Elementary season 7 is due to return on CBS this summer. Starring Jonny Lee Miller and Lucy Liu as Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Joan Watson, respectively, Elementary has perfectly captured the eccentric, whimsical vibe of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s stories. Elementary started in 2012, and began with Sherlock Holmes seeking refuge in New York after his drug habit had become a problem back in London. Joan Watson was recruited as his “sober companion,” a woman who had the difficult job of keeping Holmes on the straight and narrow.
Over the years, both have developed and grown as characters, with Sherlock confronting his addiction and Watson realizing she actually quite likes working as a private detective. Elementary season 6 ended with a game-changer, “Whatever Remains, However Improbable”, which saw Holmes and Watson finally admit the feelings they have for one another. What’s more, they were forced to flee the United States and settled in London after Watson was framed for murder and Holmes took the rap for her.
It was a satisfying end to a show that has long teased viewers with its will-they-or-won’t-they romance, but to the delight of viewers CBS chose to renew Elementary for a final, seventh season. But will Holmes and Watson remain in London, meaning the secondary cast will change? What new foes will the two master detectives face? And just when will Elementary season 7 premiere?
Elementary Season 7 The Release Date
The first five seasons of Elementary premiered in fall, but Elementary season 6 launched in spring 2018. CBS is yet to announce an Elementary season 7 premiere date, but it’s not currently expected to launch before summer 2019. Given that Elementary season 7 is considerably shorter than the previous ones, it may release sometime in June, so that it could wrap up before the fall season shows start up again.
Elementary Season 7 Is The Final Season
Returning Holmes to his London roots would have been a fitting finale, but CBS chose to renew Elementary for a final 13-episode season 7. “A lot of parties came together and talked about their positions on the show,” CBS Entertainment President Kelly Kahl told Deadline, “both in terms of business and in terms of creative - and we all decided that this was an opportune time to say goodbye to a show that has been very, very good to us.” The contracts of Miller and Liu were reportedly coming to an end, and the story itself was winding down. All the cast and crew seem satisfied that this was the right time.
Elementary Season 7 Story
The Elementary season 7 story is currently a mystery. What is known, however, is that Holmes and Watson won’t be staying in London for long; they’ll be returning to New York. “We really wanted to go back to New York and Gregson (Aidan Quinn) and Bell (Jon Michael Hill),” creator/executive producer Rob Doherty explained, “and we found what we felt was a satisfying way to bring them back.” The relationship is sure to have changed a lot as a result of season 6, however, given Gregson allowed Holmes and Watson to be blamed for a murder committed by his daughter.
According to Doherty, Elementary season 7 will involve a major time jump; “Something that I knew I wanted to do was move forward in time a bit with the characters by the very end.” This idea is lifted from Conan Doyle’s own stories; there was a period when Holmes and Watson weren’t working together, and their lives were very different as a result of their time apart. “We felt that would be appropriate for our show. A lot was season 7 working towards that: How can we tell a larger story that would allow us to devise a finale that’s set in the not-so-distant future?”
Only one other detail has been confirmed to date; Holmes and Watson will find themselves facing a new threat in Elementary season 7 - Odin Reichenbach, played by James Frain. He’ll first appear in episode 5, and fans of the Conan Doyle short stories will immediately recognize the name; the Reichenbach Falls were the site of Sherlock Holmes’ apparent death in The Final Problem. That may well explain why Holmes and Watson part ways before the Elementary season 7 finale. In Conan Doyle’s original stories, Holmes faked his death and operated from the shadows without Watson for several years, until he was finally able to return and reveal that he wasn’t dead after all.
