This episode had the perfect combination of a suspenseful murder mystery juxtaposed with a delightful series of interactions between Watson and Holmes. Joan was thrown for a loop when, during an investigation of a case that turned out to be an accidental death, she and Holmes ran into a detective hunting an apparent copycat killer with the M.O. of biting the victims. We got some more understanding of Watson's past life as a doctor and the moral quandaries that came with the position and still trouble her. Meanwhile, she and Holmes brilliantly cracked the case while he counseled her on her guilty conscience.
Holmes told Watson they had a chance to go on a shipwreck treasure hunt via Mycroft's connections, but he rapidly determined that this was not an option as some serious matter was rooting Watson to the spot. The way Holmes asked, "where did you disappear to?" had an insightful intimacy and a gentle comfort to it that really reinforced our understanding of the closeness between Sherlock and Holmes. He jumped right into an enthusiastic analysis of the Colville case, given that it provided the dual satisfaction of helping Joan find resolution and solving a crime so maddeningly complex that it begged for his detecting genius.
After Fleming admits that he himself is not quite sure whether he intentionally allowed Colville to die, and once we learned that Colville was indeed guilty (though the current killer was his mother, trying to exonerate him to win a massive lawsuit), Joan seemed tossed back to square one, which might have frustrated her considerably, given her hatred of feeling unresolved. Fleming had no problem living guilt-free with a massive grey area like that looming in his past, but Watson could never live like that. It's also so interesting that her past identity as a doctor, something so integral to who she was and is as a person, is one of the most glaringly unresolved things in her life. Equally so, it's ironic that someone almost flawlessly good left the profession feeling responsible for a patient's death. Holmes has spent a considerable amount of time and kind effort trying to make Joan see that she doesn't have to hold herself responsible for unpreventable accidents, much less the actions of others. However, in this case, the best thing he could do for her was simply to clarify the basis of her thoughts as she stood over Colville all those years ago:
Watson: "I do know that I was standing over him thinking about justice. That's not what doctors do."
Holmes: "Sounds like more of a consulting detective."
I also really enjoyed the many funny and adorable moments between Holmes and Watson in this episode, such as the turtle fashion show (Ms. Hudson knitted Clyde turtle cozies!), Holmes tossing a crumpled paper at Watson to wake her up, and the ridiculous acts Holmes had to put on in order to obtain information from his hacker frenemies. Those little moments of sweetness, like Holmes leaving a dressed-up Clyde on Watson's bed because it would be a pleasant thing to wake up to, are part and parcel to this subtle, special relationship and what it's come to mean to the show as a whole. Also, Holmes having to get punched in the arm by multiple strangers, and then having to don a purple prom dress and perform the Frozen soundtrack...pure comic gold!
I thought this was, by a long shot, one of the best episodes of Season 2. What did you think of this week's Elementary? Share your thoughts in the comments!
