In the upcoming episode of “Elementary,” Holmes (Jonny Lee Miller) will be compelled to accept help on a case from his father, a man he wishes would just go back home.

In a teaser for Episode 6 of Season 4, titled “The Cost of Doing Business,” Holmes bluntly asks his father Morland (John Noble) why he is here.

“I am here because four people are dead,” says Morland, who goes on to explain that his son should accept his help.

“Elementary,” a contemporary take on a Victorian era fictional detective, has made much use of the literary background offered in the original Arthur Conan Doyle source material.

In an interview in Art In The Blood, “Elementary” script writer Robert Hewitt Wolfe chalks up the success of the series to the staying power of the character. “I think Sherlock Holmes is one of the 10 great evergreen characters in English literature," he said, “It’s terrific to be able to write him, and Watson as well.”

Wolfe says he is motivated by the world provided by the original Sherlock Holmes stories, but not necessarily bound by it. “We look at Doyle as a resource more than a shackle. They’re great stories but they’re not engineered for TV,” he says.

The writer/producer acknowledged that much of the success comes from what the actors involved in the series might bring to the table. “That character is brought to life by the actor. Mannerisms, physicalities… that is just as important,” he explains.

According to Wolfe, Jonny Lee Miller actually chooses a lot of what he wears on screen and Lucy Liu has honed certain methods of approaching her character that intensify Watson’s relation to Holmes.

The next episode of "Elementary" airs Dec. 17 at 10/9c on CBS.