the bbc sherlock series by the dr who 'bloke' and starring tim from the office

i know the CIA aren't as technologically adept as KPMG or whoever but surely they'd have got into security tokens by now.

or biometric auth, that's getting pretty common (we have it at work)

"based on what you've told me about his personality i surmise his genetic profile would lead to his iris looking like this" [does quick biro sketch, holds it up in front of webcam]

even 'maggie79' would have been less ridiculous

Sherlock has just cracked your ILM pw

seconding password-guessing as a shorthand for genius is some tired-as-hell TV writing.

Enjoyed it, but nowhere near as much as the Moffat eps. Better than the non-Moffatt from last year, though.

Really, the problem is that Gatiss is an enjoyable but not great actor and writer. Most of his Doctor Who episodes are pretty half-baked, with some great lines in them.

I like him as Mycroft but his writing is just blargh.

Last week was a bit iffy, but this was terrific. Bit drained after that.

Kinda loved it as it was going along. Bit audacious/cheeky/lazy (delete as applicable to not explain the ending.

I assume it was something to do with Molly.

didn't really understand what was going on on the roof. all that "i am you!" "you are me!" BANG!

maybe we're not meant to understand. maybe it was all part of sherlock's genius plan that he had figured out from the beginning to a) get moriarty to kill himself and ii) appear to die, and it won't become clear till the next part. if that ever happens.

xps, presumably Molly did the autopsy.

it was gripping though i am fearful the explanation will be unsatisfactory.

(presumably john being pushed over was important, too)

https://twitter.com/#!/steven_moffat/statuses/158680970130751488

I'm not sure how my enjoyment of this is affected by the realization that Cumberbatch is playing Sherlock as if he was playing Jeremy Clarkson.

Watson didn't see Sherlock jump, he saw the body fall. Sherlock asked Molly for a favour - he threw Moriarty's body over the edge and she falsified the post-mortem.

Pfeh, the lolling at Sherlock for thinking that technology worked that way didn't erase me shouting "technology doesn't work that way!" at the screen for the previous hour. Or explain the haunting of the jury's video screens, or how he convinced the assassins to kill each other over Sherlock.

I'd have been happier if they'd ended when Sherlock was halfway down, similar to the end of the first series. Every minute past that where people are going "I can't believe he's DEAD" makes it clearer that he isn't.

Also since the explanation will safe to say be based on Molly, there's no punch to the flared-nostril two-sides-of-the-same-coin bollocks on the rooftop, if Sherlock is being pushed towards an outcome that he's already prepared for.

xp There's definitely an identifying shot of Sherlock's bloodied and dented face at the bottom though, right?

swapped him in while john was lying on the tarmac - although the other passers-by would still be a problem. i thought john did see him jump though, he just didn't see him land.

Also I was so relieved that the key code thing turned out to be bollocks.

The stupidity of the policewoman annoyed me. Super genius criminal mastermind Sherlock kidnapped the kids, didn't cover his face, and then demanded he be the one to interview said kids.

Also did Moriaty's trial really take place 6 weeks after the offense? Cameron certainly moving the criminal justice system on apace.

tbf the original story hasn't got a much more satisfactory ending. "No, Watson I didn't fall to my death, I remembered I was an expert in Baritsu ("You're making that up now, Holmes..."), and then made it look like I fell and then had various adventures..."

...three years later for reasons that will become clear just as soon as I've settled the advance from the publisher, here I am!

Every minute past that where people are going "I can't believe he's DEAD" makes it clearer that he isn't.

Also the fact that he just isn't. I will be interested to see what explanation, if any, is offered for the old switcheroo, but on the whole the key difference for me between this week's hokum and last week's hokum was that this week's skipped along nice and quickly so I kind of didn't notice the hokum so much. More from this writer, please. Less from Mark Gatiss.

Yes, this was a gazillion times better than last week. Though was Watson given the drug from last week, meaning that he was expecting to see Dead Sherlock (Sherlock had instructed him where to stand during his fall)? Why wasn't Moriarty's death also seen to be covered by the press? I assume Molly was involved.

