Sherlock Holmes pastiches

Further information:Sherlock Holmes,Popular culture references to Sherlock Holmes,andList of authors of new Sherlock Holmes stories

Sherlock Holmeshas long been a popular character forpastiche,Holmes-related work by authors and creators other thanArthur Conan Doyle. Their works can be grouped into four broad categories:

• New Sherlock Holmes stories
• Stories in which Holmes appears in a cameo role
• Stories about imagined descendants of Sherlock Holmes
• Stories inspired by Sherlock Holmes but which do not include Holmes himself

Sherlock Holmes stories

New Sherlock Holmes stories fall into many categories, including:

• Additional Sherlock Holmes stories in the conventional mould
• Holmes placed in settings of contemporary interest (such as World War II or the future)
• Crossover stories in which Holmes is pitted against other fictional characters (for example, vampires)
• Explorations of unusual aspects of Holmes' character which are hinted at in Conan Doyle's works (e.g., drug use)

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Further information:List of authors of new Sherlock Holmes stories

In 1913, the Greek novelSherlock Holmes saving Mr. Venizelos(Ο Σέρλοκ Χολμς σώζων τον κ. Βενιζέλον) was serialized in the magazineHellas.Written by an anonymous author, it describes Holmes' attempts to saveEleftherios Venizelosfrom a Bulgarian organization's assassination plot during theLondon Conference of 1912–13.It is considered the firstdetective novelofGreek literature.

In January 1928, the short story "My Dear Holmes" was published inPunch, or the London Charivari.The sub-title of the story was: "His positively last appearance on earth." Written from the point of view of Holmes, it starts out in the usual way, and then ends rather lamely with no mystery presented or solved, but Holmes dead of incautiously (and improbably) sniffing excessively at a bottle of an anesthetic ( "A.C.E." ) he has asked Watson to bring with them on an errand.

In 1942, a short story entitled"The Case of the Man Who Was Wanted"was discovered by a Conan Doyle biographer, Hesketh Pearson, while searching through a trunk full of Doyle family papers.It was published in 1947 as a "lost" story written by Conan Doyle, but it was eventually discovered by Pearson that the story was originally written in 1914 by Arthur Whitaker, who had sent it to Doyle in hope of a collaboration. Doyle had bought the story from the author, in case he might use the ingenious plot at a later date, but never did.

In 1944, American mystery writers Frederic Dannay and Manfred B. Lee (writing under their joint pseudonymEllery Queen) publishedThe Misadventures of Sherlock Holmes,a collection of thirty-three pastiches written by various well-known authors includingAgatha Christie,Mark TwainandAnthony Boucher.

Arthur Conan Doyle's son,Adrian Conan Doyle,wrote—in a joint effort withJohn Dickson Carr—12 Sherlock Holmes short stories that were published under the titleThe Exploits of Sherlock Holmesin 1954.

The Crown Prince of Siam, the futureKing Vajiravudhcreated the character Nai Thong-in and his side-kick the lawyer Mr. Wat, and published them in Thai in 1904-1905. Vajiravudh borrowed ideas from Sherlock Holmes in the creation of his mystery stories.

Using his alternate name of H.F. Heard,Gerald Heardwrote three novels about a reclusive beekeeper in the English countryside who goes by the name of Mycroft; he is clearly intended to be Sherlock Holmes, but the books were written before the Doyle estate gave permission for other writers to use the name. The three stories areA Taste for Honey,Reply PaidandThe Notched Hairpin.A Taste for Honeywas adapted for American TV in 1955 as "Sting of Death," withBoris Karloffas Mr. Mycroft.

American novelist and filmmakerNicholas Meyerhas written five Holmes novels:The Seven-Per-Cent Solution(1974),The West End Horror(1976),The Canary Trainer(1993),The Adventure of the Peculiar Protocols(2019), andThe Return of the Pharaoh(2021).

In 1977, the novelExit Sherlock Holmes: The Great Detective's Final Daysby Robert Lee Hall was published and featured an exploration of Holmes' origins with a science fiction twist. In this account Holmes and Moriarty are revealed to be from the future.

Randall Collinspublished in 1978The Case of the Philosophers' Ring,under the pseudonym Dr. John H. Watson, with Holmes' services requested at Cambridge, around 1914, byBertrand Russell,and meeting theCambridge Apostles(Moore, Hardy,Keynes...)Virginia Woolf,Lytton Strachey,Annie Besantand of course,Aleister Crowleyas a perfect villain.

Michael Dibdin's novelThe Last Sherlock Holmes Story(1979) confronts a somewhat psychopathic Sherlock Holmes with the crimes ofJack the Ripper,whom Holmes suspects to be none other thanProfessor James Moriarty.Raymond SmullyanwroteThe Chess Mysteries of Sherlock Holmes(1979), in which Holmes (with Watson) applies retrograde analysis to solve chess problems.

The detective novelistLoren D. Estlemanwrote several short stories and two novels featuring Holmes; the novels pit the detective againstCount DraculaandDr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,respectively. The former was adapted for radio by theBBC.

Cay Van Ashwrote the novelTen Years Beyond Baker Street: Sherlock Holmes matches wits with the diabolical Dr. Fu Manchu(1984), set in 1914, in which the apparently retired detective comes into conflict with Sax Rohmer's villainous master criminal.

Canadian writerRon Weymanpublished three novels between 1989 and 1994 which imagined Sherlock Holmes as being sent toCanadaat the behest ofAlbert Edward, Prince of Walesand investigating crimes there.

Holmes aficionadoStephen Frywrote a short story featuring Holmes, "The Adventure of the Laughing Jarvey", in which Holmes and Watson encounter a great Victorian writer and are engaged on a mission to recover a lost manuscript. It includes introductory text claiming the tale itself to be a long-lost manuscript, which modern analysis has shown to use linguistic style and grammar typical of Watson. The story appears in Fry's collection of journalism and early writings,Paperweight(1992). InStephen King's short story "The Doctor's Case"(1993), Holmes's alleged allergy to cats prevents him for once from solving the problem quicker than Watson.Barrie Robertspenned a series of Holmes pastiches, includingSherlock Holmes and the Man from HellandSherlock Holmes and the Railway Maniacfrom 1994 until his death in 2007.O Xangô de Baker Street(1995) tells the comic story of Sherlock Holmes's visit to Brazil, invited by the Emperor Dom Pedro II, to solve the disappearance of a Stradivarius violin which becomes a hunt for a serial killer.Larry Milletthas written six books and a short story featuring Holmes solving mysteries inMinnesota.Michael Malloryhas written more than two dozen short stories and two novels featuring "Amelia Watson," the second wife ofDr. Watson.These are not pastiches so much as original detective stories that view Holmes and Watson from a different and somewhat humorous point of view. Colin Bruce'sThe Strange Case of Mrs. Hudson's Cat: And Other Science Mysteries Solved by Sherlock Holmes(1997) andConned Again, Watson!: Cautionary Tales of Logic, Maths and Probability(2001) are books of Sherlock Holmes stories in which Holmes uses scientific and mathematical approaches respectively to solve mysteries.The Mandala of Sherlock Holmes: The Missing Years(1999), byTibetanauthorJamyang Norbuis an account of Holmes's adventures in India and Tibet where, posing as Sigerson, he meets theDalai LamaandHuree Chunder Mookerjee,a character fromRudyard Kipling's novelKim.

The collectionShadows Over Baker Street(2003) contains 14 stories by 20 authors pitting Holmes against the forces of theCthulhu Mythos.Among them isNeil Gaiman's "A Study in Emerald",which won the 2004Hugo Awardfor Best Short Story. The title is a play onA Study in Scarlet.The narrator, never named (but whose initials in the end point him to be the criminal henchman of James Moriarty,Sebastian Moran;his tour in Afghanistan point to this as well), meets the protagonist (who is also never named, but likelyProfessor James Moriartyhimself, in a surprising role-reversal, making him the detective and Holmes the criminal) under similar circumstances to the meeting of Holmes and Watson inA Study in Scarlet,even down to the deduction that the narrator has recently been in Afghanistan. The protagonist is tall and thin, a detective, chemist, and master of disguise. However, as the narrator and his friend investigate a murder of one of the Royal Family (shown to be theGreat Old Onesof theCthulhu Mythos) the murderer is revealed to be a tall, thin, pipe-smoking man, going by the name Sherry Vernet (a reference to the first name Sherlock, or possibly Conan Doyle's earlier "Sherrinford", and the last name of Holmes' grandmother). He is assisted by a "limping doctor", later tentatively identified as John (or possibly James) Watson. "Vernet" also had gone by the name Sigerson.Inspector Lestradealso appears in the story. Gaiman has also written a short story called "The Case of Death and Honey", which was featured in "A Study in Sherlock" and "Trigger Warning."

