Sherlock (TV Series) The Abominable Bride (2016) User Reviews

A brilliant, madcap Gothic adventure.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 9/10 · 1 January 2016]

Sherlock and Watson land in the late Nineteenth Century to solve the case of Emelia Ricoletti, a bride that killed herself, and then later manages to shoot her husband and bring about the death of Lord Carmichael. The duo must uncover how this devious crime was carried out.

I must admit I have been hugely looking forward to this, possibly because I was keen to see how the altered setting would work. Series 3 had been somewhat of a disappointment, a little too self satisfied I suppose, so I'm glad they did something different to refresh it, it was certainly different.

A few minor quibbles, a little contrived at times, and as is the nature of the show it did seem a little wrapped up in its own smuggness at times, but I was utterly enveloped in the story, it had me wrapped from start to finish. Beautiful cinematography, great direction, awesome production values. It managed to feel fresh and exhilarating once again.

Cumberbatch was definitely on fine form, I loved the altered appearance, suited him, I noticed a few Jeremy Brettisms, not sure if anyone else did, maybe the hair and some of the body language. The scenes between Holmes and Moriarty once again were simply amazing, Andrew Scott is just unbelievable, he is such a charismatic performer.

Crazy, fun, Gothic, energetic, waited a long time, and it was worth the wait. 9/10

Not at its best but just enough to remind us how brilliant the show is

[akhilranj · 9/10 · 6 January 2016]

Almost the perfect episode until the last 20 minutes. They didn't have to make it so complicated. The story was great , the setting was perfect and the acting as always was impeccable. Not going to go on about the story but just lightly summarize the drawbacks and the SHERLOCK moments. The episode as it stands I feel didn't need to be connected to where we left in season 3. The story and the setting was good enough for it to be stand alone episode. Though I did enjoy the subtle scene references from the main Sherlock. More importantly the episode for god sake just needed have a good solid ending. I am sure most of the viewers would complain about how the makers tried too hard to pull off a "SHERLOCK" ending. It just needed to be enough to quench the beaming desire of the fans for another year as they wait to see their favorite detective on his adventures.

What I did enjoy about the episode is as is the case with every sherlock episode is the dialogs. They take a moment to seep in and when they do: wow. The references to the main series are also enjoyable. For the first 1hr the episode hits the high standards it has set since its inception, but where it does falter is in the last 30 minutes where just needs to wrap it up in good solid way.

No matter for that, Sherlock fans will definitely enjoy it. To sum up, the episode as Moriarty would say if he was to represent the whole series: MISS ME

Largely entertaining

[moriartylives · 8/10 · 1 January 2016]

Very different from the episodes that precede it but still very enjoyable and well worth watching. I was looking forward to this episode for a full year and I was not disappointed. Now only another year plus until the 4th season...if I overdose now I should be able to sleep until then. Don't go into this expecting to be blown away. The cinematic intensity of the 9 episodes its elder is not present. The depth and complexity of the plot are less structured. However, even though it's not quite up to par with Sherlock episodes of days past, it is still superior to the majority of television programs and I would say enjoyable enough to watch more than once.

Playing those mind games forever

[Lejink · 10/10 · 1 January 2016]

The BBC has been trailing the return of three (okay, four) of its most popular detective heroes in a clever advertisement showing Stella Gibson from "The Fall", John Luther and Sherlock (and Dr Watson). "The Fall" re-starts next week although it is my least anticipated of the three, while "Luther's" comeback was very good but this dazzlingly brilliant episode was the best thing I've watched this Christmas.

The writing really was terrific with a plot that had more ups and downs than a mountain range, more ins and outs than Hampton Court Maze and more twists and turns than a dozen corkscrews, in short it was a triumph. Starting with a Victorian-era impossible murder with an even more impossible murderer, guest appearances by all the previous supporting cast including a massively-bloated Mycroft, surely a homage to Sydney Greenstreet and the return of the master-criminal we've all missed, a premonition of another husband-slaying in a big old house after dark, a recreation of the real Reichenbach Fall climax of yore, an ingenious denouement anticipating female suffrage years later but perhaps the best thing of all was the promise of a new series to come.

As ever, the technical aspects of the production were great, I'm a sucker for the multiple camera-angle, 360 degrees perspective, time-freezing, computer graphics and microscopic zoom shots employed. There was humour a-plenty and hosts of references to the Conan-Doyle original, including, if I'm not mistaken, the first time this Sherlock has ever said "Elementary my dear Watson".

The playing by Cumberbatch, Freeman and Andrew Scott as the three main protagonists was never better. I'm sure there will be Sherlock-oligists who can pick apart the complexities of the plot, which for sure seemed at times like a read-across from Moffat and Gatiss's other re-creation Dr Who, but let them, they won't spoil it for me. This was the best "Sherlock" I've yet seen and sets an almost impossibly high standard for what may come after this.

Doesn't matter if they don't however, this one was so good it really was the perfect after-Christmas present.

I hated it...then I loved it!

[jess-01645 · 10/10 · 3 January 2016]

I did not fully get it the first time but when I watched it again, it all started making some sense to me. It may be difficult for those who are not devoted fans of this series to fully grasp the craziness of this episode, but once you open your eyes to the genius of the writers' intent on what they were trying to achieve here, I could not keep my eyes off the show and found myself watching it over and over again. If the writers of series simply made this an one-off episode to truly stick to the original storyline, then there would be numerous critical remarks about how the writers settled for the comfort of predictability and made the whole plot so ordinary and boring. Before shooting at the TV screen and calling it 'stupid', one may want to watch it one more time and there will be that "a-ha" moment!

