The Final Problem

I am sad to say season 4 turns out to be my least favourite season of Sherlock. All of these trippy dream scenes and psychological drama are not what made the first three seasons such an enjoyable show for me, and this episode definitely has too much of that. Also, there are some plot holes and implausible scenarios. The scene with the glass is very questionable from a physics viewpoint, and as for the plane, without going into too much spoiling detail I can say that I saw this coming (whether that is necessarily a bad thing is something I leave up to you). I'm not saying it's not a gripping story, but perhaps it would have been better as a standalone film. It's not what I hoped to see on Sherlock. It feels a bit like the writers were overcomplicating things and going in the wrong direction thematically in an effort to create their masterpiece finale.

"Because Sherlock Holmes is a great man. And I think one day - if we're very, very lucky, he might even be a good man." -Lestrade in 'A Study in Pink'

This is what this season was about - Sherlock becoming human again, the only thing that was missing from a truly epic story told over the span of four seasons. In this mind numbing psychological thriller, the brilliant acting and inspired direction is only surpassed by the emotional undertone that makes Sherlock find his humane touch - something that he had locked away somewhere within his psyche since his childhood. But that humane aspect of Sherlock's character, though not superficially apparent, always found expression in his love for Dr. Watson and Mary, more so than ever in this season of this epic series. Truly, as Mycroft explains - the man Sherlock is today, is a result of memories suppressed and modified and of deep seated psychological trauma.

Why then is he a sociopath and not a psychopathic villain like Moriarty or Culverton Smith? Because, he was always a good person deep down even though he did not know about it himself. The finale does a stunning job at giving us an insight into his past, and his troubled childhood, while at the same time giving us a glimpse of his genius intellect as in other episodes. It's a shame that some people are criticizing it for being overtly about psychological twists and less about solving crime. I ask them if they ever truly would have been satisfied with 'Sherlock' if there had been so many unanswered questions at the end of what could well be the last episode ever for the series. This was a story that needed to be told - and told it was, in the most magnificent and epic way possible - something that is well captured in the following quotes near the episode end:

Police Officer - "He's a great man sir."

Lestrade - "He's better than that. He's a good one."

As Mary put it aptly at the end - it's all about the legend, the stories and the adventures - a story that might well be the greatest detective story ever told!

After being thrilled by the first three seasons of Sherlock it was with dismay that I watched the 4th season slide ever deeper into a convoluted mess. I am actually quite surprised the actors actually agreed to make this crap. The story in "The Final Problem" is so bizarre I think Moffat must have been on the same drugs Holmes used in the previous episode. Totally unbelievable throughout, it tries to be way too clever for its own good and ends up being stupid, and worse it makes Sherlock look stupid.

If this is the way it is to be from now on I would say please don't bother with another season, not unless you get a new writer. I give it 5 only for the fine acting which was the only thing that made this bearable to the end.

So the FINAL PROBLEM is here and hands down Moffat and Gattis have a commendable job to create the most tension filled and powerfully emotional episode of Sherlock till date. First of all those who are saying that Sherlock has lost its touch just don't listen to them because this episode is just mind blowing. You will find yourself discovering a new emotional side to Sherlock's character, the most powerful moment of the series featuring Molly Hooper, a highly entertaining and applaud-ably brilliant cameo, Cumberbatch's best performance as Sherlock till date and the dark secrets of the Holmes family disclosed.

Sian Brooke has just become the most menacing Sherlock villain of all time and Mycroft getting better screen presence are the high points or THE FINAL PROBLEM.

But despite all these exhilarating moments ,the climax is a bit let down but never the less we saw a humane side to Sherlock and a new angle to Mycroft's character. It may not reach perfection but has provided us with a more than satisfying possible ending to the world's most famous detective.

This was an episode that could have been an awesome movie (like shutter island)... The last 10-15 minutes were very confusing and a bit rushed. It would have about 30-40 more minutes to make a smooth ending if it were a movie, and although it had its roots based on the continuity, it was still apart from the normal story like Hounds of Baskerville... There were a few plot holes and many things were left unexplained, also the ending of the previous episode (which was great) was not utilized to its potential. I still think it was a very good episode in itself and would rate it somewhere between 8.5-9... But if it's the final episode of the show (as the talk is), then the rating will go down to about 8 for the unexplained things throughout the episode. This should not be the last.