# Fictional detectives: the cream of the cream. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 11, 2008, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-detectives-the-cream-of-the-cream/456059 "2008-07-11T00:04:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2008, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-detectives-the-cream-of-the-cream/456059/1 "2008-07-11T00:04:07Z")
I want to formulate a list of the very best fictional detectives - literary (including comics, graphic novels, etc), film, TV or stage - it doesn’t matter. ‘Best’ can be defined in many different ways - popularity, quality of writing, likeability of the character, etc. - and that’s fine. They don’t have to be good for the same reasons as each other. My list currently includes: -Philip Marlowe (in fact, as a _genre_, as much as a specific character) -Sherlock Holmes -Hercule Poirot -Columbo -Clouseau -Morse -Frost (maybe) Feel free to add to the list, or argue for the removal of any character you feel is unworthy. I do have a personal motive for asking this - I’m in the first stages of planning a light-hearted sketch which I think will feature multiple famous detectives in a room together - I intend to perform it single-handed, by means of fast changes of costume and possibly double-half costumes (one character when viewed from the left, another from the right). ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2008, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-detectives-the-cream-of-the-cream/456059/2 "2008-07-11T00:11:33Z")
Peter Wimsey! ETA - perfect for your purposes, as he’s also pretty recognizable - monocle, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2008, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-detectives-the-cream-of-the-cream/456059/3 "2008-07-11T00:19:52Z")
Let’s not forget: Jane Tennison (Prime Suspect - played by Helen Mirren) Adam Dalgliesh (P.D. James’ detective) - the best poet/detective Sam Spade and/or the Continental Op (Dashiel Hammett’s detectives) - my favourites of the hard-boiled genre, with apologies to Mr. Chandler ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2008, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-detectives-the-cream-of-the-cream/456059/4 "2008-07-11T00:24:58Z")
Oh, come on! The single greatest detective ever created is… Bruce Wayne, of course. 20,000. And it wasn’t about booze. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2008, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-detectives-the-cream-of-the-cream/456059/5 "2008-07-11T00:38:46Z")
[Conan Edogawa](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Case_Closed) is written targeting children, but he is probably the most profitable (in terms of sales) detective character ever. Personally, I like [Burke](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burke_%28character%29), but I doubt he’s at the top of any lists and isn’t terribly impressive as a detective. ---
**Author:** ![ivan\_astikov](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@ivan\_astikov](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivan_astikov)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2008, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-detectives-the-cream-of-the-cream/456059/6 "2008-07-11T00:38:51Z")
Steve Carella, from the 54th Precinct novels by Ed McBain. Lucas Davenport, from the “Prey” novels by John Sandford. Dave Robicheaux, from James Lee Burkes wonderful books. Oh, and Mike Hammer!!! ---
**Author:** ![eleanorigby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee7513/32.png) [@eleanorigby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eleanorigby)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2008, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-detectives-the-cream-of-the-cream/456059/7 "2008-07-11T00:44:47Z")
Alan Grant from Josephine Tey’s novels. Inspector Hemingway from Georgette Heyers novels (forgot his first name) Inspector Wexford from Ruth Rendell’s mysteries Adam Dalgliesh from PD James Richard Jury from Martha Grimes (but her more recent ones are not as good). ---
**Author:** ![samarm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4da419/32.png) [@samarm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samarm)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2008, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-detectives-the-cream-of-the-cream/456059/8 "2008-07-11T00:47:23Z")
Jessica (soft focus) Fletcher 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2008, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-detectives-the-cream-of-the-cream/456059/9 "2008-07-11T00:50:48Z")
Oh, another little-known favorite: [Frank Pembleton](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Pembleton) ---
**Author:** ![Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e56c9b/32.png) [@Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harriet_the_Spry)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2008, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-detectives-the-cream-of-the-cream/456059/10 "2008-07-11T01:03:54Z")
Matt Scudder and Bernie Rhodenbarr John Rebus Harry Bosch You might have fun with Kinsey Milhone if you work in the alphabet theme. Kay Scarpetta, before Patricia Cornwell jumped the shark. ---
