Well, that was... trite. Even predictable, that finale. So Irene never really existed, she was Moriarty all along, and "Irene" was Sherlock's Mirror of Erised... everything he really ever wanted, and deeply distracting. And when she proved not to be distracting enough, she was taken away to pull the carpet out from under him. And if you couldn't spot this within the first couple of minutes (or even get inklings right from the start of the Moriarty arc), then you really haven't been paying close attention.
I've watched Elementary right from the beginning, and initially I was prepared to hate it. To my very great surprise, I didn't hate it. I found Miller's take on the character entertaining, and his relationship with Captain Gregson a mite touching. The episodes were enjoyable as little mysteries, but nothing too taxing on the cerebellum. It's been a decent procedural with a bit of flair, so I've kept with it.
As an adaption of Holmes, though (and I'm not even a ACD fanatic) it's disappointing, primarily because it doesn't really go to creative risks. Sure, they changed Watson's gender and ethnicity, they changed Moriarty's Gender, and made Mrs. Hudson transgendered. Of the three of them, though, they only bothered to do anything interesting with the lattermost.
Joan Watson is boring. Sure, she gives the dialogue adequately, and she's learning Sherlock's trade. She's gone from one profession to another, but she's not really grown as a person at all. She's learned new skills, but she's the same boring person she was at the beginning. There's just no chemistry at all between Liu and Miller. They get into scenes together, they say their lines, but the don't really interact. Occasionally Liu gets the serious "Oh, no. Is he gonna relapse" face on, but they don't really bounce off each other. There's little if any conflict between them. And frankly, there's more UST between Freeman and Cumberbatch than there is between Liu and Miller, not that UST is required, but just sayin'.
And then there's Moriarty. Take away the change in Gender, and she's Moriarty by the numbers. She's a posh, level-headed criminal mastermind who mostly operates through intermediaries and proxies. It's just Moriarty as Moriarty has been played, just played by a woman. And this has made me realize how little the gender swaps matter at all. Changing a person's gender might, on the surface, seem like a risky, creative thing to do, but, in reality, it's just obvious and unimaginative. I know that Sherlock's version of Moriarty has split most down the middle, many finding his Joker-like madman of a Moriaty too OTT, but say what you want, they did something legitimately different with the character. Making him the unhinged counterpoint to Sherlock's controlled logic was a Moriarty that had never been done before. The Dormer Moriarty is just the same old Moriarty with a different gender.
Now Miss Hudson, that's the only time they added something to a character, really. Not because she's transgendered... true, it's never been done before, but like I said above... the gender doesn't matter so much as what you do with the character. And Elementary gave Miss Hudson a life outside of Sherlock's flat. Making her the lovelorn inspirational muse currently between geniuses... well, that's genuinely an aspect of the Hudson character that's been made just for this version. So, accolades there.
Over all, I've found Elementary entertaining, but ultimately disappointing so far. It's better than I felt it had any chance of being at the beginning, but falls just short of what it could be.
Friday, May 17, 2013
Sunday, March 17, 2013
A Grimm Tale Well Told
So, since staying at my brothers, I've been introduced to a series I've not seen before: Grimm. For those not in the know, this is a Supernatural/Procedural Hybrid about a detective in the Portland Police Department named Nick Burkhardt who is a descendant of the Grimm family. The Grimm family are humans with the special ability to see creatures called Wesen... mythological Human/Animal creatures that many of our fairy tales are based on. The Grimms can see these beings as they are when they are feeling emotional. Historically, the Grimms hunted and killed Wesen, but Nick, working as a Cop must find a different way; seeing that some Wesen are just really looking for quiet, uneventful lives, whilst some still revel in darkness. Nick protects the good Wesen and handles the bad ones as a Cop if he can, but a Grimm if he must.
