#elementarywriterswtf?

[liunaticfringe]

Sorta Short Review of Elementary 4x10 Alma Matters. Grade -- F

The good: Uh... LL’s interrogation of SH in the first scene. Her sigh of exasperation at the very end.

The bad and the ugly: Suffice it to say, it had all the worst traits of the worst episodes. To whit:

1. Guest star is the murderer. He is a white male. He is rich and corporate, as is his motive. There is nothing surprising about any aspect of this story.

2. JW is shunted off her own investigation into Morland’s shooting into a lame b-story, and barely even gets screen time with that.

3. The lame b-story ends with SH coming up with some obscure, off-screen deduction that is revealed in a tedious expo dump.

4. Tho the acting of Noble/Miller is stellar as always -- their story made little sense and revealed little about anything.

I mean, supposedly, Morland and Sherlock have agreed to try and repair their relationship since they “partnered up” in a prior episode, but we have seen not one example of that onscreen. So this whole stay/leave/go/stay thing is all just lip service.

Secondly, is this really what the writers brought Morland back for? Could SH & JW have figured out the shooting thing so easily? I would’ve much preferred if Morland were leading them both down the wrong path for some other nefarious reason. I would even more prefer it if he was somehow involved in some dark Moriarty-related plot.

5. The lame b-story would’ve been so much better if -- as Genevieve Valentine at AV Club, so wisely noted -- Joan had much more of an emotional reaction to it, considering her father is a street person, much like those being taken advantage of. I know we’ve all said this a million times before, but you can’t just give your co-lead a homeless, schizophrenic father and never mention it again. It’s not fair to your actors or your viewers. You suck, Elementary writers.

[liunaticfringe]

Short (Ha! Not Bloody Likely) Review of Elementary 3x24, A Controlled Descent. Grade: D

The good: The acting. Watson pretty much solves crime/finds Alfredo. The story was blessedly easy to follow until falling completely apart at the end, the plot moved fairly well, there were strong stakes, and plenty of subtext -- the rich junkie, a stand in for Sherlock, is no better than the gutter dwellers; people as seemingly “cured” as Alfredo do fall off the wagon and get back on in an endless cycle.

The bad/ugly: 

That decision itself to kick Sherlock off the wagon works fine for me. My beef is the way in which it was executed.

A. I do not buy for one millisecond that after spending two days with Oscar berating, hounding and manipulating him, that the strong-willed, stubborn Sherlock would immediately then turn around and give Oscar the satisfaction of getting exactly what he wanted and start shooting up.

B. Didn’t Doherty hint at one point that Moriarty might be involved in this somehow? I took that to mean that she was behind the entire plot and just using Oscar to throw Sherlock off balance and weaken him, so she could either attack or swoop in and save him. Now, I’m thinking that Moriarty is the one who called the dad. Big f-ing whoop.

B. So Oscar found his sister dead and THEN concocted this whole plot? HUH? 

Wouldn’t Sherlock finding a dead junkie, in such a sad and gruesome state, want to make Sherlock LIVE and not risk death again in such a stupid way? If Oscar really wanted to drive Sherlock over the edge, why not put Joan in jeopardy or least trick him into thinking she was.

C. The sequence of events in the final half of the final act is STILL mightily unclear.

My first thought on the roof was -- WTF is going on? Is Oscar dead? Did Sherlock use or not? 

I mean, maybe Sherlock realizes he’s killed Oscar (he’s done what he warned Kitty against) and is going to face legal trouble and the end of his career because of it, and that’s why he’s morose on the roof and why Dad is coming. 

But I guess we’re supposed to assume he’s used because he’s kinda glassy eyed and not wearing his shirt buttoned up to the top? But why would he be home at all if he’d relapsed? Wouldn’t he be ashamed and hiding from Watson?

Anyway, the ONLY way I might buy that this incident has caused him to relapse is if he realized on the train tracks that he’s killed Oscar and is so disgusted with himself for losing control that way, that he decides to use. 

Otherwise, sorry. Makes no story sense for Alfredo to be rescued and for him to then go off and shoot up.

E.  Why must every major emotional moment in the lives of these characters happen offscreen? THREE F-ING DAYS have passed??? Excuse me?

First, we're missing MONTHS at the beginning of Season 3. WTH happened when Joan found that note? How did she pick herself up and decide to go on with the business? What the hell was Sherlock doing in London with MI-6? Was he hoping to help Mycroft? We still know none of this.

Then, we don’t get to see anything between Andrew lying gasping for breath on the ground and a week later after he’s dead and buried and they’ve already caught the f-ing killer.

Now, Sherlock walks off into a tunnel, and three days later he’s sitting on the roof, with Joan calmly asking him if he’s ready to talk?? Can you imagine how devastated and disappointed she would be when she sees him for the first time after he’s relapsed? But also outwardly matter-of-fact, cause this is what junkies do? I am absolutely furious with these writers/producers for not allowing us to experience that with her.

