Line #214 Awesome/Sherlock


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4	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/moriarty_4_1.png]]
5	[[caption-width-right:350:Sometimes, you gotta steal that SugarWiki/CrowningMomentOfAwesome.]]
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7
8	The greatest fictional detective ever seen + 21st century = a multitude of awesome moments.
9	----
10	[[foldercontrol]]
11
12	!! Series One
13	[[folder:A Study in Pink]]
14	* At the very start, during the interview scene, Sherlock hacks into the reporters phones to point out the errors the police are making in their statements. Every reporters phone. ''Simultaneously.'' It should also be noted that he's ''not even in the room at the time.''
15	-->'''Donovan:''' You gotta get him to stop doing that. It's making us look like idiots.
16	-->'''Lestrade:''' If you can tell me how he does it, then I'll stop him.
17	* Sherlock gives a preposterous amount of exposition from John entering a room and handing Sherlock a phone.
18	* In the scene with the corpse of the pink lady, John, presumably from smelling vomit and no alcohol on the corpse, is able to give a cause of death in a ''ridiculously'' short amount of time. He then picks up her hand and examines the fingertips, probably looking for cyanosis, which is the bluish tinge the fingers of an asphyxiated person gets. He's quick to say "probably", but he's never contradicted in his assessment of her cause of death.
19	* In his interview with the mysterious and vaguely threatening Mycroft, John is so apparently unfazed by the blatant attempt to intimidate him that he ignores him to check his phone twice, prompting the annoyed line "I hope I'm not distracting you?". As [[WordOfGod Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat]] remark in the commentary, John had no reason to believe he wasn't about to be executed for refusing the bribe. And yet his refusal is [[CasualDangerDialogue spoken distractedly]] as he's reading a text from Sherlock.
20	** Not to mention this exchange:
21	--->'''Mycroft:''' Do you plan to continue your association with Sherlock Holmes?\
22	'''John:''' I could be wrong, but I ''think'' that's none of your business.\
23	'''Mycroft:''' It could be...\
24	'''John:''' It ''really couldn't.''
25	** And then for the crowning moment of casual badassery from John in that sequence: on being told he's being "taken home" he comments that he "needs to stop off somewhere first." He doesn't ask, he tells. He still assumes at that point that he's been abducted by a criminal mastermind, but he's calling the shots and using said criminal mastermind's car as his own private taxi.
26	* In a quiet way, the drug bust was [[SugarWiki/MomentofAwesome awesomeness]] from Lestrade. Just for a change, he's outwitted Sherlock, and for a couple of minutes has the usually mouthy consulting detective feeling just a little nervous. The way Lestrade is sprawled out all relaxed and smug on Sherlock's sofa is all you need to know about how pleased he is with himself.
27	* John shooting the cabbie at through two windows, past Sherlock's shoulder, with a pistol held in only one hand.
28	** He also managed to disappear in the two seconds it took for Sherlock to reach the window and look out; he then escaped the building and was presumably downstairs waiting for the police to arrive later, looking [[NervesOfSteel totally calm, innocent and harmless.]]
29	** In the unaired pilot, this is even more awesome -- the distance is greater, there's an angle, he gets the cabbie straight through the heart, and misses Sherlock by a couple of inches -- Sherlock has the cabbie's blood splattered all over his face. John then apparently flees the scene, without being seen by about fifteen officers, to dispose of the gun in the Thames.
30	* One for the eponymous lady in pink, for realizing that she was going to her death and having the presence of mind to plant her phone on the killer, then spending her last moments painfully scratching "Rachel" onto the floorboards in order to expose him. Even Sherlock notes her cleverness, and without that vital clue, John wouldn't have known how to find Sherlock in time. For a man like [[InsufferableGenius Sherlock]] to sing his praises of her, it's a true testament to how smart she must have been.
31	-->'''Sherlock:''' Oh, she was clever. Clever, ''clever'', YES! She's cleverer than YOU LOT and she's ''dead''!
32	[[/folder]]
33
34	[[folder:The Blind Banker]]
35	* John returns home from a job interview to find Sherlock demanding he pass him a pen. John picks it up and throws it to him without looking at either the pen or Sherlock. And Sherlock catches it, despite the fact that he isn't looking at John or the pen either.
36	* John's first day at work at the clinic is an absolute disaster, thanks in part to Sherlock's keeping him up running around London and deciphering book codes for at least two days without sleep. Sarah lets him know she's unimpressed, and agrees that it's "not very professional" -- but that she's covered him anyway, and taken "five or six" of his patients. Then John manages to turn what should have been an epic firing into a flustered date acceptance, simply by being charming.
37	* Sarah is on her first date with John, when it suddenly turns into a brawl between Sherlock and some Chinese gangsters. John charges in to help, and what does Sarah do? She joins the brawl and beats up the gangster with what appears to be a large wooden stick.
38	-->'''Sarah:''' I mean, I love to go out of an evening and wrestle with a bunch of Chinese gangsters, you know, ''generally,'' but a girl can get too much.
39	* John, still tied to a chair, manages to move and trigger the crossbow, thus averting the danger from Sarah and killing Sherlock's attacker in one movement.
