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Sherlock - Series 4 [DVD] [2016]
Additional DVD options | Edition | Discs | Price | New from | Used from |
DVD
January 24, 2017 "Please retry" | — | 2 | $4.95 | $3.41 |
DVD
June 12, 2017 "Please retry" | — | 2 | $29.32 | $10.64 |
Watch Instantly with | Per Episode | Buy Season |
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Genre | Drama, Mystery & Thrillers |
Format | PAL, DVD |
Language | English |
Number Of Discs | 2 |
Runtime | 4 hours and 25 minutes |
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Product Description
Final Synopsis:
Sherlock returns to BBC One with three brand-new feature length episodes, promising laughter, tears, shocks, surprises and extraordinary cases. The eagerly anticipated fourth series, produced by Hartswood Films, begins with the nation's favourite detective, the mercurial Sherlock Holmes, back once more on British soil, as Doctor Watson and his wife, Mary, prepare for their biggest ever challenge - becoming parents for the first time. Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman reprise their iconic roles as Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson in the hit drama written and created by Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss, and inspired by the works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
Episode List:
- Episode 1 - The Six Thatchers
- Episode 2 - The Lying Detective
- Episode 3 - The Final Problem
Product details
- Aspect Ratio : 1.78:1
- Is Discontinued By Manufacturer : No
- Product Dimensions : 5.31 x 0.59 x 7.48 inches; 4.02 Ounces
- Item model number : BBCDVD4174
- Media Format : PAL, DVD
- Run time : 4 hours and 25 minutes
- Release date : January 23, 2017
- Studio : 2entertain
- ASIN : B01IRDD4ZY
- Number of discs : 2
- Best Sellers Rank: #146,740 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
- #8,066 in Mystery & Thrillers (Movies & TV)
- #24,984 in Drama DVDs
- Customer Reviews:
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Episode 1 "The Six Thatchers" = 1 hour, 31 minutes, 34 seconds on Blu-Ray
Episode 2 "The Lying Detective" = 1 hour, 28 minutes, 24 seconds on PBS
Episode 2 "The Lying Detective" = 1 hour, 32 minutes, 17 seconds on Blu-Ray
Episode 3 "The Final Problem" = 1 hour, 28 minutes, 20 seconds on PBS
Episode 3 "The Final Problem" = 1 hour, 32 minutes, 11 seconds on Blu-Ray
Blu-Ray/DVD has the uncut BBC version.
My timings do not include the closing credits, which were longer on PBS Masterpiece.
WARNING: EDITED VERSIONS ARE ALSO ON AMAZON VIDEO
Unless there is a mistake in their listing, it would seem that Amazon Video downloads are the edited PBS versions:
Episode 1 "The Six Thatchers" = "1 hour, 28 minutes" advertised on Amazon
Episode 2 "The Lying Detective" = "1 hour, 29 minutes" advertised on Amazon
Episode 3 "The Final Problem" = "1 hour, 28 minutes" advertised on Amazon
Season Four was the work of the same team that created the first three-and-a-half seasons:
-- Written by Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss, who are responsible for eleven of the thirteen episodes of "Sherlock" broadcast since 2010.
-- All supporting characters return for Season Four:
---- Mark Gatiss as Mycroft Holmes
---- Rupert Graves as Inspector Lestrade
---- Una Stubbs as Mrs. Hudson
---- Amanda Abbington as Mary Morstan Watson
---- Louise Brealey as Molly Hooper
---- Andrew Scott as Moriarty (he just won't stay dead - this is not really a spoiler: Moriarty never stays dead. Basil Rathbone killed him off three times to no avail).
Despite this pedigree, a lot of reviewers on Amazon hated Season Four, especially "The Final Problem"
This is in contrast to the three previous seasons, which were greeted with Universal Rapture.
Amazon Ratings (March 2017):
-- Series 1 = 95% positive, 2% negative (4,700 reviews)
-- Series 2 = 97% positive, 2% negative (3,500 reviews)
-- Series 3 = 92% positive, 5% negative (2,500 reviews)
-- Series 4 = 65% positive, 28% negative (186 reviews)
-- Abominable Bride = 83% positive, 8% negative (400 reviews)
[positive = four or five stars , negative = one or two stars (not many three star reviews for Sherlock)]
-- No commentary tracks, but the Blu-Ray/DVD includes ten bonus features totaling 1 hour, 49 minutes, 25 seconds.
