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Thread: The Most Iconic Detective Sidekicks, Ranked

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    The Most Iconic Detective Sidekicks, Ranked

    The Most Iconic Detective Sidekicks, Ranked - 45 of the greatest detective-adjacent crime-solvers in history.


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    Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your eyes. The time has come to do a giant, comprehensive ranking of the detective sidekicks that have graced crime fiction. This list spans books, film, and television. It’s big. It’s long. And it’s necessitated a lot of thought about what it means to actually be a sidekick, versus the other archetypes that frequently appear in the genres where you expect to find sidekicks.


    So let us define the qualifications for sidekicking. The detective, the one who has the sidekick, is probably the story’s clear protagonist. But the most difficult thing about putting together this list was making sure that none of the assembled sidekicks are actually, technically partners with their detectives. If two people open a PI business together, even if one of them is clearly the protagonist and the other is supporting, there is no “sidekick” in this dynamic. Britt Pollack is not Hank Dolworth’s sidekick. Nor is Burton “Gus” Guster Shawn Spencer’s sidekick. Same with Maddie Hayes and David Addison (if all those names don’t ring a bell, go watch Terriers, Psych, and Moonlighting, respectively. Three very different shows, all excellent for very different reasons.)


    Now, if the two collaborators are fellow police officers of equal rank in a department and they are paired on cases together (or from different departments brought on to a case to work on it from different angles), they are also “partners” and not sidekicks. This rules out some big pairings, like McNulty and Moreland, Booth and Brennan, Cagney and Lacey, and Mulder and Scully. And, certainly, if there are two amateur detectives working on a case together, like Frank and Joe Hardy, they are also doing so as partners and without sidekicks.


    Okay, now onto genre. We thought long and hard about the different genres that this list might include. We’re including detectives of every kind, but NOT spies. NOT spies. Which is a shame, because Ron Stoppable is the BEST sidekick there is (and I would really love to put Kim Possible on a list one of these days). No spies or secret agents, alas. The spy genre is just too distinct.


    What about superheroes? My first instinct is “no,” because, while superheroes are crime-fighters, by and large, they aren’t detectives… but then again, Batman, who has one of the most classic sidekicks, is technically a detective and not even a real superhero. And the Green Hornet is in a similar situation. So, we included superheroes on this list as long as their primary work is solving crimes, as opposed to simply using extraordinary abilities to fight them. Cowboys and “sheriffs” are also fine, as long as they, also, primarily function as detectives. Same with “adventurers.” Speaking of dogs, can animals and non-human entities count as sidekicks? Yes, absolutely.


    The main function of the sidekick is to be a supportive friend and loyal helper to the detective—so protégés and assistants definitely qualify. Deputies, however, only count as sidekicks if they stick with the main investigator and help; if they’re simply lower in command and they also cause stress, they don’t qualify. Barney Fife is not a sidekick. Do you hear me? Barney Fife is not a sidekick. He is a stressful supporting character and that is all. But a sidekick isn’t just a friend, either. Detectives can have friends and relationships that have nothing to do with sidekick-dom. And more often than not, the main relationship between the detective and sidekick should not be romantic. If a romance forms, it has to be after the detective-sidekick dynamic has already been established. But a character who is not initially set up to be a sidekick cannot become a sidekick. Harriet Vane, for example, is not a sidekick to Lord Peter Wimsey, and don’t ever let anyone call her that. Neither is Nora Charles, even if Nick ends up doing most of the legwork.


    A sidekick is probably not a parent or a superior officer (though exceptions can be made for retirees), but a sidekick can be more knowledgeable than the detective, like if the sidekick is a computer wiz. And remember folks, we’re not ranking the “best” sidekicks, but the “most iconic” ones,” because there are ultimately too many to do an all-inclusive list.


    Okay, that was a lot. Everybody good? Here we go.


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    Robin and Tonto are the first that come to my mind.

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    Holmes and what's his name for me. (I know who it is)
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    Any list that doesn’t include Charlie Chan’s number one son, number two son, number one daughter and Birmingham Brown is including incomplete.
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    No Peter Pascoe?





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    The writer's clarification that the list was to be a ranking of not necessarily the best sidekicks, but the most iconic leaves only one name at the top of the list, and fortunately Dr. John Watson is there. The Holmes-Watson dynamic is the template for the great majority of such professional relationships in the popular culture of the last 120+ years.

    I strongly believe that in order to be judged "iconic" it's important that the stories in which they appeared have stood the test of time, and that they are still enjoyed, in one form or another, by a lot of people. Some very talented authors, including Bonnie MacBird, James Lovegrove and Nicholas Meyer, regularly create excellent Holmes and Watson books. And of course Holmes has been portrayed in movies and on television more than any other character in literature.

    A few notable sidekicks who should have made the list - possibly displacing some of the children's book and television characters and the more obscure early-20th Century ones - and should have been fairly high on it, as well:

    Dr. Petrie, the sidekick and chronicler of the exploits of Sir Denis Nayland Smith in Sax Rohmer's Fu Manchu stories.

    Ham, Monk, Renny, Johnny and Long Tom, the sidekick team of pulp hero Doc Savage. Not only established the idea of a "team" of sidekicks, they formed the basis for "Team Banzai" in the Buckaroo Banzai film and subsequent print appearances, just as Banzai himself is based on Savage.

    Also, a couple of points: Archie Goodwin, Nero Wolfe's invaluable right-hand man deserves a much higher place than #31.

    Were you to call Hawk Spenser's "sidekick", Spenser would laugh and Hawk would take your head off.
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    After #1 the list goes bad.

    For example Lewis should be near the top just for putting up with Inspector Morse and all the work he put into the job!
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    Richard Castle. He actually solves more of the crimes than the NYPD does
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    Quote Originally Posted by Peter1469 View Post
    Holmes and what's his name for me. (I know who it is)
    John or Joan Watson.

    John Watson was the original Sherlock Holmes side kick
    Joan Watson was the Elementary Sherlock Holmes side kick.

    In both the books and the movies John Watson was more of a foil for Holmes
    In Elementary Joan Watson became more of a partner and actually helped him solve crimes.
    Devotion to the truth is the hallmark of morality; there is no greater, nobler, more heroic form of devotion than the act of a man who assumes the responsibility of thinking.”
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    Quote Originally Posted by OLD GUY IN FLORIDA View Post
    John or Joan Watson.

    John Watson was the original Sherlock Holmes side kick
    Joan Watson was the Elementary Sherlock Holmes side kick.

    In both the books and the movies John Watson was more of a foil for Holmes
    In Elementary Joan Watson became more of a partner and actually helped him solve crimes.
    the real one.
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