REVIEW: Sherlock, Series Four Episode One 'The Six Thatchers'

 REVIEW: Sherlock, Series Four Episode One 'The Six Thatchers'

Previously in my Sherlock reviews I've mentioned my views that Mary Watson (Amanda Abbington) should have been introduced earlier in the series. The character was brought into the show relatively late into the game, in the first episode of Series Three, and it meant that her relationship with John Watson (Martin Freeman) felt rushed rather than developed over the passage of time. This is even more evident by the fact that 'The Six Thatchers', which is only Mary's fifth outing, is effectively the end of Mary Watson's  story. 

How her tale comes to a close is teased in the opening moments of this episode, as Sherlock (Benedict Cumberbatch) gives a speech about a tale regarding a merchant and a stranger known as 'Death'. It sets a foreboding tone for the rest of runtime, teasing an approaching darkness that's about to envelope Sherlock and his friends. There's a lot of power behind this speech too, as it contains a certain amount of dramatic weight, as well as being instantly quotable.

It's not all dramatics however. This episode also has some very funny moments. Case in point being Sherlock glued to his phone during various major moments in John and Mary's journey to parenthood. First he's tapping away as Mary's going into labor in the back of a car, then he fails to listen as John and Mary ask him to be Godfather to their baby, and lastly he's distracted by his mobile as John and Mary's baby is literally being baptised. I think this is easily among the wittiest segments in Sherlock's history, as it feels so true to the modern setting, and it's a funny way of demonstrating Sherlock's antisocial behaviour. He's not used to these kind of situations, and he's blissfully unaware of how he's supposed to act.

As usual, it's not long before he's brought onto an interesting case. This time involving the son of David (Charles Edwards) and Emma Welsborough (Amanda Root), Charlie (Rob Callender), who died in a fatal car explosion. Sherlock is brought on to investigate his death, and discovers that not only had Charlie died prior to the explosion - he returned home from his gap year and planned to surprise his parents by posing as his car seat, only to suffocate in the process - but whoever was involved in the car explosion also snuck into the mansion and destroyed a bust of Margaret Thatcher. It's a nice segue into the main plot of the episode, and also quite harrowing, again keeping with the general foreboding atmosphere. There's a real strong theme of death present throughout this episode, with even the Maggie Thatcher busts being symbolic of a former prime minister who had passed away only a year before this episode aired. 

The main crux of the case is of cause the six Thatcher busts of the title. All six are smashed within the story, which instantly raises the intriguing question as to why somebody would choose to purposefully target these private busts in the process. It seems so random and abstract, as there's no logical reason for somebody to go to such lengths as this. It's a really strong mystery and hook that keeps you guessing throughout, which is the true sign of a great piece of mystery drama storytelling.

The reveal thankfully manages to follow through on that build up, with the twist that the busts all contained the USB stick with the words 'AGRA' that we saw John chuck into the fireplace at the end of the third series. At the time of broadcast this was quite a shock as a viewer of the show, as we had been led to believe prior to this point that Mary's USB stick was the only copy. The retcon of there being more than one makes perfect sense, however, as you can understand the logic behind the other members of AGRA all holding their own copy - including the only other member still alive, Ajay (Sacha Dhawan). 

Oh, Ajay. You knew that a British woman had betrayed you and your fellow AGRA soldiers, but you are hardly a master of deduction, because you suspected the wrong woman entirely. This guy, quite clearly, is never going to be Sherlock Holmes. What he is is yet more proof that Sacha Dhawan makes for a highly effective antagonist. He gives off this real air of dominance with his voice and presence, a man who should be crossed only at your own peril. He's excellent at playing these cunning men with a forced intensity, the kind of people who would lead you to believe it's safe to eat a piece of cake, only for the cake to be poisonous and kill you faster than Kevin Hart in Jumanji. Some people are great at playing protagonists and some are great at being the villains of the piece, and Sacha Dhawan falls neatly into the latter category. 

The main aspect of this episode is the death of Mary Jane Watson, and as I alluded to at the beginning of my review, whilst her sacrifice for Sherlock and the scenes that follow are full of real heart and emotion, I can't help but feel they would have left a greater impact had we known Mary for longer. It loses something of its emotional power when Mary was only around for five episodes, as it feels like we barely got to see her relationship with John and Sherlock develop. There have been more episodes without Mary than with her being around, and so it's hard to feel properly sad with her gone from the series. Amanda Abbington and rest of the lead cast play these scenes so well, but it does expose the one major flaw in Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss's show-running of Sherlock, in the failure to introduce Mary Watson earlier into the show's narrative. 

Overall, 'The Six Thatchers' is a strong opener to Sherlock's fourth series. Whilst Mary's death loses some of its impact from the show's odd decision to introduce Mary Watson late into the game, it still holds some emotional weight, mainly through the performances of our lead cast. The Six Thatchers is one of Sherlock's most intriguing cases, and a great example of a mystery narrative done exceedingly well.   

What are your thoughts on the first episode of Sherlock's fourth series? Let me know in the comments.