Sometimes we like to watch the Sherlock series, which is not really a series so much as collection of very short movies. It’s produced by the BBC, which is from England, and I guess “across the pond” they do things a lot differently than we do over here. Whoever heard of a TV season that has only three episodes?? But at least each episode is an hour and a half long. And, of course, the icing on the cake is that each episode is just about the best thing you’ll ever see on your television set.

We love Sherlock. We love the show, and we love Sherlock Holmes. Tillie in particular really loves Sherlock. She’s enamored. And in a way I can’t blame her, because…well, just look at him! He’s gorgeous, with that curly black hair, piercing blue eyes, and high cheekbones. You can’t help but look at this rendition of Sherlock Holmes (who is really just an actor with the unfortunate name of Benedict Cumberbatch) and not have your breath taken away.

But, I’m not here to talk about the shockingly attractive Sherlock Holmes, because, as it turns out….I’m rather fond of breathing. I don’t really want to have my breath taken away. I much prefer a boyfriend with whom I can….breathe easy. And so, when it comes to the Sherlock show, my favorite boyfriend is Dr. John Watson.

First of all, he may be no Benedict Cumberbatch, but he’s not exactly difficult to look at, either. Cute, no? In a hobbity kind of way. (That’s a little inside joke, because, in case you didn’t know, the actor Martin Freeman, who plays Dr. John Watson, has also portrayed the hobbit Bilbo Baggins, in the movie The Hobbit.) And another thing I simply can’t resist…how about that charming British accent??

Compared to his counterpart Mr. Cumberbatch – Holmes, this Dr. Watson is short (like we Whimsies are) and somewhat unassuming. Which is as it should be. He doesn’t put on airs. Which is as it should be. Sherlock is the mad genius, always
going off on some tangent that’s not a tangent at all, but the roundabout way to the solution to the entire problem. But his friend, slow and steady as a rock Dr. Watson is the calming influence in their happy little home right there at 221-B Baker Street.

If you ask me, Sherlock Holmes is the kind of guy you like to look at on a TV show, but you would never really bring home to meet Mother. Because if you did, he’d probably take one look around the room, say something snide, then blurt out all the family secrets everyone has tried so hard for so many years to keep deeply hidden.

John Watson, on the other hand, is certainly the kind of guy you’d like to have over at your next dinner party. He may not be as smart as Sherlock, but that doesn’t mean he’s a big dummy. Oh no! Far from it! He’s quite intelligent, he just doesn’t go around rubbing it in people’s faces all the time—like some people we know. I mean, let’s think of it: he’s a soldier, and he’s a doctor. He’s skilled, accomplished, dedicated, loyal, and his middle name is Hamish.

What’s not to love?

Mostly he plays the straight man to Sherlock’s petulant quipping, but on occasion he gets off some pretty good lines. What a wit! Like when he and Sherlock are trying to pull off some elaborate ruse, and Sherlock says “Punch me in the face. Didn’t you hear me?” and Watson returns, “I always hear ‘Punch me in the face’ when you’re speaking, but it’s usually sub-text.” OMG, we roared when we heard that one!

And how about this? Dr. Watson, annoyed at Sherlock, says, “Can we not do this this time? You, looking all mysterious, with your cheekbones, and turning your coat collar up so you look cool.” Haha!

It must be difficult to walk in the shadow of a giant like Sherlock Holmes. That’s why I’m glad that in the final “season” of the show, the writers actually allow our dear Dr. Watson to get married! Oh, I know he’s my boyfriend, but I can be reasonable about this. I’m so glad they let him get married! Because he deserves it, he deserves to be happy. Sherlock isn’t always the best friend. He can be short and irritable, even insulting. He’s not a “people person.” John Watson puts up with a lot from Sherlock. I can’t imagine him actually being happy with this high-cheekboned brainiac as a roommate. If you live with Sherlock Holmes, you’re always going to be “supporting cast.” But one can only hope that in his new marriage, Dr. Watson will finally have found an EQUAL partner.

Of course, almost as soon as Watson gets married, we find out his new wife is really like this super-spy that used to always go around killing people. But now she’s sorry, and she’s put all that behind her. We don’t know what her real name is, but she’s calling herself “Mary” now, and Mary is a good, safe, happy kind of name. Mary wants to settle down and have kids with her new husband. And guess what? They’re pregnant!

Of course it was the inscrutable, incalculable Sherlock Holmes that figured that out before either of them did. I guess he’ll be Uncle Sherlock and teach the baby how to read footprints and stray paint chips and the meaning of raindrops on the back of somebody’s collar. Mary and John can just be normal parents. At least I hope they will be.

And so, at the moment, we leave our dear Dr. Watson in a state of domestic bliss. (Well, except for the very last episode, where he watched Sherlock shoot the bad guy point blank, and oh, by the way, Moriarty is back!) But other than that, in his new marriage, with a wee one on the way, we can only hope that our all-around good guy Dr. Watson may at last find some of the happiness he so deserves.