Elementary Season 3 Episode 21 "Under My Skin" – Recap and Review

At the alcoholics meeting, Sherlock Holmes (Jonny Lee Miller) notices another member, Lloyd (Michael McGlone) behaving suspiciously. “Lloyd” is actually a private detective who is keeping an eye on Sherlock's recovery sponsor, Alfredo Llamosa (Ato Essandoh).

Alfredo's former employer, Castle hired “Lloyd” to keep tabs on Alfredo. Alfredo had been fired by Castle after some disagreements he had with another employee. Sherlock tries to help Alfredo, but the latter refuses his offer by claiming they are not friends.

The episode's main mystery starts off with a Maggie Halpern (Sarah Bolt) being taken in an ambulance. Her ride comes to a halt when an unseen person shoots to death the accompanying EMT (Dana Berger). Then the person drives away, thus effectively kidnapping the woman.

The suspect is Wallace Turk (Terry Serpico) who has been using Maggie as a drug mule. Escanso, a doctor in Brazil was the one who planted the drugs inside Maggie.

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Detective Marcus Bell (Jon Michael Hill) and Joan Watson (Lucy Liu) question Dr Ward (Fisher Stevens). One of his patients, Janko Stepovic (Gene Farber) is a criminal mastermind who runs a drug smuggling syndicate.

Janko himself is killed outside his house. The very next day, Dr Ward's attorney, Sarah Penley (Natalie Gold) offers information in exchange for protection for her client.

Dr Ward provides the location where the dead bodies were buried. After taking a look at the corpse, Joan deduces that it is Dr Ward who is the killer.

Sherlock ends up firing Alfredo as his sponsor in order to be able to take an active part in his personal life.

Canonical References

Sherlock's comment about the perfume worn by the slain Janko - Sherlock Holmes states in The Hound of the Baskervilles: “There are seventy-five perfumes, which it is very necessary that a criminal expert should be able to distinguish from each other, and cases have more than once within my own experience depended upon their prompt recognition.”

This was an OK episode. No great performances or great moments of humor to leave an impression on one's mind.

Everyone's favorite turtle, Clyde makes his appearance in the scene, where Sherlock is trying to make sense of the Voynich manuscript.

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Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) - Teaser Trailer

Dear Readers,

The teaser trailer for the upcoming action blockbuster has been released.

Directed by Zack Snyder (Man of Steel, 300), the movie stars Henry Cavill as Kal-El/Clark Kent/Superman, Ben Affleck as Bruce Wayne/Batman and Gal Gadot as Diana Prince/Wonder Woman.

Other superheroes include Cyborg (played by Ray Fisher), Aquaman (played by Jason Momoa) and The Flash (played by Ezra Miller).

Supporting cast includes Amy Adams as Lois Lane, Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor, Diane Lane as Martha Kent, Jeremy Irons as Alfred, Laurence Fishburne as Perry White.

The trailer focuses primarily on Ben Affleck's Bruce Wayne/Batman. Having enjoyed Chris Nolan's The Dark Knight Trilogy, I was a bit skeptical.

I have to confess that Affleck's Batman looks impressive. His is a bulked up version, like the one found in The Dark Knight Returns series by Frank Miller. I have read reports that this movie might be inspired by Miller's popular work.

Ever since this movie was announced, I had pinned my hopes on Affleck's Batman to be the savior. Looks like I was not off the mark as Henry Cavill remains as bland and uninspired as he was in Man of Steel. 

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I am curious to see the other four superheroes in action, especially Ezra Miller's Flash. He has the unenviable task of being compared with Grant Gustin who portrays the Scarlet Speedster on the wildly successful CW show The Flash.

Here's hoping that the movie will live up its hype as the first live action movie to feature both Superman and Batman.

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Elementary Season 3 Episode 20 "A Stitch in Time" – Recap and Review

In Arthur Conan Doyle's original story, The Adventure of the Red-Headed League (REDH), a cunning criminal (John Clay) digs a tunnel from the basement of his unsuspecting employer (Jabez Wilson) to a nearby bank to steal the cash. Sherlock Holmes of course, stops the theft and catches the robbers red handed.

Elementary writers offer us a modern take on REDH. Instead of Mr. Wilson, we have another simpleton, Claire Renziger (Anita Gillette).

The case starts with Sherlock Holmes (Jonny Lee Miller) investigating the murder of Garrison Boyd, a famous rationalist/atheist.

Sherlock and Detective Marcus Bell (Jon Michael Hill) question Finn (Andrew Rothenberg), who has had some unfriendly exchanges with Boyd just days before his death.

A suspect emerges in the form of one Collin Eisely (Eric Bogosian). Collin is a businessman who owns a few buildings . But he seems to have an alibi. He directs Sherlock to the aforementioned Mrs. Renziger, one of his tenants.

