'The Sign of Three' is the second episode of the third series of the BBC television series Sherlock. It was written by Stephen Thompson, Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat[1] and stars Benedict Cumberbatch as Sherlock Holmes and Martin Freeman as Dr John Watson. The episode's title is inspired by The Sign of the Four by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.[2] It is set six months after the series opener 'The Empty Hearse'[3] and is primarily centred on the day of Watson's wedding to Mary Morstan.[4] It garnered a viewership of 11.37[5] million, and received mostly positive reviews.
Plot[edit]
Directed by Toby Haynes. With Benedict Cumberbatch, Martin Freeman, Una Stubbs, Rupert Graves. Jim Moriarty hatches a mad scheme to turn the whole city against Sherlock. Free pdf books. Sherlock, you see, has done some growing up this season, constantly propelled forward by Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat in brave and exciting ways that still hold fast to the authenticity of a.
In the opening scene, DI Lestrade (Rupert Graves) and Sergeant Donovan (Vinette Robinson) are on the verge of arresting the criminal Waters family that has evaded the police several times. However, when Lestrade receives a text for help from Sherlock, he abandons the case and races to Baker Street, assuming the worst and calling for maximum backup – only to discover that Sherlock is simply struggling to write a best man speech for John's upcoming wedding to Mary Morstan (Amanda Abbington).
On the morning of the wedding, Mrs. Hudson (Una Stubbs) reminds Sherlock that marriage changes people. At the reception, John is delighted to see Major James Sholto (Alistair Petrie), his former Army CO. Sholto (the name is a reference to a character in The Sign of Four) lives in seclusion, having received death threats and media scrutiny after losing a unit of new soldiers in Afghanistan. Sherlock calls Mycroft (Mark Gatiss), who repeats Mrs Hudson's suggestion that John and Mary's marriage will change his life.
Sherlock rises to give the best man speech, but he initially hesitates. After reading from the wedding telegrams, Sherlock expresses his deep respect for John and launches into a rambling narrative, describing John's role in an attempted murder case, 'the Bloody Guardsman'; a Guardsman named Bainbridge (Alfred Enoch) contacted Sherlock, fearing he was being stalked. By the time Sherlock and Watson got into the Guards' quarters, Bainbridge was presumed dead in a shower room from a stab wound, but no weapon and escape route were found. When questioned by Lestrade, Sherlock reluctantly admits the case wasn't solved, but cites it as an example of John's compassion; instead of trying to solve the murder as Sherlock did, John examined Bainbridge's body and discovered he still had a pulse, thus requesting an ambulance and saving his life.
Sherlock's narrative drifts to another case, 'the Mayfly Man'; several days after going to a man's apartment for dinner, Tessa (Alice Lowe), a woman who worked as a private nurse, found the apartment was vacated, and the man died weeks ago. Sherlock and John, still inebriated from John's stag night, attempted to search for clues, but were arrested for their drunken antics. The next morning, an amused Lestrade secured their release from jail. Sherlock chatted to other London women with a similar experience, but failed to find any significant connection between them. With John's help, he concluded the perpetrator was a man bored with marriage, who disguised himself as recently deceased single men and used their unoccupied homes to meet the women.
While moving to the toast, Sherlock suddenly freezes, recalling Tessa knew John's middle name (Hamish). Aware that John hates and never uses it, he deduces Tessa saw it in a wedding invitation. Sherlock concludes all the women worked for Sholto in various capacities and were bound by confidentiality. The Mayfly Man courted them to find and attack Sholto, and the wedding is his chance. Sherlock slips a note to Sholto, who returns to his hotel room and gets his pistol to defend himself. Sherlock, John, and Mary race to the room to try and save him, but he refuses to open the door until the case is solved. Sherlock deduces the Bloody Guardsman case is linked to Sholto's, and pinpoints the military uniform both wore as the common link; since Bainbridge collapsed in the shower, he must have been stabbed with a stiletto-type blade beforehand, but with his military waist belt firmly holding the flesh together, the damage would not take effect until the belt loosened and the victim would not feel it until then. Upon hearing this explanation, Sholto contemplates suicide by loosening his belt and bleeding to death. Sherlock persuades him not to, primarily by insisting that it would be cruel to do at John's wedding. Sholto then opens the door and requests medical assistance.
That evening, Sherlock apprehends the wedding photographer (Jalaal Hartley) and identifies him to Lestrade as Jonathan Small, the Mayfly Man, deducing he was the only person who could have stabbed Sholto. He points out the photographer's brother was one of the men killed under Sholto's command, and concludes that he stabbed Bainbridge as practice for this murder. After Sherlock plays the violin for John and Mary's first dance, he quietly reveals to them that he has observed in Mary 'increased appetite, change in taste perception, and sickness in the morning, the signs of three', revealing she is pregnant. Sherlock calms them by explaining that they will make great parents, since they've had plenty of practice with him. Despite the happy revelation, the episode ends on a bitter-sweet note, with Sherlock sombrely leaving the reception alone, upon realizing that his relationship with John will never be the same again.
