![]() ![]() It’s a skill not too dissimilar to Sherlock’s own deductive process, an observation that will prove crucial by the case’s conclusion. While Sherlock describes him as the “Napoleon of Blackmail,” the Terminator of Extortion might prove to be a more fitting epitaph, given Magnussen’s habit of coldly scanning the room, and people’s weaknesses flashing before him like a heads-up display in James Cameron’s cyborg series. But just like everything else in Sherlock, the character has been reimagined for the show’s modern-day setting here, he takes the form of a powerful newspaper baron with heavy-handed parallels to media mogul Rupert Murdoch. ![]() ![]() A master blackmailer who specializes in finding and exploiting people’s “pressure point,” he’s a character plucked straight from Conan Doyle’s original tomes (although he goes by the name of Milverton in the books). At the episode’s center was a fiendish villain, in the form of Charles Augustus Magnussen, played with delicious precision by Lars Mikkelsen. Fortunately, this week’s installment, “His Last Vow,” served up a genuine “three pipe” problem that, at points, flummoxed even the great Sherlock Holmes. Like the show’s titular detective, fans had grown restless without a substantial piece of sleuthing this year. After two good-but-not-brilliant episodes to begin its long-awaited third season, Sherlock returned to peak form for its finale and reminded us why we’ll sorely miss the show during what will presumably be a substantial hiatus. So, what was the magic ingredient that put the show back on the scent? In the end, it turned out to be something as elementary as a decent case. ![]()
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