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Omnipotrent — Sherlock vs. Moriarty (My choice for James)
Published: 2013-11-07 11:49:30 +0000 UTC; Views: 4600; Favourites: 21; Downloads: 0
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I know I'll get some hate over this, but the truth of the matter is, Anthony Head is who I envisioned playing James Moriarty vs. BBC's Sherlock.
No offense to Andrew Scott, but he just seemed to much like a joker to his batman then a Moriarty to Ben's Sherlock. Sort of like a spastic "I'm not touching you, I'm still not touching you! I'm better then you, na na na na na! Oh boy a new playmate He he let's see who's better!" like a demented kid you meet on the play ground who's job in life it is to make yours a living hell.
"Professor" James Moriarty to me was always someone who was an incredible thinker and tactician like a Sherlock who had had many more years under his belt at being him, and spent that time making a criminal empire, so when he meets Sherlock at first he finds him a disturbance, then an impressive disturbance, but one that can't be tolerated.
I always thought of Anthony Head because I know he has that steady balance between being outrageously insane, and yet composed and in control, features that Moriarty from the books was supposed to have. Sly as a serpent but as formal as an owl, yet Ferrell as a wolf. And yes, older.
I'm not necessarily a stickler that he be older then Sherlock, but in this case, it almost seemed like he needed someone who could look down on him and call him "boy" trying to step up to a real man of crime.
In any case, that's why (Though I love the show SHERLOCK) i was disappointed with the portrayal of Moriarty, and wished for this fellow instead.
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Comments: 29
Uh, what makes you say that?
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Uther Pendragon from Merlin was how I was introduced to Anthony Head.
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Hmm, I like your choice, and reasons for it.
"it almost seemed like he needed someone who could look down on him and call him "boy" trying to step up to a real man of crime."
Can definitely agree with this.
Thanks for the post.
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I like Andrew Scott but I'm also an Anthony Head fan and I love this idea
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You summed up my thoughts perfectly. I've loved SHERLOCK but I was REALLY disappointed with Moriarty, and with their interpretation of the Reichenbach Falls story in general.
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Andrew Scott was a very different Moriarty than I had thought he would be, and very, very different from the Canon. That said, I love the Andrew Scott Moriarty, but I can totally see where you're coming from.
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Yeah, and again no hate, i just feel that this..."New" take on him from the canon wasn't the right direction, in the same way they didn't make Holmes flamboyant as well for the sake of being "new."
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My guess is that they probably wanted to create a Moriarty that would appeal to people that haven't necessarily read the canon or have any knowledge of Sherlock Holmes, since the Moriarty in FINA would be harder to pull off successfully and have regular television viewers enjoy it, since he's just so distant and calculating and not overly involved in any action. They probably decided that Moriarty as a psychopath would be a lot more exciting to watch, which I guess is what they were going for.
And if I'm craving Canon Moriarty, I watch the Granada version of FINA. Eric Porter was beyond amazing...
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It really seemed like he was another regeneration of the Master, as opposed to Moriarty.
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You're not the only person I've heard to make such a statement. In fact, I believe the last time I read someone saying such, they used the Joker analogy as well. I haven't seen BBC Sherlock yet (I have a lot of things to do, and I really don't care for out-of-period adaptations at all) but I've been assured that at least it's good in a lot of ways.
But yeah, a Jokerish Moriarty would...not be good, it defeats the whole purpose. Makes me think of The Master in NuWho. Which.....actually isn't surprising, because Gatiss and Moffat are the people who are in charge of/write Doctor Who.
I guess they think that kind of playmatey, high-strung, teasey villain is the most popular kind out there? And I guess it kind of is at the moment, what with the Joker still being very popular...but, hey, the world of television and film drama needs some variety. Or else we're going to know what is going to happen each time. (Which is something that happens a lot in Doctor Who, but, oh well.)
I'm fairly picky about Moriarty. Eric Porter is my favourite portrayal of him thus far, and even that wasn't quite taken far enough. The Moriarty in Star Trek: The Next Generation was just awful--although that was script more than anything.
Moriarty is, as you say, a sort of anti-Holmes. I believe he should be older, and quite certain he is untouchable. Stays out of things, because he is just so clever that he can weave dozens of crimes, all at the same time, and never have anything black come back upon him. He has that, "You can never win," feeling because of his seniority, but doesn't shirk the fact that he needs to make an appearance to the man that eventually gets close upon him. For such a quickly machined baddie, he's very deep and useable. Giving him a Joker-like persona robs him of that.
(Now, I'm not downing the Joker, either. He's a grand villain--especially as he's portrayed in Batman: The Animated Series. He's just pure madness in that.)
Anyway...it's kind of late (2:21 in the morning, ironically) so this may not make sense. But I'm essentially saying, I'm glad to see that there's another analysis of the character out there, so I can be even more informed about it if I ever go watch it.
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Eric Porter **ck-me yes!!!
HE Was the quintessential Moriarty, and Jeremy Brett the Holmes, both were my favorite adaptations, closely followed by the one in Game of Shadows.
Joker is a SUPERB villain if you right him or one like him right, but he's never been a "Moriarty" so much as a complete contrast character. He's everything Batman is not, against everything batman is for. As opposed to Batman's ACTUAL moriarty figure: Ras Al Ghul, who essentially is an older, wiser, more organized batman who's are shades darker then Batman himself.
Batman sees in Ras what he could be if he were to stumble, in the same way Holmes looks at Moriarty as a vision of a future him if he ever got off the beaten path and used his talents for his own gain, or just to see how the other side of the chess board feels.
Joker exists to clash with Batman, to try his metal and to give him the feeling that inspite of all he does in a world of order to preserve order, there's no house of cards he makes that he can't wreck, and no pure thing he can rescue that he can't pervert.
That's what this Moriarty felt like, almost like an obsessive fan girl gone wrong, he was obsessed with Holmes.
I mean even the other modernized version of holmes *Elementary did a better job of portraying Moriarty then they did ( I feel )
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I totally agree about Anthony Head. He was great in Merlin & Doctor Who.
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Agreed. He is a better choice to play Moriarty than Andrew Scott. Anthony Head can be charming & evil. I have nothing against Andrew Scott, but his version of Moriarty drives me crazy.
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I blame Moffat, but yes
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I agree, when I first watched Sherlock I always took the mick out of Moriarty's voice
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Glad to know I'm not the only one.
Anthony Head has that polite yet terrifying quality when he wants to when he speaks
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I see you like Jack Frost
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I love Jack Frost
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What of the big four?
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I haven't actually read much on that
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It's the joining of him rapunzel and merida and hickup
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