Production[edit]
The episode was directed by Colm McCarthy, who had previously worked with Moffat on the Doctor Who episode, 'The Bells of Saint John'. The Radio Times reported that McCarthy was recruited 'following the departure of director Paul McGuigan, who is credited with having set the distinctive visual template for the programme'.[6] According to some sources, such as the Radio Times,[6] 'The Sign of Three' was written by Steve Thompson, who had previously authored the Sherlock episodes 'The Blind Banker' and 'The Reichenbach Fall'. However, in a departure from the show's usual style, all three writers received a 'written by' credit in this episode's opening titles. Steven Moffat told a BBC Q&A that he wrote a lot of Sherlock's best man speech.[7]
Filming[edit]
The Orangery at Goldney Hall, scene of Mary and John's wedding reception
The wedding reception scenes were filmed in the orangery at Goldney Hall, Bristol.[8] Other scenes filmed across Bristol include the 'court steps' in the opening scenes are the Victoria Rooms,[9] the bank robbery took place in a former Bank of England building next to Castle Park[9] and John and Mary's wedding scenes were filmed at St Mary's church in Sneyd Park.[9]
Broadcast and reception[edit]
The episode was first broadcast on 5 January 2014, on BBC One and BBC One HD at 8:30pm.[10] It attracted 8.8 million viewers, a 31.9% share, which was down from 9.2 million (33.8%) for 'The Empty Hearse'.[11]
The episode received critical acclaim. The Independent's Neela Debnath commented, 'While it is not the strongest story of the Sherlock saga, the writing is just as sharp and fresh, with the mind palace element toned down a few notches. The Sign of Three was packed to the rafters with wit and comedy. There was plenty to leave viewers howling with laughter, mainly thanks to Sherlock's general apathy towards humankind.'[12]
Caroline Frost of The Huffington Post commented on the episode's 'Conan Doyle-esque recounting of some of their strangest cases', writing, '[t]his combination of montage and memory lane made for an unusual show, somewhere between a Christmas one-off, a Comic Relief-inspired parody and one of these special dream-sequence sitcom episodes.'[13] Similarly, Oliver Jia of The Punk Effect stated it as 'no doubt the odd duck of the entire Sherlock canon,' but proceeded to call the episode '..a clever, hilarious, and moving piece of fine television.'[14]
Former Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, responded to allusions made to him within the fictional newspaper articles about the 'Water Gang' which appeared on screen during the episode's opening moments. The lower portion of the front page of a mocked-up newspaper described an unnamed London Mayor as 'dithering, incoherent, and self-interested', listing 'bizarre' policies including a 'recently-mocked concept of putting an airport in the middle of the estuary', which The Telegraph say is 'a clear reference to Boris Island.'[15] Johnson argued that the jokes, which The Telegraph report were 'visible for just a matter of second[s]',[15] reflected his perception that the BBC has a left-wing bias.[16] A spokesperson for the BBC said: 'Sherlock is a fictional drama series. Both the newspaper and mayor featured in the episode were entirely fictional and were not named or politically affiliated.'[16]
Update to windows xp sp3 download. IGN's Daniel Krupa had a more negative review, praising Benedict Cumberbatch's acting and some heartfelt, tender moments, but he was critical of the pacing, stating that 'the rhythm was just erratic, never allowing you to really ease into the plot', and criticised the further exploration of the character's lives, rather than the adventures.[17]
References[edit]
External links[edit]
Retrieved from 'https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Sign_of_Three&oldid=918638480'
'The Reichenbach Fall' is the third and final episode of the second series of the BBC television series Sherlock. It was written by Stephen Thompson and stars Benedict Cumberbatch as Sherlock Holmes, Martin Freeman as Dr John Watson, and Andrew Scott as Jim Moriarty. The episode deals with Moriarty's attempt to undermine the public's view of Sherlock and drive him to suicide. The episode was first broadcast on BBC One and BBC One HD on 15 January 2012. It attracted 9.78 million viewers, and critical reaction to the episode was positive. After the episode was aired, there was also much online and media speculation, which focused on Sherlock's death.