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Claire believes that her husband Harry's ghost is trying to communicate with her. Claire seems to be of the opinion that Harry has discovered about her extra-marital affair with a certain Jim Harmon. She is of the strong opinion that her husband's ghost is uttering “Jim Harmon” as he goes around terrorizing her.

Sherlock however does not buy into her theory and deduces that something more logical is afoot. He infers that the supposed voice of Harry was actually some human being uttering some similar sounding Arabic term “Im Haram”.

Sherlock works his way to figure out the apartment of Nadim Al-Haj (Lohrasp Kansara), by tracking down his fellow tenant, Yolanda Massee  (Marcy Harriell). Coincidentally, Nadim stays in one of the buildings owned by Collin.

Piecing together the pieces of the puzzle, Sherlock finally deduces that Collin's plan was to delay some electronically transmitted financial information by a few milliseconds and make millions of dollars in the process.

The secondary subplot involved Joan Watson (Lucy Liu) helping Captain Thomas Gregson (Aidan Quinn)'s daughter and NYPD Detective Hannah Gregson (Liza J. Bennett) on a case involving a series of thefts. Hannah seeks Joan's help, as the officer in charge of that particular case is held up with some other work.

Sherlock warns Joan that Hannah is only a mediocre detective, but Joan believes in Hannah. Joan solves the mystery behind the thefts, but is surprised when Hannah takes all the credit instead of passing the information to the concerned officer. Captain Gregson advises Joan to stop helping his daughter any further.

The plot was OK. The acting was adequate.

I did like the opening scene, which has Sherlock Holmes wearing the beekeeping suit as he examines his bee colony inside the brownstone. His investigation reveals infestation of the colony by the parasitic species of Varroa mites.

The Irregular, Mason (Robert Capron) made his customary appearance due to the electronic nature of the case.

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Terminator Genisys (2015) Trailer - Review

Click here to read the review of the movie.

The Terminator series is one of my favorites. James Cameron's first two entries The Terminator (1984) and Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) remain the high points. The next two movies were more of an exercise in milking the cow rather than pushing the story ahead or any advancement in the special effects.

Now, the fifth entry is upon us. Arnold Schwarzenegger returns to the role that cemented his reputation as the # 1 Action Star in the 90s. Joining him are Emilia Clarke, Byung-hun Lee, Jai Courtney, Jason Clarke and J.K. Simmons.

The movie is directed by Alan Taylor. Alan's previous movie, Thor: The Dark World suggests that he is not much of a visionary director, but a director whom studios hire to crank out the next entry in their profitable franchise..... And the trailer does not do much to allay my apprehension.

Note: There are significant plot spoilers in the trailer. Readers who wish to avoid plot details, might want to skip it.

What we get to see are the same old plot lines, villains and even dialogues from the earlier movies. Byung-hun Lee is T-1000, played so memorably by Robert Patrick. Jason Clarke's Terminator is also similar to the T-X portrayed by Kristanna Loken in Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines.

Emilia Clarke does look like a fitting replacement for Linda Hamilton as the feisty Sarah Connor. She seems to be the only one actually doing some acting among the newcomers.

The special effects look pretty ordinary. This is disappointing considering that James Cameron pushed the special effects envelope with Terminator 2: Judgment Day. But then, that is what James does, as his latest movie, Avatar has proven yet again.

Even the the make-up department seems to have done only average work - proof (if any is needed) that Stan Winston was truly a genius and his absence is really felt here.

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All said and done, this is an Arnold Schwarzenegger movie. He looks to be in form as the cyborg, but age seems to be catching up with him. Let us hope that this movie will live up to the high standards set by his earlier collaborations with James Cameron. 

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Spectre (2015) - Teaser Trailer

The trailer for the upcoming James Bond movie, Spectre starring Daniel Craig as Agent 007 is out. The returning cast includes Ralph Fiennes as M (Bond's boss), Ben Whishaw as Q (Gadget expert), Naomie Harris as Eve Moneypenny. 

Joining the regular cast are Christoph Waltz (as Oberhauser), Monica Bellucci (as Bond Girl Lucia Sciarra), Léa Seydoux (as Madeleine Swann), Dave Bautista (as Mr. Hinx) and Andrew Scott (as Denbigh).

The teaser did not impress me that much. I hope that the movie will live up to the hype.

Sam Mendes returns as the director, after the billion dollar box office success of Skyfall. I enjoyed that movie despite the obvious similarities to Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight Trilogy. Hopefully, the next movie will be more original.

Andrew Scott is not featured in the trailer. But looks like his work as Moriarty in BBC Sherlock is indeed taking him places.

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The movie's name refers to the global organization of the same name, SPECTRE (Special Executive for Counter-intelligence, Terrorism, Revenge and Extortion). It is an organization that often finds itself at loggerheads with James Bond and the British Secret Service.

