#sherlock holmes and the secret weapon

[randomnessoffiction]

[inevitable-destruction]

I think my main interest in this affair is the chance it gives me to battle with you again.

[bluebellofbakerstreet]

Still not over this prop in Moriarty's study from "Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon" - the skull abacus 

Every supervillain needs a skull abacus! 💀💀💀

[bens-things]

Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon (1942) dir. Roy William Neill

[blistering-typhoons]

the secret weapon + watson hair appreciation

[alightinthelantern]

Movies on Youtube:

Brief Encounter (1945, David Lean)

Opening Night (1977, John Cassavetes)

Close Up (1990, Abbas Kiarostami)

Taste of Cherry (1997, Abbas Kiarostami)

The Song of Sparrows (2008,  Majid Majidi)

Russian Ark (2002, Alexander Sokurov)

Dreams (1990, Akira Kurosawa)

Dersu Uzala (1975, Akira Kurosawa)

The Idiot (1951, Akira Kurosawa)

Drunken Angel (1948, Akira Kurosawa)

Tokyo Story (1953, Yasujirō Ozu)

Early Summer (1951, Yasujirō Ozu)

Late Spring (1949, Yasujirō Ozu)

The Flavor of Green Tea over Rice (1952, Yasujirō Ozu)

Good Morning (1959, Yasujirō Ozu)

An Autumn Afternoon (1962, Yasujirō Ozu)

Sword for Hire (1952, Inagaki Hiroshi)

Rebecca (1940, Alfred Hitchcock)

Thunderbolt (1929, Josef von Sternberg)

Larceny (1948, George Sherman)

Among the Living (1941, Stuart Heisler)

Andrei Rublev (1966, Andrei Tarkovsky)

Mirror (1975, Andrei Tarkovsky)

Solaris (1972, Andrei Tarkovsky)

Ivan’s Childhood (1962, Andrei Tarkovsky)

Aguirre, the Wrath of God (1972, Werner Herzog)

Fitzcarraldo (1982, Werner Herzog)

Medea (1969, Pier Paolo Pasolini)

Medea (filmed stageplay)

Is It Easy To Be Young? (1986, Juris Podnieks)

We'll Live Till Monday (1968, Stanislav Rostotsky)

Ordinary Fascism (aka Triumph Over Violence) (1965, Mikhail Romm)

Battleship Potemkin (1925, Sergei Eisenstein)

The Third Man (1949, Carol Reed)

Johnny Come Lately (1943, William K. Howard)

Mister 880 (1950, Edmund Goulding)

Beethoven’s Eroica (2003, Simon Cellan Jones)

Katyn (2007, Andrzej Wajda)

Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events (2004, Brad Silberling)

Mean Girls (2004, Mark Waters)

The Neverending Story (1984, Wolfgang Petersen)

The NeverEnding Story II: The Next Chapter (1990, George T. Miller)

The Thief and the Cobbler (Richard Williams)

Osmosis Jones (2001, myriad directors)

Megamind (2010, Tom McGrath)

Ghost in the Shell (1995, Mamoru Oshii)

Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence (2004, Mamoru Oshii)

Steamboy (2004, Katsuhiro Otomo)

Badlands (1973), Terrence Malick

Wargames (1983, John Badham)

By the White Sea (2022, Aleksandr Zachinyayev)

White Moss (2014, Vladimir Tumayev)

The Theme (1979, Gleb Panfilov)

The Duchess (2008, Saul Dibb)

Bed and Sofa (1927, Abram Room)

Fate of a Man (1959, Sergei Bondarchuk)

Ballad of a Soldier (1959, Grigory Chukhray)

Uncle Vanya (1970, Andrey Konchalovskiy)

An Unfinished Piece for Mechanical Piano (1977, Nikita Mikhalkov)

Family Relations (1981, Nikita Mikhalkov)

The Seagull (1970, Yuli Karasik)

My Tender and Affectionate Beast (1978, Emil Loteanu)

Dreams (1993, Karen Shakhnazarov & Alexander Borodyansky)

The Vanished Empire (2008, Karen Shakhnazarov)

Winter Evening in Gagra (1985, Karen Shakhnazarov)

Day of the Full Moon (1998, Karen Shakhnazarov)

Zero Town (1989, Karen Shakhnazarov)

The Girls (1961, Boris Bednyj)

The Diamond Arm (1969, Leonid Gaidai)

Operation Y and Shurik's Other Adventures (1965, Leonid Gaidai)

Ivan Vasilievich Changes Profession (1973, Leonid Gaidai)

Unbelievable Adventures of Italians in Russia (1974, Eldar Ryazanov & Franco Prosperi)

Office Romance (1977, Eldar Ryazanov)

Carnival Night (1956, Eldar Ryazanov)

Hussar Ballad (1962, Eldar Ryazanov)

Kin-dza-dza! (1986, Georgiy Daneliya)

The Most Charming and Attractive (1985, Gerald Bezhanov)

Autumn (1974, Andrei Smirnov)

War and Peace: Part 1 (1966, Sergei Bondarchuk)

War and Peace: Part 2 (1966, Sergei Bondarchuk)

War and Peace: Part 3 (1967, Sergei Bondarchuk)

War and Peace: Part 4 (1967, Sergei Bondarchuk)

The Red Tent (first half) (1969, Mikhail Kalatozov)

The Red Tent (second half) (1969, Mikhail Kalatozov)

Sherlock Holmes: The Hound of the Baskervilles (1939, Sidney Lanfield)

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (1939, Alfred L. Werker)

Sherlock Holmes and the Voice of Terror (1942, John Rawlins)

Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon (1943, Roy William Neill)

