Television Sherlock

Sherlock just returned for season 2 last night with "A Scandal in Belgravia (Bohemia)", maybe the best episode yet. Each season is only three episodes, with each episode being an hour and a half, almost like a whole movie in itself. The first season was great and I was surprised at how much I like this version. I can say with great certainty that Sherlock Holmes is my favourite literary character of all time, but I feel like he's had spotty film adaptation. This Sherlock (played by Benedict Cumberbatch) I feel is the best one yet. Robert Downy Jr was too...flowery? Not enough of a sociopath? Something is just off about him. But this one -- perfect. This Mycroft is also pitch perfect. The way they explain his 'Science of Deduction', the modern adaptation of the original stories, Watson, Mycroft, Moriarty, how they put the 'classic' Sherlock artifacts into it, EVERYTHING. Has anyone else seen it? All of season one is on Netflix instant watch.

This most recent episode was so fucking good that I woke up this morning and pulled out my Complete Annotated Sherlock Holmes and reread 'A Scandal In Bohemia' to just marvel how the episode was so different, but yet so on the money. SO MANY THINGS. This Holmesian is immensely impressed.

it's hard for me to imagine anybody other than jeremy brett as holmes but i have heard this version is pretty good. need to check it out...

alasdair

you know, i had to google to see which holmes brett was, and that was a holmes i didn't care much for either. besides this holmes, i think the one i liked best was Richard Roxburgh, and he was only in a 2003 adaptation of Hound of the Baskervilles. Besides that, maybe Basil Rathbone.

Caught the Hound of the Baskervilles adaptation tonight. Missed the first couple of minutes and about 10-15 in the middle.

It started off well enough, particularly the scenes in Baker Street, showcasing Cumberbatch's tightrope act as he balances on a wire of Holmsean aloofness above a big pink trampoline of self-indulgence and ham. The semi-military theme probably didn't help it in the originality department, but I'm afraid the 'Mind Palace' scene marked a turning point, at first towards the bad side of camp, before ultimately taking us towards a very formulaic scientific-superpower crime drama where the central character has a self-induced Chazz Palminteri-dropping-his-Kobayashi-chinaware moment, in which he 'connects the dots' in a frenzy of god-like accuracy and Vulcan logic. You know... a bit like "Numb3rs" or "Lie To Me", or "The Mentalist". Oh, and maybe "Psych". Possibly "Monk". Actually, Monk never stooped that low.

I suppose one cannot criticise the show for being similar to the current glut of crime dramas in this vein. After all, most of them sprang from Holmes. Holmes is their source of inspiration and aspiration. It's only natural that this latest take on the Holmes character would share some overlap with the latest crop of imitators sharing the schedules. But it's perhaps a little bit sad that Sherlock somehow came off looking like an insecure parody, using the new kids tricks and lingo, their text overlays, their editorial swipes. I won't say that it was akin to your granddad trying to use a mobile phone... but it was just as sad watching the arthritic old boy stab away at the numb3rs. Sorry, numbers.

On the plus side... this thread reminded me that, as a child, I once met Jeremy Brett in Manchester Picadilly Station.

i just finished watching the 'baskerville' adaptation, and fuck i'm sorry if that's the only one of these you've seen. baskervilles always seemed like a 'not adaptable' story -- what can you change about inheritance, jealousy, backstabbing and some slight of hand? i was totally disappointed by this episode, but there were still moments that stood out for me -- specifically when Sherlock FREAKS THE FUCK OUT on Watson and tries to explain that he was feeling doubt, a feeling so foreign to him it was akin to a breakdown. The absolute trust in his abilities, that's an important part of his character and i was glad to see him acknowledge the terror he felt. not about the monster of baskerville, but at not being able to trust his abilities/senses. The other was when he 'apologized' to Watson for not considering him a friend. Every incarnation of Sherlock has had to do this in some form or another, be it House telling Wilson that he's sorry, or Benedict Sherlock or RDJR Sherlock. Watson is of utmost important to Sherlock and he knows it, and I like to see 'human' moments when they come about.

That being said, this was the worst episode of them all. I didn't like any of the other characters, i couldn't empathize, i didn't like any of the secondary story lines. They overblew Sherlock's science of deduction (it was a bit much) BUT DON'T GIVE UP YET. Catch a re-run from Season 1 or A Scandal in Belgravia and see what you think then. Next week's episode (and season finale) is the big time Moriarty storyline, after flirting around it for ages. I like this Moriarty, i like his weasel face and his lisps and his romantic taunts to Sherlock. the teaser trailer is up and i'm really excited about it.

