Monthly Mini-Reviews: November - Sherlock Holmes Special

With the airing of Series 8, it's all been a bit Doctor Who crazy at Scribble Creatures over the last few months, and I feel I've been neglecting my other great fictional interest, Sherlock Holmes. November turned out to be a very Holmesian month with the release of Anthony Horowitz' Moriarty, a follow-up to his successful Holmes pastiche The House of Silk, and the opening of Sherlock Holmes: The Man Who Never Lived and Will Never Die, the new exhibition about the detective at the Museum of London. Pulling these facts together, I deduced that I should dedicate this month's Mini-Review post to the world of the Great Detective. Now read on - the post's afoot.

The Beekeeper's Apprentice

For many fans the premise of The Beekeeper's Apprentice and its many sequels is simply sacrilegious to the Holmes canon. It not only concerns Holmes' adventures after his retirement in Sussex - away from his synonymous London - but pairs him with someone other than Watson - Miss Mary Russell, a very modern (for the 1910s) young woman. Fans need not worry though as Laurie R King crafts a fantastic Holmesian pastiche, featuring a gripping mystery but with a strong heart in the growing friendship between Russell and Holmes. Russell herself is a very likeable character. She could come across as Mary Sue Russell as she worms her way into the circle of familiar characters - including a fleshed-out Mrs Hudson and her kindly 'Uncle John' - but she impresses us with her competence straight away. Like the best modern Sherlock Holmes stories, it is more invention than imitation but is peppered with pleasing references for Holmes fans who may be put off by the story's different take on Holmes. This fan, however, can't wait to read the next Mary Russell adventure.

Sherlock Holmes (2009)

Speaking of different takes on Sherlock Holmes, they don't come much more different than Guy Ritchie's blockbuster that reinvigorated the Great Detective's popularity, just a smidgen before Sherlock came along. When I first heard of this film I expected to dislike it but was pleasantly surprised. Its action-packed steampunk feel is infectious rather than annoying and, beneath the additions of fights and explosions that was made much of, the film sports a great 'Sherlock vs the supernatural' mystery that ends in a threat to the British Empire. And it finds time for cameos from Irene Adler and Moriarty himself. On the behind the scene documentary on the DVD, the cast and crew are eager to emphasise that their film is surprisingly close to Conan Doyle's originals. It's not but in this case that's no bad thing. Sadly I was less taken with the sequel but if they ever do a third film I hope it can reach the heights of this one.

The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes 

As I had claimed November as Sherlock Holmes month, I couldn't resist a rewatch of my favourite Sherlock Holmes film. Generally forgotten in the filmography of revered director Billy Wilder, Private Life is an under-appreciated gem of a film, at times hilarious, thrilling and touching. Many criticise it for not delivering on its premise of exploring, well, you've read the title but I would say the film is clever enough to give a deeper look at the man beneath the logical mind while still providing a fun adventure about the Loch Ness Monster. The film was famously slashed by half of its original three hour running time before its release, but I really don't know how that extra time would have improved on the film as it is. I could go on but some idiot made this a post of mini-reviews. Instead, I'll let Past Me tell you some more about it here.

The Casebook of Sherlock Holmes

By the time he wrote his last Sherlock Holmes stories - or 'police romances' as he called them - in the 1920s, Conan Doyle was long past caring for his most famous creation but, thankfully, that does not show when reading The Casebook of Sherlock Holmes. Doyle clearly tried to spice things up for himself as some of these stories take unusual forms, in terms of narration - two stories are written from Holmes' perspective rather than Watson's and one is from an omniscient third person point of view - as well as narrative - one story, 'The Creeping Man', borders on science fiction. The other collections of the Canon are generally regarded more highly than this one but these twelve tales of deduction are still very enjoyable and essential for any reader of Sherlock Holmes. Despite his reluctance, we can be thankful that Conan Doyle continued to write for Sherlock Holmes all his life, giving us sixty fantastic stories that form the bedrock of an entire genre.

Pick of the Month: As I have only revisited the others on this post this month, the coveted prize has to go to The Beekeeper's Apprentice for introducing me to a new book series I must get my hands on. The choice was really quite elementary.

Monthly Scribbles: A Study in Danny Pink And Other Stories

Well, that's another month gone by. As the shortest month of the year, February we hardly knew you. But before it sinks into the murky backwaters of our memories to be replaced by the bouncing baby March (yes, I know it's nearly a week old, sssh!), let's take a look at the things that shook the world this past month. And for 'shook the world' read 'relevant to me.'