A spoiler-free review of the "Sherlock" Christmas special (2016).

[ericrnolan · 10/10 · 2 January 2016]

What can I say about the "Sherlock" Christmas special, "The Abominable Bride?" Extremely little, for fear of spoilers.

I will say that I loved it — I'd rate it a perfect 10, as I would just about any episode of this amazing TV show. Also, as good as the trailer was … I can say that it offers much more in its story than you'd expect.

I'd also say that it strongly, strongly parallels a movie that I happen to love — right down to its surprise plot device, key character interactions, and a symbolic act by the main protagonist in the climactic scene. The similarities are just too much for this to be a coincidence — it's just got to be a well done (and a damn fun) homage. It's unexpected, too, as the film I'm thinking off probably appeals to a different fan base. "The Abominable Bride" also cheerfully skewers another excellent recent film and the twist employed there.

There's some terrific acting, especially between Sherlock (Benedict Cumberbatch) and our main villain. And the dialogue is as sly and superbly delivered as always. I don't think I've ever watched a new episode of "Sherlock" and not laughed out loud at least once. The stronger, more assertive John Watson (Martin Freeman) that we see is damn terrific. (There's a compelling and sensible reason why this iteration of Watson seems a little different than our usual mild anti-hero, but I just can't say why.)

My quibbles were wholly forgivable. I thought that the Victorian versions of Molly Hooper (Louise Brealey) and Mycroft Holmes (Mark Gatiss) were just so cartoonish that they seemed right out of a "Saturday Night Live" sketch. It "took me out of the movie," and hampered my willing suspension of disbelief. It felt more like farce and silly sight-gags, instead of the dry, dialogue- and character-driven humor that the show is known for.

I also though that the climactic scene occurring among three primary characters, felt a little … off. Was it just not staged right? Was the pacing off? Maybe I got the sense that I was looking at a soundstage? I'm not sure.

Finally, I am an inveterate horror movie fan, and I might have liked to have seen the director and screenwriters play up the horror story elements just a little bit more here. The mystery for this episode was a jewel of an opportunity — a garish, fearsome "ghost bride" that assassinates men. It could have been just a little scarier, given that story. I know that "Sherlock" is not a horror show, but its creators did just fine in making their adaptation of "The Hound of the Baskervilles" both a bit frightening and a proper mystery.

But, again, those are just forgivable quibbles. This show remains the best thing on television!

Is this silly enough for you yet?

[Dr_Sagan · 2 January 2016]

Is this silly enough for you yet? ...It's in the script!... A character (I won't spoil you who that is) says that to Sherlock near the end, but it is addressed to the viewers of this episode too.

This series jumped the shark, the whale and maybe even the ...dolphins. It tries soooooo hard to be different and surpass itself that becomes unbearable.

To tell you the truth I disliked the 3rd season too, but the 4th is abysmal. I liked Irene's Adler episode and the Reichenbach Fall but this series turned into crap.

The main actors have a credibility and a presence but there is nothing else there. The writers are buried under their own creation, trying to be edgy. They don't even have the answers to the questions are presenting themselves.

This is a terrible episode. A complete mess that only some remaining hardcore fans will find "interesting". Holmes is a caricature of himself and in the whole episode doesn't "deduce" or observes anything. He is lost. A puppet. All the hype but zero substance.

The episode sets a million questions "how this?" "why that?" but fails to answer any of them.

There are some cheap humor here and there. Lots of swirly transitions between scenes (without a reason). A few puns. Some "reveals" about Holmes's personality, even his (non-existent?) past with women, but it is obvious that the writers were only trying to fill 90 minutes of "film" to justify the pointless episode.

Overall: After the disappointment of the 3rd season, the fourth is reaching new depths of humiliation for our beloved hero. Maybe I should check if there is any new episode of elementary. At least the U.S. series is far more honest to itself.

Moriarty Is Dead...No He's Not...Yes He Is

[Hitchcoc · 9/10 · 6 January 2016]

Treading a bit on dangerous ground here when one gets into that kind of inception loop, I was still incredibly intrigued by this. It was delightful to get our hero back to the Victorian era where Sherlock Holmes belongs. Sherlock finds himself puzzled by several things at first. How could the lady shoot herself in the head and still remain alive to kill again. Mycroft's self destructive behavior and his instructions to not win the war. The in and out manifestations of his use of drugs and his relationship with Watson at both ends of the time spectrum. We also have Mary actively involved here as she begins the long trek of fighting for the vote. It's a very engaging story. It is beyond the conventional plot and that's what does it for me. If someone wants to do a more conventional Sherlock Holmes presentation then let them do it. Writers! Continue to challenge us.

good if you go along with the conceit

[blanche-2 · 7/10 · 2 January 2016]

The long-awaited Sherlock special, "The Abominable Bride," is supposed to satiate our hunger for Sherlock, since we see him so rarely.

It did and it didn't.

I want to disclose up front that I flew to London to see Benedict Cumberbatch in Hamlet.

This episode was as divisive as Cumberbatch's looks. Some people thought this was the worst thing they've ever seen, and others thought it was wonderful.

I'm somewhere in between. Without giving anything away, I'll say, given the idea behind this episode, the story as it unfolded made sense. It was chaotic, confusing, and filled with strange things -- it was supposed to be.

Instead of taking the idea so literally, I would have preferred something more straightforward with Sherlock returning to Victorian times. There were too many interwoven ideas and people popping up.