^ Oh totally. I decided that I would give it another go as, despite not liking the plot devices in the script, I though Cumberbatch's performance was actually pretty good.

I may decide to forgo watching this season's finale and have a look at the first series instead.

I'm usually not a fan of Sherlock Holmes adaptations, like the Basil Rathbone versions, where they totally perverted Watson's character by turning him into a bumbling idiot.

I really like "Sherlock" though, they adapted the essence of Sherlock Holmes to modern times really well. I'd be curious if they delve into Sherlock's drug use, like the Jeremy Brett version did.

they did, in the first series

I love this show, not looking forward to the year or two wait for the next series though (which has been confirmed).

gah, now i have to see this. holmes is my favorite literary character too. reminds me now of how my favorite movie as a kid was the great mouse detective. i heard about this newfangled series but my mind is two ways about seeing it. i guess i will be viewing with trepidation

thujone said:

gah, now i have to see this. holmes is my favorite literary character too. reminds me now of how my favorite movie as a kid was the great mouse detective. i heard about this newfangled series but my mind is two ways about seeing it. i guess i will be viewing with trepidation

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you know what, everytime the news says something about the queen's diamond jubilee coming up i think about rattigan showing up and ruining everything! the great mouse detective does not get enough love.

those animated gifs are awesome!

I finally caught the first episode of the show in question and I'm not sure what to think of it yet. i really approve of martin freeman as watson but the plot was threatening to run out of focus at times with how nebulous it was. I can't even fathom what the purpose of involving Mycroft so early was, much less as some kind of leering demon who lurks in parking garages. The drug raid was one hell of a non-sequitur also. It's clearly fan-service to young Holmesians, but it was poorly employed. what bugged me the most was the portrayal of Holmes as an asshole, but I'm curious enough about the show to see if settles into a groove after a few eps.

the first episode.... was that "A Study in Pink/Scarlet"?

martin freeman ended up winning a fucking Bafta †¥ˆπ˜ß∂˙˚∆˙∫√µ˜∂∫

sorry, i just realized i could hold down the alt button and make weird characters by accident!

martin freeman ended up winning a BAFTA for season one, and i think maybe this is the best Watson, but i also think he's also just really good at these kinds of roles -- he was the "Jim" character from the British Office, and i think Bilbo Baggins is a similar character. The guy who plays Mycroft is also the guy who writes and produces the show. Besides having a bit of fun, I don't think he planned on having Sherlock last more than the first run of 90 minute episodes, and therefor tried to get everyone and everything in. Or you know, I have no idea. I feel like I'm a cheerleader for this show, but I really adore all of it. I feel like there is enough in there to please every Holmesian, if you look for it/want it. These stories will be retold over and over and over again, but I think that in 20 years when they are planning on doing another BBC1 adaptation of the Canon they look to this adaptation, because I think this is the closest you're going to get to a true modern version of Holmes.

Searching around through various websites i frequent that are also frequented by teenage girls, there is some quick hot moving secret "unaired" pilot episode that I MUST GET MY HANDS ON.

I caught the second ep ([the case of] the blind banker) and found it quite the improvement over the first. Gotta keep watching :D

Cumberbatch is an awesome name.

you wanna cumber my batch?

i watched the first two episodes. episode one was fantastic. episode two was good.

i was expecting to not like the sherlock character but he's really good. they've done a great job of bringing it into the present day but remaining respectful to the tone of the original stories. i'm, so far, very impressed.

alasdair

i don't always watch tv shows but when i do, i download every episode, watch em in one day and complain when its over. seriously tho, dope. looking forward to an explanation on how what happened at the end, happened. better be a damn good explanation too!

JoeTheStoner said:

i don't always watch tv shows but when i do, i download every episode, watch em in one day and complain when its over. seriously tho, dope. looking forward to an explanation on how what happened at the end, happened. better be a damn good explanation too!

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SPOILERS

good looks on the info

haven't seen the RDJr films, not that im really into Sherlock, but i am into good TV and after reading this thread a few times i just had to check this out, glad ya hipped bl/me to it. good TV, this is.