40	[[/folder]]
41
42	[[folder:The Great Game]]
43	* Just as the Golem starts suffocating Sherlock in the planetarium, John appears and points a gun, threatening to kill the Golem if he doesn't let Sherlock go. His tone of voice indicates that will make good on his promise if the Golem doesn't listen to him.
44	-->'''John:''' [[BewareTheNiceOnes Let him go,]] [[GoodIsNotSoft or I]] ''[[GoodIsNotSoft will]]'' [[GoodIsNotSoft kill you.]]
45	* Sherlock working out why the Vermeer was a fake on a countdown of ten, the conclusion of which could have been the murder of a small child.
46	* We've so far heard from four of Moriarty's hostages. The first three (the woman, the young man, the old lady) were crying almost hysterically (and who the hell can blame them?) The little boy was frightened and pleaded for help, but was probably too young to really understand what was happening to him. John, on the other hand, is remarkably calm about the ordeal. No whimpering, no tears, no pleading, he just stands there, speaks calmly and clearly, and does what he's told. Of course, he's an ex-soldier, who's served in Afghanistan, and has [[FridgeBrilliance probably been trained in what to do]] if someone takes you hostage and makes you into a bomb mule. But it's still awesome, especially when, after Moriarty leaves and Sherlock gets the bomb jacket off him and throws it away, he more or less collapses on the spot. It wasn't that he wasn't scared or stressed, he very clearly was. He just managed to [[TheStoic keep control of himself,]] probably partly for Sherlock's sake and partly as a middle finger to Moriarty's attempts to intimidate him.
47	** There's one moment in particular: Sherlock asks John if he's all right. John remains silent. Moriarty mockingly tells him that he's allowed to talk, and urges "go on." John simply nods at Sherlock. He wanted to give Sherlock an answer, but the hell was he going to talk just because Moriarty told him he could.
48	** John grabbing Jim while wearing a bomb-rigged jacket, screaming "Sherlock, run!". He points out that if Jim's snipers shoot at him, they'll kill Jim as well. It doesn't work, since Jim gets the snipers to train their sights on Sherlock instead.
49	* The final scene in the swimming pool, was one giant SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome for Moriarty. The guy is being held at gun point, and still manages to be in complete control of the situation. All thanks to a bomb strapped on John Watson, and about a dozen snipers armed with laser sights trained on the two Baker Street boys. And during the whole thing, Moriarty just talked, with both hands kept in his pockets, walking menacingly towards the two.
50	-->'''Sherlock:''' What if I was to [[WhyDontYouJustShootHim just shoot you now]]? '''Right''' now?\
51	'''Moriarty:''' Well then you could cherish the look of surprise on my face. ''[adopts a mock lock of shock]'' Because I'd be surprised Sherlock, '''really''' I would, and just a little bit, '''disappointed''', and of course, you wouldn't be able to cherish it for very long.
52	[[/folder]]
53
54	!! Series Two
55	[[folder:A Scandal in Belgravia]]
56	* When the cliffhanger picks up where it left off, not only does he have the stones to answer his phone, Moriarty turns his back on Sherlock and the gun pointed at him. Him calling off the snipers by casually [[BadassFingerSnap clicking his fingers]] is pretty damn awesome too.
57	* Then we see the phone call was from Irene. Despite the fact that an incredibly powerful and psychotic criminal mastermind has just screamed abuse down the phone at her and threatened to hunt her down and skin her, she's totally unbothered by Moriarty's theatrics and simply gets back to work.
58	* Sherlock solves a case where he never visits the crime scene. He instead interviews the witness in person, along with the investigating officer, and examines the crime scene using a webcam. Mycroft, not to be outdone, solves the same case simply by glancing at the case notes.
59	* Doubles as a SugarWiki/{{Funny Moment\|s}}:
60	-->'''Mrs. Hudson:''' It's a disgrace, sending your brother into danger like that. Family is all we have in the end, Mycroft Holmes.\
61	'''Mycroft:''' Oh, shut up, Mrs. Hudson.\
62	'''Sherlock ''and'' John:''' ''MYCROFT!!''\
63	''[cue Sherlock and John staring down Mycroft]''\
64	'''Mycroft:''' ''[awkward smile]'' A-Apologies.\
65	'''Mrs. Hudson:''' Thank you.\
66	'''Sherlock:''' But do, in fact, shut up.
67	* Irene Adler enters the room, completely naked, make-up applied, and [[SherlockScan Sherlock's infamous scanning system]] can't make anything out about her.
68	* When the CIA charge down the stairs at Irene's and hold John at gunpoint, his sole comment is a "Thank you" for taking care of the smoke alarm Sherlock had told him to turn off. A few minutes later, kneeling on the floor with a gun to the back of his head, John snaps at them with quite a lot of attitude to give someone who may or may not decide to kill you if you give them trouble.
69	-->'''John:''' For God's sake, ''she's'' the one who knows the code, ask ''her!''
70	* Sherlock walks into his building, and sees a few scratches on the wall. From there, he deduces what must have happened, and looks up with an expression of sheer, utter '''rage.''' When he walks into the apartment, he's full of TranquilFury. And when he looks at the gunman who beat Mrs. Hudson, his SherlockScan notes the carotid artery, skull, eyes, ribs, lungs, and brachial artery. He's not looking to hurt--he's seriously considering ''murder.''
