The Six Napoleons: It Got Better

[gardnerhill.livejournal.com]

Title: The Six Napoleons: It Gets Better
Author: gardnerhill
Word Count: 60
Rating: G
Warning: None.
Summary: Even a stubborn bulldog can learn new tricks.

***

“’Sallow’,” Lestrade murmured. “’Rat-faced’.”

Watson’s smile bore a hint of teeth. “Well? You learned not to take credit for someone else’s success without consent.”

“Oh Lord, did I.” The inspector held out his glass. “Heard snickering behind me for weeks after that bleeding Beeton’s came out.”

Holmes refilled, laughing. “You were the first, but not the last, to underestimate Watson.”

Comments

[thesmallhobbit.livejournal.com]

I think by this point they had all come to know each other better.

[gardnerhill.livejournal.com]

Exactly.

[debriswoman]

Excellent:-)

[gardnerhill.livejournal.com]

Thank you. It's nice to see that they grew to become friends instead of adversaries.

[debriswoman]

It is...we don't see the evidence too often, but great when we do:-)

[scfrankles.livejournal.com]

I love the fact they're now comfortable enough with one another to be discussing this at all. I love Watson's refusal to back down, even after all this time, and his protectiveness towards Holmes and his work. And we can see Lestrade isn't really offended any more - and neither is Holmes. (He was so annoyed at the end of STUD, wasn't he? ^_^)

[gardnerhill.livejournal.com]

Technically there's nothing in that blurb about SIXN but I wanted to capture that friendship between the three of them they had by that time - so ably captured in the opening of the Granada episode as well (I love the long silent travelling shot of all three lounging by the fire in utter contentment).

[okapi1895.livejournal.com]

Sallow is not flattering but rat-faced (?!) is downright insulting. Poor Lestrade. Who knows if he was actually rat-faced? An angry Watson might have paid the illustrator (who I am now learning was notoriously single-minded in his art!) and maybe Lestrade's forever enshrined as such.

[gardnerhill.livejournal.com]

Watson does go on to describe him as a "bulldog" in HOUN and to have Holmes admit that he's the best of the Yarders - by this time people would be lined up to read the stories and more would read that one than had read STUD. Amends, of a sort.

And Granada did cast the amazing Colin Jeavons (a small rat-faced actor) as Lestrade!

[okapi1895.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I always thought the Grenada Lestrade was remarkably weasel-ly looking. Though I have to say I like Rupert Graves for Lestrade too, although he's the farthest thing from rodent I think you can get in terms of visage.

[gardnerhill.livejournal.com]

The only rodent Rupert Graves' Lestrade bears any resemblance to is a capybara (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Capybara_2.jpg) - a big, buff, handsome critter for a rodent!