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The Spectre at the Feast: Only a Fool Underestimates Mycroft Holmes

Gatiss and Co. are so damn devious. I was so caught up in admiring (and laughing at) Mycroft in his workout attire that I forgot to pay attention to what Sherlock and Mycroft were actually saying in the phone call scene during the reception.

Sherlock has just told Mary to stop smiling, to which she responds “It’s my wedding day.” before gagging over the awful wine. And then suddenly the camera switches scenes, gradually revealing Mycroft on the treadmill and the call from Sherlock. Here’s a portion of that conversation (based on the transcripts by Ariane DeVere) that I find particularly interesting (when not distracted by Mark Gatiss’s legs):

SHERLOCK: I need your answer, Mycroft, as a matter of urgency. MYCROFT: “Answer”? SHERLOCK: Even at the eleventh hour it’s not too late, you know. MYCROFT: Oh, Lord. SHERLOCK: Cars can be ordered, private jets commandeered. MYCROFT: Today. It’s today, isn’t it? No, Sherlock, I will not be coming to the “night do”, as you so poetically put it. SHERLOCK : What a shame. Mary and John will be extremely d… MYCROFT: … delighted not to have me hanging around. SHERLOCK: Oh, I don’t know. There should always be a spectre at the feast. MYCROFT : So, this is it, then. The big day. I suppose I’ll be seeing a lot more of you from now on.

Is something more being communicated here beyond the obvious?

Why the hell did Sherlock contact Mycroft? Is he really calling his annoying, smothering older brother to join him for moral support in giving a best man speech? Really? When have we ever seen Sherlock turn to Mycroft for moral support on something that does not involve major criminals, access to top secret government facilities, or threats to the British government?

Would Mycroft really need to commandeer multiple private cars and jets to get to a wedding fairly close to London? Perhaps Sherlock is just using hyperbole and pointing out that getting to the wedding at the last minute wouldn’t take Mycroft much effort. Perhaps he really thinks Mycroft is far from the wedding site (which is presumably close enough to London that Sherlock was able to leave Baker Street the same morning in time for a noon ceremony) and would require a jet to get to the wedding. Or perhaps Sherlock is making an indirect comment about Mycroft’s ability to mobilize a large operation that involves multiple cars and jets.

Why would Mycroft be a spectre at John’s and Mary’s feast? John and Mycroft aren’t pals, but John does call on Mycroft when he thinks Sherlock is in trouble and is so completely unintimidated by Mycroft that it is hard to see how he would find Mycroft’s presence at his wedding a downer or threat. And if he did, why on earth would Sherlock insist that Mycroft be there when he has done so much else to ensure John’s wedding goes off without a hitch (serviette folding, speech-planning, etc.). Perhaps Sherlock is simply mocking Mycroft for being a creepy guy (he is kind of) and a bit of a wet blanket. Still, why would he think Mycroft would even consider coming to this night-do?

This leads me to Mary. She might be the one to not like having Mycroft around. She might have good reason to fear Mycroft (You always know) Holmes who has been keeping a weather eye on John these past two years, but who never seems to be around Sherlock when Mary is also around. In fact, we do not see Mycroft and Mary in the same context until Christmas (well after she has shot Sherlock) where they still fail to interact with each other, and where Mummy Holmes makes a threat against whomever put a bullet in her boy. This is all rather interesting. If we’ve learned anything from series 2, it’s that Mycroft is not someone to underestimate and that with his help, Sherlock was able to bring down Moriarty almost too easily by leaking the information necessary to lull him into a false sense of security. It was a long game, though, and we may be seeing a similarly long game here, especially now that Mary has a hostage or two of her own.

And we have also learned that when Sherlock doesn’t listen to Mycroft, screw-ups happen (remember Bond Air). While Sherlock seemed taken aback over discovering Mary in Magnussen’s suite, this did come after Mycroft warned him not to get involved. It’s entirely possible that Mycroft knew far more about Mary and let Sherlock in on only a portion of it with Sherlock stumbling across the rest. Or it’s possible Sherlock knows a lot more about Mary than he’s revealed to us (and John). That moment of deduction just before he is shot may have merely been for Mary's benefit - to let her know a bit of what he knows as a bid for her cooperation without giving away that he knows so much more.

Regardless, based on what we’ve learned about Mycroft’s involvement in the fall, his interactions in series 3 warrant a careful look. And Mary might want to watch herself around that spectre who stayed away from her wedding.

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