Warning:
spoiler-filled rant ahead.
And…apparently
the game is not on. It’s tradition that the middle episode of each season of Sherlock will be the weakest, but The Sign of Three is possibly my least
favorite episode of all three season so far. The tragedy is, I know Steve Thompson – the writer
– can do better. While season one’s The
Blind Banker was corny, season two's finale The Reichenbach Fall was excellent.
But
let’s get down to it: the first thirty minutes are great. We’re thrown back
into the swing of things, as Sherlock starts to deal with the idea of life
without single John. “It changes people, marriage,” says Mrs. Hudson, widow of a double-murderer. The wedding itself starts
about twenty minutes in—naturally we completely skip any proceedings inside the
church and fast-forward to the reception. A group of amusing flashbacks show
Sherlock organizing the wedding, warning off Mary’s ex-boyfriend and having a
brief Iron-Man-3-esque personal Short Round. Sherlock has a conversation with
Mycroft which, once again, emphasizes how much the wedding is going to change
the Watson-Holmes relationship.
Then
comes the best man’s speech, which I expected to last about five, maybe ten,
minutes. My first mistake.
