The US has a mixed record of translating British TV shows into successful American productions. Steven Carrel‘s portrayal of Ricky Gervais‘ David Brent has been an award-wining, critically acclaimed triumph, while star spangled versions of Shameless and Queer as Folk, not to mention the classic Stepford and Son, have all been met with favourable reviews. Conversely, revamped productions of Skins, Life on Mars and Teachers failed to replicate the successes of their British counterparts.
Always on the lookout for possible pilots, producers stateside have snapped up another British programme and given it an American makeover. Encouraged by the popularity of the BBC’s modern reworking of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle‘s Sherlock Holmes detective tales, CBS have come up with a brand new iteration of their own, this time placing the legendary sleuth in New York.
Elementary, the Big Apple re-imagining of the pipe smoking investigator, stars Dark Shadows actor, Johnny Lee Miller, as the titular hero, flanked by Lucy Liu, who plays a much sexier Watson; Joan Watson, that is.
Critical of the upcoming CBS show, Steven Moffat, creator of the BBC’s Sherlock, stated: ”It isn’t a version of our show. They’ve just decided to go off and do one of their own, having been turned down by us to do an adaptation of our version. So how do you think I feel about it? Annoyed is in there.”
Featuring a cast that includes Kristen Bush, Aidan Quinn and Kelly Sutherland, we’ll just have to wait and see if Liu and co live up to the standards set by the UK series’ Martin Freeman and Benedict Cumberbatch.
Take a look at the trailer to judge for yourself.
The Watson character in “Elementary” is deplorable, not directly because
Watson is made a woman, but because a whole range of sexist stereotypes are
already evident in the CBS trailer, regardless of whether a romantic
relationship evolves.
The original male Watson was military in bearing, a respected doctor, an excellent shot, very brave and straightforward in character, and attached to Holmes out of fully reciprocated respect and friendship. Watson as a female could have been all those things. But, no, she has not served her country in the military, has failed even to keep her license as a doctor, squeals childishly and turns away when presented with a murder victim, and is attached to Holmes because she is hired to do so, allowing him to demean her in front of his colleagues.
This sexism is so grotesque and unnecessary that it cries out for attention from reviewers.