TIMELESS Review: “Mrs Sherlock Holmes”

TIMELESS — “Mrs. Sherlock Holms” Episode 207 — Pictured: (l-r) Abigail Spencer as Lucy Preston, Sarah Sokolovic as Grace Humiston, Matt Lanter as Wyatt Logan — (Photo by: Justin Lubin/NBC)

TIMELESS “MRS SHERLOCK HOLMES” REVIEW

BY JENNIFER HOBBS

SUFFRAGETTE CITY | OK Clockblockers, I swear I’ll stop saying, “that was the best episode of Timeless yet!” eventually. Just not this week.

Nope, this week ranked right up there on my list of Timeless favorites, and how could it not? A female Sherlock Holmes, a battle for women’s right to vote, a long overdue showdown between Lucy/Wyatt/Flynn, developments on Jiya’s visions, and another epic cliffhanger . . . whew, I feel like I ran a fangirl marathon.

In last night’s show, the Time Team took on New York City circa 1919, to save suffragette Alice Paul, who is framed for murder by Rittenhouse. The fab four (Lucy, Rufus, Wyatt, and Flynn – sorry, no #DrunkMason this week), team up with Grace Humiston, AKA Mrs. Sherlock Holmes, to clear Alice’s name.

As always, the team is working against the clock to save Alice before history is rewritten, and to return her to her suffragette efforts in time to deliver a speech that sways public opinion to support the soon-to-be 19^th Amendment.

Meanwhile, back in the bunker, Mason, Christopher, Jiya, and Jessica go through the intel they managed to salvage from Wyatt’s bungled raid of Rittenhouse HQ. Let me just say . . . Carol may have gotten away, but Lyatt fans may have gotten something better . . .

GRACE UNDER PRESSURE | Even before Rittenhouse decides to mess with suffragette history, there’s trouble in paradise – or should I say, the bunker – as Rufus and Jiya try to sort through the bomb she dropped at the end of the last episode. You know . . . the little one where she had a vision of Rufus DYING via Ocean Cowboys or something!?!? (Side note: I would probably watch a documentary called Ocean Cowboys: The Untold Secrets of Deep-Sea Riding, anybody else?)

Meanwhile, Wyatt and Flynn finally have it out in the bunker bathroom after Wyatt spots Lucy leaving Flynn’s room in the morning. Wyatt tells Flynn to “stay the hell away from her!” to which Flynn simply replies: “You know, she’s not your wife. That’s the blonde lady, just down the hall . . . unless history’s changed again.” (Slow clap for Sassy Flynn finally sticking it to Master Sergeant Indecisive).

Before they can come to blows, Rittenhouse makes the jump to 1919, and the Time Team’s in hot pursuit, despite Wyatt’s protestations that Flynn should stay behind: “We’re The Beatles, we don’t need Yoko.”

Thanks to a bit of exposition between Emma and Keynes, we know that this Rittenhouse mission is going to be a slightly different. Keynes no longer wants Emma to “do the dirty work,” as she’s too important to him, and he is more concerned with her returning safely. Looks like Nicholas is keen on pickling something other than eggs . . . Gross.

TIMELESS — “Mrs. Sherlock Holms” Episode 207 — Pictured: Abigail Spencer as Lucy Preston — (Photo by: Justin Lubin/NBC)

As soon as Lucy and the boys touch down in 1919, they discover that Senator Wadsworth has been shot, and Alice Paul, the suffragette leader, has been framed for his murder. Lucy explains to the team that Alice is one of the most influential women in American history, causing Rufus to question everything he knows: “What?!? More than Beyoncé?!?”

While Flynn and Rufus investigate Alice’s hotel room (where the murder weapon was planted), Lucy and Wyatt track down Grace Humiston, or Mrs. Sherlock Holmes.

Grace lives up to her nickname, pegging Wyatt and Lucy’s uncomfortable romantic situation within two seconds of meeting them, but definitely isn’t a fan of Alice Paul. Despite her brusque demeanor and obvious dislike of the suffragette, she accompanies Lucy and Wyatt – or should we say Ally McBeal and Johnnie Cochran – who are posing as Alice’s attorneys in order to speak to her in jail.

