A Scandal in Bohemia pits Holmes against the beautiful and intelligent Irene Adler, an Opera singer who possesses evidence of her affair with a Bohemian King.  As the King’s agent, Holmes employs a number of clever disguises in his attempt to outwit his opponent and obtain the photographic evidence she carefully guards.  “The Woman” is not to be outdone.

The Red Headed League is one of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s favorite Sherlock Holmes tales.  In it, Sherlock must deduce the underlying motive for the Red Headed Leagues’ engagement of a clerk with fiery red hair, for an overly generous salary.  After alerting the police that a robbery will occur, Holmes comments to Watson that solving such problems serves to alleviate the boredom of everyday life that he so dreads.