-- All four-and-a-half seasons of "Sherlock" are English SDH subtitled for the hard-of-hearing.
-- The first publicity photos for Season Four show new cast members Baby Watson and Toby the Bloodhound.
Despite it's title, "The Final Problem" is the only one of thirteen "Sherlock" episodes not based (at least loosely) on a Conan Doyle story.
The Season Four finale veered strongly in the direction of horror/science fiction.
As an elderly gentleman, I prefer my mysteries straight.
Nevertheless, as mystery/horror/science fiction, it was extremely well done.
No regrets about giving the fourth season five stars.
OBSCURE REFERENCES:
There are a lot of references to the original stories.
The most obscure one ever is @ 57:01 of Episode One "The Six Thatchers":
Two Norwegian fishing boats are moored at a dock.
Freeze the picture and zoom in.
The boats are named "Flekkete Band" and "Lovens Manke" ("The Speckled Band" and "The Lion's Mane")
Movie reference: In the 1970 Billy Wilder film "The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes", a mysterious Belgian woman, Gabrielle Valladon, begs Holmes to find her missing husband.
As part of the investigation, Sherlock and Gabrielle pose as husband and wife: "Mr. and Mrs. Ashdown".
"Gabrielle Ashdown" is the alias on the forged passport used by Mary Watson in "The Six Thatchers".
In the final scene, Holmes and Watson emerge from a building labeled "Rathbone Place".
Rathbone Place is an actual street in London
It's been there since the Eighteenth Century, so it wasn't named after Basil.
The building used in "Sherlock" is actually somewhere in Wales.
Watch the bonus feature "Behind 221B The Final Problem":
@ 21:45 you can see a woman gluing a "Rathbone Place" sign to the building.
SPOILER - DON'T READ THIS PARAGRAPH UNTIL AFTER YOU HAVE VIEWED THE FIRST EPISODE:
The second biggest controversy seems to be the death of Mary Watson in Episode One.
The TV writers are getting a bum rap here:
It was Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's idea to kill her off.
Watson met Mary Morstan (not an assassin/secret agent) in 'The Sign of Four' (published 1890).
They married, and for the next several stories Watson moved out of 221B Baker Street.
Readers were not happy.
Conan Doyle noticed.
By the time 'The Norwood Builder' was published (1903), it is revealed that Mary has passed away (off-stage) and Watson has moved back into 221B.
---------------
Sherlock: Season 1 [Blu-ray ]
Sherlock: Season 2 [Blu-ray ]
Sherlock: Season 3 (Blu-ray) (Original UK Version)
Sherlock: The Abominable Bride
Sherlock: Season 4: REVIEWED ON THIS PAGE
SEASON FIVE?
Guarded Optimism.
I will let you know more when I find out more.
See the first Comment (dated August 20, 2016) for the latest developments.
Click on "sort by oldest"
WEASELS:
Six months after Season Three was released on Blu-Ray/DVD, The Season 1-3 Limited Edition Gift Set was released:
Sherlock Limited Edition Gift Set (The Complete Seasons 1-3 Blu-ray/DVD Combo)
In addition to tiny statues of Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman,
Season Three also included commentary tracks (not on the original Season Three Blu-Ray) for "The Empty Hearse" and "His Last Vow" (with Stephen Moffat and Martin Gattis).
Plus an additional bonus disc of extras from Season Three.
I assumed that BBC Home Entertainment would eventually issue a separate Season Three Deluxe Edition with all the commentaries and bonus features.
After three years I am still waiting.
All is not lost:
-- The commentary tracks (audio only) are available on-line.
You can synchronize them with your home video.
-- Printed transcripts are also available.
See Comment One, dated August 30, 2016 (click on "Sort by oldest").
Soon we will be treated to a "Season 1-4 and The Abominable Bride Gift Set".