New Doctor Who companion unveiled

In the Whoniverse, February brought the news that the Twelfth Doctor and Clara will be joined in Series Eight of the show by Danny Pink, played by Samuel Anderson. Danny (whose name is strangely reminiscent of Marc Warren's Hustle character, Danny Blue) will be a fellow teacher at Coal Hill School alongside Clara who was seen working at the school, which first appeared in Doctor Who's pilot episode 'An Unearthly Child', in November's The Day of the Doctor. While it waits to be seen what sort of character Danny will be - another love interest in the vein of past male companions Mickey and Rory? - it's a clever move by Moffat to mirror the Doctor's original two companions, Ian and Barbara, who both worked at Coal Hill. All we need now is the Doctor's granddaughter to join them in the TARDIS and the original TARDIS team will be recreated. Now if only a close relation of the Doctor's was still around to come back in the show, then we'd have a real 'generated anomaly'...

Writing Across the Web

For those loyal Scribble fans who eagerly await new material from this site (hello Mum), I apologise for the sparse number of posts over the last month but I've had my fingers in so many pies I didn't have any free to write blog posts with.
February saw me undertake numerous online endeavours including three articles for Whatculture. Fancy reading about Sherlock Holmes' ten weirdest adaptations? Or if you've got a hankering for a headache, why not spend some timey-wimey reading over the greatest time-travel orientated episodes of Doctor Who, either written by Steven Moffat or from the other talented timey-wimey writers to grace the show. If you are in the mood for some fiction, a flash fiction of mine, concerning the social media addiction of a super-villain, can be read over on The Flashnificents. Oh, and I almost forgot, I've also started writing for Hypable, and you can read a couple of news pieces I wrote up for them here. Phew.

Mini-Reviews

Shada

Based on the famed (at least in Doctor Who circles) untelevised story, modern Who scribe Gareth Roberts (whose episodes include 'The Lodger' and 'The Shakespeare Code') takes the baton from Douglas Adams in this fun romp - and I mean that in the best possible way - that merges the Adamsian Who of the late seventies with modern sensibilities.
Shada sees the Fourth Doctor and Romana in Cambridge to visit the Doctor's absent-minded old friend, Professor Chronotis. However, with the ruthless alien Skagra also in the area, it becomes a race to stop the most dangerous book in the universe from ever being read...
The book (that is the novel, not the dangerous universe-destroying one) is a delight, with Roberts treading exactly the right line between affectionate nods to Adams' style yet understanding not to attempt to write like him. While some of it may be familiar if you're a fan of Adams' work (after the TV story was abandoned, Adams used many plot details in his Dirk Gently novel), Shada is a treat for any Who fan or anyone who enjoys humorous science fiction.

Jonathan Creek: 'The Letters of Septimus Noone'

Last Friday night, the first full series in ten years of the Alan Davies-starring detective series, Jonathan Creek, began. I was once quite the fan of the show, with its impossible crimes and dedication to Holmesian logic. However, since Sherlock I'm afraid it's rather been knocked from the top spot of 'Cleverest Detective Show on TV.' Nevertheless, I was hopeful that the show could still deliver.
Sadly, this first episode left me a bit underwhelmed. An unorthodox 'mystery' (I.e. as an audience, we are shown the stages of the murder rather than being asked to work them out) meant that there was little of the customary guessing-game that one likes to play with shows like this. As well as narratively, the set-up of the show has changed as instead of being an eccentric bachelor in his wind mill, Jonathan is now retired from sleuthing and living in a country house - with a wife! As Polly, Sarah Alexander is a solid successor to Sheridan Smith's sidekick and, although it seems a tad too cosy, could make for an interesting development across the series. On the basis of this episode, while Jonathan is still a competent show and deserves this new series, it is not without its creaks.

Sherlock Holmes and the Other Villains

If you are a fan of Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss' smash hit and bloody wonderful updated Holmes series, Sherlock, you may know by now that the identity of the show's next nemesis has been revealed. Charles Augustus Magnussen will be played by Lars Mikkelsen, the Danish star of such hit shows as The Killing and brother of fellow veteran villain Mads Mikkelsen who starred opposite Daniel Craig in bond film 'Casino Royale' and is the title character in the Hannibal series.  

