Elementary, my dear

I have a confession to make, dear reader. We're almost at the end of February, and I still have not finished a book this month. I blame it on my current favorite TV series from CBS: Elementary. It's now on its 17th episode, and I am really hoping that the series gets its 2nd season, or 3rd. To say that I'm addicted to Elementary would be an understatement.

And still I have another confession to make: I haven't read the short stories of Arthur Conan Doyle featuring the great and infallible detective Sherlock Holmes and his very grounded companion Dr Watson. I do recall a story we read in high school involving a snake as the culprit. Nevertheless, it's a good thing that I do have one of Doyle's books, which is The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. I guess reading the bloody thing is now in order, eh?

Anyway, back to the TV series. One of the aspects that I enjoy about it is the characters. Jonny Lee Miller as Sherlock is perfect, with his British accent, his unpredictable nature, and his totally disarming demeanor. In the TV series, Sherlock lives in New York, has a rich father somewhere who supports him, and is on his road to recovery from being a heroin addict. He's a consultant for the NYPD, with almost a 100% success rate.

Lucy Liu as Dr Watson is very groundbreaking. We don't get the usual "maneater" vibe from Ms Liu in Elementary. In fact, like the short stories, her character provides the much needed contrast to Sherlock's excess. She's the human touch to Sherlock's methodical and sometimes insensitive process. Dr Watson's character in the TV series is quite intriguing. All we know that she was a former top surgeon who's now taken on the role of a sober companion to recovering drug addicts. The episodes somehow peel the layers of Watson's character slowly, as if taunting the viewer to keep on watching week after week after week.

There's even a Moriarty, the great nemesis of Sherlock. But in the TV series, he isn't revealed yet. There's one episode wherein the duo appears to have caught a murderer whom Sherlock assumed to be the mysterious M that he has long been searching for. It turns out though that the man was simply hired by Moriarty.

If you like CSI, detective shows, and police procedurals, you just might be addicted to Elementary as well. I know that there's another TV series in the UK inspired by Doyle's works, but Cumberbatch rather weird. Miller and Liu are the detective duo for me. I love their banter, which thankfully doesn't go overboard.

Yesterday, I went to the bookstore and was quite happy to see that Doyle's books are as popular as ever. People (well, except me) are still reading the adventures of Sherlock and Watson even though the stories are more than 100 years old. And I also saw some books which have been inspired by the original stories. Below are just 2 of these books. The novel by Moore, The Sherlockian, has received very positive reviews.

So maybe this is the year when I finally get to read Doyle. I dread the time when the final episode of season 1 of Elementary airs and I'm having withdrawal symptoms waiting for season 2.