History Recap / SherlockS03E03HisLastVow

* {{Corpsing}}: When Sherlock/Benedict is yelling "WELL I'M NOT NOW!", John/Martin can be seen laughing at his childish behavior.

* EvilCannotComprehendGood: Magnussen, for all the ways he manages to outwit Sherlock in this episode, misses one crucial fact about the man. While he recognizes that John is a pressure point for Sherlock that he can exploit, he seems completely unaware of just how far Sherlock will go to protect or save John. It doesn't [[BoomHeadshot end well for him.]]

--->'''Molly:''' [[WhatAnIdiot How dare you ruin your precious gift?]] ''[looks at John]'' And how dare you betray the love of your friends?
::: Which turns out to be sweet when Sherlock [[UndyingLoyalty stops himself from being clinically dead since he thought John was in danger.]]

*** When Sherlock is in his mind palace after getting shot and on the brink of death, his friends urge him to stay alive while Moriarty urges him to die. Just like [[Recap/DoctorWhoS21E6TheCavesOfAndrozani the Fifth Doctor]]. Coincidentally, the author of the ''Doctor Who'' episode that happens in was called "Robert Holmes".
*** Sherlock refers to Mary as "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS32E4TheDoctorsWife the Doctor's wife]]" and later asks Mrs. Hudson "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E7AmysChoice Then what, exactly, is the point of you?!]]", a line almost word-for-word lifted from Amy Pond. The Eleventh Doctor says something similar in "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS32E1TheImpossibleAstronaut The Impossible Astronaut]]". Moffat certainly had fun with this one.
*** Not to mention Mary's "mixed messages" of shooting Sherlock, then saving his life, alongside being madly in love with John were very familiar to River's erratic "I love him / I have to kill him" flirting/psychopath behavior in "Let's Kill Hitler."
*** The Christmas Day outfit of the elder Mr. Holmes (Sherlock and Mycroft's dad) screams the Series 5 outfit of the [[Creator/MattSmith Eleventh Doctor]].

*** Sherlock uses the sentence "hidden in plain sight" when discussing his hideout with Mary. Said hideout is a house whose interior does not match the exterior, which could be reminiscent of [[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E11TheLodger Craig's house]] or a certain blue box.
*** John dismissing the fact that he does not know Mary's real name and that her name is the one she choose is reminiscent of Clara's conclusion in "[[Recap/DoctorWho2013CSTheTimeOfTheDoctor The time of the Doctor]]".

* ShowerOfLove: Alluded to when Sherlock's new girlfriend sneaks into the bathroom after him. Turns out there was no sex between them.

-->'''Sherlock:''' ''... he attacks people who are '''different''' and preys on their secrets!''

* BlackmailBackfire: The whole of the episode is a slow set-up towards this. If Magnussen, the so-called "Napoleon of {{Blackmail}}", had not kept on [[BullyingADragon bullying Sherlock and John]] out of [[EvilIsPetty a petty desire to showcase his control over them]], [[spoiler:Sherlock wouldn't have figured out that all of the blackmail information he has was located in his head (and '''only''' his head), and wouldn't have been angry enough to [[BoomHeadshot deal with the threat thusly]].]] Magnussen unknowingly dodges a bullet earlier when his continuous dangling of Mary Watson's (nee Morstan's) past to make John do what he wants [[spoiler:nearly make Mary (who [[AdaptationalBadass in this version]] is [[MysteriousPast apparently]] a [[RetiredBadass retired assassin]], presumably for the CIA) kill him; only to be thwarted because John and Sherlock entered the office while she was talking to Magnussen.]]

* AdaptationalWimp: A particularly subtle example, but Magnussen isn't nearly as smart as his Conan Doyle counterpart. Unlike Magnussen's mistakes (see IdiotBall, below), Doyle's version of Milverton is smart enough to have concrete material to blackmail his victims with. Doyle's Milverton also keeps the location of this information well-hidden, and even [[LampshadeHanging notes that he would never do anything stupid like bring the materials to some place they could be forcibly taken from him.]]

