Sunday, June 10, 2012

Oh. My. Awesome. I am Sherlocked.

My sons and I finished the second series of BBC's amazing "Sherlock" tonight and the final episode was, in a word, brilliant!! So good. I can't find words to describe the awesomeness. Except... awesome.
Moriarty returns as Sherlock's nemesis and taunting villain, with new tricks up his sleeve, oozing smarmy superiority and intelligence and wickedness-- he's one we love to hate. Oooh and we do despise him.

This series (season) continues the subtle, very effective character development, as Sherlock begins to recognize and act on the value of his few real relationships, in his own way. He has moments where he's almost human, but he is still very much the same old Sherlock, deducing, assessing, noticing and comprehending things beyond we simple thinkers, taking jabs and insulting people without thinking. He seems to be learning to follow John's good instincts, though, sometimes. Now and then...

As with the first season, I love the various usage of modern technology, especially the texting. It's rather amusing that Moriarty (along with other characters) sends Holmes text messages, and that Watson's blog is so much more popular than Holmes' is also funny. I don't know what Sherlock Holmes purists think of this show, I'm not one, but I love that it's modern while still staying true to the essence of the characters, and the spirit of the mysteries.

Also, as with the first season, my favorite character is John Watson. I love Mrs. Hudson (sometimes she threatens to steal scenes-- wonderful stuff) and I get a kick out of Mycroft and LeStrade and Molly-- her interactions with Sherlock are surprising in how insensitive and even cruel he can be, but quite funny at the same time. And of course, Benedict Cumberbatch (whose name is just fun to say) is also perfectly cast, and incredibly fun to watch. But my favorite is Watson, who (as I think I said in this blog before) is played perfectly by Martin Freeman. His long-suffering, bemused, frustrated, and sometimes deeply emotional expressions are so good that I forget completely that I'm watching an actor. He is very, very good, and I can't wait for "The Hobbit" later this year.

My favorite scene, I think, was Sherlock wearing nothing but a sheet as he's called to Buckingham Palace. He and John are shown sitting on a sofa and they both burst out laughing, demonstrating that they've developed a true friendship, in spite of Holmes' biting comments and prickly nature. I love the chemistry of the two leads-- not romantic chemistry, though, which is good. It's continually humorous that the "public" thinks the two are a couple, but I like that the writing and the acting very effectively demonstrates how a good business partnership/friendship and brotherly affection is possible without the requirement of a romantic relationship. It's very good stuff.

Sometimes the dialogue goes so fast I miss things- the accents don't help, but I don't care. It's just a good reason to go back in the future and watch them again. And I will. I will also bemoan the fact that Series 3 will probably not be available to watch for about a year. Especially with the doozy of a cliffhanger at the end of the third episode.

5 comments:

Arun said...

BBC Sherlock is a classic. Great acting, superb music and clever scripts make this a must watch for everyone :)

Nice review of the series.

Check out my review .

Cheers!

Starbuck O'Shea said...

BBC Sherlock is awesome. I collect Sherlock links myself, being both Cumberbatched and Sherlocked.

http://misc-ariel.blogspot.com

Have you seen the DVDs yet? PBS had to cut scenes, so about 8 minutes is missing from every ep. Your library probably has them. I have to see if our DVD player will work so I can watch the season 1 DVDs before they're due!

Brilliant, oh yes. I have rewatched Reichenbach... um, several times now. Martin steals the show at the end, doesn't he?

So pleased you and your sons all enjoyed the show. :)

Steph said...

Good point, even the music is superb! Thanks for your comments!

Steph said...

I did watch on DVD, so thankfully I don't think I missed anything. Thank you for the tip, I hadn't realized that PBS did that! I do need to go back and watch "Reichenbach" again. So many layers there!! Thank you for your comments!

Starbuck O'Shea said...

You are most welcome! I saw Study on DVD today. I couldn't find the missing bits, but I was laughing hard a lot at the funny parts. And I've read a lot of commentary and such, so I've seen some of the cut scenes and lines anyway. :)

I think Sue Vertue was very careful about the scene-slicing, bless her.

Yes, RF had lots of layers. I keep rewatching that the most myself. There are many folks who keep track -- of the missing bits, the quotes, you name it. I find a great many fellow Sherlockians on Twitter; they share posters, artwork, etc. Tumblr is loaded with Sherlock fans too.

Here's a poster-card. :) http://2gunrattlesnake.tumblr.com/post/24932266564/sherlock-truth

Be well, Steph.