Elementary - Recap: Mob Rule

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With that said, even now, I'm kind of surprised I didn't like "All In the Family" more than I did, given that the Case of the Week is built on a fascinating foundation. What begins as the case of a dead body in an oil drum balloons into a far-reaching criminal conspiracy, with Bell's new boss at the head. We've never really been told enough about Deputy Police Commisioner DeSilva (Peter Gerety) to have formed an opinion on him beyond his role as the guy who poached Bell away from Captain Gregson's (Aidan Quinn) department. And it's just as well, since this episode relies on the audience knowing as little as possible about the Commissioner. But if you think about it, that's kind of a shame. The series has sort of rushed through Bell's estrangement from Sherlock, as well as his time away from Gregson's unit. Imagine how much more interesting DeSilva's fall might have been if we'd had more time to get to know him, and to be surprised by the criminal truth behind his ascension? And how much more powerful would the resolution of Sherlock and Bell's feud have been if it had lasted more than just a handful of episodes? But I suppose that's neither here nor there, since the show inevitably had to get down to the nitty gritty of getting Bell back home with Sherlock, Gregson, Joan (Lucy Liu) and all the other colleagues he'd left behind.

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So I suppose I can only really explain the case by detailing it in reverse, since it's so irreducibly complex that tackling it in order is a bit of a zero-sum game. In short, a body without a head, hands or feet is found in an oil drum, making it pretty hard to identify the victim -- at least until the dead man's father comes forward: Bobby Pardillo (Paul Sorvino), a reformed mafia crime boss. And this is where things sort of spiral out of control, particularly once we discover a prior connection between Pardillo and DeSilva. When an NSA agent (Tim Guinee) reveals his suspicions about DeSilva to Sherlock, Holmes confronts Bell with what he suspects. Compelled by Sherlock's suspicions, Bell swipes a file from DeSilva's office that reveals the truth about the Deputy Police Commissioner...

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Basically, DeSilva was a police officer placed in the department by the mafia decades ago. He went on to rise up through the ranks of the department, attaining greater power as his career gained wider renown. Inevitably, he began to distance himself from the mafia bosses that had placed him there in the first place after it became apparent that they were gradually losing the power and influence they once had. However, the union election in the city threatens to compromise DeSilva's cover in the department for the first time in years, as the mafia turns to their former ally for help. Thus, DeSilva has to choose between helping the mob and risking exposure as a criminal, or choosing to help the NSA ascertain the location of a long-retired mobster, hoping that doing so would start a mob war, which would thereby eliminate all remaining threats to his secret identity within the force. Yeah, it was one of those cases.

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Ultimately, Bell is the one who closes the case, lulling DeSilva into a false sense of security in the hopes that he would track down and murder Pardillo. The police storm the boat docks and catch DeSilva redhanded as he approaches Pardillo's boat with gun in hand. With the head of his department taken down, and his faith in Sherlock's abilities restored, Bell returns to Gregson's unit, and while things aren't exactly hunky-dory with Sherlock just yet, the two men exchange nods of mutual respect and understanding. It's a fairly pat resolution, but it works because the story between Sherlock and Bell is so well illustrated throughout the episode.

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Most of "All In the Family" sees Sherlock trying to rattle Bell out of his stupor of self-pity. This means visiting Bell's workplace and offering his assistance to the department, essentially preventing Bell from ever being free from his presence. Sherlock denies that he's actively doing this to annoy Bell, but Joan knows better, calling Sherlock on his attempts to goad Bell into returning to Gregson's unit (since Sherlock can't stomach working with any other detective in the precinct). And, inevitably, Sherlock recognizes this too. When Bell storms out of the brownstone, sick of hearing Sherlock's accusations against DeSilva, Sherlock gives chase and confronts him with the truth: yes, he was trying to annoy Bell, but only because he was tired of seeing what a pitiable man he'd become. Sherlock insists that Bell can't see past the fog of his own self-pity, and that his calling is as a detective -- a calling he isn't fulfilling, since he's basically stuck behind a desk, "analyzing data". Sherlock says he's been pestering Bell because he has faith in him and always has, to which Bell argues that having it all figured out isn't as easy for him as it is for Sherlock. This prompts Sherlock to reveal that it hasn't been easy for him at all, explaining that he was a drug addict before Bell met him, and adding that he only overcame his hardship thanks to the help of good people.

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It's a scene that's hard to really encapsulate in words, since the raw emotional potency of it is all in the performances of Miller and Hill. I'm glad that the show seems intent on giving Bell more to do, as Jon Michael Hill is a tremendous actor who is able to match Jonny Lee Miller's fantastic Sherlock blow-for-blow. And the effectiveness of Jonny Lee Miller's really can't be overstated. It's to the point where I prefer him to Benedict Cumberbatch (sacrilege, I know). This is a performance that is both restrained and explosive in equal measure, taking a character that is somewhat introverted and illustrating his attempts at making meaningful connections in his life. Sherlock has no time for pity, he sees no profit in it. And so he reaches out to Bell in the hopes that he can push his former friend towards the same conclusion, even if it means they can't be friends/colleagues anymore.

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Sure, this Sherlock is still a bit rough around the edges, but that's just the kind of character Sherlock Holmes has always been. He's not the most gregarious guy in the world, but it's clear that, when you get down to brass tacks, he cares about people far more than he leads on -- and far more than others give him credit for. And so the relationship between Sherlock and Bell this week ultimately proves to be the most rewarding aspect of "All in the Family," which is far from the highs of weeks past, but is still solid enough to be worth the time.