Benedict Cumberbatch has credited director Paul McGuigan for creating much of the visual language of Sherlock, including the conceit of words appearing on screen during the deductions. Four of the six episodes up to the end of Series 2 were helmed by McGuigan, with Euros Lyn taking on The Blind Banker and Toby Haynes handling The Reichenbach Fall. In Series 3, however, McGuigan is nowhere to be seen - and the show has suffered from his absence. While Nick Hurran did a very good job on His Last Vow, neither of the other directors for this most recent series have done anything as gripping with the material. The worst offender is Colm McCarthy, whose direction on The Sign of Three was often atrocious. The section of Holmes and Watson approaching the guards on parade contained some of the most needlessly flashy editing in recent memory, and the pacing was really poor throughout. It was a million miles from the lean, efficient adrenaline rushes that Series 1 and 2 offered, and even The Hounds of Baskerville for all its trickery did not feel the need to be flashy for its own sake. It's understandable that McGuigan may simply have been too busy this time: he's been working on a new film version of Frankenstein, due out next year. But if it's possible to build a schedule around the demands of your two stars, surely Gatiss and Moffat can make the same accommodations for McGuigan to come in and tidy up some of the mess. He's a very talented director whom Cumberbatch greatly admires, and he may be just what they need to settle the ship.
Freelance copywriter, film buff, community radio presenter. Former host of The Movie Hour podcast (http://www.lionheartradio.com/ and click 'Interviews'), currently presenting on Phonic FM in Exeter (http://www.phonic.fm/). Other loves include theatre, music and test cricket.