What are the odds that those weasels at BBC Home Entertainment will include new commentaries for Season Four?
And will they remember to include the commentaries for Season Three in the new gift box?
Aargh.
Reviewed in the United States on August 20, 2016
Episode 1 "The Six Thatchers" = 1 hour, 31 minutes, 34 seconds on Blu-Ray
Episode 2 "The Lying Detective" = 1 hour, 28 minutes, 24 seconds on PBS
Episode 2 "The Lying Detective" = 1 hour, 32 minutes, 17 seconds on Blu-Ray
Episode 3 "The Final Problem" = 1 hour, 28 minutes, 20 seconds on PBS
Episode 3 "The Final Problem" = 1 hour, 32 minutes, 11 seconds on Blu-Ray
Blu-Ray/DVD has the uncut BBC version.
My timings do not include the closing credits, which were longer on PBS Masterpiece.
WARNING: EDITED VERSIONS ARE ALSO ON AMAZON VIDEO
Unless there is a mistake in their listing, it would seem that Amazon Video downloads are the edited PBS versions:
Episode 1 "The Six Thatchers" = "1 hour, 28 minutes" advertised on Amazon
Episode 2 "The Lying Detective" = "1 hour, 29 minutes" advertised on Amazon
Episode 3 "The Final Problem" = "1 hour, 28 minutes" advertised on Amazon
Season Four was the work of the same team that created the first three-and-a-half seasons:
-- Written by Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss, who are responsible for eleven of the thirteen episodes of "Sherlock" broadcast since 2010.
-- All supporting characters return for Season Four:
---- Mark Gatiss as Mycroft Holmes
---- Rupert Graves as Inspector Lestrade
---- Una Stubbs as Mrs. Hudson
---- Amanda Abbington as Mary Morstan Watson
---- Louise Brealey as Molly Hooper
---- Andrew Scott as Moriarty (he just won't stay dead - this is not really a spoiler: Moriarty never stays dead. Basil Rathbone killed him off three times to no avail).
Despite this pedigree, a lot of reviewers on Amazon hated Season Four, especially "The Final Problem"
This is in contrast to the three previous seasons, which were greeted with Universal Rapture.
Amazon Ratings (March 2017):
-- Series 1 = 95% positive, 2% negative (4,700 reviews)
-- Series 2 = 97% positive, 2% negative (3,500 reviews)
-- Series 3 = 92% positive, 5% negative (2,500 reviews)
-- Series 4 = 65% positive, 28% negative (186 reviews)
-- Abominable Bride = 83% positive, 8% negative (400 reviews)
[positive = four or five stars , negative = one or two stars (not many three star reviews for Sherlock)]
-- No commentary tracks, but the Blu-Ray/DVD includes ten bonus features totaling 1 hour, 49 minutes, 25 seconds.
-- All four-and-a-half seasons of "Sherlock" are English SDH subtitled for the hard-of-hearing.
-- The first publicity photos for Season Four show new cast members Baby Watson and Toby the Bloodhound.
Despite it's title, "The Final Problem" is the only one of thirteen "Sherlock" episodes not based (at least loosely) on a Conan Doyle story.
The Season Four finale veered strongly in the direction of horror/science fiction.
As an elderly gentleman, I prefer my mysteries straight.
Nevertheless, as mystery/horror/science fiction, it was extremely well done.
No regrets about giving the fourth season five stars.
OBSCURE REFERENCES:
There are a lot of references to the original stories.
The most obscure one ever is @ 57:01 of Episode One "The Six Thatchers":
Two Norwegian fishing boats are moored at a dock.
Freeze the picture and zoom in.
The boats are named "Flekkete Band" and "Lovens Manke" ("The Speckled Band" and "The Lion's Mane")
Movie reference: In the 1970 Billy Wilder film "The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes", a mysterious Belgian woman, Gabrielle Valladon, begs Holmes to find her missing husband.
As part of the investigation, Sherlock and Gabrielle pose as husband and wife: "Mr. and Mrs. Ashdown".
"Gabrielle Ashdown" is the alias on the forged passport used by Mary Watson in "The Six Thatchers".
