Matt Smith reviews the third episode of Elementary season 2….
Spoilers ahead! Secrets will be revealed!
It’s strange that we hold TV shows in such high regard when it comes to learning about secrets. If you revealed to someone a few months ago on the Internet what happened to Walter White, you had to set up home defences and fear for your life. We are obsessed. It’s stranger still when you look at how people treat the secrets of the supposed real lives of celebrities. We can’t wait to find out what happened to who and why as soon as possible, as long as they’re not fictional. Before I get too involved I’ll cut the long story short, because you’ll prefer that, and say it’s all because we like a good story.
Sherlock Holmes is a man defined by secrets, or rather the unveiling of secrets. Here’s a character that could do anything thanks to his mysterious, undefined wealth (and in fact could probably make a ton of money from his solved cases) and he chooses to try and unveil the truth. I suppose it’s because the truth is a puzzle that can never truly be solved that Holmes likes it as a puzzle, as he can constantly peruse it constantly without ever having to worry about running out of work.
Another man after secrets, or rather the unveiler of secrets, is a man named Mueller. Apparently. Except that’s not his real name, because he’s got his own secrets. The secret keeper is after the revealer of secrets, as he poses as Mueller to hire Holmes to solve the case of Ezra Kleinfelter (Christian Campbell), a man who has released secret files to the media as part of a campaign related to the freedom of information. Now he’s become the national obsession. Meanwhile, Watson is trying to break out of a life that only features Sherlock Holmes and his case files. She has no time for anything else and is therefore out to try and find love.
Amongst all this (relating to secrets and love, which are too different obsessions) we hear the first mention of Irene Adler, or rather Moriarty. Considering she was such a huge part of Holmes’ life, and with such a heart breaking betrayal, I’m surprised it’s taken this long to bring her back up. But there’s a lot from this episode that might surprise you, which is why this series is finally back on form. For the most part. The non-disclosure of what Holmes thinks about what Kleinfelter’s done, combined with the fact Kleinfelter can be brought to justice concerning a murder wholly unnecessary to the plot, feels more like a cop out than keeping the protagonist a mysterious character.
The episode’s good though. It’s more about the show taking liberties with this week in order to get going again, as things get more complicated in both Holmes’ professional and private life. Let’s just say Moriarty’s name is not just mentioned in passing, and that Holmes has secrets that not even Watson knows about. I won’t say anymore, don’t want to reveal too much as that’s the theme.
Last week I did call for something unexpected and we’ve got it in the form of a case that’s not quite so simple, but the episode could really have taken the time to say something about the pursuit of those who reveal the wrong secrets. But I guess, as it’s a Sherlock Holmes story, we shouldn’t care once the puzzle is solved. Again though, that feels more like a cop out in not revealing something about the character.
Hopefully the next episode carries on with the momentum started by this week. It’s a shame we have to rely on the character of Irene Adler/Moriarty, who even as two characters only appears in a handful of Sherlock Holmes stories outside of this decade. But if the producers of the show can bring something new to the characters, as they have done time and time again, then this series now has the potential to reach past greatness.
Matt Smith – follow me on Twitter.
Originally published November 7, 2013. Updated April 15, 2018.
