Sherlock Holmes may be the smartest man in London, but in Netflix’s new series, five street urchins are the true geniuses.
“The Irregulars,” which premiered Friday, returns 221B Baker Street to Victorian England, this time with a supernatural element that has thrown the detective’s world upside down.
But where recent adaptations of Arthur Conan Doyle’s novels have put Benedict Cumberbatch, Robert Downey Jr. and Jonny Lee Miller front and center, “The Irregulars” is more focused on London’s street kids: strong-headed Bea (Thaddea Graham), younger sister Jessie (Darci Shaw) and her nightmares, Billy (Jojo Macari), Spike (McKell David) and the secretive Leo (Harrison Osterfield).
“These kids aren’t your regular superheroes at all,” said the 24-year-old Osterfield, whose Leo hides more than a few secrets from his friends after he forces his way into their group, to the Daily News.
“They’ve all got their own insecurities and flaws and as the series goes on, you realize that’s what makes them special and unique.”
Making Sherlock Holmes a minor character in his own story – Henry Lloyd-Hughes doesn’t even appear in all eight episodes of the first season, although his character becomes more focused in the second half – is a risky endeavor. But carried by Dr. Watson (Royce Pierreson) and more importantly the five kids, “The Irregulars” finds that there’s more to life – and solving crimes – than smug brilliance.
Then creator Tom Bidwell threw in magic, from Jessie’s nightmares that send her spiraling through the depths of her imagination to the case-of-the week villains who send birds to rip out eyeballs and stage gruesome murders to match tarot cards.
“I think it’s shocking, at times. They really did push the boundaries on everything,” Shaw, 18, told The News. “We venture into some dark topics: grief, loss. It’s all dark and cynical and it’s quite refreshing to see them push the boat out on topics like that.”
The show’s bad guys, though, aren’t mystical villains, caricatures of evil with dreams of power and fame.
“They come from very real people and authentic people,” Osterfield told The News. “You can see why they’re driven to madness or driven to the dark.”
That’s part of what makes “The Irregulars” even more haunting: the idea that evil people were good once, and that good people can be evil.
