I Can't Make Bricks Without Clay

I was not even going to do it, I swear. My schedule is full, I am supposed to be devoting the rest of my waking hours to homework, but like a moth to the flame, I was lured in by my enduring affection for Johnny Lee Miller and my life-long devotion to one Mr. Sherlock Holmes.

Weeks ago, I perused the upcoming Fall TV series, picking and choosing which shows I couldn't wait to return, the ones that I was definitely going to preview, created a short 'maybe if I have time I'll give it an auditio' (i.e. Revolution) list. When I read the review for CBS's new show Elementary starring Lucy Liu and Johnny Lee Miller, it the hit my very long NO list. My reasoning, it just did not seem like now was a really good time to introduce another interpretation of Sherlock. I would have to say that even in our culture of excess, the Sherlock market seems a bit saturated right now. There is the Downing/Law duo of the big screen, BBC's excellent Cumberbatch/Freeman combo that has been, in my opinion, as close to perfect as a show can come in.

But sometimes the Universe just offers pleasant little surprises, and who am I to look a gift horse in the mouth?

So there it was, ten o'clock, we have just finished watching Glee and the kids are off to bed and I am soon to follow. But, first I have to do the nightly before bed chores. I hear a distressing noise, realise that Fox News has started, so I ran for that remote like I was on fire and it was a bucket of water. I grabbed it, randomly hit the first channel button, which happened to be the channel down, and there it was, the new Sherlock Holmes show. A murder is taking place (I'm folding laundry), Lucy Liu is running through Central Park, (I'm blowing out candles), then she is on the phone discussing someone who left rehab early, but that she was now at the house of said someone...enter Mr. Johnny Lee Miller. She enters his brownstone and proceeds to  introduce herself as the employee of Holmes' father whom he has hired to be the recently released from rehab Sherlock's sober companion for the next six weeks. 8 TV's are playing at once, Sherlock pauses them, turns to Liu and....Hallelujah, he gets to keep his original English accent for this role, which in my opinion gives his character a certain authenticity. And he really has no trouble introducing himself even on an intimate level.

Holmes finds sex repellent, all those fluids, all that noise, but he feeds his body's needs as required, but don't get too comfortable because you won't be here long. The two head of to a crime scene, taking the 'tube', where Holmes informs his new addict sitter that "prior to [his] stint in junkie jail, [he] worked as a consultant for Scotland Yard," and part of his post rehab plan is to assume his investigative consulting role in New York. At the scene of a murder, we meet the police investigator, Captain Greggs (so good to see Aidan Quinn), where we see Holmes'  famous observation skills at work. Introducing Watson as his valet, or helper helper monkey, Liu is quiet as she observes Holmes at the scene. If you had the same doubts as I did about changing Watson's character to a female, I can assure you that you will be more than pleasantly surprised at the Dynamic Chemistry (in a non-sexual way) between the two. Joan Watson is quiet, observant, tough, and intelligent; she is not intimidated by Sherlock and has no trouble calling him out on his insensitive behavior as well as his bullshit. Miller in this role entertains and enraptures me in the same way that Matt Smith's interpretation of Dr.Who does. Quirky, fast talking, incredibly intelligent, and most importantly witty in his interpretation of the world as well as his own self.

The murder investigation is interesting enough and offers a great introduction into the characters. Proper modernization factors were wonderfully worked in as Google and Facebook were given their due by the detective as one of the ways he uncovers information. There were so many great lines during the show, if I wrote them all down for you, I believe I would be writing the majority of the script. Here were some of my favorites.

Sherlock to Watson: "Why do you hate your job? Two alarm clocks means it is a chore to get up in the morning. No one with two alarm clocks loves their job."

At an Opera where Sherlock is trying to convince Watson to come with him to investigate something, he is hushed, his response: "Shh yourself, they're not even on key."

Again, there were so many more great lines from the overall fantastic first episode. I am looking forward to watching it again. If you like witty and smart TV, then the game is afoot! Take a look at CBS's Elementary and enjoy the show!