It's a little something called Sherlock.
Co-created by Steven Moffat (current head writer for Doctor Who) and Mark Gatiss (pronounced GAY-tiss), it sets the classic Sir Arthur Conan Doyle tales of the great Sherlock Holmes in present day London. Now, before you go off and say "But that doesn't work! It must be terrible," I can bloody well assure you it isn't; if anything, it is one of the greatest shows out there. Sherlock (played magnificently by Benedict Cumberbatch) is a modern man, up to date with the latest technology, preferring to text his replies to cases rather than talk. He still lives at 221B Baker Street, Mrs. Hudson is still his landlady, and he still plays the violin at all hours of the day and night when he's thinking. He's obnoxious, has no concept of what is inappropriate to say and has an arsenal of insults at the ready detailing how he is far superior in his intellect to the rest of the world. He has a website (http://www.thescienceofdeduction.co.uk/....contains minor spoilers for Series 1) which is quite fun to look at and which John Watson goes to when he Googles the detective after their first meeting.
What makes this Sherlock very special and memorable is his ability to observe and mimic body language, manipulating those around him without having to resort to elaborate disguises. He can conjure tears to get the answers he seeks or flirt when he wants something. He doesn't truly understand what love is or what it means but understands what the result is for those in it or moved by it. It is incredible to watch, truly astounding.
At his side is the illustrious Dr. John Watson (played by Martin Freeman in this BAFTA winning role). Instead of a diary or journal, Dr. Watson keeps a blog of everything that happens to him, eventually catapulting him and Sherlock into internet fame in Series 2 (http://www.johnwatsonblog.co.uk/.....Moffat and Gatiss truly think of everything. It is current with the end of Series 2, so if you don't want spoilers, then wait until you are caught up to check it out, and look for the hat tips to the hiatus between Series 1 and Series 2 and to Martin Freeman filming The Hobbit in New Zealand). John is still a former army doctor, a veteran of the Afghanistan war struggling to integrate back into society after being wounded in action. Quiet, stoic, caring, he is the perfect counterpoint to the blustering, quick thinking, verbose Holmes.
And, of course, it would not be a Sherlock Holmes story without the great Jim Moriarty (Andrew Scott deserves all the awards for this role, especially with his performance in the Series 2 Finale). I'm doing my best to avoid spoilers, but I will say that Scott's Moriarty is incredibly dangerous, a master of disguise, and every bit as smart as Sherlock is. He ascribes to the theory of chaos while Sherlock is all about logical thinking. To Jim, this is all just one big game, and he likes watching Sherlock dance for him.
There have been 2 Series so far (in Britain, a Season is a Series). Each episode is 90 minutes, so you essentially get three full-length feature films each time, each episode more gripping and thrilling than the last and cleverly updated and woven with others. Each episode is many references to others; no story is purely translated, another reason why the adaptations are so complex and intricate and why an hour-and-a-half is required for their telling.
Series 1:
- A Study in Pink (A Study in Scarlet)
- The Blind Banker (combo of The Valley of Fear and The Adventure of the Dancing Man)
- The Great Game (a mixture of about 7 or 8 different stories, ending in a very charged cliffhanger that was unresolved for 18 months)
Series 2:
- A Scandal In Belgravia (Irene Adler)
- The Hounds of Baskerville (self-explanatory)
- The Reichenbach Fall (The Final Problem)
Needless to say, the Series 2 finale left many fans shocked and furious (if you don't know it, READ AND/OR WATCH, well, definitely read the stories because they are completely brilliant, but I won't divulge the episode here, only to say that it is some of the best acting I've ever seen in my life and left me with more emotions than I knew what to do with).
The rest of the cast is stunning: Una Stubbs (Mrs. Hudson), Rupert Graves (DI Lestrade), Lara Pulver (Irene Adler), Louise Brealey (Molly Hooper) and the rest all bringing their own life and vivacity to the party, creating a colorful background of people for Holmes and Watson to join in their adventures.
As for the title of this entry...well, you just ought to get caught up. The Sherlockians who see this will know what it means because until Series 3 comes out, it's all we can do, just manage to somehow Stay Alive.
"Feel the city breakin' and everybody shakin' and we're stayin' alive, stayin' alive"
