Monday, August 19, 2019

Elementary - Their Last Bow


After seven years on CBS, Elementary concludes with a series finale that focuses not on a case to solve but on the core relationship of the show's two primary characters. Set years after "Reichenbach Falls," with Odin Reichenbach (James Frain) now sentenced to hundreds of years behind bars, Watson (Lucy Liu) brings back her partner who has traveled the globe in recent years solving crimes under a slew of different pseudonyms while the world has believed Sherlock (Jonny Lee Miller) to be dead. Initially it appears Holmes' old flame has lured him out of hiding, but further investigation reveals that Jamie Moriarty (who sadly doesn't make an appearance here) has known about Holmes' survival for some time.

Used as a red herring to get the plot started, it would have been great to see Moriarty one last time. However, the show's writers turn back to the partnership that has been the focus of the show for it's entire run while offering some amusement (Watson writing The Casebook of Sherlock Holmes as revenge for her partner going silent in his exile) and some genuinely tender moments (Holmes' admission to Gregson about his relapse and later confronting Watson about the secret she is keeping from him). I'm not a big fan of flash-forwards, but as an epilogue to the series the show makes good use on both the first (jumping ahead three years to Holmes' return) and the last (the final scene one year later). In the end Moriarty (and all criminals) are still out there, and Holmes and Watson are back together once more ready to jump into the breach at a moment's call. The game is afoot.

No comments: