Sherlock Holmes (novel)/Characters

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  • A Case of Identity
  • A Scandal in Bohemia
  • A Study in Scarlet
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  • The 'Gloria Scott'
  • The Adventure of Black Peter
  • The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton
  • The Adventure of Wisteria Lodge
  • The Adventure of the ''Gloria Scott''
  • The Adventure of the Abbey Grange
  • The Adventure of the Beryl Coronet
  • The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle
  • The Adventure of the Bruce-Partington Plans
  • The Adventure of the Cardboard Box
  • The Adventure of the Copper Beeches
  • The Adventure of the Crooked Man
  • The Adventure of the Dancing Men
  • The Adventure of the Devil's Foot
  • The Adventure of the Dying Detective
  • The Adventure of the Empty House
  • The Adventure of the Engineer's Thumb
  • The Adventure of the Golden Pince-Nez
  • The Adventure of the Greek Interpreter
  • The Adventure of the Missing Three-Quarter
  • The Adventure of the Musgrave Ritual
  • The Adventure of the Naval Treaty
  • The Adventure of the Noble Bachelor
  • The Adventure of the Norwood Builder
  • The Adventure of the Priory School
  • The Adventure of the Red Circle
  • The Adventure of the Red-Headed League
  • The Adventure of the Reigate Squire
  • The Adventure of the Resident Patient
  • The Adventure of the Second Stain
  • The Adventure of the Six Napoleons
  • The Adventure of the Solitary Cyclist
  • The Adventure of the Speckled Band
  • The Adventure of the Stockbroker's Clerk
  • The Adventure of the Three Students
  • The Adventure of the Yellow Face
  • The Boscombe Valley Mystery
  • The Crooked Man
  • The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax
  • The Final Problem
  • The Five Orange Pips
  • The Greek Interpreter
  • The Hound of the Baskervilles
  • The Man with the Twisted Lip
  • The Musgrave Ritual
  • The Naval Treaty
  • The Red-headed League
  • The Reigate Puzzle
  • The Resident Patient
  • The Sign of the Four
    • Chapter 1
    • Chapter 10
    • Chapter 11
    • Chapter 12
    • Chapter 2
    • Chapter 3
    • Chapter 4
    • Chapter 5
    • Chapter 6
    • Chapter 7
    • Chapter 8
    • Chapter 9
  • The Stock-broker's Clerk
  • The Valley of Fear
  • The Yellow Face
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Sherlock Holmes

The titular character. The archetype for the Private Detective.

Tropes exhibited by this character include:

• Asexuality: He didn't seem to have the slightest interest in any form of sexual activity or orientation. In fact, as Watson remarks, he rarely referred to such activity save with "a gibe and a sneer".
  • He did, however, get very disgusted by anyone who would harm a woman, ESPECIALLY in a sexual or potentially sexual manner.
• Awesomeness By Analysis: His stock in trade.
• Badass: He was not the kind of guy you tried to kick the ass of. One idiot tried that, and in the words of Holmes, was sent home in a cart.
  • Badass Bookworm: Ironically, his knowledge of literature was rather narrow, though he did favor many book related intellectual pursuits.
  • Bash Brothers: Rarely, but when Holmes needed a fighting buddy, Watson was one of his most frequent.
  • Retired Badass: By 1914, he's 60 years old and still got it.
• Berserk Button He had a few. One, he HATED anyone who blackmailed or otherwise took advantage of another person in a similar manner. Second, trying to hurt Watson in any way was one of the few things that would drive him to kill in cold blood, by his own admission.
• Bunny Ears Lawyer: Despite his numerous quirks, he generally came off as more competent because of them than in spite of them. The police force generally regarded him as a bit odd, but came to acknowledge he was certainly leagues ahead of them in forensic brilliance.
• Cane Fu: He was certainly handy using one as a weapon, and if he's to be believed, he used a Japanese form of cane fighting to escape certain death at one point.
• Cloudcuckoolander: He was certainly an odd bird at times. As Watson once describes, he was the kind of guy who thought writing the initials of the Queen on his apartment wall with bullet-holes was a perfectly sane idea.
• Combat Pragmatism: Was not shy in using unorthodox and even illegal means of winning a fight if he had to.
• Deadpan Snarker: Quite a lot of time, especially to people he thought especially stupid.
• Detectives Follow Footprints: Holmes made a point of memorizing the various types of dirt around London, to the point he could tell where someone had been by simply examining their toecaps.
• Distinguished Gentleman's Pipe: Noted for using one quite frequently.
• Doesn't Like Guns: Zig Zagged. He wasn't a fan of frequently using them, but he would advise Watson to pack some heat on their more dangerous cases.
• Doing It for the Art: Most of the time. He does take money when he needs repayment for certain expenses related to the case, in which case he averts the trope, but he generally doesn't ask for money upfront.
• Genius Bruiser: Holmes is a genteel man not inclined towards violence, but he's equally capable at using his brains as well as his brawn.
• Good Old Fisticuffs: Homes is an accomplished boxer.
• Heterosexual Life Partners: Watson was closer than blood to Holmes. They were never more than good friends, but Holmes admitted Watson was one of the few he would kill for without hesitation.
• Hyper Awareness: His analysis method is to, as he puts it "not just to see, but also observe". For example, in The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle, he gives Watson a chance to examine a hat a man lost in a fight, Watson just says it's a dusty old hat. Holmes, by contrast, examined every aspect of the hat and gave Watson a quite accurate description of the man's lifestyle and physical features as could be gleaned from the hat itself, including hairstyle and general age.
• Insufferable Genius: Holmes could be quite the ass about his own genius.
  • This does bite him on the ass a few times, which he humbly acknowledges and even asks to be reminded of those times in the future should his ego get too fat again.
• Let Off by the Detective: He was willing to let some sympathetic perpetrators go free at times, and even allowed some not so sympathetic ones to go free if that would have been less likely to have them commit a crime in the future.
• Master of Disguise: Holmes was no stranger to costuming himself, often to the point no one could recognize him.
• Moon Logic Puzzle: Holmes could take the most bizarre clues and find a sensible answer with them, though they often turned out far more understandable in hindsight.
• Nice Hat: Holmes donned a top hat in the city, but he only wore the deerstalker he's more known for in the country.
• Police Are Useless: Early on, Holmes was convinced of this, but as the police proved far less idiotic, his respect for them increased, and even early on he did acknowledge when some strong hands and backs were needed, the police were the first port of call.
• Private Detective: He preferred "Consulting Detective", which was technically accurate, as he worked for state sanctioned organizations as well as did private work.
• Science Marches On: Some of Holmes' observations were based on phrenology, now a completely discredited psuedoscience in modern day.
• Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right: Holmes, when given a choice between the law and his own conscience, would choose the latter if the former could not provide what he deemed justice.
  • Exemplified in "A Case of Identity", where the villain cannot be LEGALLY punished, but what he did is still despicable,and Holmes nearly beat the shit out of him on the spot to avenge the honor of the victim before he runs away.
• Sherlock Scan: He popularized it, and he often used it to astonish friends and enemies alike.
• The Stoner: Holmes would rail cocaine when bored. This was before it was declared a highly illegal drug, but he still acknowledges to Watson it was an unhealthy habit regardless.

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Dr. John Watson

A former army surgeon, now general practitioner and Holmes biographer and constant ally.

• Badass: To the point Holmes, a badass in his own right, came to rely on Watson's regard in this area more than once.
  • Badass Bookworm: He is a trained physician, and thus intimately knowledgeable of his profession. Said knowledge proves directly useful to solving a few cases.
  • Bash Brothers: Often accompanied Holmes as combat support, often at the former's request.
  • Retired Badass: A veteran of Afghanistan.
• Combat Medic: His job in the army was this, and remains both as medical support and combat support to Holmes in many cases.