This series is smart and tightly written. Mark Gatiss has done a superior job all around-and it's fun to see more of Mycroft-whom he portrays. Of note, is how the series weaves in little bits and quirks from many of the previous productions throughout the years, particularly the Rathbone-Bruce series. Things that were unmentioned, but wondered about, are said out loud in this series. Cumberbatch and Freeman are a good pairing, and I would imagine that this series went a long way toward super-charging their careers. As an American, though, I must admit that I often resorted to closed-captioning in order to understand what was actually said at times (often because the dialogue comes at you as if propelled through a fire hose). I'm glad that I came to the series late (2022) so that I could watch it within a span of a few weeks, as opposed to the several years it took to produce the entire series. That said, each episode has the quality and length of a feature film. (If you want a throwback, catch Freeman's role in Faith No More's music video of The Bee Gees song: "I Started a Joke." If you're a Holmes fan, you need to add this to your repertoire.