Watson and Holmes by Karl Bollers (Author), Brandon Perlow (Editor), Rick Leonardi (Artist), Larry Stroman (Artist), Khary Randolph (Artist), Paul Mendoza (Artist) is a comic series recommended to me by a Boston friend a while back. I bought it immediately, but then I shifted from a period of reading a ton of comics to reading none, and am only now just getting back to one of my favorite types of media.
As you can probably guess, Watson and Holmes is a revisioning of the Sherlock Holmes mysteries set in contemporary New York City, with the main characters as Black men. Watson is former pararescue who served in Afghanistan, now a medical intern at a Harlem hospital; Holmes is of course a private detective.
It’s pretty great. The mysteries are complex, with an urban crime novel vibe full of gangs and drugs. The mostly sepia tones of the art give off an aura of the distant Victorian canon. I love a badass Watson, and Jon Watson is that. I also love a badass Holmes, and I got that as well.
Definitely a series to read if you’re a Holmes fan!
Warning for abandoned infant death in the emergency room, right off the bat, which turns out to be relevant later on.
