I've been thinking and thinking about what one of the authors said in an interview about this show. He said that there was a clue in the movie; something Sherlock did that was "out of character" and was a clue to how Sherlock might have done it. He even said he was surprised that no one seemed to have caught it.
I've watched that episode (season 2, episode 3) over and over looking and listening for that one clue. I couldn't stop watching it until I found that clue! Although I doubt that will stop me watching it and all the Sherlock episodes. They are a work of genius and a work of art.
So, I finally heard THE clue. It was somewhat anticlimactic since the internet traffic with hundreds if not millions of people posting constantly. The furor seems to be over for now.
Here's what I think. Sherlock was so terribly rude to Kitty. He's usually indifferent or detached from people that he considers unimportant or not worthy of his attention. Here, in this scene, he is deliberately mean to her.
He says to her and her recording device, "You repel me."
So out of all the clues and red-herrings and other mysterious elements, this is THE clue I have been scouring the DVD to hear. I feel pretty confident that this is it.
It's a pun. Repel and rapell. Rock climbing--the way a person gets down from a very high cliff, a mountain, or building in this case. Using ropes and body harnesses..
Sherlock made sure John would only see the beginning of the fall. Then John hit his head on the pavement so he was dopey. The people around Sherlock made sure John didn't get to close, pulled his hand away when he was groping for a pulse.
Since it's obvious that Sherlock set this all up, that those surrounding him on the pavement were the homeless network (that "clue" was when he said the homeless network were easier to "bribe" than the police. I also think Molly arranged the paramedics to cart "the body" into the hospital.
That's it. Sherlock rapelled down from the roof after he took a free fall half the way, the half that John could witness. I don't know how, but he did.
The mystery now is, why was he so scared? He's afraid of heights? No, he jumped between buildings in the first episode. Was he was thinking he might really die? Maybe. He was definitely worried about that when he told Molly, "I think I'm going to die." He hoped the people he was counting on were in place and ready to go into action when he jumped? Could he trust all of it to work? If so, did that thought make him doubt his arrogant attitude that he was so much smarter and capable than other people? Did that make him feel he was a fake? Whatever it was, it made him tremble, look scared, and fight off crying.
Only time will tell. One thing I do see is that Sherlock was worried about Moriarty killing him so he had to plan some sort of "death" for himself before Moriarty got the chance. He chose the roof of a hospital. How convenient.
That's my guess of the clue "everyone missed" that told "how he might have done it". I'm pretty confident that's what it was. The mechanics of how he actually repelled is still a mystery. It could be any explanation, any scenario. After all, it's fiction. It's fantasy at it's best.
Oh, yeah. The dummy at the beginning of the episode was hanging from a rope. Aha. Hint? I think I saw a rope curled up on the roof when Sherlock and John were having their phone call/suicide note. Are these more subtle clues?
What about the big red lettered graffiti on the wall behind Sherlock and John while they were escaping from police custody? Of course most viewers, if not all, caught a glimpse of them. They were I.O.U. I also noticed, though, in subsequent viewings, that the rest of that graffiti was a big pair of wings.
It's good to read a well-written mystery and it's great to watch a well-written movie. Thanks guys.
Over and out. Sandy Schairer
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