I have to say, I probably wouldn't have given this show a try on my own, but I'm glad I've gotten into it, because it's a really entertaining show. Most episodes have the "Monster of the week" formula, but it's always well done, and there is an overarching political drama coming from the Wesen society hidden within our own, filled with intrigue, shifting loyalties, and hidden agendas. The intensity of these stories has been building steadily over the course of the season and a half that has aired already.
One particularly well executed element is that Nick is having to learn this Grimm stuff from the ground up. His only tutelage in the legacy of the Grimms came from his dying aunt in the first story. So, Nick has had to have all of this explained to him, learning it all along with the audience. As Nick becomes entrenched within the Wesen world and all the drama therein, we get pulled in with him.
A lot of this schooling comes from a character called Monroe. Monroe is a Wesen, a Blutbad... a type of creature that once inspired the legend of the Big Bad Wolf (BAD WOLF!). Whilst the Blutbad are generally violent and devious, some, like Monroe have put aside their baser urges and become productive parts of society. Monroe himself, for instance, repairs timepieces for a living, and generally seems no different than most people.
Monroe is, at least at first, a reluctant helper, but he gets really invested in helping Nick explore his heritage even as he explains what he knows about the various types of Wesen. By the time the first season comes to a close, Monroe is a close and valued friend to Nick, and a source of much of the show's wry sense of humor.
Despite Nick's partner Hank and girlfriend Juliette initially staying out of the Grimm side of things, they eventually get pulled into the Wesen scheming as well, as Nick's aunt cryptically warned that they would be.
If you haven't watched this show, give it a shot, whether you feel I've explained it well or not. It's a great addition to the TV landscape today, and if you give it a chance, it will become a high-point of your week.
I have to say, I probably wouldn't have given this show a try on my own, but I'm glad I've gotten into it, because it's a really entertaining show. Most episodes have the "Monster of the week" formula, but it's always well done, and there is an overarching political drama coming from the Wesen society hidden within our own, filled with intrigue, shifting loyalties, and hidden agendas. The intensity of these stories has been building steadily over the course of the season and a half that has aired already.
One particularly well executed element is that Nick is having to learn this Grimm stuff from the ground up. His only tutelage in the legacy of the Grimms came from his dying aunt in the first story. So, Nick has had to have all of this explained to him, learning it all along with the audience. As Nick becomes entrenched within the Wesen world and all the drama therein, we get pulled in with him.
A lot of this schooling comes from a character called Monroe. Monroe is a Wesen, a Blutbad... a type of creature that once inspired the legend of the Big Bad Wolf (BAD WOLF!). Whilst the Blutbad are generally violent and devious, some, like Monroe have put aside their baser urges and become productive parts of society. Monroe himself, for instance, repairs timepieces for a living, and generally seems no different than most people.
Monroe is, at least at first, a reluctant helper, but he gets really invested in helping Nick explore his heritage even as he explains what he knows about the various types of Wesen. By the time the first season comes to a close, Monroe is a close and valued friend to Nick, and a source of much of the show's wry sense of humor.
Despite Nick's partner Hank and girlfriend Juliette initially staying out of the Grimm side of things, they eventually get pulled into the Wesen scheming as well, as Nick's aunt cryptically warned that they would be.
If you haven't watched this show, give it a shot, whether you feel I've explained it well or not. It's a great addition to the TV landscape today, and if you give it a chance, it will become a high-point of your week.
Thursday, March 14, 2013
Veronica Mars the Crowdsourced...
Once again I forgot about this blog for a metric age. So much has been changing in my life recently, though, I am bound and determined to actually post things now. I have thoughts I want to express, and Twitter sometimes just isn't adequate. And this is a topic I am really, really interested in, so this seems like a great place to put it.
A lot of interesting discussion on Twitter this week about the success of the Veronica Mars Kickstarter. Most of the debate seems to center around the presence of Warner Brothers in the mix.
