Elementary: Sand Trap (6x08)

I have feelings.

Cons:

The case of the week was about a sand gang, and it was kinda just meh. There were a few pieces of it that I enjoyed, but for the most part it was your run-of-the-mill case-of-the-week. (That was a lot of hyphens!) Nothing wrong with it, per se, but nothing that much grabbed my interest.

I'm still a little bit worried about the idea of Joan wanting to become a mother. This episode was good. It didn't piss me off. But I'm still watching very closely to make sure we're not falling in to some problematic cliches.

Pros:

We got to see Sherlock's Irregular Gay, and there were some excellent jokes about that. It was fun to see an old face return and offer some solid advice about the case. I also liked the random construction worker forced to wear a dunce cap at the start of the episode. That was just a delight.

Of course, the subplot is where the magic happens. Sherlock returns home from his sabbatical, we get some fun allusions to original stories, and it looks like the dynamic duo are back together. But wait - Joan has a house guest. A pregnant 20-year-old who is considering selecting Joan to adopt her baby. From here, everything is excellent. Sherlock is supportive, if shocked, Joan is excited but pragmatic, and when in the end it doesn't work out, and the woman decides to keep her baby, Sherlock even sits with Joan to watch a sad movie and commiserate.

Where to even start with this? I like that Kelsey, the expecting mother, is inspired by Joan. She doesn't change her mind about being a mom just because women always want babies. She changes her mind because she thought she had to choose between the future she planned, and having kids. But now, seeing Joan, she believes she can do both. That's quite inspiring, actually.

And Sherlock... be still my beating heart. It would completely and totally break him if he and Joan drifted apart. These two belong together. In a platonic way. But let me tell ya, as an asexual/aromantic person myself, their friendship means the world to me. Sherlock being willing to sacrifice Joan so she can have her dream is cute enough as it is. But even better is when Joan reacts to the idea of finding a new place - she has no interest in leaving Sherlock and the Brownstone. She wants to know what Sherlock thinks of the idea of having a kid around. Sherlock's response? That for her, he'd make adjustments. Always. I LOVE THEM I CANNOT.

There was just so much good material with Joan and Sherlock this week. Even the beginning was excellent. Sherlock comes in and announces his presence, and then Joan runs up and gives him a quick hug. Sherlock doesn't hug back, but he allows the contact - he expected the contact. It's one of the little things that this show does so well. Joan knows not to expect physical affection from Sherlock, and Sherlock knows and tolerates a little bit of physical affection from Joan, as long as she doesn't indulge too often. I also like how weird Sherlock is sometimes about Joan's personal life. When he finds out there's someone else in their home, his first thought is to be all excited that Joan has taken a lover. Him? Her? Them? Sherlock is thrilled regardless. Oh, and he tells Joan that she's the only person he trusted to keep eyes on Michael while he was away. Otherwise, he never would have left. His trust in her is my favorite thing.

So, there you go! What an interesting subplot. This particular adoption scenario didn't work out for Joan, but I'm sure the show won't be dropping this plot thread just yet. I'm curious, and still slightly hesitant, to see what comes next.

8.5/10