Michael ChabonwroteThe Final Solutionin 2004. This book, which received favorable reviews,deals with an elderly Sherlock Holmes, referred to only as 'the old man,' solving the case of the missing parrot belonging to a nine-year-old Jewish refugee boy from Germany. While readily solving the mystery, 'the old man' and the rest of the characters in the novella fail to see what the parrot's incessant muttering of random German numbers really means.

Caleb Carrwas approached to pen a tale for the anthologyGhosts of Baker Street.Carr's short story grew to become a full length novelwhich became 2005'sThe Italian Secretary.An example of a Sherlock Holmes pastiche is found inThe Curse of the Nibelung: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery(2005) bySam North,which is currently in reprint. It finds Holmes at the very end of his career, together with a geriatric Watson, sent by Winston Churchill toNazi Germanyto help uncover a terrible secret.Elemental, querido Chaplin,byRafael Marín(2005, Minotauro, Barcelona,ISBN84-450-7542-X), is presented as afalse documentunpublished manuscript in whichCharles Chaplintells how, as a London poor child, he helped Sherlock Holmes in an adventure against Dr. Fu Manchu.Nick Rennison's 2006Sherlock Holmes: The Unauthorized Biographyis a "biography" of the detective much likeWilliam S. Baring-Gould's earlierSherlock Holmes of Baker Street: A Life of the World's First Consulting Detective.

Mitch Cullin's novelA Slight Trick of the Mind(2005) takes place two years after the end of the Second World War and explores the character of Sherlock Holmes (now 93) as he comes to terms with a life spent in emotionless logic. Now old and frail, his once-steel trap mind begins to fail him as he loses items and forgets whole parts of his day. The story follows Holmes both at his home where he now tends bees in quiet retirement, as well as a vacation in Japan where he observes their post-war society first-hand. The novel is also interspersed with chapters from Holmes's's own book that reveal a fleeting moment of love that even he does not yet realise.It was adapted into the filmMr. HolmesstarringIan McKellen.The film released in 2015.

Manly W. Wellman'sSherlock Holmes' War of the Worldscombined the elements of Holmes canon withH. G. Wells's science fiction classicThe War of the Worldsand describes Holmes' and Watson's adventures in the Martian-occupied London (in passing, the book also asserts that Holmes had a long-lasting romantic relationship with Mrs. Hudson, but the puritanical Dr. Watson never noticed it).

Laurie R. Kingrecreates Sherlock Holmes in herMary Russellseries (starting withThe Beekeeper's Apprentice), set during World War I and the 1920s. Her Holmes is (semi-)retired in Sussex, where he gradually trains a teenage Russell as his apprentice. The series includes 11 full length novels and a short story tie-in with a book from her Kate Martinelli series,The Art of Detection. Another story which pits Holmes and Watson against Jack the Ripper is Lyndsay Faye'sDust and Shadow(2009).

InRobert Wilton's 'The Adventure of the Distracted Thane', Holmes investigates the assassination of KingDuncan I of Scotland,previously explored byWilliam ShakespeareinMacbeth(which itself, according to this interpretation, featured Dr. Watson).

For younger readers,Shane Peacockhas writtenThe Boy Sherlock Holmesseries.Andy Lanebegun ayoung adult series of Sherlock Holmes adventureswith the publication ofDeath Cloudin 2010. This series is the first authorized series of teenage adventures.Alberto López Arocawrote "El problema de la pequeña cliente", a short story included in the bookNadie lo sabrá nunca(2004), where Sherlock Holmes meetsMary Poppins.

The Conan Doyle estate commissionedAnthony Horowitz,author of theAlex RidernovelsThe Power of Fiveand TV'sFoyle's War,to write a new, uniquelyauthorisedSherlock Holmes novel. Published byOrion Booksin 2011 under the titleThe House of Silk,the content and title were a "closely guarded secret" before publication.

Japanese mystery authorKeisuke MatsuokapublishedSherlock Holmes: A Scandal in Japanin 2017, exploring thetime between Holmes' alleged death at Reichenbach Falls and his reappearance three years later.

The Hong Kong seriesThe Great Detective Sherlock Holmesincludes books written byLai Ho,usingArthur Conan Doyle's characters,as well as books with stories originally written by Doyle which were modified by Lai Ho.

Short stories featuring sage-detective Zavant Konniger and his halfling manservant Vido, written by fantasy authorsGordon Rennieand Josh Reynolds for theWarhammer Fantasyuniverse,were published byBlack Libraryfrom 2002 to 2018, including "How Vido Learned the Trick" ( "How Watson Learned the Trick") and" The Problem of Three-Toll Bridge "("The Problem of Thor Bridge").

TV

The Granada TV series 1984 – 1994Sherlock Holmes(Jeremy Brett) Dr. John H. Watson (David Burke) (Edward Hardwicke). So far the only film or TV series to accurately feature Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's stories and words. Jeremy Brett proved that Doyle's words could be spoken dramatically and as written on film. His Sherlock Holmes is still considered definitive by most if not all of the world's Sherlock Holmes Societies.

TheBBC's TV seriesSherlockre-imagines Holmes and Watson (played byBenedict CumberbatchandMartin Freeman) as contemporary figures, with Watson publishing his accounts of Holmes' exploits online.

The US TV seriesElementaryfeatures a modern Holmes (Jonny Lee Miller) who lives in the United States, where he is assisted by Dr. Joan Watson (Lucy Liu).

The 2014NHKpuppetrySherlock Holmesis set in a fictional boarding school "Beeton School"and Holmes and Watson are pupils who live in 221B ofBaker House.There is no murder and the same characters appear many times.

HBO Asia's 2018 seriesMiss Sherlockis set in modern-day Japan, starringYuko Takeuchias the titular character, withShihori Kanjiyaas 'Wato'.

Radio

Bert CoulespennedThe Further Adventures of Sherlock HolmesstarringClive Merrisonas HolmesandMichael Williams/Andrew Sachsas Watson.The episodes ofThe Further Adventureswere based on throwaway references in Doyle's short stories and novels.He also produced original scripts for this series, which was also issued on CD.Coules had previously dramatised the entire Holmes canon for Radio Four.

BBC Radio 2also broadcast in 1999 a more ribald six-episodeparodyseries featuring Holmes and Watson titledThe Newly Discovered Casebook of Sherlock HolmesstarringRoy Huddas Holmes ( "the brilliant detective, master of disguise and toffee-nosed ponce" ),Chris Emmettas Watson ( "contributor to theBritish Medical Journal,Which Stethescope Magazineand inventor of the self-raisingthermometer") andJune Whitfieldas Mrs. Hudson. Titles in this series included "The Case of the Clockwork Fiend", "The Mystery of the Obese Escapologist", "The Case of the Deranged Botanist", "Sherlock Holmes and the Glorious Doppelganger", "Holmes Strikes a Happy Medium" and "The Demon Cobbler of Greek Street", and usually turned out to have Holmes' mortal enemy Moriarty (Geoffrey Whitehead) behind each mystery. This series has since been re-broadcast onBBC Radio 7,laterBBC Radio 4 Extra.

Starting in 1998, U.S. radio producerJim Frenchwas given permission from the Conan Doyle estate to produce new, original Sherlock Holmes stories for radio in North America.These are presented within theImagination Theatreprogram on radio stations and XM satellite radio. The new stories are also broadcast under the bannerThe Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.John Gilbert played Holmes until 2000, whenJohn Patrick Lowrietook over the role.Watson is played in all shows by Lawrence Albert.Scripts are by Jim French,M. J. Elliott,Matthew Booth, John Hall, Gareth Tilley, J R Campbell and Lawrence Albert. In 2005, with adaptations written byM. J. Elliott,French and his company began a new series based on Conan Doyle's original tales calledThe Classic Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.Many episodes are available on CD as well as downloadable from theImagination Theatrewebsite.

Film

Holmes has been an inspiration of both serious and comedy films.

