BBC Sherlock Fan Forum - Serving Sherlockians since February 2012 / What does everybody think of chibi/baby Sherlock in this series?

**Posted by saturnR** January 19, 2014 12:54 pm

It's the first time we see chibi/baby Sherlock. He appears in POV angles from both Sherlock & Mycroft.
Would you have preferred you never saw what Sherlock looked like when he was younger or are you keen to see more of the chibi/baby him.

On the same topic, I wonder if we will ever get to see a chibi/baby John on the show

**Posted by Ozma** January 19, 2014 12:56 pm

I liked it very much. It wouldn't have been right if they had showed him in the first or second seasons, but in S3 they had showed Sherlock's vulnerability and so seeing him as a child fit quite well.

And Steven's son is absolutely adorable. I can completely see Sherlock looking like that as a child, and I can see Mycroft still seeing him as that child.

**Posted by shezza** January 19, 2014 1:10 pm

Chibi?

**Posted by tobeornot221b** January 19, 2014 1:17 pm

I have absolutely no clue what a chibi might be.
Why would we be seeing John as a child?
The pictures of Sherlock as a child are all memories in Sherlock's mind palace, after all.
And they serve a certain purpose.
I don't think he knew John as a child. Therefore no pictures of him.

**Posted by dartmoordoggers** January 19, 2014 1:37 pm

Mycroft as a child would be hilarious.

**Posted by Schmiezi** January 19, 2014 1:45 pm

Oh, please let them not over-do this. No matter how cute Baby John must have been, please let them show us stuff like that only when it serves a real purpose on the show.

**Posted by Lily** January 19, 2014 1:51 pm

I liked the idea in general but I would have prefered another actor.
Sure, Louis is cute, but he didn't feel like Sherlock to me. Of course people change a lot when they grow up but I really wish I had recognised at least a tiny bit of present day Sherlock in mini Sherlock.

**Posted by saturnR** January 19, 2014 1:52 pm

shezza wrote:
Chibi?

Chibi is Japanese for little & is used in online fanfiction community to mean reimaginings of a character from childhood. Chibis usually feature in origin stories whose childhood is not really known from cannon & so the fanfiction writer is free to write chibi characters as they like.

Sorry I've been involved in online fanfiction for ten years, sometimes the terminology slips through.

**Posted by silverblaze** January 19, 2014 2:22 pm

I liked the actor and thought he looked enough like Sherlock. His hair is naturally black and curly so that's even better than Benedict.

**Posted by shezza** January 19, 2014 2:33 pm

Ah gotcha.

I liked baby Sherlock. Like I said in another thread, the way he was portrayed made me think of a kind of sickly, sheltered boy from a posh family (with his cardigan all buttoned up, the shirt, so neat and proper).

**Posted by saturnR** January 19, 2014 3:02 pm

shezza wrote:
the way he was portrayed made me think of a kind of sickly, sheltered boy from a posh family

I get the sheltered part but sickly?

Sherlock Memoirs: The Curse of Growing up Rich, lol.

Last edited by saturnR (January 19, 2014 3:03 pm)

**Posted by shezza** January 19, 2014 3:09 pm

Actually, I'm taking the sickly part from Baring-Gould's biography of Sherlock Holmes. It's not really canon, but he was a preminent Sherlockian scholar and Moftiss seem to be aknowledging his work (the "other brother", Sherlock's full name). Also, the fact that he wore his cardigan all buttoned up. I was a sick child myself and my parents always insisted that I wear multiple layers with a top cardigan buttoned up to my neck. I think that's why I made the association

**Posted by tonnaree** January 19, 2014 3:16 pm

Schmiezi wrote:
Oh, please let them not over-do this. No matter how cute Baby John must have been, please let them show us stuff like that only when it serves a real purpose on the show.

Seconded.

Same as I have always wanted John to have a fashback to a memory of the army. But only if it made sense in the story.

**Posted by Lily** January 19, 2014 3:20 pm

silverblaze wrote:
I liked the actor and thought he looked enough like Sherlock. His hair is naturally black and curly so that's even better than Benedict.

Black? I actually thought it was far too light and curly!
But things like that often change, I guess? I remember baby photos of my brother where he had dark blond hair and now it's almost black...

**Posted by badatenglish** January 19, 2014 3:55 pm

why didnt they use that kid that plays hugo in hugo and ender in endgame? he looks a lot like sherlock

**Posted by besleybean** January 19, 2014 3:57 pm

I think Louis was the perfect choice and he was brilliant.
Maybe in future thy'll use Josh as teenager/student Sherlock!

**Posted by Sherlock Holmes** January 19, 2014 4:31 pm

Sherlock is just about the most nepotistic show on the BBC so...

GATISS: "We need someone to play Mary?"
MOFFAT: "How about Martin's missus?"

GATISS: "We need someone to play Sherlock's parents?"
MOFFAT: "How about Benedict's parents?"

GATISS: "We need someone to play kid Sherlock?"
MOFFAT: "How about my kid? He has curly hair, perfect."

Haha, I'm not complaining, just taking the piss. I think he was cute and did a good job. I liked seeing kid Sherlock, especially in that context. Pretty heartbreaking stuff. Typical of Moffat to use his son to break the fandom.

**Posted by Harriet** January 19, 2014 6:43 pm

I always loved the idea of Gulliver McGrath as young Sherlock - alas, he's too old now!

http://rhymeswithcat.tumblr.com/post/10989192776/lookie-that-kids-a-young-sherlock

Last edited by Harriet (January 19, 2014 6:44 pm)

**Posted by silverblaze** January 19, 2014 6:55 pm

Moffat said he had quite some reservations to having his kid involved.

**Posted by besleybean** January 19, 2014 6:59 pm

I understand that. But I'm glad he did. It worked.