71	** Then, he solves the hostage situation with three armed men with a few snarky remarks, a spray can and a deliciously well-placed head-butt. He even has time to roll his eyes as the gunman lets his guard down to frisk him.
72	-->'''Sherlock:''' ''Moron.''
73	** As the man is bound and gagged with duct tape, held at gunpoint by Sherlock, John returns to see a note saying "CRIME IN PROGRESS, PLEASE DISTURB". He races up to the flat and asks what the hell is going on, and Sherlock simply says:
74	--->'''Sherlock:''' Mrs Hudson was attacked by an American. I am restoring balance to the universe.
75	** And then very calmly phones:
76	--->'''Sherlock:''' Lestrade. We've had a break-in at Baker Street. Send your least irritating officers and an ambulance. Oh, no no, we're fine, it's the burglar. He's got himself rather badly injured. [[TranquilFury Few broken ribs, fractured skull... suspected punctured lung.]] ''[smirks]'' He fell out of a window.
77	*** Sherlock goes the extra mile to make sure the gunman gets his comeuppance ''by repeatedly throwing him out the window'', as many times as it takes to replicate those exact injuries he so described. Yep, Sherlock Holmes gave the gunman broken ribs, a fractured skull and punctured lung ''in style''.
78	** And then later:
79	-->'''Lestrade:''' Exactly how many times ''did'' he fall out of the window?\
80	'''Sherlock:''' [[ExtremeMeleeRevenge Oh, it's all a bit of a blur, Detective Inspector. I lost count.]]
81	** While she was probably terribly distraught, having just been ''assaulted and tied up'', Mrs Hudson herself turns out to have been ''deliberately making her distress appear worse than it was well enough to fool the CIA''. And managed to snaffle the phone and hide it from the CIA while they thought she was crying.
82	** The entirety of this scene, when you consider the context: This is the first time we ever see [[NotSoStoic Sherlock]] [[BerserkButton angry]]. At the least, we've only seen him frustrated, but ''never angry''. Until now... And it borders so elegantly between [[UnstoppableRage dangerous]] and [[TranquilFury precise]].
83	* Small and mild-mannered Dr. John Watson explodes at Irene Adler, at about thirty paces away, causing her to back down, cross her arms and get defensive.
84	* Mycroft's "neat" solution to the impending terrorist attack. He filled a plane full of corpses to fool the terrorists into thinking they'd killed a bunch of people.
85	* Irene Adler outsmarts Sherlock, causing him to unwittingly reveal one of the classified files she stored in her phone, which is the aforementioned counter-terrorist operation to stop a plane bomb by Mycroft. By relying on his ego, Irene wants to see Sherlock decoded it. He did successfully, and then Irene simply send the information to Moriarty, who was walking by the Big Ben. Moriarty, to drive the point further that with the information, he had foiled Mycroft's plans, simply sent a mocking text message, and spits it to him, figuratively.
86	-->Jumbo jet. Dear me Mr Holmes, dear me.
87	* How Sherlock wins. Irene has just given Mycroft her list of demands, given Sherlock a humiliating HannibalLecture and is about to take her leave... and then Sherlock retaliates.
88	-->'''Sherlock:''' Sentiment is a chemical defect found in the losing side.\
89	'''Irene:''' Sentiment? What are you talking about?\
90	'''Sherlock:''' You.\
91	'''Irene:''' Oh dear god. Look at the poor man. You don’t actually think I was interested in you? Why? Because you’re the great Sherlock Holmes, the clever detective in the funny hat?\
92	'''Sherlock:''' No... ''because I took your pulse.'' Elevated. Your pupils dilated. I imagine John Watson thinks love’s a mystery to me, but the chemistry is incredibly simple and very destructive. When we first met, you told me that a disguise is always a self portrait, how true of you, the combination to your safe -- your measurements. ''[holds up her phone]'' But this, this is far more intimate. This is your heart, and you should never let it rule your head. (''Enters the first digit'') You could have chosen any random number and walked out of here today with everything you worked for. (''Enters the next digit'') But you just couldn’t resist it, could you? I’ve always assumed that love is a dangerous disadvantage. (''Enters the following digit'') Thank you for the final proof.\
93	'''Irene:''' Everything I said. It’s not real. I was just playing the game.\
94	'''Sherlock:''' I know. (''[[PunctuatedForEmphasis Enters the last digit]]'') And this is just losing.\
95	''[he holds up her phone. The password reads: I AM S-H-E-R LOCKED.]''
96	* The last scene, when Irene is about to be beheaded by a terrorist cell.
97	-->'''Irene:''' ''[texts]'' Goodbye, Mr Holmes\
98	''[The Executioner walks up to her with a sword. FadeToBlack. Then we hear [[TheImmodestOrgasm her ringtone]]. Fade back in]''\
99	'''Sherlock-as-Executioner:''' When I say run...RUN.
100	-->''[Irene's face blossoms with a smile as Sherlock raises the sword and charges at the terrorists]''
101	[[/folder]]
102
103	[[folder:The Hounds of Baskerville]]
104	* Between Sherlock stealing Mycroft's identity and John pulling his Captain's rank, the two of them get themselves invited into a top secret military base and spend 20 minutes doing an "inspection" before they're figured out. Even when they are figured out, John in particular coolly just keeps pretending everything is normal. He starts scolding a Major about the paperwork he's going to have to fill out.
