Upon first hearing that there is a TV series that re-imagines Sherlock Holmes in the 21st Century, you would be excused for instantly rolling your eyes and saying no thanks. After all, what is the world’s greatest literary detective without his Victorian Era trappings and mannerisms? How dare they, you would rightfully declare! Ah, but this new iteration is the mastermind of Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss, possibly the two greatest writers working in television today. That alone should make this DVD set enticing, but then you must also consider Martin Freeman as Watson to Benedict Cumberbatch’s Holmes and you have a fantastic series waiting to be watched again and again.

There are plenty of re-imaginings and remakes that take the title of the original and little else, basically resulting in more of an homage. Not so with Sherlock. As the first episode unfolds it is readily apparent that the entire cast and crew understands implicitly who and what Sherlock Holmes and his world are. The series literally looks, feels and sounds as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle were alive today and had just created the stories for television. I think even the most ardent Sherlock Holmes fan as well as someone who has never read any of the original stories will absolutely love this series. There is one thing you will absolutely hate, however, and that’s when you finish the final episode and realize you are done with the series. Thanks to DVD, you can watch them as many times as you want and you will want to quite a lot.

The writing on each episode is superb, as would be expected from Moffat and Gatiss, who write the first and last episodes, respectively. Granted, the second episode, written by Stephen Thompson, is the weakest of the the three, but it is still a nicely compelling drama. Cumberbatch is almost supernaturally good as Holmes and he plays him in a detached, timeless way that such an immortal character deserves. Freeman is the perfect counter-balance as Watson, sublimely using his comedic talents, but giving us the character that is the viewers’ point of view. Freeman will soon be spending many months filming as a certain famous Hobbit soon and the range he shows here will serve hi well there.

All three 90-minute episodes are presented here across two discs and they look and sound amazing. Thankfully there is the trusty pause button so that you can take time to relish all the details of 221 B Baker Street in crystal clarity. The series is presented in 16:9 widescreen and Dolby Digital so your home theater system will have as much fun playing this as you do watching it. Episodes 1 and 3 each feature a commentary track and if you doubt the devotion to the source material or how much joy the cast and crew had making these, then listening in to their thoughts about those two episodes should dispel it completely.

There is a terrific “Making Of” documentary that is worth watching to witness Steven Moffat’s enthusiasm, if nothing else. The coolest feature on this set is the original 60-minute pilot episode. Unlike normal pilots, this was shot with every intention for it to be the first episode in the series. When the BBC picked up the show they commissioned it as three 90-minute shows. Instead of filming new scenes to add to the existing episode the production team made the decision to completely re-shoot the first episode from scratch. Including the pilot here gives a rare opportunity to see what happens when a TV production team has the chance to re-do an episode with the same story and same actors. The original pilot is every bit as good as the completed episodes so it is very fascinating to see a first impression, if you will, of what was intended.

Pick up this series as soon as possible and prepare to watch some of the best produced TV drama of the year. Apparently, a second series is being worked out and, after finishing this DVD set, you will join me in eagerly anticipating more adventures of Holmes and Watson in the modern day. The game is on!