You know, for me it wasn't even the fact that it was a British show. I might have liked it just as much if it was a well-done US show, although in hindsight its Englishness added a whole other level of appeal.

I looked into the show because a friend recommended it. I was immediately hooked after ASiP, but mostly because it was brilliant storytelling, a charismatic male lead duo, and, well, there was the eye porn. I'm a very visual person, and I can revel in beautifully shot shows and movies even if the stories aren't that great. If it's beautiful and intelligent, I'm a goner.

I also loved the modern take on the classic Doyle stories, and I thought the spirit of his stories was wonderfully translated into modern London with a respect and love for the original lore that speaks to so many of us.

I also like shows that keep you guessing a little bit, that trust the viewer to be intelligent enough to figure it out themselves rather than shoving all the pieces into your face. Sherlock did that brilliantly as well, and keeps doing it.

I'm not watching the show for the "ship", or for the fact that it's British. I'm mostly watching it because it's just the right mixture of story vs. emotion in lovingly filmed pictures.

I never heard of 'Sherlock' before a friend of mine told me about it. I was interested in it because she really raved about this show and I said to myself: 'Okay, I'll give it a try - Martin Freeman plays in it!' I've seen the second Hobbit movie a few weeks before this and wanted to see more of Martin. I have heard of Benedict, too, but never spent time on researching him. Well, after I watched the first episode I was caught by it and after two episodes I was obsessed with this series :D. Not just because Ben and Martin are brilliant - okay, the whole show is brilliant -, also because there is something about this show other shows don't have. I think it's the mix of great British humour, a catching story in every episode and the harmony between the actors. And the idea of a modern Sherlock is really great, too.

Last edited by sherlocked4ever (February 11, 2014 9:33 pm)

SusiGo wrote:

 Benedict's voice. I only got hooked after I had seen the English original. 

 Me too! I liked it very much, but got Sherlocked only when I heard Benedict's voice.
 

I've enjoyed the BBC Masterpiece Mysteries for years. This is  another one of their smart, well-written, well-acted, well-produced programs -- which happens to have a a super-charismatic lead.

Oh, yeah, the accents -- everything seems better with the accents, even when you can't understand them.

I'm a native English speaker in the US and have watched lots of British imports on PBS Masterpiece, favorites being I, Claudius and Jewel in the Crown...  I was hooked after hearing the first few bars of the music.  I'd read a favorable newspaper review of Series 2, which mentioned Series 1 was available online for a short time before Series 2 was set to air.  I'd never heard of Sherlock before that but decided to give it a try.  Watching Series 1, after the music drew me in, what held my interest was the characterization of Sherlock by Ben and the developing relationship between him and John/Martin along with the witty dialog and asthestic visual sense of the show.