Sherlock’s Legacy: The Case of the Extraordinary Sidekick

Gracia argues for an unacknowledged legacy of Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes—mistrust of the professional police force, originating early in the force’s history—and explores how that legacy colours our experience of law enforcement today. She defines a sub-genre of detective television series focused on extraordinary sidekicks supporting professional detectives and provides a partial taxonomy of the extraordinary sidekick based on three characteristics: an innate or acquired ability or specialist knowledge base outside of the usual law enforcement structure; a stable partnership with a single detective or small team of detectives; and use as a resource to improve law enforcement. She then demonstrates how extraordinary sidekicks both reflect an inherent Sherlockian mistrust in policing per se and serve to plug this trust gap.