I am really going to ramp up this Joan Watson Deserves More campaign. Stay tuned.

[liunaticfringe]

Short (Not so much) Review of Elementary -- Episode 3x23 Absconded. Grade: C-

The good: It’s spring in New York! Which means that Watson can wear colors other than grey and black! Thus, LL looked even more gorgeous than usual, if that’s at all possible. Watson/Gregson scenes were v. well acted. Also, no interrogating of suspects in boring old offices! Yay for locations! It really gives the show a much needed jolt of color and energy.

The bad: I was all excited when Watson got her very own case from Gregson (I’m still JoanCap-ping y’all) and then nothing happened!! The handwriting thing made ZERO sense. You can’t set up something like that and then not follow through, and at least let Watson do some active surveillance or something. How dangerous/exciting/interesting would’ve it have been to have Joan snooping around at another precinct? And after all that buildup, we still didn’t even get to meet this Vescey woman!

And OMFG. This case ... What in the living hell? First of all, the minute Sutton Foster shows up on screen you know she did it. Plus, her talents were absolutely wasted in this role.

Secondly, this plot made so little sense and yet, as usual, required so much deadly boring exposition. The motive for any/all of the crimes was never made clear. And then there’s the Sherlock trope: “I know who the murderer is!” Congrats. We knew it the minute Sutton Foster’s name hit the credits.

And again, there were no emotional stakes for anyone in this case. How easy would it’ve been to have Sherlock’s personal hives be threatened or even partly destroyed? Or for Keck or whoever to have been his bee supplier/personal friend? How would he and Watson have reacted to the collapse of his hive? Think maybe Watson may’ve been more devastated by it than he would be, and how maybe his non-reaction would concern her? It also would’ve provided plenty of narrative drive to want to find the perpetrator. TV 101, people! New showrunner needed, people!!

The ugly: Instead of a clear, building tension as we approach the finale, we get a lazy crime of the week trope, with some little throwaway line at the end about Gregson’s career. Really? Who cares? Certainly not Sherlock.

Whatever we all felt about last year’s road to the finale (Joancroft), it was at least chock full of stakes and emotion for everyone involved and sustained it through at least three episodes. I mean, couldn’t you’ve at least aired the Armando episode here, so you’d have some sort of leadup to the finale?

And to add insult to injury, no Clive!! And no one will give Watson a damn hug! SHEESH! Lucy Liu and Joan Watson deserve better and so does the audience!

[liunaticfringe]

Short (Relatively) Review of Elementary 3x22 “The Best Way Out Is Always Through” Grade: C-

The good: Joan snark, always welcome. The Stanley Cup cameo was interesting and amusing. The bra scene. Watson/Sherlock scenes in Act I. Some very good lines: “We get Netflix.” “I also have to replace your toothbrush.” “The love of my life is a homicidal maniac.”

The bad: The crime story started out strong and seriously petered out into boring/business/politics/bs. The murderer was a big who-cares. STAKES, people! We are in desperate need of stakes.

The ugly: Wish I’d thought of this new drinking game -- every time Holmes/Watson/Bell etc. sit in an office and talk to someone at a desk, take a shot. Cause then I’d’ve been too drunk to care. Please, lord, have them Interrupt/interrogate suspects while they are in the act of doing something. Anything! Eating, jogging, shopping, screwing. ANYTHING that adds movement and visual interest.  SHOW, DON’T TELL. TV 101.

And as always, where in the living hell was Watson?? She was in Act 1, and those scenes between she and Sherlock popped, as always. So why then shuttle her off to the side once things get going? I actually was jonesing for a wake-up, even tho I think they’ve been overused.

Plus, she’s the one closest to Marcus, so couldn’t she have been involved in at least one of those heart-to-hearts? And did anyone else notice the awkward cut at the car, when Joan says to Marcus, “I have to talk to you about something?” Then cut to his lunch? SCENE MISSING. Lots of Watson scenes missing. As always. SIGH.

[liunaticfringe]

Joan Watson Deserves Better

From Rob Doherty’s interview with EW re: the finale:

“But what about as Sherlock’s sobriety is threatened? How will Joan feel about that? “It’s hard to comment because her concern about such things will really be on display as we start season 4. You’re not going to see too much of that as we wrap up the season. A lot of what Sherlock is going through in the final episode, Joan isn’t aware of it. She doesn’t really understand the stakes of Sherlock’s journey in the finale.” Rob Doherty, EW.com

Well, that does not bode well. At all. He’s basically saying that she’s going to be missing in action and on the sidelines, as per usual.

On the bright side, he’s talking about Season 4, which means that he’s been assured by the network that there will be a Season 4.

“What’s the state of Watson and Holmes’ partnership?

“Coming into these last few episodes, the partnership is in a good place. Sherlock is sympathetic to everything that Joan has gone through this year. He’s being respectful of her space and the time that she needs to deal with how Andrew (Raza Jaffrey) died, but he can be a support system as needed. He has helped Joan get to a better and healthier place.”

