For those in desperate need of a Sherlock Holmes fix before the BBC series Sherlock returns for Series Three and the next Robert Downey, Jr. movie, CBS is stepping up to help feed your addiction.
The network officially announced its 2012-13 primetime schedule this morning and confirmed that the new Holmes series Elementary will air on Thursday nights at 10 p.m. EST after Person of Interest.
The project was first announced back in September of last year and initally received criticism from Sherlock co-creator Steven Moffat as being too similar to the BBC series with its modern-day setting. However, as you can see from the official description for the series below, it appears as though there's an attempt to make Elementary more distinctive:
ELEMENTARY stars Jonny Lee Miller as detective Sherlock Holmes and Lucy Liu as Dr. Joan Watson in a modern-day drama about a crime-solving duo that cracks the NYPD’s most impossible cases. Following his fall from grace in London and a stint in rehab, eccentric Sherlock escapes to Manhattan where his wealthy father forces him to live with his worst nightmare – a sober companion, Dr. Watson. A successful surgeon until she lost a patient and her license three years ago, Watson views her current job as another opportunity to help people, as well as paying a penance. However, the restless Sherlock is nothing like her previous clients. He informs her that none of her expertise as an addiction specialist applies to him and he’s devised his own post-rehab regimen – resuming his work as a police consultant in New York City. Watson has no choice but to accompany her irascible new charge on his jobs. But Sherlock finds her medical background helpful, and Watson realizes she has a knack for playing investigator. Sherlock’s police contact, Capt. Tobias “Toby” Gregson (Aidan Quinn), knows from previous experience working with Scotland Yard that Sherlock is brilliant at closing cases, and welcomes him as part of the team. With the mischievous Sherlock Holmes now running free in New York solving crimes, it’s simple deduction that he’s going to need someone to keep him grounded, and it’s elementary that it’s a job for Watson. Rob Doherty, Sarah Timberman, Carl Beverly and Michael Cuesta, who directed the pilot, are executive producers for CBS Television Studios.
** UPDATE AS OF 6:25 P.M. **
CBS has released a three-minute behind-the-scenes preview that you can view below...