Believe it or not, but I’ve never watched a single episode of Sherlock. Not one. While I do feel like I’m missing out on a high quality television show, there’s a large part of me that feels like pop culture has taught me most of what I need to know about it.
While pop culture may have failed me when it comes to my Doctor Who knowledge (or so Hypable readers have told me), I’m fairly certain that I have a firm grasp on what Sherlock is all about. After all, it’s about the famous Sherlock Holmes and I saw the Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law Sherlock Holmes movies. How different could this show be?
As with all of these “Everything I know about (insert pop culture phenomenon here)” articles, there may be a fair share of spoilers ahead. So please use caution while reading if you don’t want to be spoiled. I honestly don’t know exactly what I’m talking about so I may accidentally ruin a plot point (or just completely destroy the entire series) while sharing what I think I know with all of you. After all, I learned everything that I think I know from Tumblr posts, Hypable news, and gossip. Lots and lots of gossip. So please be careful.
*Note: I haven’t checked Tumblr or Hypable news posts for Sherlock since before the season 3 finale because, quite simply, I would like to not be spoiled in case I decide to start watching sometime before season 4.
The premise
This is really a no-brainer, isn’t it? Sherlock Holmes (played by the handsome Benedict Cumberbatch) is aided by his friend John Watson (played by Martin Freeman) in solving interesting and thought-provoking crimes. Or so we’re meant to assume. But I feel like in this incarnation of Sherlock, the story is more about Sherlock and John’s bromance (or possible romance? see below for my ideas on that) rather than actual crimes. The name Moriarty seems to be tossed around a lot but, from what I can tell, he seems more like an abstract idea than a criminal mastermind/physical man.
The characters
Sherlock Holmes: ‘High-functioning sociopath’
Sherlock Holmes is Sherlock Holmes. He has a very acute attention to detail and is more logic-oriented than emotion-oriented. Played by the fantastic Benedict Cumberbatch, Sherlock has a beautifully deep and soulful voice that you can never tire of hearing, even if he’s being a bit annoying at the moment. Sherlock looks to be an upstanding gentleman of the lower middle class who is well-educated and constantly throws his knowledge into everyone’s face. But he’s really intelligent, so it’s ok.
Doctor John Watson: His relatively normal sidekick
Watson is Sherlock Holmes’ sidekick. I believe he’s supposed to be a doctor of some sort but, in all of the images I’ve seen from the show (and all of the posts on Tumblr), he seems to specialize in slightly snarky comments and following Sherlock around. In between thinking of comebacks for Sherlock’s backhanded insults and creating a ton of sexual tension between himself and Sherlock, John decided to snag himself a wife. Why he would need a wife when he has Sherlock is beyond me. In other news, from what I’ve seen, this character goes by “John” more than “Watson” on the show, and it really bothers me. I always see people referring to him as “John” on the internet and it just makes me want to cry aloud, “My dear Watson!” But that’s just me.
Moriarty: The (non-existent) villain
A lot of fandoms focus on villains and adversaries almost as much as they do on their beloved main characters. For instance, the Supernatural tag on Tumblr shows a ton of villains or monsters all over the place. However, even though Moriarty is a pretty big deal in the Sherlock Holmes stories, I can’t really find photos or mentions of him in the Tumblr tags or in any sort of news anywhere. It’s actually quite sad because Moriarty has always interested me. But, because I can’t find mention of Moriarty anywhere, I’m thinking that Sherlock pulled an Iron Man 3 and drastically transformed his character into something completely different (like what was done to The Mandarin). However, even that seems like a bit of a stretch. Maybe his only villainous goal is to keep Sherlock and Watson apart.
Mycrosoft Holmes
Did I get his name right? I can never remember it… I think I’m close enough. Confession time: I’ve never read a single Sherlock Holmes story, so I’m not familiar with any characters other than Sherlock, (My Dear) Watson, and Moriarty. And by familiar, I mean I know their names and vague details. So I guess it’s no surprise that I’ve never heard of this guy. For all I know, he’s a new character invented by the show. I’m thinking that since Moffat does well with the sci-fi genre that he may have introduced a bit of it into Sherlock with this character. So my vote is that Mycrosoft here is an android from the future or something. Why else would he have such an odd name? Plus, the only photos I’ve ever seen of this man have been with him standing perfectly still. It’s kind of creepy… But, if he’s not in fact an android, I could see him as some sort of adversary to Sherlock.
Some chick named ‘Molly’
For some reason, it seems like the majority of Sherlock fans that I come across are fans of someone named “Molly.” In fact, I may even argue that she’s a lot of people’s favorite character. However, I can’t find any evidence of her existence beyond her name (hence no photo for this section). So I’m going to assume that she’s either a pretty plain Jane or that she is a mysterious femme fatale-like character who doesn’t show her face often.
