Sherlock (2010)

Well this adaptation pretty much recommended itself to me what with the BBC releasing it only weeks after I read my first Arthur Conan Doyle work A Study in Scarlet (review), how fortuitous?! If you read this blog regularly enough you’ll know that I do a fair few reviews of BBC adaptations I always find that they are always very well cast and the quality of the production is excellent (whether I like the adaptations choices is sometimes a different matter). So overall I was very excited about this new take on the classic Holmes stories which have been done a lot already actually almost to death, what with the recent screen adaptation Sherlock Holmes (review), I was hoping the BBC had something new up their sleeves. The pilot series was done over only three episodes but with its popularity more have been promised the first episode was called A Study in Pink an intriguing little twist on the title of Doyle’s actual work, followed by the second and third instalments The Blind Banker and The Great Game. BBC casting is usually good so I was intrigued to see who they would cast as the infamous Sherlock Holmes, this is where the BBC surprised us by casting the relatively unknown Benedict Cumberbatch (yes someone with just as an unusual name as the sleuth himself). This wild card actor as it seems has been balanced by the stalwart casting of the very stalwart character of Dr Watson as Martin Freeman an actor who is a favourite in my heart as well as most of the nation since he co-starred along side Ricky Gervais in The Office. This was shaping up to be an interesting one.

A Study in Pink
Dr John Watson has returned to cosmopolitan London after being injured in the war against terrorism in Afghanistan. Watson is struggling to cope with his injury, his loneliness and is sick of the counselling the army have provided him with, as much as he tries he doesn’t seem to be getting better. It is in a chance meeting with an old college friend that Watson is introduced to the brilliant if eccentric Sherlock Holmes who is in need of a flat mate, the pair of them awkwardly hit it off and go to view the flat 221B on Baker Street. It doesn’t strike Watson until he moves in with Holmes that he doesn’t know what he does for a living, he seems to spend vast times of the day thinking or down at the laboratory. The news at that the time is only covering one thing the extremely unusual string of identical suicides of a mixed bag of individuals, no link can be found between them. When the fourth suicide victim is found a middle-aged business woman dressed head to toe in pink the police come to Holmes for advice in the investigation, Holmes is convinced these aren’t suicides but are in fact murders. Watson soon finds himself dragged into a chase around the busy streets of London looking for a murderer hidden in plain sight.

The Blind Banker
The adventure isn’t over for Watson while he is just trying to hold down a steady job and take a girl out Sherlock is contacted by an old acquaintance from college whose bank has suffered a break in, the mystery escalates when a worker from the bank is found dead in his apartment, he’s been shot but the door was locked from the inside. When a journalist is killed in the same way than Sherlock knows he has a serious case, the only things that link these two men are their frequent trips to China, this time Sherlock and Watson won’t just take on one but a gang.

The Great Game
Next Sherlock finds to case offers, one from his brother Mycroft who wants him to look into the theft a memory stick containing missile plans, but Sherlock is far more interested in the police case following the string of brutal bombings. The bomber abducts a string of hostages and ties the bombs to them he will release them if Sherlock can work out his puzzles in time, this time the crimes are personal the bomber wants Sherlock’s attention. During the investigation Sherlock and Watson hear whispers of the man who is behind it all…at last will Sherlock meet is arch enemy…Moriarty.

The best sign that a mystery/thriller is doing its job well is when you just can’t wait for the next episode, this is exactly how I felt about this show! I pretty much loved it all from the eccentric and quirky score, to the casting, the Doyle references and the general style. This is not a straight adaptation instead this is using the ideas and characters of Doyle’s book and then creating a whole new world for them to inhabit which the producers of this did excellently. Having read A Study in Scarlet it did mean that I got all the little references alluding back to it in A Study in Pink if you’ve read all Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes books then you would probably pick up on a lot more. If you’re looking for a faithful rendition of you favourite Holmes stories then this is definitely not for you, if you want to see a clever reworking of a classic character and stories then this is perfect for you. I had so much fun being a proper geek and pointing out all the cool twists on Doyle’s original concepts. The story a side the other major element was of course the casting especially with the relatively unknown Benedict Cumberbatch taking the lead role as Sherlock Holmes, let me just say who ever did that piece of casting is a genius. Cumberbatch is both eccentric, brilliant, handsome but in a different way and sometimes utterly hilarious in how he keeps such a straight face, and all works even better because the interaction of Cumberbatch’s Sherlock with Freeman’s Watson is perfect.

All I can say is well done the BBC this is one the best adaptations I’ve seen in a long time and I can’t wait for the next season to come out. Have you seen this? What did you think? If you haven’t I highly recommend it, it will have you both gripped at the danger and howling with laughter. 

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