One thing I was very impressed by was how much, in Victorian times, Cumberbatch resembled the standard idea of Sherlock Holmes' appearance. He looked amazing.

The production values and acting were both excellent; besides the leads, Andrew Scott was incredible. A good deal of the dialogue was fun. "He said the crime solution was so easy that even I could have solved it," Lestrade tells Mrs. Hudson. "Oh, I'm sure he was exaggerating," she assures him.

I wish they would release more episodes before 2017. For a man the producers objected to when he was cast, Cumberbatch is now too busy to be available for episodes. The price of fame.

Inception-esque Murder Mystery with a Few Twists!

[tlfirth · 10/10 · 1 January 2016]

We were promised something entirely different, and that's what filled our television screens tonight. A fast-paced, highly complex thread of events that all culminate to one simple conclusion - Moriarty is most certainly dead, but he will strike again. This episode has Moffat's fingerprints all over it.

Firstly, the setup is great, paralleling itself with modern Sherlock to great lengths, almost playing out as a recap for us all to catch up on the story and reinforce our knowledge. But this soon changes into an entirely new case where the main feature is bride who's returned from the dead. Some parts of this are genuinely scary, especially scenes in the mansion where everything seems to make a sharp turn into the unimaginable. The final conclusion is that these murders were orchestrated by a group of women hell bent on making a stand for their rights. It's never clear whether this is the absolute finality of the case, despite solving all the possible alternatives for a ghostly bride - but it's great to see many of the familiar faces in their ranks.

This entire storyline, however, is concocted by none other than Sherlock himself, in his mind palace, soon after his phone call with Mycroft on the plane. Cleverly, the writers have decided to metaphorically allow Sherlock to determine whether or not Moriarty's death was elementary or not, concluding that an alternative is most definitely impossible. But, as shown, Moriarty will always live on in Sherlock's mind, constantly challenging him to verbal duels. Such as the one on side of the Reichenbach Fall - a nostalgic nod to Arthur Conan Doyle's original depiction.

What's most pleasurable about the episode is its concentration on character development and how Watson is perceived in Sherlock's mind. He understands the doctor's distress at times, and even goes to the point of confessing (albeit privately) that he believes John knows things that he does not. Nevertheless, it's also amusing to see him envision his brother in such a deplorable manner - having seen him in a previous episode trying to combat his weight on a running machine.

The only downfall of the episode, similar to Moffat's Last Christmas for Doctor Who, is that all we gain in progressive storytelling is the knowledge that Moriarty is dead, and that's pretty much the whole of it. But, I'm inclined to like this for its complex way of telling us so, by accessing Sherlock's mind palace and giving us a whole new (old-fashioned) adventure - even it is all considered null and void.

The final question is, however, what is real and what is not? Could Series 3 in its entirety have been a long game played inside Sherlock's mind. If so, Moffat has a lot to answer for.

Why, just why?

[rsathyanitt · 6/10 · 2 January 2016]

Minor spoilers

You know, some times less is more.

This was an overstuffed, overlong episode of Sherlock. The abominable bride is a largely simple story, told in a rather convoluted way. A non-linear story telling doesn't always work, and this is one perfect example. The episode works till the 1 hour mark, after which it becomes a very bad mash up of Reichenbach falls and Inception. Inception, yes, you heard it right.

Had it just focused on the Victorian era, it would have been good. Had it focused just on Moriarty, it would have been good. Instead, what we get is a half baked episode. The humor saves the mediocre writing.

Back to Victorian London

[Tweekums · 9/10 · 1 January 2016]

After a very quick recap of the series so far the word 'Alternatively' appears on the screen and we are suddenly back in Victorian London. Lestrade brings an intriguing case to Holmes and Watson; a woman, in a bridal dress, appeared at a balcony with a revolver in each hand and started shooting at people in the street before putting one of the revolvers in her mouth and pulling the trigger… the mystery is that she was witnessed murdering her husband with a shotgun some time later! Her identity was no mystery and her body is in the morgue, there is no twin sister and Sherlock does not believe in ghosts… a mystery indeed. The plot thickens when she is implicated in more killings including a man who Sherlock and Watson had been protecting. Will our protagonists be able to solve the case or is it too strange even for them?

Moving the action to Victorian London was an interesting idea which at times did get a little convoluted; after almost an hour we are told that everything we've seen is part of Sherlock's 'Mind Palace' then later Victorian Holmes tells Watson that the twenty first century scenes are actually his speculation about how technology will progress… just as the camera pans outside to show a modern street scene. This may be annoying for some people but I found it rather fun… just like most of the episode. The central case was interesting with a satisfying explanation; it should keep most viewers guessing. There are plenty of strangely amusing moments such as the doctor in the morgue who is clearly a woman, despite an impressive moustache, that only Watson spotted and an enormous Mycroft who was eating himself to death as part of a bet with Sherlock. It wasn't all laughs though Moriarty makes a return in a way that threatens Sherlock's life or sanity. As expected the cast do a fine job; Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman are great as Holmes and Watson and are ably supported by the likes of Rupert Graves, Mark Gatiss and Andrew Scott. Overall a fun special episode that nicely mixed mystery, humour and drama.

