Seen 6/3/15
3.5/4
Wow. Look at how little of Sherlock it took to violently deconstruct every notion I had about television, and entertainment in general. Perhaps it is bias from the forgiving nature of my viewing circumstances, or my inexperience in the realm of legitimate TV series, or the nonexistence of my exposure to British television, but Sherlock provided in its first episode one of the greatest rushes I have felt during consumption of media in a long time. This was entertaining in a way I have possibly never been exposed to, and certainly on a level unseen by my eyes. I hesitate, with pangs of guilt, because I'm not quite sure yet that this is "quality television". But is any television? If entertainment is really the sole purpose of what I may call "dedicated" TV series, then either no television is "quality", or Sherlock is. It is so high in its dialectic artistry, so profoundly striking in its entertainment, that despite its lack of thematic content I can't call it anything but brilliant. Now, that's not to say that there's nothing philosophical about it. The problem, if it is a problem at all, is that the intellectual smorgasbord flies by so quickly, it may be very difficult to develop any kind of thematic exploration. I'm not sure that I could continue with Sherlock without any exploration. But judging from the first episode, there is surely plenty an intellectual pleasure to be had. I had monstrous hesitations, and probably prejudices, against Sherlock two hours ago, but now my hesitation lies only in whether or not to call this pilot genius.
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