His chin, too, had the prominence and squareness which mark the man of determination. His eyes were sharp and piercing, save during those intervals of torpor to which I have alluded and his thin, hawk-like nose gave his whole expression an air of alertness and decision. In height he was rather over six feet, and so excessively lean that he seemed to be considerably taller. His very person and appearance were such as to strike the attention of the most casual observer. “I am the last and highest court of appeal in detection.” – Sherlock Holmes in The Sign of The Four “The only unofficial consulting detective,” he answered. Her righteous fury is a joy to behold, and her vengeance is satisfyingly cruel.Sherlock Holmes in “The Hound of the Baskervilles” Kitty gets her revenge in spectacular fashion-a vial of acid is involved-but she also gets to be strident and vicious and angry in a way that Victorian (and modern) ladies weren’t supposed to be. When Violet #3 comes under the thrall of the vicious and possibly murderous Baron Gruner, Holmes secures the assistance of one of his former paramours to help break the spell. Anna is a non-violent Russian Nihilist who has done a stint in Siberia and is now on a quest to free her comrades, and I would gladly trade a dozen instances of Inspector Lestrade being bungling and smug for even a sentence more of her backstory. The seemingly motiveless murder of the young secretary to an aging scholar brings Holmes out to investigate-and subsequently untangle a complex web of deception that shows just how close those of us with poor eyesight are to totally stabbing people to death by accident. Doyle doesn’t even give us her name, but I want to know literally every single thing about her. But Milverton has another late-night visitor: a veiled former victim of his, who gets her revenge in a shocking and violent fashion. This adventure-one of Holmes’s most memorable-centers around his battle against the unscrupulous Milverton of the title, “the worst man in London.” Milverton, a blackmailer, has gotten one of Holmes’s clients in his clutches, and as a last resort Holmes decides to steal the incriminating letters. No, Milverton, she wasn’t just happy to see you We don’t have time for this, buddy, there’s a treaty to find! Violet Smith (“The Solitary Cyclist”) I love that Annie lies smoothly and convincingly at Holmes’s urging, but I love even more her complete lack of patience with his sudden out-of-character descent into theology upon beholding a particularly pretty bed of roses. When Percy Phelps has a top-secret naval treaty stolen from his desk and collapses with nervous prostration, it’s his fiancée Annie who nurses him back to health-and it’s Annie’s cleverness and loyalty that allow Holmes to eventually recover the plans and avert war. She ends up running a girls’ school out in the country, and I would like a 20-book series where she solves mysteries there, please and thank you! Annie Harrison (“The Naval Treaty”) Despite Violet’s intelligence and courage, Holmes fails to fall in love with her, to Watson’s noted disappointment. It’s less fetishy than it seems, but still involves kidnapping, brain fever, and financial coercion. The first of the four (!) women named Violet in the canon, Miss Hunter comes to Holmes because of a sketchy job offer: a couple named Rucastle has offered her a fortune to be governess to their son, but in exchange they want her to cut off her distinctive red hair and wear the specific clothing they’ve selected. Hudson might let this dangerous pain in the neck hang around. The astronomical rent Holmes is paying her by the end of the series probably accounts for it, but I’d love for an adaptation to give us a little more insight into why else Mrs. H sticks with Holmes even more steadfastly than Watson does. Hudson instead, and one semi-successful arson. Plus there’s the fact that people are always trying to kill him-I count at least three attempts at murder on the premises, any of which could have rebounded on Mrs. Hudson! Holmes and Watson’s long-suffering housekeeper has to deal with a tenant who improvises upon both his violin and his chemistry set at all hours, practices target shooting in his living room, has a constant stream of unsavory characters (and also, to be fair, royalty) visiting him, and only eats her excellent cooking about half the time. Rather than playing her up as Holmes’s “one who got away,” I’d like to see some of the female characters in Sherlock Holmes below-both good and bad-get an equal turn in the limelight: Mrs. Now Irene, who outsmarts both Holmes and the King of Bohemia, is undoubtedly a badass, but she only appears in one story. Watson and Mary Morstan in The Sign of the FourĪnother is Irene Adler, of “Scandal in Bohemia” fame.
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