Serious films

A series offourteen Sherlock Holmes filmsstarringBasil Rathboneas Sherlock Holmes andNigel Bruceas Dr. John Watson were released between 1939 and 1946. Many are loosely based on the original stories by SirArthur Conan Doyleand some are original stories. Those that pit Holmes and Watson against theNazis,made during the Second World War, were in the spirit of Conan Doyle's patriotism, and indeed the quintessential "His Last Bow"describes Holmes and his connections withBritish Intelligenceon the eve of the First World War.

A Study in Terror(1965), directed byJames HillstarringJohn Nevilleas Holmes andDonald Houstonas Watson, connected Holmes with theJack the Rippercase, and was later novelised byEllery Queen.

The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes(1970) was directed byBilly Wilderand starsRobert Stephensas the famous sleuth. In this film, Holmes travels toScotlandin search ofthe Loch Ness Monster.

The Seven-Per-Cent Solution(1976), based onNicholas Meyer's very successful novel, concentrates on Holmes' cocaine addiction and starsNicol WilliamsonandRobert Duvallas Holmes and Watson, respectively. Professor Moriarty (Laurence Olivier) is characterised here as an inoffensive mathematics tutor, his villainy a fantasy of Holmes' drug habit.

Sherlock Holmes in New York(1976 TV movie) starredRoger Mooreas Holmes andPatrick Macneeas Watson.

Murder by Decree(1979) portrays Holmes (played byChristopher Plummer) and Watson (played byJames Mason) tracking downJack the Ripperand dealing with the violent political situation of the day. The theory of the Ripper murders presented in that film is similar to that portrayed in the comic book and filmFrom Hell.Both are derived fromStephen Knight's bookJack the Ripper: The Final Solution(1977).

In 1985, directorBarry Levinsonmade a film calledYoung Sherlock Holmes(a.k.a.Young Sherlock Holmes and the Pyramid of Fear) with a story about the youth of Holmes and Watson assecondary schoolstudents and their first great adventure, even beforeA Study in Scarlet.There are a lot of references about Holmes canon such as theviolin,thepipe,"elementary, my dear...", the clothes and the reason why Holmes never married, and it includes the first meeting of Holmes andProfessor Moriarty.The film was produced bySteven Spielbergand written byChris Columbus;the novelization was written by Alan Arnold.

In bothThe Return of Sherlock Holmes(1987 TV movie) andSherlock Holmes Returns(1993 TV movie) a cryogenically frozen Holmes is awakened in the present day.

Hands of a Murderer(1990 TV movie) seesEdward Woodwardplaying Holmes andJohn Hillerman(ofMagnum, P.I.fame) as Watson, in a plot involving Mycroft (Peter Jeffrey) and Moriarty (Anthony Andrews) battling for control of government secrets.

Sherlock: Case of Evil(2002 TV movie) hasJames D'Arcyas a youthful, bed-hopping Holmes, meeting Roger Morlidge's Watson for the first time while pursuingVincent D'Onofrio's Moriarty, whoseopium-trading schemes have left Mycroft (Richard E. Grant) physically and mentally scarred.

The Case of the Whitechapel Vampire(2002 TV movie) starsMatt FrewerandKenneth Welshas Holmes and Watson investigating reports ofvampireattacks inWhitechapel,East London.The film was preceded by adaptations ofThe Hound of the Baskervilles(2000 TV movie) andThe Sign of Four(2001 TV movie).

Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Silk Stocking(2004 TV movie), has Holmes (Rupert Everett) and Watson (Ian Hart) searching for a killer with a foot fetish. The production was an original story written byAllan Cubitt.This was preceded byThe Hound of the Baskervilles(2002 TV movie) with Holmes now played byRichard RoxburghandIan Hartreturning as Watson.

Sherlock Holmes(2009) was directed byGuy RitchieforWarner Bros.and starsRobert Downey Jr.andJude Lawas Holmes and Watson. It also featuresRachel McAdamsasIrene Adler.The film explores Holmes and Watson's most complex adventure in which the antagonist Lord Blackwood (Mark Strong) seemingly rises from his grave after being executed and draws plans to control the British Empire. The sequel,Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows(2011) pits the original cast againstProfessor Moriarty(played byJared Harris).

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes(2010) was directed by Rachel Lee Gondenberg and produced by low-budget direct-to-DVD film companyThe Asylum.It starsGareth David Lloydas Watson and new actor Ben Syder as Holmes. The film placed a younger Holmes and Watson in asteampunkscience fictionstory set in 1881, in which Holmes and Watson investigate the crimes of a mechanical genius known asSpring Heeled Jack,who creates mechanical monsters to terrorise London.

Comedy films

Holmes' talents have sometimes been inverted for comic effect, as inGene Wilder's 1975 filmThe Adventure of Sherlock Holmes' Smarter Brother.Here Holmes' younger brother Sigurson (Wilder), who is jealous of 'Sheer Luck' as he calls him, is manipulated by Holmes into solving one of his cases.

1988 broughtThom Eberhardt's role-reversal comedyWithout a Clue.The film depicts Dr. Watson (Ben Kingsley) as the real detective genius and Holmes (Michael Caine) as a bumbling idiot who is merely an actor and a front man for Watson,with a plot which cleverly mirrors the real life circumstance of Conan Doyle (also a physician) who eventually tired of his creation, Sherlock Holmes.

Will FerrellandJohn C. Reillystarred as the eponymous characters in the 2018 mystery comedy filmHolmes & Watson.

Animation

The 1999 animated seriesSherlock Holmes in the 22nd Centurywas set in the year 2103 and involved Beth Lestrade, a direct descendant of Holmes's associateInspector Lestrade,reanimating the cryogenically preserved corpse of Holmes to battle Moriarty-later revealed to be a clone of the original-who was believed to be responsible for a series of crimes in New London. Watson was long dead, but a robotic counterpart was made to physically resemble him after downloading Watson's stories-and essentially his personality-into his databanks by accident, and the three solved a number of cases patterned on the original Holmes stories; for instance, a retelling ofThe Hound of the Baskervillestook place on the moon and involved werewolves. The series was created by DIC and Scottish Television, and ran for approximately two seasons. It was unique in Sherlockiana for a number of reasons, including the fact that Holmes, who is canonically described as having black hair and grey eyes, was depicted with blond hair and blue eyes.

Sherlock Hound( danh tham trinh ホームズ Meitantei Hōmuzu?, lit. "Detective Holmes" ) is a 1984 anime television series based on Conan Doyle's work where almost all the characters are depicted as anthropomorphic dogs. The show featured regular appearances of Jules Verne-steampunk style technology, adding a 19th-century science-fiction atmosphere to the series. It was coproduced by Japanese and Italian companies and animated by TMS (Tokyo Movie Shinsha). Some episodes were directed byHayao Miyazaki.

Holmes and Watson appear in theBatman: The Brave and the Boldepisode "Trials of the Demon!", respectively voiced byIan BuchananandJim Piddock.This version of the duo are acquaintances ofJason Blood,and work with him and Batman to clear his name afterGentleman Ghostframes him for his crimes. Upon encountering Batman, Holmes is able to deduce much about his nature, but is then baffled when Batman recognizes him immediately; he comes to see the Caped Crusader as something of a rival as they attempt to unravel the plot of Gentleman Ghost. After the villain's defeat, Holmes and his Victorian era allies see Batman off, and as Batman departs he acknowledges Holmes as the "World's Greatest Detective".

The 2015 anime film,The Empire of Corpses,features a younger, re-imagined Holmes and Watson, the latter actually the protagonist, in a steampunk world where the dead are reanimated and used as a labor force.

Comics

In theItalian comic bookMartin Mystèreand spin-off seriesStorie di Altrove/Stories from ElsewhereHolmes is a historical character.In the late 1880s, he worked on the case ofJack the Ripperand met ProfessorRichard Van Helsing,avampirewho destroyedCount Dracula.Along with Professor Challenger, Holmes visited a secret valley of dinosaurs in South America in 1896, which became the basis for Doyle's novelThe Lost World.The same year he worked with the American Secret Service "Elsewhere" to stop paranormal threats from another dimension. In 1910, he discovered a life extension serum. At the beginning of World War I, he had a final confrontation with Professor Moriarty. After the war, he moved to Ukraine, giving Arthur Conan Doyle the task to convince everyone that he was just an imaginary character. With the help of his serum, Holmes prolonged his life for several decades. In the 1990s, he indirectly helped Martin Mystère to capture a villain who found a formula of his serum.

