Versatile Superstar: Rise In Hollywood Chapter 267

Chapter 267

The premier was only for the first episode of [Sherlock of the Shadows] but the critics were still very excited about it. The trailer was well cut and had intrigued people a lot, including critics.
Phineas past records and well proven star cast was part of the reason too.
They were particularly excited for the no nonsense detective drama that it promised. The supernatural setting was thought to be just an added effect to gain more eyeballs.
After all, VFX was a huge factor in more people turning in these days.
As they sat down to watch the first episode, they couldn’t help but wonder how it was going to be and where it would stand among the plethora of detective shows that were already out in the market.
A lot of these shows would be hampered by the subplots that won’t connect to the main plot and a lot of characters that are not needed.
Would [Sherlock of the Shadows] be the same? Or would it do something different? Something that could create a platform for the new age of detective shows.
When the first scene started after the initial credits, everyone in the theatre realised that the show was trying to achieve something different.
Just in the first scene, Finn’s character started off by telling the father of the church about his gifts and the things that had happened to him in the last few months.
One of the critics in the audience, Liam Daes, felt like it was a very interesting scene and a strong start.
Unlike his expectations, it didn’t started off with a murder for the main character to solve but it tried to establish a connection between Finn and his father.
It was a good creative choice according to Liam.
Aiden’s acting was also a standout for him. Having followed the work of the young actor, he knew the kind of roles he had done and Finn looked different compared to those.
At least his last role in [Disconnected] gave a very different vibe. It was a great change in the eyes of Liam as it signified that Aiden was trying to expand the variety of roles in his filmography.
One more thing that he liked was the soundtrack that gave a sense of eeriness even though it was adjusted to be on a low volume. The colour pallet and how everything looked a bit heavy also suited the atmosphere of the series.
‘If the series could maintain this level of technical ability, I would need to write a separate article on it.’
Liam thought in his mind.
Then, the episode moved forward to a crime scene where a woman has jumped off a clock tower. Finn hears the news on the radio as he’s flirting with a girl in his room.
He quickly left towards the crime scene hearing that, not really caring about the girl who could only be stupefied.
Again, this scene was to establish a playboy self to Finn as well as showing his willingness to go towards crimes and mysteries.
Liam felt like it was an interesting contrast as in the first scene, Finn seemed more serious, his voice having a strength that was not present in the second one. It was clearly a hint towards the character growth.
After that, the episode moved at a rapid pace as it began to establish the police in the town and their connection with Finn which was a hot and a cold one as well as trying to show Finn’s personality scene by scene.
All this was obviously connected to the murder that Finn was trying to solve.
But till the first half of the 50 minute episode, nothing supernatural had happened.
This changed as soon as the second half started as Finn wasn’t able to understand how the murder had happened. Things didn’t match in his mind and even when he knew who the murderer was, he wasn’t sure how the murder had happened.
As he tried to figure this out, strange things started happening. It was reported that the dead body was suddenly losing her flesh and Finn had started to hear strange things out of nowhere.
This leads him to investigate a house that he felt like was connected to the murderer.
By this point, only 5 minutes were left in the episode and it was then that Liam and the other critics were truly scared.
Although one of the genres of the series was horror, they did not expect it to be like this.
No, rather than the scene, it was more due to the performance and camera movements. The last scene had started with a long shot but it has slowly become a close-up shot as weird noises had erupted from here and there in the room.
The fear and uneasiness on Aiden’s face was displayed really well to the point that Liam was becoming more immersed in it.
He felt like there was something different about it.
Having watched several movies in every genre possible, Liam had seen great performances. Some of them were even on the level that seems unachievable to most actors.
Aiden’s acting was not on that level.
But there was something different about it.
‘There’s a deep sense of realism in it. A bit of chaos and it’s making me feel uneasy just by watching it.’
As soon as Liam thought that, ghosts appeared out of nowhere. The audience was expecting it as the atmosphere was hinting towards it but when they appeared, it was hard to not scream.
A few audience members had that reaction and even Liam was holding his hand on his heart.
Only one person in the audience had a disappointed expression on his face.
‘Those ghosts look bad. More like, the VFX isn’t up to the standards of what I saw.’
Aiden clicked his tongue.
His immersion had created real ghosts but the VFX company wasn’t able to match them. What he had seen was not comparable to the ghosts on the screen.
Due to this, he even felt like his expressions were a bit exaggerated.
Obviously, he understood that it was not the fault of the VFX company. It was just that his immersion was too real and VFX ghosts didn’t look that scary to him now.
It seemed like only he thought that as the others looked very scared as Finn ran for his life as the ghosts tried to grab his leg.
The episode ended after that on a cliff as Finn struggled for his life.
Phineas had deliberately done it as he wanted each episode to make the excitement about the next.
Soon, the sound of clapping and cheering came from the audience.
The critics, reporters and the invited celebrities all looked like they enjoyed and liked it as there was a look of admiration on their faces.
A lot of people gathered towards Phineas to congratulate him. Ava seemed to be talking to a few executives from Titan studios and even Aiden got surrounded soon.
“It was a great episode. I thoroughly enjoyed it.”
“I feel like Aiden is going to get his first Emmy nomination this year. The acting was superb and we didn’t even see a glimpse of Jeremy Hill’s character in the first episode.”
“I can’t wait for the second one now.”
People praised the series, particularly Aiden. It was clear from the first episode that the show was going to focus a lot on his characters and that means good acting is a big necessity.
Aiden had hit the ball out of the park in that regard.
While all this was going on, a gaze followed Aiden with interest.
‘He’s a much better actor than I initially thought. Ava was right.’
Florence Levine thought as she started walking towards Aiden.
***



After the premier, critics posted a lot of reviews online and the first episode got a lot of positive feedback.
It was good news for the people who have liked the trailer. The reviews floating around just ensured that the series won’t disappoint them.
Fortunately, no big series was going to air in November, so [Sherlock of Shadows] couldn’t get a better time to air. There is only one famous series that has its second season coming at the end of November but it won’t hinder [Sherlock of the Shadows].
Surprisingly, a lot of people were still unsure whether all the positive talk about the series was actually coming from a good place.
Zetflix mediocrity had made people doubt them and a few of them were just tired of dark and gritty series.
With all these factors mixed in, it was very interesting to see whether the series would be able to make an impact on the audience.