Following on from the brilliant Moriarty who met his apparent demise in the series two finale (he shot himself in the head but Sherlock survived a close encounter with a pavement so who knows!), there's much pressure on Mikkelsen and the production team to create a villain as effective and memorable as Andrew Scott's dangerous beegee-loving lunatic but let's hope Moffat and Gatiss' Midas touch continues.They are certainly sticking to their golden rule, to remain close to Conan Doyle's originals, as Mikkelsen will presumably be playing a modern version of Charles Augustus Milverton, the Master Blackmailer, who was such a formidable foe for the Great Detective that the one story he appears in was named after him. 

The choice to take another villain from the canon rather than create a totally new one shows that although Holmes' most famous adversary has bit the dust, Sherlock has still got a lot of mileage left in terms of who Baker Street's Finest can be pitted against. Here's a list of some Conan Doyle creations who could be great inspirations for further villains in the series - and may well be already set to appear. 

Dr Grimseby Roylott

Roylott is the devious doctor from 'The Adventure of the Speckled Band', one of Conan Doyle's barmiest and best short stories. Possessing a menagerie of exotic animals including a cheetah and a baboon, Roylott aims to get his hands on his stepdaughter's fortune by attempting to murder them with a deadly swamp adder snake - until Sherlock Holmes gets on the case! Moffat has stated that 'Speckled Band' is his favourite Holmes adventure and would apparently love to adapt it sometime. In that case, it seems highly plausible that sometime in the future we may see a modern version of Roylott on screen. An updated take on the story appears on John Watson's blog titled 'The Speckled Blonde', after a joke made on screen in 'A Scandal in Belgravia.' Who knows, they could adapt the adaptation...

Von Bork

As the story that this no-gooder appears in, 'His Last Bow' - Sherlock Holmes' finale case before he retires - is to be updated as series three's finale, 'His Last Vow', it is very possible we could see the scheming German agent brought to life. Sherlock's valedictory case (before he goes off to keep bees on the Sussex Downs, trivia fans) sees Holmes turn spy to thwart Von Bork from feeding military information to his home country on the eve of World War One. As it has now been revealed that Magnussen is the big cheese this series, he will likely be the star of the series finale but Von Bork could still make an appearance in a secondary role. Moffat, who is writing the episode, would certainly have fun revamping Von Bork's story, quite particular to its time period, to the 21st century. 

Colonel Sebastian Moran

Colonel Moran must be a dead cert to appear in Sherlock this year, and a fine villain he shall be. The antagonist of 'The Empty House' (to be updated as 'The Empty Hearse' this series by Mark Gatiss'), Moran is out for revenge on the recently-resurrected Holmes (having survived his fight with Moriarty atop the Reichenbach Falls). The reason - he's Moriarty's right hand man and the second most dangerous man in London after the pernicious professor. Moran's such a well-known figure from the canon to Holmes fans, Moffat and Gatiss surely couldn't help themselves but slot him into the series. 

The Giant Rat of Sumatra

Yes, a rat can't technically be a villain but going by the concept alone I thinks it is safe to say that the enigmatic rodent would stray into antagonistic territory. The centre of the Holmes canon's most well-known 'lost' story (unchronicled adventures of Holmes and Watson's that Conan Doyle only hinted at), a great deal of people would love to see the Rat finally realised on the small screen. Plus, many have already got their hopes up thanks to the clues to this year's episodes that were released last year; 'Rat. Wedding. Bow.' The Giant Rat and whatever adventure that revolves around it for which, 'the world is yet to be prepared' for would make an excellent and unexpected addition to Sherlock series three. Oh, please Mr Moffat, Mr Gatiss, I think the world is more than prepared now. Maybe a shock twist will be that Magnussen will turn into a giant rat. You heard it here first, folks.

Sherlock Holmes Pastiches You Have to Read

As a break from the Doctor Who reviews that have been consuming my blog this month like a great big soul-eating sun (sorry, that'll be the last Who reference, this post, I promise), I thought you might all like a bit of Holmes. Following on from my Sherlock Holmes Stories You Have to Read post I wrote last year, here is a sequel of sorts - a list of a few of the best Sherlock Holmes mysteries based on the canon of Arthur Conan Doyle and the wonderful characters he created. Although it is up to the author what bits of the canon he or she wishes to keep or change in their piece, I think many miss the core of the original stories and so become something too different or, alternatively, some are just poor copies of Conan Doyle's stories. However, those below, I think, get a good balance between the new and the old to make proper, good Sherlock Holmes stories. Now, I hope you all have your magnifying glasses ready as we delve into the thick fog of Holmes pastiches...