Inspired by 'The Final Problem' by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the episode follows Moriarty's plot to discredit and kill Sherlock Holmes, also heavily using elements from the film The Woman in Green. The title alludes to the Reichenbach Falls, the location where Holmes and Moriarty supposedly fall to their deaths in the original story. Some sequences in the episode that are set at the Tower of London were filmed at Cardiff Castle. Other locations used include Newport Cemetery, Tredegar House and Cardiff City Hall, as well as other areas around Cardiff including Broadway and Cardiff Bay.[1]
Plot[edit]
John Watson is in his first meeting with his therapist after eighteen months. Struggling to explain his visit, he eventually chokes out the words, 'My best friend, Sherlock Holmes, is dead.' The episode flashes back to three months earlier, with Sherlock receiving plaudits and gifts from various people for whom he has solved cases, along with much unwanted media attention, especially for his recovery of a Turner painting of Reichenbach Falls.
Meanwhile, Moriarty proceeds to break into the case where the Crown Jewels are kept, while simultaneously opening the vault at the Bank of England and unlocking all the cells at Pentonville Prison via his mobile phone. Before smashing the Crown Jewels' case, he writes the words 'Get Sherlock' on the outside, to be seen by the security cameras. He then allows himself to be caught by the police wearing the jewels and sitting on the throne.
Sherlock is called to testify at Moriarty's trial, where he explains that Moriarty is a criminal mastermind. Moriarty has threatened the families of the jurors. After being acquitted, Moriarty visits Sherlock and, after explaining that his break-in was a publicity stunt to show powerful potential clients what he is capable of, tells him, 'I owe you a fall'. Meanwhile, John is summoned to see Mycroft, who explains that some professional assassins have moved into flats on Baker Street and asks him to watch out for Sherlock.
Sherlock and John investigate the kidnapping of the children of the British Ambassador to the U.S., Rufus Bruhl, part of a plot by Moriarty to make others suspect that Sherlock has been staging all his cases himself. He has traumatised the girl so she is terrified of Sherlock when seeing him, causing Sergeant Donovan to suspect Sherlock. A reluctant Lestrade is forced to arrest Sherlock, but Sherlock escapes with John handcuffed to him as his 'hostage'. They realise Moriarty's 'Get Sherlock' has convinced the criminal underworld that Moriarty has given Sherlock the computer code he used to pull off his triple heist, a code that can bypass all security systems.
Sherlock and John break into the house of a journalist, Kitty Riley, poised to publish an exposé on Sherlock. There, they find that Moriarty has created a fake identity, Richard Brook (or Rich Brook, 'reicher Bach' in German), an actor whom Sherlock supposedly paid to pose as a master criminal. Now a wanted man with his media image on the verge of plummeting, Sherlock launches a final gambit. Leaving John, Sherlock contacts Molly Hooper, a pathologist at St Bartholomew's Hospital, where he confesses that contrary to what she herself believes, she does matter to him, and that he's always trusted her. There he reveals his vulnerability to Molly, confirming her earlier 'deduction' that he was 'not okay', that he's going to die and asks her if she's willing to help, telling her that he 'needs her'. John goes to the Diogenes Club to question Mycroft and learns that Mycroft divulged Sherlock's personal information during interrogations of Moriarty. Meanwhile, Sherlock deduces that the anti-security program was encoded in the tapping of Moriarty's fingers during his earlier visit.
John finds Sherlock at the St. Bartholomew's lab but leaves after hearing Mrs. Hudson has been shot. Sherlock texts Moriarty, who meets him on the roof of the hospital to resolve what the criminal calls their 'final problem'. Sherlock claims that, with the code, he can erase Richard Brook electronically. Moriarty reveals that there is no code, he just bribed security men, and that Sherlock must commit suicide or Moriarty's assassins will kill John, Mrs. Hudson, and Lestrade. Sherlock realises that Moriarty has a fail-safe and can call the killings off. Sherlock then convinces Moriarty that he is willing to do anything to make him activate the fail-safe; after acknowledging that he and Sherlock are alike, Moriarty tells Sherlock 'As long as I am alive, you can save your friends,' then commits suicide by shooting himself in the mouth, thereby denying Sherlock knowledge of the abort codes and the ability to prove that Moriarty does exist.
St Bartholomew's Hospital
With no way to use the fail-safe, Sherlock calls John, who is rushing back from 221B Baker Street after realising the report about Mrs. Hudson was a ruse. Claiming that he was always a fake and explaining this last phone call is his 'note', Sherlock swan-dives off the roof of St. Bartholomew as John looks on terrified from the street, thereby ensuring that Moriarty's true identity dies with him. After being knocked to the ground by a cyclist, John stumbles over to watch, grief-stricken, as Sherlock's bloody body is carried away by hospital staff.