On page 2: Johnlock, Steven Moffat and a solution to Sherlock’s fall…
Page 2: Everything I know about ‘Sherlock’ I learned from pop culture
Notable plot points
The show focuses more on Sherlock and John Watson than it does on villains or mysteries
Seriously though. As I mentioned above, I never hear any news about villains, nor do I see anything on Tumblr that makes me think that they pose that much of a problem. Even the infamous Moriarty. Everyone always talks about all of their feels that they have while watching Sherlock, but none of those feels ever explicitly mention a villain or even an antagonist. Without villains, Sherlock and Watson must have some pretty intense conversations and hang outs to fill an entire show. This brings me to my next point…
Johnlock 4eva
This is all I see Sherlock fans talking, arguing, GIF-ing, and writing fanfiction about. It’s a pretty big deal. It may even be on the same level as Destiel, or a level above because it’s actually canon. As far as I can tell from Tumblr and Hypable photo galleries, Sherlock and Watson share quite a few brooding glances on screen and, quite possibly, the occasional lip-lock in London alleys. Being that this is a modern day version of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s creation (or so I’m assuming), I’m really happy to see BBC expanding their horizons with their characters’ sexuality. I’m assuming then that Mary, Watson’s wife, will soon become the show’s antagonist because she’ll be trying to break the duo apart. What a drag.
Sherlock Holmes once fell off a very tall building and miraculously survived
If that’s not sorcery or some kind of sci-fi trick, then I don’t know what is. I thought Sherlock was supposed to be grounded in reality, but the fact that a fall from a tall building didn’t kill him makes me question what I know. Sure, Sherlock is supposed to be very clever and intelligent. I get that. But I just don’t understand how intelligence can save someone from something like that. His big brain can’t have been that great of a cushion to fall on. Also, it’s not like the screen cut to black as soon as he fell. I’ve seen gifs of the man hitting the ground. I just don’t understand.
Sherlock Holmes doesn’t have time for petty mysteries or crimes
Even though technically the show is about twice the length of a normal serialized crime drama (such as NCIS or Bones), there never seems to be a mystery of the week. Moreover, if there was, that would be an incredibly drawn out and involved mystery of the week for a TV show (which would be pretty impressive to say the least). But no. From what I gather, there’s maybe some sort of mystery or peril during the season, but even that seems like a stretch to me.
Sherlock loves his scarves
Sherlock never leaves home without a scarf. Usually black or charcoal grey to match his coat and his dark, wavy locks. Hey, he’s a product of Moffat, so there’s really no surprise that he has a signature clothing item or accessory. I just thought of something! Maybe the reason why he fell off of a really tall building is because it was windy outside and his scarf started to fly away. In reaching for it, Sherlock fell. Yep. That’s totally it. Nailed it. I mean, like I said, there aren’t any villains around so this is obviously the most logical explanation. Sherlock can’t let a good scarf go to waste.
Sherlock and The Doctor are BFFLs
…Or so Wholock (or Sherloctor?) fans want the world to believe. I’ve never watched either series so I can’t really weigh in on this topic one way or another. But I will say that I am all for classy-looking British men being BFFLs. Yes please. Especially if they all have unique fun wardrobe accessories.
Fandom odds and ends
The show is written by Steven Moffat who is usually the subject of fan rage (both for ‘Sherlock’ and ‘Doctor Who’)
See? My Doctor Who Tumblr learning is paying off (I think)! From what I can tell, Moffat is in charge of Sherlock and may have even been a creator of the show. However, even though fans love the show, there are still things that Moffat does that make the fanbase irate. Therefore, Sherlockians do not fully trust Moffat with storylines or even approve of a lot of them. Honestly guys, I’d probably be in the same camp from what I’ve heard about Moffat. No offense to any of you who like him.
For some ungodly reason, there was a 2 year gap between series 2 and 3
I feel for you Sherlockians (Sherlockers? Sherlockites?). Two years is two years too long. I honestly don’t know how you did it. I also don’t know why Moffat (or whoever is ultimately in charge) did it, other than the fact that the two leads were off being super movie stars. But still. That’s no excuse for leaving a two year gap, especially since the season finale’s cliffhanger was Sherlock falling off of a building. I don’t watch Sherlock or Doctor Who, but it’s things like this that make me wonder why Moffat is still employed! (Is that harsh? I apologize.)
Above all else, Sherlock not only survived a fall from a tall building, but he survived it for over two years. I just can’t.
Watching ‘Sherlock’ HURTS
While the Sherlock tags on Tumblr don’t have the reoccurrence of a Sherlock-crying-in-the-rain gif (like the Doctor Who tags have with David Tennant’s Doctor), I can still tell that fans of the show experience agonizing pain every time they watch an episode. I’m not sure if that’s because each season/series has only three episodes or the actual content of the show is that depressing, but it certainly does not look like fun.
So… How did I do?
In my opinion, I think I did pretty well. It was elementary, my dear Watson. Badum-tish!