes till he's cornered to the last moment when he became a shocking killer instead.  it really felt Sherlock is going down from now on, and we start missing the good old Sherlock in series 1 & 2...

 

i really hope they'd make up to us on Sherlock in series 4 to erase some of those silliness and judging mistakes from Sherlock in this series and get back on solving crimes and deductions that Sherlock is good at... or else i for one will be utterly disappointed and stop watching it.

[Bakerstreet Irregular]

I don't think we have to give up the ship at this point. Yeah, we saw a more human, emotional Sherlock but he was always there in the books as well. Dr. Watson mentions that not all of the cases he and Holmes worked on were resounding successes. He was only human after all and Watson pointed that out as well.

 

 Holmes often said that it was Watson's romanticizing their adventures that made Holmes such a super brain. But of course, that is the Holmes we have all fell in love with and want our "Sherlock" to be. I'm looking forward to Season 4 and more "ridiculous adventures".

 

  Oh, and Holmes was hung over once in the canon, the morning of January 7th. Seems he over indulged on his birthday the day before.

[Arcadia]

Y'know, the funny thing is, I just saw that episode a few minutes ago (local PBS's pledge week, I promised myself I wouldn't watch it but darn if I could help myself :-) and I noticed that Sherlock didn't seem hung over at all. John was, (drinking seltzer, couldn't eat) but Sherlock was up and researching Major Sholto. Apparently Sherlock's brain is so big that his hangovers wear off quicker than normal people's ...

[Caya]

Hello cellisis and welcome to the forum!

 

You're certainly not alone in your disappointment in series 3 ... we're still debating it hotly two months later, after all . Much depends, of course, on where they're planning to go from here. So there's still hope .

[Bakerstreet Irregular]

 

I noticed that Sherlock didn't seem hung over at all. John was, (drinking seltzer, couldn't eat) but Sherlock was up and researching Major Sholto. Apparently Sherlock's brain is so big that his hangovers wear off quicker than normal people's ...

 

   Unfortunately, we didn't get much of Sherlock's reaction to being hungover. That might have been insightful. But he was making enough noise so that John could hear him all the way down in Mrs. Hudson's kitchen, so maybe he was bungling about somewhat. Of course, he has an excuse for not having to try to get a breakfast down, he can concentrate on a case.

[Carol the Dabbler]

You're certainly not alone in your disappointment in series 3 ... we're still debating it hotly two months later, after all . Much depends, of course, on where they're planning to go from here. So there's still hope .

I keep wondering how we'd all have reacted to Series 2 if the forum had existed prior to those broadcasts and we'd all been anticipating them together as we did this time.  I know I was initially disappointed by "Scandal" and "Hounds," but I was no longer frothing at the mouth by the time I found the forum.  I suspect it has a lot to do with expectations -- we like the show so much, and we reinforce each other's enthusiasm so much, that when we finally see the new episodes, we find anything short of perfection to be a letdown.

 

Many of us have commented that Series 3 is growing on us, so if we'd all had a chance to make our peace with it before comparing notes, we might have been a good bit calmer.

 

Of course, Series 3 certainly is different, isn't it?  Both sillier and grimmer.

 

[Caya]

Dunno, it might have something to do with the fact that I only discovered Sherlock in 2013 and never had to wait for series 2, but I wasn't particularly disappointed (well, yes, Irene was a bit of a letdown, but overall the episode was okay). Series 1 and 2 felt organic to me. Series 3 is ... different. Wish I could say it grew on my, but no such luck.

[T.o.b.y]

 

Of course, Series 3 certainly is different, isn't it?  Both sillier and grimmer.

 

 

U-huh - that's very nicely put. I like the "grim" side and am willing to put up with the silliness while I bet for others it's vice versa and still others agree with neither.

 

But thank goodness there are still quiet moments and some subtleties. One of my favorites is still Molly and Sherlock at the end of their day solving crimes together. Molly is a gem. Even when they make her do something extreme, like slap Sherlock in the face, she manages to pull the scene she's in from the realm of fantasy right into real life.

 

 

[cellisis]

Hello cellisis and welcome to the forum!

 

You're certainly not alone in your disappointment in series 3 ... we're still debating it hotly two months later, after all . Much depends, of course, on where they're planning to go from here. So there's still hope .

you're right... we'll see what next we'd get.

 

i started watching Sherlock only from Series 3, and then get first 2 series on DVD and watched them, which is the reason to be disappointed in some way with series 3, after seeing 1st 2 series.

 

i still like Empty Hearse, but how come they made that Sign of Three this out of character and bad for Sherlock as charactor? i just cannot get over it given it's quality of the first 2 series. many people were blew away by the Last Vow, which i do like the most part of, but if people notice the plot details of the last vow, then they should see the entire episode is showing how not that smart and overplayed Sherlock became in handling that bad guy. in every conversation he had with his opponent, it revealed he's inferiority to his opponent and he couldn't even find a way out except shooting him, which is entirely out of character for Sherlock Holms' nature. they could just follow the Canon story to let someone else pull a gun on the bad guy, but why Sherlock? does he become such weak in deduction and lost his wit that he cannot even resolve the situation in a better way?  -- that's what i don't understand why writers of the show write the plot... it's for a shock for sure, but it's not logical for Sherlock.

 

anyway, just rant a bit to get over this... at least we will have long wait until all my feelings about series 3 is gone.

[Caya]

I know how you feel *sigh*. The Last Vow ... some people love it, some hate it. We've yet to reach any kind of consensus on that episode here.

 

Personally, I stopped my internal Sherlock clock close to the end of Sign, just before he walks out all alone. Maybe by the time series 4 comes around I'll have made my peace with what follows. As you said, at least we have time to chew on it .