Leah MooreandJohn Reppion'sThe Trial of Sherlock Holmes(2009) andScott Beatty'sSherlock Holmes: Year One(2011) published byDynamite Entertainment.

Ian Edgintonwrote the 2010Wildstormcomic booklimited seriesVictorian Undeadwhich pitted Holmes against zombies.

New Paradigm Studios in August 2012 debuted "Watson and Holmes" digital comic on iVerse ComicsPlus digital app. "Watson and Holmes" is a modern re-interpretation of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. John Watson as African-Americans in present day Harlem, NY. "Watson and Holmes" is in limited print black and white comics of the first three issues. Issue #1 will be in wide release July 2013.

The Koreanmanhwaseries,Lizzie Newton: Victorian Mysteries,is set in the Sherlock Holmes universe, but in an earlier period in history. Set in the year 1864, it features younger versions of characters in the series. These includeInspector Lestradeas a junior police officerand Professor Moriarty as a student.

Moriarty the Patriotis a Japanese manga series by Ryōsuke Takeuchi and Hikaru Miyoshi, focused on Holmes' nemesis, William James Moriarty, but Sherlock is also a major character. This Moriarty is a crime consultant who, alongside his brothers, hopes to end the English class system and reform society. Sherlock becomes first his rival and then his friend.

Video games

Sherlock Holmes has taken the starring roles in a number of video games, officially licensed or not.

Text only

• Melbourne Housereleased aninteractive fictionadventure game forCommodore 64andZX SpectrumcalledSherlockin 1984.
• Peter Allen Goldenin 1984 published a Sherlock Holmes computer interactive novelAnother Bow.
• Ellicott Creek Software in 1986 publishedSherlock Holmes: The Vatican Cameosfor ZX Spectrum andApple II.
• Infocomreleased a text adventure game,Sherlock: The Riddle of the Crown Jewels,in 1987. The plot revolves around Moriarty's theft of the Crown Jewels days before the celebration of Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee; Holmes rightly senses that a trap has been set for him and allows Watson to investigate the case.
• Pack-In-Videoreleased in 1987Young Sherlock: The Legacy of Doylefor theMSX,mostly a text adventure with some graphics. It is based on the 1985 filmYoung Sherlock Holmes,but the plot is different.
• Slovakian Sybilasoft (Michal Hlavac) created a text adventure for ZX Spectrum calledTraja Garrideboviain 1987.
• British Creative Juices (David Court) in 1988 created a text adventure for ZX Spectrum calledSherlock Holmes: a Matter of Evil.
• British 8th Day Software in 1988 published a text adventure with some additional graphics created by Stephen Kee and Alan Bolger calledThe Ravenfor ZX Spectrum.
• ZenobiSoftware released two text-only adventure games for the ZX Spectrum:Sherlock Holmes: The Case of the Beheaded Smugglerin 1988andSherlock Holmes: The Lamberley Mysteryin 1990.
• Mycroft Systems published a text-only adventure forMS-DOSin 1990 calledThe Adventures of Sherlock Holmesset in London and featuring Dr. Watson, Mrs. Baker and Inspector Lestrade.
• Yestersoft in 1991 publishedPC-Sherlock: a Game of Logic and Deduction,with very little graphics and focusing on logic aspects.

Graphic adventures

• Datasoft released agraphic adventuregame called221B Baker Stin 1986.
• Towa Chikireleased three action-adventure games calledSherlock Holmes: Hakushaku Reijō Yūkai Jikenin 1986,Meitantei Holmes: Kiri no London Satsujin Jikenin 1988, andMeitantei Holmes: M-Kara no Chousenjouin 1989 only in Japan for theNintendo Entertainment System.
• Segain 1987 published a graphic adventure calledLoretta no Shouzou: Sherlock Holmes( "The Portrait of Loretta" ) exclusively inJapan.
• ICOM SimulationsreleasedSherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective,a multimediaCD-ROMadventure game for PCs in 1991 and later for theSega CDsystem 1992,TurboGrafx-16and Apple computers. One of the earliest multimedia titles, it was to become a series of three games, each with three cases. Each game in the series uses full motion video clips. A collected edition followed in 1993. A re-mastered version foriOS,Microsoft Windows,andOS Xwas released in 2012.
  • Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective Vol. II,ICOM, 1992.
  • Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective Vol. III,ICOM, 1993.
• Electronic Artsreleased a series of originalcomputer gamesforDOScalledThe Lost Files of Sherlock Holmes:The Case of the Serrated Scalpelwas released in 1992,The Case of the Rose Tattooin 1996.
• Game developerFrogwarescreated the titlesSherlock Holmes: Mystery of the Mummy,Sherlock Holmes: Secret of the Silver EarringandSherlock Holmes: The Awakened,both marketed as "inspired byThe Adventures of Sherlock Holmes",and released in 2004 and 2006, respectively. Frogwares also createdSherlock Holmes: Nemesis,released in 2008 andSherlock Holmes Versus Jack the Ripper,released in 2009 and converted to play in the Xbox 360. In September 2012, Frogwares releasedThe Testament of Sherlock Holmesfor theXbox 360,PlayStation 3,andWindows.Also in September 2014, Frogwares releasedSherlock Holmes: Crimes & Punishmentsand in 2016Sherlock Holmes: The Devil's Daughter.These eight games comprises theAdventures of Sherlock Holmes video game series.In addition to them, Frogwares released also fourcasual games:Sherlock Holmes: The Mystery of the Persian Carpet,Sherlock Holmes and the Mystery of Osborne House,Sherlock Holmes and the Hound of the Baskervilles,andSherlock Holmes: The Mystery of the Frozen City.
• Three games have been inspired by moviesSherlock HolmesandSherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadowsdirected byGuy Ritchie:Gameloft S. A. published in 2009Sherlock Holmes: The Official Movie Gamefor Java,Warner Bros.developedSherlock Holmes MysteriesforiOS,and Sticky Game Studios released in 2011 an online game calledSherlock Holmes 2: Checkmate.
• The Great Ace Attorney: Adventures,a video game on theNintendo 3DSand a spin-off of theAce Attorneyseries, features Sherlock Holmes as a major supporting character, aided by protagonist Ryunosuke Naruhodo to solve a mysterious case. He is accompanied by Iris Watson, a 10-year-old girl genius and purported daughter of Dr. Watson. Holmes and Iris also appear in the game's sequel,The Great Ace Attorney 2: Resolve.Due to copyright concerns, the characters' names are localized in international releases toHerlock Sholmesand Iris Wilson, in homage to Holmes' renaming in the Arsène Lupin stories.
• The Lost Cases of Sherlock HolmesandThe Lost Cases of Sherlock Holmes 2(also calledThe Lost Cases of 221B Baker St.), two casual games by Legacy Interactive with 16 new cases each (mostly hidden objects scenes) with Holmes and Watson. The cases of the first games are "The Zouch Emerald", "The Assassinated Aerialist", "Murder in the Third Act", "The Purloined Painting", "The Suspicious Sting", "The Death Card Devil", "The Wayward Will", "The Curse of Anan Thotep", "The Mystery of the Billiard Blackmailer", "A Duchess' Diamonds", "The Maestro's Violin", "The Porcelain Dragon", "The Docklands Spy", "The Vanishing Actress", "King Arthur's Arrow", and "The Eight Clocks Assassin", plus a bonus game in Holmes' chemistry laboratory. The cases of the second game are "Slaying at the Standing Stones", "The Harbor Pirates Prisoner", "The Curious Chrononaut", "The Return of Jack the Ripper", "The Lost Blade of Calcutta", "The Murdered Musician", "The Vulnerable Pugilist", "The Haunting at Marlsbury Castle", "The Pups of Baskerville", "The Tainted Truffle", "The Case of the Unwanted Suitor", "The Secret of the Father Christmas Club", "The Sticky-Fingered Dinner Guest", "The Disappearing Doomsday Formula", "The Mystery of the Millionaire's Daughter", and "The Bohemian Crown Heist", plus four bonus stories.
• Sherlock Holmes: The Case of the Time Machine(also released asCerebral Sherlock) andSherlock Holmes: The Case of the Vanishing Thief,two comedy adventures for children by Green Street, Anuman Interactive, gameX and Compedia. The playing character here is Watson, but Holmes is also present, as well as Sergeant Plymouth. Watson has to catch "the biggest criminal of all time", Jailhouse Jimmy. No clear license on the packaging.