                                     Young Sherlock Holmes

Written by: Andrew Lang
What's it about: This series of young adult novels follows a teenage Sherlock Holmes as he uncovers impossible mysteries that take him around the world and to the heart of dark conspiracies. Very much inspired by Charlie Higson's Young Bond novels, these books are fun, not-too-demanding adventure stories that aim to shed some light on how Sherlock became the enigmatic, difficult individual we are all familiar with. There's no Dr Watson, Baker Street and very little London, but Sherlock is joined on his globe-trotting cases by his tutor in deduction Amycus Crowe and his daughter, Virginia (who Sherlock has feelings for), his violin teacher Rufus Stone and his roguish vagabond friend, Matty. The series is also great for villains with each one featuring a Bond-like supervillain with a madcap ambitious scheme and an odd physical attribute e.g the second novel's Duke Baltazar keeps leeches on his face due to a blood disorder. You can learn more about the series here.
If you enjoyed this: Author Andrew Lang has also written other Holmes pastiches including a Doctor Who novel, All-Consuming Fire, in which the Time Lord and the Great Detective finally meet! Yes, I know, I lied about that last Doctor Who reference thing.

                                                      A Study in Emerald


Written by: Neil Gaiman
What's it about: In this award-winning short story, Gaiman is not only dipping his toe into Sherlock Holmes but is also pastiching HP Lovecraft as the tale sees Baker Street's finest investigating a murder of a member of the royal family - who, in this parallel universe, are the big, green monsters, the Great Old Ones from Lovecraft's Cthulhu mythos. The melding of these two very different fictional worlds works well at the author's skilled hand as Gaiman creates something that feels quite unique. There's also fun to be had with the adverts inserted into the story that hint at other famous literary figures being in this world too (anyone fancy some Victor's Vitae that wakes up dead limbs?). Have a read of the story here and then maybe play the board game!
If you enjoyed this: Neil Gaiman has also written a more traditional Holmes mystery, 'the Case of Death and Honey' which tries to answer just why Holmes decides to retire and become a beekeeper, as Dr Watson informs us in one of Conan Doyle's stories.


                                  Moriarty: The Hound of the D'urbervilles


Written by: Kim Newman
What's it about: This collection of short stories acts as an antithesis to Conan Doyle's works and the majority of Holmes pastiches as it follows the misadventures of  Professor Moriarty and his right-hand man, Colonel Moran, as they build their criminal empire. Each story is a parody of a Conan Doyle original e.g. 'A Shambles in Belgravia' (sounds familiar, eh? These were written before Sherlock) sees Irene Adler seek the help of Moriarty while the rousing finale 'The Problem of the Final Adventure' shows the iconic meeting at the Reichenbach Falls from the other side. Apart from spoofing the common elements of Holmes stories, Newman also enjoys crossovers with other fictional worlds such as in the title story which, as you might have guessed, welds the supernatural mystery of Hound of the Baskervilles with Thomas Hardy's classic novel. I imagine that was one of those times when the title came first.
If you enjoyed this: Kim Newman has also written a series of short stories based on the Diogenes Club, Mycroft Holmes' favourite place from the canon, as a secret organisation that deals with weird and unnatural events.

                                    The House of Silk

Written By: Anthony Horowitz
What's it about: Definitely the closest in style to Conan Doyle on this list is Horowitz' mystery novel, which, thanks to support from the Conan Doyle estate, was billed as the first new Sherlock Holmes novel in nearly a hundred years. It sees an elderly Dr Watson give us one last tale involving his dear friend that had been 'too shocking to reveal until now' - a case involving an impossible murder, ghosts from the past and secret societies. Yes, all the usual Holmes trappings are in check. There are appearances from Mrs Hudson, Lestrade, the Baker Street Irregulars and, without giving anything away, there might be a cameo by a certain criminal mastermind. Thanks to this and Horowitz' track record as a crime fiction writer, the novel feels wonderfully familiar but also gives us a winding, puzzlebox mystery that you have to stay on your toes to keep up with.
If you enjoyed this: At the moment this is Anthony Horowitz' only foray into the Holmes world however there is talk of him doing a follow-up novel. In the mean time, if all this talk of Holmes pastiche has got you in the mood, you can read my own efforts at creating an authentic Conan Doyle mystery - with the beginnings of the adventures of The Melting Man and The Whistling Room being here on the blog. I'd love to hear what you thought of them.

