I began watching the crime-drama series Elementary (2012-2019) sometime in high school with my mom. For those unfamiliar with the CBS program created by Robert Doherty, the show is a modern-day interpretation of Arthur Conan Doyle’s famous mystery novels Sherlock Holmes. Jonny Lee Miller plays Sherlock, a recovering drug addict who is a private detective for the NYPD. Lucy Liu plays Dr. Joan Watson, Sherlock’s sober companion turned partner-in-crime later in the series.
Elementary, which finished its last season only last year, was the perfect weeknight indulgence throughout my high school (and collegiate) academic years: a distraction from homework stress and anxiety as each episode required your full attention in order to follow along and attempt to answer the pivotal question: Whodunit?
I will admit that I have not read any of Doyle’s books, but I have seen PBS’s Sherlock on Masterpiece (2012-), Sherlock Gnomes (2018), and Netflix’s Enola Holmes (2020). Even with all of these different takes on the original mystery books, Elementary is still my all-time favorite interpretation of Sherlock and Watson, from the writing and setting to the intricacies of the dynamic duo’s relationship.
- First of all, the writing is superb.
-
As I mentioned earlier, you really have to pay attention to an entire episode of Elementary. There were many nights when I was too in my thoughts about a huge Chemistry exam the next day and suddenly found myself completely lost about the trajectory of the mystery Sherlock and Watson were trying to solve with the help of their friend, Detective Marcus Bell (Jon Michael Hill). My grandma is also a big fan of the show, but will often complain of the complexity of the script. Sherlock speaks very fast and uses so many SAT words it can be triggering for high school juniors and seniors.
I know that Sherlock is supposed to be this insane genius who can connect obscure clues in order to solve far-more complex mysteries than you would find in Scooby-Doo, but does he really have to speak that fast in the final minutes of the episode when he finally explains how he solved the murder, kidnapping, bombing, etc.?
On the flip side, some episodes do follow a similar pattern in that Sherlock and Watson interview a bunch of suspects, think they know who is guilty of said crime, but that person ends up murdered or with a sound alibi, and the guilty person ends up being the first person they interviewed 40-minutes earlier in the episode. But even knowing this pattern exists within the framework of the series, my mom and I are hardly ever able to solve the mystery before the close of the episode, and if we do it’s a sheer coincidence and definitely does not follow deductive reasoning, or whatever Sherlock swears by.
- London move over, the Big Apple is here.
-
I visited London, England a little over a decade ago and while I loved the chaos of Piccadilly Circus, New York City will always hold a special place in my heart. That being said, the fact that Elementary takes place in NYC rather than Sherlock’s hometown is just another reason why I personally love the show so much. After all, Sherlock and Watson’s Brownstone, where they live together for the majority of the show, is my ideal living situation––although I would definitely add a few more pieces in the living room and kitchen which are pretty bare, but I guess that’s Sherlock’s style.
Placing Sherlock in the context of the NYPD rather than Scottland Yard, which he does return to throughout the seasons, makes the storyline more familiar for American audiences but also creates an interesting tone regarding international cooperation to solve the city’s most gruesome crimes.
- Joan’s wardrobe is so chic, I can’t.
-
The amount of times my mom and I have said to each other, “ugh, I love Joan’s dress/sweater/shirt/shoes” is far greater than the number of episodes in the series. Her style is so crisp with geometric sweaters, unique heels, and cozy wool coats that she reinterprets the typical detective outfit. There is really no need to subscribe to Vogue or Instyle magazine when you can just turn on Elementary and take notes about Joan’s latest fashion choices. I only hope that my “work” outfits are on-point as much as hers, although I am not sure if this requires that I pursue being a detective. Perhaps I should bring this up at my next Career meeting…
- Perhaps the greatest mystery of all is love…*cringes*
-
Watson is often Sherlock’s male sidekick, but in the CBS interpretation, Sherlock relies on Joan, a former doctor turned sober companion turned detective, not only to keep him on track to recovery from his addiction but also for her exquisite mind when it comes to solving their cases. I am not going to lie when I say that after the first few seasons, I was rooting for Joan and Sherlock to get together. I don’t mean to turn a mystery program into a romance or fall into the boy-meets-girl stereotype where friends of the opposite gender can’t be just friends, but the chemistry between the two characters is just too strong to ignore. I am not going to give any spoilers about the last season, but I will just say that the final episode is to me, left open-ended for realists and romantics to interpret how they so desire.
Although I am an Elementary fan, I will admit that there were moments in the series when I lost interest and yearned for the earlier seasons when the acting and plots were constantly original. But even with that critique, I was devastated when the final season ended and am secretly hoping Sherlock and Joan will return to CBS one day.