Just what is so bad about, "...the rain fell in torrents--except at occasional intervals..."?

Question

The famously poor sentence in its entirety: "It was a dark and stormy night; the rain fell in torrents--except at occasional intervals, when it was checked by a violent gust of wind which swept up the streets (for it is in London that our scene lies), rattling along the housetops, and fiercely agitating the scanty flame of the lamps that struggled against the darkness."

I think it's quite descriptive. I can really visualize the rain coming down and then sputtering up and being broken by gusts of wind. I FEEL like I'm in London. And lantern flames flickering in the wind, threatening to go out and leave me in the dark at any moment - that's great story-telling!

Answer 1

What's your question?

Answer 2

The question is what's so bad about the sentence, s d.

I honestly don't know. I guess for nit-picky English majors, it's probably soo much of a run on sentence... I don't mind it, though.  

Answer 3

Very, very descriptive.

I don't see anything wrong with it, besides being such a long sentence.