Sherlock Holmes in Washington (1943, Roy William Neill)

Sherlock Holmes Faces Death (1943, Roy William Neill)

Sherlock Holmes: The Spider Woman (1944, Roy William Neill)

Sherlock Holmes: The Scarlet Claw (1944, Roy William Neill)

Sherlock Holmes: The Pearl of Death (1944, Roy William Neill)

Sherlock Holmes: The House of Fear (1945, Roy William Neill)

Sherlock Holmes: The Woman in Green (1945, Roy William Neill)

Sherlock Holmes: Pursuit to Algiers (1945, Roy William Neill)

Sherlock Holmes: Terror by Night (1946, Roy William Neill)

Sherlock Holmes: Dressed to Kill (1946, Roy William Neill)

If any of the links don’t work, try looking up the film in this playlist: link

[qaymaw]

I wrote a list of the crimes commited by important characters in Moriarty the Patriot. This is only the anime so characters exclussive to the manga won't appear, nor will crimes commited in arcs exclussive to the manga.

This is an extremley long list, also may contain spoilers if you haven't watched the anime/read the manga, however they shouldn't be to bad.

William James Moriarty 30 crimes

Intimidation

Bribing

Death threats

Threats of violence

Kidnapping

Accessory to murder

Impersonation/Identity theft

Inciting violence/murder/genocide

Arson

First-degree murder

Manipulation/Brainwashing

Contract killing/assassination

Coercion

Framing

Assisted suicide¹

Suicide baiting¹

Mass murder

Genocide

Destruction of property

Domestic terrorism²

Conspiracy to overthrow the system/nobility

Conspiracy to commit murder/genocide

Manipulation of political affairs

Attempted suicide¹

Evading arrest

Obstruction of justice

Treason

Breaking and entering

Organised crime²

Illegal possesion of a firearm³

Albert James Moriarty 21 crimes

Leaking government secrets

Organised crime²

Accesory to murder

Assault with the intent to kill/assault with a deadly weapon

First-degree murder

Arson

Manipulation/Brainwashing

Contract killing/assassination

Coercion

Framing

Assisted Suicide¹

Suicide Baiting¹

Mass murder

Genocide

Destruction of property

Domestic Terrorism²

Conspiracy to overthrow the system/nobility

Conspiracy to commit murder/genocide

Treason

Patricide

Matricide

Fratricide

Louis James Moriarty 21 crimes

Intimidation

Death threats

Threats of violence

Accessory to murder

Arson

First-degree murder

Manipulation/Brainwashing

Contract killing/assassination

Coercion

Framing

Assisted suicide¹

Suicide baiting¹

Mass murder

Genocide

Destruction of property

Domestic terrorism²

Conspiracy to overthrow the system/nobility

Conspiracy to commit murder/genocide

Organised crime²

Treason

Breaking and entering

James Bonde 18 crimes

Theft

High treason

Impersonation of royalty/Identity theft

Arson

Evading the police/goverment

Destruction of property

Extortion

Exploitation

Blackmail

Domestic terrorism²

Conspiracy to overthrow the system/nobility

Assault

Conspiracy to commit mureder/genocide

Infiltration

Organised crime²

Treason

Contract killing/Assassination

Accessory to murder

Illegal possession of firearms³

Sebastian Moran 15 crimes

First-degree murder

Contract killing/Assassination

Assisted suicide¹

Suicide baiting¹

Mass murder

Genocide

Accessory to murder

Domestic terrorism²

Conspiracy to overthrow the system/nobility

Assault

Conspircay to commit murder/genocide

Gambling

Organised crime²

Treason

Breaking and entering

Illegal possession of firearms³

Fred Porlock 15 crimes

Impersonation

Accesory to murder

Contract killing/Assassination

First-degree murder

Suicide baiting¹

Assisted suicide¹

Mass murder

Genocide

Domestic terrorism²

Conspiracy to overthrow the system/nobility

Conspiracy to commit murder/genocide

Organised crime²

Treason

Breaking and entering

Desercration of a corpse

Jack Renfield (AKA Jack the Ripper) 11 crimes

Hiring a contract killer/Assassin

Desercration of a corpse

Assault

Impersonation

Evading the police

Accessory to murder

Domestic terrorism²

Conspiracy to overthrow the system/nobility

Conspiracy to commit murder/genocide

Organised crime²

Treason

Von Herder 8 crimes

Accesory to murder

Domestic terrorism²

Conspiracy to overthrow the system/nobility

Conspiracy to commit murder/genocide

Illegal weapons dealing/creating/inventing

Organised crime²

Treason

Illegal possession of firearms³

Zack Paterson 8 crimes

Accesory to murder

Conspiracy to overthrow the system/nobility

Conspiracy to commit murder/genocide

Eavesdropping

Infaltration

Domestic terrorism²

Treason

Organised crime²

Sherlock Holmes 6 crimes

Breaking and entering

Destruction of property

Attempted suicide¹

Second-degree murder

Illegal possesion of firearms³

Arson

Mycroft Holmes 3 crimes

Accessory to murder

Affiliation with a terrorist organisation

Leaking government secrets

Notes

¹Suicide Act 1961. This act removed suicide as a crime in England and Wales, meaning those who survived a suicide attempt could not be prosecuted. Family members of those who did not survive could no longer be prosecuted either. However, under Suicide Act 1961, Section 2, it remains a crime for a third party to encourage or assist in the suicide of another.

²Terrorism or Organised Crime (or both)

Definitions:

Terrorism: The unlawful use of violence and intimidation, especially against civilians, in the pursuit of political aims.

Organised crime: Criminal activities that are planned and controlled by powerful groups and carried out on a large scale.