In the final scene, Holmes and Watson emerge from a building labeled "Rathbone Place".
Rathbone Place is an actual street in London
It's been there since the Eighteenth Century, so it wasn't named after Basil.
The building used in "Sherlock" is actually somewhere in Wales.
Watch the bonus feature "Behind 221B The Final Problem":
@ 21:45 you can see a woman gluing a "Rathbone Place" sign to the building.
SPOILER - DON'T READ THIS PARAGRAPH UNTIL AFTER YOU HAVE VIEWED THE FIRST EPISODE:
The second biggest controversy seems to be the death of Mary Watson in Episode One.
The TV writers are getting a bum rap here:
It was Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's idea to kill her off.
Watson met Mary Morstan (not an assassin/secret agent) in 'The Sign of Four' (published 1890).
They married, and for the next several stories Watson moved out of 221B Baker Street.
Readers were not happy.
Conan Doyle noticed.
By the time 'The Norwood Builder' was published (1903), it is revealed that Mary has passed away (off-stage) and Watson has moved back into 221B.
---------------
[[ASIN:B004132I20 Sherlock: Season 1 [Blu-ray]]]
[[ASIN:B004QOB8SY Sherlock: Season 2 [Blu-ray]]]
[[ASIN:B00E3UN59Q Sherlock: Season 3 (Blu-ray) (Original UK Version)]]
[[ASIN:B013JBJ7EG Sherlock: The Abominable Bride]]
Sherlock: Season 4: REVIEWED ON THIS PAGE
SEASON FIVE?
Guarded Optimism.
I will let you know more when I find out more.
See the first Comment (dated August 20, 2016) for the latest developments.
Click on "sort by oldest"
WEASELS:
Six months after Season Three was released on Blu-Ray/DVD, The Season 1-3 Limited Edition Gift Set was released:
[[ASIN:B00NB9Y0US Sherlock Limited Edition Gift Set (The Complete Seasons 1-3 Blu-ray/DVD Combo)]]
In addition to tiny statues of Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman,
Season Three also included commentary tracks (not on the original Season Three Blu-Ray) for "The Empty Hearse" and "His Last Vow" (with Stephen Moffat and Martin Gattis).
Plus an additional bonus disc of extras from Season Three.
I assumed that BBC Home Entertainment would eventually issue a separate Season Three Deluxe Edition with all the commentaries and bonus features.
After three years I am still waiting.
All is not lost:
-- The commentary tracks (audio only) are available on-line.
You can synchronize them with your home video.
-- Printed transcripts are also available.
See Comment One, dated August 30, 2016 (click on "Sort by oldest").
Soon we will be treated to a "Season 1-4 and The Abominable Bride Gift Set".
What are the odds that those weasels at BBC Home Entertainment will include new commentaries for Season Four?
And will they remember to include the commentaries for Season Three in the new gift box?
Aargh.
If it’s your first British movie put the subtitles on until you get acclimated c
Top reviews from other countries
I will not have spoilers in this, as there are so many better episode guides already available.
As far as the acting goes - I think that Cumberbatch and Freeman are even better - much better in fact - than they've been in series 1-3 and the Christmas Special. I think all the experience with different roles, different kinds of movies and different directors has taught them quite a bit. Gatiss' performance has much improved too. I liked him and his interpretation of Mycroft from the start, but now he's even better. There is a depth of character to his Mycroft now that wasn't there before.Toby Jones and Sian Brooke in their respective roles I found perfectly casted. There is, if I'm forgiven for adding one little bit of a spoiler here - a slight chance of Mycroft finding a love interest of his own.
As to the stories - I cannot for the life of me share the opinion that the scripts are "self-indulgent" or "ridiculous" or "dumb" or "ridiculous" or whatever else I'd read about them before I even got the DVD. On the contrary, I find them coherent, logical and psycologically fascinating. Especially the "blend" of bits from Doyle's original stories like "The Musgrave Ritual" or "The Dying Detective" with the modern story line is, for me, a perfect fit. This is the story that Arthur Conan Doyle should have, but has never told. How Sherlock Holmes, this bundle of contradictions, has become the man he is. How a man can be a perfect misanthrope but at the same time have enough empathy to see through the most complex emotional or psychological motives for crimes. How he can be merciless enough to humiliate and ridicule his fellow men on many occasions, but at the same time have pity on a loving couple, or on a whining hotel thief. Why he would need cocaine to drown his bouts of "boredom" - because there's more coming up in his mind once he's not busy than just some pains of dullness. How he can be a perfect solitaire when he at the same time craves a friend like John in his life.
