General First Impressions of "Elementary"
I thought I'd at least watch the first few episodes of Elementary despite instinctual misgivings and reservations. Here's what happened.
First off, I knew from the trailer that CBS was NOT trying to copy Sherlock. I get that. It's not going to be as sleek or have the same caliber of crazy unguessable tightly woven webs of suspense. It's not going to be very true at all to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's work (I mean obvs, he's working in NEW YORK for crying out loud). THAT BEING SAID.
Plusses:
The production values are so high... just... candy for my eyes with the composition of shots and ACTUALLY being in New York, wth is this malarky? In that respect, yes, they're trying to keep up with Sherlock. Okay, I was VERY impressed. This is from the same production company that makes The Mentalist. So, well done, CBS. Cityscapes, using window glare, recoloring... Seriously, this show has got to be REALLY expensive for them!
I appreciated Lucy Liu's character as Watson. Yes, I'll admit--she's like stoic to the max, not super warm or likable AT FIRST. But I love how she stands up to Sherlock, doesn't take his crap and sees right away that beneath his bravado he is a sad, flawed man. Feminists, please rejoice! Also, SHE IS NOT SEXUALIZED. What the hell??? I WAS NOT EXPECTING THIS. In the first scene she is jogging covered head to toe (noice) and for the entire episode she's wearing an amazingly LOOSE grey sweater that looks amazing. Her face is pretty bare--you can see Liu's wrinkles and freckles. Just, LOVE. Also there weren't any racist jokes or obliquely racist comments. Again, HOW??? CBS, HOW?? I AM SO IMPRESSED.
Oh and guess what? WATSON SOLVES THE CASE. Bam. Subverted your expectations right there.
Another nice surprise: one of the main detectives is Latino and he doesn't have an effing accent. Yusss.
AHHH I love that they don't do stupid FLASHBACKS of clues every time Sherlock or Joan deduce things (I'm thinking of Psych and even sometimes in Sherlock). I'm so glad they chose not to do the slo-mo clips of close-ups on inanimate objects. Just so thankful. Good job, CBS.
Negatives:
Johnny Lee Miller talks rrrreally fast. Eh, *read this with an English accent* not too keen on him yet. *cease accent* Of course he's all smart and "ahead of the game." That's quintessential Sherlock for yeh. He's also can be insensitive like Cumberbatch's Sherlock. Just, I don't like him yet. He seems spoiled (apparently his daddy is RICH!) and I can't tell who he is. BUT RACHEL HE'S A BEEKEEPER; HE HAS A BEEHIVE ON HIS ROOF. Lol, maybe they plan to do something with this in later episodes but can we take a moment to appreciate how unexpectedly random and marvelous the shot of the hive was against the epic NY city panorama?? The juxtaposition. It kills me. Then again, I'm a sucker for non-sequiter.
Didn't care for the graphic dead woman with her legs bent back in an unnatural way with her head in a pool of blood. Also did not like the long pan of the dead man lying in a pool of HIS own blood. Ew, talk about the least angelic, grossest halo ever.
The humor wasn't great. I mean, sure, I chuckled a few times at Sherlock & Watson's banter but this was an exposition episode. So lots of dialogue between two steely faces of wan and wry seriousness. I hope they incorporate more humor in the future.
Also this episode was heavy in violence/assaults against women. Soooo definitely triggers for PTSD peeps.
Lastly, gosh it was just a super trite ending. OH! It was a husband all along because he wanted her money! Like I haven't heard that one before.
Bottom Line: So far it's flashy eye candy that takes itself very seriously and fits the standard American model for a crime drama. It's "like Paul Rudd. I wouldn't take it away from anyone, but also would not stand waiting hours in line for it" (Jeff Winger).
I will continue watching.
P.S. Go to tumblr and type in "elementary" as a tag. "Let's just say, the message boards are going nuts." -Ben Wyatt
First off, I knew from the trailer that CBS was NOT trying to copy Sherlock. I get that. It's not going to be as sleek or have the same caliber of crazy unguessable tightly woven webs of suspense. It's not going to be very true at all to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's work (I mean obvs, he's working in NEW YORK for crying out loud). THAT BEING SAID.
Plusses:
The production values are so high... just... candy for my eyes with the composition of shots and ACTUALLY being in New York, wth is this malarky? In that respect, yes, they're trying to keep up with Sherlock. Okay, I was VERY impressed. This is from the same production company that makes The Mentalist. So, well done, CBS. Cityscapes, using window glare, recoloring... Seriously, this show has got to be REALLY expensive for them!
I appreciated Lucy Liu's character as Watson. Yes, I'll admit--she's like stoic to the max, not super warm or likable AT FIRST. But I love how she stands up to Sherlock, doesn't take his crap and sees right away that beneath his bravado he is a sad, flawed man. Feminists, please rejoice! Also, SHE IS NOT SEXUALIZED. What the hell??? I WAS NOT EXPECTING THIS. In the first scene she is jogging covered head to toe (noice) and for the entire episode she's wearing an amazingly LOOSE grey sweater that looks amazing. Her face is pretty bare--you can see Liu's wrinkles and freckles. Just, LOVE. Also there weren't any racist jokes or obliquely racist comments. Again, HOW??? CBS, HOW?? I AM SO IMPRESSED.
Oh and guess what? WATSON SOLVES THE CASE. Bam. Subverted your expectations right there.
Another nice surprise: one of the main detectives is Latino and he doesn't have an effing accent. Yusss.
AHHH I love that they don't do stupid FLASHBACKS of clues every time Sherlock or Joan deduce things (I'm thinking of Psych and even sometimes in Sherlock). I'm so glad they chose not to do the slo-mo clips of close-ups on inanimate objects. Just so thankful. Good job, CBS.
Negatives:
Johnny Lee Miller talks rrrreally fast. Eh, *read this with an English accent* not too keen on him yet. *cease accent* Of course he's all smart and "ahead of the game." That's quintessential Sherlock for yeh. He's also can be insensitive like Cumberbatch's Sherlock. Just, I don't like him yet. He seems spoiled (apparently his daddy is RICH!) and I can't tell who he is. BUT RACHEL HE'S A BEEKEEPER; HE HAS A BEEHIVE ON HIS ROOF. Lol, maybe they plan to do something with this in later episodes but can we take a moment to appreciate how unexpectedly random and marvelous the shot of the hive was against the epic NY city panorama?? The juxtaposition. It kills me. Then again, I'm a sucker for non-sequiter.
Didn't care for the graphic dead woman with her legs bent back in an unnatural way with her head in a pool of blood. Also did not like the long pan of the dead man lying in a pool of HIS own blood. Ew, talk about the least angelic, grossest halo ever.
The humor wasn't great. I mean, sure, I chuckled a few times at Sherlock & Watson's banter but this was an exposition episode. So lots of dialogue between two steely faces of wan and wry seriousness. I hope they incorporate more humor in the future.
Also this episode was heavy in violence/assaults against women. Soooo definitely triggers for PTSD peeps.
Lastly, gosh it was just a super trite ending. OH! It was a husband all along because he wanted her money! Like I haven't heard that one before.
Bottom Line: So far it's flashy eye candy that takes itself very seriously and fits the standard American model for a crime drama. It's "like Paul Rudd. I wouldn't take it away from anyone, but also would not stand waiting hours in line for it" (Jeff Winger).
I will continue watching.
P.S. Go to tumblr and type in "elementary" as a tag. "Let's just say, the message boards are going nuts." -Ben Wyatt