Elementary: Evidence of Things Not Seen (4x02)

I'm going to be brief in this review, because I'm pressed for time. Let's take a quick look.

Cons:

The case itself was sort of incidental, and I'm not going to spend a lot of time talking about it. Essentially a team of scientists are murdered, and their research is stolen. Turns out they were working on manipulating brain waves in an attempt to create a way of effectively influencing people's opinions. In the end, the stolen research was a red herring, because it turns out that they hadn't been at all successful in their experiments. Sherlock ultimately solves the case because he notices that a pet lab rat was also dead a the scene of the crime, and he puts together that a machine was used to cause the victims to suffocate, so that the killer could shoot them easily without resistance. There were lots of twists and turns, such as Chinese businessmen and missing laptops, as well. Nothing about the case really grabbed my attention, and I think it's because they were trying a bit too hard. I didn't really like the fake out as to the way the victims were murdered. Sure, they were shot, but first they were suffocated so they couldn't resist. Why not just deprive them of air and not bother with the gun? And some of the red herrings and outlier suspects were just a complete waste of our time.

Mr. Holmes plays an important role this week, and I'll talk about the things I liked in a moment. One thing I don't like is that Holmes Sr. is pulling some strings and getting Sherlock and Joan back with the NYPD. It feels like a lazy way to get our story back to same old, same old basics. Couldn't we have explored an aimless and jobless Sherlock and Joan for a little longer? There could have been interesting potential there. It just feels like this plot thread is being neglected a bit too soon.

Pros:

While we had it, the jobless thing really worked. Joan and Sherlock work this case with the FBI, and Joan calls it an "audition." I liked seeing this hint of desperation from the two of them. It's rare to see Joan and Sherlock off their game, but they certainly were in this episode. Even as they continually helped the FBI with their case, they kept getting booted off. This is why I think it would have been cool to see them floundering a bit longer - it brought up some interesting stresses in their work.

Obviously the big thing happening this season is that we've got Holmes Sr. He and Sherlock have a very juicy scene together where Holmes admits that he basically pushed Sherlock to New York so that he wouldn't have to think about him anymore. Now that Sherlock needs his help, he's here to offer it because he doesn't want Sherlock to keep making messes. Holmes Sr. believes that the NYPD was an important part of Sherlock's recovery the first time around, and he has decided to help Sherlock get his job back so as to aid in his recovery from this relapse. The chemistry between these two actors make their scenes together a pleasure to watch.

Even more interesting, in my opinion, is Joan's fledgling relationship with the new Holmes on the scene. She figures out that Holmes pulled some strings and basically bought the cooperation of a big donor to the NYPD, and that this is how he's able to get them their jobs back. Joan has already cut through a lot of the complex, hyper-intelligent crap and found the meaty center of the elder Holmes. He's a businessman, pure and simple. When Joan meets with him, she's trying to suss out his intentions. While he seems to genuinely want to help Sherlock, Joan knows one thing for certain - she won't let him hurt Sherlock. I loved seeing this almost Mama Bear defensiveness on Joan's part. She knows what this man is capable of doing to her friend and partner, and she won't let it happen.

As we move forward into next week, I'll be excited to see what this new character brings to the mix. So far the old resentments between father and son have remained mostly a distant, academic concern. Both of them have their walls up. But I think those walls might start to crumble under the strain, and the fallout should be fun to watch.

7.5/10