SHERLOCK: The Six Thatchers {Roundtable}

Sherlock returned for a full series this year and pulled no punches in the premiere, “The Six Thatchers”, and in ninety minutes, there were plenty of emotional ups and downs. Sherlock (Benedict Cumberbatch) tackles multiple cases and ultimately discovers more about Mary than he imagined.

Shall we start at the end, with the fridging of Mary Morstan (Amanda Abbington). What did you think about her death and the way she was the focus of the mystery in the episode?

Cay: I can’t believe they killed Mary! Especially when they just had their baby! I would be annoyed that they did it regardless of when, but seeing as though they just got married in the last episode and had a baby in this one, it was particularly harsh. The long episodes that cover a lot of real time (typically weeks to months) make major plot twists seem really sudden to the viewer, I’ve always thought. One thing that seemed weird here is that Watson, a trained combat physician, didn’t seem to try to administer any medical aid to her, even if futile. Maybe he was just too shocked, but I would expect more from an army doctor.

Sherlock, Season 4 premieres January 1, 2017 on MASTERPIECE on PBS.
Picture shows: Mary Watson (AMANDA ABBINGTON), Sherlock Holmes (BENEDICT CUMBERBATCH) and John Watson (MARTIN FREEMAN)

Melissa: I was so stunned by this twist that I had to rewind and watch again to see if there was a clue that she didn’t actually die. This show is notorious for seeming to kill people only to have them pop up alive and well in a future episode. I’m still not 100% convinced she’s dead – what if this was an elaborate ruse to make people THINK she’s dead? What if she and John cooked it up and didn’t tell Sherlock a la Sherlock’s “death” at the end of season 2?

Roz: I didn’t want to think it happened either, but if I believe this podcast, then I think she’s properly dead. That said, I didn’t expect something so big in the premiere, or for the first mystery not being the biggest mystery.

Sure Mary’s life has been chaotic and dangerous before she met John, but how do you feel about John’s (Martin Freeman) emotional dalliance with the woman on the bus?

Cay: I think it was the typical “exhausted Dad with young baby” kind of “oh look, a pretty women is staring at me” kind of thing initially. In hindsight, it was clearly set up so he’d feel that much more awful when she died. I really wish he wouldn’t have kept her number and actually contacted her, but he did the right thing in the end and what we saw seemed fairy innocent although certainly not appropriate for a married man.

Melissa: My distrust of what I’m seeing on screen continues…I think that woman was a plant (honestly, for a hot minute I thought it was Mary in disguise) who we’ll see come into play in episode 2 or 3. I was surprised that John communicated with her, though. I guess he still wasn’t over Mary’s secret past.

Roz: I don’t trust this woman’s who catching John’s eye, but I think that given everything else in the episode, this dalliance was on the very back burner. She is kind and looks at John with wonder, but what do they know about each other? Even when we saw those texts, it seems like a rather boring conversation.

Since Moriarty is still out there, what do you think his game is?

Cay: who knows, but it’s never good for Sherlock and the people around him, is it?

Melissa: IS Moriarty still out there? We heard several times that he’d probably recorded that video before his death, and Sherlock’s insistence that Moriarty was behind The Six Thatchers turned out to be incorrect. Could that video simply be Moriarty’s way of taunting Sherlock from the grave forever by keeping him constantly on alert for “something bad” that will never come?

Roz: Melissa, I like the way you think, but I think that Moriarty is always a threat to Sherlock and so there’s something else planned. Moriarty will always want to try and make Sherlock think the world is against him and Mycroft doesn’t help with easing Sherlock’s paranoia.

Cay: All bets are off on a show like this with the level of complexity of story and what we’ve already seen.

Do you want Sherlock to follow up on Mary’s mission to save John or is the relationship between John and Sherlock broken now with Mary’s death?

Cay: My question was whether he needs to save him from himself or in an emotional sense, or if she was alluding to some greater danger. I think it’s probably the former. I doubt their relationship is forever over, because I think the show would be a lot less interesting if it’s just Sherlock doing his thing and John avoiding him. It’s also kind of rotten of John to hold Mary’s death against Sherlock when she was the one that jumped in front of him – how could he have protected her if she was going to do that?!?

Melissa: I don’t think we were shown the entirety of Mary’s video message to Sherlock – the preview for the next episode shows a tiny snippet that wasn’t in this episode – so I think it may be more than “save John from the depths of despair”. Sherlock does need to figure out how to reach John again, emotionally, because their partnership is the cornerstone of this series. But I think Mary was talking about a tangible threat to John’s life.

Roz: Sherlock did make a promise to always look after the Watsons, so I think he’ll try to save John, if from the shadows or in a circumspect way to make sure that John never knows what’s up.

Any other thoughts or comments?

Cay: Why, why, why???

Melissa: This was such a twisty episode! The initial case, with the son who died in the car while waiting to surprise his father, was heartbreaking. Watching Sherlock solve cases rapid fire in that montage was fun. The real case, involving Mary’s past and Smallwood’s secretary, is one I’ll have to watch again to fully comprehend. A solid return for our favorite fluffy-haired detective.

Sherlock, Season 4
Sundays January 1 – 15
On MASTERPIECE Mystery! on PBS
Picture shows: Sherlock Holmes (BENEDICT CUMBERBATCH)
For editorial use only. Not for use on social media.
Courtesy of Hartswood Films & MASTERPIECE

Roz: There were so many twists. I kept thinking that the mysteries were just going to be small ones until AJ appeared and then I went, what did I just watch for the whole time. The ultimate bad guy being that secretary also puts a different spin on how important the background is.

Sherlock returns next week and the week after with two more episodes on Sundays at PBS.