Apps

• SecretBuilders Games has released in 2013 a game calledSherlock Holmes: The Blue Diamond;the same year another game was released calledSherlock Holmes: The Norwood Mysteryand in 2014 two games for iOS and Android were released calledHidden Object Valley of Fear 1andValley of Fear Mystery 2,featuring Holmes and Watson.
• Hidden Object World has released an app calledHidden Object – Sherlock,basically a casual game with hidden objects search.
• Another plain hidden object app has been released in 2017 by Lory Hidden Object Games and calledHidden Objects Sherlock Holmes.
• In recent times, Crisp App Studio has released two apps inspired by Sherlock Holmes:Detective Holmes: Hidden ObjectsandSherlock Holmes: Trap for the Hunter.Although mainly targeted at smartphones and tablets, they have been released also on Steam.
• DikobrazGames has released an appSherlock Holmes Adventure Freeinspired byBenedict Cumberbatch'sSherlock.

Sherlock Holmes cameos

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According toThe Alternative Sherlock Holmes: Pastiches, Parodies, and Copiesby Peter Ridgway Watt and Joseph Green, the first known period pastiche dates from 1893. Titled "The Late Sherlock Holmes",it came from the pen of Doyle's close friend,J. M. Barrie,who was to createPeter Pana decade later. The police are apprised of the death of Holmes and believe that Dr. Watson has killed him because of a disagreement about money. However, Holmes turns out to be alive and, although it is not made clear, Watson is presumably released.

In 1902Mark Twainpainted an unflattering portrait of Holmes and his methods of deduction in hisA Double Barrelled Detective Story.In the short story, set at a mining camp inCalifornia,Fetlock Jones, a nephew of Sherlock Holmes, kills his master, a silver-miner, by blowing up his cabin. Since this occurs when Holmes happens to be visiting, he brings his skills to bear upon the case and arrives at logically worked conclusions that are proved abysmally wrong by an amateur detective with an extremely keen sense of smell which he employs in solving the case. Perhaps this ought to be seen as yet another piece where Twain tries to prove that life does not quite follow logic.

In 1905 the French writerMaurice Leblancpitted his gentleman burglarArsène Lupinagainst Holmes in a story calledSherlock Holmes arrive trop tard(Sherlock Holmes Arrives Too Late), the first of four in theLupinseries. Copyright concerns at the time forced Holmes to be renamed "Herlock Sholmes" or "Holmlock Shears", and Watson to be renamed "Wilson", in subsequent appearances. However, in many modern editions, the names have reverted to the original.

In 1910, the French writerArnould Galopinteamed up his detectiveAllan Dickson,theAustralian Sherlock Holmeswith an aging Holmes renamedHerlokolmswho had been much impressed by the young man's early exploits inL'Homme au Complet Gris(The Man in Grey). Allan Dickson may have been the prototype forHarry Dickson(see#Successors of Sherlock Holmes,below).

Another French writer,Théodore Botrel,wrote the playLe Mystère de Kéravelin 1932 in which Holmes, travelling incognito in Brittany, solves a murder at the request of local police, who know his true identity. He is referred to asL'étrangerin the list of characters, but named in the text.

In 1967, aThe Man from U.N.C.L.E.novel, "The Rainbow Affair" byDavid McDaniel,features a cameo by an elderly bee-keeper named William Escott (Holmes in his retired identity).

Several characters from the canon appear inAlan Moore'scomic bookseriesThe League of Extraordinary Gentlemen,in which various characters from Victorian fiction are recruited to serve the interests of an alternate-historyBritish Empire.Holmes himself appears only in aflashbackduring the first series, as he is still presumed dead. Mycroft has a more substantial role in the second series. References in the series suggest Sherlock was a member of an earlier iteration of the League. Moriarty also figures into the first series and the film adaptation. Holmes also makes a minor but significant appearance inWarren EllisandJohn Cassaday's comic book seriesPlanetary.

Michael P. Hodeland Sean M. Wright presented a mystery-adventureEnter the Lion: A Posthumous Memoir of Mycroft Holmes(1979) in which Sherlock's older brother prevents a conspiracy involving a return of the American "colonies" to Great Britain. Sherlock makes appearances withVictor Trevor(from"The Adventure of theGloria Scott"),Professor Moriartyand Moriarty's father.

Carole Nelson Douglashas written a spin-off series centring upon Holmes' nemesisIrene Adler.The first book is titledGood Night, Mr. Holmesand takes place concurrently withA Scandal in Bohemia.While Irene Adler is the main character, Sherlock Holmes plays a role in every book in the series.

Michael Malloryhas written a series of short stories and one novel (Murder in the Bath) about the second wife ofDoctor Watson,here named "Amelia Watson." Holmes appears in several of the stories as a semi-antagonistic foil for Amelia—a detective who is in reality slightly less than infallible, but who has been made to appear so to the public through Watson's writings.

InKim Newman'salternate historynovelAnno Dracula,set in a world whereDraculabecomes the monarch of Britain, Holmes is one of the prominent "warms" to protest against the new order. The vampire government ofLord Ruthvenin turn imprisons him in aconcentration campinDevil's Dyke, Sussex.

Holmes and Watson appear briefly inGeorge MacDonald Fraser's short storyFlashman and the Tiger(1999), which appears in the collection of that name. The events there are consistent with those of the canonical storyThe Adventure of the Empty House,which takes place in 1894. Holmes sees Flashman disguised as a tramp and draws a series of conclusions about him which are all wrong.

Holmes and Watson also appear inAlan Coren's children's books,Arthur and the Great DetectiveandArthur and the Bellybutton Diamond.The titularArthuris an erstwhile Baker Street Irregular.

In 1993 the psychologistKeith OatleywroteThe Case of Emily V.,a novel in whichSigmund Freud,Watson and Sherlock Holmes turn out to be investigating the same person. This book won the 1994 Commonwealth Writers Prize for Best First Novel.In Oatley's book the reader finds out the "real truth" behind Freud's case notes on Emily V.

In theDoctor WhoVirgin New AdventuresnovelAll-Consuming FirebyAndy Lanethe Time Lord meets Holmes and Watson while investigating a recent theft from the Library of St. John the Beheaded, revealed to be the work of Holmes's unknown eldest brother Sherringford (sic), Holmes in the end being forced to kill Sherringford (sic) to save Watson. They are later amongst numerous characters from the series who attendBernice Summerfield's wedding inHappy EndingsbyPaul Cornell.Holmes also features in theFaction ParadoxnovelErasing Sherlockby Kelly Hale and in the noveletteThe Shape of ThingsbyStuart Douglasin theIris WildthymecollectionMiss Wildthyme and Friends Investigate.Mycroft Holmes,Dr John Watson and Professor George Challenger also appear in the same book.

Boris Akunin's short storyThe Prisoner of the Tower, or A Short But Beautiful Journey of Three Wise Menin theJade Rosary Beadscompilation describes Holmes and Erast Fandorin's race to thwart a deviousextortionplan byArsène Lupin.

AuthorNancy Springerhas written aseries of novels of the adventures of Enola Holmes,the much younger teenage sister of Sherlock and Mycroft. Upon their mother's disappearance, Enola discovers that she in fact left of her own volition according to a carefully devised plan to live independently and raised her daughter with the skills to do the same if she chose to. Finding the resources her mother carefully hid for her, Enola decides to run away rather than be forced intoboarding schoolby Mycroft. She eventually comes to London where she secretly sets herself up in business as a private investigator when she realises she is equally as talented at the profession as her older brother even as she is determined to elude his notice.

Holmes cameos at the end ofDetective Comics#572, the comic series' 50th anniversary issue, helpingBatman,Robin,The Elongated Man,andSlam Bradleytie up a case involving the descendants of both Dr. Watson and Professor Moriarty. Well over a century old now, Holmes attributes his longevity to "a proper diet, a certain distillation of royal jelly, developed in my beekeeping days, and the rarified (sic) atmosphere of Tibet, where I keep my primary residence." He apparently gave up tobacco, too, indicating that his pipe was now "purely for show these days."

Mercedes Lackey'sElemental Mastersseries is set in a world in which magic and psychic powers are real. Holmes and the Watsons appear in three of the books; Dr Watson is a Water Master, Mary is an Air Master, and Holmes is at first skeptical, dismissing their talk of magic as superstitious twaddle.

InTheodora Goss' 2017 novel,The Strange Case of the Alchemist's Daughter,the protagonist Mary Jekyll meets Holmes and Watson, and they help each other solve their respective mysteries, which happen to converge.

