Horatio Hornblower would probably get along well enough in here, no doubt posting to threads relating to the playing of Whist, drinking of Coffee, and threads of nautical interest, but he’d be wise enough to recognize that he’d never be able to devote the time to reading the SDMB and still be able to perform his duty as a naval officer.
Jeff from Coupling would enjoy posting to the SDMB, much to the continued amusement and dismay of everyone else. He’d probably have some entertaining input on a couple of my threads.
I can see Barney from How I Met Your Mother also posting, with his… unique insights on life.
I thought of Ignatious J Reilly from A Confederacy of Dunces as the worst. He would love opining to the world all at once and might get very sniffy indeed at being challenged over anything.
I think Atticus Finch would be a valued poster, though not very prolific. Making on point comments and posts in both GD and GQ, but I suspect he’d be a bit of a lurker in the more frivolous fora.
Peter Parker would be an interesting poster, too. But stay out of the crossfire when he and Bruce Banner start to debate rad health physics.
I’ve said this in book threads before, but Bartimaeus, the 5,000-year-old djinni in Jonathan Stroud’s trilogy would be a great Doper. He’d start the best Pit threads.
On the other hand, I think Dana Scully, FBI special agent and physician, would fit in very well here. She’d have lots of interesting posts on medical and law-enforcement topics, and could join forces with the anti-loon, anti-conspiracy Dopers.
Sherlock Holmes would also have fun, I suspect.
Morgoth and Sauron would just glower at everyone and plot against them.
I can imagine several figures from the Bake Street universe having exchanges today:
John_Watson_MD: I am shocked by what I read in this morning’s newspapers about the latest assassination in the Balkans.
Sherlock: Relax, my dear Watson. I think you will find there’s more going on there than you read in the newspapers. I have been engaged by a Russian heiress to solve the mystery, and I expect to have it solved within a week.
Inspector_Lestrade: Cite please? (And that goes to both of you: what newspapers, what assassination, and what heiress?)