Posted by Jonathan Klotz | Published
Whenever a director or producer decides to change a classic male character to a female for a modern retelling, it's often pushed back by fans of the original. Changing Starbuck from the man played by Dirk Benedict to the woman played by the then-unknown Katee Sackhoff was a big risk that paid off very well. Battlestar Galacticabut when First of all he announced that Watson would go from John to Joan, crying could be heard in the air. Not only did Lucy Liu absolutely kill it as Joan Watson, but the series held one of its twists: Natalie Dormer, who recently played Anne Boleyn The Tudorsit could be Holmes' love interest, Irene Adler, and in the process turning Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's subtext into Moriarty's subtext.
A New Take on a Classic
In classic detective stories, Moriarty is Holmes's worst enemy, clever and cunning as a Detective, but devoted to using his wits in crime. First of all and Johnny Lee Miller, who is best known for playing Zero_Cool in Hackerssubverts expectations with the revelation that Irene and Moriarty (given Jamie's first name here) are identical. Dormer and Miller's chemistry was palpable from the first scene of their flashback together when they were pretending to be Irene, and it continues, albeit one-sidedly.
What has changed this time is that Moriarty deliberately took advantage of their gender roles to seduce Holmes, make him fall in love with her, and use that knowledge to stay one step ahead of him as he builds his criminal empire. First of all he plays well with the two by communicating more through the book, which works both for the narrative, and for Dormer's work to shine through Game of Thrones a few years after his first appearance in the series. If Hollywood is going to change character, here's how to do it right.
Elementary's Joan Watson Best Version Ever
Lucy Liu has won fans with her portrayal of Watson since the first set of episodes. As Sherlock's sober friend, Joan struggles to help him solve cases and fight his addiction at the same time, throughout the seven season run. Sherlock is unable to change and grow during that time due to the licensing agreements of the Doyle estate, but instead Joan was able to go from a disgraced doctor and sober friend, to a brilliant detective in her own right. In general, it can feel like you are the real protagonist of the series, which is not a bad thing, with the program having 154 minutes long episodes 44 helps to switch between the two leads.
Both Liu and Dormer were successful with their gender-flipped characters. One can be impressive enough, but First of all pulling both off while making it work to advance the story isn't just dramatic acting, it's just show-off. For characters that have changed over and over again, even mice and gnomes, the CBS process tried something different and for once, it worked.
First of all is available for streaming on Paramount+.
