8 Masterpiece Detective Shows That Are Better Than 'Sherlock'
Most people around the globe agree that Sherlock Holmes is the greatest fictional detective of all time, with a legacy that has endured for over a century across literature, cinema, games, and countless other forms of art and entertainment. Among the many film and television projects made about Sherlock Holmes over the years, the BBC’s Sherlock is unarguably one of the most beloved. A modern reimagining of Arthur Conan Doyle‘s darling detective, the show remains a television landmark of the 21st century. However, the world of detective fiction is exhaustive and forever expanding, with endless new stories that deserve your attention, including some that arguably overshadow this popular icon.
These shows are not necessarily bigger in scale, but they bring a new narrative style to the genre, explore conventions from a new perspective, or feature more complex, mind-bending mysteries that can leave fans in shock, awe, and, in some cases, inspired. With every detective an intriguing character, each of these shows is a must-watch for genre fans. So, without further ado, here’s our selection of detective shows that make Sherlock look small.
1
‘Luther’ (2010–2019)
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Image via BBC One</figure>
A psychological crime thriller written and created by Neil Cross, Luther revolves around the titular detective, John Luther, who is famed for taking down notorious criminals but also infamous for getting consumed by his cases, often resulting in violent and obsessive behavior. The series follows his relentless mission to thwart crime while navigating his personal demons, but mostly his arch-nemesis, Alice Morgan. Idris Elba stars as Luther and Ruth Wilson as Alice, with Steven Mackintosh, Saskia Reeves, Warren Brown, and Dermot Crowley in other notable roles.
A highly acclaimed and popular police procedural of its time, Luther brings a darker, graver tone to the genre, with more emphasis on the psychological narrative of its characters. Idris Elba is widely acclaimed for his powerhouse performance as the troubled detective, as is Ruth Wilson for her impeccable turn as Alice. During its original five-season run, Luther earned sweeping accolades and was widely acclaimed for reviving the form of hard-boiled detective noir with morally grey themes and a contemporary setting.
2
‘Mindhunter’ (2017–2019)
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Image via Netflix</figure>
Created by Joe Penhall, Netflix’s Mindhunter is based on the non-fiction book Mindhunter: Inside the FBI’s Elite Serial Crime Unit by FBI agent John E. Douglas and Mark Olshaker. Dramatizing the founding of the agency’s Behavioral Science Unit in the 1970s, the series follows agents Holden Ford and Bill Tench, as well as psychologist Wendy Carr, as they interview imprisoned serial killers and profile them, hoping to use the data to solve ongoing cases. Jonathan Groff, Anna Torv, Holt McCallany, Cotter Smith, and Hannah Gross star in key roles.
Mindhunter puts a deep analytical spin on detective fiction with strong elements of the psychological horror, crime thriller, and murder mystery genres. Through fictional interviews with some of the most notorious killers in American history, like Charles Manson, Jerry Brudos, and Son of Sam, it provides chilling psychological background to their infamous crimes. With its near-perfect storytelling inspired by major real-life crimes and compelling performances that leave a lasting impression, Mindhunter has been widely praised as one of the best true crime shows on Netflix.
3
‘Elementary’ (2012–2019)
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Image via CBS</figure>
Created by Robert Doherty, Elementary is a contemporary reimagination of Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes, but with very different stories and characterizations, transporting the British detective from London to New York City as a recovering addict. Starring Jonny Lee Miller as Sherlock Holmes and Lucy Liu as Dr. Watson, the CBS drama follows the duo as they help the NYPD with complex cases, using Sherlock’s genius deduction methods and Watson’s investigative skills. Aidan Quinn, Natalie Dormer, Rhys Ifans, Jon Michael Hill, and John Noble round out the main cast.