The motive of organised crime is often, but not always, financial.

The Moriarty Plan is a force of violence with the intention of political change. This violence is commited against their home country meaning this is domestic terrorism. They have no wish for financial gain, however, because they are commiting crimes that are planned and controlled, this is also organised crime. Those directly involved in The Moriarty Plan and its execution are therefore guilty of both terrorism and organised crime.

³The Gun License Act 1870. This act meant that anyone may still purchase a gun, however a license was required to have one off your personal property for any reason. This means that James Bonde and Sebatian Moran are both guilty of illegal possession of a firearm as they are both legally dead and therefore cannot have a gun license. However, Sherlock, William and Von Herder are never disclosed to have a gun license but this does not mean they do not have one as they would be perfectly elligable to get one. If they do all own a gun license, this takes Sherlock's crimes down to 5, William's crimes down to 29 and Von Herder's crimes down to 7.

[ogsherlockholmes]

I mention a modern day Holmes adaptation and they think I'm talking about BBCSherlock but I actually bring out my secret weapon (Sherlock Holmes x war propaganda made in the 1940s)

[idlesuperstar]

My favourite Baz!Holmes disguise, Captain Basil in Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon

[mariana-oconnor]

A Scandal in Bohemia

A slight rant about Irene Adler and her portrayal in adaptations.

Irene Adler is so often portrayed as a love interest (romantic/sexual/intellectual) of Sherlock and I understand why, I do. Sex sells. People want a romance in their story. People historically have been unable to imagine any possible situation in which a man shows interest in a woman that is not romantic or sexual in nature.

It also, in more recent times, allows adapters the chance to extend her part so there's a canonical multilayered female character in their adaptation and they don't have to make one up. BUT

a) Irene Adler isn't a love interest for Sherlock Holmes

and

b) She's not even really an adversary.

People portray Irene Adler as this cunning, often criminal, female character, going through life manipulating people and often as a straight up con woman. And it's dramatic and it's fun and she's really cool like that.

But really, at heart, A Scandal in Bohemia is about a woman who wants to move on and her creepy ex who has some sort of power over her that she's trying to escape.

The line from the original story, in Irene's own hand is:

The King may do what he will without hindrance from one whom he has cruelly wronged. I keep it only to safeguard myself, and to preserve a weapon which will always secure me from any steps which he might take in the future.

And based on what we've seen of the King, I'm really more inclined to believe her than him. His repeated exhortations of 'what a queen she would have made' if she were 'on his level', when he's marrying an entirely different woman. And multiple other weird and borderline creepy things he says in reference to her.

But look at her actions: She marries in secret. She marries hurriedly. She has been forewarned that the King might approach Sherlock to an extent that she is looking out for him. On realising that Holmes is close, she ransacks her own home and leaves the country. That's not the actions of someone who is in control of the situation. That's the actions of someone who is scared. Someone who has a powerful enemy and is taking measures to mitigate the issues that causes.

We're never told how the king 'cruelly wronged' her. It could be any number of things. Perhaps she's lying. The only facts we have on the matter are these:

The King and Irene had some sort of a relationship that resulted in an indiscreet photograph.

The King wants that photo back.

Irene believes she needs to be married quickly and in secret.

Irene leaves the country rather than risk a confrontation or give up the photograph.

That's a very different story from any adaptation I've seen. And like I've said, I get why, but I feel like we're missing the adaptation of a woman outsmarting and outplaying her abusive ex and making a new life for herself.

Maybe the people writing the adaptations find this motivation boring and unimportant. They want the woman who outsmarted the Great Sherlock Holmes to be worthy of that title and they don't find the tale of a woman outrunning an unpleasant, if not outright abusive ex to marry someone she actually loves to be grand or dramatic enough (and given the way his story changes, I'm not going to rule out extreme gaslighting here, man seems unable to keep his story straight and weirdly possessive). Of course 'The Woman' must be a brilliant mastermind. Of course she's manipulating everyone around her. Of course she is. Only that kind of woman could possibly outwit our hero. /sarcasm

Also, Godfrey Norton deserves to be adapted more. This is a man who clearly trusts and supports his fiancee/wife. He's totally prepared to drop his very respectable job as a lawyer at the drop of a hat to run away with her. I assume from those facts that he has at least some awareness of the situation and supports her. Godfrey Norton is a gentleman and a scholar.

ETA: I'm not saying that she's not brilliant. She is brilliant. Her disguise fools Holmes, she sees through his disguise and his scheme. She manages to keep him out of her plans to the extent that he's playing catch up the whole time. She absolutely defeated Holmes. But she's also compassionate - she cares for the old man Holmes portrays - she's in love with her husband, and she's understandably scared. None of that detracts from her brilliance, in fact it serves to make her more brilliant if anything. She's capable of doing these things while she's clearly upset and worried.

Adaptations tend to ignore those qualities - the more feminine qualities? She's not brilliant in the way that people want her to be brilliant. It often seems like they're not looking for Irene Adler, they are looking for a female Moriarty.

[anonymousewrites]

A Study of the Heart and Brain (Book 4) Chapter Twelve

Father Figure! Sherlock Holmes x Teen! Reader

Chapter Twelve: Confrontational Reunion

Summary: Sherlock, (Y/N), and John track down Mary. Ajay does the same.

            “Agra?” said Mycroft, raising a brow.

            After Sherlock and (Y/N) had recovered from Mary’s escape—apparently it would be good to assume in the future that she always had some sort of weapon or drug on her—they had quickly gone to first tell John and then go to Mycroft for information. Then, they could find Mary. She was a talented agent, but they weren’t going to let her disappear.