* BigFancyHouse: "Appledore", Magnussen's pad.
** Actually David [=McMurtry's=] Swinhay House, which is so flashy that the owner ''himself'' can't bear to live in it, instead renting it out year-round with the proceeds going to various charities.

* BlackmailBackfire: The whole of the episode is a slow set-up towards this. If Magnussen, the so-called "Napoleon of {{Blackmail}}", had not kept on [[BullyingADragon bullying the Holmeses and the Watsons]] out of [[EvilIsPetty a petty desire to showcase his control over them]], [[spoiler:Sherlock wouldn't have figured out that all of the blackmail information he has was located in his head (and '''only''' his head), and wouldn't have been angry enough to [[BoomHeadshot deal with the threat thusly]].]] Magnussen unknowingly dodges a bullet earlier when his continuous dangling of Mary Watson's (nee Morstan's) past to make John do what he wants [[spoiler:nearly make Mary (who [[AdaptationalBadass in this version]] is [[MysteriousPast apparently]] a [[RetiredBadass retired assassin]], presumably for the CIA) kill him; only to be thwarted because John and Sherlock entered the office while she was talking to Magnussen.]]

* AbortedDeclarationOfLove: The scene in which Sherlock says goodbye to John on the tarmac is seemingly set up to lead the audience to believe a love confession is imminent:
-->'''Sherlock:''' John, there's something I should say. I've meant to say always, and then never have. Since it's unlikely we'll ever meet again, I might as well say it now. ''[long pause]'' Sherlock is actually a girl's name.\\
'''John:''' ''[laughs]'' We're not naming our daughter after you.

-->'''Sherlock:''' John, there's something I should say. I've meant to say always, and then never have. Since it's unlikely we'll ever meet again, I might as well say it now. [long pause] Sherlock is actually a girl's name.\\

!!Tropes present in this work include:

*** Sherlock apparently has a porn preference. [[SugarWiki/FunnyMoments It's normal.]]

::: Which turns out to be [[SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments sweet]] when Sherlock [[UndyingLoyalty stops himself from being clinically dead since he thought John was in danger.]]

* CantKillYouStillNeedYou: Sherlock is recalled from his suicide mission for MI6 after just getting on the plane, because he's the ''only'' one who can deal with Moriarty when Moriarty comes back to life.

* LetsWaitAwhile: Apparently what Sherlock was telling Janine.

* OhCrap: Sherlock is completely floored when he sees it's Mary holding the gun.

* OutGambitted:
** Sherlock just barely comes out on top between him and Magnussen, before that, Magnussen played Sherlock like a harp by tricking him into thinking that there were actually physical records of everything inside vaults.

* ThePatientHasLeftTheBuilding: Soon after coming back to live, Sherlock escapes from the hospital bed via [[EnterStageWindow window]].

* PetTheDog: Mycroft admits that he actually is fond of his little brother. Also Sherlock pets Redbeard (revealed to be his childhood dog) while in his mind palace in order to calm himself down and pull himself out of shock.

* RealityEnsues: Sherlock does not get off for killing Magnussen, he's sent on a suicide mission for MI6 as punishment... until Moriarty shows up.

*** Which turns out to be [[SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments sweet]] when Sherlock [[UndyingLoyalty stops himself from being clinically dead since he thought John was in danger.]]
** Magnussen [[TooDumbToLive stupidly gives a supposed one]] to Sherlock in "[[Recap/SherlockS03E03HisLastVow His Last Vow]]".

* TheReveal: There's no vault in Appledore. Magnussen stores his blackmail information in his mind, because he's able to use the same "mind palace" technique that Sherlock uses. Mary is actually a former assassin. Moriarty is possibly NotQuiteDead.

* ShootTheDog: Sherlock, upon realizing that the information that Magnussen is using to blackmail Mary and torment John is only in his head, grabs John's gun and shoots Magnussen in the head in front of John, Mycroft and several armed police officers. That was more of shooting the son of a bitch though.