[sherlockandjohn]

 

You're certainly not alone in your disappointment in series 3 ... we're still debating it hotly two months later, after all . Much depends, of course, on where they're planning to go from here. So there's still hope .

I keep wondering how we'd all have reacted to Series 2 if the forum had existed prior to those broadcasts and we'd all been anticipating them together as we did this time.  I know I was initially disappointed by "Scandal" and "Hounds," but I was no longer frothing at the mouth by the time I found the forum.  I suspect it has a lot to do with expectations -- we like the show so much, and we reinforce each other's enthusiasm so much, that when we finally see the new episodes, we find anything short of perfection to be a letdown.

 

Many of us have commented that Series 3 is growing on us, so if we'd all had a chance to make our peace with it before comparing notes, we might have been a good bit calmer.

 

Of course, Series 3 certainly is different, isn't it?  Both sillier and grimmer.

 

 

I've been wondering that too, especially since I wasn't even acquainted with 'Sherlock' until May 2013. I'm sure our mutual excitement, anticipation, and speculation make us all more emotionally invested. At the same time it is true that series 3 is different, and 'both sillier and grimmer' describes it well, I think. Also it's just 'more'. More drama, more comedy, more emotion, more humanity from Sherlock. Less detective work, though.

 

I think I love all the aspects of 'Sherlock' - the series and the man. At first, series 3 shocked me, but now that I've calmed down I love it. I'm glad we get so many different types of episodes.

 

[Carol the Dabbler]

The Last Vow ... some people love it, some hate it.

 

Or both.  It's probably my favorite of Series 3, but it's also got the things that I like the least of perhaps the entire show.

 

As for Sherlock sometimes failing to "detect" in this series, that may have been intentional on Moftiss's part, since the original stories gradually become less deduction-centric.  I believe I've heard Cumberbatch say that Sherlock didn't know how to beat Magnussen fair and square, so shooting him was basically an act of desperation.  Moftiss have been saying that Sherlock isn't a detective show, it's a show about a man who is a detective.  He's neither a superhero nor a deity, he's a mere human (albeit an awfully smart one).

 

Besides, he hit some clunkers in Series 1 and 2 as well. 

[Arcadia]

 

 many people were blew away by the Last Vow, which i do like the most part of, but if people notice the plot details of the last vow, then they should see the entire episode is showing how not that smart and overplayed Sherlock became in handling that bad guy. in every conversation he had with his opponent, it revealed he's inferiority to his opponent and he couldn't even find a way out except shooting him, which is entirely out of character for Sherlock Holms' nature.

Or is Sherlock faking the inferiority in order to get to Magnussen?

 

Someone around here had a theory that Sherlock suspected CAM kept everything in a memory palace, and Sherlock was just pretending to be defeated so he could get into Appledore and confirm it.

 

I don't suppose we'll ever know one way or the other, but it's an interesting idea.

[sherlockandjohn]

Okay, I lied... I'm going to change my ranking yet again, now that I've had more time to consume series 3. The Empty Hearse has been steadily growing on me, and now I love it, so...

 

1. The Reichenbach Fall

2. The Empty Hearse

3., 4. and 5. A tie between A Study in Pink, The Great Game, and The Hounds of Baskerville

6. The Sign of Three

7. His Last Vow

8. A Scandal in Belgravia

9. The Blind Banker

[Carol the Dabbler]

Poor "Blind Banker"!  I actually had a hard time making myself sit all the way through it last time we watched -- that's never happened before, though, so maybe I was just in an impatient mood.

 

[Arcadia]

Possibly. I watched it recently and enjoyed it; there are some lovely bits between J&S. But it's slow -- too much time spent on other people instead of our boys! And no Lestrade .... he really brightens up any scene he's in, doesn't he?

[Carol the Dabbler]

I agree there are some lovely scenes.  But if I allow myself to think about the plot, it's all over!

 

[Arcadia]

Plot? There's a plot?  

[T.o.b.y]

Every time I read something deprecating about The Blind Banker, I feel the urge to jump in and defend that episode... I really like it. I love Sherlock in it. I kind of miss the old sociopath... And I did like Soo Lin. What a beautiful girl with a lovely voice.

 

I don't think the plot is so much worse than in some of the later episodes. And Sherlock's shocked face when he sees the cipher at Baker St does more for me than a lot of the more effusive emotional scenes later. *Sigh* I'm just a big series 1 fan, I guess.

[sherlockandjohn]

Oh, I definitely enjoy watching TBB. And I have to admit, I don't even get what the whole argument is against the plot. I haven't even tried to understand the argument, because plot is just not something I pay much attention to... it's there, and it forms the background, but I get too caught up in the characters to notice plot holes - much. All in all, TBB is a solid episode with all the good stuff of a mystery. However, it's the lack of character arc, I think, that makes it less memorable than the other episodes. It's still very enjoyable. I loved it right from the beginning. It's only in comparison with the other episodes that it fades... and that's just because this is such an awesome show altogether.

[sherlockandjohn]

Plot? There's a plot?  

 

I don't know if you mean that TBB doesn't have a plot... but personally I laughed at your comment, because I don't pay too much attention to the plot. I'm always late in discovering plot holes.

 

But the episode has quite a bit of this:

 

[Arcadia]

No, that's me, I don't pay much attention to plot either, I'm usually more interested in all the gooey stuff like character development. I DO like the plot to, superficially at least, make sense, however!  (Looking at you, Reichenbach explanation!) I'm sure TBB has a plot, I just couldn't tell you what it is. :-) Too busy watching Sherlock flounce.

 

And stuff like this   --  oh yeah, definitely could do with more of that! Not so much this  , tho. Guns bore me in the extreme. Too easy.