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me and my malewife boyfailure lurking

THE COPPER BEECHES part two (pt 1 here), the conclusion. According to Watson: "As to Miss Violet Hunter, my friend Holmes, rather to my disappointment, manifested no further interest in her when once she had ceased to be the centre of one of his problems, and she is now the head of a private school at Walsall, where I believe that she has met with considerable success."

(This is part of the Watson's sketchbook series)

this the kinda memes that would make rounds in the gar

commission for mandie on twitter!

save me sexy british army doctor save me

father and daughter.

the most iconic "they don't know they're about to fundamentally change each other's lives" moment in yaoi history

young holmes/watson designs partly inspired by @contact-guy's incredible comic adaptation of canon which i am obsessed with!!

CHARLES AUGUSTUS MILVERTON part 4 - death of a blackmailer

(part 1) (part 2) (part 3)

content warnings for: guns, blood, death. which you are *probably* expecting if you know how this story goes in canon, although this version is...not exactly how Watson told it to the Strand.

(This is part of the Watsons sketchbook series)

okay here are some thoughts I had while making this:

MILVERTON IS SUCH A WEIRD STORY. I believe it's the only case in canon where we don't meet the supposed client, Lady Eva, or even read a letter from them. That was what originally made me think there was more going on - that, and Holmes's "intensity of feeling" when he speaks about Milverton.

The 1885 Labouchere amendment, which made it much easier to prosecute men for having queer sex, was called "the Blackmailer's Law". Although queer sex was illegal before the passage of the law, two people needed to actually be caught in the act. After 1885, the standard for evidence got much looser - including suggestive letters.

Learning about that in conjunction with reading Milverton put this idea in my head - that Holmes is Milverton's target. I've been avoiding reading fic or watching any other adaptations of this story because I knew I had a specific way I wanted to do it, but I know I'm far from the first one to draw this connection!

The second WEIRD part of this story is the remarkable coincidence that, on the same night Watson and Holmes burgle Milverton's house and hide behind the curtains, a mysterious woman appears and shoots him. "No interference upon our part could have saved the man from his fate". With uncharacteristic passivity, they watch a man die and a murderer escape. Holmes has certainly let criminals go before, but usually he talks to them first!

As I was digging into the story, certain descriptors for this mysterious avenger stood out to me. She is described as tall, dark, and lithe. She has "a face with a curved nose, strong, dark eyebrows shading hard, glittering eyes, and a straight, thin-lipped mouth set in a dangerous smile". Does that sound like anyone else we know?

I truly believe that the enduring power of the Sherlock Holmes canon lies in the fact that Doyle did not write these stories with particular care. There are holes, inconsistencies, contradictions, and gaps. At the same time, the charismatic center of the story is (while chastising Watson for not recording his adventures accurately) telling the reader to pay attention to trifles. To look closer, to ask questions, to consider every angle, no matter how outlandish. The combination of these two factors results in: a series of facts that do not *quite* hang together, and authorial permission to attempt to deduce the true story.

Finally, something that fascinates me about the Victorian era is that it marked the birth of many ideologies and power systems that, in the 2020s, we are now living through the consequences of. Notably, capitalism. Milverton, who insists he is only doing business, and therefore is innocent, while ruining lives, struck me as a very modern villain. "How could one compare the ruffian, who in hot blood bludgeons his mate, with this man, who methodically and at his leisure tortures the soul and wrings the nerves in order to add to his already swollen money-bags?"

If only we could hit more men like that with chairs.

AND IT'S WATSON WITH THE STEEL CHAIR

On the last Bad Batch eve, thank you from the bottom of my heart to the creators, the fandom, and the wonderful people i've met ❣️ TBB and these characters mean more to me than i could ever put into words, and they will stay a part of me forever

bye bye batch. waiting on that clone rebellion spinoff now

everyone be quiet i'm manifesting

tem study with cody

other old art i found doing spring cleaning lawl

rediscovering bishonens. mindless draw

THE ADVENTURE OF CHARLES AUGUSTUS MILVERTON - part one of several, because this is one of my favorite Holmes stories! Ever since I read it I had a feeling there was something more...personal...going on with Holmes's hatred for Milverton than simply a principled stand against blackmail. A lot of this is directly pulled from the books but of course I took it in my own direction!

This is in the Watson's sketchbook series, and specifically references the Hound of the Baskervilles entry in that series :)

also thank you to my friend Phoenix for reading this when it was in sketch phase and reassuring me that it made sense!

Milverton design under the cut: