The sight of Holmes bruised and dressed in prison garb is actually only fleeting here, but has been used extensively in marketing, clearly suggesting this is how Prime Video wants to sell the series.
So, Holmes as a bruiser, is that what we're going for here? Well, not exactly. In truth, having now seen all eight episodes of Young Sherlock, I'm still not quite sure what version of the detective this is, so muddled is the journey it takes both us on.
Is that a problem? Yes, undoubtedly. The series is messy, disjointed and will be an absolute turn-off for die-hard Arthur Conan Doyle fans. However, for everyone else there is another point that has to be made - Guy Ritchie knows how to make damn addictive entertainment.
There, he meets James Moriarty, a student attending the university on a top scholarship, and the two become fast friends due to their matched intellect. Of course, we know how that story goes - the duo will one day be arch-enemies, but don't expect a speed-run up to that point.
However, that's just the beginning of things, as the case leads both he and James into a world of murder and conspiracy, eventually bringing him all the way home to reconnect with his mother, Cordelia, who has been committed to an asylum for years, and his father, Silas.
It follows a similar formula, in that it starts out with a relatively simple case, which then balloons to the point that Sherlock is travelling the globe on the trail of a wider conspiracy, with the audience left wondering exactly why he's doing so or quite how he got there.
Episodes 1 to 3 feel like a totally different story than the middle chapters, and particularly removed from the final few. And this isn't just an issue of location, but also one of tone and characterisation.
Sure, he does come across some personal trials which could explain his rapidly changing demeanour, but the cheeky chappy of the earlier episodes does seem to completely vanish come to midpoint of the series.
This isn't particularly the fault of Hero Fiennes Tiffin, it's really in the script. Fiennes Tiffin is fine in the role. It would be stretch to say he excels, or will be a particularly memorable take on the character in years to come, but he is watchable, and doesn't detract from everything else that's going on.
His relationship with Dónal Finn's Moriarty is probably the most interesting element of the series, with the 'friends to foes' angle playing out with surprising subtlety, and the end result yet to be realised. This is aided supremely by Finn's impressive turn, with a twinkle in his eye which sells the character's mischief and inner darkness, even as he is outwardly all justice and light.
Oh, and Colin Firth pops up too. In all honesty, the show is probably starrier than it deserves to be.
Elements of the story could be transposed into any other action/adventure series, and there is little display of Holmes's deduction skills in full force.
Of course, you could argue that this is because the character is in his early days, and is yet to hone his craft. Instead, I would argue that, beyond a couple of displays of Holmes's mind palace in action, the series has much more interest in Holmes as a Ritchie style gentleman action hero than it does with him as a deductive genius - even if that does make it all the more generic.
No matter the strength of the material he's working with - from the highs of The Gentlemen to the lows of Fountain of Youth - Ritchie usually manages to maintain a level of entertainment quality which escapes many directors and creatives, perhaps because he's so willing to shake things up and play fast and loose with source material.
The action is well-staged and inventive, the plot is largely propulsive, the character interactions are charming and the locations are stunning.
Whether we do get to see more adventures, who knows. If audiences flock to the series like they did to watch the trailer, then it certainly seems likely.
As it is, we've got a fun, messy, throwaway adventure series, with nominal ties to Sherlock Holmes but little of the substance. It's got much closer ties to Ritchie's back catalogue than to Conan Doyles - and your willingness to go along with that will no doubt determine your enjoyment.
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