The Series
It has been done with Shakespeare many times; classic tales transformed to a different period. So why not rework Arthur Conan Doyle's most famous character and set the tales in the modern day? It would simply... well, we're not going to say. What we will say is that creators Steven Moffat (Doctor Who) and Mark Gatiss have taken the Victorian detective and brought it to life anew in the BBC series Sherlock.
This first season, which consists of just three one a half hour episodes introduces the characters of consulting detective Sherlock Holmes (Benedict Cumberbatch) and his partner in crime solving Dr. John Watson (Martin Freeman) - the latter home from a tour of duty in Afghanistan. The stories play on classic tales - notably the original Holmesian A Study in Scarlet becomes "A Study in Pink" - but there is almost too much of a reveal early on, notably with the arch villain Moriarty.
Likewise, Moffat brings a bit too much of his Doctor Who style to the show. Whereas the Doctor has often been compared to Holmes, in this new take on the detective it is almost hard not to see a bit of Time Lord in him. If you can get past that minor complaint, this is great fun. Holmes relies not just on pure deduction, but is a bit more reliant on gadgets, notably a mobile phone and even a bit of GPS. He's updated in other ways, notably a nicotine patch for his pipe and thank god there is no deerstalker hat - even the most ironic hipster wouldn't be caught dead in such a cap. Let's hope the BBC returns with more Sherlock for many seasons to come.
The Picture
Sherlock Holmes' London is always dreary, so much so that you might ask whether it is actually ever summertime. Part of this was that the fog described in the books was really the dark smoke from the industrial revolution. Regardless of the reason this new version keeps the same style yet it looks really sharp on the 1.85:1 1080i Blu-ray. The picture is clear and detailed, which can help keen eyes try to outdo the deductive mind of Holmes as well, but the colors are rather muted at times - but again that could be the dreary weather.
The Sound
The production makes good use of the Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack, which provides the crackle of a fire in a couple of scenes as well as pounding explosions in the second story The Blind Banker. The dialog is clear as it comes through the central channel allowing Holmes to show his powers of deduction, while there are the expected audio cues in the discrete channels. The music has that mystery-esque quality to it, and while a little redundant provides a timeless quality.
The Extras
There are about 88 minutes of extras, including a reworked pilot episode of "A Study in Pink," plus a featurette: "Unlocking Sherlock: The Making of." What is missing interestingly enough are the PBS Mystery introductions with Allan Cumming. If you had seen these on the broadcast version you might be disappointed as these offered some interesting tidbits and anecdotes about Holmes as well as Conan Doyle. There is commentary with Gatiss and Moffat along with Sue Vertue for episode one, and commentary with Cumberbatch, Freeman and Gatiss for episode three and from the sound of it, even they didn't see everything Homles was able to deduce.
Final Thoughts
While the idea of taking Holmes to the 21st century might seem like sacrilege, this series pulls it off very well. Cumberbatch manages to step into the role reasonably well, although it would be easy to see that he could just as easily be playing the man known only as the Doctor thanks to Moffat's writing. But the stories are original enough and offer a lot of twists, while the Blu-ray makes it all the easier to try to see what Holmes sees.
Product Details
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