I admit the stories are told not chronologically and not in one, continuous story line. They're told in bits and pieces, like a mosaique. However, I enjoyed that incredibly because it was so very well done. It made my second round with the DVDs as enjoyable as the first. If, of some people, this is too much demanded, they might wish to look out for another show. There are enough shows that tell one coherent story in one definte line. You could even have a little nap in between and wouldn't have any trouble tuning in again afterwards. But that's not what and how Sherlock is. Arthur Conan Doyle's stories are not like that, so why would the TV series be?
The production design is much darker now than it has been in series 1-3. Even darker than that of The Abominable Bride. there are, for me at least, some marvellous quotes from the last two James Bond movies. For one, there's the ancient and stately home of the Holmes family, Musgrave Hall that very much looks like Skyfall, the ancient home of the Bond family. And there are those unsolved childhood mysteries and/or the early misdeeds nobody has ever atoned for that came to haunt James Bond (in "Skyfall" and in "Spectre").
All in all - the fourth series of Sherlock has the feeling of an end as well as that of a beginning to it. Here ends the story of "Becoming Sherlock Holmes" and here starts the story of "Being Sherlock Holmes". I like that especially as last year's "Mr Holmes" with Ian McKellen has told me the story of "having been Sherlock Holmes."
I so very much hope that Cumberbatch and Freeman and Gatiss and all the others will still give me a fifth, a sixth, a twelfth and a twentieth series of "Sherlock". I have a feeling that I can no longer live without him.
-- Written by Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss, who are responsible for eleven of the thirteen episodes of "Sherlock" broadcast since 2010.
-- All supporting characters return for Season Four:
---- Mark Gatiss as Mycroft Holmes
---- Rupert Graves as Inspector Lestrade
---- Una Stubbs as Mrs. Hudson
---- Amanda Abbington as Mary Morstan Watson
---- Louise Brealey as Molly Hooper
---- Andrew Scott as Moriarty (he just won't stay dead - this is not really a spoiler: Moriarty never stays dead. Basil Rathbone killed him off three times to no avail).
Despite this pedigree, a lot of reviewers on Amazon hated Series Four, especially "The Final Problem"
This is in contrast to the three previous series, which were greeted with Universal Rapture.
Amazon Ratings (March 2017):
-- Series 1 = 92% positive, 5% negative (575 reviews)
-- Series 2 = 95% positive, 4% negative (539 reviews)
-- Series 3 = 90% positive, 6% negative (1,063 reviews)
-- Series 4 = 69% positive, 22% negative (137 reviews)
-- Abominable Bride = 72% positive, 21% negative (341 reviews)
positive = four or five stars , negative = one or two stars (not many three star reviews for Sherlock)
-- No commentary tracks, but the Blu-Ray/DVD includes ten bonus features totaling 1 hour, 49 minutes, 25 seconds.
-- All four-and-a-half seasons of "Sherlock" are English SDH subtitled for the hard-of-hearing.
-- The first publicity photos for Season Four show new cast members Baby Watson and Toby the Bloodhound.
Despite it's title, "The Final Problem" is the only one of thirteen "Sherlock" episodes not based (at least loosely) on a Conan Doyle story.
The Series Four finale veered strongly in the direction of horror/science fiction.
As an elderly gentleman, I prefer my mysteries straight.
Nevertheless, as mystery/horror/science fiction, it was extremely well done.
No regrets about giving the fourth season five stars.
OBSCURE REFERENCES:
There are a lot of references to the original stories.
The most obscure one ever is @ 57:01 of Episode One "The Six Thatchers":
Two Norwegian fishing boats are moored at a dock.
