Sherlock - Season 1

     Nine years ago, BBC took one of England's most beloved fictional detectives and did the unthinkable. They updated him! Benedict Cumberbatch--who was a relative unknown to the world at the time--broke into international fame when he brought to life a new, young and handsome, modern day Sherlock Holmes, complete with tech ware and gadgets. Martin Freeman was cast as Sherlock's pragmatic and charming partner in crime, Dr. John Watson, who relays their case adventures of Holmes and Watson in his blog. 

  
     Needless to say, the idea of updating Sherlock Holmes was practically considered heresy to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's loyal fanbase. My own family, my sisters especially, were die hard Sherlock Holmes fans and they weren't to happy at the BBC's radical interpretation of Holmes. However, after watching season 1, we were completely addicted. Not being a Sherlock Holmes fan myself, I didn't care either way, but my sister was very pleased at how well the show was written and how the lead actors brought such justice to their characters. 

Episode 1 - A Study in Pink

    Newly returned from Afghanistan, Dr. John Watson is trying to start over. Dealing with a wounded leg and suffering from PTSD, John is finding it hard to come back to a world without war. His therapist encourages him to write about...well anything. However, John is finding his new civilian life less than exciting. However, his possible new flat mate, changes his thinking very quickly.

     Sherlock Holmes, a genius who is lively, enigmatic, arrogant and a mystery to everyone around him, makes his living as a consulting detective. Or as he puts it, "When the police are out of their depth, which is always, they consult me." He's brought on for particularly difficult cases to extract details and information that the rest of Scotland Yard may have missed. Unfortunately, when Holmes gets started on a case, he takes over very quickly. While his genius may be necessary for the police, his conceited nature regarding his brilliance has also made him more than a few enemies.

    After a string of unrelated suicides begin to build up causing tension between Scotland Yard and the rest of London, Sherlock is asked to assist in profiling the most recent victim. Along with John, both men figure that these suicides are not unrelated and it's only a matter of time, possibly hours before a new victim is found. John soon figures out that Sherlock rarely if ever plays by the rules and is always going his own way to solve a crime. Yet, even Sherlock Holmes is not indestructible and when he finds himself face to face with the murderer, he has only his skill and his faith in this new stranger to get him out...preferably alive.

      In a span of 24 hours, John's life is turned upside down by this one very unique man. Yet, he feels a sense of purpose and belonging and chooses to stay at 221B Baker Street. Meanwhile, John is not the only person who is interested in the mind of Sherlock Holmes. A puppet master with maniacal intentions is lurking behind the scenes waiting for his moment to reveal himself to Mr. Holmes. 

Episode 2 - The Blind Banker

     As John settles into his new home at 221B, he not only continues to be intrigued by Sherlock, but also frustrated and at odds to know how to deal with his flatmate's ever changing personality. Thankfully he's not the only one. Sherlock, while claiming to neither have nor want any friends, has a small circle of acquaintances, who are all equally perplexed by the genius (and at times idiocy) of Sherlock Holmes. 

    Mycroft Holmes: Sherlock's older and infinitely more intelligent brother who--while not controlling the government--is trying to issue control over Sherlock and his headstrong nature. The Holmes Brothers' rarely if ever see eye to eye on anything, but there is genuine respect between the two of them. Mycroft sees John as a good influence on Sherlock and is forever badgering him to keep an eye on his brother.

     Mrs. Hudson: The landlady of 221B who adores both Sherlock and John. Mrs. Hudson who might question Sherlock's oddities at times, never questions his goodness that people rarely ever see. It's not long before Mrs. Hudson becomes a mother figure to John and Sherlock and oftentimes has no problem setting them straight and even assisting in their cases.

     Detective Inspector Greg Lestrade: When Scotland Yard is out of their depth, it's not long before Greg Lestrade runs to Sherlock Holmes for help. Although a good detective himself, Lestrade is better giving orders from his office while Holmes gives him the information. While the rest of Greg's investigative team despise Sherlock, Greg actually holds some admiration for him. 

     Molly Hooper: A young and rather hopelessly in love coroner who is forever trying to win Sherlock's affection. Molly works at St. Bartholomew's Hospital where Sherlock oftentimes does his research for cases. Molly is very gifted in her work, but she is timid and painfully shy, preferring to work in the background. Molly's fatal flaw is her unrequited love for Sherlock Holmes who refuses to see her as a valuable asset to his work. 

    Two disappearances, one a wealthy banker and the other an immigrant Chinese woman who works at a museum, strange codes and ciphers found on office walls and streets, and finally, a missing Asian artifact of immense value, encourages Sherlock and John to leave their flat and investigate these seemingly unrelated cases. They are taken from the banks of London to the streets of Chinatown, where they discover an Asian mafia group known as the Black Lotus Tong.

     Secretive and deadly, the Black Lotus' primary target isn't money, but Sherlock Holmes himself. And they will hunt, torment, kidnap and kill to get their target. However, the Black Lotus are not working alone. Someone more sinister and evil is controlling their every move, bringing him closer and closer to Sherlock Holmes.

Episode 3 - The Great Game

     Sherlock Holmes is bored. Bored, bored, bored. Lack of any interesting cases to solve has left Sherlock in desperation for anything to get his mind running. While Sherlock is beginning to get recognition for his work (and some recognition is not so flattering), he's wanting something truly hard and chase worthy. He wants a game. And a game is exactly what he gets.

     He begins to receive mysterious phone calls from people who are put in heavily dangerous situations. These people are then made to read to Sherlock texts from the master mind behind these 'games.' Using current working cases that are being publicized on television, Sherlock and John must race the clock to solve them. If they miss their time then theses game victims are killed. 

     Sherlock and John manage to solve two out of the three of these games, leaving both of them shaken at the fact that someone died because of them. Even when the phone calls stop, Sherlock is not convinced that the game is over. That whoever was messing around with him is still waiting. When John becomes the next victim, Sherlock is pushed to the absolute extreme, having to choose between his life or John's.