Sherlockwas often one of the best shows on television during its run, but the show’s controversial special episode highlights the larger problem the series developed later on. Running from 2010 to 2017, the series was arguably the best adaptation of Arthur Conan Doyle’s source material,settingSherlockin a modern settingand featuring Benedict Cumberbatch as the titular character.
Cumberbatch shone as Sherlock, but the rest of the cast was also stellar, helping to bring their characters to life in ways never seen before. Despite the immense quality of its first few seasons,Sherlockended up stumbling towards the end of its run, with its Christmas special making a lot of its shortcomings even more obvious.
What Made Sherlock’s “The Abominable Bride” So Controversial
Its Depiction Of Suffragettes Wasn’t Well-Received
There is a lot to like inSherlock’s special, “The Abominable Bride”, which served as a TV movie holdover while fans waited for season 4. Easily the most notable part of “The Abominable Bride” was its Victorian-era setting, but with that came the special’s most controversial aspect, which negated some of its impact, when it could have been spectacular.
The most controversial aspect of “The Abominable Bride” wasits somewhat regressive depiction of the suffrage movement, and suffragettes in general. Alongside the common criticism of “mansplaining” that Sherlock does in the special, it also accidentally reinforced some stereotypes about the movement itself, depicting suffragettes as a vengeful and murderous cult, which wasn’t historically the case.
Alongside the unfavorable depiction of suffragettes, “The Abominable Bride” also featured another small subplot that highlighted the show’s biggest problem in its later seasons:Sherlockcouldn’t help but bring Moriarty back once again. The addition of Moriarty and the controversial subject matter featured in the special held it back from being a classic inSherlock’s canon.
Moriarty’s Return In “The Abominable Bride” Was A Symptom Of A Larger Problem
After Moriarty died in theSherlockseason 2 finale, the show struggled to fill in the immense hole he left behind, given that he was one of the best villains seen on television in years, and Andrew Scott’s performance as the character is simply phenomenal. To fill the gap,Sherlockbrought back Moriarty several times, including in “The Abominable Bride.”
“The Abominable Bride” brings back Moriarty once again, this time as part of Sherlock’s imagination, as a sort of way to prove to him that he was truly dead. While it was nice to seemingly confirm his demise,Sherlockstill felt the need to bring him back for the special,showing the continued struggle to move past Moriarty’s death.
After Moriarty died in theSherlockseason 2 finale, the show struggled to fill in the immense hole he left behind, given that he was one of the best villains seen on television in years.
It’s possible to argue thatMoriarty’s death actually ruinedSherlock, even though it was only halfway through the entire series. After his death,Sherlockstruggled with antagonists to take his place. Because of this,Sherlocksometimes dangled the possibility that Moriarty was still alive, and he could come back at some point, leaving the show in limbo at times.
“The Abominable Bride” Showed That Sherlock Was Already Past Its Prime
Sherlock Peaked In Season 2
Though “The Abominable Bride” didn’t play a massive role in shaping the overall narrative of the show, the special still proves thatSherlockhad already moved past its prime as it headed into the fourth — and seemingly final — season. Acting as a one-off, the special was fun, but couldn’t quite live up to some of the highs that came before.
Despite running for four seasons, as well as a special,Sherlockpeaked during its first two seasons, with season 2 being arguably the best the show had ever been. Of course, losing Moriarty as the main antagonist was huge, but other aspects of the show ended up declining over the course of season 3.
By the time “The Abominable Bride” and season 4 came out,Sherlockhad lost a lot of what made it so special. It struggled in its final season, with the foundation laid down in “The Abominable Bride”, especially when it comes to the show’s increasing self-awareness and the move away from its more grounded nature.
Victorian-Era Sherlock Was Fun, But The Show Should’ve Never Become So Meta
Sherlock’s Self-Awareness Became A Lot In Later Seasons
Where “The Abominable Bride” really shines is infeaturing the characters fromSherlockin a Victorian-era setting rather than the modern setting the show is actually set in. The original source material by Arthur Conan Doyle takes place in the late-Victorian era, and it was a nice nod fromSherlockto feature at least one episode in that time period.
Sherlockonly had three episodes every season, but each episode was essentially the length of a feature film.
Of course, the Victorian-era parts of “The Abominable Bride” weren’t actually real; they took place in Sherlock’s mind palace, using the setting as a way to explore the series' meta nature to an extent. The self-awareness during the episode highlighted howSherlockended up becoming more meta as the series went on, which shouldn’t have been the case.
There is so much to love when it comes toSherlock, but it is undeniable that the show stumbled towards the end of the series, especially after how incredible the first few seasons were. WhileSherlock’s Christmas special was a lot of fun, looking back on it nearly a decade later shows how prevalent the cracks inSherlockhad become.