Billed as a one-off episode- it wasn't

[pjgs200 · 7/10 · 29 June 2016]

Overall, I really liked the Gothic portions of this episode, and overweight Mycroft was very entertaining. I expected this episode to be a one off, and I was disappointed to see that it wasn't. The direction was great, and the story was good, but the Mind-palace twist was unnecessary. The episode became hard to follow and messy. I really was enjoying the mystery, but all of it being in Sherlock's head seemed like a way to justify the episode being in the 1800s, which didn't need justifying. It ruined the great mystery we had that was hugely entertaining. The back and forth from the 1800s to modern Sherlock was disorienting. The Abominable Bride would have been much better as a standalone episode. I appreciate the Gothic portions, as they were a good kind of weird, but the ties into last season were unnecessary and unexpected (not in a good way). It was billed as a one-off, but it wasn't. Overall- 6/10

When will show-runners learn not to force politics into their work? It rarely pays off.

[eleni1982 · 1/10 · 2 January 2016]

This special was long and drawn out with too many "comical" elements and "blasts from the past" but not enough wit or substance compared to the first 2 seasons. We didn't even get to learn who the real murderers were, so what was the point again? The acting overall wasn't bad, and the plot had some potential until mid way through, hence it's a 3/10 and not 1/10. The sequences with Moriarty were also drawn out and unneeded, it would suffice if he had a 2 minute cameo in the end, to remind us of the 21st century, but lets leave it at that. Then the writers should have used the extra time to give us more closure in the 19th century. However my biggest concern was that according to the show, it's okay to murder someone who hurt your tiny bitty feelings, as long as you are female. "Oh no he promised her money and status but he didn't deliver so OBVIOUSLY the greedy gold digger had to kill him!". Who writes this trash, and how is any sane viewer supposed to sympathize with that? This isn't even real feminism, feminism should be about equality in opportunities AND responsibilities! The women involved in the murders deserved a long long jail time!!! This is a warped version of feminism where females are exempt from the negative consequences of their actions. Instead of appearing progressive (which I assume was the goal), it perpetuates the problematic notion that women should be pandered to. Mary doesn't come off as empowered when she speaks that way to john, the man she supposedly loves. She comes off as immature. To elaborate, saying you'd like to walk someone to their car is NOT grounds for an emotional fit. This is why shows should stick to one aspect (in this case Sherlock being a genius detective). I probably won't be watching this show anymore, it's clearly gone downhill for a while now but this episode was the final nail in its coffin.

S4.0: Reasonably enjoyable even if indulgent, messy, and felt like getting the star names together was more important than the viewer's experience

[bob the moo · 14 January 2016]

Season 3 of this show already saw it confirmed as 'event television', and there is a greater feeling of that with this first episode to what IMDb calls 'season 4'; although it has been a year and a half since the last 'season' ended, and will reportedly be that again before we see another episode. I remember feeling that season 3 was a bit too pleased with itself for my tastes, and this is magnified here, where lots of increasingly famous and successful people are crowbarred into place to deliver this episode – and to be fair it must have taken a huge amount of schedule balancing to make it happen, so credit for that.

I guess there was also the risk that this amount of effort, and the fact that the stars no longer really 'need' Sherlock as a vehicle, means that there is a feeling of them doing the viewer a favor. As part of this as well, it must be tough for the writers, as they are trying to write an ongoing story without knowing when/if they will get the next episode. There is a sense of both these things with this episode, which occur in the few minutes that the plane takes to turn around and land so that the banished Sherlock can deal with the apparent return of Moriarty. In the jump back in time, we enter Sherlock's mind as he tries to solve a similar mystery he read about. This jump back in time allows the writers to not have to worry too much about where/how to advance the Moriarty plot, while at the same time appearing to advance it. It also gives them a chance for a bit of fun away from the modern settings.

And it is fun, in a way, although it is also heavy with flaws and weakness. The time-hopping doesn't help the actual mystery which is the focus of most of the time, nor does it really fit in the modern setting either. This sense of it not really working, and not really doing much for the viewer also means that, while it is funny and entertaining, it does feel like it is overly pleased with itself at the same time. That sense of indulgence and knowing it is a big deal does come through – not heavily perhaps, but I did find it hard to shake. It is all still an expensive and impressive production technically, but it is messy and the fun elements come almost by force of personality rather than wholly by design.

Sherlock is such a hot property for the BBC, and with the effort it must take to even get one episode made, you can see why they are happy with whatever. However, with this so-so episode coming on top of the equally below-expectations season 3, it does make you wonder realistically what the plans are for this. Hopefully they can work it out for a decent handful of episodes to be completed as part of bringing the series to a close in a meaningful way rather than limping ahead like rock stars playing half-assed gigs in small venues so they can 'keep in touch with their roots'.

#Sherlocked ★★★★★

[sif-hossain · 10/10 · 5 January 2016]

#1 One can ask, if this is in sherlock's dream/mind-palace why the episode starts with Watson's narrating voice? The reason is, while boarding already Sherlock was highly sedated and then he was going through Watson's stories (how he met with Watson in the first place and on), that's why in the dream it starts as Watson narrating the dream/Bride story.

#2 To differentiate between the DREAM and REAL there is a way-kept in the episode with calling names. In reality/regular life Sherlock calls Watson naming "John" and Watson calls naming "Sherlock"… but in the dream they call each other with their last names. Sherlock calls Watson as "Watson" and Watson names Sherlock as "Holmes"… this is the same reason Sherlock named Molly Hooper as "Hooper".

So, first we need to go 100 years back, and for that we need a highly sedative which Sherlock already had while boarding the plane. When the plane landed Sherlock handed over Mycroft a "list" about what are the sedatives Sherlock inhaled. (about the list the thing is, Mycroft and Sherlock had an agreement since childhood that whatever the sedative or whatever the dose, Sherlock will always keep a list of them while inhaling so that, if Sherlock goes fully senseless he can be recovered with the help of that list)

#3 Sherlock did not have much interest on the "Bride" story case. Only he need to know the connection between this bride story and Moriarty reborn. Another thing is important here, before the plane landing the full and everything is happening in sherlock's dream. So that means, anyone is saying anything is actually sherlock's idea.. cause the dream is in sherlock's mind. In one line, in this sherlock's dream Sherlock himself is both the script writer and director as well. So all the characters speech are actually sherlock's written script.

