Keerthana Prakasam Throughout the centuries, people have often shown their love for crime thrillers and mysteries. Mostly crime thrillers are not just about the anticipation that we are all looking for but also the person, the anticipator, who keeps us on our tiptoes in every part of the story. Let’s have a look at the anticipators known as the detectives of our favorite crime thrillers of all time: Sherlock Holmes vs Hercule Poirot.
Sherlock Holmes vs Hercule Poirot: Who is the Better Detective?
1. General Information
Sherlock Holmes is an infamous fictional detective written by the Scottish writer Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. He made his first appearance in A Study in Scarlet in 1887. It was later published as The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes at the end of the 19th century.
Hercule Poirot is also a fictional detective of the police force based in Belgium written by Agatha Christie. She was also known as the Queen of Crime Fiction. He made his first appearance in the first published novel, The Mystery Affairs at Styles in 1920.
2. Appearance Study
In the very first Holmes tale A Study in Scarlet, Dr. Watson describes Holmes with the following appearance:
- around six feet tall
- very lean figure
- wagle-piercing grey eyes
- a thin hawk-like nose that is sharp
- a narrow face
- a black hair
On another other note, Poirot had the following appearance:
- green eyes
- 5’4 tall
- an oval-shaped face
- immaculately groomed moustache
- centre-parted hair
Holmes was also a cocaine addict who could go days without a shower, unlike Poirot who was nicely dressed and well-groomed.
3. Personality Traits
Almost nothing is known about the personal life of Holmes but he is not exactly anti-social nor was he defiant towards others. He was exceptionally intelligent, arrogant, and adamant.
While Poirot was as intelligent, moral, and stubborn, he had the power to stand against evil.
4. Archnemesis
There are 12 rivals from the STUD but the main antagonist is Prof James Moriarty whom the Scarlet Star considers the Napolean of Crime.
Stephen Norton who is also known as Mr. X is the main antagonist in Christie’s last Hercule novel. He was also the foremost antagonist in the entire Poirot series.
5. Methodology of Investigation
The Scarlet Star Holmes was extremely observant and was also a good listener. His method was based on the preparation of supposition based on the sources collected through detailed observation and careful listening though some were obscure.
While Poirot uses psychological analysis, logical reasoning, and his own extensive knowledge of human nature to uncover the crimes, he also uses clues, potential evidence from the crime scene, etc.
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6. Sidekicks, Friends, and Family
This includes whomever shares a close relationship with both the detectives like family and friends. Canonically, Holmes had an older brother and four people whom he considers to be close with. They are John Watson, Mrs Hudson, Molly Hooper, and DI Greg Lestrade.
While Poirot had only one friend and also a roommate named Captain Arthur Hastings.
7. Female Counterparts
The only woman whom Holmes found himself attracted to was Irene Adler. She was an American opera singer who also appeared in a short story, A Scandal in Bohemia.
Poirot had a wife named Katherine who tragically died in a train accident. Countess Vera Rossakoff was the only woman whom the Christie’s gem found himself drawn to.
Who is More Popular: Sherlock Holmes vs Hercule Poirot?
The Poirot series has 33 novels, two plays namely Black Coffee and Alibi, 51 published short stories, and so on. It is also one of the famous and long-running detective series. This Christie’s gem was the first fictional character to receive an obituary on the front page of the New York Times and has 14 movie adaptions.
The Holmes has around 250 adaptions including series and movies was portrayed by more than 70 actors.
Arguably, Sherlock Holmes is more popular making him the most portrayed literary character in films and television series.
Who has Solved More Cases: Sherlock Holmes vs Hercule Poirot?
Both of these fan favorites have their own methods of examining the crimes. Let’s have a look at who solved most cases.
Including the novels and short stories, Christie’s Gem has investigated over 11 cases. He was smart and capable of solving all the cases he took on.
The Scarlet Star has solved around 60 cases which are included in the novel and stories written by the author.
Though it is not precisely known how many cases were solved by Poirot, statistically, it is believed that Sherlock Holmes has solved more cases comparatively.
Similarities Between Sherlock Holmes and Hercule Poirot
There are a lot of similarities between Sherlock Holmes and Hercule Poirot as listed below:
- By profession, they both are detectives.
- Both of them are the game changers of their novels who use intellectual deduction to solve crimes.
- They are attended by their assistant whom they verbally abuse and underestimate.
- Both of them were adamant and stubborn with an unshakable personality.
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Sherlock Holmes is acknowledged to be the better detective mastering deduction skills and logical analysis. In aspects of popularity, Holmes is popularized due to the popularity of the author, unlike Hercule Poirot. In this battle of Sherlock Holmes vs Hercule Poirot, it is inarguable that both of them are enjoyable characters and always beloved by many crime fiction lovers around the world.