*** Sherlock refers to Mary as [[Recap/DoctorWhoS32E4TheDoctorsWife "the Doctor's wife"]] and later asks Mrs. Hudson "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E7AmysChoice Then what, exactly, is the point of you?!]]", a line almost word-for-word lifted from Amy Pond. The Eleventh Doctor says something similar in "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS32E1TheImpossibleAstronaut The Impossible Astronaut]]". Moffat certainly had fun with this one.

*** John and Sherlock's farewell to each other at the end is very reminiscent of the Tenth Doctor and Rose Tyler's farewell in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS28E13Doomsday "Doomsday"]], with at least two lines pulled from it. ("I can't think of what to say." and "If it's my last chance to say it...")

*** John dismissing the fact that he does not know Mary's real name and that her name is the one she choose is reminiscent of Clara's conclusion in [[Recap/DoctorWho2013CSTheTimeOfTheDoctor "The time of the Doctor"]].

* ShowerOfLove: Alluded to when Sherlock's new girl friends sneaks into the bathroom after him. Turns out there was no sex between them.

* AStormIsComing: In Sherlock's mind palace after Mary shoots him, Mycroft tells Sherlock that an east wind is coming (reference to an exchange between Holmes and Watson in the original story "His Last Bow"). Sherlock tells John the same thing when they say goodbye, explaining that this is a story that Mycroft told him as a child; "The East Wind; this terrifying force that lays waste to all in its path. It seeks out the unworthy, and plucks them from the Earth. That was generally me. He was a rubbish big brother." At the end, when Moriarty's return leads to Sherlock's exile being curtailed, John comments that if Moriarty is alive, "he’d better wrap up warm. There’s an East Wind coming."

* TooDumbToLive: Go ahead, Magnussen. Reveal that you ''knew'' Sherlock's pressure point, by [[BerserkButton threatening John's life]] in front of him. Not like he ''knows'' [[TranquilFury how to kill you.]]
** [[BewareTheQuietOnes He does.]]

* UngratefulBastard: Mycroft and the British Government. Sherlock killed Magnussen. Instead of pardoning Sherlock, or hushing the whole thing up, they send him on a suicide mission for MI6 because he would just cause prison riots. The MP who hired Sherlock to bring down Magnussen, Lady Smallwood, is the one who signs the order. They only change their minds when Moriarty comes back, and realize how much they need Sherlock.

[[TheStinger Miss me?]]

*** Which turns out to be [[HeartwarmingMoments sweet]] when Sherlock [[UndyingLoyalty stops himself from being clinically dead since he thought John was in danger.]]

-->'''Sherlock:''' ''John, there's something I should say. I've meant to say always, and then never have. Since it's unlikely we'll ever meet again, I might as well say it now. [long pause] Sherlock is actually a girl's name.''\\
'''John:''' ''[laughs] We're not naming our daughter after you''.

-->'''Sherlock''': ''John, there's something I should say. I've meant to say always, and then never have. Since it's unlikely we'll ever meet again, I might as well say it now. [long pause] Sherlock is actually a girl's name.''
-->'''John:''' ''[laughs] We're not naming our daughter after you''.

-->'''Sherlock''': ''... he attacks people who are '''different''' and preys on their secrets!''
* BlackmailBackfire: The whole of the episode is a slow set-up towards this. If Magnussen, the so-called "Napoleon of {{Blackmail}}", had not kept on [[BullyingADragon bullying the Holmeses and the Watsons]] out of [[EvilIsPetty a petty desire to showcase his control over them]], [[spoiler: Sherlock wouldn't have figured out that all of the blackmail information he has was located in his head (and '''only''' his head), and wouldn't have been angry enough to [[BoomHeadshot deal with the threat thusly]].]] Magnussen unknowingly dodges a bullet earlier when his continuous dangling of Mary Watson's (nee Morstan's) past to make John do what he wants [[spoiler: nearly make Mary (who [[AdaptationalBadass in this version]] is [[MysteriousPast apparently]] a [[RetiredBadass retired assassin]], presumably for the CIA) kill him; only to be thwarted because John and Sherlock entered the office while she was talking to Magnussen.]]

