Sherlock: The Reichenbach Fall

John Watson attends his first therapy session in months, still struggling to articulate his purpose. He finally chokes out that Sherlock Holmes is dead, revealing the depth of his grief. The scene establishes the personal cost of the case on Watson's psyche.

The story cuts back to three months earlier, where Sherlock basks in plaudits and gifts for solving high-profile cases. The press attention grows as he recovers the Reichenbach Falls painting and becomes a near-celebrity. Friends and institutions cheer his genius while the world starts to notice him.

The director presents a wrapped gift to Sherlock, which he immediately deduces to be a set of diamond cuff-links. He quips that his cuffs have buttons already, signaling his growing fame and his frustration with the trappings of success. The moment highlights Sherlock's sharp eye for detail even in casual exchanges.

A wrapped gift from the son of a kidnapped banker is revealed to be a tie pin, a gift Sherlock notes he does not wear yet again. He uses the small exchange to remind Watson that appearances and expectations have shifted around him. The exchange underscores how public perception is shaping Sherlock's choices.

DI Lestrade gives Sherlock a barely-wrapped gift, a deerstalker cap, a tongue-in-cheek nod to his public image as a famous detective. Sherlock's reaction makes clear he still values work over celebrity, while the cap marks a transition from private to public life. The moment signals Moriarty's shadow looming over Holmes's career.

Watson notices that Sherlock's fame brings intense media scrutiny and risk of a backlash. He urges Sherlock to keep a low profile and take on smaller cases to avoid becoming a target. Sherlock contemplates the price of his growing legend.

Moriarty engineers near-simultaneous break-ins to test his reach, including the Crown Jewels theft attempt, while also infiltrating the Bank of England vault and even the prison system. Before smashing the Crown Jewels' case, he scrawls 'Get Sherlock' on the outside so security cameras reveal it. He then allows himself to be captured wearing the jewels and sitting on the throne.

The tabloids scream 'Crime of the Century' and question how all three institutions were broken into at once by the same criminal. The sensational coverage amplifies the perception that Sherlock Holmes might be involved or compromised. Public opinion begins to tilt toward suspicion rather than admiration.

Sherlock testifies in court, presenting Moriarty as a criminal mastermind. Moriarty threatens the jurors with harm to their families, pushing them toward voting not guilty. The jurors acquit Moriarty under pressure, leaving Sherlock reeling and exposed.

Moriarty taunts Sherlock with his vast capabilities, claiming he can hack any bank and even has influence over nuclear launch codes. He reveals he enjoys observing people and their behavior to gain money and power, and that there is one last problem to solve. Sherlock struggles to decipher his motive or provide a counter-move.

Sherlock discovers Moriarty has created a fake identity, Richard Brook (alias 'Reichen Bach' in German), as part of a master plan to ruin his reputation. The scheme intensifies when Sherlock and Watson confront Kitty Riley and public exposure looms. The constructed persona drives the public narrative toward doom for Holmes.

Sherlock and Moriarty stage a final confrontation on the hospital roof, with Moriarty offering Sherlock a choice to save his friends. Moriarty reveals there is no real anti-security code and that he has bribed guards; the choice collapses. Sherlock, recognizing there is no safe path, ultimately leaps to his death, ensuring Moriarty's identity dies with him.

The scene returns to Watson's therapy, where he confronts the tabloid barrage and the sense that Sherlock's last note haunts him. A front-page article in The Sun proclaims 'Suicide of Fake Genius,' confirming the public scandal. Watson wrestles with grief and guilt while trying to reconcile the myth of Sherlock with the man he knew.

Watson visits Sherlock's grave with Mrs. Hudson and reaffirms his faith that Sherlock is not truly gone. In a final quiet moment, Sherlock seems to observe from afar, reminding Watson that their bond remains. The scene closes with a sense of unresolved longing and the possibility that Sherlock's spirit still lingers.