Elementary: Hounded (4x16)

Ready to hear a broken record? The subplot was better than the main plot. As per usual. Let's get straight to it - I apologize for my forthcoming brevity, but this episode was frankly rather uninspired.

Cons:

The main plot was an adaption of the famous The Hound of the Baskervilles. In this version, we get a company doing genetic modification on animals, just like in BBC's Sherlock, but whereas Sherlock's second twist was a drug that caused paranoia, here in Elementary we have a killer robot made out of the discarded patents of the victim. There wasn't a lot to like in this main plot, although I'll mention a few things in a moment. Basically, the family that was being targeted, the Baskervilles, are down to just two remaining heirs to the family's great fortune. Turns out, a bastard child came out of the woodwork and killed the guy, and was looking to kill the others, and thus claim the fortune for her own. She bought up a bunch of patents that her "family" member Charles had cheated out from under other people, and used these patents to create the robot monster that killed him.

I just... eh. The robot dog thing was uninspired. Genetic modifications on animals is unoriginal. Twist with the bastard child was boring. I think Elementary does better for itself when its adaptions are looser and hold more to the spirit of the canon, rather than the actual plots.

Pros:

I did like some things about the main case, though. Namely, Joan and Sherlock both actually played important roles in finding the answer. I mean, sure, Sherlock was the one who realized that the "hound" was a robot, but Joan did a lot of the legwork that led them to several important discoveries. I'm always for a more balanced partnership between these two.

I also liked the moment where the "hound" came after one of the remaining Baskervilles, and Sherlock and Joan were with him on the phone as the growling menace approached. This scene was the closest I came to feeling the suspense and fear that the original story is so known for.

And then we get to the infinitely more interesting subplot. Dr. Eugene Hawes, the mortician whose close friend died when the morgue exploded a few episodes back, is not doing so well. He is making mistakes in his work, and his chess game is getting worse. He and Sherlock have a regular game, and Sherlock is noticing more and more that Hawes isn't doing well. He's self-medicating and he's in denial about his PTSD over the morgue explosion. Sherlock tries to talk to him about it, but Hawes shuts him down. Sherlock later tells him the story of how losing Irene drove him to his own addiction and downward spiral. He tells Hawes that he refuses to let him fall over the edge. He seems to get through to Hawes, who comes clean to his boss about what's been going on, and agrees to take medical leave to work it out. He thanks Sherlock for knocking some sense into him, and tells him that he's considering moving jobs for a fresh start, after he gets back on track.

Okay. I never would have expected them to bring Hawes back, but I wanted them to, and I'm glad to see him. Last time, I complained that his plot thread was left "dangling," but surprisingly, we now get a really interesting continuation.

How adorable is it that Sherlock and Hawes have a standing chess date? That's awesome! I love seeing Sherlock with friends. (As a side note, wouldn't it be nice if we saw more characters for Joan to be friends with? Sigh). Sherlock's concern for Hawes was really touching. The way he handled this reminded me of how he handled Alfredo the last time we saw him. Sherlock might not be the most tactful or traditional of friends, but he'll do whatever he can to be there for the people he cares about. And he really cares about Hawes.

Masterful performance from Johnny Lee Miller this week, particularly in the scene where he tells Hawes about Irene. There was a nice nod to the canon, too, when Sherlock said that Irene was "the woman" to him. And I'm really happy that things worked out for the best - Hawes is going to work on recovering from what happened to him.

I liked that this plot thread acknowledged the lasting effects of trauma, and that Hawes' experiences were never belittled by the narrative. (On another aside... it would be nice to see Joan's emotional trauma get some attention. I mean... she's the one who had a boyfriend die right in front of her. She's the one who was kidnapped not too long ago.)

So... that's what I've got. You may have noticed that in addition to my problems with the main plot, I'm getting more and more irritated by the lack of meaty material for Joan. She needs to have her own emotional baggage examined! Even so, this episode had a great subplot, and it did a lot to pull the episode up in my estimation. This one wasn't a winner, but it didn't suck at all!

7.5/10