WHYBW: Updates

What up boobers and toobers? It's Dan once again, blooging from the Northern Hemisphere for once. Not many readers might care about this but I thought I'd do a quick update on some of the WHYBW shows that I've mentioned in past Boob Toob episodes, just to see what I'm still watching and what I'm still digging.

Last Resort: I'm still enjoying it although the characters are getting a little comfortable where they are. I'd prefer if they weren't but not a big deal. It'll only be 13 eps though so I hope they wrap things up nicely.

666 Park Avenue: I'm a few eps behind. Still fun to watch but the fact that I'm behind means that it's not exactly must see tv for me at the moment. That said, I did a Melbourne vacation for a few days in Nov and now I'm in the Philippines for the whole of Dec so that'll mess up my viewing patterns.

Elementary: I think I'm only up to ep 3 or 4. It's fun but I'm happy to pile up eps. They really don't seem like Sherlock and Watson. I would've been fine if they had different names.

Homeland: Still loving it. Even the daughter storyline is becoming tolerable. I'm gonna try to get my in laws here in the Philippines into it. They've heard that it's good but they haven't seen it yet.

Sword Art Online: They're onto the second major story arc and I gotta say it's not as compelling as the first arc. Things slowed down quite a bit and there's a few story elements that I'm not all that interested in. It's almost over though so I'm happy to wait it out.

WHYBW: Elementary (Season 1 Episode 1)

I discussed Elementary briefly on the upcoming episode of The Boob Toob (#7) but I didn’t want to use up too much air time so I thought I’d go a bit more in depth here on the blog where I can type away guilt free!

I also wrote about my first impressions on this show over a week ago so please check that out for a little introduction on the series.

But if you already know what this show is about then read on! Although if you're already sick of it then you might want to turn back and possibly read about what Bobgar thought about The Avengers movie (he finally saw it!) or possibly the latest installment of Boob Toob Supplemental (now with more Bruce Willis).

Warning: I mostly compare Elementary to the BBC Series Sherlock and a couple of other recent Sherlock Holmes interpretations.

Oh, and it’s Dan by the way. Although you've probably worked it out already since Bobgar wouldn’t be watching this show ;)

Elementary Season 1 Episode 1 - Pilot

The episode starts out with a murder. They don’t show much though. Someone drops a drinking glass and it shatters, a woman being chased inside her home, her trying to reach for something, and that’s it. We then see Dr. Joan Watson (Lucy Liu) getting woken up by an alarm, going for a jog and then she meets Sherlock Holmes (Jonny Lee Miller) at his home soon after.

My first thought after seeing Sherlock interact with people was that the British accent surrounded by American accents felt a little weird. But this is Sherlock Holmes in New York so that is to be expected. It was still a little weird by the end of the episode but I think I’m getting used to it.

It isn’t long until we see Sherlock in action, using his smarts to figure things out. It seems to me that this Sherlock is definitely smart enough but not savant levels like Benedict Cumberbatch’s Sherlock (from the BBC series). It might seem that way because they take their time a little more when figuring stuff out about the crime scene. It feels more like we’re along for the ride. Compare that to BBC series where Sherlock would have figured out the whole thing instantly in his brain and then he’d explain it to everyone in reverse while insulting them (which I don’t hate, that’s also fun too). But maybe Elementary wants to focus more on the human side of things as opposed to Sherlock’s incredible intellect. I’m cool with it although it’s only been one episode. I might not feel the same way after a 24 episode season. I feel like Cumberbatch Sherlock could’ve solved this particular case in 8 seconds.

A lot of the people that I know have seen the recent BBC Sherlock series so if you’re one of those people, you’ll notice fairly quickly that this Sherlock isn’t a condescending prick like Cumberbatch Sherlock (or even Hugh Laurie’s Gregory House character in House M.D.). Jonny Lee Miller's Sherlock is even pretty polite. And he feels things! Like when they found the dead body after he mad some clever deductions, he says “sometimes I hate it when I’m right” and he looked like he meant it. More on this feelings thing a little later.

I thought it was interesting when Watson asked Sherlock how he figured out about her dad’s affair, he said “Google” followed by “not everything is deducible” which is a sign that he’s a bit humble (or at least, more so than a lot of the recent Sherlocks, even taking into account Robert Downey Jr.’s portrayal in the Guy Ritchie Sherlock Holmes movies). Also, Sherlock screws up during the investigation and when Watson confronted him about it, he said it was all part of his plan. But he confessed to it later on and said that he hid his screw up from her out of shame. I don’t think any of the recent Sherlocks would ever do that. He also lets Watson know in various ways that he finds her useful and that he’s glad that she’s around. This guy is too nice!