In fact Sherlock did solve the Bride story in the very very first place, when Watson says about the "secret twins"… hearing this immediately Sherlock solved the case in a flash but wanted to go deep analysis to know every corner of it. That is why Mycroft could quote Sherlock "We don't defeat them, We most certainly lose to them" … Mycroft could say this because Sherlock himself let Mycroft to say this (since this is Sherlock's dream).. that proves, Sherlock already did know the solve for Abominable Bride story.

Though the episode kept moving with the bride cases, but Sherlock tries to match the scenario with Moriarty in every possible aspect. That's why in the morgue, Sherlock think-fully one-time says "How could he survive?"

Bride story gets completely solved when Eustace gets murdered. cause without Lady Carmichael there was no else one to kill Eustace. In the Eustace murder actually there was no death note kept with the dagger. If there was any death note Sherlock definitely would see that at night when he found Eustace dead-body at first. There was not any death note but Sherlock's brain made up so and brings Moriarty with the same plot (more like sync the two story here). Why Sherlock brain did so? Cause Moriarty had already did same thing keeping clue in murder place in the earlier episodes, so maybe brain used that details here to sync the two stories.

#4 If we continue with Deep Dream idea, then 100 years back story is LEVEL- 2 deep dream. To wake up from LEVEL-2 it need to be a massive kick/wakeup call. So shaking is the #1st_Kick comes here when the plane lands, then Sherlock comes into reality which we can consider LEVEL-0. Then Marry, Mycroft, Watson was there in the plane (LEVEL-0) and immediately Sherlock brain updates its data with these Marry, Mycroft, Watson presence details (which brain can/may use ahead if needed*)

So to know the ending/more details Sherlock need to go back in his 100 years back story (LEVEL-2), but how could he?! Still Sherlock pushes himself for dreaming 100 years back (LEVEL-2) but since the sedative he took almost passed enough time and he is not in any calm environment anymore the dream becomes a bit of unstable situation (this is why while riding horse-cab, the mustache Watson and non-mustache Watson face was fluctuating).

[[[ Watson : Sherlock, tell me where my bloody wife is, you pompous prick ]]]

While explaining every detail to the hidden army, again Sherlock brain did sync Moriarty face with Carmichael..cause Moriarty and Carmichael are two main villains of two story.

When Moriarty says this is a dream going on (#2nd_Kick), the dream jumps down to LEVEL-1. This can be compared with light sleep dream (more closer to the realistic LEVEL-0, the dream seems real). This time Sherlock brain uses those data* picturing they are in graveyard. Brain uses details (Marry checking MI5) to find out where the Emelia dead- body was kept in rest. Since, this is LEVEL-1… everything looks so realistic and Sherlock even calls Watson naming "John" here (again I repeat, cause this is LEVEL-1)!

[[[ Watson : Since when do you call me John? ]]]

When Emelia dead-body jumps on Sherlock (this is the #3rd_Kick), the dream changes its LEVEL to LEVEL-2 again, which is in the Raichenbach falls (the water falls was shown in Mycroft room painting).

This time Sherlock is in LEVEL-2, but he knows he is LEVEL-2 deep now, mean he is in conscious now as well. For this reason, Sherlock calls Watson naming "John" here also. In one scene Watson also ask that ''since when do you call me John?" which proves assumptions okay.

Lastly, Sherlock needs a massive wake-up call to wake from LEVEL-2, this time it works as the waterfall jump (#4th_Kick).

Placeholder for the agonizing fans waiting for full seasons, but a surprisingly good one at that.

[greengaramond · 8/10 · 1 January 2016]

This was the first installment from the Sherlock series that I did not get hyped up about beforehand. That being said, I did not hold any high expectations with regard to this episode, as I did not see any purpose to it other than a placeholder aired to alleviate the emotional wounds of the agonized fans, eagerly waiting for the next season. There was after all a short episode they also made before airing the 3rd season, which was rather insignificant, though who can make 7 minutes very significant anyway?

However, I was positively surprised that the current placeholder was actually brought to sort of advance the general storyline of the show, or rather simply to explain it to those bewildered by the ending of the 3rd season. If it did anything, it definitely killed Morianty for the good, this time.

General insight:

Firstly the clever use of the original Conan Doyle and his stories. This show is able to innovatively turn Doyle's 1800's originality into elements advancing the plot. While some might argue it is downplaying Doyle's contributions, I beg to differ. While the use of some references to his original work might appear random, nothing is further from the truth. Particularly the interpretation of the death scene that Conan Doyle originally wrote to get rid of his famous detective is used here to advance the story and to further resonate one of the themes of this episode: that however much we would like to see a legitimate Morianty return from the grave, it is not going to happen: he is simply dead.

Secondly, all who whine about the dialog being "too clever". The story was set in 1880s, the dialog is supposed to be "cleverer" simply because the expressions and the manner of speech which were commonplace then and employed in the show are not widely used anymore. Such a manner of speech and acting simply echo the historical context of the time thus reflecting more on the attempts to maintain historical authenticity of the episode rather than writers who are "trying to be too clever". Additionally, the acting was excellent, nearly sublime at times. Theatrical every so often, yes, but again for the sake of historic authenticity it simply adds value to the episode.