Elementary never feels like a pastiche of a literary icon; rather, it simply takes the classic characters and themes and invents new stories, modern crimes, and character backstories in a high-energy, modern procedural. Even the case-of-the-week stories are not adapted from Doyle’s originals, making this ABC hit series intriguingly original. Sherlock fans are sure to appreciate the reinvented Watson, Mycroft, and Moriarty, but most importantly Lee Miller’s Sherlock, which is considered one of the best portrayals of Holmes on television.
A great detective is really just a personality with a method attached,
which is why we keep remaking the same four of them. Here is yours, what it says about you, and the
case for them being the best in the business.
You let people think you are not a threat and then you simply
never go away. Columbo is the only major detective show that tells you who did it in the
first ten minutes, because the pleasure was never the puzzle, it was watching a rich man
slowly realise he is in trouble.
- You are underestimated constantly, and you have stopped minding because it keeps
working. - The show invented the inverted detective format for television and nobody has bettered
it since. - Peter Falk won four Emmys for the part and played him across five decades.
- Your flaw is that one more question is rarely one more question.
You are the most interesting person in the room and you know
exactly how to use it. Rian Johnson built Blanc as a gentleman detective who is also an
outsider everywhere he goes, which lets him be charming at people who would never otherwise
talk to him.
- You read a room in seconds and you are not above performing a little to speed things up.
- Rian Johnson was nominated for the Best Original Screenplay Oscar for Knives Out in
2020. - Wake Up Dead Man arrived on Netflix in December, making three Blanc films in six years.
- Your risk is enjoying the performance so much that people stop taking the point
seriously.
Everybody tells you everything, and you have never once asked
them to. Jessica Fletcher is a crime novelist from a small town in Maine who is so warm and
so obviously trustworthy that suspects confess to her essentially as a social courtesy.
- You are the person friends call first, and you have a frankly alarming amount of
information about everybody. - Angela Lansbury was nominated for the Emmy twelve times for this role and never won
once. - The show ran twelve seasons, and Jamie Lee Curtis is now bringing the character back.
- Your flaw is that being told everything is only a gift if you know what to do with it.
You expect to be lied to and you are almost never disappointed.
Chandler wrote Marlowe as a man with a rigid private code in a city that has none, which is
why he takes the case, solves it, gets nothing out of it and takes the next one.
- You are the most cynical person your friends know and the one they would call at four in
the morning. - Bogart played him in The Big Sleep in 1946 and the plot is famously impossible to
follow, which matters not at all. - Elliott Gould, Robert Mitchum and Liam Neeson have all taken the part, and every version
says something about its decade. - Your weakness is a code so strict that it mostly punishes the person holding it.
4
‘True Detective’ (2014–Present)
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Image via HBO</figure>
An anthology crime thriller series created by Nic Pizzolatto, True Detective explores various stories of uncanny crimes and the local police’s attempts to seek truth and deliver justice, while also navigating their personal demons. Each season follows a new homicide case revolving around a disparate set of characters, with the settings spanning Alaska, Arkansas, California, and Louisiana. The show’s revolving ensemble cast features Matthew McConaughey, Woody Harrelson, Colin Farrell, Rachel McAdams, Jodie Foster, and more across seasons.
True Detective is diverse in its storytelling, with styles spanning neo-noir to Southern Gothic, true-crime, and Nordic noir, making every season feel like an expansive new show. But all seasons are bound by the underlying philosophical themes, unsettling local legends, and deeply flawed detectives, which makes True Detective way darker, more complex, and layered than Sherlock. Since its premiere over a decade ago, True Detective has remained highly respected and has won major accolades, including several Emmys and a BAFTA.
5
‘Poker Face’ (2023–2025)
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Image via Peacock</figure>
Rian Johnson‘s first major TV show as a creator, Poker Face is a crime comedy series that uses a case-of-the-week format, centering on Charlie Cale, a casino employee in Nevada who happens to be a bona fide human lie detector. After getting on the wrong side of her mobster boss, Charlie goes on the run, traveling across the country and solving murders using her unique ability and remarkable social skills. Natasha Lyonne stars as Charlie, with Benjamin Bratt, Ron Perlman, Rhea Perlman, Simon Helberg, Patti Harrison, and Steve Buscemi in recurring roles, and several famous guest stars appearing in individual episodes, including Giancarlo Esposito, Katie Holmes, and more.