Promotional posters for some of the recent Sherlocks. I tried to get a House poster with Dr. Wilson but there wasn't any where it was just the two of them. It was either Hugh Laurie on his own or the whole cast. Somewhat fitting since he's the jerkiest out of all the Sherlocks.

That said, he does become a little insensitive when he's determined to get an answer so he’s not perfect with his politeness. I mention in my first impressions that this Sherlock didn’t seem dangerous like Cumberbatch Sherlock but I think we got to see some of it here. It’s still not Cumberbatch levels but I think he’s got it in him. Maybe Sherlock from the BBC Series is just always at max whereas this Sherlock starts off a bit more normal but can go crazy depending on the situation. There’s at least one scene where he did something silly and dangerous because he was angry.

Oh by the way, this Sherlock did something worse than anything Cumberbatch Sherlock has ever done... HE MADE A CALL ON HIS PHONE AT THE THEATRE! And didn't even try to speak silently! Jerk! >:(

But back to nice guy Sherly...

One of the main features I’ve noticed about the Holmes & Watson relationship (at least on tv, not sure about the books) is that Holmes can be a bit of a jerk to Watson even though Watson is the closest thing he has to a friend. He’s insulting and he can be hurtful although Watson is usually strong enough to take it. And Watson knows that that’s just how Holmes is and that he doesn’t mean to hurt people.

In Elementary, Holmes is more weird, slightly annoying and possibly even somewhat childlike rather than condescending, demeaning and hurtful. The on screen chemistry between Jonny Lee Miller and Lucy Liu is pretty enjoyable. They’re not chummy chummy or anything but they’re nice to watch. I didn’t end up feeling sorry for this Watson like I did in BBC Sherlock, House M.D. and the Sherlock Holmes movies.

All the recent Watsons care about their respective Sherlocks and the trend is repeated with Dr. Joan Watson (I'm calling her Lady Watson from now on) so that’s good to see. There’s also a bit of drama in it, a nice amount of humanity, when we find out the reason why Watson chose to become a sober companion. Not sure if it’ll be like that in future episodes but I was glad to see it here.

When they reached the solution to the mystery, it wasn’t some grand revelation. It seemed more of a down to Earth solving of a crime. Closer to a real life crime as opposed to mastermind genius Moriarty level crime. Not necessarily better or worse than BBC Sherlock but I was cool with it.

Oh yeah, Watson ended up getting involved in the investigation little by little even though it didn’t seem like she intended to at first. She even had some crucial contributions to the case.

Hey Lady Watson... how YOU doin'?

A few other random things:

• They do a good job of giving out bits of information and back story abut the characters without shoving it in your face too much.
• Sherlock figures stuff out about people, like “you just ate a bagel” or “you’re having an affair” but they don’t go into too much detail explaining how he figures things out.
• It’s shot well enough, everything looks nice. Not BBC Sherlock level though, that was something else in terms of the visuals. And I really miss the text and graphics on screen.
• The musical score isn’t as memorable as BBC Sherlock but it’s good enough. Not too attention grabbing and overpowering but it fits the tone of the show.
• The end song for the episode is Watching the Detectives by Elvis Costello. Nice touch.
• Sherlock doesn't have a Lestrade but Aidan Quinn as Captain Tobias Gregson fills that role. I wonder if there’s a Lestrade back in Scotland Yard in this universe. If so, I wonder if he misses Sherly.

What I find memorable about tone of the BBC Sherlock series is that not only is the character of Sherlock smarter than everyone else, it’s that the show almost feels like it’s demonstrating to all the other shows that it’s smarter than them (although not in a dickish condescending way like Benedict Cumberbatch masterfully does in the show). I missed that attitude while watching Elementary. The tone of Elementary is a little more ‘safe’ and a bit more 'American' (which is understandable when you take into account the target audience) but not generic American show. There are some similarities to American procedurals but I think at least at this point, it has a unique enough voice.

Keep in mind that I’m not hating on it or anything, just contrasting. It’d be like having two friends, one is loud and proud and knows that he’s awesome (and that’s fine because he is awesome) whereas the other is somewhat quiet but he’s still a cool dude. Both can work.

Jonny Lee Miller’s Sherlock doesn’t seem too Sherlocky (haha, I made up a word) based on this first episode. Benedict Cumberbatch and Robery Downey Jr. were very Sherlocky. Heck, even Hugh Laurie as Gregory House was more Sherlocky. (Also, Robert Sean Leonard as Dr. Wilson was more Watsony than Lucy Liu.) So I can understand criticisms that people may have about how this new guy doesn’t seem like Sherlock. At times as I was watching it, I forgot that I was watching Sherlock and I thought it was just some weirdo. But that’s cool, he can just be a different guy with the same name. Just a What If story.