            “A city on the banks of the river Yamuna, in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, India,” said Mycroft. “It is 378 kilometers west of the state capital, Lucknow.”

            “What are you, Wikipedia?” said Sherlock.

            “Yes,” said Mycroft smugly.

            “AGRA’s an acronym,” said (Y/N).

            “Oh, good, I love an acronym,” said Mycroft. “All the best secret societies have them.”

            “Team of agents, the best,” said Sherlock. “But you know all of that.”

            “Of course I do, go on,” said Mycroft.

            “One of them, Ajay, is looking for Mary, also one of the team,” said Sherlock.

            “Indeed. Well, that’s news to me,” said Mycroft.

            “Is it?” said (Y/N), narrowing their eyes. “Since their last job was for the British government, we thought you might know a bit more about the situation.” They smiled and tilted their head.

            “They’re getting fast,” said Mycroft, smirking at Sherlock, who grinned. Mycroft looked back at (Y/N). “AGRA were very reliable. Then came the Tbilisi incident. They were sent in to free the hostages, but it all went horribly wrong. And that was that. We stopped using freelancers.”

            “Your initiative?” said Sherlock.

            “My initiative,” said Mycroft. “Freelancers are too wooly, too messy. I don’t like loose ends. Not on my watch.”

            “There was something else,” said Sherlock. “A detail. A codeword.” He wrote it down.

            “Ammo?” read Mycroft.

            “It’s all we’ve got,” said Sherlock.

            “But it was just heard over the phone, so spelling could vary if it means something,” said (Y/N). In the world of spies and assassins, all possibilities had to be considered.

            “Could you do some digging, as a favor?” said Sherlock.

            “You don’t have many favors left,” said Mycroft smugly.

            “You owe me,” said (Y/N).

            “For what?” said Mycroft.

            “Magnussen,” said (Y/N).

            “I had to keep Sherlock from being exiled for that,” said Mycroft.

            “Yeah, but that was because other people wanted him kept alive, not you,” said (Y/N). They leaned forward. “So even if the British government doesn’t owe me, you do.” They smiled. “Would you help us, please?”

            Mycroft hummed. “Sherlock, they’re becoming quite impertinent.”

            “I know. I’m proud,” said Sherlock, smiling at (Y/N), who smiled at him.

            “However…say you do find who’s after her and neutralize them, then what?” Mycroft looked intently at his brother. “You think you can go on saving her forever?”

            “Of course,” said Sherlock.

            “Is that sentiment talking?” said Mycroft.

            “No, it’s me,” said Sherlock.

            “Difficult to tell the difference these days,” said Mycroft.

            “Told you, I made a promise. A vow,” said Sherlock, gaze hard and set.

            “Alright, I’ll see what I can do,” sighed Mycroft. “But remember this, family mine.” For all the sentiment insults, (Y/N) was considered a Holmes by Mycroft as much as by anyone else. “Agents like Mary tend not to reach retirement age. They get retired in a pretty permanent sort of way.”

            “Not on my watch,” said Sherlock.

            … (Y/N) glanced down, and their fingers twitched for a lollipop.

l

            (Y/N) leaned back with their eyes closed as the Moroccan heat baked the entire house they were in despite the shade. They were used to London air—which lacked sun so often that no one remembered it existed.

            Sherlock was playing a board game with a boy, Karim, who had given them some water while they waited for Mary to arrive.

            “You haven’t got a chance. Not a chance,” he said. “I got you where I want you. Give in, give in. I will destroy you. You’re completely at my mercy. Mr. Baker. Well, that completes the set.”

            “No, it is not,” said Karim.

            “Well, who else am I missing?” said Sherlock.

            “Master Bun. It’s not a set without him,” said Karim. “How many more times, Mr. Sherlock?”

            Sherlock’s luck with board games continued to be poor. “Hmm, maybe it’s because I’m not familiar with the concept.”

            A woman walked around the corner and stared in astonishment at the gathering. It was Mary, holding a gun, not having expected them at all.

            “Oh, hi, Mary,” said Sherlock.

            “Hello, Mary,” said (Y/N).

            “What concept?” said Karim.

            “Happy families,” said Sherlock. He looked back at Mary. “Nice trip?”

            “How the f—”

            “Please, Mary, there are children present,” said Sherlock.

            “I’ve heard and seen worse,” said (Y/N).

            “Still a child,” said Sherlock.

            “How did you get here?” exclaimed Mary.

            “Karim let us in,” said Sherlock.

            “Hello,” said Karim.

            “Karim, would you be so kind as to fetch us some tea?” said Sherlock.

            “Sure,” said Karim, rising and heading to the door.

            “Thank you,” said Sherlock.

            “No, I-I mean, how did you find me?” said Mary.

            “We’re Holmses,” said (Y/N).

            “Really though, how?” said Mary. “Every movement I made was entirely random. Every new personality, just on the roll of a dice.”

            “Mary, no human action is ever truly random,” said Sherlock. “An advanced grasp of the mathematics of probability mapped on to a thorough apprehension of human psychology and the known dispositions of any given individual can reduce the number of variables considerably. I myself know of at least fifty-eight techniques to refine the seemingly infinite array of randomly generated possibilities down to the smallest number of feasible variables.”

            Mary nodded.

            “But that’s super hard, so we just put a tracker on the flash drive before we met you,” said (Y/N), straight to the point.

            “Oh, you bastards,” said Mary, beginning to laugh.

            “Yeah, but your face,” said Sherlock, grinning.

            “ ‘The mathematics of probability,’ ” said Mary.

            “You believed that,” said Sherlock.

            “ ‘Feasible variables,’ ” said Mary.

            “He hadn’t practiced any more lines,” said (Y/N).

