BBC Sherlock Fan Forum - Serving Sherlockians since February 2012 / The Guardian: Doctor Who and Sherlock fan influences on the TV show

**Posted by stoertebeker** January 4, 2014 12:13 pm

I was unsure where to put this, because it's not really a review of TEH, but still an interessting article:

http://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/tvandradioblog/2014/jan/03/sherlock-doctor-who-fans-influencing-tv

**Posted by silverblaze** January 4, 2014 2:00 pm

Well I read it, and I read pages of comments. Quite a bit of hatred and completely contradictionary opinions. I mean, seriously, why do people get so worked up about shows they don't like? It's very simple: don't watch it. If I were to advise the writers on this I'd say just watch the viewing trends, those opinions are really not informative at all.

**Posted by stoertebeker** January 4, 2014 3:20 pm

I haven't read the comments (didn't noticed there were any ). But I think the article itself mentioned a valid point. Concentrating on the wishes of the fans and providing to many insider-jokes can scare casual viewers away. I don't see this danger with Doctor Who or Sherlock yet, but it's still a double-edged sword.

**Posted by dartmoordoggers** January 4, 2014 3:55 pm

Sherlock has played with the forth wall from the beginning. Not only to explore that avenue artistically but also I suspect to tap into the new mediums. Our new way of viewing and engaging with series such as Sherlock is no longer confined to television..
I think in this instance they could push the boundaries even further because the fans engaging outside of the programme were not limited to a few blogs; it went international not only through blogs, twitter, etc. but throughout the international press and onto primetime tv.
In the real world fans gather to get a glimpse of Benedict in Gower Street. In Sherlocks world it would not be unusual for fans to gather outside of 221B Baker Street to get a glimpse of Sherlock. In fact it would be odd if people didnt regularly recognise Sherlock Holmes on the street after solving so many prominent cases.

**Posted by Marva** January 4, 2014 4:05 pm

silverblaze wrote:
Well I read it, and I read pages of comments. Quite a bit of hatred and completely contradictionary opinions. I mean, seriously, why do people get so worked up about shows they don't like? It's very simple: don't watch it. If I were to advise the writers on this I'd say just watch the viewing trends, those opinions are really not informative at all.

when I click on "jump to the comments" there are none shown?! What am I doing wrong?

**Posted by silverblaze** January 4, 2014 4:21 pm

Dunno, I just scrolled down. Honestly, don't waste your time on the comments, they left a bad taste in my mouth. Haters gonna hate.

**Posted by Marva** January 4, 2014 4:23 pm

And what do they hate? Sherlock in general or something THE related?

**Posted by silverblaze** January 4, 2014 7:44 pm

DW mostly, they're quite divided about Sherlock actually. It's just that I spent way too much time on those comments and got a bit grumpy. Seriously, who spends time hating on a show you don't have to watch, and then have an opinion on how it should be written? Mmm, getting grumpy again, I'm gonna go back to swooning over Sherlock instead.

**Posted by jenosborn** January 4, 2014 9:00 pm

dartmoordoggers wrote:
Sherlock has played with the forth wall from the beginning. Not only to explore that avenue artistically but also I suspect to tap into the new mediums. Our new way of viewing and engaging with series such as Sherlock is no longer confined to television..
....

Such a good point, when you think about it. We 'engage'
with a TV series differently than we would have 10 years ago.
We just do. Even ones we are not obsessed with. We watch/re-watch
on our own schedules, and use other resources at our disposal
to explore further as we want to. It's no longer just uber-fans
who do this.

Agree that any 'modernisation' of the Sherlock stories (or any cinematic
interpretation) could be considered a sort of fan fiction, and
true, the series can't 'afford to become entirely fan fiction itself'.
This first episode, with all its nods and winks, and what could be
interpreted as self-indulgence, was intended primarily for followers
of the series, not really to hook newcomers. (Although I know
of at least one newcomer who was hooked.)

That said, will be nice to see how the tone plays out in the next two episodes.

**Posted by silverblaze** January 6, 2014 10:09 am

I think the writer's point could be valid and I think it comes from honest concern about shows that he likes, I just don't think it really applies to Sherlock. If the references would be impossible to understand if you didn't follow the discussion, then he'd have a point, but everything fits into the narrative. And there weren't so many references anyway, just the two fake theories, one is a killer hook, the other a funny intermezzo, both of them would work perfectly fine for people who had only seen Reichenbach and wanted to know the conclusion.

I think the main reasons why people might not have liked the episode is unrelated to fan references. The episode is the denouement of series 2 and the introduction of series 3, told in Mark's signature 9 acts. However, people expect a film; a self-contained narrative with a strong central conflict told in three acts. If that's what you expect, then you might get disappointed and blame it on the fans. I honestly believe that had the same story been told in three, with more attention to the baddie, than no one was complaining right now. It's just a difference in expectations, and the difference between a film and a series.