TV Show Review: Sherlock

Hi everyone,

Instead of a movie review, this time I'm reviewing a TV show. So these past few days, I've been watching Sherlock, a British television crime drama that is based on the widely known works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (he wrote the Sherlock Holmes series). The difference is that it's now set in modern day London. I don't remember how I learned about this show (I probably saw it somewhere on Tumblr; smh to myself), but I am happy I did because it is awesome and entertaining.

Warning: This post will be super long this time. Just shamelessly promoting here. :’D

*SPOILER ALERT BELOW~*

Summary:

At the start of the series, this guy, John Watson, has been discharged from the army because he was injured, and he has trouble adjusting to life in London. He limps and uses a crutch to support himself. One day, he comes across an old friend, and he tells this friend that no one would want him as a roommate. The friend laughs because John is the second person to say that to him that day. The friend then shows John who the first person was.

The scene changes to that of news reporters interviewing this detective, or rather, Detective Inspector Lestrade, about this case in which there were three suicides that were caused the same way; through ingesting a poisonous pill. Reporters ask if the cases were related and if it was planned murder, and Lestrade responds by saying they are related. They ask something else (sorry, I don’t remember), and when Lestrade answers them, everyone receives a “Wrong!” text message from someone anonymous. The reporters also ask if there is any way to prevent this from happening to them, and Lestrade tells them that they could by not committing suicide. He also says that everyone is as safe as they want to be. Everyone in the room receives another "Wrong!" text message from the anonymous sender.

At the moment, this other man, Sherlock Holmes, approaches this dead body in the morgue, and a worker there, Molly Hooper, tells Sherlock about who the corpse was (it was some nice old guy). Sherlock responds by getting his riding crop (I think they're used to hit horses when you want them to go faster) and beating the corpse senselessly, which frightens Molly. Afterwards, Molly tries to ask him out, but she fails because he doesn't get the message.

*dun dun dun* This is when John and his friend (I didn't bother to remember his name) come strolling in.   Sherlock says he needs a phone to text someone, and John lends him his phone. Then, before anyone can say anything else, Sherlock deduces that John fought in the war, is looking for a roommate, and some otherwise unknown facts about his life. Basically, he figured things out about John just by observing simple details. I'm not going to describe the whole deducing thing in detail because 1. it is too awesome to put into words, and 2. it would be a waste of time to do so; my description will greatly pale in comparison to the actual scene. OTL Anyways, John's first reaction is just like, "whutttttt" and "who is this guy?! I don't even—" and it seems as if he is just torn between being amazed and creeped out at the same time. After explaining his process on deducing, Sherlock leaves and tells John where the apartment is. He then winks and takes his leave.

Thus begins their life of solving crimes togetherrr!!!

/is shot for writing a terrible conclusion

What I like about it:

This show is hilarious. The characters were well planned out, and despite being creeped out by Sherlock at first (seriously, the man beat a corpse with a riding crop and deduced like a boss), I soon warmed up to his extremely odd and quirky behavior at times (he can be socially awkward, but that's what makes his interaction with others so amusing LOL).

I also like their accents. Even though I don't understand what they're saying sometimes, it's worth it because their accents sound awesome. 'Nuff said. I liked the accents so much, I found myself impersonating them at home (my mom laughed at my terrible—I mean awesome skills. Ahem).

The plot is amazing. I praise the way they (the writers) incorporated the show into our modern society. It didn't feel awkward at all (I mean, I didn't read the original series, but the plot was really believable).

The actors possess some, as some people call it (including me) "mad skillz" (emphasis on the z guyz lol). I am totally immersed in every episode because everyone's acting is too good to be true. It's either that or maybe I just get emotionally too easily... -sadcake- (Sadcake is an expression I felt like using. It appropriately describes what I'm feeling by juxtaposing the image of a cake, which is normally associated with good feelings, with the feeling of sadness... Sorry for the lecture OTL).

