Netflix’s Enola Holmes focuses on the youngest sister of Sherlock Holmes, but the Great Detective got a sister three years earlier in a popular TV show. As one of the most popular literary characters ever, Sherlock Holmes has been adapted to all types of media for decades. The state of the rights to Sherlock Holmes has given creative freedom to many artists who have been inspired by the Great Detective, resulting in some of the best adaptations in recent years, among them Enola Holmes.
Based on The Enola Holmes Mysteries book series by Nancy Springer, Enola Holmes introduced the title character (played by Millie Bobby Brown), the youngest sister of Mycroft (Sam Claflin) and Sherlock Holmes (Henry Cavill). When their mother disappeared, Enola set out to find her, kicking off her career as a detective, sometimes teaming up with her famous brother, as she did in her second movie. Enola Holmes successfully introduced a third Holmes sibling, which the BBC’s Sherlock did three years earlier, but it wasn’t successful.
BBC’s Sherlock Introduced Eurus Holmes In Season 4
Eurus Holmes Was Sherlock Season 4’s Biggest Surprise
Created by Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat, Sherlock brought the detective and company to modern-day London, adapting his methods and cases to modern technology and current social issues. Starring Benedict Cumberbatch as Holmes and Martin Freeman as John Watson, Sherlock’s first two seasons were a big success, but season 2’s finale, “The Reichenbach Fall”, which saw Holmes’ fake death, was the snow’s peak. As a result, seasons 3 and 4 couldn’t match the previous seasons’ quality and success, with the fourth one widely regarded as the worst.
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Sherlock: What Went Wrong With Seasons 3 & 4
The quality of the BBC’s Sherlock decreased drastically with seasons 3 and 4, but what exactly went wrong with those seasons? Let’s take a look.
Sherlock season 4 saw the death of Watson’s wife, Mary (Amanda Abbington), and its aftermath, which was cut short by the surprise introduction of Eurus Holmes (Sian Brooke) at the end of the second episode. Eurus was Mycroft and Sherlock’s youngest sister, and unlike her brothers, she was a criminal mastermind. When the Holmes siblings were kids, Eurus, lonely and jealous of his brothers playing with a kid named Victor Trevor, planned the latter’s death. Eurus lured Victor into a well, where she left him to die, and the loss traumatized a young Sherlock.
After burning down the Holmes’ family mansion, Eurus was sent to Sherrinford, a maximum-security psychiatric prison, where she stayed for many years. However, given how intelligent she was, Eurus managed to manipulate everyone at Sherrinford and pretty much ran the place, leaving whenever she pleased. This was how she got close to Watson by disguising herself as a lady he met on the bus and later as his therapist. Eurus was the main villain in Sherlock’s season finale, where she put her brothers and Watson in an elaborate trap.
Why Eurus Holmes Didn’t Work In Sherlock
Eurus Holmes Was One Of Sherlock’s Biggest Mistakes
Eurus Holmes wasn’t mentioned before Sherlock season 4, with the final season explaining that, due to the trauma of Victor’s death, a young Sherlock “rewrote” his memories to forget about his sister and Victor, instead remembering the latter as a dog. Eurus’ presence came out of nowhere and felt very out of place, as Watson was still grieving Mary’s death while Sherlock continued working. The entire final episode of Sherlock was centered on Eurus’ plan to mess with her brothers and Watson, and it didn’t make any sense.
Sherlock’s finale had a couple of plot holes, the way Holmes solved the problem wasn’t believable, and Eurus made no sense at all.
Eurus set up an elaborate trap in Sherrinford, where she intended to force the Holmes brothers and Watson to choose which of her victims lives and dies, among them Molly Hooper. Sherlock’s finale had a couple of plot holes, the way Holmes solved the problem wasn’t believable, and Eurus made no sense at all. At the end of Sherlock, Eurus was sent back to Sherrinford, with Holmes visiting her from time to time. Eurus was one of Sherlock’s biggest mistakes and completely ruined the show’s final episodes.
Who Was The Smartest Holmes Sibling In Sherlock?
The Holmes Family Had A Couple Of Geniuses
The Holmes siblings are all smart, and for years, readers and viewers have debated who is the smartest between Sherlock and Mycroft, but the BBC series added Eurus to the question. Surprisingly, Eurus Holmes was the smartest Holmes sibling, so much so that she was mentioned in the show to be classified as an era-defining genius and, quite possibly, the most intelligent person alive. This put her above her famous brother and Jim Moriarty (Andrew Scott), with Eurus using her intellect and more to cause harm.
However, Sherlock’s intelligence wasn’t far from his sister’s, as he ultimately managed to outsmart her and get to her, thus saving John, Mycroft, and himself. This is not to say that Mycroft wasn’t intelligent, because he definitely was, but what he had was more power thanks to his position in the government. The Holmes siblings could have been an interesting team in Sherlock if only they had similar intentions.
Sherlock
7/10
- Release Date
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2010 – 2017-00-00
- Showrunner
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Steven Moffat
- Directors
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Steven Moffat
