Elementary 4.11
Feb. 5th, 2016 04:17 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
selenakIn which Detective Cortez turns out to be a Batman character.
The case of the week was beyond my suspension of disbelief (I can buy the original murder, but the coverup is way too elaborate and ruthless for a panicked father), but the return of Detective Cortez turned out to be way more interesting than her first appearance. Basically: she strikes me as just-before-Two-Face Harvey Dent.
Seriously though, having her not wanting to embarass or humiliate or frame Joan or anything like this, but sincerely wanting Joan's help.... for vigilante police violence was a great twist, sold by that truly masterful punchline about Sherlock in reply to Joan's "we don't hurt people". "You don't hurt people. But he does. He gets it." Not often, but he did it three times on screen (to Moran, to Drug Dealer Who Turned Up Again In Later Episode while with Oscar, and to Oscar), and while Joan and the audience are aware that each time resulted from an extreme emotional state (thinking Moran killed Irene, being blackmailed for Alfredo's life and pushed back into a drug environment), the fact of the matter is that these incidents happened, and that Joan did not see them as a reason to break off her partnership with Sherlock. Who in turn is aware that this behavior is wrong and would have accepted legal punishment for the Oscar beating if Morland hadn't bribed the D.A., but also understood it when Kitty did it to her rapist and didn't stop her, leaving the choice to her (btw: did Joan ever hear about this? He didn't tell her on screen to my recollection, though of course he may have off screen), so yes, he may have uncomfortably more in common with Detective Cortez' pov than Joan wants to believe.
The mutual challenge - Joan telling Cortez that if Cortez ever does something like this again, Joan will prove it and bring her down, Cortez observing that with the lines Joan and Sherlock have already crossed, it may be Joan gets there as well and before she does - and Joan's final "race you to the bottom" suddenly makes me invested in this relationship and see Cortez as a worthy new adversary for Joan. And what a good idea not to make her another evil mastermind but someone convinced of her own righteousness, which makes for a far better shadow self of Joan Watson.
The case of the week was beyond my suspension of disbelief (I can buy the original murder, but the coverup is way too elaborate and ruthless for a panicked father), but the return of Detective Cortez turned out to be way more interesting than her first appearance. Basically: she strikes me as just-before-Two-Face Harvey Dent.
Seriously though, having her not wanting to embarass or humiliate or frame Joan or anything like this, but sincerely wanting Joan's help.... for vigilante police violence was a great twist, sold by that truly masterful punchline about Sherlock in reply to Joan's "we don't hurt people". "You don't hurt people. But he does. He gets it." Not often, but he did it three times on screen (to Moran, to Drug Dealer Who Turned Up Again In Later Episode while with Oscar, and to Oscar), and while Joan and the audience are aware that each time resulted from an extreme emotional state (thinking Moran killed Irene, being blackmailed for Alfredo's life and pushed back into a drug environment), the fact of the matter is that these incidents happened, and that Joan did not see them as a reason to break off her partnership with Sherlock. Who in turn is aware that this behavior is wrong and would have accepted legal punishment for the Oscar beating if Morland hadn't bribed the D.A., but also understood it when Kitty did it to her rapist and didn't stop her, leaving the choice to her (btw: did Joan ever hear about this? He didn't tell her on screen to my recollection, though of course he may have off screen), so yes, he may have uncomfortably more in common with Detective Cortez' pov than Joan wants to believe.
The mutual challenge - Joan telling Cortez that if Cortez ever does something like this again, Joan will prove it and bring her down, Cortez observing that with the lines Joan and Sherlock have already crossed, it may be Joan gets there as well and before she does - and Joan's final "race you to the bottom" suddenly makes me invested in this relationship and see Cortez as a worthy new adversary for Joan. And what a good idea not to make her another evil mastermind but someone convinced of her own righteousness, which makes for a far better shadow self of Joan Watson.
