Elementary 3.11
Jan. 23rd, 2015 11:32 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
selenakIn which Gregson must have an odd sense of deja vu in more ways than one.
First of all: for all that Elementary isn't a literary adaption of ACD's Sherlock Holmes stories, it quote often works as a translation/knowing variation or response to the original, and you're never in doubt that the writers have actually read the stories. (Which is why I think the dismissal that they simply took the names and nothing else is so unfair.) In this particular case, the Doyle story The Adventure of the Illustrious Client, which is where Kitty Winter hails from. It was very clever to keep the exact name of Joan's new boss until the last scene. I was all set for a pithy aside to the effect of "which management level administrator of a big company is so generous that he handwaves his new employee just taking the first two days of her work off to help a friend and even provides her with confidential data?" And then we saw Kitty's reaction to his voice and Joan named him.
Now, even just within the Elementary verse I thought that De Merville couldn't have been Kitty's rapist and torturer because of the Sherlock-Moran-Moriarty analogy, so I was expecting, well, something. However, the reason why the reveal still suprised me in a good way and had me slap my head at the same time is that Gruner's main trait, in the Doyle story, is that he's so charming and smooth that his future victims don't want to believe the truth about him; also he's got public status and wealth. So it's far more fitting for the Elementary version to be not the openly brutal bearded brothel keeper but the nice and helpful Joan friendly company guy. (Who now had a dammed good reason for being so generous towards Joan - he was framing de Merville for his deeds in addition to de Merville's own track record.)
Violet de Merville in the ACD story is Gruner's latest target and fiance; she dismisses all bad things said about him, including by Kitty, on "women scorned/ but he's redeemed for love!" grounds until she gets a look at Gruner's trophy book of fond memories. Elementary's Violet de Merville is not the fiancee but the sister of not Gruner but red herring villain Simon de Merville the brothel keeper, who has helped him and keeps lying about it. Like her ACD precedent, she has a confrontation with Kitty Winter, but it doesn't involve Kitty telling her the truth (and Violet refusing to believe it), it involves Kitty making her tell the truth via violent means (beating up). (ACD's Kitty Winter in the end used violence, too - acid thrown in the face - but against Gruner, not Violet.) Which leads Gregson, who previously had experienced Kitty scaring his daughter's assaulter into resigning from the force somehow, to telling Holmes that Kitty can no longer consult for the department, and at that point I really expected SOM EONE to bring up Sherlock's own stint at vigilantism with Moran, but neither Gregson and Sherlock did. Still, this parallel is why the shift of target for Kitty's violent action works for me. Also I hope that's it as far as Kitty going vigilante is concerned. When the news about the burned boat came I was afraid she'd killed Simon de Merville, which would be my second worst case scenario (Kitty crossing the moral event horizon and parting badly from Holmes & Watson). I suppose it's still possible it will be revealed in the next episode she did do that, but I hope they'll go instead of the further parallel to Sherlock's season 1 actions, i.e.when Sherlock catches up with Moriarty (before the Irene reveal, which pushes it into another story trope), he no longer intends to go vigilante. Not least because I think we have the set up for two things here: Kitty having to face her own actions (with Violet de Merville, who is still around as opposed to dead Simon, and this is important - hence me being okay with the shifted target of Kitty's violence), and Kitty confronting the real perpetrator, this time passing the temptation and bringing him to justice, not vengeance.
This is what I hope to happen, both because I'm fond of the character and because I love the relationships the season has built. Joan describing Kitty as "someone I consider family" summed it up. And was I ever relieved Sherlock didn't even attempt to keep the truth from Kitty at the beginning of the episode but told her straight away, after making sure Joan was present as well; that neither of them patronized Kitty but were unobstrusevely there, and that upset as she was, Kitty remained concerned that Joan was risking her professional future for her.
Also appreciated: the scene with the Croation woman in the hospital. This way, the subplot about the slave trafficking didn't feel like some sensationalism thrown in as a red herring, but very typical for Elementary at its best, showed the victims of a crime as people with their own stories and dignity.
Speculation: unless my two least favourite scenarios come to pass (Kitty dies, or Kitty parts in bitterness from H & W because it turns out she did kill de Merville), I'm okay with pretty much everything else but with for the outline above. In which case I could see Gregson sticking to his "no more Kitty" decision for understandable reasons for at least a few episodes, if not the rest of the season, and since Joan, no matter how the Gruner thing ends, is unlikely to continue working for that company any longer, it would mean exclusively Holmes & Watson on NYPD cases while Kitty takes on cases not brought in by the NYPD. Alternatively, it could also be that Kitty after her inevitable confrontation with Gruner (however that works out) will take a few episodes off (either in London or another location) to work through it all, but will return for the last few episodes, because unless she dies or has killed someone, I don't think she'll stop being a guest star until this season is over.
First of all: for all that Elementary isn't a literary adaption of ACD's Sherlock Holmes stories, it quote often works as a translation/knowing variation or response to the original, and you're never in doubt that the writers have actually read the stories. (Which is why I think the dismissal that they simply took the names and nothing else is so unfair.) In this particular case, the Doyle story The Adventure of the Illustrious Client, which is where Kitty Winter hails from. It was very clever to keep the exact name of Joan's new boss until the last scene. I was all set for a pithy aside to the effect of "which management level administrator of a big company is so generous that he handwaves his new employee just taking the first two days of her work off to help a friend and even provides her with confidential data?" And then we saw Kitty's reaction to his voice and Joan named him.
