Sherlock 3x01 and 3x02
Jan. 11th, 2014 09:04 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ivyficI've watched the first two episodes of the new series of Sherlock, and hmm.
I enjoyed them. But in the way I enjoy fanfic. Cause that's what they were. Empty Hearse was an amalgam of post-Reichenbach fic, and not particularly well done at that. And The Sign of Three was straight up crack fic. Entertaining, sure. But fanfic always has the freedom to tell stories like that, cause at the end of the day, it doesn't have to put the toys back in the box. At the end of the day, you go find another fanfic that doesn't have to make any sense in relation to the one you just read. Fanfic is about the infinite variability of stories that can be told and possible interpretations.
Canon is not. Canon has the burden of continuity. Canon needs to have the events of one episode make logical sense in relation to the events of the previous episodes. Canon has to deliver character arcs and motivations that make sense. Season three of Sherlock has 100% failed at this. It has delivered lots of little fun bon bons, but the characterization is crazyballs. The first episode gave no reason at all for why Sherlock had to fake his death specifically for John--it even removed the logical justifier of the snipers by having Mycroft handle them off screen. And the second episode just completely ignored the events of Reichenbach and Empty Hearse. Emotionally, they may as well not have happened. And while I enjoyed it as crack fic, as canon, it was schizophrenic.
Here's the other thing about fanfic: fanfic doesn't have to make you love the characters. You're only reading it because you already do. So fanfic can focus entirely on showing you an unexpected side of a character, or on showing you silliness, or on getting them drunk, because you already know who the character is and like them.
That is what really makes this season of Sherlock fanfic of the first season. This season would not make anyone want to keep watching the show on its own. It's only fun because of the meatiness of the first two series (despite those series also having some complete crap in them). This type of fluff storytelling does not carry on its own. And with their being so little Sherlock and so widely dispersed, I really don't think it's enough to keep my interest.
I mean, I stopped watching Supernatural about the time they started indulging in fanficcy silliness. I am not one of those fans who wants my fanfic on the screen. I enjoy entirely different types of things in canon and in fanfic. Crossing the streams doesn't work for me.
Also, as others have pointed out, Moffett and Gatiss have set themselves up as kings of fandom: what they are doing (and what Moffett is doing with Doctor Who) is being fanfic creators under official auspices. But fandom is an essentially egalitarian community. So holding onto the "specialness" of being canon creators while at the same time indulging in the idea exchange of fandom? Eh. I have some problems with this. Nobody gets the final say in fandom, and it looks to me like that's what Empty Hearse was trying to do.
In conclusion, I am really, really digging Elementary right now. Sherlock fandom has my heart, but Elementary is by far my favorite Sherlock on the screen of the moment.
I enjoyed them. But in the way I enjoy fanfic. Cause that's what they were. Empty Hearse was an amalgam of post-Reichenbach fic, and not particularly well done at that. And The Sign of Three was straight up crack fic. Entertaining, sure. But fanfic always has the freedom to tell stories like that, cause at the end of the day, it doesn't have to put the toys back in the box. At the end of the day, you go find another fanfic that doesn't have to make any sense in relation to the one you just read. Fanfic is about the infinite variability of stories that can be told and possible interpretations.
Canon is not. Canon has the burden of continuity. Canon needs to have the events of one episode make logical sense in relation to the events of the previous episodes. Canon has to deliver character arcs and motivations that make sense. Season three of Sherlock has 100% failed at this. It has delivered lots of little fun bon bons, but the characterization is crazyballs. The first episode gave no reason at all for why Sherlock had to fake his death specifically for John--it even removed the logical justifier of the snipers by having Mycroft handle them off screen. And the second episode just completely ignored the events of Reichenbach and Empty Hearse. Emotionally, they may as well not have happened. And while I enjoyed it as crack fic, as canon, it was schizophrenic.
Here's the other thing about fanfic: fanfic doesn't have to make you love the characters. You're only reading it because you already do. So fanfic can focus entirely on showing you an unexpected side of a character, or on showing you silliness, or on getting them drunk, because you already know who the character is and like them.
That is what really makes this season of Sherlock fanfic of the first season. This season would not make anyone want to keep watching the show on its own. It's only fun because of the meatiness of the first two series (despite those series also having some complete crap in them). This type of fluff storytelling does not carry on its own. And with their being so little Sherlock and so widely dispersed, I really don't think it's enough to keep my interest.
I mean, I stopped watching Supernatural about the time they started indulging in fanficcy silliness. I am not one of those fans who wants my fanfic on the screen. I enjoy entirely different types of things in canon and in fanfic. Crossing the streams doesn't work for me.
Also, as others have pointed out, Moffett and Gatiss have set themselves up as kings of fandom: what they are doing (and what Moffett is doing with Doctor Who) is being fanfic creators under official auspices. But fandom is an essentially egalitarian community. So holding onto the "specialness" of being canon creators while at the same time indulging in the idea exchange of fandom? Eh. I have some problems with this. Nobody gets the final say in fandom, and it looks to me like that's what Empty Hearse was trying to do.
In conclusion, I am really, really digging Elementary right now. Sherlock fandom has my heart, but Elementary is by far my favorite Sherlock on the screen of the moment.