Meanwhile, Flynn and Rufus are interrupted by a cop who quickly realizes that they aren’t Pinkerton Detectives (named John McClane and Hans Gruber, naturally), and pulls a gun. In an interesting twist, Flynn is calm while Rufus, who’s already decided that he “ain’t worrying about a damn thing” this trip since it’s cowboy-free, goes a bit crazy. Rufus encourages Flynn to just take the cop out, “Flynn it up, Flynn!” (Fun Fact: this line was actually ad-libbed by Malcolm Barrett, who plays Rufus), and just like that, “Flynn” is now a verb. Before Flynn can . . . Flynn . . . EMMA shoots the cop and saves them!

Flynn gets the drop on her, but it’s clear she didn’t put up too much of a fight, because she’s actually – get this – here to help!!! Yes, Clockblockers, you read that right!

Emma explains, “This time, this mission, one night only . . . I want to stop Rittenhouse.” Turns out not even Emma is cool with Keynes nixing 19^th Amendment.

Unconvinced, Flynn questions Emma, asking her if anything she ever told him about what Rittenhouse did to her was true. She seems to be leveling with the Time Team this week and confesses that “there are certain things they do to test your loyalty,” before snapping back to her sarcastic form and deadpanning that Rittenhouse has a “hell of a dental plan” that makes it all worthwhile.

TIMELESS — “Mrs. Sherlock Holms” Episode 207 — Pictured: Annie Wersching as Emma Whitmore — (Photo by: Justin Lubin/NBC)

More importantly, Emma tells the pair that Rittenhouse has orders to kill Lucy, and that she’s in immediate danger, as the sleeper is a suffragette!

Back at the police station, Grace, Lucy, and Wyatt have come to see Alice again, this time to ask her to try and identify the handwriting on a note used to help frame her. Unfortunately, they discover Alice dead in her cell, and with her, the hopes of the suffragette movement.

Lucy is understandably distraught, and tries to rally the other suffragettes in spite of Alice’s death. The women, however, are shocked and upset. They suggest that it would be disrespectful to Alice’s memory to march anyway, but Lucy argues: “it would be disrespectful to ignore everything she sacrificed for us,” and the women decide to forge ahead, albeit without a speaker.

Grace is unmoved, and still thinks protests are beneath her and that speeches are pointless. “Some speeches inspire a movement,” Lucy rebuts, yet Grace maintains that they’re useless. Lucy implores her to think of all that Alice Paul sacrificed, and her impassioned words lead the other suffragettes to suggest that Lucy herself deliver the speech.

Wyatt chases after her, concerned for her safety, particularly since Rittenhouse has put a target on her back. But Lucy, still fired up and not about to slow down, finally tells Wyatt that if he was concerned about her getting hurt, then he should have thought about that earlier. Even Wyatt, as dense as he may be at times, understands that Lucy isn’t talking about her physical wellbeing. “I got the rug pulled out from under me. Again,” she says, reminding us just how much she – like Alice Paul – has sacrificed to save the world.

While Lucy readies to deliver a speech, Emma – in a totally unexpected moment of candor and vulnerability – pours her heart out to Rufus and Flynn. It’s a last-ditch attempt to convince the still-doubtful duo that she’s really on their side this time, and it reveals some interesting things about her history. Emma had an abusive father, and her mom somehow found the courage to take Emma and run. They started their life over, and Emma became a brilliant scientist, eventually being recruited by Rittenhouse. She fears that if the 19^th Amendment is killed, she’ll find herself in a future where she and her mom never escape her dad. Convinced, Flynn hands her a gun.

Emma takes off to find the sleeper agent, and Wyatt, Flynn, and Rufus prepare for things to get ugly at the protest, while trying to track Lucy in the crowd. Unfortunately, the agent finds Lucy first, and tries to shoot her, only to discover that Grace Humiston already identified her as the person who framed Alice, and took the bullets out of her gun. Emma pops up and shoots the defenseless Rittenhouse agent anyway, and then, despite having Lucy at gunpoint, walks away declaring that, “motivational speeches aren’t my thing,” and leaving Lucy to save the 19^th Amendment instead.

