The famous detective Sherlock Holmes, along with his supporting cast, has a bunch of pairings that fans prefer to ship him with, be it with John Watson, Irene Adler, or other characters.
Literature
- In Sherlock Holmes, there is Holmes/Watson. Their strong bond and constant companionship form the core dynamic of the stories, with Watson documenting Holmes's exploits. In canon, Watson marries Mary Morstan. Most adaptations of Holmes will have its most popular pairing be Holmes/Watson.
- For a straight pairing, Sherlock Holmes is often paired with Irene Adler, a character who only appeared in A Scandal in Bohemia. The opera singer is able to outwit Holmes, earning his admiration. While Doyle never portrays the two as having romantic interest in each other, and she marries Godfrey Norton, a man who she clearly loves, adaptations of the Sherlock stories may upgrade them to an Official Couple.
Live-Action Films
- Sherlock Holmes (2009): Most fans prefer to pair Sherlock Holmes and John Watson together over their canon pairings of Irene Adler and Mary respectively. This mostly due to the (deliberate) Ho Yay between the two and the chemistry between their actors. Most of the fanfics, shipping videos, and fanart of the movie centers around the ship.
Live-Action TV
- Nearly every fan of The Adventures of Shirley Holmes ships Bo/Shirley, even though in canon, the duo's relationship was limited to Ship Tease. They had other relationships in the show.
- Elementary: As is typical of most Sherlock Holmes adaptations, (Joan) Watson and Sherlock Holmes are the most popular ship overall due to their strong chemistry together, and in spite of repeated denial by the creators. While Sherlock is in love with Irene in this adaptation, most fans prefer to ship him with Joan instead, as evidenced by all the support they receive on fanfiction sites.
- Miss Sherlock: It didn't take long for most fans to latch onto shipping Sherlock and Wato. This is mainly due to the chemistry between their actresses, the Les Yay between them, and the fact that their dynamic is the focus of the show. Wato is paired with Moriya in the show.
- Sherlock/John in BBC's Sherlock receives plenty of teasing, though the creators pair John with Mary Morstan. The show's creators lean into the existing relationship by adding more homoerotic subtext to the characters' portrayals, with many side characters assuming the two are dating. The fans took these new suggestions and ran with them.