Oh, really? I don’t recall her dealing with the emotional ramifications of Andrew’s death very much at all, certainly not on screen. Sherlock and she talking about “the tragedy” in a couple b-story scenes, with Joan saying she’s handling it, is nothing but lip service. 

We’ve never seen her do anything to show us she misses the guy, we’ve never seen her go to his grave, we’ve never seen her talk to anyone about it -- not even her mother, much less fully explore it with Sherlock. 

And Joan “being in a better and healthier” place is not only BORING as all get out, but it seriously shortchanges character and actress.

[liunaticfringe]

Shortish Review of Elementary 3x20 “A Stitch in Time” Grade: D

The good: LL got to light the world up with her smile and do a little detecting. I may also have noticed a slight whiff of a feminist message (Joan stands up for fellow female who may or may not deserve it), tho I probably was just grasping for anything interesting by that point. And ummmm.... I really loved the graphic dress with the orange skirt in the final scene? 

The bad and the ugly: Pretty much everything else. By this point in the season, the writers are tired and grasping for ideas to fill holes before the finale. But seriously, this was a giant step back storywise and relationship wise. Reminded me of the doldrums of mid-season two. 

Episode template: Sherlock annoys Joan. Joan complains about it. A petulant and intrusive Sherlock pulls on her short leash and interferes with whatever piddly thing she’s got going on her own. Joan chafes. Sherlock turns out to be right. Joan says, thanks for not saying I told you so. SHEESH!!

And the crime story. SIGH. Really? More big business financial gobbledygook? A waste of Eric Bogosian. I would’ve loved to see them really go after cults/Scientology for the whole story. But again, this is what you get from an all-male writing staff (save one poor junior scribe).

And Sherlock’s physical grabbing on to Mason? I kinda read it as a slap in the face to Watson: You abandoned me, so this is my guy, and he gets rewarded for it with a solid grasp, the physical contact Joan longs for from him and is always denied. I did like Joan’s snarky reaction to it. Poor casting tho, that “high-school” kid looks 30 if he’s a day.

The actress playing Hannah Gregson is horrible. Big casting mistake there too. I also don’t buy for a second that she would’ve come clean with Daddy re: Joan solving the case.

BUT, I do think this is a set-up for the finale. Either Hannah f-cks up big time and puts them all in jeopardy, or she gets killed and/or we get a payoff to Joan’s suspicions that the old-boy network of the NYPD has devalued Hannah and made it impossible for her to succeed. Joan then teams with Hannah to solve case and prove Sherlock, Gregson and all the guys with guns and penises are sexist pigs who deserve to be taken down a notch. Ha! Why do I so doubt that last bit will ever happen?

[liunaticfringe]

Short (Truly) Review of Elementary 3x16 "For All You Know" Grade: B

The Good -- The acting. Guest stars too; Solid story with clear emotional stakes; Watson steps up and contributes/uncovers key information to solve the case; I also admire at least this about the writing -- Holmes and Watson have very intelligent, believable conversations and really listen to each other.

The bad -- Might've been interesting to see a flashback. Show, don't tell.

The ugly -- If one more of these Holmes/Watson intelligent, believable conversations is interrupted by a phone call or a doorbell -- I swear to G-d I will turn it into a drinking game that will and should embarrass the hell out of the writing staff. 

[liunaticfringe]

Post on CBS.com Elementary Page Deleted!

I posted something akin to the following on "The Female of the Species" video page at CBS.com a few days ago, come to find it's been completely excised, aka CENSORED. It went something like this...

"The production values, acting and directing continue to be stellar. But the writing??

Why does everything important to these characters happen off screen?! How could you just completely skip over the moment Joan realizes Andrew can’t be revived? And her seeing Sherlock for the first time after that? And Andrew’s funeral? And her realization that she’s now been responsible for the deaths of TWO innocent people (her patient, Andrew)?

Not to mention — how can you not show the investigation that led her (and presumably Sherlock) to the assassin and her hemlock plants? (Pretty convenient for a trained killer to keep, but okay) And Watson's decision to then confront March tho she knows it’s pretty much a fool’s errand? And then March basically admits that she did it and somehow knew Joan and Andrew were breaking up? HOW? WTF? Seriously?? Where is THAT episode? Cause that’s the one I really wanted to see.

Alternately, what I really wanted to see was Joan feeling terrible/guilty, but then she discovers that Andrew was the real target, either through some nefarious dealings in Scanda-bloody-navia or his family or even Moriarty.  When she realizes that the crime actually had nothing to do with her, she goes out and catches Andrew’s killer. That leads her to the realization that she is a detective for reals, and she moves back to the brownstone.

Watson should be Holmes’ equal in every way — her emotional intelligence, physical fortitude and medical knowledge should be as vital to solving the case as is Holmes’ encyclopedic knowledge and hyper-developed senses. That's canon, isn't it?"