            “In the memory stick,” groaned Mary.

            “Yeah, that was my idea.” John stepped into the room.

            Mary looked at him, and her smile turned somber.

            “We need to talk,” said John.

            Mary nodded.

            “AGRA,” said John.

            “Yes,” said Mary.

            “You said it was your initials,” said John.

            “In a way, that was true,” said Mary.

            “In a way?” repeated John. He shook his head. “So many lies.”

            “I’m so sorry,” said Mary.

            “I don’t just mean you,” said John.

            “What?” said Mary.

            “Alex, Gabriel, Ajay. And you’re R,” said John.

            Mary nodded.

            “Rosamund?” said John.

            “Rosamund Mary,” said Mary. “I always liked Mary.”

            “Yeah, me too,” said John. He smiled, but it fell. “I used to.” He stood and turned away.

            “I didn’t know what else to do,” said Mary.

            “You could have stayed. You could have talked to me,” said John. “That’s what couples are supposed to do. Work things through.”

            Mary nodded. “Yes. Yes, of course.” She looked down, knowing she had been in the wrong.

            “Mary, I may not be a very good man,” said John. “But I think I’m a bit better than you give me credit for. Most of the time.”

            “All of the time,” said Mary. “You’re always a good man, John. I’ve never doubted that You never judge. You never complain. I don’t deserve you, I…All I wanted to do was keep you and Rosie safe, that’s all.”

            “I will keep you safe,” said Sherlock. “But it has to be in London. It’s my city, I know the turf. Come home and everything will be alright, I promise you.”

            A red dot appeared on John.

            “Get down!” shouted (Y/N).

            Mary’s reflexes were quick, and she pulled John to the ground as a loud “Bang!” shattered the night. More gunshots followed as the group found cover, Sherlock pulling (Y/N) close protectively. Ajay kicked the doors of the hotel open and came in, gun still cocked. Mary pulled hers and shot at him. The two circled each other before ending up behind columns in the wall.

            “Hello again,” said Ajay.

            “Ajay,” said Mary.

            “Oh, you remember me, I’m touched,” sneered Ajay.

            “Look, I thought you were dead. Believe me, I did,” said Mary.

            “I’ve been looking forward to this longer than you can imagine,” said Ajay.

            “I swear to you, I thought you were dead,” said Mary. “I thought I was the only one who got out.” She held out her gun to Sherlock, and he took it. Now Ajay wouldn’t know who had it.

            “How did you find us?” said Sherlock.

            “By following you, Sherlock Holmes,” sneered Ajay. “I mean, you’re clever. You found her, but I found you, sir. Perhaps not so clever. And now here we are. At last.”

            Sherlock shot the light, and they were thrown into darkness.

            “Touche,” said Ajay, now having a harder time figuring out where they were.

            “Listen, whatever you think you know, we can talk about this, we can work it out,” said John.

            “She thought I was dead,” scoffed Ajay. “I might as well have been”

            “It was always just the four of us. Always, remember?” said Mary.

            “Oh, yeah,” said Ajay.

            “So why do you want to kill me?” said Mary.

            “Do you know how long they kept me prisoner?” said Ajay. “What they did to me? They tortured Alex to death. I can still hear the sound of his back breaking. But you, you, where were you?”

            “That day, at the embassy, I escaped,” said Mary.

            “Ha!” scoffed Ajay derisively.

            “But I lost sight of you, too. So you explain, where were you?” said Mary, buying for time.

            “Oh, I got out. For a while,” said Ajay. “Long enough to hide my memory stick. I didn’t want that to fall into their hands. I was loyal, you see. Loyal to my friends. They took me, tortured me. Not for information. Not for anything except fun.”

            (Y/N)’s gaze went to the ground. Even if they didn’t want him to hurt Mary and didn’t agree with going after people without proof, they could understand his pain.

            “They thought I’d give in. Die,” continued Ajay. “But I didn’t. I lived. And eventually, they forgot about me rotting in a cell somewhere. Six years they kept me there. Till one day, I saw my chance. Oh, and I made them pay. You know, all the time I was there, I just kept picking up things. Little whispers, laughter, gossip. How the clever agents had been betrayed. Brought down by you!”

            “Me?” said Mary. He really believed it, just as (Y/N) said.

            A truck passed by, and light circled in. Everyone moved at once. Sherlock handed the gun back to Mary, and Ajay stepped out. They faced each other, guns drawn. John held his own gun at the side, trained on Ajay.

            “You know I’ll kill you,” she said. “You know I will, Ajay.”

            “What? You think I care if I die?” said Ajay. “I’ve dreamed of killing you. Every night for six years. Squeezing the life out of your treacherous, lying throat.”

            “I swear to you, Ajay,” said Mary.

            “What did you hear, Ajay?” said (Y/N). If he would just see sense, then maybe they could stop this situation from escalating. “When you were a prisoner, what did you hear that made you think Mary betrayed you? What exactly?” They needed facts, logic.

            “Ammo,” said Ajay. “Every day, as they tore into me, ammo, ammo. We were betrayed!”

            “And they said it was Mary?” said (Y/N). “They said her name?”

            “Yeah, they said it was an Englishwoman,” said Ajay, still glaring at Mary.

            There. It couldn’t be certain it was Mary. (Y/N) opened their mouth.

            Bang! Bang!

            Two shots from the doorway. Ajay fell. He lay unmoving.

            “No, no!” Mary fell to her knees next to Ajay.

            The policeman who had arrived at the site of the gunshots stared at the scene in front of him. (Y/N)’s eyes softened in sadness. They had been so close.

            But too late all the same.