105	** This cannot be emphasized enough: John Watson, who up until this point in the show has proven a spectacularly bad liar, pulls rank to get himself and his friend shown around a top-secret military base -- and does it so effectively that even Sherlock himself merely shuts up, sits back, and watches him work.
106	** What's more impressive is that not one word out of his mouth during the whole tour is a lie. He introduces himself using his real name, real rank, and shows his real and valid military ID. He never claims they're ''doing'' a "spot check", he simply asks the corporal if he's ever heard of one. He even works around Sherlock's lies by addressing him as "Mr Holmes". "It'll have to go in the report"? There certainly ''had'' been a mistake somewhere, and that two unauthorised people, one a civilian, managed to con their way into Baskerville was certainly going to have to go on ''somebody's'' report.
107	* John looks carefully at Corporal Lyons, who has yet to identify himself. He can hardly wait for the corporal to finish speaking, and cuts off Sherlock before he can begin. He [[SherlockScan Sherlock scanned]] Corporal Lyons! Perhaps not as well as Sherlock himself could, if he knew what he was looking for, but John has military experience. In only a few seconds, he clearly saw: young, lower rank, skittish, easily intimidated. As far as John saw, this translated to "will be easy to con into letting us look around the place, the second he realises I outrank him." He was right.
108	* Sherlock demonstrating that his observational skills still work a charm, despite his being terrified and drugged. Especially when, the next day, he remembers the random sequence of morse code letters that John rattled off once when he was apparently not listening.
109	* When you think about it, John's reactions while locked in the lab are pretty awesome. He's not just terrified, he's been drugged to be terrified. He's got absolutely no control over the levels of fear he's experiencing. Instead of becoming paralysed and totally irrational with fear, instead of going into a meltdown, he does everything to get himself out as rationally and calmly as possible. He's able to fully explain to Sherlock where exactly he is, that he wants out ''now,'' and then is able to go on to explain what he's apparently hearing and seeing. He's able to judge that the cage is probably the safest place to be in the entire lab. This is extra awesome when you remember that the original purpose of the drug was specifically as a weapon that would render enemy soldiers completely unable to fight or defend themselves; and the awesomeness is squared, cubed, and hypercubed when you recall John's existing post-traumatic issues. Not only that, he got the H.O.U.N.D. drug from a small airtight room where it'd been leaking for a good long time. Sherlock and Henry, by comparison, got a much lower concentration since the stuff in the fog was allowed to disperse.
110	* The "Mind Palace". A visual treat if there ever was one. [[TruthInTelevision And its an entirely real concept]].
111	* In the last scene, Lestrade is the first of all of them to get himself together enough to shoot at the hound. He fires three times, but all shots miss. Then John fires; at least one of the two shots he fires hits the hound square, despite it being lit only by torchlight and everyone there being absolutely terrified. He later shoots the hound again, twice, and at least one if not both of those shots connect. Without using a torch this time, and at some distance, he hit a moving target in the dark. While he was drugged.
112	** When the hound first makes an appearance and everyone is packing collective death, John turns around and politely asks Lestrade "Are you seeing this...?" When Lestrade nods, he says "Right, [Lestrade] is ''not'' drugged, Sherlock, so what is that?" In that moment of high terror, it's John who's able to use a process of elimination to deduce that the hound is real.
113	* Henry's lividness at learning Frankland killed his father, not a [[{{Hellhound}} hound]]. Up until now, we've seen [[TheWoobie the poor guy]] act like a skittish scaredy-cat afraid of his own shadow. But now, this is the first time we see him rightly angry, and metaphorically facing the ''real'' monster. Not only that, but when he [[TranquilFury calmly]] acknowledges that Frankland's crime proves his father was right. This marks Henry's [[CharacterDevelopment personal growth]] from a [[{{Manchild}} frightened boy]] into a mentally strong adult.
114	* In the grand scheme of things, despite that he doesn't go to jail, Frankland stepping on landmine counts as long-overdue [[KarmicDeath karma]]. Just earlier, he was counting on Henry to step on the gas-emitting mine and kill himself out of fear. Frankland accidentally steps on a landmine and finds he can either stand there and be caught or lift his foot and set off the landmine (essentially committing suicide). In the end, Frankland ends up doing exactly what he intended of his would-be victim.
115	[[/folder]]
116
117	[[folder:The Reichenbach Fall]]
118	* Moriarty hacking into the Tower of London, the Bank of England and Pentonville Prison simultaneously, underscored by Music/GioachinoRossini's ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vwoPSdtFqHg La Gazza Ladra]]''. The hacking part turns out to be a magnificent subversion by its own later, but the greatest moment is when the police arrest him, finding him sitting in the Queen's throne in the Tower, wearing the jewels, completely nonchalant.
119	-->'''Moriarty:''' No rush.
120	* The entire courthouse scene, showing the dynamic between Sherlock and Moriarty, with Sherlock knowing perfectly who he is after knowing him for five minutes, and Moriarty silently acknowledging Holmes, all without uttering a single word.
