Friday, October 25, 2013

CBS Elementary Season 2 Episode # 5 "Ancient History" - Review

Jonny Lee Miller and Lucy Liu as Sherlock Holmes and Joan Watson wearing coolers in CBS Elementary Season 2 Episode 5 Ancient History

The episode opens with the dead body of a man besides his battered up motorcycle. 

Joan Watson (Lucy Liu) is shopping with a friend, Jennifer Sayles (Danielle Nicolet) who is trying to track her acquaintance from a one night stand, Tony.

Sherlock refuses to take up Joan's "case" due to professional pride and instead takes  here to a mortuary for fresh cases. He comes across the corpse of Leo Banin (Dean Neistat), the aforementioned victim.

Click on the image below to buy Season 2:



Sherlock and Joan discover that Travis Hardwick (Wass Stevens) was being threatened by Leo. Sherlock tracks down Travis to a seedy motel.

And the episode just rambles on...

Canonical References

1. Elementary Holmes' statement: “The good thing about a wild goose chase is that there is a delicious goose to eat at the end of it.” - I was reminded of the Canonical story, The Case of the Blue Carbuncle.

2. Joan scolds Miller's Sherlock: “You have not left the house for a week”  - In A Study in Scarlet, Sherlock Holmes tells John Watson about himself: “I get in the dumps at times, and don't open my mouth for days on end. You must not think I am sulky when I do that. Just let me alone, and I'll soon be right.”


Jonny Lee Miller and Lucy Liu as Sherlock Holmes and Joan Watson in CBS Elementary Season 2 Episode 5 Ancient History

3. Elementary Sherlock Holmes listening to the taped video of the buzzing of bees in the background, as he tries to solve the case - In the story His Last Bow, Sherlock mentions he is writing a book on Bee Keeping entitled “Practical Handbook of Bee Culture, with some Observations upon the Segregation of the Queen”.

4. Joan's line to the bartender: “It was a long shot” - In Silver Blaze, Sherlock Holmes tells Dr Watson: “A long shot, Watson, a very long shot,...”

5. Miller's Sherlock practicing his single stick skills on a dummy - In A Study in Scarlet, John Watson notes that Sherlock Holmes “Is an expert singlestick player, boxer, and swordsman.”


Jonny Lee Miller as Sherlock Holmes in CBS Elementary Season 2 Episode 5 Ancient History

Miller's Sherlock had some good moments in the episode and at the same time does some patently unSherlockian things as well.

The episode seems to be strongly inspired by the Canonical novel The Valley of Fear. Leo's wife, Lara Banin (Mia Barron) refusing to believe he was a killer and Leo having a good reputation in his neighborhood. Further, Leo's wife believing that he had a bad past and Leo running away from his gang and the gang having made an earlier attempt on Leo's life. Finally, the use of a motorcycle - the assassin uses a bicycle in The Valley of Fear.


Jonny Lee Miller, Lucy Liu and Jon Michael Hill as Sherlock Holmes, Joan Watson and Detective Marcus Bell question a suspect in CBS Elementary Season 2 Episode 5 Ancient History


Just like the previous episode "Dead Man's Switch" (based on The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton), this one falls flat too.

Better luck next time, CBS.

Click here to read all my posts about CBS Elementary. 

If you enjoyed this post, please subscribe to this blog by clicking here.

Image Source: CBS 

You might also like:


Solve for X
Step Nine

Thursday, October 24, 2013

BBC Sherlock - Season 3 Premiering in the US on Jan 19 2014



Benedict Cumberbatch returns as BBC Sherlock Season 3 US Premiere Jan 19 2014

Dear Readers,


Here is some great news for fans of BBC Sherlock.

Benedict Cumberbatch returns as Sherlock when the third season premieres in the US on Jan 19 2014 at 10 pm EST on PBS Masterpiece.

As has been the case with the previous two seasons, Season 3 will also have 3 episodes.

The first episode, “The Empty Hearse” is based on The Adventure of the Empty House. It has been penned by Mark Gatiss and directed by Jeremy Lovering.

Steve Thompson has written the script for the next episode, “The Sign of Three”. Readers familiar with the Sherlock Holmes Canon will recognize the obvious reference to The Sign of the Four. Colm McCarthy directs this episode.

Sherlock co-creator Steven Moffat takes over the writing duties for the season finale, “His Last Vow”. Directed by Nick Hurran, the episode title refers to “His Last Bow”, the collection of Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes stories published between 1908 to 1917. The last story in that series is also referred to by the same name.

Having enjoyed the show so far, I am excited for the Season 3 premiere.

Click here to read all my posts about BBC Sherlock.

If you enjoyed this post, please subscribe to this blog by clicking here.

Image Sources: BBC, Hartswood Films

You might also like:

Canonical Nods in "The Empty Hearse"
Canonical Nods in "The Empty Hearse"
Canonical Nods in "The Sign of Three"
Canonical Nods in "The Sign of Three"