Sherlock Holmes in the 22nd Century

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The revived Sherlock Holmes stands in the abundant shadows of the 22nd Century.
The revived Sherlock Holmes stands in the abundant shadows of the 22nd Century.
Common rating
United States TV-Y7
(sometimes TV-Y)

Sherlock Holmes in the 22nd Century is a 26-episode animated television series placing Sherlock Holmes in a science fiction setting. Many episodes are direct rewrites of the original stories by Arthur Conan Doyle—such as "The Empty House", "The Speckled Band", "The Five Orange Pips", "The Red-Headed League", and "The Engineer's Thumb" — while others are drastically different from the stories they're supposed to be based on. The series itself seems to be a sci–fi pastiche.[citation needed]

Contents

[edit] Overview

Sandy Ross, a Scottish Television executive, came up with the concept while skiing in Aspen. The show was a 1999 co–production by DiC (then an affiliate of Disney) and Scottish Television. In 2001, it was nominated for a Daytime Emmy for Special Class Animated Program. (The second season didn't air in the US until 2001.)

Inspector Beth Lestrade.
Inspector Beth Lestrade.

In New London, the space-scrapered London of the 22nd Century, Inspector Beth Lestrade of New Scotland Yard is chasing grotesquely deformed French rogue geneticist Martin Fenwick, when she realizes that his companion is none other than the 19th century criminal mastermind, Professor James Moriarty. (His clone, actually, created from cells taken from his corpse, which Holmes had buried in a Swiss ice cave.)

Famous biologist Sir Evan Hargreaves (who looks just like Doyle) has just invented cellular rejuvenation. So Beth, who knows that Holmes survived and actually lived to a ripe old age, and further that his corpse is preserved in a glass-walled, honey-filled coffin in the basement of New Scotland Yard (perhaps a reference to the legend that Alexander the Great's body was preserved in honey, which does not rot), takes the body to Sir Evan. The biologist then uses his cellular rejuvenation technique to return life and youth to Holmes's body, so that the detective can combat Moriarty.

As a descendant of the original Inspector Lestrade, Beth has inherited Doctor Watson's journals. When she has her law enforcement compudroid (whom she calls Watson) read them for information about Holmes, it ends up emulating the personality of the good doctor. Holmes also ends up getting his old Baker Street rooms back (they'd been preserved as a museum).

Lestrade's compudroid assumes the name, face, voice, and mannerisms of Dr. Watson to assist Holmes in his crime-solving duties and his difficult assimilation to England in the 2100's. During the series, Holmes and Watson often work on retainer for New Scotland Yard, with Beth Lestrade as their supervising officer and Inspector Greyson as hers, but they also work for private citizens. They are often assisted by the new Baker Street Irregulars: black soccer player Wiggins, the Eliza Doolittleish Deidre, and the paraplegic Tennyson, who communicates through electronic beeps only Holmes seems to comprehend (ironically). However, Wiggins and Deidre understand and communicate with Tennyson in The Adventure of the Dancing Men. The primary villains are Moriarty and his henchman Fenwick, but they only appear in about half of the episodes.

The world of the 22nd century includes lots of flying cars, monorails, and speedy journeys to resorts on the Moon. But it also includes crypnosis (brainwashing criminals to not want to commit crimes), prison starships, and organlegging. Holmes adapts to new technology strikingly well, piloting 22nd century vehicles and operating complex computer systems with relative ease. He even determines that nanomachines would be complex devices created on a microscopic level, simply by translating the latin root words.

A similar concept sent Sherlock Holmes into the 23rd century in a two-part episode of the Filmation series Bravestarr, first aired in 1988.

This show's method for preserving Holmes and bringing him back to life should not be confused with the cryogenic method used by the 1987 Michael Pennington/Margaret Colin TV movie/failed pilot, The Return of Sherlock Holmes, or the suspended animation in the 1993 Anthony Higgins/Deborah Farentino Sherlock Holmes Returns TV movie.

[edit] Episode list

The Holmes story on which the episode is based is enclosed in parentheses.

[edit] First Season (1999)

[edit] Second Season (2001)

[edit] Trivia

  • In The Adventure of the Deranged Detective, there are two references to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. One is when Holmes is reluctant to take a case for New Scotland Yard, Lestrade jokingly says, "Or should I call on Dr. Arthur Doyle?" Holmes replies, "Oh, I will never live down that pseudonym!" Later on in the episode, Holmes introduces himself to a suspect as "Dr. Arthur Doyle" and introduces Watson as "Conan".

[edit] External links

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