Taglist:

@stilesstilinskiforlife-blog

@im-making-an-effort

@ilse235

@schrodingers-intelligence

@awsedrftgyhujikol

@lxserthxngzzz

@forever1313

@mentallyunstablemanlover

@roo024

@ohimjustagirlidrathetnotbe

@snowy-violet

[inevitable-destruction]

I think my main interest in this affair is the chance it gives me to battle with you again.

[noforkingclue]

The Body in the Library Chapter 2 (Sherlock Holmes x reader)

Everything tag list: @greenrevolutionary, @byebyebreezywrites, @spngingerbread21, @layazul, @lov3vivian, @simonsbluee

You folded your arms and crossed one leg over the other as Lestrade gave you a tired look.

“Are you serious?” he asked

“What do you think?” you asked, “I find a body in my library-“

“Having two book cases in your living room does not mean it’s a library.” Interrupted Sherlock

“And a body which was clearly murdered in the same manner as one of my best sellers,” you continued, ignoring what Sherlock had said, “what was I meant to do?”

“Call the police and not him.” Lestrade said

“Well I did,” you said, rolling your eyes, “and if you were a bit quicker you might’ve been my top suspect Greg.”

“But you called Sherlock first.” Lestrade said, exasperated

“He didn’t pick up,” you replied curtly, “John did.”

Sherlock scoffed as he continued to pace about your kitchen. You glared at him out of the corner of you eye before sighing and resting your elbow on the table.

“Ok,” you said, “look, I know Sheer Luck didn’t kill that person. I was just pulling your leg! However, that doesn’t explain why there’s a body in my lib- living room. Am I being targeted?”

“Unlikely.” Said Sherlock

You turned around in your seat and glared at him. Sherlock’s back was facing you and you snapped,

“What makes you think that? There’s a dead body in my house, killed in the same manner as one of my best sellers.”

“One of your best sellers.” Muttered Sherlock under his breath

“How is that someone not targeting me!”

“The person murdered was clearly the target,” Sherlock pulled out his phone and started texting, “not you. You were just a convenient place to dump the body. If you will insist on not having suitable alarms then these things will happen.”

“Convenient?”

You stood up and Lestrade sighed and left the kitchen. He was getting a headache from listening to you and Sherlock argue. John, who was lurking outside the kitchen, looked up.

“So,” John said, “how exactly do those two know each other?”

Lestrade opened his mouth to answer but a shout cut him off. He sighed and nodded towards the outside. When they were both outside, he lit a cigarette and inhaled deeply.

“That,” he said eventually, “is something they neither of them really talk about.”

“They’ve fucked,” Anderson said, “almost certain they have.”

“Really,” John didn’t sound so sure, “neither of them seem to like each enough for that.”

“You can’t really blame her for hating him though,” said Anderson, “although you’ve got to question her intelligence if she did sleep with him.”

“Who slept with who?”

You asked them as you joined the group outside. You folded your arms as you leant against the wall and said,

“I left Holmes in there. If I spent another minute in there alone with him there would’ve been another body. At least if I did kill him it would be in my kitchen and that’s tiled. A lot easier to mop up blood from tiles instead of hardwood.”

“I thought poison was more your taste.”

You looked over your shoulder and glared at Sherlock who just raised his eyebrows in response.

“I’m sorry I don’t have any arsenic at hand,” you said dryly, “Rest assured that if I did I would certainly use it. Also, I am glad to know you are aware of which methods I usually go to in my books. Are you a secret fan?”

“You mostly use strychnine.” Sherlock said

“You counted how many methods of murder I used.”

“I was merely curious how many times you reused a plot.”

“Reusing a murder weapon is not reusing a plot. Would you say that Agatha Christie reused plots?”

“Unlike you, she had some element of talent.”

“Now listen here-“

“We should probably leave,” Lestrade said to John, “they’re going to be like this for a while.”

“Is it always like this between them?” asked John

“No. Usually it’s a lot worse.”

[dreamsofminnie]

🔎Sherlock & Watson🔐

[Luke Pearce x Reader] Series

Synopsis-> Luke the one who has always been by your side throughout school years. The one who wouldn’t hesitate to run back home to get you something you forgot and really needed. Luke who smiles so-so fondly at you when your smiles pierce through his bad days. The same Luke who thought running away from you would be beneficial for you.

^Continuing—It however, only served to push you out of your way to find him. Seeing your surroundings in an entire different city, you are in search of Luke by tracing his detective trails. His name plastered on the newspaper one day by accident, served you to find him quite quickly. Now by his side, the works of detectives and secret agents left you both to conquer swiftly.

^Continuing—Joining his line of work after thorough debating and arguing, he reluctantly let you invade his dangerous lifestyle. Of course–only with him by your side at all times.

Genre tags-> Luke x reader, partners in crime, detectives, partners to lovers, mystery, suspense, action, adventure, mutual pining, comfort fluff, angst, hurt, NXX, childhood friends, luke is meant to stay in that trope imsorry, reader is rosa, but not really, sorry rosa ily😓

Warnings-> Fraud, swearing, abuse of power, corruption, sabotage, weapon trafficking, identity theft, psychological horror, mentions of body horror, crimes against humanity, forgery, organized crime, treason, theft, toxic friends, bullying, messed up relations, desperation leads to crime, mentions of sex, libido, depression, guilt, treason against human morals, gangs, death, muder, obsession, self-hate, self body shaming, mentions of rape, mentions of sexual assault, harsh language,

(Criminals brought to justice by Luke♡)

Inspirations-> Themis main story line + Event stories/card stories; Enola Holmes movies, Charming the Duke of the north, tba. . .

Status-> Was discontinued but might start it up again.