Warner Brothers, as the owner of Veronica Mars as an Intellectual Property, has to be involved in the process of bringing Veronica Mars to the big screen. They literally HAVE to be there. Yet, many are saying that a big corporation allowing a film project to hit Kickstarter for funding is either "Tacky" or "Gauche" or "Violates the indy spirit of Kickstarter." I'm afraid I just can't agree with that.
John Rogers, Former Producer/Showrunner of Leverage, argued (I think rightly) that Warner Brothers allowing a film they were unsure of to engage in crowdsourced financing (essentially presales in a way) to see if there was a market for the film represents a sea change in the way Hollywood Studios may bring riskier projects to the screen. By setting a goal it had to reach to get greenlit, then actually putting that funding toward whatever budget WB is going to put up themselves to enhance the quality of the finished project... well, that's just not been done before, and opens up a new means to demonstrate that there is an audience for these films. Maybe it'll work, maybe it won't, but a big Hollywood Studio like Warner Brothers even entertaining the idea, much less implementing it... that's just something new coming into play, and succeed or fail, it's really damned interesting.
The ridiculous Hipster argument of "violating the indy spirit" is likewise a nonstarter. The idea that by doing this that Warner Brothers is somehow preventing people from also backing independent projects is a strawman of epic proportions.
Of course, the question of profit sharing has also risen its head, and that's trickier in some ways... but this isn't being done as a traditional investment. It's not even allowed to be done that way by law... yet. There is a Crowdsource Act making its way through the corridors of power, but it's not there yet and has a limit of $1 million, which would be insufficient for larger projects. I really see this as presales. People are putting up money to support the film and are getting more than just the film in return. It's iffy, and any genuinely sticky issues will come in here, I think.
We live in interesting times, it seems. I can't wait to see how it all plays out. And most of all, I actually want to see that Veronica Mars film. Loved that show. Congrats of massive proportions to Rob Thomas, who I have been a fan of since the original Cupid in 1998.
A lot of interesting discussion on Twitter this week about the success of the Veronica Mars Kickstarter. Most of the debate seems to center around the presence of Warner Brothers in the mix.
Warner Brothers, as the owner of Veronica Mars as an Intellectual Property, has to be involved in the process of bringing Veronica Mars to the big screen. They literally HAVE to be there. Yet, many are saying that a big corporation allowing a film project to hit Kickstarter for funding is either "Tacky" or "Gauche" or "Violates the indy spirit of Kickstarter." I'm afraid I just can't agree with that.
John Rogers, Former Producer/Showrunner of Leverage, argued (I think rightly) that Warner Brothers allowing a film they were unsure of to engage in crowdsourced financing (essentially presales in a way) to see if there was a market for the film represents a sea change in the way Hollywood Studios may bring riskier projects to the screen. By setting a goal it had to reach to get greenlit, then actually putting that funding toward whatever budget WB is going to put up themselves to enhance the quality of the finished project... well, that's just not been done before, and opens up a new means to demonstrate that there is an audience for these films. Maybe it'll work, maybe it won't, but a big Hollywood Studio like Warner Brothers even entertaining the idea, much less implementing it... that's just something new coming into play, and succeed or fail, it's really damned interesting.
The ridiculous Hipster argument of "violating the indy spirit" is likewise a nonstarter. The idea that by doing this that Warner Brothers is somehow preventing people from also backing independent projects is a strawman of epic proportions.
Of course, the question of profit sharing has also risen its head, and that's trickier in some ways... but this isn't being done as a traditional investment. It's not even allowed to be done that way by law... yet. There is a Crowdsource Act making its way through the corridors of power, but it's not there yet and has a limit of $1 million, which would be insufficient for larger projects. I really see this as presales. People are putting up money to support the film and are getting more than just the film in return. It's iffy, and any genuinely sticky issues will come in here, I think.
We live in interesting times, it seems. I can't wait to see how it all plays out. And most of all, I actually want to see that Veronica Mars film. Loved that show. Congrats of massive proportions to Rob Thomas, who I have been a fan of since the original Cupid in 1998.
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