BBC Sherlock Fan Forum - Serving Sherlockians since February 2012 » Mark Gatiss' answer to an undiscerning critic

Pops · January 4, 2017 6:38 pm

In the Guardian, Mark answers to a critic about Bond-like Sherlock. His answer is awesome !!
Sorry if I didn't put this in the right section... Feel free to rectify !

https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2017/jan/04/to-an-undiscerning-critic-from-mark-gatiss

Last edited by Pops (January 4, 2017 6:39 pm)

ewige · January 4, 2017 6:49 pm

I've enjoyed Mark's response, but I still think that the criticism was fair.
I can't shake the feeling that this episode was too clever to be really enjoyable for a casual viewer.

Pops · January 4, 2017 6:54 pm

Yes, I agree, you must really be focused to watch Sherlock, and remember every little detail that happened before. Maybe the aforementionned critic is not an avid fan of the show and therefore found the episode too complex.

ewige · January 4, 2017 7:01 pm

Pops wrote:
Yes, I agree, you must really be focused to watch Sherlock, and remember every little detail that happened before. Maybe the aforementionned critic is not an avid fan of the show and therefore found the episode too complex.

I'm afraid the majority of viewers are no avid fans.
I really hope the rest of the season will be understandable for everybody: high ratings make it easier to make more of a show and, even more important, a logical plot means the showrunners know what they are doing. Too clever and long-winded explanations (or worse still, unexplained loose threads) mean the writers have written themselves into a corner.
On the other hand, every show that has an over reaching story arc is bound to get too complex for a casual at some point.

SusiGo · January 4, 2017 7:03 pm

I love his answer. They never planned to please millions, they had initially hoped for a small successful show. They are telling their story and I would be very disappointed if they made it any less clever.

Btw, this is an allusion to a very similar poetic rebuttal by ACD himself:

http://yearofjohnlock.tumblr.com/post/155399098204/ivyblossom-stephisanerd-oh-my-god-yall

Last edited by SusiGo (January 4, 2017 7:05 pm)

besleybean · January 4, 2017 7:05 pm

That is fantastic.
Mark is a genius.
I love him.

ewige · January 4, 2017 7:07 pm

SusiGo wrote:
I love his answer. They never planned to please millions, they had initially hoped for a small successful show. They are telling their story and I would be very disappointed if they made it any less clever.

My greatest fear is that Moftiss had to make do with less screen time (maybe no season 5?) than initially planned and had to cut corners because of that. I do want to hear their story. I just hope they had everything they needed to tell it their way.

tonnaree · January 4, 2017 7:08 pm

Mark Gatiss is an absolute treasure.

He also gives zero F**ks for your criticism.

besleybean · January 4, 2017 7:09 pm

Yes, I have no doubt editorial decisions were made...
But then they had to for series 1, when they didn't know if they were going to get a S 2!

Pops · January 4, 2017 7:16 pm

besleybean wrote:
That is fantastic.
Mark is a genius.
I love him.

Yes it is.
Yes he is.
I do too.

ewige · January 4, 2017 7:20 pm

tonnaree wrote:
Mark Gatiss is an absolute treasure.

He also gives zero F**ks for your criticism.

It's good to have a healthy self-esteem.

But let's not forget that basically none of us here thought it was a great episode after the first viewing.
It's hypocrisy to imply the rest of the world is stupid just because they didn't feel like watching it once or twice more to understand how clever it is.

SusiGo · January 4, 2017 7:20 pm

besleybean wrote:
Yes, I have no doubt editorial decisions were made...
But then they had to for series 1, when they didn't know if they were going to get a S 2!

Well, JK Rowling had planned to write seven books even before she got a contract for one. Thinking big.

besleybean · January 4, 2017 7:21 pm

Excuse me?
I loved the episode after the first viewing.

@Susi: Yes, but there is a difference between wriitng and filming.
Having siad that, they did say they hadn't a clue how to resolve the Pool stand off!

Last edited by besleybean (January 4, 2017 7:23 pm)

ewige · January 4, 2017 7:22 pm

besleybean wrote:
Excuse me?
I loved the episode after the first viewing.

Thank you. Can we have a poll?

SusiGo · January 4, 2017 7:30 pm

I am not saying they had planned every detail. But I think they had a general idea of where they were going with their story. Filling in details later is normal. This is what many writers do as well. You start with a framework consisting of the most important characters, narrative arcs, etc. and fill out the details while writing.

besleybean · January 4, 2017 7:34 pm

Of course.
And for TV, once you know the time slot, number of episodes and series etc.

Liberty · January 4, 2017 7:35 pm

I loved the episode after first viewing too. But I don't know if everybody did (the Daily Mail gave it one star!). And a lot of people would have been watching it with a hangover, so following the plot twists and jumping about can't have been easy! I wasn't wild about the Bond-style fight scene, but I thought the ending was fun, where they are attacking each other with the motion sensors controls - that really made laugh! I suppose there is the option to make a fight entertaining on screen in a way that might be difficult to do on the written page.

Anyway, fun reply!

tonnaree · January 4, 2017 7:43 pm

Side Note: I thought it was a great episode, even if I was not happy with every turn the story took. The first viewing though was just a wild ride and I was hanging on for dear life.
For me, repeated viewings have helped me clarify what I think is going on and how I feel about that.

besleybean · January 4, 2017 7:44 pm

Yes as ever you just need to keep watching again and again, as there is so much to concentrate on.

ewige · January 4, 2017 7:47 pm

I know that, but I'm also a fan.
I think critics write their reviews based on watching the episode once. I loved Mark's witty response too, but I still feel the criticism was justified.