>>>[Name]~Ch.1–5 “Her Revival”

~Ch.5–10 “His Escape” [Luke]<<<

Chapter X (10)-> Finding Luke + 15 year long trial

Chapter XI (11)-> Reader agent recruit + mission abroad

Chapter XII (12)-> Underground Renaissance socialite world murder

Chapter XIII (13)-> To be added. . .

Chapter XIV (14)-> Tba. . .

[Taglist] Always open!!

@neigesprincess @crucnhice @backintomykpopphaseagain @kazedaka @little-aruma

[themattress]

Favorite Villains of Classic English Literature

Professor Moriarty - This villain is pure, beautiful simplicity: he's an alternate version of the hero with the morality removed. Both Holmes and Moriarty are quirky loners with genius IQs that thrive on challenging their intellects via loaning it out to others in some form of service. But Holmes has a conscience, a sense of right and wrong, which is why his service is that of a consulting detective, whereas Moriarty is a total sociopath whose service is that of a consulting criminal, meaning that he has an invisible hand in almost every crime that's carried out in London. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle gives an absolutely perfect description of him and how he operates as a villain: "He is the Napoleon of crime. He is the organizer of half that is evil and of nearly all that is undetected in this great city. He is a genius, a philosopher, an abstract thinker. He has a brain of the first order. He sits motionless, like a spider in the center of its web, but that web has a thousand radiations, and he knows well every quiver of each of them. He does little himself. He only plans. But his agents are numerous and splendidly organized. Is there a crime to be done, a paper to be abstracted, we will say, a house to be rifled, a man to be removed--the word is passed to the Professor, the matter is organized and carried out. The agent may be caught. In that case money is found for his bail or his defense. But the central power which uses the agent is never caught--never so much as suspected."

Favorite adaptations: Professor Moriarty (Ernest Torrence) in Sherlock Holmes (Fox, 1932), Professor Moriarty (Lionel Atwill) in Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon (Universal, 1943), Professor Moriarty (Eric Porter) in Sherlock Holmes (Granada, 1984), Professor Ratigan (Vincent Price) in The Great Mouse Detective (Disney, 1986), Jim Moriarty (Andrew Scott) in Sherlock (BBC, 2010), Jamie Moriarty (Natalie Dormer) in Elementary (CBS, 2012), and William "Liam" James Moriarty (Soma Saito) in Moriarty the Patriot (Shueisha, 2016).

Captain Hook - If Professor Moriarty is a great complex presentation of a simple character, then Captain Hook is the opposite: a complex character who is presented simply. A ruthless pirate captain with a limb replaced by the object he derives his name from is the easiest thing in the world to understand, but there's much more to old James beneath that surface: a well-educated English gentleman depressed with the notion that he's squandered his life away but too far gone in his pride to turn back, constantly striving for "good form" even when his occupation doesn't allow for much of it, and obsessed with getting revenge on Peter Pan partly out of jealousy and partly to distract from the inevitability of the end result of what Pan did to him - namely, an ever-pursuing crocodile that will ultimately mark the end of his life when the clock it swallowed finally stops ticking. If Pan shows the problems with never growing up, then Hook shows the problems with losing your innocence when you grow up. For as over the top of a villainous character as he is, he's also a tragic, even relatable one.

Favorite adaptations: Captain Hook (Ernest Torrence) in Peter Pan (Paramount, 1924), Captain Hook (Hans Conreid) in Peter Pan (Disney, 1953), Captain Hook (Cyril Ritchard) in Peter Pan (Broadway, 1954), Captain Hook (Tim Curry) in Peter Pan and the Pirates (Fox, 1990), Captain Hook (Dustin Hoffman) in Hook (Amblin, 1991), Captain Hook (Jason Isaacs) in Peter Pan (Universal, 2003), "Jimmy" (Rhys Ifans) in Neverland (Syfy, 2011), Killian Jones (Colin O'Donoghue) in Once Upon a Time (ABC, 2012), Captain Hook (Stan Tucci) in Peter and Wendy (ITV, 2015) and Captain Hook (Jude Law) in Peter and Wendy (Disney, 2023).

And hey, wouldn't you know it! The same actor got the ball rolling in my favorite adaptations of both these characters! Clearly, the two of them were always destined to share this post.

[ecargmura]

Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective Episode 13 Review + Final Thoughts - See You In Season 2

This may be the final episode, but it’s a Christmas present! The staff announced a second season! I’m so glad! This show was so fun that it’d be a waste to not have a continuation. Since it’s still in production, the release date has yet to be finalized. Let’s just hope it steps up the story more than the first season. Because it’s the final episode, the opening updates one last time; Mii and her grandfather, the mayor, are added onto the table behind Ron when Toto and Ron meet up.

I did like how Toto actually did try to solve most of the case this time around; too bad he couldn’t figure out the final step, which was the location of the key murder weapon, the rope. I’m proud of Toto for not relying too much on Ron this time around. 

The episode basically concludes the murder case by exposing the culprit, the mayor. I did predict the mayor and Muroi, so getting the former right made me happy. Though, I didn’t really predict the murder weapon or the motive, so getting into why he did it got me intrigued. It turns out that the mayor was hiding something in the mountains and killed the official as he knew what it was and threatened to expose him. What he was hiding was none other than Spitz’s brother, Shepherd.

The reason Shepherd hid himself for the past eleven years was that he learned crucial information that could’ve gotten him and his loved ones killed, which was why he disappeared without saying anything to Spitz. The villagers, the Mayor and Mii knew he was hiding, so they all did whatever they could to protect him. Throughout those eleven years, Mii developed feelings for Shepherd and they most likely hooked up after the mayor gets arrested. It was really nice seeing Spitz reunited with his long-lost brother, but I am also curious; what did he learn that warranted him into hiding? Was it something that had to do with the M Family?

