Well, the time has come. I hope at least some of you have been encouraged to spend a little time in the canon. After all, we wouldn't know just how brilliant Moftiss were if not for knowledge of Conan Doyle's original words.

Thanks to everyone who played. Even if you didn't post, you're all the wiser now if you took some time to look back to the stories.

And the answers (at least as I envisioned them...):

1. Every story has a beginning. What words did Dr. Watson first hear Holmes say?

"I've found it! I've found it!"

2. Ladies (especially), what colour are the eyes of our detective friend (bonus points if you tell the story in which this information is found)?

grey (Congratulations, kazza, for scoring bonus points for listing 3 stories where we are told this. Now the rest of you, go read those stories!)

3. Each story (or nearly so) gives us a glimpse into Holmes' special deductive powers. What brilliant deduction is the very first one that, through Watson's eyes, we get to see?

that Watson had been in Afghanistan

4. Most of the stories have Dr. Watson as narrarator. Four of them do not. Which are they, and, for those, who relates each drama?

Holmes narrates "The Blanched Soldier" and "The Lion's Mane", and an undisclosed narrator tells the stories of "The Mazarin Stone" and "His Last Bow" (although there are suspicions that Conan Doyle, Dr. Watson's literary agent, is the narrator for one or both of these last two)

5. Easily, the most popular image of Sherlock Holmes is with his deerstalker hat, Inverness cape, and calabash pipe. In which canon story do we first see Holmes portrayed in this manner?

Conan Doyle never portrayed Holmes in this now-cliche manner. William Gillette portrayed Holmes this way in film, and Sidney Paget did in fact show Holmes in a get-up something like this.

6. No one would call Dr. Watson an immoral man, but we do see hints of one particular vice in stories such as "The Dancing Men" and "Shoscombe Old Place". What weakness do these stories (and perhaps one or two others) suggest or show?

gambling

7. The best-known illustrator of the stories that appeared in The Strand magazine was a relatively unknown artist. Name the man who gave Holmes his handsome, scholarly, dignified aura.

Sidney Paget

8. All good things must come to an end. What is the last case (chronologically) that we see Holmes and Watson solving as one unit?

"His Last Bow"

9. Related to Holmes retirement, Dr. Watson tells us that Holmes has removed to the Sussex Downs, and occupies himself primarily in two fields of study. What are these two fields?

philosophy and agriculture. Dr. Watson tells us this in his Preface to the seven stories collected as "His Last Bow". Holmes did indeed study books and bees, but these are not properly "fields of study".

10. Yikes! Almost done... Watson leaves the rooms at 221B Baker Street at one point, and then returns to live with Holmes again later. Why did he come back, and why did he originally go?

He married, then returned when his wife died. As some have suggested, Watson may actually have married again (and again, and again), but most people chalk up this matrimonial mayhem to Conan Doyle's less than perfect editing (and/or memory).

11. Moriarty, arch-nemesis of Holmes, never actually meets Dr. Watson. He gets all his information about the professor from Holmes. What is unusual about the way Holmes introduces Watson to Moriarty in the canon? I suspect this question might be hard to follow. I can't make my meaning more clear without giving away the answer. PM me if you wish, and I'll give any hints that I can.

Holmes introduces Dr. Watson to awareness of Professor Moriarty in "The Final Problem". However, in the earlier novel, The Valley of Fear, Watson says he is familiar with Moriarty. Sorry to all for the confusion; I just didn't know how better to word the question. I like all of the answers were given (even though I count them wrong for not matching mine!)

Bonus: Hidden within the questions themselves is a clue as to what Holmes himself might think of this quiz. Can you find it? Note: If you think you know, feel free to post your answer, but please give us a ***Spoiler*** alert so as not to ruin the fun for others.

As our beloved administrator has pointed out, the answer here is cheesy, and it's not canon. If you take the first letters of the eleven questions, and then continue on with the last letters of the eleven questions, you will discover my very poor attempt to make an acrostic of "Elementary, my Dear Watson!" Having revealed that, I can now apologize for the awkwardness of how I stated the questions, but I had to make them fit!

Again, thanks to all who played along. Unfortunately, there can only be one winner, and the honors go to our resident canon expert (one of them, that is!) kazza, who finishes with 10.5 correct answers (her question 9 was half correct), plus bonus points for question 2.

Whew! Great job, everyone. Now it's someone else's turn...

congrats kazza!!   

Hey tantalus...you did an awesome job with your sneaky  'elementary my dear watson'   however it's been argued that Holmes never said that in the canon.   But that's the phrase that we associate him mostly with.  we love it,  don't we?    How many did I get right?   Hate to admit,  but this kitty's too lazy to go and look.   thank you in advance!!