Now, even just within the Elementary verse I thought that De Merville couldn't have been Kitty's rapist and torturer because of the Sherlock-Moran-Moriarty analogy, so I was expecting, well, something. However, the reason why the reveal still suprised me in a good way and had me slap my head at the same time is that Gruner's main trait, in the Doyle story, is that he's so charming and smooth that his future victims don't want to believe the truth about him; also he's got public status and wealth. So it's far more fitting for the Elementary version to be not the openly brutal bearded brothel keeper but the nice and helpful Joan friendly company guy. (Who now had a dammed good reason for being so generous towards Joan - he was framing de Merville for his deeds in addition to de Merville's own track record.)
Violet de Merville in the ACD story is Gruner's latest target and fiance; she dismisses all bad things said about him, including by Kitty, on "women scorned/ but he's redeemed for love!" grounds until she gets a look at Gruner's trophy book of fond memories. Elementary's Violet de Merville is not the fiancee but the sister of not Gruner but red herring villain Simon de Merville the brothel keeper, who has helped him and keeps lying about it. Like her ACD precedent, she has a confrontation with Kitty Winter, but it doesn't involve Kitty telling her the truth (and Violet refusing to believe it), it involves Kitty making her tell the truth via violent means (beating up). (ACD's Kitty Winter in the end used violence, too - acid thrown in the face - but against Gruner, not Violet.) Which leads Gregson, who previously had experienced Kitty scaring his daughter's assaulter into resigning from the force somehow, to telling Holmes that Kitty can no longer consult for the department, and at that point I really expected SOM EONE to bring up Sherlock's own stint at vigilantism with Moran, but neither Gregson and Sherlock did. Still, this parallel is why the shift of target for Kitty's violent action works for me. Also I hope that's it as far as Kitty going vigilante is concerned. When the news about the burned boat came I was afraid she'd killed Simon de Merville, which would be my second worst case scenario (Kitty crossing the moral event horizon and parting badly from Holmes & Watson). I suppose it's still possible it will be revealed in the next episode she did do that, but I hope they'll go instead of the further parallel to Sherlock's season 1 actions, i.e.when Sherlock catches up with Moriarty (before the Irene reveal, which pushes it into another story trope), he no longer intends to go vigilante. Not least because I think we have the set up for two things here: Kitty having to face her own actions (with Violet de Merville, who is still around as opposed to dead Simon, and this is important - hence me being okay with the shifted target of Kitty's violence), and Kitty confronting the real perpetrator, this time passing the temptation and bringing him to justice, not vengeance.
This is what I hope to happen, both because I'm fond of the character and because I love the relationships the season has built. Joan describing Kitty as "someone I consider family" summed it up. And was I ever relieved Sherlock didn't even attempt to keep the truth from Kitty at the beginning of the episode but told her straight away, after making sure Joan was present as well; that neither of them patronized Kitty but were unobstrusevely there, and that upset as she was, Kitty remained concerned that Joan was risking her professional future for her.
Also appreciated: the scene with the Croation woman in the hospital. This way, the subplot about the slave trafficking didn't feel like some sensationalism thrown in as a red herring, but very typical for Elementary at its best, showed the victims of a crime as people with their own stories and dignity.
Speculation: unless my two least favourite scenarios come to pass (Kitty dies, or Kitty parts in bitterness from H & W because it turns out she did kill de Merville), I'm okay with pretty much everything else but with for the outline above. In which case I could see Gregson sticking to his "no more Kitty" decision for understandable reasons for at least a few episodes, if not the rest of the season, and since Joan, no matter how the Gruner thing ends, is unlikely to continue working for that company any longer, it would mean exclusively Holmes & Watson on NYPD cases while Kitty takes on cases not brought in by the NYPD. Alternatively, it could also be that Kitty after her inevitable confrontation with Gruner (however that works out) will take a few episodes off (either in London or another location) to work through it all, but will return for the last few episodes, because unless she dies or has killed someone, I don't think she'll stop being a guest star until this season is over.
no subject
Date: 2015-01-23 02:51 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-01-23 03:40 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-01-23 04:15 pm (UTC)Me, too. The writers have been good at portrayal of tough subjects like addiction and victimhood and consequences. For me, if Kitty did go completely vigilante, that would be like Sherlock relapsing. She's worked hard to empower herself after the attack, I like how Sherlock reminds her to leave emotion out of the work and not meet her attacker on his level (personal). I admire Kitty for all the strides she's made at reclaiming an empowered life. At the same time, she does have an edge, and beating up the sister -- ow. Plus the bit with convincing that cop to resign - kudos for Gregson remembering. I suppose it's possible, maybe, that Kitty chose to hone her skills specifically to be the predator instead of the prey. But that wouldn't match the arc of her growth this season.
no subject
Date: 2015-01-23 06:48 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-01-24 01:55 am (UTC)I hope Kitty gets an exit as good as Lumen's.
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Date: 2015-01-24 07:55 am (UTC)Yes, this.
Selena, great review, as ever.
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Date: 2015-01-24 07:55 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-01-24 02:37 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-01-24 02:37 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-01-25 01:21 am (UTC)