The Women

As always.....***SPOILER ALERT***

One of the prevailing themes of "The Abominable Bride" is women, specifically those whom Sherlock has wronged or in some way disappointed. It bears repeating that this episode takes place almost exclusively in Sherlock's mind. Therefore, we can reasonably believe that Sherlock has had encounters with women with which Sherlock has felt shame or guilt. Perhaps, one woman even hurt him in his past, inspiring him to avoid attachments to other humans, especially with women. In some of the Sherlock Holmes plays, Sherlock does indeed have romantic relationships, including the first Sherlock Holmes play written partially by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and mostly by William Gillette. Using the Woman as a model, Gillette, with Doyle's permission, created a love interest named Alice Faulkner. Because Moffat and Gatiss are such Sherlock Holmes fanboys and undoubtedly know about Alice Faulkner, love interests are not out of the realm of possibility for Sherlock Holmes in Sherlock. Trailers for Series 4 have stated that Sherlock's past will come back to haunt him in the next slate of episodes.

I believe that women will play an influential role. Maybe Molly Hooper snaps and finally repays Sherlock for all the grief he has given her. Due to the conniving behavior of Mary in the Christmas special, I believe Sherlock does not 100% trust her. I think the Woman will almost certainly play a role in the Series 4.

She makes a cameo in "The Sign of Three" and is mentioned while Sherlock is dying in "His Last Vow." There is an allusion to her in "The Abominable Bride." Moriarty says, "Dead is the new sexy." This is similar to the Woman's declaration that "Brainy is the new sexy." Moreover, the Woman, Sherlock, and (maybe, but probably not) Moriarty have all faked being dead. I think it is clear Moffat and Gatiss do not want us to forget about The Woman. What role she will play in Series 4 is unclear, but if she does not make an appearance, I will be greatly disappointed.

Interference from the Woman

As always ***SPOILER ALERT***

The Woman first comes to the attention of Sherlock in the episode "Scandal in Bulgravia." Or does she?

In "The Great Game," Sherlock receives a letter which he notes was written on Bohemian paper. The fact Sherlock initially says Bohemia and not Czech Republic could be more than just an nod to "A Scandal in Bohemia." I believe it is a clue pointing us in the direction of The Woman. After all, Sherlock also points out that the letter was obviously addressed by a woman.

The Bohemian paper could just be a playful red herring by Gatiss and Moffat, and some other woman could have addressed the letter under the direction of Moriarty. However, there are other allusions to "A Scandal in Bohemia" in this episode. Sherlock is able to guess Molly's weight gain (just as he does with John in "His Final Vow"), and the line "I'd be lost without my blogger" is an updated version of the line "I am lost without my Boswell" in the aforementioned short story. Lastly, the first time Sherlock receives a call from the bomber, the villain makes the person doing the talking call Sherlock "sexy." In the very next episode, The Woman states that "Brainy is the new sexy."

Could it be that The Woman becomes involved in The Game much earlier than we have been led to believe?