Overall, I’m not really super comfortable in recommending this to people (especially to BBC Sherlock fans). Nevertheless, I found myself liking it quite a bit and I’m on board for future episodes.

Wow, that ended up being crazy long. I've written 'Sherlock' so many times, I think I'm losing it. After writing all that and going over all the comparisons, I now have a strong urge to rewatch BBC Sherlock.

Don't worry, you're still by number one. (Artwork by alicexz on deviantART)

Elementary: First Impressions

Hey hey! It's Dan, here with some initial thoughts on new show Elementary after seeing the previews up on CBS.com. I thought I'd write some thoughts down and see if any of these change after I've watched the pilot.

Elementary is an American tv show based on the Sherlock Holmes detective stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. It premiered in the US on September 27, 2012 on CBS. The pilot is up on their website.

http://www.cbs.com/shows/elementary/

Elementary stars Jonny Lee Miller as Sherlock, a former Scotland Yard consultant who chooses to set up shop in New York. You may have seen him previously on that show Eli Stone (ran for 2 seasons). Plus he was in Dexter's 5th season. Also Angelina Jolie's ex husband apparently, I didn't know that. Ohhh! And he was in a Frankenstein play with BBC Sherlock himself, Benedict Cumberbatch! So there is a connection to the show that a lot of us know and love.

(Thanks Wikipedia!)

He's a bit of a weirdo just like Cumberbatch Sherlock but he seems a bit more likeable. Not necessarily more likeable as a fictional character but as a human being. Cumberbatch Sherlock was a total jerk face! Although they made him a bit more human in season 2 which I thought was nice. He seemed a lot more dangerous too (and admittedly, I found that to be interesting) whereas this Sherlock seems like someone who I could actually stand to be in the same room with.

Plus in one scene, he actually admits that not everything is deducible which is something that I don’t see Cumberbatch Sherlock ever saying. I’ll see how it actually is on the pilot but it seems like maybe Cumberbatch Sherlock is more of a genius whereas this Sherlock might be more of a human being.

This show also stars Lucy Liu as Watson. Wait, hold the freaking phone... A woman as Watson? Yep, that’s right, sex change baby! Say hello to Dr. Joan Watson, Sherlock’s sober companion. I guess Sherlock is addicted to something.

Wouldn’t it be crazy if there is an actual John Watson from England and he comes to visit Sherlock in New York? There’s your love triangle. Pay me CBS!

Tangent: Lucy Liu can be seen in RZA’s upcoming martial arts flick The Man with the Iron Fists. YEAHHH BOYEEEEE!!

I looooove Matrin Freeman as John Watson so at least making Watson a woman would mean that I won’t be thinking about him so much when I’m watching Elementary. This Watson doesn’t seem like she’s all that involved with solving the mystery (at least, it seems that way in the previews) so maybe she’s just around to look after Sherlock. I’ll keep an eye out for that in the pilot and if I decide to watch more eps, maybe I’ll see where that relationship goes.

What I thought was interesting was that because of some confidentiality agreement, she can’t tell people that she’s Sherlock’s sober companion. This means that Sherlock can introduce her to people however he wants. So maybe it’ll be a funny weekly thing where he introduces her as something different each time.

Elementary vs Sherlock

I’m curious to see how this works in 45 min chunks but what concerns me is that this’ll be a 24 or so episode season like most US shows. I very much liked what I’m now calling the ‘Sherlock format’ where each episode is 90 mins and they only do 3 of those a season. 90 mins means meatier episodes, they could go deeper into a story than most 45 min shows usually do. And having a short season means that they could really focus their story. BBC Sherlock never felt like they were just killing time and they made good use of the time that they had.  I wish more shows would do 6-12 episode seasons.

A longer season (or at least planned season, let’s see how the ratings are first) for Elementary means that we may get more fluff and it might eventually be super formulaic like a lot of police procedurals. Hopefully the producers put enough meat (I can’t stop thinking about meat) in each episode and they make it interesting enough to keep audiences coming back for more.

I think people like me and Bobgar who love the BBC Sherlock series would be quick to dismiss the show. I mean, how often have we seen US networks screw up awesome British shows? But I’m willing (and for some reason very curious) to check it out. Sherlock goes to New York… why not? Also, Lady Watson :) Let’s do this!

Poster for Elementary. Gotta love that pun!