*This is a spoiler-free review so feel free to read on!*

“A darkness has entered this city…”

The Irregulars premiered on Netflix on March 26th 2021 with eight episodes available to stream now. The series stars Thaddea Graham, Darci Shaw, Harrison Osterfield, Royce Pierreson, and Henry Lloyd Hughes. Each episode runs for approximately 55-60 minutes.

The series is set in Victorian London and follows a group of teen outcasts who are hired by Dr. Watson to investigate supernatural occurrences. We quickly learn that they are not hired by accident, leading to a mystery involving the infamous Sherlock Holmes.

Here is the trailer:

The Irregulars presents us with an interesting premise, but a plot we have seen many times before. However, does it work in the show’s favor to have Watson and Holmes in the background? Let’s find out…

The Pros:

Images courtesy of Netflix

Interesting characters and solid performances.

Stand-out performances go to Thaddea Graham and Darci Shaw as sisters, Bea and Jessie. I also thoroughly enjoyed Leopold’s character portrayed by Harrison Osterfield. Some of the other supporting characters could have been easily interchanged with other stock characters, but I thought there was good chemistry and believable moments between the sisters.

That being said, I was underwhelmed by both Dr. Watson and Sherlock Holmes and I realize we are supposed to be focusing on the teen characters, but I would have still gravitated toward them without being forced to do so because of unlikable portrayals.

Cringe-worthy horror sprinkled in.

The show presented us with a mix of several different genres, but I was pleased with the elements of horror. Even though we have a young adult group of characters, the show didn’t hold anything back in terms of some of the dark supernatural occurrences we witness and I appreciated that. 

The Cons:

Images courtesy of Netflix

Lack of cohesiveness between the group.

While I enjoyed many of the characters individually, there was something lacking between the group as a whole which made it difficult to connect and root for them. Everything felt very dark and depressing and I wanted to see a little bit more humor thrown into the mix even though the show made a failed effort several times.

This is not the first film or show we have seen about young adults working together to take on a mystery or an evil threat. The Goonies, The Lost Boys, IT, and Stranger Things all come to mind. Part of what makes this formula work so well is the overall chemistry between the group. I think that if the show had focused on that a little bit more, I would have liked the end result more.

A tired plot with nothing new and super long episodes.

Each episode is almost an hour long, which did not work in the show’s favor. I felt like many of the episodes dragged and there was fluff where it didn’t need to be. While I found Jessie’s psychic/supernatural abilities interesting, I have seen this plot before. There is a rift threatening to destroy the world and only one girl may be able to stop it…

That being said, I love this plot and some of my favorite shows and films feature it, but I wanted something new thrown our way to prevent it from feeling stale and overdone and I’m afraid this show did not achieve that for me. The reveals were also really predictable.

I also think that the show didn’t really discover what it truly wanted to be. Episode three probably came the closest to actual brilliance, but the other episodes did not measure up and just lacked finesse.

So am I in or out?

Images courtesy of Netflix

I’m 50/50 on this one.

The show had a lot of entertaining qualities, but there were so many things that just really frustrated me. I think that with several tweaks, this show could have been really spectacular, but it failed to deliver, which was extremely disappointing.

I don’t think it presented the Watson/Holmes dynamic that well and it almost seemed like a manipulative way to earn viewers. The show had some glimmers of value and entertainment, but I’m not sure that you need to rush this to the top of your watch-list.

I hope you enjoyed the review and feel free to post your own thoughts and theories on The Irregulars in the comments section below. Thanks so much for reading and happy viewing!

Best,

Amy Koto, TV Fanatic Girl

DON’T TAKE THE JOB…

It was only supposed to be temporary…but when Olivia Crewe accepts a new position that seems too good to be true, she soon discovers that twelve other girls previously had the same job as her. Only none of them lasted for more than thirty days. No notice. Nothing…right before they mysteriously disappeared without a trace.

My new supernatural thriller Girl Number Thirteen is out now! I hope you enjoy!

Girl Number Thirteen is available here!

**If you enjoyed this blog, I would love it if you would click the follow button on your way out to subscribe.  Thanks for your support!