Interestingly, the soon-to-be-released Tom Cruise movie, Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation also features the Syndicate, which happens to be a rival organization of IMF. Check out the trailer below:

M:I -Rogue Nation not only beat Skyfall to its first trailer, but the movie itself releases earlier than Mr Bond's latest adventure.

While Spectre releases in the US on November 6 2015 and in the UK on October 23 2015, MI5 hits the theatres on 31 July in the US and UK.

It will be interesting to see how the audience reacts to two spy movies that seem to have similar plot elements and release within months of each other.

I enjoyed the preceding movies in both these franchises. Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol had amazing action sequences and some moments of real humor. Based on Spectre's teaser, my money is on M:I -Rogue Nation being the more enjoyable sequel.

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BBC Sherlock "A Scandal in Belgravia" - Canonical References [Part II]

Dear Readers,

This post concludes the list of Canonical References in “A Scandal in Belgravia”. 

Scripted by Steven Moffat, it is based on the original story: A Scandal in Bohemia.  Here are the references to Arthur Conan Doyle's original stories:

1. John questions Sherlock: “You composing?” and he replies: “..helps me to think” - In the original story, The Adventure of the Red-Headed League: “I observe that there is a good deal of German music on the programme, which is rather more to my taste than Italian or French. It is introspective, and I want to introspect.”.

2. John’s lack of knowledge about Sherlock’ personal life is reflected in the question he poses to Mrs Hudson: “Has he ever had any kind of relationship, a boyfriend, girlfriend…” - Dr John Watson mentions in The Adventure of the Greek Interpreter: “During my long and intimate acquaintance with Mr. Sherlock Holmes I had never heard him refer to his relations, and hardly ever to his own early life.”

3. John remarks about Sherlock: “He is Mr Punchline. He will outlive God trying to have the last word” – In The Adventure of the Red-headed League, when Dr Watson expresses his doubt about Sherlock's proposition, Holmes replies: “You did, Doctor, but none the less you must come round to my view, for otherwise I shall keep on piling fact upon fact on you until your reason breaks down under them and acknowledges me to be right.” 

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4. Sherlock deduces the presence of Irene Adler (Lara Pulver) based on her perfume – Sherlock Holmes states in The Hound of the Baskervilles: “There are seventy-five perfumes, which it is very necessary that a criminal expert should be able to distinguish from each other, and cases have more than once within my own experience depended upon their prompt recognition.”

5. Sherlock solves the cryptogram in 4 seconds – Sherlock Holmes remarks in The Valley of Fear: “Because there are many ciphers which I would read as easily as I do the apocrypha of the agony column: such crude devices amuse the intelligence without fatiguing it.”

6. Moriarty’s text to Mycroft: “Jumbo Jet. Dear me Mr Holmes, dear me” – Direct reference to this note sent by Professor Moriarty to Sherlock Holmes in The Valley of Fear: “Dear me, Mr. Holmes. Dear me!”

7. At 221 B Baker Street, Sherlock does not notice that Watson is gone and that Irene is now in the room – In A Study in Scarlet, Dr John Watson writes about Sherlock Holmes: “So engrossed was he with his occupation that he appeared to have forgotten our presence, for he chattered away to himself under his breath the whole time, keeping up a running fire of exclamations, groans, whistles, and little cries suggestive of encouragement and of hope.”

8. Sherlock remarks: “Coventry all over again. The wheel turns. Nothing is ever new” –

Sherlock Holmes mentions in The Valley of Fear: “The old wheel turns, and the same spoke comes up. It's all been done before, and will be again.”

In A Study in Scarlet, Holmes states: “There is nothing new under the sun. It has all been done before”

9. Sherlock's advice to Irene: “This is your heart and you should never let it rule your head” - Sherlock Holmes states in The Adventure of the Lion's Mane: “Women have seldom been an attraction to me, for my brain has always governed my heart, ....”

10. Mycroft’s observation about Sherlock: “My brother has the brain of a scientist or a philosopher, yet he elects to be a detective” – Dr John Watson writes about Holmes’ acting skills in A Scandal in Bohemia: “It was not merely that Holmes changed his costume. His expression, his manner, his very soul seemed to vary with every fresh part that he assumed. The stage lost a fine actor, even as science lost an acute reasoner, when he became a specialist in crime.”

11. Sherlock remarks to John: “If it’s about the Leeds triple murder, It was the gardener. Nobody noticed the earring” – Possible reference to The Adventure of the Cardboard Box where earrings played a vital role in solving the mystery.

12. The initial case of the hiker killed by a single blow to the back of his head from a blunt instrument near a body of water - Reference to The Boscombe Valley Mystery in which one Charles McCarthy who was killed by repeated blows to the back of his head from a blunt weapon. His body was found beside the Boscombe pool. (Thanks to Anonymous commenter for pointing this out).

Click here to read the first part of Canonical references.

Feel free to point out any references I might have missed out.

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