It seems completely bizarre that BBC’s Sherlock, which has been so successful in updating the Arthur Conan Doyle’s Victorian-era characters for contemporary times, would air a Christmas special in which the characters are suddenly set in the Victorian era again. Why would they do that? “Just because we can, really,” Steven Moffat explained last month. “We never bothered explaining why he’s in modern day London. Why explain why we’re in Victorian [London]?”
With all due respect, that’s exactly the kind of ego-driven decision that compelled Moffat to trade in Doctor Who‘s signature sonic screwdriver for a pair of sonic sunglasses. Moffat does what he wants to do because he can, even if it means potentially destroying a show like Sherlock that is otherwise grounded in reality.
If you’re also concerned about the Victorian-set Christmas special, The Abominable Bride, you’re not alone. In fact, Benedict Cumberbatch — who plays Sherlock Holmes– also had reservations about setting the Christmas special in 1895, as he tells The Guardian, “I thought they’d finally lost the plot, jumped the shark.”
The concerns of Cumberbatch, however, were eventually allayed. “Then they expanded the idea and pitched it to me properly and I think it’s fantastic. Absolutely brilliant,” he said. Hopefully the concerns of the rest of us will likewise be put to bed by the Christmas special, because production is ramping up for another season, set to air in early 2017. Hopefully the Christmas special won’t dampen our enthusiasm for the series. Cumberbatch is also hopeful: “We haven’t disappointed fans in the past it seems, so hopefully this won’t -– I hope they enjoy it.”
I am skeptical, but open to having my mind blown. Let’s just hope that Christmas special doesn’t end with another in another Deus Ex Moffat, which have been happening with increasing frequency in recent years.
Source: The Guardian