Whereas I simply don't like the idea of a placeholder mainly taking place in an addicts head aimed to alleviate the pains of desperate fans, there is some general logic to this composition. It surprised me with its content and the actual attempt to somehow be useful for the general plot.

All in all, the Abominable Bride is a great watch. It engages you to no end and is definitely entertaining to watch if you are a Sherlock fan. Acting is great, costumes are good and the cinematography is as has become traditional with Sherlock: of an extremely high order both technically and artistically.

Despite all this, due to the placeholder's nature of the episode, I can not bring myself to rate it any higher than 8/10.

This is what Sherlock's Fans really want !

[AlpacinoMJ · 10/10 · 1 January 2016]

I can't believe that i'm talking about sherlock after two years , and here we are ! This episode is really astonishing , thrilling , mystic , dramatic and comedy as we knew Sherlock ! This is the episode which Sherlock's fans really want , and when i say fans , i mean the series fans plus Conan Doyle's novel fans ! Yeah , i'm really happy that i saw scenes that i wanted to see , i always built up those scenes in my brain , and now ! we got them ,, Finally, this episode is full of mind-blowing scenes and it shows us the meaning of some other episodes from the past , also this episode is asking us a lot of questions that i hope they answer . AMAZIIIIIIING ! oh now we can cry , we are gonna wait to 2017 :(

Sherlock is finally back

[midas-jacobs · 9/10 · 2 January 2016]

There might have slipped through some spoilers.

This episode takes place in Victorian London, which was in the first place something weird, because we are used that this series takes place in present day. In Victorian Londen we see how Watson and Sherlock would have met if the whole series took place in Victorian London. Then we get a speed forward and we get to know the case of this episode. There was this bride that suddenly started to kill people and thereafter kills herself, but the weird part has yet to come. The bride kills her own husband after she died... Now Sherlock and Watson are put on to this case, to explain the mystery.

The directing and cinematography of this episode was nice, as always with this series. I loved every shot, . The editing was cool to, you had some nice transitions between scenes. Like when Watson and Sherlock are waiting for the 'gohst' to appear, there is this spinning the camera movement, and while the camera is spinning the time goes by. And by this you can see the camera spinning as a clock, which was a fun thing, in my opinion. The make-up was good too, the blown out brains etcetera. The set design was amazing, I just can't understand how they could have changed the city like that, the BBC has done this earlier with 'Peaky Blinders' a less good show, again in my opinion. I loved that they took the apartment where they filmed the original show in, and made it look like it was from the 19the century. The costumes as well were cool. They gave Sherlock his stereotypical hat back, where they made fun of in the rest of the show. The music was nice as always. They took the original theme song, but did a thing different, which I can't really explain.

The acting of this special was very good as always. Sherlock was played by Bennedict Cumberbatch. I think that he is the best person that they could have chosen to play Sherlock. He was a bit stiff in the beginning of the episode (a bit more about this later on), but overall he was good. Martin Freeman played Doctor John Watson. He was good as well, he had some great chemistry with Sherlock, this can also be seen in the rest of the series. Mark Gatis, the writer of the show, and also the actor of Mycroft Holmes, came back as well. I didn't really like what they did with his character. They made him fat. Really, really fat. It was meant as a joke, but for me it wasn't really funny. In the present day he was back as his normal self, and there he acted well. The 'fat-suit' they put him in looked also fake. The actress who played the bride was scary, and acted good.

The script was very nicely written. As I have said earlier, I taught that everything was a bit stubborn, and stiff in the beginning, maybe this was like this, because I haven't seen a Sherlock episode in a while, huh, BBC?, but after a couple of minutes it loosened up and everything went back to normal. What I very much liked is the way why everything is now in Victorian London. It fitted the theme well. The only thing that botterd me is that they left us with a cliffhanger... AGAIN. The jokes they put in there were almost always funny, but the fat Mark Gatis, just didn't feel right for me. The references put in there were fun to spot, and I am not going to spoil them, so you can go find them yourself :).

Anyway, this was a fun and scary episode. Finally we got back a Sherlock episode, and I am glad that that happened.

A good but frustrating experience

[i-am-so-original · 7/10 · 3 January 2016]

There's no denying the massive shoes that "Sherlock" has to fill. The last episode, "His Last Vow," aired on January 14, 2014, almost two years ago, and Season 3 amassed an average of almost 12 million viewers. "The Abominable Bride" was released to cinemas, making this a cultural event, so did it live up the massive hype that it set itself? Well, yes and no.

The story jumps back to the 19th century, satisfying fans' curiosities of seeing the "real" Sherlock in his proper time period. To say that this worked would be an understatement. Costumes were elegant and impressive, the sets decorated with attention to detail, and the dialogue matched the time period, with quips of "Jolly good" and other time-specific pieces (OK, they never actually said that, but you know what I mean). The cinematography by Suzie Lavelle was as perfect as ever, with one shot, the scene in the club with the sunshine coming in beams into the room, being particularly gorgeous.

Therefore, with the period set dramatically and everything else working accordingly (the performances are as good as ever), "The Abominable Bride" was set to be a "Sherlock" classic. The story follows a murderous bride, Emilia Ricoletti (a creepy Natasha O'Keefe) as she kills men who are abusive to women. Or does she? The story of the bride twists and turns, and it takes us to some unexpected places, with a conclusion that couldn't help but raise a few eyebrows. As it turns out, a group of feminists, including the hilarious Molly Hooper (Louise Brealey) were posing as the bride after her death in order to strike fear in men that abuse women in order to give a voice and a cause to the feminist movement. It was a bold move, but one that worked with mixed results. Here is a man (Sherlock) giving an explanation and a voice to a quiet group of women, written by men (showrunners Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat), explaining the plight of women. It's a noble pursuit, but one that kind of negates the power and theme of its own story.

