and they seem to have avoided any Pink Panther references … pity…

That final montage seemed almost to be the writer's razzberry to their critics … all that was missing was the "mission impossible" theme … or maybe charlies' angels.

But Sherlock kept adding characters … significant characters … a wife and child for John, a sister he had traumatically "forgotten" .. and would not let the dead be dead … like some strange Sherlock Holmes as Ebenezer Scrooge and the three nightmares of a Christmas Carol.

I think that is part of the problem — I think most of us actively "look forward" to our meager portion of Sherlock each year … but I don't think that explains the disappointment with this season … many many forgave, even relished Season 3 … even those who were "iffy" had immense hope that it would return to form and…

I didn't realize that show was still being made (much less broadcast) … I thought of it as circa and similar to Monarch of the Glen … hence, a serious "burn" call-out to shows who now seem incredibly dated … my bad.
(looks likely only the first 2 seasons were broadcast in the USA .. afaict … 1998, 1999 I think I…

guardian: ""Sherlock has become a parody of himself. It’s time for him to become Jonathan Creek again.""

The story was again marred by "superhero" characters with some suggestion of even supernatural or other-realm (SCI-FI versus fantasy universe) "gifts" … the manipulatively repeatedly amped-up demanded "suspension of disbelief" became exhausting as the supernatural powers of Euros were "revealed" as the story…

My favorite show of recent memory — short seasons of 1/2 hour episodes — on nexflix

the way over the top visual clutter and then the endless verbal clutter tried my patience … I could marvel at how extraordinarily well-controlled Cumberbatch's out-of control performance was and I still wanted him to just.stop.it. … I realize I am a minority of one … he is — absolutely— a marvelous actor to watch but…

sherlock kissed her ….

The Mary-John marriage relationship was lopsided … I always had to remind myself that Sherlock was "dead" when they got together, because it seemed that Sherlock was the big attraction for Mary …. When John "gallantly" refused to know about her past, he became her subordinate … how their marriage would survive her…

I complained for years that Law & Order was actually "murder of the week" …almost all by guns, which I felt contributed to the American worldview of the need to "carry" and that 'murder' was a one-size-fits-all solution to myriad problems … it's really too bad how murder and crimes against women saturate our airwaves…

What also has been lost is Sherlock as "black sheep" of the family, not quite disowned, but almost … which was part of Watson's caretaking inclination of the "I will save this genius from himself" variety.
Holmes lived in semi-threadbare squalor (because of his "mental illness" and inattention to comfort, beyond…

yes, it's worth watching for its two leads and its "ambitions" alone … it may be terribly frustrating but obviously they are trying really really hard (even if it's overdone and overstuffed) …

in the canon, private citizens (many well connected and/or wealthy) and public servants (on the down-low) came to Sherlock with their problems which (like Christie's detectives) ranged from national importance to a missing cooks or fiancees. Mycroft and the "deep state" drives too many of these episodes (can't call…

yes, the secret cache behind the brick … on one hand she's "retired' and on the other hand she has a regular Santa's workshop of enablers … and "terrorism" meaning that someone traveling multiple legs one-way, paying on cash becomes suspect … see also finger prints and iris scans … I kept thinking she'd do best to…

See also, speaking audibly in full sentences until the victim bleeds out and dies with scarcely a moan or a twitch despite a gaping abdominal wound …
Since "being able to talk" means significant brain function, we have to assume that the heart was a'pumpin' so the blood would be a gushing despite Watsons' (small hands)…

it's difficult, particularly when you have characters in disguise and random one-off / fleeting characters thrown into the mix … spent a lot of time wondering if I was supposed to recognize whomever just appeared …
I realized that all this necessary rewatching was indicative — not of cleverness — but bad writing and…

I suspect your comment should have spoiler tags … I'm guessing that will be revealed next week.

how refreshing it might have been if they had decided to not have children … now the motherless child will be a "thing" lurking in the background, adding to the angst … ughhhh. it all begins to feel obligatory, like acting "surprised" and "saddened" when an ill-matched pair announce their divorce …