Ron’s magic eyes almost gotten Toto killed, but I’m glad that he’s not too shaken up over it this time as Shepherd came in last minute with the rope. Back in Episode 6, Ron was so shaken up about how Toto almost got killed, but Toto didn’t mind risking his life. I’m glad that for this case, Ron was able to trust Toto and not get too vulnerable. I make it seem like it’s a good thing he doesn’t care; I promise I’m not!

Another twist happened when Spitz carries out his promise to Ron by infiltrating BLUE’s secret stash but gets caught by Eme Emmerich, the principal of BLUE. I was on edge when he got caught, thinking he’d get killed or exposed, but it turns out that the principal isn’t as strict as she initially seemed. She has a fondness for Ron, which was why she gave Spitz a special message for him to pass onto him. The message says that Ron really isn’t the culprit of the Bloody Field Training incident and that he was framed; the framer was an unknown third party who deleted everything about the case to conceal Ron’s innocence; yep, there’s a mole in BLUE. Not only that, she then tells who the mole belongs to: the House of M, a very notorious crime family; every crime they do is left unsolved. We already did see a hint of what they could do back in the observatory case. They’re clearly terrifying adversaries.

I liked the post-credit scenes with the House of M, mainly Winter Moriarty, making their move. I liked learning why the Moriarty, or mainly Mylo (or Milo) does this. He does this because he wants to see if Ron is worthy to become a member of their family; the reason why Ron got expelled and didn’t get his detective license was because the M Family didn’t want him to become a detective; it makes sense as he has the blood of both Sherlock Holmes and James Moriarty in him. The family seems quite a strict household as they dispose anyone considered a failure; this was why Alice, one of their siblings was disposed of. I’m really anticipating what Winter and Mylo bring to the table next season. Winter hates Ron for being mixed-blood while Mylo is a sinister, palette-swapped version of Ron. Now that Winter is making their move, what sort of crimes will they commit for Ron to solve? Will it be a step up in difficulty or will it be a step down? Given the family’s rumored track record, I expect it to be a step up—no, five steps up in difficulty; if the first season was Normal mode, I expect Season 2 to be on the hardest difficulty.

I honestly can’t wait for Season 2. I’m impatient, so I might read the manga while I wait. I think that I may gain new perspectives on the cases if I read both the original source material and watch the anime when it airs. What are your thoughts on the finale and are you anticipating Season 2 as much as I am?

Final Thoughts

This show is honestly one of my Top 5 favorites for this year. I came into this show because I like Amano’s works, but it made me become a bigger fan of the mystery genre. Heck, I recently got some books as a Christmas present and one of them happens to be a mystery book. I feel like watching this show gives you a craving of mysteries.

The characters are so quirky and entertaining; they really beat the generalization that mystery stories have to have serious characters and tone. Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective goes the opposite direction with the characters. Ron is seriously hilarious with his eccentric personality. Toto seems like the quintessential earnest detective, but the way he’s written is perfect as he is the ‘normal’ guy in a world and cast full of weirdos. The other characters were great too. I just wished Amamiya had a bit more screen time, but what the first season gave to us regarding her was enough for me to get a good sense of who she is. My personal favorite besides the main duo happens to be Spitz. He’s not as weird as Ron, but weird enough to be the funny man to Toto’s straight man.

The mysteries were fun, but some of them were hit or miss. My favorite case was the Observatory case where it spans three episodes and did new things like having a second known murder victim and it being a locked-room mystery. My second favorite would be the psychic case that introduced Dr. Usaki; I liked how Ron and Toto had to prove that Torage killed the victim with normal murder methods and not via ESP.  My least favorite of the bunch was definitely the Hand Collector case; I even openly admitted how much I didn’t like the case because it was all over the place. I do admit that the cases do get a bit better as the story progresses, so hopefully nothing like Episode 5 every pops up again.

The music was nice to listen to. I especially liked the opening! You can’t go wrong with UNISON SQUARE GARDEN and the fact that the song they sang for this show was super unexpected. For a show with gruesome murders, you wouldn’t expect an upbeat, jazz and swingy tune, but it fits the quirky nature of the show. I also love how soothing the ending song is. Speaking of the opening, I loved how it updates during or after every important case; I read somewhere that it speculates Ron opening up to the world after keeping himself isolated from cases for five years. I like that theory, so I am believing it too. I can’t wait to see if Diomedia will continue the trend with the next season.

The voice actors are great! This is the first time I heard Yohei Azakami in an anime and I’d love to watch more anime with him. He does a perfect job with Ron’s eccentrics and seriousness. The way he made a gremlin voice when doing the hand puppet and also mimicking the television show jingle was seriously hilarious. He may be a new face, but if he can do that effortlessly, he has a great career ahead of him. Junya Enoki has always been a good voice actor. He was a good choice for Toto as he can do the “good boy” and the straight man aspects of him perfectly. The other characters had perfect voice actors too. What amazes me the most is that the anime staff casted high quality voice actors to voice the minor characters. Like, getting Maaya Uchida, Yui Ishikawa and Sayaka Senbongi as those girls from the Poisoned Latte case was crazy. Even getting Katsuyuki Konishi as Spitz’s brother was crazy too! Mylo and Winter’s voice actors are amazing too. I can’t wait to see who they cast for the second season, whether it be for minor or supporting characters.

While this isn’t the best mystery anime out there, I do recommend giving it a watch if you’re a fan of the genre. I mean, it’s also created by Akira Amano. If you’re a fan of Reborn!, come check out this show and story! Seriously! Also, when are we getting a Reborn! reboot?