121	-->'''Sherlock:''' James Moriarty isn't a man at all, he's a spider. A spider at the centre of a web, a criminal web with a thousand strands and he knows precisely how each and every single one of them dances.
122	** Despite being caught red-handed stealing the Crown Jewels, Moriarty manages to get off scot-free, even though he provides ''no defense at all'' to support his plea to the court. He does it all by informing the jury of their "pressure points."
123	---> '''Moriarty''': Every hotel bedroom has a personalized TV screen, and every person has their pressure point, someone that they want to protect from harm. Easy peasy.
124	* The entire meeting between Sherlock and Moriarty in Baker Street. It starts with Sherlock hearing from Watson that Moriarty is loose, as he's stated to be not guilty of his heist earlier. What did Sherlock do? He simply prepared tea for his future guest and played his violin, knowing perfectly that his ArchEnemy is coming to his doorstep.
125	** Despite being revealed to be non-existent in the end, [[BadassBoast Moriarty's boasts]] about his computer key code, that can break into any computer in the planet, is chock-full of Villainous CMOA. Screw this, the ENTIRE CONVERSATION between the two consultants could be summed up as CMOA. Sherlock deducing Moriarty's motives while the latter continue boasting about his plan for Sherlock through The Final Problem.
126	---> '''Moriarty''': I can open any door anywhere with a few tiny lines of computer code. No such thing as a private bank account now, they are all mine. No such thing as secrecy, I ''own'' secrecy. Nuclear codes? I can blow up NATO in alphabetical order. In a world of locked rooms, the man with the key is king. And honey, you should ''see me in a crown''.
127	* Major awesome from the terrified little boy, who, while being kidnapped, had enough presence of mind to write in linseed oil on the wall and use it to leave a trail, which is the only reason he and his sister were found and rescued.
128	* Mycroft has gone from commandeering every CCTV camera in London to hacking the ATM that John tries to use.
129	* The "Sir Boast-A-Lot" broadcast from Moriarty, sent directly into Sherlock's cab. The broadcast makes Sherlock [[NotSoStoic freak the hell out]], get out of the car and start demanding answers from the driver. The driver turns around and reveals himself to be Moriarity, in the flesh. He smiles, tells Sherlock "no charge" and drives off. Not only does he manage to rattle Sherlock's cage, something that assuredly does not happen every day, but he drives Sherlock, his arch-enemy, around in a cab without the slightest bit of fear.
130	* John Watson punches Lestrade's boss for disrespecting Sherlock. And is promptly arrested for it. Regardless, Watson takes it in stride.
131	* When John finds out that it was Mycroft who gave Jim Moriarty all the information about Sherlock, he gives him a lengthy piece of his mind that is the owning of the century. Mycroft's so taken aback that he even falters and struggles to explain himself:
132	-->'''Mycroft:''' I never inten-- I never dreamt--
133	-->'''John:''' This -- see, ''this'' -- is what you were trying to tell me, isn't it. "Watch his back, 'cause I've made a mistake."
134	* The exchange when Sherlock realises that he can force Moriarty to call off the snipers. This is probably the first time throughout the episode, that Sherlock has Moriarty cornered, and while it does prompt Moriarty to commit suicide so that there's no other way to save the others, it's good to see Sherlock gain the upper hand, if only for a few moments.
135	-->'''Moriarty:''' Nah... you talk big... Nah, you're ordinary, you're ordinary, you're on the side of the angels.\
136	'''Sherlock:''' Oh, I may be on the side of the angels, but don't think for one ''second'' that I am one of them.
137	* Sherlock faking his own death when he jumped off a building in full public view.
138	** Kudos to Molly for her heavily-implied role in it. All that time spent being the butt of his jokes, and in the end he couldn't have done what he needed to without her.
139	** And double points to Sherlock for choosing her. When Moriarty is listing John, Mrs Hudson and Lestrade as targets he says they are "everyone." He never suspected Sherlock would trust Molly so no-one was watching her.
140	[[/folder]]
141
142	!! Series Three
143	[[folder: Many Happy Returns]]
144	* Anderson, of all people, has successfully pieced together Sherlock's involvement in mysteries all around Europe, and concluded that he's on his way back to London.
145	[[/folder]]
146
147	[[folder:The Empty Hearse]]
148	* The opening sequence of how Sherlock faked his death, which has him jumping off the building using a bungee chord, causing him to be pulled back and crash through a window all badass-style, landing elegantly on his feet in a room where Molly is waiting, having helped him on his scheme. He then proceeds to casually straighten his collar and ruffle his hair before pulling Molly in for a passionate kiss. Of course, it then turns out to have been an ImagineSpot by Anderson.
149	** Right after, Lestrade gives Anderson a [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech "Reason why you suck" speech]] concerning what happened in the previous season, how the latter and Donnivan ([[FakingTheDead supposedly]]) drove Sherlock to [[DrivenToSuicide suicide]].
150	* TheReveal that Sherlock spent two years travelling around the world, busting up Moriarty's worldwide crime network on his own.
151	** Sherlock, chained, bloodied, and beaten, manages to deduce his torturer out the door.
152	* In order to save his brother, Mycroft learned Serbian in a couple of ''hours'' (and according to Sherlock, he's slipping).
