 The show met with critical acclaim , sustaining positive reviews across its three series . Series one holds a Metacritic score of 85 / 100 , based on 17 reviews , and series two scored 91 / 100 , based on 24 reviews , while series three holds a score of 88 / 100 , based on 22 reviews . The first two series hold 100 % rating at critical aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes , and series three has a 97 % approval rating . The first episode rated highly on the Appreciation Index . The Observer said the show was " a cross between Withnail and I and The Bourne Ultimatum , there is also a hint of Doctor Who about the drama ; hardly surprising , since it has been written and created by Doctor Who writers Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat . " The Guardian 's Dan Martin said , " It 's early days , but the first of three 90 @-@ minute movies , ' A Study In Pink ' , is brilliantly promising . It has the finesse of Spooks but is indisputably Sherlock Holmes . The deduction sequences are ingenious , and the plot is classic Moffat intricacy . " Tom Sutcliffe for The Independent wrote , " Sherlock is a triumph , witty and knowing , without ever undercutting the flair and dazzle of the original . It understands that Holmes isn 't really about plot but about charisma ... <unk> unfaithful to the original in some respects , Sherlock is wonderfully loyal to it in every way that matters . " The lead actors were commended . Critic Victoria Thorpe said , " Freeman 's dependable , capable Watson unlocks this modern Holmes , a man who now describes himself as ' a high @-@ functioning sociopath ' . " Following the second series ' opening episode , Sarah Crompton , for The Telegraph , asserts that " Cumberbatch is utterly credible as a man who lives entirely in his cerebellum with little regard for the world outside , mak [ ing ] Sherlock the perfect depiction of Holmes for our times " . 