Story time! #1

Settled everyone? Good, 'cos it's story time! Wheee! Here's a short story I entered into a crime writing competition recently. It's only 750 words as the competition had a really concise word limit for under 18s. Anyway, I'm quite pleased with it. It's all my own idea with I like to think the feel of a Sherlock Holmes adventure:

                                        The Waxwork Woman

Jenny Knight settled down in a large armchair to listen to Alexander Wolf – her best friend, the brilliant young detective, relate the mystery of the Waxwork Woman. She was joined by the portly figure of Detective Inspector Wells, the inhabitant of the room’s other armchair and Wolf’s closest ally in the Police, his two constables, perching awkwardly on wooden stools, and Mr Finch, the owner of the office they were in and of the hotel at the centre of this mystery. They were all watching silently as Wolf began his tale.

“We all know the details of the case,” Wolf began, in his usual mesmeric manner. “The famous actress, Emerald Stone, in England to film her latest movie, Waxwork, decides to stay at this very hotel. Last night, after filming, Emerald returns to her room, her bodyguard waiting outside, ready to check on her if needed. During the night, he hears something but he checks and she’s sleeping soundly. However, when he went to wake her in the morning, he got the shock of his life when he saw that the woman in bed was not his employer but a near-identical waxwork.

 “Now, through our enquiries, Jenny and I learnt that an old partner of Emerald’s was working on the film back-stage.” Wolf pulled a photo of a long-faced man in his thirties from his jacket.

“So you think it was the ex? Oh come on, that’s as old as ‘the butler did it!” Wells exasperated.

 Wolf continued nonchalantly. “After hearing this, Jenny and I investigated Lee’s locker and found some plasticine and this.” He showed them a small scrap of red fabric, his eyes gleaming at it as if it was a piece of invaluable treasure. “This was all I needed to close the case.” His audience stared at him incredulously.

“Yes, this.” Wolf answered, reading their thoughts. “Mr Finch, did anyone join your staff at around the same time that Emerald Stone arrived?”

Mr Finch furrowed his brow with thought. “Yes!”

The manager was about to continue when a bellboy walked past the open door. In unison, Wolf and the others noticed the rip on his red sleeve that was roughly the same size as the scrap Wolf was holding in his hand. Without saying a word, the group ran after the bellboy, chasing the man through dozens of rooms - with Mr Finch apologising to his guests - until he was cornered against a brick wall.

 “You’re nicked, son!” Wolf spat in an awful cockney accent. “What? I can’t be the only person who’s always wanted to say that.”

                                                        *

A little later, Alex and his party had made their way back to Finch’s office with their prisoner where Alex was being blasted with questions.

 “Ssh, please. Okay, so we have two questions to answer; how and why our friend here killed Emerald Stone.

“My guess would be he found out where she was staying so found a job here to watch her and get to know her routine. He devised a plan to work his way through the ventilation shafts to her room, kill her stone dead (see what I did there?) then take the body back through the vents and out the hotel. The waxwork, taken from the film set, was to fool the bodyguard into thinking Emerald was fine until he could look at her in the morning light, giving bellboy here time to depose of the body overnight.”

Wells was still bewildered. “But why did he do it?”

“You said it yourself, Inspector. For revenge.”

Wells’ eyes widened as the answer clicked in his mind. “He’s the ex?”

“But this boy looks completely different from that photo!” Finch spluttered.

“He does now. Remember what we found in his locker, Jenny?”

Jenny gasped. “The plasticine! It was prosthetics!”

“Exactly.” Alex reached for the man’s bulbous nose which came away with one sharp tug revealing a leaner version. Alex did the same to the man’s rounded cheeks which peeled off to fully unveil the man Alex had shown them in the photo.

Alex peered down at the dishevelled figure. “Top marks for the murder, my friend, but ‘the man in a mask’ disguise is a bit ‘Scooby Doo’.”

“I don’t regret what I did,” he screamed with the voice of a madman. “And I –“

“- Would have got away with it if it wasn’t for us meddling kids?” Wolf suggested as the murderer was taken away.

Enjoy it? If you did you might be interested to know that I hope to put more stories with the same characters on here in the weeks to come. Watch this space!

P.s. It's now the 20th June and I've just come back from the competition prize-winning thing. I came joint 4th! If you're an island resident you may see me in the County Press soon.