I also think the writers did a good job, as the show is full of "witty banter" (it drew me in like a moth to a flame) that is funny and memorable. I remember when Sherlock encountered this enemy and said, "People have died" (or something similar), and the enemy (not spoiling :'D) replied, "THAT'S WHAT PEOPLE DO!" When I heard that, I smh'd the whole time. There are also some lines that I thought was pretty thought-provoking, like when someone (probably Sherlock) said something like, "Caring is not an advantage," etc.

I do believe a small character summary (just the two main characters) will do this post some well-deserved justice (not really, I'm just being overly passionate about this show lol):

Sherlock Holmes - Obviously, he's good at deducing. He doesn't seem to care much about other opinions, except for John's, as he solves cases for his own entertainment. He once called himself a high functioning sociopath. He gets bored really fast, and sometimes he does crazy things to entertain himself (like harpooning a pig, which was really random, the poor piggy). Unfortunately, due to his behavior, he only has one person he considers a friend, John (seriously, he was willing to die for him). He doesn't like it when feelings get in the way because he thinks they just cloud your judgement. He also likes conducting funny experiments (he put a human head in the fridge). In a nutshell, he is pompous (he really likes showing off), sometimes arrogant, and sometimes indifferent, but he does his best to come through for the people that matter to him (by now, I'm pretty sure everyone knows it's mostly John lol).

John Watson - He's the more down-to-earth of the two. He misses the action that he once experienced on the battlefield, so solving cases with Sherlock brings back the excitement and thrill he yearns for. I find it funny that people keep mistaking him and Sherlock for a couple (it seems to be more socially accepted over there), despite his constant denial (I think he just gave up later on). I think it's just that they have a really great bond, and they depend on each other for pretty much everything. Okay, maybe it sounds couple-y. Anyways, he keeps this blog about his life (Sherlock finds the blog pointless), and he usually blogs about the cases he solved with Sherlock. He usually leaves the deducing to Sherlock and is pretty much the opposite of Sherlock personality-wise. He often serves as the moral compass during cases and thinks more realistically.

Okay, enough about me ranting about how much I like this show, it's time for some cons.

What I dislike about it:

The addiction. When I saw the first episode, I got hooked. I wanted to watch all the episodes in one day. Unfortunately, each episode is 90 minutes, so it took me a while.

There are too little episodes. There are only 6 episodes in total (3 episodes per season) at the moment, which is too little for me. Then the writers left this gigantic cliffhanger at the 6th episode, and I can hardly wait for the 3rd season to come out.

The suspense. This kills me. There is always a cliffhanger that bothers me to no end. I have no idea what’s going to happen next and I can’t imagine what would because I have terrible imagination.

The emotions. Maybe it's because I'm too sensitive, but I am drawn into like every episode. Every time there's a sad scene, I'm like "NUUUUUUUUZZZ" and I get all weepy, and if the characters are in trouble, I worry like a paranoid mother.

That’s about it. Yes, my dislikes are fueled by my intense like. OTL

Overall:

It’s quite obvious what I’m going to say. Watch. This. Show. Besides the awesome character interactions, I really liked the plot because it was interesting and thrilling, not boring and tedious like some other crime shows out there (can’t think of one atm, but I have watched a boring one before). It’s also the characters that make this show what it is. I can’t really explain all the reasons why I like this show so much (I’m not good with words, plus I pretty much explained why I like it in the “what I like about it” section), but if you take the chance to watch at least one episode, maybe you’ll understand why. I know not everyone will like the show, but probably a lot of you will/do.

Since it’s a British show, it might be hard to find way to watch the show online (unless you buy it), so I’ve decided to link a website that has all the episodes! Yayyy. Here you go: http://www.dailymotion.com/moffatholmes#video=xnqfr6

BTW, I am aware that there is the American version of this show, but I haven't watched that one and I still like this version better. :)

If anyone really does try to watch it because of my review or has already watched it, you're welcome to leave a comment about the show below. :'D

- Melissa He, 12th grade, Editor/Writer for Entertainment