Sherlock: The Lying Detective (2017) - Written Review

Before starting this review, I want to say that I am not holding the ending to The Lying Detective as part of my conclusion whatsoever. It's unfair to pass judgement on a plot twist at the end of an episode that is more of a tease to next week's than it is an intrinsic part of this particular story.

The Lying Detective picks up not long after the events of The Six Thatchers with a depressed John Watson seeing his wife everywhere he looks - a combination of grief and guilt physically manifested in his subconscious. He and Sherlock haven't spoken in some time, until Mrs Hudson drives up to his Therapist's door in a flashy car with Sherlock in the boot and Molly on her way. Sherlock is high on pretty much everything, and whilst being completely off his face he's picked up a case involving Culverton Smith's apparent murder of someone.

Now, The Lying Detective is the sort of episode I have to think twice about. It's a Steven Moffat script, and that usually that means he's covered his poor writing up with fan service and plenty to please to distract from the otherwise obvious problems. The way Sherlock has this big build-up to his revelation that Culverton Smith would kill "anyone" is admittedly clever in a sense, but the build-up is so extensive that I'm not sure it's worth the pay off. Seeing Sherlock completely lose it over someone like this is really interesting to watch, and the idea that Sherlock is pushed to such extremities to help John by Mary is really engaging. The way the idea of The Dying Detective short story being manipulated into a resolution to unresolved conflict between our two leads is excellent. I have to admit though that the episode didn't have quite the resolution I had hoped for. Culverton Smith as a villain didn't get the resolution I was looking for, especially given how extensive his defence had been to Sherlock's accusations.

Speaking of Culverton Smith, Toby Jones was stunning in the role, completely transforming himself into this repulsive northern entrepreneur everyone loves for reasons that on the face of it seem ridiculous, but given how true to life Smith is as a character, he is completely believable. He's easily Sherlock's best villain since Moriarty, but I can't help but feel the similarities between him and Magnussen from Series 3 are a little too striking. The way Sherlock talks about the two is almost identical, which rids each of their unique personality and threat.

That said, the way the episode crafted such long, tense scenes between Sherlock, John and Culverton was brilliant. The tension was present throughout with the constant worry that maybe Sherlock is wrong, maybe he has been too fixated on one man, but Culverton Smith is so repulsive that you want him to be caught out as the true villain. What's truly brilliant though is that Moffat doesn't go for one option or the other. Sherlock is far too fixated on the one man, and is completely losing it, but Culverton Smith is just as evil as first suspected.

The balance of both dramas is really well-handled by Moffat, making the ultimate resolution where Culverton Smith's murders are left ignored seem very anti-climactic.

However, the structure of The Lying Detective with the zany, schizophrenic nature of previous episodes opted out for longer scenes strung together with this narrative worked extraordinarily well. When he actually slows down, Moffat can write some excellent pieces of television, and if Doctor Who's Heaven Sent didn't prove this, The Lying Detective certainly will. Along the way they almost justify John's sub-plot from The Six Thatchers.

As always, the direction and cinematography were excellent throughout the episode, and the stylistic elements actually worked in the story's favour. There was actual detective work in the episode that all pieced together a huge mystery, and any questions left unanswered were clearly setting up next week's instalment. Once again, I'm letting this episode stand on its own two feet, but it's safe to say that I am dreading the series finale. Moffat is awful when it comes to resolutions, but here's hoping that The Final Problem fixes this.

Overall, The Lying Detective is an extraordinary episode of Sherlock that balances style with substance. Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman are at the top of their game in a brilliant script from Moffat that features one of the show's best villains to date with Toby Jones delivering a masterful performance. The ending is a little sketchy for my liking, but what comes before is something very different, very interesting and consistently engaging. A definite step-up from last week. 8/10