Which people have already said.

Why all the mindgames and shit from Moriarty on the roof when he had a gun in his pocket? And Richard Brook = Reichenbach so a hint there too?

Though was Watson given the drug from last week, meaning that he was expecting to see Dead Sherlock (Sherlock had instructed him where to stand during his fall)?

That's some good thinking. (They did make the Richard Brook/Reichenbach link.)

Hadn't Watson been hit over the head not long before or did I imagine that?

Didn't see any coverage of Moriarty afterwards, it was all Sherlock, hence the assumption it was Moriarty's body that went over the side.

Watson had been hit by a cyclist on his way over to see the post-fall Sherlock and had bumped his head. I don't know they could legislate for that resulting in a head trauma, so assuming cyclist was either buying time for Sherlock to get into position, or hitting John with Baskerville drug, or both. I don't think I'm making too huge a leap in assuming it wasn't coincidental.

No, as soon as it happened I assumed it was deliberate. Maybe the cyclist sprayed him/injected him when he bumped him?

Stupid policewoman is really being typecast. She's the same character in the *Controversy alert* superior Luther. She also played the same uncertain busybody in Waterloo Road.

...she's not in Luther.

oops sorry, my mistake

More from this writer, please. Less from Mark Gatiss.

Uh, the writer for this episode was responsible for the borderline-racist second episode from last "series."

I only caught a small part of that second episode from last season, so maybe I missed what made it "borderline racist". What did I miss? Or is it borderline racist to infer that there is some sort of Chinese underground criminal network? No snark intended, genuinely curious because I didn't see the entire episode.

Well it's basically all the Orientalist bollocks it featured. Also, it was just a terrible episode generally, before you get to the offensive stuff.

To be less glib, it treats Chinese culture as an exotic curiosity to be deciphered, which is tiresome/cliche and condescending, imho.

Yeah, really enjoyed this, was amazed to see it wasn't Moffatt but the boring writer from last year

Okay I get where you are coming from Leee, I just hadn't noticed anything too blatant in the bit I saw but that was before the circus and the code thing (reading the episode summary now). I genuinely enjoyed the other two from the first series and I'm excited for the new ones to pop up over here.

Yeah, that's not to say that I didn't like the other two episodes, or two of the episodes from this season, including the one which is written by the Chinese circus guy. Basically, the second episode in each season is terrible, so far.

Fuck's sake, can't anyone be consistent? That episode was rubbish, you're right. I didn't realise it was the same person. I rescind my earlier enthusiasm.

xp There's definitely an identifying shot of Sherlock's bloodied and dented face at the bottom though, right?

http://30.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lxx4euII661qbypg1o1_500.jpg

also yeah Watson did see him jump.

also terrible writer of racist episode last year wrote Curse Of The Black Spot in Who this year. either he's gotten better fast or Moffatt heavily edited this one (which it did feel like) (also also good director on this one, as I think I excitedly anticipated counteracting the writing upthread)

He saw him jump, but iirc he didn't see him land?

Curse of the Black Spot did start with one great joke and then descend into bollocks, mind.

also terrible writer of racist episode last year wrote Curse Of The Black Spot in Who this year. either he's gotten better fast or Moffatt heavily edited this one (which it did feel like)

This felt like a Moffat-written episode, so I have a feeling heavy editing was a major factor.

The Curse of the Black Spot and his last Sherlock episode were both so poor I don't feel like the same person could have written the dialogue in this.

The stupidity of the policewoman annoyed me. Super genius criminal mastermind Sherlock kidnapped the kids, didn't cover his face, and then demanded he be the one to interview said kids.

Also, I don't think the policewoman is stupid so much as blinded by her hatred of Sherlock. I think when you already despise someone, you are much more likely to jump to conclusions that cast a poor light on that person.

Particularly when they despise you, and completely busted you sleeping with a co-worker in ten seconds.

I'm not against that kind of character of course, but a) isn't this generally Lestrade's job? and b) giving it to one of the few females and the only recurring non-white character is a particular sort of tone-deafness that I'm starting to think of as 'Moffattish'.