153	* Sherlock and Mary take a motorcycle to get to John when they find out he's in danger. Sherlock doesn't stick to the roads. Mary doesn't complain once, knowing that saving John is more important than good driving etiquette and trusting that Sherlock knows what he's doing.
154	** Mary figuring out that the texts she receives after John's kidnapping are in code and deducing what they mean.
155	** Sherlock dives into a bonfire [[SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments to save John.]]
156	* Sherlock figuring out that the bomb probably has an off switch somewhere. Sherlock only figuring that out because John has the presence of mind to make Sherlock look for information about bombs in his mind palace even though Sherlock doesn't think he has any useful information at first.
157	* Sherlock owning Mycroft with the Deductions game. Technically, Mycroft wins the game, but Sherlock has the moral victory. He knew all along the man wasn't necessarily isolated, he just wanted to bait his brother into explaining it.
158	-->'''Sherlock:''' Anyone who wears a hat as stupid as this isn't in the habit of hanging around other people!\
159	'''Mycroft:''' Not at all. Maybe he doesn't mind being different. Doesn't mean he has to be isolated.\
160	'''Sherlock:''' Exactly.\
161	'''Mycroft:''' I'm sorry?\
162	'''Sherock:''' He's different, so what. Why would he mind? Why would anyone mind?\
163	'''Mycroft:''' ''[realising what Sherlock is implying]'' I'm not lonely, Sherlock.\
164	'''Sherlock:''' ''[[Recap/SherlockS02E01AScandalInBelgravia How would you know?]]''
165	** TheReveal that Moriarty didn't outsmart Mycroft--''it was the other way around.'' The Brothers Holmes knew of Moriarty's obsession with Sherlock, so they gave him enough rope to hang himself with. The entire previous episode, more or less, was retconned--believably--into a brilliant BatmanGambit. Moral of the story: Never mess with the Holmes boys.
166	[[/folder]]
167
168	[[folder:The Sign of Three]]
169	* When he gets the impression that Sherlock is in danger, Lestrade immediately summons all the back-up he can get. We never get to see all of it, but it includes multiple sirens and a helicopter. It turns out to not be necessary, Sherlock just needed his help to write on the best man speech, but it was still awesome.
170	* While everyone's busy trying to solve the murder of a guardsman, John realises that the man in question is still alive and manages to save his life.
171	** John taking charge of the attempted murder scene at the barracks is one of his most impressive moments that doesn't involve getting violent. After taking Major Reed's insults for too long, he finally gets him to shut up, sends the sergeants scurrying to follow his orders, and saves Bainbridge, who would have died if John hadn't gotten Reed to back down from arresting him. It's so fantastic to see Captain John Watson, MD in action and bring such authority to the scene, he even gets an awesome little speech and then proceeds to shout orders at the other soldiers to call an ambulance when he realises the man is alive as well as instructing Sherlock to act as a nurse.
172	-->'''John:''' Major, please. I'm John Watson, Fifth Northumberland Fusiliers, ''three'' years in Afghanistan, a veteran of Kandahar, Helmand and '''Bart's Bloody Hospital.''' ''Let me examine this body!'' ''[Sergeant releases him]'' Thank you. ''[he takes off his jacket and gets to work]''
173	* In the flashback of John and Sherlock having a StagParty, Sherlock effortlessly dodges a swing from a random guy he annoys even while being drunk.
174	* A relatively small one, but Sherlock being able to deduce that Mary is pregnant before even Watson, who is a ''doctor''. Heck, he even knows before ''Mary herself''.
175	[[/folder]]
176
177	[[folder: His Last Vow]]
178	* John expertly disarms a knife-wielding junkie and sprains his arm. He then saves his drug-addicted neighbor from himself.
179	--->'''John:''' I'm asking you if you've seen Isaac Whitney and now you're showing me a knife. Is it a clue? ''[Wiggins gestures for him to get out]'' You doing a mime?\
180	'''Wiggins:''' Go! Or I cut ya!\
181	'''John:''' Ooh, not from there. Let me help. ''[Steps closer]'' Now, concentrate: Isaac. Whitney.\
182	'''Wiggins:''' Ok, you asked for it. ''[John wrenches Wiggins' arm and drops him in five seconds; he squats next to Wiggins and speaks in a low, confident tone.]''\
183	'''John:''' Right. Are you concentrating yet?\
184	'''Wiggins:''' You've broke my arm!\
185	'''John:''' Nope, I sprained it.\
186	'''Wiggins:''' It feels squishy! It supposed to feel squishy? Feel that!\
187	'''John:''' Yeah, it's a sprain. I'm a doctor, I know how to sprain people. Now where is Isaac Whitney?\
188	'''Wiggins:''' ''[cowering]'' I dunno! Maybe upstairs?\
189	'''John:''' There ya go ''[pats him on the leg]'', wasn't that easy?\
190	'''Wiggins:''' No, it's really sore! Mental, you are!\
191	'''John:''' No, just used to a better class of criminal.
192	* Molly slapping Sherlock across the face. Repeatedly. And then gives him a TheReasonYouSuckSpeech.
193	* Wiggins deducing expertly that John is bored with domestic life based on the creases in his shirt, despite never being trained and also high.