**Author:** ![Elenfair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/cc9497/32.png) [@Elenfair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elenfair)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2008, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-detectives-the-cream-of-the-cream/456059/11 "2008-07-11T01:06:14Z")
Robert Goren. He knows everything! Sheesh, how could y’all forget him… 😛 ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2008, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-detectives-the-cream-of-the-cream/456059/12 "2008-07-11T01:13:44Z")
SheesH! No **Dr. John Thorndyke**? > **[Dr. Thorndyke](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dr_Thorndyke)** > > Dr. John Evelyn Thorndyke is a fictional detective in a long series of 21 novels and 40 short stories by British author R. Austin Freeman (1862–1943). Thorndyke was described by his author as a 'medical jurispractitioner': originally a medical doctor, he turned to the bar and became one of the first — in modern parlance — forensic scientists. His solutions were based on his method of collecting all possible data (including dust and pond weed) and making inferences from them before looking at any ... Anthony Berkeley’s **Crime Circle**? For gosh sakes, no **Nero Wolfe???** Or my favorite, Robert van Gulik’s **Judge Djiendjieh Dee** ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2008, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-detectives-the-cream-of-the-cream/456059/13 "2008-07-11T01:20:20Z")
Bulldog Drummond, the World War I vet who got in the business because he was bored with civilian life. ---
**Author:** ![Greg\_Charles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/839c29/32.png) [@Greg\_Charles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greg_Charles)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2008, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-detectives-the-cream-of-the-cream/456059/14 "2008-07-11T01:24:48Z")
I have to mention my great uncle, Nick Charles (from the Thin Man) Other notable omissions: Ellery Queen Maigret Miss Marple Tommy and Tuppence Perry Mason (a lawyer, but detective-like) Jupiter Jones ---
**Author:** ![pinkfreud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pinkfreud/32/17603_2.png) [@pinkfreud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pinkfreud)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2008, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-detectives-the-cream-of-the-cream/456059/15 "2008-07-11T01:26:11Z")
Don’t leave off John D. MacDonald’s Travis McGee. ---
**Author:** ![Raguleader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/258eb7/32.png) [@Raguleader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raguleader)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2008, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-detectives-the-cream-of-the-cream/456059/16 "2008-07-11T01:29:41Z")
Constable Benton Fraser, from _Due South_. A master tracker, almost unparalleled at surviving and thriving in the wilderness, and his constant good-samaratin-izing make him numerous friends and allies on the streets of Chicago. He also has a mean combination of an acute eye for detail, super-fast thinking, and nigh-untarnishable integrity. As for why this mountie is exiled to the Canadian Consulate in Chicago, well, that is a story that does not warrant explaining at this juncture. 🆒 Oh, and Micheal Garibaldi, especially when he went all noir in the 4th season of _Babylon 5_. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![ShadowFacts](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shadowfacts/32/2934_2.png) [@ShadowFacts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShadowFacts)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2008, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-detectives-the-cream-of-the-cream/456059/17 "2008-07-11T01:34:31Z")
[QUOTE=CalMeacham] For gosh sakes, no **Nero Wolfe???** [/QUOTE] I think Nero Wolfe is a particularly excellent choice for your project, as you could do a bit where you quickly switch back and forth between Wolfe and Archie for a bit of Rex Stout’s trademark quick and witty banter. I would think that would be delightfully theatrical. (Sorry, that sounds a bit…fey, but I can’t think of another way to put it 😛 ) You may also want to consider Poe’s Dupin - not because he’s the best by any stretch, but he was the first, and thus may warrant an appearance. ---
**Author:** ![AtomicDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ac91a4/32.png) [@AtomicDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AtomicDog)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2008, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-detectives-the-cream-of-the-cream/456059/18 "2008-07-11T02:00:04Z")
[Wendell Urth](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wendell_Urth) [Adrian Monk](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adrian_Monk) ---
**Author:** ![desdinova](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8baadc/32.png) [@desdinova](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/desdinova)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2008, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-detectives-the-cream-of-the-cream/456059/19 "2008-07-11T02:07:52Z")
No love for Charlie Chan and Number One Son? ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2008, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-detectives-the-cream-of-the-cream/456059/20 "2008-07-11T02:08:09Z")
[Judge Dee](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Judge_Dee) [Lord Darcy](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lord_Darcy_%28fiction%29) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fictional-detectives-the-cream-of-the-cream/456059.md?page=2)