I'm not really fond of the BBC dramatic productions that American Public Television re brand and gift us with here. They are usually glacially paced, often miscast, poorly produced. Even with good material to rewrite into television, they can fuck up badly. For example, I've been following the Richard Sharpe novels for 20 years and looked forward to the broadcast of the BBC television versions. They started out horrible and got much worse. The two that came out this year were execrable. They could have been great TV.
My wife wanted to watch the new Masterpiece series, Sherlock, so I watched the first episode with her. It's a rehash of the venerable detective's adventures, set in modern day London. I was surprised. It's not bad at all. It's, well plotted, very fast paced, action packed, with lots of quick cuts but still manages to be comprehensible and easy to follow. Usually these 90 minute dramatic packages are punishing to get through. The contemporary Holmes and Watson are appealing and their interactions are well written. There is some good character development going on, at least so far. It's more fantasy than realistic but that's all to the good. You need to completely suspend belief to enjoy it.
It may become terrible later on but I'm going to watch at least a few more episodes. You might consider it too.
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