194	* After he's terrified Sherlock's fans into leaving, Mycroft turns to John:
195	--> '''Mycroft:''' I hope I won't have to threaten you as well.
196	--> '''John:''' Well, I think we'd both find that embarrassing.
197	* Sherlock deducing in three seconds precisely how to fall in order to maximize his chances of survival after being shot by Mary. Having minimized the chance of bleeding out, he then focuses on happy memories of his childhood dog Redbeard to counteract fatal shock. Finally, [[{{Determinator}} he claws his way up from being clinically dead, apparently restarting his own heart through will]], [[SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments purely to protect John.]]
198	* Mary flips a 50p piece in the air and shoots a hole clean through it with her pistol. Looks like she's an even better crack shot than her husband. And remember Sherlock deduces her as short-sighted...
199	** Oh, and don't forget that she's most likely been out of practice for at least a couple of years.
200	** Mary pistol-whipping Magnussen shows that she's not only a great shot, but a skilled unarmed combatant as well.
201	* Sherlock completely undoing all of Magnussen's power and protecting Mary by calmly taking John's [=P226=] and shooting him in the head.
202	-->'''Sherlock:''' Oh, do your research! ImNotAHeroIm a [[MeaningfulEcho high-functioning]] [[InsistentTerminology sociopath!]] MERRY CHRISTMAS! ''[bang]''
203	** Just the sheer CatharsisFactor. After watching Magnussen [[KickTheDog harass, belittle, and bully]] everyone, without a care about anyone ever standing up to him, Sherlock gives him his comeuppance, [[HeroicSacrifice despite the consequences]]. On Christmas day, an entire nation breathed a sigh of relief, thanks to one high-functioning sociopath.
204	* Say whatever you want about [[JerkAss Charles]] [[KickTheDog Augustus]] [[BigBad Magnussen]], there is a reason why he's considered to be the closest thing to a portrayal of James Moriarty in this 'verse, than, well, [[ArchEnemy Jim]] [[ArcVillain Moriarty]], and using the information all stored only in his own head, he's able to blackmail the entire Western world government. Goodness, how much memory does this man have?
205	[[/folder]]
206
207	!! New Year's Special
208	[[folder:The Abominable Bride]]
209	* Mary thought it'd be a good idea to hack the MI-5 database right in front of Mycroft, on a smartphone, in seconds.
210	-->'''Mycroft:''' What do you think of MI-5 security?
211	-->'''Mary:''' (smugly) I think it would be a good idea.
212	* Once one learns the truth about Emelia Recoletti, she becomes a moment of awesome herself. She didn't decide to begin a legacy as a killer just for kicks: she learned she was dying of tuberculosis, and wanted to make her life count for something. So she gathered her suffragette friends to stage her "first" death in order to trick the public into thinking she was undying.
213	** What's more, she started this whole thing so she could get back at the two men who took advantage of her and posthumously become a vigilante killing abusive husbands. All the suffragettes had a hand in making her the most feared killer in all of London.
214	[[/folder]]
215
216	!! Series Four
217	[[folder:The Six Thatchers]]
218	* Sherlock fighting a professional assassin of Mary's caliber to a standstill.
219	* Mary tries to disappear from John's lives again but Sherlock and John saw it coming. John had the idea to hide a tracer inside the [[HiddenInPlainSight A.G.R.A. USB drive]].
220	[[/folder]]
221
222	[[folder:The Lying Detective]]
223	* Mrs. Hudson is a top-to-bottom badass in this episode. She sees Sherlock is high out of his mind and waving a gun around in his flat. She pretends to make him a cup of tea, then disarms and cuffs him effortlessly when she has the chance. She then stuffs him in the boot of her car and drives across London to find John and get him to help, with a police car and helicopter in pursuit.
224	** Not only does she disarm him, but she does it with a pretty badass XanatosGambit: she pretends to drop the teacup, and when he instinctively reaches to catch it, she grabs the gun away and turns it on him.
225	--> '''Mrs. Hudson''': You're not my first smackhead, Sherlock Holmes.
226	** She also orders Mycroft and his spooks out of the room when John sits down to watch Mary's good-bye video. She even gets in a solid TheReasonYouSuckSpeech to Mycroft, calling him a "reptile" and telling him he doesn't know his brother's thought-process as well as he thinks he does. There's also her correct identification of where to find whatever is on Sherlock's mind.
227	** The fact that Mrrs Hudson, with her "bad hip" is able to ''drive an Aston Martin so fast that a Police car and helicopter are '''struggling''' to keep up.'' To specify, she manages to ''flick out the back of her car, get smoke from the wheels, and perform a donut'' all while on the phone, indicating that she was ''driving one handed while doing all of the aforementioned stuff.''
228	* High-as-a-kite Sherlock, giving an impassioned and word-perfect delivery of the "Once more, unto the breech, dear friends" speech from ''Henry V'' while shooting up his apartment--and with good enough aim, drugs and all, to miss Mrs. Hudson and shoot a picture of Culverton Smith in the face.
