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yesh omrim

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Ele-mentally

25 October 2010

For once in, like, decades, I have actually watched the premiere (or at least, the US network premiere) of a TV show at the same time as the rest of the world, instead of watching it on DVD months or years later. So, a few quick reactions to Sherlock, to share with fellow fans:

  1. One of the amazing things about fiction is that if you have a main character who is passionate about something, the reader will identify with that character, even if the character is otherwise, ahem, flawed. David Tennant’s wild-eyed portrayal of Doctor Who was enough to draw me through the series, even though, let’s face it, most of the episodes had plot holes large enough to drive a planet through. It’s nice to see some Who writers use Benedict Cumberbatch’s acting skill to achieve a similar effect in a TV show that actually has a plot.
  2. Speaking of plot, it’s also nice to watch a mystery show on TV where I do not feel compelled to reach through the screen, grab the alleged master detective (or, worse, the writer) by the lapels, and scream “You idiot!”
  3. The use of captions to show text messages on characters’ phones is an interesting presentation technique: has anyone done this before? Also, the use of captioned “wet”, “dry”, etc., as Holmes examines the body.
  4. I really hope that “everyone assumes that Holmes and Watson are a gay couple, NOT THAT WE THINK ANYTHING’S WRONG WITH THAT, wink wink nudge nudge” does not become a running gag throughout the series.