Freeze the picture and zoom in.
The boats are named "Flekkete Band" and "Lovens Manke" ("The Speckled Band" and "The Lion's Mane")
Movie reference: In the 1970 Billy Wilder film "The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes", a mysterious Belgian woman, Gabrielle Valladon, begs Holmes to find her missing husband.
As part of the investigation, Sherlock and Gabrielle pose as husband and wife: "Mr. and Mrs. Ashdown".
"Gabrielle Ashdown" is the alias on the forged passport used by Mary Watson in "The Six Thatchers".
In the final scene, Holmes and Watson emerge from a building labeled "Rathbone Place".
Rathbone Place is an actual street in London
It's been there since the Eighteenth Century, so it wasn't named after Basil.
The building used in "Sherlock" is actually somewhere in Wales.
Watch the bonus feature "Behind 221B The Final Problem":
@ 21:45 you can see a woman gluing a "Rathbone Place" sign to the building.
-- If you are new to "Sherlock", there is a new ten disc boxed set of everything at a reduced price.
Available in DVD or Blu-Ray:
Sherlock - Series 1-4 & Abominable Bride Box Set [DVD] [2016 ]
or
Sherlock - Series 1-4 & Abominable Bride Box Set [Blu-ray] [2016 ]
SPOILER - DON'T READ THIS PARAGRAPH UNTIL AFTER YOU HAVE VIEWED THE FIRST EPISODE:
The second biggest controversy seems to be the death of Mary Watson in Episode One.
The TV writers are getting a bum rap here:
It was Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's idea to kill her off.
Watson met Mary Morstan (not an assassin/secret agent) in 'The Sign of Four' (published 1890).
They married, and for the next several stories Watson moved out of 221B Baker Street.
Readers were not happy.
Conan Doyle noticed.
By the time 'The Norwood Builder' was published (1903), it is revealed that Mary has passed away (off-stage) and Watson has moved back into 221B.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 31, 2017
-- Written by Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss, who are responsible for eleven of the thirteen episodes of "Sherlock" broadcast since 2010.
-- All supporting characters return for Season Four:
---- Mark Gatiss as Mycroft Holmes
---- Rupert Graves as Inspector Lestrade
---- Una Stubbs as Mrs. Hudson
---- Amanda Abbington as Mary Morstan Watson
---- Louise Brealey as Molly Hooper
---- Andrew Scott as Moriarty (he just won't stay dead - this is not really a spoiler: Moriarty never stays dead. Basil Rathbone killed him off three times to no avail).
Despite this pedigree, a lot of reviewers on Amazon hated Series Four, especially "The Final Problem"
This is in contrast to the three previous series, which were greeted with Universal Rapture.
Amazon Ratings (March 2017):
-- Series 1 = 92% positive, 5% negative (575 reviews)
-- Series 2 = 95% positive, 4% negative (539 reviews)
-- Series 3 = 90% positive, 6% negative (1,063 reviews)
-- Series 4 = 69% positive, 22% negative (137 reviews)
-- Abominable Bride = 72% positive, 21% negative (341 reviews)
positive = four or five stars , negative = one or two stars (not many three star reviews for Sherlock)
-- No commentary tracks, but the Blu-Ray/DVD includes ten bonus features totaling 1 hour, 49 minutes, 25 seconds.
-- All four-and-a-half seasons of "Sherlock" are English SDH subtitled for the hard-of-hearing.
-- The first publicity photos for Season Four show new cast members Baby Watson and Toby the Bloodhound.
Despite it's title, "The Final Problem" is the only one of thirteen "Sherlock" episodes not based (at least loosely) on a Conan Doyle story.
The Series Four finale veered strongly in the direction of horror/science fiction.
As an elderly gentleman, I prefer my mysteries straight.
Nevertheless, as mystery/horror/science fiction, it was extremely well done.
No regrets about giving the fourth season five stars.
OBSCURE REFERENCES:
There are a lot of references to the original stories.
The most obscure one ever is @ 57:01 of Episode One "The Six Thatchers":
Two Norwegian fishing boats are moored at a dock.
