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September 6, 2012

Fall TV Preview: Elementary

Lucy Liu and Jonny Lee Miller in Elementary, a new Sherlock Holmes drama from CBS.
Lucy Liu and Jonny Lee Miller in Elementary, a new Sherlock Holmes drama from CBS.

(Folks, the marathon of madness that is the Toronto Film Festival begins today, so besides a few quick “OMG! Guess who I just saw?!?” posts, I’ll be taking a little break from gossip blogging for the next week or so. Between my day job, ten film premieres and the parties, I’m not exactly going to have time to keep up with the Kardashians, if you know what I mean. I’ll be writing all about  my TIFF adventures at MSN.ca, so please be sure to check that out throughout the week.

In the meantime, my BFF Nicole and I recently sat down with a pile of screeners and caught up on the new TV shows debuting this fall. We then had IM conversations about the five buzziest ones (’cause that’s how we roll). Over the next week, I’ll be posting our thoughts. First up is Elementary!)

Premieres: Thursday, Sept. 27, 10 p.m. on CBS and Global

Up Against: Scandal on ABC

Premise: In this latest iteration of Sherlock Holmes, Johnny Lee Miller plays the quirky genius as a drug addict. His father hires a recently retired doctor named Watson (Liu) to be his “sober companion” (which is a nice way to say “humourless babysitter”). He occasionally helps out the NYPD, and quickly drags Watson into his investigations.

Our take:

Jen: Ok, the drama that’s getting the most buzz is Elementary. I have to say, I don’t love procedurals so I’m probably not the best judge of this one. And this one was extra procedural-y. It feels like it will be very ‘case of the week’ centered.

Nicole: I really, really enjoyed the British Sherlock Holmes, so on the heels of that one, this feels like Sherlock Lite.

Jen: I haven’t seen the UK version, but I hear it’s brilliant.

Nicole: The UK one is great, to the point where I had an argument with my PVR because I thought it was keeping episodes from me (stupid 3-episode series). That said, I LOVE Lucy Liu in this!

Jen: Really? I was unimpressed. I did, however, really like Johnny Lee Miller.

Nicole: I was more into Lucy, less into Johnny.

Jen: Wow. I’m the opposite.

Nicole: However, I am deeply committed to procedurals and this will fit right in.

Jen: It felt too much like House with crime solving. A weird, antisocial guy who is a secret genius.

Nicole: Well, that’s why this feels relatively fresh to me. I never got into House. But it’s good timing though for those people who need to fill a hole in their TV schedule with a cranky man.

Jen: I was very, very distracted by Lucy’s styling. I spent most of the hour yelling, “WHAT is she wearing?!”

Nicole: I’m always distracted by Lucy’s styling. Cashmere Mafia? What?

Jen: She is staying true to her poor style roots.

Nicole: She doesn’t do casual very well though. I like her more polished. But I think I could add her job to my list of backup professions. Her character is basically just a bossy minder.

Jen: Also, was there supposed to be romantic tension? ‘Cause I didn’t see any.

Nicole: None. Zero. I hope they keep it that way. I’d rather see her have a boyfriend and Sherlock hate him.

Jen: You can’t make me watch a show about crimes of the week without a little bit of sexual tension! Even the Bones couple eventually ended up, um, boning.

Nicole: Well, at least this Sherlock is more like the UK version than the Robert Downey Jr. version.

Jen: Amen!