Warning: SPOILERS ahead forWatsonseason 1, episodes 12-13, “My Life’s Work.”
A major character loses their life at the end ofWatsonseason 1, but the series at least has until its return to CBS in January 2026 to hammer out one of the biggest issues created by their death. TheWatsonseason 1 finalepays off a storm that’s been brewing since the series premiere, pitting Watson against Moriarty as two of his medical staff ride the brink of death. And, while neither Adam nor Stephens suffered the fate that the series appeared to be teasing,Watson’s cast of charactersstill takes a rather major blow.
Thankfully,Watsonchooses not to be the kind of show that ends on traditional cliffhangers. The season 1 finale ends with some unanswered questions about the future of Stephens and Lubbock’s relationship, not to mentionwhat’s going to happen to the massive genetic database that Moriarty’s stolen and weaponized. And while these questions will likely be answered inWatsonseason 2, it may be hard to navigate the latter question considering why the finale’s biggest death occurred in the first place.
Watson Season 1 Killed Off Moriarty To Distinguish John From Sherlock Holmes
Moriarty Was Never John Watson’s Personal Enemy
In order to save both Adam and Stephens, Watson has to coerce Moriarty into giving him the cure by first poisoning him and then offering to cure him under specific conditions. ButWatson gets around his promise to Moriarty by then killing him through entirely different means. According toScreenRant’s interview withWatsonshowrunner Craig Sweeny, the point of Watson killing Moriarty was partly to liberate him from the shadow of Sherlock Holmes. In Sweeny’s words:
And so I really did like, narratively, the idea that season 1 was the story of Watson becoming his own man outside of the shadow of Sherlock Holmes by confronting Holmes’ nemesis and defeating him. That made sense to me as a way to firmly establish that Watson deserved the spotlight.
When you have a show called Watson, right, the question of, “Well, why should we follow that guy?” hangs over it. One way is you cast Morris Chestnut, but the idea that he would earn his worth, and this is from the character’s point of view, he comes into his own confidence by defeating the nemesis that had bedeviled him and Sherlock.
This makes a certain amount of sense. From the first episode, it was clear thatMoriarty’s plans onWatsoninvolved some sort of bioterrorism. ButMoriarty’s ability to construct illnesses that attack only certain people made him virtually unstoppable, and Watson keeping Moriarty alive when they were unable to bring down his lab would have only allowed Moriarty to use that ability against far more important figures than the Croft twins. But on the subject of getting Watson out of Holmes’ shadow, it’s debatable whether the finale truly achieved that.
Watson May Not Have The Fanbase To Shed Its Literary Connections Just Yet
The Show Needs More Time To Become Its Own Thing
A lot goes into determining the success of a series, andWatson’s generally positive reviewsmuddy the picture a little bit.Watsonbegan with a 62% Rotten Tomatoes rating and dropped to 50% by the end of the first season, whileWatson’s audience scores remained lower than its critical ratings throughout the first season. With only 34% of audience members truly on board with the series, it seems that now may not actually be the appropriate time for John Watson to step out of Sherlock’s shadow.
That isn’t to say the series has no fans outside of those who’ve read the works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.Watsonhas most certainly developed its own unique characters worthy of further exploration. However,many fans following the show still seem primarily interested in its ties to classic literary characters. In fact, a great deal of praise came from theCBSWatsonversion of Professor Moriartyalone. With him gone, the series just lost one of its biggest ties to Doyle’s original works. However, they can still tread the line until they’ve truly gained independence from the Holmes lore.
How Watson Season 2 May Still Play Into The Sherlock Holmes Novels
At Least One Major Villain Is Still In The Wind
Moriarty might have been the most obvious villain for a show like this, butSherlock Holmes villain Sebastian Moranhas also been established in the show. He hasn’t been seen, but it’s at least established thatSebastian Moran is the hatchet man Moriarty uses to coerce his subjects into working for him. Sebastian is the only reason Shinwell is afraid to rub Moriarty the wrong way, as he’s implied to be extremely dangerous. In the books, Sherlock himself defines Moran as the second-most dangerous criminal next to Moriarty. Ironic, considering Sebastian arguably gets closer to killing Sherlock than Moriarty does.
With Sebastian still in the wind, it’s worth noting that Sweeny wants viewers to remember that Moriarty left a treasure trove of bioterrorist research behind in the wake of his death. Moran may have access to those labs, which could easily lead to him becoming the main villain ofWatsonseason 2. This would give the series one more season to establish John Watson and his staff as their own characters. In the meantime, it feels too risky thatseparating Watson from Sherlock too early on could lead to even lower audience scores, which may bury the series.
Watson
Cast
Watson follows Dr. John Watson a year after Sherlock Holmes' demise as he leads a clinic for rare disorders. Despite his return to medical practice, Watson is drawn back into the mysteries and challenges of his past, suggesting that his association with Holmes is far from over.
