With Sherlock coming to an end after three episodes, the questions have been asked: where are the convincing villains?
The first episode was largely about the rekindling of the Sherlock-Watson relationship, and ultimately hitched to a stop-the-bomb plot with an enemy of impressively poor ability to construct a bomb. The second episode, by contrast, was almost a stand-up comedy show with a Cluedo-style pay-off where the photographer did it.
This one is more convincing, with the steely Charles Augustus Magnussen (Lars Mikkelsen) wandering into the field of play. With basis in real-life media personalities, serial blackmailers and Bond villains, there's a lot more conviction in they enemy, and somebody to counterpoint its excellent titular sleuth (Benedict Cumberbatch) and associate (Martin Freeman).
But this is not the only enemy at play, and a surprise one thrown into the mix to disrupt the equilibrium set up here. It also works out the intricate long game that has been played by the scriptwriters.
We begin with the appearance that, for inspiration, the BBC scriptwriters have been watching the news in preparation for this one. The opening sequence is an eerie satirical rendition of the 2011 meeting between Rupert Murdoch and the MP's Home Affairs Select Committee, with the magnate Magnussen conducting an impressive run-through on how to take out the people opposite the table.
But it then follows itself on with the further continuation of the main target of the hearing with his attempts to stalk the MPs involved.
This is some of the sinister satirical bite the writers are more capable of, and had been missing at times from the other episodes earlier in this season when they were busy having Sherlock on the piss... although that was amusing in fairness.
The amusing quips and occasional side-lines appear here and there, but aren't as full-on. This time, however, there is a more coherent and solid plot to back them up.
Our introduction to Sherlock sees him hiding out in a drug den after Watson and his wife Mary (Amanda Abbington) had somehow stumbled across him. This is initially attempted to be a ruse, so as to attract the media magnate with a phony drug habit
This eventually sees a return to 221B Baker's Street, where Mycroft (Mark Gatiss) is helping an intervention only to be warned away from his bathroom, and ends with him sternly warning his brother from his pursuing the case.
Like a moth to a flame, this attracts Magnussen, who struggles to find a focus point to badger Sherlock with, but chooses to make a mark on him by pissing in his fireplace anyway.
This leads to an attempt to raid his London office, via manipulation of his PA Janine (Louise Brealey), who Sherlock has developed his own relationship with after meeting her last week.
But here, the plot diverges and takes on surprising twists.
Rather than finding a dominant man behind a desk surrounded by henchman, bodyguards and protecting assassins, Sherlock finds one person - namely Mary, who has a gun to his head. She duly shoots Sherlock when Holmes tries to blow everything.
This divergence and detour also takes us on a tour through the exquisitely-realised mind palace of Sherlock Holmes, as he attempts to escape death by this shot, taking in a whirlwind of names throughout the series, including the ghost of the long-deceased Moriaty (Andrew Scott).
Having blown open the Mary character arc, it sets about trying to set up a meeting that blows the mirage, via a resuscitation for Mr. Holmes - the second time he's cheated death already this year, which is an achievement in itself.
The domestic arguments are restrained, which is a shame as it would have been interesting to fully explore the depths her character has really made with the duo really in the room. There's a reveal an abandoned house, and an argument around the fire at Christmas time.
But the revelations aren't far away from appearing. It takes a full dive into the vaults of Magnussen to even glimpse at the truth that lurks beneath this character's surface, and create his mental make-up.
It also reveals, by and large, a villain that has many of the roots that make up Sherlock. Just like Mr. Holmes, he is in charge of an enormous range mental of capabilities and has most of the sociopathic tendencies that are the essence of Sherlock.
It ends seemingly with a huge problem for the detective, as Mr. Holmes is held captive and trapped after falling into Magnussen's intricately weighted one.
Suddenly, there comes the get-out clause super-villains fall into regularly, and an even more well-worked way to get him out of his charge. The pro's of relations in high places, probably.
There's a better sense of conviction here, as if it now knows kind of programme it wanted to be when it returned for its third season, as it seems the titular character is heading for a sunset far away from his investigative partner.
It seems like that was going to be that. But even after impressively utilising the first two episodes' seeds to create a marvellous plot that surpasses all the other episodes of this year, there's still time for another ace to be pulled from their sleeve.
An impressive manipulation of the end-credits has certainly provided the next season with a potentially inviting set-up, as well as giving an important plot point from which to build this series from.
As well as providing another "back from the dead" scenario, the show's favourite villain gets another chance to perfect his evil mannerisms, not to mention the covert homoeroticism which has so far yielded a lot of fans.
The next year will see plenty of online speculation as to just how Moriarty survived, or indeed, if he's simply pulling a trick from beyond the grave. But it'll be interesting to see what this is...
With confirmation series four is already planned out, all we can do is wait and see how he can gets out of this rather impressively worked tight spot.
Your move, Moffat...
4.5/5
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