Freeze the picture and zoom in.
The boats are named "Flekkete Band" and "Lovens Manke" ("The Speckled Band" and "The Lion's Mane")
Movie reference: In the 1970 Billy Wilder film "The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes", a mysterious Belgian woman, Gabrielle Valladon, begs Holmes to find her missing husband.
As part of the investigation, Sherlock and Gabrielle pose as husband and wife: "Mr. and Mrs. Ashdown".
"Gabrielle Ashdown" is the alias on the forged passport used by Mary Watson in "The Six Thatchers".
In the final scene, Holmes and Watson emerge from a building labeled "Rathbone Place".
Rathbone Place is an actual street in London
It's been there since the Eighteenth Century, so it wasn't named after Basil.
The building used in "Sherlock" is actually somewhere in Wales.
Watch the bonus feature "Behind 221B The Final Problem":
@ 21:45 you can see a woman gluing a "Rathbone Place" sign to the building.
-- If you are new to "Sherlock", there is a new ten disc boxed set of everything at a reduced price.
Available in DVD or Blu-Ray:
[[ASIN:B01IRDD7SS Sherlock - Series 1-4 & Abominable Bride Box Set [DVD] [2016]]]
or
[[ASIN:B01IRDD80A Sherlock - Series 1-4 & Abominable Bride Box Set [Blu-ray] [2016]]]
SPOILER - DON'T READ THIS PARAGRAPH UNTIL AFTER YOU HAVE VIEWED THE FIRST EPISODE:
The second biggest controversy seems to be the death of Mary Watson in Episode One.
The TV writers are getting a bum rap here:
It was Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's idea to kill her off.
Watson met Mary Morstan (not an assassin/secret agent) in 'The Sign of Four' (published 1890).
They married, and for the next several stories Watson moved out of 221B Baker Street.
Readers were not happy.
Conan Doyle noticed.
By the time 'The Norwood Builder' was published (1903), it is revealed that Mary has passed away (off-stage) and Watson has moved back into 221B.
"The six Thatchers"
Die erste Folge ist von allen dreien dieser Staffel die humorvollste, gerade am Anfang. Es wird sich Zeit gelassen, um nach dem dramatischen Finale von Staffel 3 ein wenig Alltag einkehren zu lassen und einen zeitlichen Abstand zu schaffen, bevor das nächste, wirklich große Problem beginnt, was für mich auch durchaus Sinn macht. Dann allerdings nimmt die Handlung zunehmend Fahrt auf, als langsam klar wird, dass Mary von einem Gespenst ihrer Vergangenheit verfolgt wird. Meiner Meinung nach will zwar die knallharte Auftragskillerin einfach nicht richtig zur Figur der Mary passen (was auch an Amanda Abbington liegt, die eine so natürliche Herzlichkeit ausstrahlt, dass es schon extrem schwerfällt, sie sich beim kaltblütigen Morden vorzustellen), davon mal abgesehen kommt das, was von ihrer Vergangenheit enthüllt wird, jedoch plausibel und spannend daher. Das Ende schlägt nochmal einen sehr schönen dramaturgischen Bogen zum Anfang der Folge und ist, zumindest für mich, sehr gelungen.
"The lying detective"
Fand ich sonst bei den anderen Staffeln die mittlere Folge immer am schwächsten, ist sie diesmal mein Favorit. Als ein Fan von A.C. Doyles Geschichten sind die vielen Bezüge und Anspielungen auf diese ein Hauptgrund, warum mir Sherlock immer so viel Spaß gemacht hat. Nun, "Der sterbende Detektiv" ist nicht nur eine meiner Lieblingsgeschichten, sie wird hier meiner Meinung nach auch absolut genial interpretiert. Es wird in dieser Folge teilweise sehr emotional, das muss man mögen. Ich mag es und es gab einige sehr intensive Momente, bei denen ich wirklich Gänsehaut gekriegt habe (und ich war nach der Folge in einem Zustand emotionaler Benommenheit, für den ich sonst eher eine wilde Achterbahnfahrt gebraucht hätte). Das zweite, was man mögen muss, ist, dass sehr viel mit Sherlocks Wahrnehmung und der des Zuschauers gespielt wird. Was tatsächlich passiert und was nur in Sherlocks überspannten Hirn statt findet, ist oft nicht wirklich klar und es gibt einige sehr surreale Szenen (die aber einen plausiblen Grund haben). Manchem mag das zu überdreht sein, für mich trägt es viel zur emotionalen Wucht der Folge bei. Zum Ende gibt es dann noch einen fetten Cliffhanger, der einen noch einmal richtig aus dem Sessel springen lässt.
