Episode 18: The Reichenbach Fall

“It is with a heavy heart that I take up my pen to write these the last words in which I shall ever record the singular gifts by which my friend Sherlock Holmes was distinguised.”

– The Final Problem

 

On the 15th of January, 2011, we and upwards of 8million other people in the UK (and beyond) were staring at out television, tissues and wine in hand. It is the night of The Reichenbach Fall and The Final Problem. “My best friend, Sherlock Holmes, is dead…” a broken John Watson reveals to his therapist, and we start our emotional roller coaster of the Sherlock Series 2 finale.

Babes Curly, Ardy, Jenn, Turk, Amy, Maria, and Marie mull over Reichenbach. We console, we laugh, we theorize, and we declare our everlasting love for Molly Hooper. Why did Mycroft do what he did? Did Sherlock really believe he was going to die? We discuss so much and with such passion because this is the show that started off this podcast. So we discuss the brilliant directing and editing and performances, as well as the larger impact, and how we’ve all been hit by an emotional bus of crying and heartbreak.

How did he do it? Moriarty in Sherlock’s clothes? Well places rubbish truck? Rhodedendrun a la Guy Ritchie? Magical unicorn? We discuss our theories, our hopes for The Empty House, and our continual heartbreak over this amazing piece of television.

In all seriousness, this is what acting and storytelling is about. Sherlock is the epitome of what television should be, what art should be. Benedict Cumberbatch, Martin Freeman, Andrew Scott, and everyone involved in this production deserve every award possible. Thank you Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat for an amazing series, and thank you Steve Thompson for Reichenbach.