Elementary's M

I was pretty sure that the guest star for the episode wouldn't be Moriarty himself, but rather a fakeout for Moran or one of the other people in Holmes's "collection of M's" in EMPT. It turned out to be Sebastian Moran, but more blue collar. (Sort of like the Sebastian henchman character in Without a Clue.) I guess they couldn't translate the original Colonel's army and tiger hunting background to present day, but Moran is at least a skilled assassin with specialized equipment, and he's smart enough to instantly read and reply to Moriarty's coded text messages. I would have to get out pen and paper to decode things. I'm also happy with the introduction of Teddy, a clear Baker Street Irregular, and from now on, my head canon is that Wiggins's full name is Teddy Wiggins.

Spoilers below:


However, I'm still disliking their references to Irene Adler and her death. Remember when I said that Elementary might make her different from BBC Sherlock, but not necessarily better? Now we have an explanation for "what happened" in London that sent Holmes into a spiral and resulted in him going to rehab. Apparently Holmes loved Irene and they were "together" for seven months, until she got murdered in the same manner as Moran's bloody kills, as apparently a warning against his consulting with Scotland Yard on the murders. Holmes imploded, going overboard into drugs, and failing to solve the case, before he left London entirely. Holmes intended to torture and murder "M" for Irene's death, only to learn that Moran wasn't Irene's killer; he was in prison for another crime, and apparently Moriarty has framed him for it and sent him unknowingly into Holmes's clutches. The plotting is clever, but it reduces Irene Adler to the role of love interest only, whose death is a catalyst. There's no suggestion yet of her being wily and clever, of her even having a job while Holmes is all busy consulting for Scotland Yard. Did they ever have talks about his cases, or did he only relate to her sexually and emotionally? Why can't she be defined as her own person, and not an appendage of Holmes?

Anyway, because no one on the show mentioned whether Irene Adler's body was found, fans are speculating that she's not even dead; it was all faked, and she's just as evil as Moriarty. Heck, she could even secretly be Moriarty. Why is Irene Adler used as just a generic femme fatale, a treacherous Bond girl, a Catwoman working both sides of the law? Basically she's some dirty, career criminal who's not above murder, kidnapping, treason, etc. Apparently the idea that she could just be a singer, who blackmailed one person once out of revenge, is too boring for them. I'm disgusted that as Hollywood writers finally try to be more faithful about portraying Watson, they don't care a jot about being faithful to Irene Adler, the woman of steel, who was on an entirely different level than the king. If you want an ambiguously amoral Catwoman, then why not give her a different name? If you want just a bland love interest, then give her a different name. Why should Irene Adler be made to contort into whatever sex symbol the writer wants? Why should the "honourable title" of "The Woman" mean any number of dishonourable things? Why are we more screwed up sexually than a Victorian writer who was himself sexist at times? Why can he write a better Irene Adler than any modern writer?