Sherlock (2010-2017) is a British mystery drama that aired on BBC One in the UK and PBS in the US. The series focuses on the titular character, Benedict Cumberbatch (in his breakthrough role), an English private detective who solves unusual cases with his roommate and friend, retired Army doctor John Watson (Martin Freeman). The series is based on the stories and characters of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
This entry will focus on the first episode of the second season, “A Scandal In Belgravia”, based on Conan Doyle’s short story A Scandal In Bohemia (1891) with some rather major departures. In this episode from 2012, Sherlock is tasked with solving a case of blackmail that could threaten the British monarchy itself, involving an elite dominatrix named Irene Adler (Lara Pulver). But the case goes further and deeper than Sherlock could have possibly imagined, with Irene at its heart. She is most often seen throughout the episode in either elegant lingerie, dark but classically cut upper-class clothing, or nothing at all if it furthers her objective. Most of the time, she wears her long black hair up in some form of a bun.
There are many pluses to Irene as a character. She’s brilliant, resourceful, and clever enough to outwit the most famous detective in the world, often coming out three steps ahead of Sherlock. As a sex worker, she is also empowered and not one bit ashamed of the work or the joy that she gets out of it. And she freely uses the term “gay” as a catch-all to describe herself (though “bi” would have been preferable since she has both male and female clients/affairs).
However, there is more to tango with here. The course of the plot often leaves Irene embodying a lot of bi villain stereotypes — she’s a liar, manipulative, and uses her sexuality to exploit others as a means to her ends, to the point of possibly toppling whole countries if it suits her. At the same time, there’s also both a feeling of queerbaiting here, and so much emphasis on her clear attraction to Sherlock that it almost takes on a role reversal dynamic, ending with a damsel in distress rescue that feels out of character for this bi badass the show has built up.
Overall, “A Scandal In Belgravia” is still an entertaining episode and is considered one of the best in the series (or at least a fan favorite). But for all the script’s jokes throughout the first few seasons that Sherlock and Watson could be seen as a gay couple, this actual bi representation is one of the show’s few examples of queerness. In some ways, it is empowered; in others, tropey. Overall, it makes for a fun watch but not necessarily the best bi representation that British TV has had on offer.