TV

InStar Trek: The Next Generation,a Sherlock Holmes mystery was one of the programmes on theEnterprise-D'sholodeck.In the episodeElementary, Dear Data,Data,after memorising all of the Sherlock Holmes books, is challenged to use deduction in an original mystery created byDr. Pulaski.However, the programme goes awry whenGeordi La Forge,in response to Pulaski's challenge, asks the computer to create an adversary capable of defeatingData,resulting in the hologram of Professor Moriarty (played byDaniel Davis) gaining full sentience, kidnapping Dr. Pulaski and taking over the ship's computer. In a later episode,Ship in a Bottle,the holodeck Moriarty again takes control of the ship, insisting that a way be found for him to experience life beyond the confines of the holodeck, until the crew manage to trap him in a permanent simulation. The first Holmes-based episode was produced with the understanding that Sherlock Holmes waspublic domain,but a protest from the Doyle estate indicated otherwise (and, it is rumoured, prevented a plan for Data-as-Holmes to become a recurring character).

An elderly Holmes and Watson appear in a sketch of comedy showThat Mitchell and Webb Look,where Holmes is portrayed as an increasingly senile old man whose flawed deductions are merely humoured by Watson to try to make his old friend feel better; the sketch ends on a tearful note as Holmes, his mind briefly clear, admits to Watson that he knows that his powers are failing him but simply cannot think clearly enough to get past his age.

In 2020 Netflix released the film Enola Holmes based on the Nancy Springer character of the same name starring Millie Bobby Brown (Stranger Things) as the titular character and Henry Cavill as Sherlock Holmes. The cast also includes Helena Bonham Carter as Eudora Holmes and Sam Claflin as Mycroft Holmes. The film was originally set for theatrical distribution by Warner Bros. Pictures but the distribution rights were picked up by Netflix due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A sequel, Enola Holmes 2, was released in 2022 with a third thought to be currently in production. No release date has yet been confirmed.

Animation

• Disney'sThe Great Mouse Detective(1986), also known asBasil of Baker Street,was a relatively successful theatrical featureanimated filmbased on theBasil of Baker Streetbooks ofEve Titus,featuring a miniature subworld of London with mice, rats and cats in the lead roles. The title character is a mouse who lives in 221B Baker St and models his own detective career on Holmes, who lives at the same address and makes a cameo appearance.
• In one episode of The Fairly Oddparents Holmes is portrayed in stereotypical attire; he starts every sentence with "elementary, my dear (whomever he is addressing)" and will always know the answer to every single question posed to him about the asker.
• In theVeggieTalesepisode,Sheerluck Holmes and the Golden Ruler,Larry the Cucumber and Bob the Tomato portray vegetable versions of Holmes and Watson, respectively, in order to teach a lesson on friendship.

Video games

Everett Kaser has published a series of free reflection games (puzzles) with names referring to Sherlock Holmes stories:Sherlock: The Game of Logic,Dinner with Moriarty,Watson's Map,Baker Street,Scotland YardInspector Lestrade,Mrs. Hudson,Reichenbach Falls,Queen's Gambit,Mycroft's Map.Sherlock Holmes, however, does not appear in the games, except some very small icons.

InMidnight Mysteries: Haunted Houdinia hidden-object/puzzle video game released in 2012 byMumboJumbo,Sherlock Holmes is on the suspects list.

InFate/Grand Order,released inJapanin 2015, Holmes briefly appears in the Camelot singularity. Then he appears in the Shinjuku singularity as an ally. He is a Ruler class servant.

InThere Is No Game: Wrong Dimension,the second chapter sees the player trapped in a fictionaladventure gamebased on Sherlock Holmes. The player must alter the game's user interface and environment in order to manipulate Holmes and Watson into solving specific puzzles so that they might escape.

Successors of Sherlock Holmes

These stories treat Sherlock Holmes as an historical character but concern themselves with one of his successors – biological or spiritual – who usually take after him in some way, e.g. being good detectives.

Film

In the 1977 spoofThe Strange Case of the End of Civilization as We Know It,John Cleeseplays Arthur Sherlock Holmes, grandson of the famous sleuth, alongside Watson's grandson, played byArthur Lowe.

TV

The Adventures of Shirley Holmesis the story of the teenage Anglo-Canadian grandniece of Sherlock Holmes, Shirley, who after discovering some of Sherlock Holmes' effects (which he had concealed to ensure that only a fitting successor of similar intellect would find them), goes on to solve many crimes and mysteries with the assistance of her male Watson-like friend, Bo Sawchuk. She also has a Moriarty-like arch-enemy in the form of Molly Hardy.

Manga/anime

InHidan no Ariaseries, the character Aria Holmes Kanzake is the descendant of Sherlock Holmes.Tantei Opera Milky Holmeshas four protagonists named after famous literary detectives, and they even adopt the iconic deerstalker into their uniform.

Ron Kamonohashi, the main character ofRon Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective,is a sixth-generation descendant of Sherlock Holmes, and a ninth-generation descendant of James Moriarty.

Video games

Big Fish Games and Elephant Games have released three games with a main character named "Ms. Holmes", a female detective who investigates in England during the absence of Sherlock Holmes after his disappearance at Reichenbach Falls. Some recurring Holmes' characters such as Professor Moriarty, Inspector Lestrade, and the Baskervilles are cited in the games. Later she is revealed to be Sharlotte Holmes, a Holmes' descendant.

Holmes-inspired characters

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The future King of Thailand, Crown PrinceVajiravudh,published 15 stories featuring a detective Mr.Thong-in,and his assistant Mr. Wat, which were published in 1904-1905. The stories are widely recognised as containing elements from both Arthur Conan Doyle'sSherlock Holmesstories, andEdgar Allan Poe's "The Murders in the Rue Morgue".

August Derleth's Holmes-inspired sleuthSolar Ponsis an obvious and early homage to Holmes. Derleth began to write the stories in 1928 after asking permission ofArthur Conan Doyleto continue the series of Sherlock Holmes stories (it was denied). The first collection of Pons stories was published in 1948, and Derleth's stories are contained in 13 additional books, several published after his death in 1971.Basil Coppercontinued the Pons series with an additional eight books, the most recent published in 2005.

The protagonist ofUmberto Eco's novelThe Name of the Rose,Friar William of Baskerville (perThe Hound of the Baskervilles), and his novice Adso (who, like Watson, is the narrator), are patterned on Holmes and Watson. William of Baskerville is physically similar to Holmes, has the habit of addressing his companion with "My dear Adso" and the story itself is about a strictly rational brain following a path of investigation of a seemingly inexplicable chain of violent deaths.

Poul Andersonwrote several stories in which characters modelled themselves on Holmes, including "The Martian Crown Jewels", "The Queen of Air and Darkness", and "The Adventure of the Misplaced Hound".

InRobert A. Heinlein'sThe Moon Is a Harsh Mistress(1966) one of the characters is a computer, a model "HOLMES IV", which adopts the name Mycroft, after Sherlock Holmes' brother.

Julian Symonscreated a character named Sheridan Haynes, an actor immersed in the role of Holmes for an epic project to adapt the entire canon for television (almost ten years beforeJeremy Bretttook up a similar challenge), in the 1975 novelA Three Pipe Problem.Haynes finds himself confusing his own identity with Holmes', and becomes involved in a mystery. The character returned for a 1988 sequel,The Kentish Manor Murders,and Symons also wrote a Holmes short story pastiche.

Charles Hamilton,under the pseudonym Peter Todd, wrote almost 100 short parodies of the Holmes short stories from 1915 onwards. The characters became Herlock Sholmes and Dr Jotson, living in a Shaker Street apartment; and the sophisticated deductive reasoning of the original became absurdity in the spoofs, which were mainly published in a range of boys' comics of the period (The Greyfriars Herald,The Magnet,The Gem,etc.). Although satirical and often mocking contemporary mores (and World War I shortages), the stories had a real feel for the dialogue and structure of the originals. They were all reprinted inThe Complete Casebook of Herlock Sholmes(Hawk Books 1989).

Michael Chabon's novellaThe Final Solution(2004) features an unnamed protagonist who is likely a retired Holmes. The story takes place during World War II, and features the Holmes character investigating the appearance of a mute boy with aparrotwho repeatedly calls a string of seemingly random numbers in German. References to Holmes are plentiful: the protagonist is abee keeper,is familiar with detectives inLondon,and smokes a pipe. The title simultaneously refers to the Nazi plan for genocide hinted at in the book and mirrors one of Doyle's own shorts, "The Final Problem".

