Elementary Season 3 Episode 7 Review: The Adventure of the Nutmeg Concoction
Tanya Moat
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It's a good thing Thanksgiving is over because you won't look at pumpkin pie the same way after watching Elementary Season 3 Episode 7. Nutmeg plays a key role in dissolving bodies and cleaning murder scenes.
Say it with me, EWWWWWWW.
This was a great episode. It was quirky and not your typical murder mystery, which seem to be happening more and more frequently. While I can't imagine creating 22 highly unique murder mysteries worthy of the legendary Sherlock Holmes, this season's cases have been a bit ... mundane to me. But not this one!
Joan was hired by Kim Holder to investigate the disappearance of her sister. It was a private case, but a bored Sherlock volunteered to help. And when Sherlock says volunteer, you know he meant takeover.
Joan wasn't thrilled with Sherlock butting in, but then again, she seemed a bit off, a little more irritable than normal. Tolerating Sherlock and his oddities, certainly requires a lot of patience, which Joan typically has in spades, but not tonight.
We soon find out what was bothering her - making her long-distance relationship work. Her temper was short, and Sherlock refused to drop the subject of her relationship with Andrew.
Again, I marvel at the shift and growth in Sherlock. Not that long ago, he would have been the irritated one and completely annoyed that Joan's relationship was interfering with their work. Now he won't let Joan brush aside the problem.
You, Watson, are something of a romantic terrorist.
Sherlock
Being this is Sherlock, he didn't lend a comforting ear or behave like a normal person would. Nope. He told her that she's acting like a baboon with inflated genitals.
That's our Sherlock.
Generally speaking, telling Joan (or anyone for that matter) that she was acting like a baboon in heat is not the best way to win an argument, but he actually had some valid points. Joan does have a history of picking inappropriate men and sabotaging relationships. More importantly, he knew why she constantly repeated this cycle.
It's connected to the conflict at your core. The tension between a conventional life and the yearning to heed the call of adventure.
Sherlock
Who hasn't fought the battle between convention and adventure? And often times we let convention win. Sherlock wanted Joan to see there were possibilities, multiple options and choices. To not let her life and relationships be dictated by what polite society deemed appropriate.
All you need to do is find one that is true to your nature. It really is quite remarkable to me. You remain a far more interesting person than you give yourself credit for.
Sherlock
I love how their relationship has truly evolved into a partnership and friendship. Sherlock cares about Joan and wants her to be happy with whomever she chooses to be with.
The case this week was also very interesting. The scent of nutmeg linked the disappearances of six women. The FBI believed it was serial case, but Sherlock disagreed. And he was right and so were they, to a lesser extent, of course.
The cases were not connected by a common killer, but by a cleaner, the person hired by criminals to clean up their murder scenes, which included dissolving bodies in a chemical concoction that smelled like nutmeg. At a new crime scene, Sherlock brought in The Nose to ferret out those other hidden scents.
And no, Sherlock does not know The Nose's real name.
The way they discovered who The Cleaner was a bit hokey since it was more dumb luck than brilliant investigating, which is Sherlock's calling card, but I digress. Conrad Woodbine didn't get a chance to make a huge impression because sadly, The Cleaner got cleaned.
Yeah, I went there.
Normally, it's fairly obvious who the killer is because you can only meet so many possible suspects within the hour. In this case, the person who killed Conrad came a little bit out of left field, but it made sense once we understood who he really was.
The only thing that struck me as odd was Sherlock and Joan's leverage on Raymond Carpenter. His son would certainly have a target on his back, but I'm not sure how a white collar prison would protect him. The type of clients who used The Cleaner's services would still be able to reach him there. In fact, I think it would be even easier for them to eliminate him at a low-level security prison. Witness protection would have made more sense to me.
What did you think of tonight's episode? What kind of life would choose - convention or adventure? And what choice do you think Watson made when she chose Andrew? Don't forget, you can watch Elementary online via TV Fanatic and get caught up on all of Sherlock's adventures.
