FINALLY. THE LONG-ANTICIPATED FOURTH SEASON OF MY FAVOURITE SHOW IS HERE.

I watched episodes 1 and 2 last night, and I personally thought episode 2 was better. More on that later.

The first episode, The Six Thatchers, was nothing short of amazing. It was an unforgettable, heart-wrenching opening to a new season. It was even a little creepy, with the shots of the broken busts and the skulls. Quite macabre, if you ask me. I only have one teeny tiny complaint about season 4’s first episode:

IT WAS EMOTIONAL. TOO EMOTIONAL.

What happened to the cold, hard logic of my favourite high-functioning sociopath? I wish there had been more detective and case-busting, (hahah) and I felt that The Six Thatchers had more emotional elements to it than necessary. I wanted more of Sherlock’s fascinating mind palace. I wanted to hear him voice his observations more often. (I don’t think John would agree.) I wanted Sherlock to be the detective I love so much. But instead…

*spoilers ahead*

The scene with the most emotional impact was of course, Mary’s killing blow. I had to literally pause for a second to catch my breath and then let out a small scream of frustration! WHY?! WHYYYYYY??!! Oh, my dear Watson, my heart breaks for you. The feels are still pounding in waves over me:

I wanted to slap Sherlock for goading Vivienne into using her pistol. Ugh, Sherlock, I love you and your brilliant mind, but did you have to do that? Especially when Mary said in that voice and tone, “Sherlock,” like three times! Even though I love it when Sherlock unleashes his observational powers, sometimes I do sympathize with John and his irritation with Sherlock’s arrogance and tendency to show off.

So with a heavy heart, I watched the second episode and I literally want to SCREAM MY LUNGS OUT because WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT ENDING?!  You can’t seriously expect me to wait a whole entire week for the finale. I’m not sure I’ll live that long, truthfully, not with this enormous storm of feels brewing ominously in my brain.

The second episode, The Lying Detective, took a dark turn towards a “living, breathing coagulation of human evil” in the form of its villain, Culverton Smith (Toby Jones). The best word I can use to describe Smith is creepy. His ease in the morgue with cadavers was morbid. The fact that he killed people in a hospital that he loved and supported…well, that was a nice touch to his macabre agenda. Even his toothy smile was downright bone-chilling. *shudders* However, because Smith was so convincingly portrayed as a complete psycho, I couldn’t take my eyes off the TV screen. He makes Moriarty look tame.

And I just don’t know about that cheesy “cereal killer” pun. I just don’t know. What I do know is that I won’t be making that joke again. Ever.

I’m also not entirely convinced that Sherlock didn’t recognize his own sister, Eurus. The only explanations that make sense to me are 1) He was plotting with his sister the whole time, which explains why he wasn’t at all surprised to see her with Watson because he’d planned it. You’d think that after not seeing his sister in years that he’d express some kind of reaction. Or 2) Sherlock usually fixates himself on noticing small details about a person, not necessarily his/her face alone. So maybe, just maybe, that’s why he didn’t recognize her face.

But to think that all this time, I thought the third Holmes sibling was a brother named Sherrinford! I had my suspicions that the drug addict Sherlock previously found in a drug den was the third Holmes brother, because Billy (is that his name?) has some pretty solid observational skills, reminiscent of Sherlock and Mycroft’s own abilities. Additionally, Mycroft made it sound like he and Sherlock had another brother when Mycroft mentioned previously in another season that “[he’s] not prone to outbursts of brotherly compassion. You know what happened to the other one.”

The Lying Detective raises so many questions in my head. Why and how did Sherlock predict that Molly, Watson, and Smith would end up at Eurus’ place? I’m calling bullshit on his “two weeks” prediction. What if he arranged the whole thing with his sister? Because how could Sherlock, observational mastermind, not notice his own sister?! Where does Sherrinford (Mycroft’s post-it note: “Call Sherrinford, 2 pm”) factor into all of this? And one more question: HOW DID EURUS KNOW ABOUT FAITH SMITH AND WHAT SHE WROTE DOWN BEFORE HER FATHER ERASED HER MEMORY?

My favourite part in all of season 4 so far has to be when Mrs. Hudson shows up, speeding in a wicked beautiful Aston Martin with Sherlock handcuffed in the trunk and a police officer on her tail. And then…

Mrs. Hudson: (to John Watson) “If you ever need anything, ANYTHING, just ask.”

Watson: //scheming face// “Can I borrow your car…sometimes?”

Mrs. Hudson: *purses lips and frowns* “No.”

Watson: *shoots her with a perplexed look*

But then some time later, when Watson has to race to the hospital to save Sherlock…

Mrs. Hudson: *tosses keys to Watson*

Watson: //confused face//

Mrs. Hudson: “CAR”

I laughed until my eyes leaked tears and my cheeks hurt! Mrs. Hudson was so full of surprises, and I’m not even going to mention what she did to get Sherlock into the trunk of her Aston Martin. I can’t wait to see what role she plays in season 4’s finale.

I really hope that Sherlock will be renewed for a fifth season because I can’t seem to ever get enough of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s iconic detective. Benedict Cumberbatch is an insanely talented actor (I was amazed at the scene where he runs around trashing his apartment like a madman and waving his gun at photos of Culverton Smith) and so far, his stellar performances in these two new episodes have me convinced that the season finale will be far darker and action-packed than anything I’ve seen before in previous episodes and seasons.

So tell me, what are your thoughts on the new season of Sherlock?

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The Irene Adler (she is briefly mentioned in episode 2!) necklace and 221B Baker Street cuff bracelet featured in this post were both made by Julie from Authored Adornments. You can use code BOOKSHOP upon checkout to receive 10% off your order from her etsy shop!