Sarah Monette'sThe Angel of the Crows(2020), transposed to an alternative London with angels and werewolves, portrays Dr Watson as a field surgeon injured in theSecond Anglo-Afghan Warinstead of India, and Sherlock Holmes as an angel. The work tries to be an anthology of several Holmes cases.

In theO. Henryshort stories "The Sleuths", "The Adventures of Shamrock Jolnes" and "The Detective Detector" – story collections:Sixes and Sevens (1911),andWaifs and Strays(1917)– the character Shamrock Jolnes parodies Sherlock Holmes' deductive methods and disguises.

InBret Harte's collection ofburlesquesof contemporaneous writers,Condensed Novels: New Burlesques,the characterHemlock Jonesin the story "The Stolen Cigar Case By A. Co—n D—le" has been praised byEllery Queenas "probably the best parody of Sherlock Holmes ever written".

In the first novel ofJoyce Ballou Gregorian's Tredana Trilogy,The Broken Citadel,a young girl is transported from our world to a fantasy world called Tredana. She learns that the only previous traveller there from our world is a Norwegian explorer named Sigerson, who was taught how to get there by the Dalai Lama. In Conan Doyle's stories, during the period in which Holmes is presumed dead between the events ofThe Final ProblemandThe Adventure of the Empty House,one identity Holmes adopts is a Norwegian explorer named Sigerson who meets with the Dalai Lama.

Timothy Zahn's series of novels about theStar WarscharacterGrand Admiral Thrawnhave led many to draw comparisons between theChissand Conan Doyle's Sherlock, from Thrawn's deductive methods to his companions and rivals.InHeir to the Empire,Captain Pellaeonserves as Thrawn's Watson,though in later books likeThrawnandThrawn: Treason,Eli Vantoalso plays a similar role to Watson, serving as Thrawn's aide, friend, and successor. The elusiveNightswanserves as Thrawn's Moriarty in the 2017 novel, andThrasscould arguably serve as Thrawn's Mycroft. In contrast, others have compared Thrawn to Moriarty due to his role within the Empire.

Film

Douglas Fairbanksplayed a cocaine-addicted Holmes spoof named "Coke Enneday" inThe Mystery of the Leaping Fish(1916). Many of this "scientific" detective's possessions are checkered in the Holmes manner, including his detective hat, jacket, and even his car, and whenever he feels momentarily dejected, he nonchalantly extracts yet another syringe from a bandolier on his chest and quickly injects himself withcocaine,laughing in merriment as an immediate result.

In 1924, comedianBuster KeatonmadeSherlock Jr.,about a film projectionist who dreams of becoming a great detective.

The 1971 filmThey Might Be Giants,adapted fromJames Goldman's 1961 British stage play of the same name, featuredGeorge C. Scottas a widowed judge named Justin Playfair who imagines himself to be Holmes. When his brother seeks to have him committed, he is brought to Dr. Mildred Watson (Joanne Woodward).

InThe Return of the World's Greatest Detective(1976 TV movie), a rather ineffectualLos Angelespolice officer,and avid fan of Sherlock Holmes, namedSherman Holmes(played by American actorLarry Hagman) suffers a brain injury when his parkedmotorcycletips over and falls onto his head (he was lying beside it, reading). He wakes with both the unshakeable delusion that he is Sherlock Holmes and that he possesses all of Holmes' incredible deductive abilities. His friend and case-worker, Dr. Joan Watson (Jenny O'Hara), moves him to Apartment B of 221 Baker Street, where he becomes involved in the murder of an embezzler.Nicholas Colasantoalso stars as Lt. Tinker, Holmes' former superior, who is in charge of the murder investigation. Reviewers of the day pointed out parallels toThey Might Be Giants.

The 1986 Soviet comedyMy Dearly Beloved Detectivefeatures two women (Shirley Holmes and Jane Watson) opening a private detective agency in London, to the displeasure of Scotland Yard at the competitors. Sherlock Holmes is fictional in the setting.

Zero Effect,loosely based on the Sherlock Holmes story "A Scandal in Bohemia",featuresBill Pullmanas Daryl Zero, a neurotic detective who is only in his element when on a case, andBen Stilleras Watson-like assistant Steve Arlo. Set in modernPortland, Oregon,the search for a shady businessman's lost keys reveals a plot involving murder, blackmail, and secret identities. Instead ofcocaine,Zero's occasional need for mental stimulation leads to experimentation with the drugmescaline.In the film, Zero indicates that he has mastered his technique of "Observation and Objectivity" – or as he calls them, "The Two Obs".

Sherlock Holmes also inspiredSatyajit Rayto create the character Pradosh Mitter. Mitter, affectionately calledFeluda,was immensely popular in Bengal. Feluda used the method of deduction to solve his cases, most of which were set inCalcutta.Ray even made some movies with Feluda as hero, includingSonar Kella(The Golden Fortress). Additionally, theBengaliwriter Saradindu Bandyopadhyay also had a detective namedByomkesh Bakshi,which had some resemblance to Doyle's Holmes.In many ways Bakshi was different from the "drug-addict" bachelor image that Holmes had. Bakshi was married and had few addictions except that of a cigarette. In many ways, Byomkesh's character was distinctly different from that of Holmes. However both used deductions and were astute observers. In their character portrayal though the biggest difference lies. The frequently brooding trait in Holmes' character was not found in the cheerful portrayal of Byomkesh Bakshi. The adventures of Bakshi was later developed into a television series that was aired inDoordarshan,India's premier TV channel during those times, in the early 1990s. The series featuring Rajit Kapoor as Byomkesh Bakshi, telecast on the Doordarshan, inspired a lot of Indians to read the works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and re-read the works of Saradindu Bandyopadhyay.

TV

CSI: Crime Scene Investigation

The highly popularCSI: Crime Scene Investigationfeatured an entire episode circling around the death of a man who held 'mystery nights' with a group of friends in which they roleplayed as Holmes characters and solved invented crimes; his basement was an exact replica of Sherlock Holmes' 221B Baker Street parlour, and he emulated everything Holmes did in the books – from his smoking to his cocaine addiction. The episode was called "Who Shot Sherlock?". CSI is also notable for the lead character,Gil Grissom(William Petersen), has more than a passing similarity to Sherlock Holmes.Like Holmes, Grissom is dispassionate with a fierce devotion to logic and little regard for societal norms of behaviour; Grissom once smashed mustard jars in a grocery store to illustrate a theory,much as Holmes once practiced spearing a pig in a butchers shop to determine how strong a man would have to be to transfix a man with a harpoon. Grissom also possesses a Moriarty-like nemesis, Paul Millander (Matt O'Toole), whom he pursues in several episodes.Coincidentally, "Paul Millander" has the same initials as "Professor Moriarty."There's also a woman, Lady Heather Kessler (Melinda Clarke), in whom he takes an unusual interest. Their relationship is similar to that ofIrene Adlerand Holmes. Both Irene and Lady Heather enchant Holmes and Grissom with their beauty, their wit and their resolution. Lady Heather often wears Victorian-style dresses, referencing Holmes's era. Whilst Grisoms replacementD.B. Russell's (Ted Danson) official character sheet was described as "A west coast Sherlock Holmes who devours crime novels and looks at every crime scene as if it were a story waiting to be told". Both Grissom and Russell work with their CSI partnersCatherine Willows(Marg Helgenberger) andJulie Finlay(Elisabeth Shue), respectively (both the equivalent ofDr. John Watson) while both working under theLas Vegas Police Department's Homicide CaptainJim Brass(Paul Guilfoyle) (the equivalent ofInspector Lestrade).