The episode returns to John's therapy session, where he is unable to open up. Mycroft is shown reading the tabloid newspaper The Sun with a front page headline 'Suicide of Fake Genius.' Later, John visits Sherlock's grave with Mrs. Hudson. There, he reaffirms his faith in Sherlock and begs him not to be dead. As he walks away, Sherlock looks on from the shadows, out of John's sight, before also walking away.
Sources[edit]
'The Great Fall of the Reichenbach, in the Valley of Hasle, Switzerland' (1804, watercolour on paper) by J.M.W. Turner
The episode's climactic scene is based on the short story 'The Final Problem',[2][3] in which Holmes and Moriarty square off. Watson's leaving Holmes to attend to Mrs Hudson mirrors his return to the inn in the original story, in order to attend to a dying Englishwoman.[2]
The filming of the visit of Moriarty to Baker St pays tribute to William Gillette's 1899 play Sherlock Holmes and the 1945 film The Woman in Green.[4] Moriarty's attempt to destroy Holmes's reputation and lead him to committing suicide by jumping from a building also has similarities to The Woman in Green.
Sherlock Season 3 Episode 2 DownloadBroadcast and reception[edit]
BARB overnight figures suggested that the episode was watched by 7.9 million viewers representing a 30% overall audience share, slightly down on the first (8.8 million) and second (8.2 million) episodes of the series.[5] Final consolidated ratings rose to 9.78.[6] The episode also became the second most-watched programme of 2012 on the online BBC iPlayer as of May, with over 1.9 million requests.[7]
As with the preceding two episodes in the second series, critical reaction to the episode was largely positive.[8]The Guardian's Sam Wollaston praised Steve Thompson's writing, particularly how the episode was, at times 'faithful to Sir ACD's The Final Problem, then it will wander, taking in mobile phone technology and computer hacking .. But it doesn't feel like cheating; more like an open relationship, agreed by both parties.'[2] Wollaston comments that this episode explores relationships, particularly in contrast to the spookiness of the previous episode ('The Hounds of Baskerville'), calling Cumberbatch's and Freeman's performances 'moving at times'.[2]
Sarah Crompton, for The Daily Telegraph, said Cumberbatch was 'riding the wave of what has been a triumph'. Generally praising the series, Crompton suggests that 'writer Stephen Thompson had been left a little too much to his own devices .. The result was a bit wordy – though some of the words were wonderful.'[3] Commenting upon the cliffhanger ending, The Independent's Tom Sutcliffe says 'Moffat and his colleagues have written themselves into a hell of a hole with regards to the next series. If they don't explain, there may be riots.'[9]Chris Tilly, who reviewed the episode for IGN, gave it a score of 10/10, calling it 'The grandstanding conclusion to the brilliant BBC series, packed to the rafters with smart dialogue, audacious plotting, stylish direction and some truly wonderful performances.'[10]
The British Board of Film Classification has awarded the episode a 12 certificate for 'moderate violence and gore'.[11] The episode was released with the remainder of the second series in the UK on DVD and Blu-ray on 23 January 2012.
Speculation and response to the cliffhanger[edit]Sherlock Season 3 Episode 2 Summary
The episode's cliffhanger led to speculation on forums, social networking sites and in newspaper articles about its resolution. Theories included the use of a mask, a squash ball, a lorry or Moriarty's body, the dummy seen in Sherlock's flat at the beginning of the episode, the psychotropic drugs featured in 'The Hounds of Baskerville', the participation of Sherlock's homeless network, and a cadaver supplied by Molly.[12] However, in an interview with The Guardian, Moffat claims 'there is a clue everybody's missed .. So many people theorising about Sherlock's death online – and they missed it!' [13] Moffat noted that one of the central clues was 'something that Sherlock did that was very out-of-character, but which nobody has picked up on.'[14] During the first episode of the third series this is played upon by the writers. One of the policemen who argued that Sherlock was a fraud is seen talking to Lestrade about a wild 'Sherlock is Alive' theory having to do with a mask, even two years later.
Shortly after the episode aired, memes inspired by the episode emerged online, considering how ordinary people in the Sherlock universe would react to learning that their hero was a fake. The memes included recurring phrases such as 'I fight John Watson's war', 'Moriarty was real' and, most prominently, 'I believe in Sherlock Holmes', amongst others, the latter of which was used in-universe in 'The Empty Hearse'. There was some speculation that the '#BelieveInSherlock' movement was orchestrated by the BBC as a publicity stunt.[15]
Part of the resolution was filmed with the rest of the episode,[13] although some, including hypothetical sequences involving Derren Brown and airbags, was filmed with 'The Empty Hearse'.
References[edit]
Sherlock Series 2 Episode 1External links[edit]Sherlock Season 3 Episode 2 Full
Sherlock Season 1 Episode 2
Retrieved from 'https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Reichenbach_Fall&oldid=918400220'
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