The BBC series brought to life Sherlock Holmes' fake death, and there’s one clue everyone missed in that specific episode. The Great Detective has been adapted to different types of media for decades, with some of them giving the character and his cases a twist and bringing them to the modern world. Among the most successful modern adaptations of Sherlock Holmes is the BBC’s , starring Benedict Cumberbatch as the famous detective and Martin Freeman as his best friend and partner, John Watson.
brought the detective to modern-day London and adapted some of his most famous cases from the books to then-current social issues and the technology available at the time of the show’s release.
Among the stories adapted in was that of Holmes’ fake death, the result of a confrontation with his archenemy, Professor Moriarty. Just like in the books, Holmes was brought back in the series, but the explanation of how he faked his death was disappointing and controversial – and to further add to it, there was a clue that “everyone missed” in the episode of Sherlock’s supposed death.
Moriarty’s (Andrew Scott) presence in was teased at the end of the series’ first episode, but he didn’t make his official debut until the finale of season 1. Throughout season 2, Moriarty served as the main antagonist, with his and Sherlock’s story reaching a critical point in season 2’s finale, “The Reichenbach Fall”. In it, Moriarty went to extremes to destroy Sherlock and his reputation, pushing the detective to his limit and leaving him with a “final problem” that had only one solution.
Moriarty killed himself on the rooftop of St. Bartholomew’s Hospital in order to leave Sherlock with no other option than to do the same.
However, Sherlock found one flaw in Moriarty’s plan that would have saved him, but Moriarty killed himself on the rooftop of St. Bartholomew’s Hospital in order to leave Sherlock with no other option than to do the same. With no other solution to save his friends, Sherlock called John to say goodbye and jumped off the roof of the hospital as John watched from a distance. John later approached Sherlock’s body and checked his pulse, but the detective was already dead – or, at least, that’s what he made John and the audience believe.
In the two years that passed between season 2’s finale and season 3’s premiere episode, viewers came up with several theories on
. These theories were further fueled by co-creator, Steven Moffat, saying that there was “” (via , even mentioning that many people had been theorizing about Sherlock’s death online, yet they had missed that one clue.
In a separate interview with , Moffat added that the clue was “”, essentially turning viewers into detectives. Even after the reveal of Sherlock’s survival, Moffat didn’t reveal what the clue was, but viewers seem to agree on what it was.
Among the most popular theories found on social media and forums were those that explained that to stop his pulse, Sherlock used a small ball under his arm, and even supported the theory with a scene from the show where this was explained. In season 3’s premiere episode, it’s mentioned that Sherlock placed a small ball under his arm to stop his pulse long enough for John to check it, and Sherlock was seen bouncing a small, black ball in “The Reichenbach Fall”, while he waited at St. Bart’s hospital.
Other viewers believe the clue was the ambulance house blocking John’s view at a very strategic point, allowing Sherlock to do whatever he needed to, to fake the scene – however, taking Moffat’s comment of the clue being something ” into account, the ambulance house can’t qualify. Bouncing a ball isn’t exactly something out of character either, but the camera work of the scene made sure that the audience paid attention to the ball.
Another possible candidate for the “clue everyone missed”, though it also isn’t something that Sherlock did, was one of the bystanders that were later revealed to be part of Sherlock’s Homeless Network.
As pointed out by some users, one of the bystanders is seen taking a blood packet out of his blazer as he looks around. It’s a quick-and-you’ll-miss-it moment, but proves that it was all planned since “The Reichenbach Fall” was released – and yet, the writers of failed to deliver an official and satisfying explanation of how Sherlock faked his death.
To the audience’s surprise, Philip Anderson (Jonathan Aris), who never liked Sherlock, became the biggest conspiracy theorist after Sherlock’s “death”, even leading a group where people shared their theories on how Sherlock survived.
At the end of season 3’s “The Empty Hearse”, Sherlock himself gives Anderson a detailed explanation of how he faked his death, beginning with him and Mycroft having a plan for every one of the 13 possible outcomes of Sherlock’s meeting with Moriarty – all Sherlock had to do was text a code word to his brother.
The members of the Homeless Network then rolled out an inflatable mattress and posed as bystanders. These people applied faked blood to Sherlock and the detective hid the above-mentioned ball under his arm to stop his pulse. Even though this was the explanation Sherlock gave and thus the one the writers wanted the audience to believe, the veracity of this scene is debated as
Sherlock suddenly disappeared when Anderson pointed out the flaws in his plan.
Sherlock is available to watch on Amazon Prime.
In this incarnation of Sherlock from creators Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss, Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman assume the roles of Sherlock and Watson as they establish their partnership and begin solving strange mysteries throughout the U.K. and beyond. Set in a more 2010's modern setting, Sherlock's eccentric and complex nature is accentuated as he solves seemingly supernatural crimes with unparalleled intellect while struggling to connect with others on a human level.
Meanwhile, Watson blogs the stories summarizing their cases while building a strained but caring friendship with his new partner.