229	* It turns savage very quickly, but John expertly disarming and restraining Sherlock when he loses control in the morgue. This is a guy who is both bigger and younger than him, and probably genuinely having a moment of drug-fuelled psychosis. Sherlock made himself seriously ill as a long game in getting John to rescue him, but that doesn't mean he was ''faking'' any of it. He'd been high for weeks, and he wasn't faking his horror when he realised the woman who apparently came to see him at his flat wasn't Faith Smith. From there up until the end of the episode, he honestly thinks he hallucinated the whole thing.
230	* Culverton Smith deserve some props. He took the idea of the infamous American serial killer H.H. Holmes, the Murder Castle, and improved upon it. Big time. Instead of a tricked-out hotel, he used a hospital wing with several hidden entrances in order to enter and kill without anyone noticing. It is, in his own words, Murder Castle done right.
231	* John breaking down the door to Sherlock's hospital room just in time to rescue him from Culverton Smith, who was attempting to asphyxiate him.
232	* Sherlock is delusional for most of the episode due to his overdosing on cocaine. Despite this, he manages to expose Culverton Smith as a serial killer with ease.
233	-->'''Sherlock:''' "[[RuleOfThree There must be something comforting about number three.]] People always give up after three."\
234	'''John:''' ''[unscrew the top of his old cane, revealing the fourth recording device]'' Two weeks ago?\
235	'''Sherlock:''' Three.\
236	'''John:''' I'm that predictable?\
237	'''Sherlock:''' No. I'm just a cock.
238	[[/folder]]
239
240	[[folder:The Final Problem]]
241	* "Did You Miss Me?"
242	* The entire episode is one, posthumously, for Moriarty. Despite being dead, he is shown to be more than capable of hurting Holmes.
243	-->'''Eurus''': Sweet Jim. He was never interested in being alive. [[ThanatosGambit Especially if he could make more trouble being dead.]] You knew he'd take his revenge. His revenge, apparently...is ''me''.
244	** A ''big'' CMOA for Moriarty, if one's to take account of his posthumous game. He somehow knew that Sherlock will survive the fall he planned, allowing Eurus to have her turn to play with Holmes, with his assistance, and knew the ''exact'' choice of what Sherlock would pick when faced with a SadisticChoice to either shoot Watson or Mycroft. And as a bonus, Moriarty even gave her some pre-recorded messages to play in the game. Even after death, he manages to figure out his ArchEnemy.
245	---> '''Moriarty''': And here we are, [[GrandFinale the end of the line.]] Holmes killing Holmes. [[KilledOffForReal This is where I get off.]]
246	** Eurus' awesomeness is not to be understated, as , just like her brother, she manages to communicate with Jim Moriarty for five minutes, and for her, five minutes of unsupervised conversation with Moriarty is all it takes to plan The Final Problem for her brothers.
247	* Mycroft's umbrella is both a sword and a gun.
248	* John realizes (even before ''Mycroft'') that if everyone who comes into contact with Eurus is brainwashed, what about the warden who tried to analyze her? Too bad it was already too late.
249	* John's "soldiers" speech, which impresses even Mycroft. It ends up an {{Arc Word\|s}} for the episode.
250	* A bit of a twisted example, but Mycroft comes to what he thinks will be his own death with impressive bravado and honour. He was shown to be so traumatised by David's death that he was reduced to whimpering and vomiting in the corner, but faced with his own impending murder, he shows no fear at all.
251	* Sherlock threatening to kill himself to avoid the SadisticChoice of killing John or Mycroft. It's the one time in the entire episode that Eurus is caught off guard.
252	* Mycroft in the beginning is surprisingly awesome. He sees an unknown assailant running away up the stairs, and his immediate reaction is to try and chase them down, then command them to show themselves in a tone that sounds more bored than afraid. Likewise, when he sees Sherlock's clown, he salutes him with his umbrella-sword...then pulls out the gun and calmly opens fire. If Sherlock hadn't had the foresight to empty that gun, the Homeless Network would have been down a member.
253	[[/folder]]
254
255
256	!! Expanded Universe
257	[[folder: Blogs]]
258	* John's blog describes this incident in ''The Geek Interpreter''.
259	--> Which is why Sherlock and I ended up, dressed as ninjas, fighting a comic book geek in Soho.
260	* In this [[http://johnwatsonblog.co.uk/blog/12may blog post]], everyone immediately tells a troll saying Sherlock was a fake to piss off.
261	[[/folder]]
262
263	!! Other
264	* The overall theme of the series itself. Every episode stands to remind the audience that nothing in life is ever truly beyond understanding.
265	* The sheer amount of real world people saying "I believe in Sherlock Holmes." [[https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=200241406014380769875.0004b74641f320b9bd5f3&msa=0&ll=56.559482,-1.054687&spn=107.163543,254.882812&iwloc=0004b75739e6297235496&dg=feature There's a map]]. And this is only the people that managed to get onto Google Maps, which is hardly a fansite.
266	* The 2014 Emmys, where, after two seasons of being bridesmaids but the never the bride, ''Sherlock'' had a sweep. Steven Moffat won for Best Screenplay for a TV Movie or Mini-Series for ''His Last Vow'', Benedict and Martin won for Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor in a TV Movie or Mini-Series (becoming the first pair of actors to play Holmes and Watson to win major awards), as well as Emmys for Editing, Cinematography, Best Music, and Sound Editing.
267

Context Awesome / Sherlock