Sherlock’s Fall, 4 Amazing Clues On How He Survived (Spoiler Free)

First of all, rest assured this Sherlock post is a spoiler-free area (unless you haven’t seen all of season 2 yet, in which case, why the hell not? That shit is on Netflix!).

Second of all, hallelujah, we have an airdate! After almost two years of waiting for news on a release date we now know that Sherlock season 3 will air in the US on January 19 on PBS so set your DVR’s and mark your calendars. If you’re in the UK Season 3 will air even sooner than that but the BBC premiere date hasn’t been released just yet.

We do know that the first episode revolves around Sherlock’s death and we’ll finally learn how he survived his epic fall from the roof. It’s a mystery that’s been baffling the internet for almost two years, especially after Martin Freeman assured viewers that, “All the clues were on screen. It’s not going to be a cheat — everything that we saw on that final episode offers hints as to how he did it.”

So, do you think you’ve got the answer of how Sherlock survived? If not, here are a few clues from the episode that you might have missed on a first viewing. For example, did you notice:

1. John’s Earpiece

After John’s final conversation with Sherlock he lowers his phone and for just a second you can clearly see that John’s wearing an earpiece that’s never explained. It disappears after he’s (conveniently) knocked down by the cyclist a moment later and possibly falls to the ground. Some say the earpiece fell out, other people say it’s just a rock on the ground. And others will tell you to ignore it completely, Martin Freeman was probably just being fed Benedict’s lines to respond to, but if that was the case you would think the director would be smart enough to put the earpiece in the off-screen ear. Important or not though, the earpiece is definitely there.

2. Keep Your Eye on the Bouncing Ball

Early in the episode we see Sherlock in the lab bouncing a ball we’ve never seen before. Easy enough to shrug off as nothing unless you notice that it looks like he’s got it in his hand again, hiding behind his back, when he’s on the roof with Moriarty.

But what could that mean? Maybe it’s just a stress ball, this is a pretty intense situation. The Mentalist appears to have been working on this mystery as well so I’ll let him explain:

Well, that’s surely irrelevant. Oh look, the only place John was able to reach to take Sherlock’s pulse was his wrist. Who wants to bet he didn’t find anything?

3. What the Heck is Hiding Around That Corner

Twice during this emotionally packed final scene Sherlock tells John not to come around the corner. Why not? Because he’d probably wonder why there are two conveniently placed buses hiding from view the sidewalk that he’s about to go splat on.

The above image is from just before the phone call with John though. After Sherlock jumps and John turns the corner the only thing to be seen is what is either a garbage or laundry truck that immediately pulls away after Sherlock lands, which is pretty sketchy.

I don’t know of a lot of garbage men on such a tight schedule that they’ll drive off after a man has fallen to his death right in front of them so there’s a pretty safe bet this truck is involved in the mystery. Don’t be surprised if there’s a net in one of those bags.

“Bill, go back, that guy just jumped off the roof!”
“Laundry first, Fred, laundry is always first.”

4. Whose Body Is That?

After Sherlock’s fall we get a view of his bloodied face on the ground, proving that it’s at least him lying there, dead or not, before he gets loaded onto a gurney and rushed away.

A few shots later the gurney is very briefly shown being brought into the hospital, but pause the video at the right moment and it’s clear that the man on the gurney is no longer Sherlock.

Not only does he not look anything like Benedict Cumberbatch, there’s not a trace of blood to be seen on whoever this is. It’s likely some stiff Molly snuck out of the morgue to help out with the ol’ switcheroo of death, as we saw Sherlock go to her for help with something earlier in the episode. That’s some kinky stuff Molly, someone might miss that cadaver.

Those are all the clues we’ve got to this mystery. Did you put it together? Got any other amazing clues that we missed? A theory you’d like to share? Astound us in the comments section and don’t miss season 3 of Sherlock, premiering January 19th, 2014.