The reviews lean firmly positive, and they agree on where the credit belongs. Nearly every critic singles out the pairing of Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman, whose Holmes and Watson are described as the reason the series works. Steven Moffat’s script draws praise for wit and efficiency, and Paul McGuigan’s direction of the opening episode is repeatedly named, particularly the filmic camerawork and the on-screen text that flashes clues as Holmes reads a room. The move to the present day is judged a success rather than a gimmick.
The spread is narrow, with one mixed review and none negative. The Guardian is the outlier, finding the opener’s plot muddled and the whole thing slick but too clean, and less frightening than the stories it draws on. Smaller doubts appear elsewhere: that this Holmes is easier to read than earlier portrayals, and that the second episode is a step down from the first.