For all the comedic brilliance of 'The Empty Hearse' and the lovely sentiment of 'The Sign of Three', it was time to bring Series 3 crashing down with the cold 'His Last Vow'. A sentiment we all know, is a chemical defect found in the losing side. Because just when we think Sherlock Holmes is lightening up a bit, we discover he's on heroin. Again, the character relationships are far more expanded on, as the Watsons' marriage is shone under a microscope; Martin Freeman gives (another) heart-tearing performance ("Why is everything my fault? She wasn't supposed to be like that."), and Amanda Abbington is stoic and moving. Cumberbatch is much more capricious and exciting, and the scenes set in his mind palace are incredible; we really delve deep into the psyche of this character, and it's a fascinating insight for that. And perhaps it's perfect that it should end with a final gunshot; because that gunshot signifies that you can never estimate Sherlock Holmes. His mind is labyrinthine, this show is, at times, too multi-layered for its own good, and often, someone just needs to get shot for Sherlock to get out of bed in the morning. Sherlock Holmes is the mystery of 'His Last Vow', and again, the mystery goes unsolved.
