Sherlock Holmes is back and is facing one of his most daunting cases yet in The Six Thatchers. Sherlock is eagerly waiting to see where Moriarty will return. Scotland Yard has another case that is baffling them, however that isn’t what is interesting Sherlock. A seemingly insignificant detail in their case catches his attention. Someone has destroyed a bust of Margaret Thatcher and continues to destroy more. As he digs deeper, Sherlock discovers that there is something much bigger going on around him and it delves into the past of Mary Watson.
The Six Thatchers is a different episode than some of the previous Sherlock episodes. The pacing felt slightly different as did the relationships, which almost felt off balance. The episode pulled from an original Sir Arthur Conan Doyle story entitled The Adventure of the Six Napoleons. Many of the elements of this episode echoed the original story until things took a deeper dive into Mary Watson’s past and led to the climactic, if confusing, ending.
The Pros
Sherlock does a fantastic job of putting variations of the original Sir Arthur Conan Doyle cases into modern settings with new twists. The result for fans of the original stories is something new, yet familiar. This episode definitely continued with that trend. What began as a simple case grew into something that was much deeper and more treacherous. The episode had unexpected twists that kept me wondering where exactly they were going to go with the story. It also had me wondering how exactly some mystery points were going to fit into the rest of the season… particularly with Mycroft’s final phone call in the episode.
This episode did a fantastic job of taking both Sherlock and John Watson on an emotional journey. Mary Watson was also much more fully explained in a way that never was in the original books. I did like that they kept the major points of her involvement in the Sherlock Holmes stories the same.
Finally, the music for this episode was a mix of both new themes and old in a way that was a mix of different and familiar. I look forward to listening to the whole thing on iTunes.
The Cons
The Six Thatchers had a lot right but a few things that made my eyebrow raise. First off, John Watson’s text messages did not seem in character and were very confusing. I’m hoping that it setting something up later in this series but at the same time, found it distasteful. The big finale was also a bit surprising, mainly because of there being a baby involved. Minus the baby, it makes more sense. With the baby… not so much. Lastly, the pacing seemed a little bit off at times in this episode which is a first for me with Sherlock. This is admittedly nit picky.
Final Thoughts
Sherlock is back and after seeing this episode, I sure hope this isn’t the final season. Once again, this show has proved that it is worth the wait. The episode had its highs and lows for sure. There were some interesting choices made but it definitely moved the story forward and has fans wondering what the heck is going on… as it has so effectively done before. With two more episodes to go in this season, it will be interesting to see how Sherlock and Watson’s relationship develops and if there is even more darkness and loss on the horizon. Also, it appeared there was a reference to the third Holmes brother. Will he be appearing at some point during this series? Sherlock continues to be a brilliant series and while this episode was definitely flawed, I find myself eagerly waiting for The Lying Detective!
What did you think of The Six Thatchers?