House MD

According to series creatorDavid Shore,Gregory Housewas inspired by the fictional character Sherlock Holmes, particularly about drug use and his desire (and capacity) to solve the unsolvable. House uses Holmesian deductive techniques to diagnose his patients' problems. For example, references to Sherlock Holmes range from the obvious (House's apartment number is 221B) to the subtle (his friendship with Dr.James Wilsonand the similarities between House and Holmes, and Wilson and Watson). In the pilot episode, the patient's last name was Adler, and in the last episode of season two, the man who shot House was Moriarty. House's act of faking cancer in season three, episode fifteen, "Half-Wit," is similar to the Holmes story, "The Adventure of the Dying Detective," Holmes fakes a deadly eastern disease to catch a criminal. The character of Holmes, was in turn, based on a Doctor that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle knew while studying medicine, Dr.Joseph Bell,whose specialty was diagnosis. In season five, episode eleven, "Joy to the World," Wilson presents House withJoseph Bell's Manual of the Operations of Surgery as a Christmas gift. When House's staff begins to wonder why he would throw away the expensive gift, an amused Wilson begins making up a story about House having a closeted infatuation with a patient named Irene Adler, who he will always consider to be "the one who got away." One character, Irene Adler, was wrongly characterized as Sherlock Holmes' love interest in several adaptations. Here, the one who got away parallels her was the one woman who defeated Sherlock Holmes, making Sherlock Holmes respect her. But he was never in love with her. The false story of Wilson about Irene Adler pays tribute to both of these facts. House also believed that his biological father was a family friend named Thomas Bell.The resemblance is evident in House's reliance ondeductive reasoningandpsychology,even where it might not seem obviously applicable and his reluctance to accept cases he finds uninteresting.

Law & Order: Criminal Intent

The character of DetectiveRobert Goren(Vincent D'Onofrio) is based on the popular fictional character of Sherlock Holmes, but instead of relying upon physical evidence like Holmes, Goren focuses on psychology to identify the perpetrators, whom he often draws into confessing or yielding condemning evidence. Goren also works with a John Watson like partner in DetectiveAlexandra Eames(Kathryn Erbe) and works forInspector Lestradetype commanding officersCaptain James Deakins(Jamey Sheridan) andCaptain Danny Ross(Eric Bogosian). The character ofNicole Wallace(Olivia d'Abo) is a direct attempt to play on the part of Sherlock Holmes' female antagonistIrene Adler,also known as "The Woman". Wallace is employed as a "Professor of Literature" during her first appearance, which could be a parallel to Holmes' nemesisProfessor Moriarty.

Monk

Andy Breckman,head writer ofMonk,admitted to copyingAdrian Monkfrom Conan Doyle "almost as if I used aXeroxmachine ".The characters and basic structure of the series were inspired by the Sherlock Holmes mysteries. The character name "Adrian Monk"was intended to be unusual like that of Sherlock Holmes. Other characters correspond to Holmes characters:Sharona Fleming(a nurse) andDr. John Watson;CaptainLeland Stottlemeyerand LieutenantRandall Disher(named Randall Deacon in the pilot) served much the same function on this show as didInspector Lestradein the Sherlock Holmes stories. This relationship may have inspired these characters' names: taking the first two letters of each name in order – LE from "Leland", ST from "Stottlemeyer", RA from "Randall" and DE from "Deacon" – spells out "Lestrade". (However, after the show's pilot episode, Randy Deacon's last name was changed to Disher.) There's also Monk's brother Ambrose andMycroft Holmes(Sherlock's brother) and Harold Krenshaw and James Moriarty (Holmes' nemesis), (JM) initials shifted two characters to the left in the alphabet (HK). Also, on another side note, Monk's second psychiatrist was called Dr. Bell. Sherlock Holmes was modeled on Dr Joseph Bell, a surgeon with outstanding deductive powers.

Others

Sherlock Hemlockis amuppetcharacter based on Sherlock Holmes, who appears on the American children's programmeSesame Street.

The pilot episode of the well-remembered series,Murder, She Wrote,starringAngela Lansbury,aired on 30 September 1984. The story had to do with her character, mystery writerJessica Fletcher,searching out the murderer of Caleb McCallum (played byBrian Keith) who is killed at a masquerade party where he is dressed in deerstalker cap and cape-coat. It was titled "The Murder of Sherlock Holmes".

Although never directly stated,Psychis said to have been based on, or at least a parody of, Sherlock Holmes, withShawn Spencerbeing Sherlock Holmes,Burton "Gus" GusterbeingDr. John Watson,Henry Spencer beingMycroft Holmes,Police ChiefKaren VickbeingInspector Lestrade,and "Mr. Yang"being Moriarty. WhenBBC'sSherlockpremiered in 2010, parallels were also drawn between DetectiveJuliet O'HaraandMolly Hooper,and between DetectiveCarlton LassiterandPhillip AndersonandSally Donovan.

Many fans of the seriesThe Mentalistbelieve that the series' main characterPatrick Janeis inspired by Sherlock Holmes. Jane can read a crime scene with his observation skills and uses his team as his own version ofDr. John Watson/Inspector Lestradeand has an enemy withRed Johnbeing Patrick's own version of Professor James Moriarty.

Animation

InWarner Bros.long-runningLooney Tunescartoon show,Daffy Duckdid a turn as "Dorlock Holmes" in the episode "Deduce, You Say",first shown in 1956. In this episode, Dorlock Holmes (festooned in deerstalker cap and residing on Beeker Street) and his assistant Watkins (played byPorky Pig) must track down the Shropshire Slasher.

SeveralDick Tracyanimated cartoons centre around a white bulldog, helmeted like a London bobby, namedHemlock Holmes.

Sherlock Holmesis extremely popular inJapan,and was an inspiration for theJapaneseanimeandmanga,Case Closed(Detective Conanin Japan), where the main character,Jimmy Kudo(Shin'ichi Kudo), takes his pseudonym, Conan Edogawa, from two detective fiction authors,Edogawa RampoandArthur Conan Doyle.IncidentallyEdogawa Rampotook his name fromEdgar Allan Poe,the American writer known as the 'Father' of detective fiction. In addition, many of the characters of Detective Conan are inspired by characters from Doyle's original canon. Most notably is that Kudo himself is a take on Sherlock Holmes. This connection is made even more obvious by the naming of some of its fictional locations like Beika City and Haido City named after Baker Street and Hyde Park respectively. The Kudo family residence is even located at no. 21 of the second block in Beika Town.

Video games

The Other Guys has released in 2016 an app calledSherlock Holmes: Lost Detective.Divided into two seasons, the main character is a young Scotland Yard agent; in this game there is a professor of English literature claiming to be Sherlock Holmes. Originally for iOS and Android, at present time can be found only on iTunes.

Doctor Watson: Mystery Cases(alsoDoctor Watson: Treasure Island) andDoctor Watson 2: The Riddle of the Catacombsare two casual games (hidden object games with 3D capabilities) released by German software house UIG in which the main character is loosely inspired by the original Watson. Holmes himself, however, does not appear.

SecretBuilders Games has released in 2018 a casual game,Dr. Watson Mysteries – Hidden Objects Game,where the protagonist is Dr. Watson, not Sherlock Holmes, but it features many Conan Doyle's stories such asThe Hound of the Baskervilles,The Valley of Fear,The Speckled Band,The Silver Blaze,The Musgrave Ritual,The Gloria Scott,andThe Copper Beeches.

Crisp App Studios has developed a crime-comedy casual game namedSherlock Pugwhere the main character is an anthropomorphic dog who is also a police officer, assisted by a superhero (Super Al) to defeat the evil Skindiver who has seized Oddopolis; mainly targeted to a children audience, it is available on Steam and, freely, on Microsoft website.

Manga

ThroughoutGender-Swap at the Delinquent Academy,the main character Torao Kadoki occasionally dons afake moustacheand deerstalker hat to investigate mysteries as "Herlock Sholmes".

Audio

The Tale of the Giant Rat of Sumatrais a comedy album created byThe Firesign Theatrefeaturing Hemlock Stones and Flotsam.

See also

• Fan fiction
• Klinger v. Conan Doyle Estate, Ltd.

Bibliography

• Text was copied fromInfluence of Sherlock Holmesat the Baker Street Wiki, which is released under aCreative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 (Unported) (CC-BY-SA 3.0) license.
• Peter Ridgway Watt, Joseph Green,The alternative Sherlock Holmes: pastiches, parodies, and copies,Ashgate Publishing,2003,ISBN0-7546-0882-4
• Bernard A. Drew,Literary afterlife: the posthumous continuations of 325 authors' fictional characters,McFarland, 2009,ISBN0-7864-4179-8,pp. 110–117

External links

• A Thoroughgoing Listing of Sherlockian Pastiche Novels:http://home.earthlink.net/~glennbranca/unclubables/id12.htmlArchived8 August 2009 at theWayback Machine
• Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Christmas Carol,a play by John Longenbaugh, world premiered at Taproot Theatre Company in Seattle in 2010