‘Elementary’ season 1 finale review: Who is Moriarty?

We want to say that this was the mother of all twists, but in reality, this is one that you probably saw coming a mile away.

There were some truly great moments during the season finale of “Elementary,” and we started to get a real sense of how good this show can be. The first half of the year was frustrating, mostly because it felt like the Watson / Holmes relationship was spinning its wheels, and the cops were uninteresting and could be a part of any TV show under the sun. We do still stand by the latter sentiment, but the dynamics between our leads have improved, so much so that Sherlock has his partner to really thank for figuring this latest situation out.

As wonderful and as shrewd as an investigator as Sherlock is, it has become clear that he does have one primary weakness: Love. It blinds him to the truth, and in this case that truth was that Irene Adler, the very woman he loves, was also his undoing. For almost the entire time she has known him, she has somehow managed to stay a step ahead … at least until tonight. The power that Joan possesses is that she is not in love with Irene, and thus not blind to her spells. She helped to set the bait to make her believe that Holmes had overdosed on drugs, knowing that her love for him, even in spite of the thrill of the chase, would not keep her away. Granted, the only people really excited to see her upon arrival were the police.

So is this the end of the character? While we do not want to say that, it is worth nothing here that Natalie Dormer has a pretty extensive job on “Game of Thrones,” and unless she is killed off at the end of the season, her work will be subject to availability.

Season 2 now has a path that is somewhat set in stone, as Sherlock’s past will be even more exposed to Joan courtesy of a trip to London. Let’s hope that somewhere along the way, she is able to learn some pretty interesting things about the man he really is.

Photo: ABC