This was in turn ruined even further by the reveal that this is only happening in Sherlock's mind palace, as he tries to deduce how Moriarty could be alive after blatantly shooting himself in the head. As it turns out, Sherlock uses this real case of the bride as a metaphor for his own case; he concludes that, like the women taking over the plight of the bride, someone else is taking over for Moriarty. It's an interesting idea, but one whose execution was spotty.

In the middle of a confrontation with the creepy Moriarty (an always wonderful Andrew Scott), including Moriarty licking dust off his hand as he talks about dust being human remains, the story suddenly shifts to Sherlock on the jet, minutes after we last saw him in "His Last Vow." It's a jarring shift, and one I'm not so sure worked as effectively as the writers had hoped. Instead of keeping the story contained in Victorian England and creating a fun, one-off special, they found it necessary to tie the story in to the over-arching story of the series, and it's a bold move that shouldn't have happened.

The story before the shift was fun. We had Gothic castles, creepy fog, a genuinely frightening villain, and an interesting case. To make this all moot when we discover that none of it is real dramatically lessens any stake we had in the narrative. If they HAD to shift back to present day, they should have stayed there, as any other scene afterwards in the 19th century suddenly lost any intrigue that it would have otherwise had.

The episode also featured some truly baffling scenes. The Reichenbach Falls scene should have worked in theory, and while it looked wonderful, it was terribly out of place. Moriarty being kicked off the cliff with a dramatic scream made me laugh, and I don't think it meant to. Furthermore, the scene of Sherlock falling beside the Falls looked horrendous, and while I understand that the budget maybe limited what they could have done, they should have simply cut after Sherlock jumped rather than show us the actual fall. It made an otherwise dramatic scene terribly corny.

The conclusion itself also left much to be desired. Again, if they were going to cut to the present, they need to give us more than what they did. Sherlock stating that he has solved the case doesn't exactly get my hopes up. I know he was going to solve it. This is "Sherlock," not some dramatic series where the hero is beaten into submission. HOW did he solve it? What did we, the viewers, not understand? It's a question left for Season 4 to answer, but for a whole episode to work up to that anticlimactic conclusion left me feeling empty.

What otherwise was an excellent and intriguing episode turned instead to frustration and confusion. If it stayed in the 19th century and left us with a creepy, intriguing mystery to be solved, the episode would have worked much better than it actually did. However, "Sherlock's" ambition got the better of it, and by trying to be smart, it in turn left me feeling so much worse.

7/10.

Great Addition to the Series!

[lovesickneo · 10/10 · 7 January 2016]

I happened to be staying out of town last night in a hotel that shared a parking lot with a movie theater and to my great surprise they were playing a special showing of Sherlock: The Abominable Bride.

If you are just crawling out from under a stone and have never heard of the BBCs updated version of Sherlock then treat yourself to some Netflix and Chill this weekend and bing watch all 3 seasons that are currently available. Until you have the chance to do that, just know that Sherlock is a modern day version of the classic Sherlock Holmes stories crafted in an expert manner by the its creators Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat.

**Warning Spoilers Ahead**

The Abominable Bride was advertised as a Christmas special one off for the fans that have been waiting 2 years for series 4 to come out. It is set in the classic Victorian time period that we are all used to seeing Sherlock do his deducing in. This upset a great many (myself included) who had fallen in love with the modern day version of the character, but after 2 years anything was MORE than welcome.

I should have know that the shows creators would have something more up their sleeves, but I was genuinely surprised to find out that we were inside of Sherlock "mind palace" the whole time attempting to solve a murder from 100 years ago. This was not a one off like I had mentally prepared myself for, but episode 1 of 1 in season 4.

Sherlock descended deep within his mind to solve the case of the bride that killed herself and then rose from the dead to kill her husband and many others. The case was never solved and held the key to finding out how Moriarty had returned from the dead after blowing his brains out less than 2 feet from Sherlock in Series 2.

We were rocked back in forth between reality and the mind of Sherlock and many times questioned which of the two worlds was truly real. It was a great change of pace and a more than welcome explanation to the shift to the Victorian time period.

As always the script and story were brilliantly re-told and the actors despite playing two different versions of their characters did so flawlessly. We were treated to even more of what we know and love about Shrelock and even shown what has been ignored or only teased up to this point about his drug addiction.

To this day if I were stuck on an island and could only have 3 shows to watch over and over again, Shrelock would without doubt be on that list. The Abominable Bride is a more than welcome addition to this amazing series.

Great Up Until The Ending

[amexspam · 6/10 · 4 January 2016]

Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman are, as usual, brilliant as Holmes & Watson. This episode brought a cascade of smiles as words from Doyle's stories were skillfully interwoven as dialogue. I thoroughly enjoyed the time passages between then and now and thought it made sense and flowed. I also liked the enlarged part for Mrs. Watson and felt it added to the story. I was completely engrossed..until they got to the last 10 minutes. Although I could easily accept the reason, premise and mystery around the husband's murder, making it all part of a larger women's movement/society story was contrived and convoluted. Up until that point it was running at a 9, it then became a 3, and thus wound up a 6.

Leaves fans in awe with plenty of brain food for the next year of waiting...