** Redbeard, appearing in Magnussen's analysis of Sherlock. [[spoiler: He is extremely important in Series 4.]]

-->'''Molly''': [[WhatAnIdiot How dare you ruin your precious gift?]] *looks at John* And how dare you betray the love of your friends?

-->'''Magnussen''': Very hard to find a pressure point on you, Mr Holmes. The drugs thing I never believed for a moment. Anyway, you wouldn't care if it was exposed, would you? But look how you care about John Watson. Your damsel in distress.

-->'''Magnussen''': Sorry, no chance for you to be a hero this time, Mr. Holmes!
-->'''Sherlock''': [[PreMortemOneliner Oh, do your research. I'm not a hero, I'm a high-functioning sociopath. Merry Christmas!]]

-->'''Bill''': They call me "The Wig".\\
'''Sherlock''': No they don't.\\
'''Bill''': They call me "Wiggy".\\
'''Sherlock''': Nope.\\
''({{beat}})''\\
'''Bill''': Bill. Bill Wiggins.\\
'''Sherlock''': Excellent deductions, ''Billy''.

-->'''Mycroft Holmes''': "That name you think you may have just heard. You are mistaken. If you ever mention hearing that name, in this room, in this context, I guarantee you on behalf of the British Security Services that materials will be found on your computer hard-drives resulting in your immediate incarceration. Don't reply, just look frightened and ''[[GetOut scuttle]]''."

** Sherlock reveals his full name to be William Sherlock Scott Holmes, popularized by Creator/PhilipJoseFarmer in The Wold Newton family, and used in the 1977 film ''Sherlock Holmes in New York'', starring Creator/RogerMoore.

* TenMinuteRetirement: It only took four minutes for Sherlock to be ordered back from his [[ReassignedToAntarctica assignment in East Europe]] to help by the British government deal with Moriarty.

* TenMinuteRetirement: It only took 4 minutes for Sherlock to be ordered back from his [[ReassignedToAntarctica assignment in East Europe]] to help by the British government deal with Moriarty.

* AdaptationalWimp: A particularly subtle example, but Magnussen isn't nearly as smart as his Conan Doyle counterpart. Unlike Magnussen's mistakes (see IdiotBall, below), Doyle's version of Milverton is smart enough to have concrete material to blackmail his victims with. Doyle's Milverton also keeps the location of this information well-hidden, and even [[LampshadeHanging notes that he would never do anything stupid like bring the materials to some place they could be forcibly taken from him.]]

* BlackmailBackfire: As you can guess from the rest of the page, [[BullyingADragon Magnussen deciding to continuously tick off Sherlock and the Watsons]] out of pettiness was a very stupid idea.

* BoomHeadshot: Sherlock kills Magnussen with a bullet to the head.

* EvilIsPetty: Magnussen has no problem with [[ExcrementStatement pissing in people's fireplaces]] or licking their faces to intimidate them, and he does it solely because he can.

* HelpfulHallucination: In his not-so DyingDream, Sherlock gets assistance by Mycroft for determining which way to fall down and later by Moriarty, of all people, giving him the motivation to carry on.

* TheReveal: The killer, first seen from behind, is not Lady Smallwood but Mary.

* SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute / HasAType: Janine is an attractive, witty brunette who manipulates Sherlock to her benefit but also seems to have some sort of feelings for him. He manipulates her in turn. [[TheMasochismTango They part on good terms]]. Sounds a lot like Irene.

* AdaptationalWimp: A particularly subtle example, but Magnussen isn't nearly as smart as his Conan Doyle counterpart. Unlike Magnussen's mistakes (see WhatAnIdiot, below), Doyle's version of Milverton is smart enough to have concrete material to blackmail his victims with. Doyle's Milverton also keeps the location of this information well-hidden, and even [[LampshadeHanging notes that he would never do anything stupid like bring the materials to some place they could be forcibly taken from him.]]

*** The Christmas Day outfit of the elder Mr. Holmes (Sherlock and Mycroft's dad) screams the Series 5 outfit of the [[MattSmith Eleventh Doctor]].

* ExpectingSomeoneTaller: On encountering Sherlock, a woman from his fan club notes that she expected him to be taller.

** Magnussen's glasses.