"The final problem"
Jep... die letzte Folge... die Folge, an der sich die Fangemeinde spaltet, wie an keiner anderen zuvor. Meiner Meinung nach sind sie damit wirklich etwas über's Ziel hinaus geschossen. Ist sie spannend? Oh Gott, ja. Emotional? Jep, nicht zu knapp. Humorvoll? Äh, nein, diesmal nicht. Aber soviel kann man sagen, die Folge wurde so gestaltet, dass sie auch als Serienende funktioniert (da man wohl nicht wusste, ob die beiden Hauptdarsteller bei ihrem jetzigen Hollywood-Ruhm in Zukunft noch Zeit für Sherlock haben - meh! Nach meinem derzeitigen Recherchestand ist eine 5. Staffel zwar nicht ausgeschlossen, aber auch nicht sicher und falls es sie geben sollte, dann auf alle Fälle nicht in näherer Zukunft). Als komplettes Ende der Serie finde ich die Folge sehr unbefriedigend, schon allein, weil es immer noch unbeantwortete Fragen gibt. Falls es allerdings tatsächlich weitergeht, frage ich mich schon, wie sie vom Plot her da noch eins draufsetzen wollen. Ich fand den Handlungsbogen teilweise so auf die Spitze getrieben, dass es für mich tatsächlich am plausibelsten wäre, wenn sich in Staffel 5 (falls es eine gibt) herausstellt, dass sich der Großteil der Handlung (mal wieder) nur in Sherlock's Kopf abspielt. Aber das ist nur meine persönliche Theorie. Dennoch soll jetzt nicht der Eindruck entstehen, die Folge wäre nicht sehenswert. Das ist sie auf alle Fälle, allein schon, weil es diesmal Sherlocks und Mycrofts Vergangenheit ist, die die beiden einholt, was für wirklich packende Momente und Plotwists sorgt. Nur war es mir einfach ein wenig zu dick aufgetragen, aber das muss auch jeder für sich selbst entscheiden. In Anbetracht der letzten Folge und vorallem in Anbetracht dessen, dass wir diese Folge zumindest als vorläufiges Serienfinale sehen müssen, kann ich allerdings nur vier Sterne geben.
The Six Thatchers was, for me at least, the weakest episode, not because of most of the acting but because of the lack of realism when they wrote out a character, that was rather difficult to believe (despite creative licence), and this is what spoilt this episode for me.
The Lying Detective was, for me, one of the strongest episodes out of the entire 4 series and Toby Jones (who played Culverton Smith) shows what an underrated actor he is and his character is one which has definite parallels with another disturbing so-called 'celebrity' and for me, this is what made it almost difficult to watch.
The Final Problem seemed to be a take on a dark and twisted version of The Crystal Maze. This was the introduction to a different Holmes family member, portrayed by (at the time that this was originally shown on the Beeb) Sian Brookes, and which turned out to have played different characters during this series, which was a clever twist in the plot. But the thing that seemed out of place was the writing/direction of Jim Moriaty, whose train sounds and facial expressions, made this episode even weirder! It wasn't needed (and neither was his faux American accent). Besides, all of this, pushed a major character into just being there as a plot device, or was I supposed to believe that this 'Master Criminal' was so easily manipulated, so far as to have a death wish? Had the writers had these two strong characters work together to give Sherlock another case, or cases to solve, then this would have been far more believable and interesting. I'm hoping that the writers flesh out the new Holmes character, instead of just being a part of this series.
All in all, it's a thumbs up from me (apart from Sherlock being Tangoed!) I hope that the game will be back on again at some point soon.