Young Sherlock review: This Guy Ritchie’s adaptation keeps you inquisitively SHERLOCKED till the very end!

As a Sherlock Holmes fan, I can attest that this origin story is a joyous ride, tracing the early years of the consulting detective when his restless curiosity first collided with the thrill of solving mysteries!

Last year, around Friendship Day, when I was trying to think outside the box for an article on onscreen friendships, I wondered - what if some of the world’s most famous fictional rivalries were actually friendships in disguise? After all, what is a great hero - villain duo if not two similar minds choosing different paths? This made me think of Sherlock Holmes and James Moriarty, one of literature’s most iconic rivalries, defined not just by conflict but by the art of outsmarting each other. But who would have thought that wish would be fulfilled so soon? With Guy Ritchie’s return to the world of Sherlock Holmes, we get not only a reimagining of that legendary rivalry as a friendship, but also a well crafted origin story of Holmes before he became the world’s greatest consulting detective.

Based on the young adult series written by British author Andrew Lane, the show is adapted for television by Matthew Parkhill. It follows a twenty-something Sherlock Holmes who initially finds himself on the wrong side of the law, stealing and landing in jail. Rescued once again by his elder brother Mycroft Holmes, he is sent to Oxford, working as a scout who handles odd jobs and cleanup work. But as fate would have it, trouble always seems to find Sherlock, as if mysteries seek him out rather than the other way around! He soon gets entangled in the case of stolen Chinese scriptures brought to Oxford by a princess, a crime that results in the death of a professor. When Holmes is accused of theft and murder, the case unravels into a larger conspiracy, one that shockingly traces back to his own home and family. The mystery intertwines with the unresolved questions surrounding his sister Beatrice’s mysterious death, his mother’s descent into madness, and his father’s long, unexplained disappearance - all pointing toward something far more sinister beneath the surface.

Also Read: Friendships that could've been if fictional rivalries turned legendary friends

This isn’t the first time Guy Ritchie has adapted the world of Sherlock Holmes. He previously helmed the films starring Robert Downey Jr. as the eccentric genius detective. While Ritchie’s flair for building a textured, period world was evident, those films never quite matched the towering brilliance of the literary character they were adapting. Nor is this the first time Ritchie has expanded one of his film properties into a series as he did it earlier with The Gentlemen on Netflix. And if you’re familiar with his work, you know he has a distinct style - darkly humorous, slightly eccentric, and rooted in crime, mystery, and mayhem. His storytelling often revolves around the irony of life, where intelligence isn’t just attractive but essential for survival in a world where most people simply aren’t sharp enough. He stages his narratives almost like operas that are exaggerated and grandeur yet controlled, where piecing together the puzzle isn’t merely necessary, it’s an art form to be admired. Now imagine all of that blended with the world of Sherlock Holmes.

The beauty of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s work is that it has given the world not just stories, but a framework of characters so compelling and a universe so rich with mysteries that no matter how many times Sherlock Holmes is adapted, there’s always something new to explore. Young Sherlockworks within that tradition. We’ve often seen Holmes as the fully formed genius, his deductive skills incomprehensible to ordinary minds including Dr. Watson’s. But what has always lingered as a question is - where did it all begin? Surely he wasn’t born the world’s greatest consulting detective; it must have been something that must have shaped him! This is where Young Sherlock truly revels. We see a brilliant yet still-developing mind, a young man who talks through problems within his own head, notices what others miss, and remembers the smallest details most people don’t even register. But there’s a certain naivety to him; a guilt that he carries deep inside of him. His genius is raw, not yet sharpened by experience. And this is where James Moriarty enters not as an arch-nemesis, but as another restless, curious mind defying systems and seeking adventure. Rather than rivalry, their early dynamic is built on companionship and mutual understanding. Together, as they unravel interconnected mysteries that spiral into a tragic conspiracy, the show transforms into the origin story not just of a consulting detective, but also of a consulting criminal.

It portrays two young boys, different from the world around them, finding solace in each other’s brilliance. They challenge and refine one another, but the story gradually highlights the divergence between a hungry, inquisitive mind guided by morality and one driven by ambition without ethical restraint. What then unfolds is far bigger than the central mystery of the threat of the world being blown apart. It becomes a commentary on how societies hide to protect, lie to save and wage wars in the name of peace, how manipulation shapes individuals through hypocrisy. In the end, the real origin story lies in choice as Sherlock Holmes chooses to channel his genius for the greater good, while James Moriarty chooses self-interest above all else!

Young Sherlock is currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video!

For more reviews, follow us on @socialketchupbinge.