Sherlock: The Abominable Bride (2016) Review

 

Sherlock: The Abominable Bride (2016)

Set in an alternate version of London in 1895, Holmes and Watson investigate the ghost of a suicide victim that has dark implications.

Technicalllllyyy, this is part of Season 3, but this Christmas special was made 2 years after that season and is essentially a standalone movie that is vastly different than the rest of the show, therefore I will treat it as such. Connecting and ending on the same cliffhanger that we got at the end of last season, this special episode harkens back to the original setting of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s sleuthing novels. It connects the surprising reappearance of Moriarty to the unsolved case of a multiple murder/suicide at the hands of a ‘ghost’, which turns out to be a league of women whose goal is to frighten or kill the oppressive men of the time in order to turn power in their favor for the right to vote. They explain away this alternate timeline of Victorian era England, which looks stunning by the way, as part of Sherlock’s mind palace, which played a significant role in last seasons conclusion.

The big difference this time around, aside from the time period, is that this version of Sherlock is very accurate to the novels. Right down to their clothing, Watson’s trademark mustache and cool sidekick demeanor, and even the way Holmes goes about solving crimes, which is less about deductive reasoning and more pure genius detective work. The fact that they managed these massive changes, but still kept the feel and integrity of the show alive is remarkable. The inclusion of Moriarty as a permanent demon in Sherlock’s mind was also a nice touch, even perfectly recreating a scene from the novelized The Final Problem, which sees the two fight to the death at Reichenback Falls that mirrors Sidney Paget’s original illustration to the letter.

The Christmas special though different, has Cumberbatch and Freeman’s portrayals feeling refreshing and as I’ve said, were a joy for someone who read Doyle’s works growing up as they nail the core values of the stories and the characters. Honestly wouldn’t mind getting a whole series of Holmes stories set in this time period with the format, it’s great.

8.4/10