Elementary: You've Got Me, Who's Got You? (4x17)

I've been complaining over the past few weeks that Joan doesn't have enough to do, but here we actually got a very solid Joan-filled episode. Color me surprised, and thrilled!

Cons:

While I liked the idea of real-life superheroes, I did find it a bit distracting that they made up this whole superhero mythos that was clearly supposed to parody the actual mythos of existing comics... and yet they referenced actual comic book characters all over the place. Maybe it was just distracting to me because I always find it silly when TV shows invent their own pop culture - it's hard to do it convincingly, and it didn't really work here.

Since I have good things to say about Joan this week, maybe I'll just lodge my tried and true complaints about Gregson and Bell - why do we start interesting plot threads and then leave them dangling? What is it with this show and its inability to maintain a balance between all of its characters? I mean, there are only a few of them! Why do so many characters get pushed to the background? Ugh.

Pros:

The main plot involved the murder of a "real life" superhero - somebody who dressed up in costume and fought crime. This guy, the Midnight Ranger, is part of a larger community of such superheroes. As Sherlock and Joan investigate, they run in to a key suspect - another superhero who has long been a mega-fan of the Midnight Ranger. But in the end, the murderer is the grandson of the original writer of the Ranger's comics - a intensely bitter alcoholic who was out to kill all of the people profiting off of his family's legacy, while he was left out in the cold. The Midnight Ranger, who was actually friends with his about-to-be-murderer, tried to stop him from committing this terrible crime, and ended up dead in the process.

This plot was really solid. I was worried that there was going to be some mean vibes when it came to super-fans of comics, but there wasn't. Sherlock's ignorance of the comic book characters wasn't because he was "too cool" for them, but because he's out of touch with a lot of really basic information. Joan knew all about the Midnight Ranger, and indeed all of the other superheroes. While I got a bit distracted at times with the fake superhero franchise, I did like the attention to detail in the comic book shop, and the many callbacks to other superhero origin stories. As Sherlock reads through the Midnight Ranger's comics, he learns about "retconning," and the typical catalyst for a superhero - the death of a loved one - along with the disturbing fact that superheroes often die and are resurrected multiple times. Sherlock describes his favorite death for the Midnight Ranger: "pushed over a waterfall locked in the embrace of his nemesis." Subtle.

Interestingly,the Midnight Ranger started his crusade when his girlfriend died (parallel to Sherlock and Irene) and died at the hands of his nemesis (parallel to Sherlock and Moriarty). Of course, here we have the brilliant fact that they're the same person. All I can say is: Natalie Dormer better be coming back this season. They sure have been talking her up a lot.

I also liked the very Sherlockian feel of this episode, if that makes sense. When another one of the superhero vigilantes shows up to help them identify the true identity of their victim, Sherlock deduces his place of employment in a trice, leaving the man shocked: "How did you do that?" Sherlock's reply is quippy and perfect: "I was bitten by a radioactive detective."

The actual killer was oddly sympathetic - he was clearly a broken man, driven to extremes by alcoholism and the bitter realization that his family was missing out on a great legacy. He really didn't mean to kill his victim, who was actually a close friend of his. And once he saw his friend lying there, he knew he couldn't kill anybody else, no matter what they had done to him. In the end, Sherlock gets the guy to come clean and confess the full truth by playing on his compassion - Sherlock entreats him to ensure that his fallen friend will not have died in vain.

Also, I'm thrilled to announce that Joan played an important role in solving this case. She was the one who realized a key piece of information that led them to later discoveries. I could have done with a bit more focus on her in the main plot, but at least she did play an important role.

And like I said - Joan had an awesome episode overall. First of all, we learn that Joan helps donate clothes to the homeless through a charity drive at the police station. Sherlock, in a typically untypical fashion, decides to help Joan out in her effort by having Everyone (the hacker collective) donate the clothes off of their bodies as payment for Sherlock getting them out of a jam with the law. It was funny to see all of the collective start to strip, as Sherlock finally got his revenge on Everyone for the many times Sherlock has been humiliated by them. Also, it was sweet to see that Sherlock used the opportunity to help Joan out.

And then there's the subplot, which is getting me super, super excited for the rest of the season. Morland goes to Joan to ask for her help discovering a mole in his operations. Sherlock warns Joan to stay away from Morland, because recently Morland helped to break his would-be assassin out of prison so he could learn who ordered the hit. Joan does find a mole in Morland's business, but she doesn't tell Morland. Instead, she goes to the mole and asks him to continue being a spy within Morland's business - but from now on he'll be reporting to Joan.

Dun, dun, dun... In an episode about superheroes, I can't help but feel that this is Joan Watson's origin story as a morally gray superhero in her own right. I can't imagine that Sherlock will be happy when he finds out what Joan has done... but then again, is she going to tell him straight away? I just don't know. Joan's suspicion towards Morland has been clear from the beginning. She senses danger for her friend Sherlock, and she's fiercely protective. I actually gasped when I heard Joan blackmailing this guy into being her own personal mole. Damn, Joan! That's intense! And Morland Holmes isn't somebody to mess with lightly.

I also liked Sherlock's reaction to the news that Joan had been contacted by Morland. Sherlock is worried that anybody in Morland's sphere is going to be in danger, and he doesn't want Joan involved in that. But, as is so true to his character, he doesn't make a decision for her - he lets her do her own thing. Sherlock's most childish moment of the episode was when Joan asked him if anything had happened between him and his father. He replied: "Apart from my whole life? Yeah." His tone was so petulant and hilarious. It really highlighted the fact that while Sherlock has legitimate grievances against Morland, there's also this element of illogical childish resentment going on as well.

That's where I'll stop. In all, I was quite impressed with both the main plot and the subplot of this one. Now that we're ramping up into the final few episodes, I can't want to see how this Morland Holmes plot shakes out!

9/10