Lucy and Grace race back to the march and though Flynn, Wyatt, and Rufus clear the way for her, Lucy can’t get to the podium in the midst of all the chaos. Grace – in shock after seeing first-hand the violence the peaceful protestors are subjected to – suddenly comes to her senses and fights her way to the stage.

She delivers a speech worthy of Alice Paul, and somehow still chillingly timely for modern-day viewers: “When we stay silent, we have just as much to blame as those we fight against! How long can men . . . accept less than what justice demands? The time is NOW.” The President tips his hat at her, and Lucy is elated; history is saved.

TIMELESS — “Mrs. Sherlock Holms” Episode 207 — Pictured: (l-r) Goran Visnjic as Garcia Flynn, Malcolm Barrett As Rufus Carlin — (Photo by: Justin Lubin/NBC)

LET’S FLYNNISH THIS | Victorious, thanks to an unexpected assist from Emma, both teams arrive back in 2018.

Emma confesses to Keynes that nothing went as planned, but he kisses her anyway. She doesn’t look particularly thrilled by his overtures . . . and we know that she didn’t take out Lucy even when she had the chance. Could Emma be questioning Rittenhouse’s plans?

Back in the bunker, Rufus and Jiya make up, and agree to work together to unravel her visions and save his life. Somehow, I don’t think it’s going to be that easy.

Speaking of not easy . . . Wyatt and Lucy continue the conversation that they started in 1919. Lucy tells Wyatt that “we can’t keep living in the past,” and Wyatt smirks, acknowledging the irony of that statement. She confesses that nothing happened with Flynn, and Wyatt channels every Lyatt fan: “I mean, THANK GOD!”

With the tension broken, Lucy begs Wyatt to understand that Jessica being back is “the closest thing to a miracle that I’ve ever seen, and there’s no way I’m getting in the middle of that. That’s not who I am.” We, and Wyatt, know that Lucy is remarkable, but it’s great to hear him reassure her: “You’re Lucy Preston. That’s pretty damn good.”

They once again struggle to answer the question of where their mutual feelings leave them, and Lucy sums it up: “Kicking ass and saving the world.”

But fear not, Lyatt fans, because Timeless has one more twist to toss at us, and it’s one some of you may have seen coming.

TIMELESS — “Mrs. Sherlock Holms” Episode 207 — Pictured: (l-r) Matt Lanter as Wyatt Logan, Abigail Spencer as Lucy Preston — (Photo by: Justin Lubin/NBC)

While the Time Team was saving suffragette history, Mason and Jiya were working to salvage what they could from the Rittenhouse raid. Mason finally gets a piece of tech to work, and he and Agent Christopher discover a photo . . . of JESSICA! Neither they – nor we! – know what this means, but Agent C swears Mason to secrecy until she figures it out.

This last teaser opens up so many questions, many of which fans have been asking for a while: Is Jessica Rittenhouse? If so, has she always been a sleeper agent? Or did Rittenhouse bring her back to mess up a Lyatt romance for some unknown reason?

But perhaps more significantly, “Mrs. Sherlock Holmes” reminds us that the clock is running down on the second season of Timeless, and the show’s writers aren’t wasting a single scene or even line of screen time.

Last night’s episode was arguably the most compelling yet – from the violence and ugliness of the suffragette protests, which Timeless didn’t shy away from; to Lucy’s impassioned arguments and the parallels to life in 2018; to the development of a semi-sympathetic Emma and the reminder that she, Rufus, and Flynn go further back than we might’ve initially recalled; to the poignant closing scene between Lucy and Wyatt, reinforcing that they’ve got hearts of gold, and that their relationship is #endgame, as Lyatt shippers love to say.

Every piece of the plotline propelled us forward at warp-speed, and I feel like Timeless is building up for one helluva finish, so we’ll see what happens in next week’s “The Day Reagan Was Shot.” I’m sure our favorite heroes will be Flynning it up!