Unlike most contemporary detective shows or case-of-the-week procedurals, Poker Face is a “howcatchem” that takes inspiration from classic detective series like Columbo and Magnum, P.I. Johnson brings his signature brand of mystery storytelling to this colorful ride with a quirky nomad who entirely changes the perspective of the genre. Driven largely by Natasha Lyonne’s live-wire performance, often compared to Peter Falk‘s, Poker Face is a fantastic detective show with mature themes beneath its fun exterior.
6
‘Bodies’ (2023)
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Image via Netflix</figure>
A British sci-fi mystery thriller created by Paul Tomalin, Bodies is a Netflix adaptation of Si Spencer‘s DC Vertigo comic book series. The show follows a murder mystery that spans generations, time, and space. The plot follows four different detectives who try to solve the same mystery of a dead body found in a London back alley in four different timelines. The series stars Stephen Graham, Amaka Okafor, Kyle Soller, Jacob Fortune-Lloyd, Shira Haas, and Greta Scacchi in key roles.
A unique, genre-blending, and mind-bending sci-fi show, Bodies is detective noir, high-concept sci-fi, and period drama, all rolled into one. Highly suspenseful, with unexpected outcomes in every episode, Bodies keeps the audience constantly on the edge, confounded by the story’s movement and engrossed in the convincing performances. Though the show quickly went off the radar after its release, the Netflix original has been critically praised for its elevated narrative and incredible cinematography, and is a must-watch for mystery fans.
7
‘Monk’ (2002–2009)
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Image via USA Network</figure>
A multi-Emmy Award-winning mystery comedy drama series created by Andy Breckman, Monk follows the pursuits of former San Francisco police detective Adrian Monk, who suffers from obsessive-compulsive disorder and various phobias, which worsen after his wife’s mysterious death. Gifted (and cursed) with sharp observation skills and odd crime-solving methods, Monk solves various crimes as a consultant for the SFPD while navigating his afflictions, which often become exhausting for everyone around him, especially his assistant. Tony Shalhoub, Ted Levine, Bitty Schram, Jason Gray-Stanford, and Traylor Howard star in the main roles.
Powered by Shalhoub’s phenomenal performance as the so-called “defective detective,” Monk is an inverted Sherlock. Adrian Monk is everything Holmes is, and not at the same time, which makes this detective series one of a kind. Charming and heartwarming, with its odd-ball detective, ample humor, and character-driven stories, the comedy procedural is exceptionally addictive. Often hailed as one of the best crime shows of the 21st century, Monk puts a more accessible, comedic twist on the traditional detective persona.
8
‘Agatha Christie’s Poirot’ (1989–2013)
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Image Via ITV</figure>
Created by Clive Exton and Brian Eastman, Agatha Christie’s Poirot is a serialized TV adaptation of Agatha Christie‘s popular crime fiction series featuring the titular detective, Hercule Poirot. Starring David Suchet as the famous Belgian detective, the series follows his meticulous investigations as he travels around the world solving the most complicated crimes, with his friend, Captain Arthur Hastings, and Inspector James Japp of Scotland Yard by his side. Hugh Fraser, Phillip Jackson, Pauline Moran, and Zoë Wanamaker play recurring roles across the show’s 13 seasons, alongside a rotating ensemble guest cast.
A British television landmark, the ITV show successfully and faithfully adapts almost every Poirot novel and short story penned by Christie. Suchet brings life to the persnickety detective with his near-perfect depiction, which is often considered the definitive screen version of the mystery icon. Spanning 13 seasons and 25 years, Agatha Christie’s Poirot is an exhaustive detective show that does every bit of justice to the setting, storytelling, and character design of the Poirot universe as created by Christie.
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