“Irregulars” / The Irregulars
Genre Thriller, mystical detective
Creator Tom Bidewell
Cast Thaddea Graham (B), Darcy Shaw (Jesse), Jojo Macari (Billy), McKell David (Spike), Harrison Osterfield (Leopold), Henry Lloyd-Hughes (Sherlock Holmes), Royce Pirreson (Dr. Watson), Jonjo Oh ‘Neil (Mycroft Holmes), Eileen O’Higgins (Alice), Edward Hogg (Daimler), Olivia Grant (Patricia), Aidan McArdle (Inspector Lestrade), Clarke Peters (man of visions), etc.
Netflix channel
Release year 2021
Series 8
Site IMDb
In the works of Arthur Conan Doyle, homeless street dwellers (called Baker Street irregulars) assisted Holmes in investigating murders in exchange for generous rewards. In the pages of books, Sherlock believed that smart children, unlike policemen, are more trustworthy, and besides, they, being tomboys, can penetrate everywhere.
The creators of the series somewhat expand the idea of homeless children – this is no longer a group of little beggars, but a company of teenagers who have learned to adapt to the cruelty of criminal neighborhoods. At first there are only four of them (two sisters and two friends who live in the basement), but by chance they are joined by a real prince who hides his origin by escaping from the royal palace. The life of the heroes changes when Dr. Watson appears before them. He, a mysterious and arrogant gentleman, talks about a detective agency and asks for help in finding some information for him. During the investigation, it turns out that all the events that Watson talks about are somehow connected with mysticism.
Irregulars is the second Netflix project in which the writers rewrite the stories of Arthur Conan Doyle (the streaming service previously released the film Enola Holmes with Millie Bobby Brown as Sherlock Holmes’ sister). The series was conceived as a darker incarnation of detective stories in which otherworldly phenomena appear, and familiar characters radically change their behavior. The idea itself seems quite entertaining, as does the significant reshuffling of the characters, where Dr. Watson comes to the fore, and he is given the impression of being a negative hero.
The concept is really interesting, but the idea itself is disappointing. The first episodes try to present the central characters by repeating recognizable techniques (for example, one of the characters fluently tells the story in the comical manner of Michael Peña from the movie Ant-Man), but the overall picture is still rather slurred. The characters often behave illogically and abruptly change from one scene to another, and the plot gaps associated with mystical inserts are so large that they are difficult to ignore.
The showrunners filmed Irregulars on the principles of other modern series, changing the approach to depicting events from the past: there is no historical accuracy; representatives of different races gathered in the main cast; in the image of events there are elements from our days (and they do not appear everywhere, but only at selected moments, for example, in the scene with the royal ball); rhythmic melodies become the background accompaniment.
But all of the above would not raise any questions if the creators were more consistent, adhered to one line and decided on a potential audience. Without this, the series “Irregulars” turned out to be very crumpled in places, unexpectedly teenage at certain moments, and in the end – clearly focused on connoisseurs of Sherlock stories who could appreciate the extraordinary transformations in the image of the detective.
In the series, Sherlock Holmes is really not the detective that we read about in Conan Doyle. For a long time, he remains a mysterious character, leaving behind only guesses about his heavy dependence on opioids. When Holmes finally appears in front of the camera, it is gradually revealed that he has his own connection with mystical phenomena, and thanks to this, the series finally becomes more interesting.
However, up to this point, you have to endure as many as four tedious episodes in which heroes from the slums, without any deduction, but with their own special trump card, are trying to solve supernatural crimes. In each episode, they meet a new criminal (which is very reminiscent of the series from the early 2000s) and instantly unravel the secret of the villain, depriving the series of intrigue.
In a word, you should not expect an intricate detective from the Irregulars, there is no original mystical story here either, as well as new bright heroes that homeless street residents could become. The only thing that might seem interesting is the reimagining of the characters of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson living in London, which has suddenly become the center of otherworldly events.
Pluses: the idea to combine mysticism and stories of Arthur Conan Doyle; the controversial character of Dr. Watson; by episode 5, the series becomes more exciting Cons: the first episodes are very boring; too many modern elements that do not adhere to one concept; crumpled plot; instant clue of the criminal Conclusion:
the show could have been an entertaining mystery detective, but in that regard it is a big disappointment. But it has a new look at Holmes and Watson, but before more interesting episodes with their participation, you need to wait for four whole episodes.
