After Watson Sneakily Debunked A Fan Theory, I’m Flashing Back To Robert Carlyle’s Comments About Whether Sherlock Is Being ‘Honest’ With John

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Be warned: this contains spoilers for the latest episode of Watson Season 2, titled “Lucky,” which is now available to stream with a Paramount+ subscription.

A new case unfolded on the latest episode of CBS’s Watson, as John and his team investigated a patient with locked-in syndrome who held vital clues about a nurse suspected of murder. John took a backseat in this investigation, as Sherlock Holmes has reappeared, continuing his deception of being deceased. The episode cleverly disproved a long-held fan theory about Sherlock and brought to mind comments Robert Carlyle previously made to TopMob.

How “Lucky” Debunked A Theory

Okay, so I stumbled across this fan theory about Sherlock, and honestly, it made a lot of sense. The idea is that Sherlock never actually came back to life – it was all in John’s head. Remember in Season 1 when John first heard Sherlock’s voice? That was actually Matt Berry doing the voiceover, and it was established as John imagining his friend. Plus, thinking back, nobody ever actually saw Sherlock and John together in Season 2, which is kinda hard to ignore. It got me wondering if the whole thing was just John’s grief playing tricks on him.

After Robert Carlyle shared his perspective earlier in the season, I was skeptical of the idea that Sherlock was a hallucination. However, I started noticing hints that it could be true. The episode with “Lucky” especially seemed to support this – John hid Sherlock when Mary arrived, and she only saw a table set for two, not Sherlock himself. Considering Mary hadn’t seen Sherlock at that point, it felt plausible that John was subconsciously creating the situation and interpreting it as Sherlock being there.

Sherlock ultimately proved he wasn’t a ghost during the episode. John needed his help to prevent a murderer on a plane headed to Vietnam from getting away. Instead of a brilliant deduction, Sherlock solved the problem with a simple phone call to Scotland Yard, pretending to be a worried person reporting a bomb threat on the flight.

John was a little shocked to realize Sherlock had just reported a potential terrorist threat. For me, though, the important thing was that Sherlock actually used the phone – he spoke to someone, and it got results. That proved to me, without a doubt, that he’s a real person. Despite everything, Sherlock comforted John with a hug, reassuring him that he was committed to staying off drugs and that he wasn’t a fundamentally bad person destined to become a villain.

Sherlock isn‘t finished yet – Robert Carlyle will return in upcoming episodes. And as Mycroft takes charge of Watson’s clinic, the entire team will become increasingly involved with the Holmes family as the second season unfolds.

What Robert Carlyle Said About Sherlock’s Honesty

I previously interviewed Robert Carlyle, who starred in Once Upon a Time, about Sherlock Holmes’ explanation for surviving the fall at Reichenbach Falls. Holmes revealed he’d orchestrated the entire event to eliminate his enemies, Moriarty and Stapleton, and to create a believable cover for his own disappearance, allowing him to escape the demands of being the world’s most famous detective. I asked Carlyle how honest Sherlock was being with John Watson about manipulating the situation to appear dead, and the actor explained:

It seems like he’s telling the truth about what occurred. He likely went to great lengths to rescue Watson, and that was his main goal. Sherlock wanted to disappear, and he saw a way to do it by faking his death. He’s covered his tracks completely, allowing him to start a new life. As the story unfolds, it will become clear that he wasn’t content with the way things were.

Okay, so Sherlock’s big plan to off Moriarty didn’t quite work – the guy somehow stuck around until the very end of Season 1. But honestly, Sherlock totally convinced John he was gone, and that twist reveal at the start of Season 2 was amazing! It still makes me wonder if the mention of Stapleton means Mark Gatiss (who plays Mycroft) has something else up his sleeve regarding Watson’s backstory. Apparently, according to Carlyle, his character was mostly truthful, even while pretending to be dead, and being ‘gone’ wasn’t all he’d imagined before… well, you know, going over Reichenbach Falls. Carlyle then continued to say…

Sherlock’s incredible ability to solve problems has left him feeling unfulfilled and unhappy. He questions whether all his efforts have actually been worth it. While he explains what happened to him physically, it’s unclear whether he’s revealing the true reasons behind his actions, and that’s what needs to be understood.

We now know how Sherlock survived the fall, and it seems clear he’s truly alive, not just a creation of John’s imagination. While the latest episode explained how he survived, it didn’t fully explain why he acted the way he did, leaving that question unanswered. It appears he still has unresolved issues with Mycroft, which could be the reason he came back – and potentially help others too, not just John.

It’s still to be seen what will happen, but the preview for the next episode suggests John will be able to concentrate on a new case without having to keep a British detective a secret from his friends and family. Here’s a sneak peek:

You can continue watching new episodes of Watson on CBS Mondays at 10 p.m. Eastern, right after FBI Season 8 airs at 9 p.m. Eastern. If you’d like to revisit past episodes or catch up, all episodes of Watson are available for streaming on Paramount+.

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2025-11-13 14:39