Sherlock

I get rather emotional about modern interpretations of truly exceptional, classic works, especially when it comes to stories that I absolutely loved as a kid. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is on that list of sensitive subject matter, and any  film or television adaptation had better be pretty damned amazing to keep me from yelling long streams of obscenities peppered with the jargon of an English major at anyone sitting still long enough to get cornered by the crazy redhead.

The good news is that the BBC’s Sherlock is, in fact, pretty damned amazing.

Before this show, even in my darkest moments of nerdom, the brilliant Sherlock Holmes had never struck me as sexy. Yet Benedict Cumberbatch posing as the harsh mannered, sharp tongued, borderline-Aspberger’s aloof genius Sherlock just gets my girl parts all atwitter.

The writing is brilliant. I don’t think Stephen Moffat can give us anything less these days, really. Yes, Stephen Moffat, current lead writer of Doctor Who, co-created Sherlock with Mark Gatiss, also part of the Doctor Who team. The mysteries get you thinking on a level well beyond the simplistic crap of American investigative shows, and tend to be quality reworkings of classic Sherlock Holmes stories.

The acting is sharp and engaging. Martin Freeman, as Dr. John Watson, quibbles and banters with Cumberatch’s Sherlock in a comedic flow that always leaves me just cracking up. The characters are wholly believable and human. I found myself on more than one occasion wanting to smack those lovely cheekbones over how Sherlock treats the lab tech so madly in love with him.

Sherlock is a smart, quality show. It’s easy to jump in at any episode, though I do recommend starting at the beginning. The third season is scheduled for production, and the show’s popularity with British audiences should be a level of security to protect it from cancellation.

If you have a genuine love for the classic stories of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, you will appreciate what Stephen Moffat has done to bring the general bad-assness of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson into modern times. Watch this show.

-Red