[vivianzhu · 9/10 · 1 January 2016]

This was not the standalone episode we were waiting for. Instead it ties into the canon with masterful acting, good character development, very witty dialogue and clever writing (albeit a little too self indulgent at times).

Sitting in the cinemas at a special screening I enjoyed The Abominable Bride thoroughly, it was very funny and enjoyable with a packed cinema full of fans and everybody laughing at all the jokes and references. I have to admit that I came out of the cinemas dazed and amazed...

On the way back I read a Screen Rant article (http://screenrant.com/sherlock-abominable-bride- review/), then I read fan theories and comments elsewhere on the net, and boy was I shocked!

Among fans, so many negative thoughts were floating around this episode, exactly like when Series 3 hit the screen. Thinking about all the quirks in the episode I realized that those complaints were legitimate. I remembered all those times I felt that things weren't quite right (eg. weird spinning transitions...), all those moments when my brain filled with screams of fan-service (eloping...wear the damn hat...having 'urges'...)...but alas, as a fan I thoroughly enjoyed that glorious 115 minutes (screenings got treated to Moffat doing a tour of 221B for the opening and Gatiss finishing it off with interviews with the cast).

Fans will no doubt enjoy the fan-service (Gosh the jokes! Nearly choked to death laughing!), as well as seeing Benedict and Martin as Sherlock and John again, the cinematography held up quite well in a stadium style VMAX (Event cinemas Australia's version of IMAX) cinema (bar a couple of moments where viewers can clearly see the TV-ness of it all).

Without over-analysing, one could easily make an enjoyable watch out of the episode. But as an afterthought, the plot had flaws. Personally I don't think it was terrible...I agree the back and forth with the inception was a bit too much in hindsight but when I saw it for the first time it wasn't too big of a bother.

The verdict? Sure, Moffat gets a bit bloated at times (I saw someone describe the writing of Series 3 and The Abominable Bride as "Instead of thinking 'Sherlock is amazing!' we are forced to think 'Moffat's writing is amazing!'）. However, it is that same man that brought us that stroke of genius which gives us the things we love so much in the first place. I am appreciative of the creators' work, but I would love it if they could find the delicate balance that made Sherlock Series 1 and 2 so amazing. Please find the balance between drama and wit, humour and plot, tread the thin line between clever and obnoxious, subtle cuteness and fanservie...that, is what we love about Sherlock.

Why so serious? A gem for the new year - sparkling (is it paste)?

[AkelaLoneWolf · 7/10 · 2 January 2016]

Being an avid fan, watching this "pre-season 4" movie became the one drive I had for the past fortnight. Frankly I was slightly disappointed right after the movie, with a faint aftertaste of cobwebs and dust mixed with an unappeased appetite. The first impression was that the writers had too much fun with the script and it was a mumbo jumbo of ghoul brides and murderous feminists which turned out to be a kaleidoscope of the protagonist's "mind palace" fueled by his drug habits. Then it struck me that the characters did drop hints about all the 19th century scenes being played out in Holmes' mind only - note the impossibly modern manner of speech everyone was using and the jarring phrases like "in a nutshell" and "virus on your disk". Much as I liked the Victorian era setting and the brave new world the "fairer sex" were fighting for, some parts were overdone (rather badly) for a couple of ingenious chefs like Gatiss and Moffat. Molly Hooper with her shabby moustache, Mycroft with his obese meatsuit, the suffragettes and the fighters of women's rights being mixed up with a cult of "femmes fatales" who only wanted to get rid of their husbands and pin the deeds on the "ghost bride", etc. All in all, this turned out to be a rather long and over-complicated intermission before the official season 4 - so take this in a spirit of fun and goodwill, don't scowl because this isn't the Blue Carbuncle but a coloured paste replica. Viewers are reminded to stay after the credits with the BBC cast interviewed about their feelings for the series and the movie.

Elementary it wasn't

[doorsscorpywag · 2/10 · 3 January 2016]

Sherlock the series has been brilliant so far. The two leads have been outstanding and the supporting cast has been extraordinarily good. This New Year special was too clever for it's own good and was nothing more than typical Moffat smoke and mirrors mess that went nowhere to end up somewhere that did not matter and state the obvious.

We wondered why we were in Victorian times investigating the mystery of how the Bride could rise from the dead after shooting herself through the head. And the answer was Sherlock who is obviously half Vulcan had retreated into the past in his mind to solve the mystery as to how Moriarty had returned.

How could he still be alive and the answer was simple. He had fired another invisible gun at the floor whilst holding a gun to his head and a coven of hooded women had replaced his 'body' with that of a dead lookalike. All as Sherlock stood there and watched.

But of course that could not have happened so what was the point of Sherlock solving a period mystery that had nothing to do with his modern one?

After solving the Bride mystery and digging up her modern grave Sherlock had an imaginary conversation with Moriarty at the famous Falls and then Watson, who had appeared out of nowhere, pushed him to his 'death'.

There were elements of the period story that were good but as soon as it was revealed why we were there all that was forgotten. In the end Sherlock stated that Moriarty was indeed dead but he now knew what his next move was. As with Dr Who a pointless far too clever story that did not work and will hopefully be forgotten soon enough when the new series begins.

Like Elementary I really enjoy Sherlock. Both series are smart and refreshingly original whilst using elements of the Conan Doyle stories. The whole point of Sherlock is it's a 21st century twist on the tales. The 19th century jaunt did not work at all and was both awful and pointless. Even though it began well and was superbly acted it soon nose dived into a well of mind boggling crap, which was not as clever as it thought, that hopefully we will not ever see again.