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81-402: A sidekick is a slang expression for a close companion or colleague who is, or is generally regarded as, subordinate to those whom they accompany. The first recorded use of the term dates from 1896. It is believed to have originated in pickpocket slang of the late 19th century. The "kick" was the front pocket of a pair of trousers, believed to be the pocket safest from theft. Thus, by analogy,

162-563: A "side-kick" was a person's closest companion. One of the earliest recorded examples of a sidekick may be Enkidu , who played a sidekick role to Gilgamesh after they became allies in the Epic of Gilgamesh . Other early examples are Achilles and Patroclus in the Iliad and Moses and Aaron in the Old Testament . Sidekicks can fulfill one or multiple functions in fiction, such as

243-642: A case at the Old Bailey made it clear that this was supposed to prevent people who had been robbed while they were drunk from prosecuting the defendant (in most of the cases that meant men who had been robbed by prostitutes): The victims of pickpockets who were drunk at the time of the theft were considered to be partially responsible for being robbed. Even though pickpockets were supposed to be hanged for their crime, this punishment, in fact, rarely happened: 61% of women accused of picking pockets were acquitted and those who were not acquitted often managed to escape

324-449: A convincing reason to like the hero. Although Sherlock Holmes was portrayed as a difficult man to know, his friendship with Dr. Watson convinces the reader that Holmes is a good person. The Left Hand of Vampire Hunter D , being mentally linked to the reticent protagonist, often reveals thoughts, feelings, and the physical condition of his host, as well as background elements of the story. The apparent stupidity of some comedy sidekicks

405-416: A counterpoint to the hero, an alternate point of view, or knowledge, skills, or anything else the hero does not have. They often function as comic relief , and/or the straight man to the hero's comedic actions. A sidekick can also be a character to whom the audience can more easily relate than the hero, or whom the audience can imagine themselves as being (such as teen sidekicks). And by asking questions of

486-634: A diverse array of sidekick successors to Bucky, including the Falcon , Demolition Man , Free Spirit , and Jack Flag . Conversely, the character Rick Jones is virtually a "sidekick-for-hire", having assisted a number of different heroes during his career, starting with the Hulk , moving onto Captain America (when he briefly became the second Bucky), then the first Captain Marvel , Rom Spaceknight , and finally

567-415: A dreadful relationship with his stepmother Gwen. He claims that he only read poetry to annoy her, and that her petty bullying almost drove him to suicide. He has a half-sister named Joyce with whom he is on better terms. Morse was devastated when Joyce's daughter Marilyn took her own life. Morse prefers to use only his surname, and is generally evasive when asked about his first name, sometimes joking that it

648-431: A hero and sidekick. This may also be due to the different roles in fiction of the protagonist and the antagonist : whereas a sidekick is a relatively important character due to his or her proximity to the protagonist, and so will likely be a developed character, the role of a henchman is to act as cannon-fodder for the hero and his sidekick. As a result, henchmen tend to be anonymous, disposable characters, existing for

729-493: A mechanical robot sidekick named Geoff Peterson (voiced by Josh Robert Thompson ). Clarence Gilyard informed viewers on a television commercial for Walker Texas Ranger that he was not Chuck Norris 's sidekick, instead humorously saying " This is Chuck Norris's sidekick" over footage of Norris kicking a villain. In animation , some popular examples are Boo-Boo Bear being Yogi Bear 's sidekick, Barney Rubble being Fred Flintstone 's sidekick, Waylon Smithers being

810-622: A mixture of sleight of hand and misdirection. To get the proper misdirect or distraction, pickpockets will normally use the distracting environment that crowds offer or create situations using accomplices. Pickpocketing still thrives in Europe and other countries that are high in tourism. It's most common in areas with large crowds. Sometimes pickpockets put signs up that warn tourists to watch for pickpockets. This causes people to worry and quickly check if their valuables are still on them, thereby showing pickpockets exactly where their valuables are. Once

891-533: A pickpocket finds a person they want to steal from, often called a "mark" or a victim, the pickpocket will then create or look for an opportunity to steal. The most common methods used by modern-day pickpockets are: Famous fictional pickpockets include the Artful Dodger and Fagin , characters from the Charles Dickens ' 1838 novel Oliver Twist . Famous true-life historical pickpockets include

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972-467: A piece of clothing, and not "as opposed to pouches or bags hanging outside their clothes". These external pockets were still in fashion until the mid-19th century. Pickpocketing in the 18th century was committed by both men and women (looking at prosecuted cases of pickpocketing, it appears that there were more female defendants than male.) Along with shoplifting , pickpocketing was the only type of crime committed by more women than men. It seems that in

1053-411: A reasonably sympathetic personality, despite his sullen and snobbish temperament, with a classic Jaguar Mark 2 (a Lancia in the early novels), a thirst for English real ale , and a love of classical music (especially opera and Wagner ), poetry, art and cryptic crossword puzzles. In his later career, he is usually assisted by Sergeant Robbie Lewis . Morse's partnership and formal friendship with Lewis

1134-646: A selection of super-powered teenagers — heroes in their own right, such as Spider-Man , the second Human Torch , and the X-Men .) Most of the Golden Age and Silver Age sidekicks have subsequently evolved into mature heroes in their own right or have been killed off; and in the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s, some new sidekicks have come into being. Certain heroes seem to attract serial sidekicks, notably Batman , Captain America , and The Flash . There have been at least five iterations of Robin ; while Captain America has had

1215-508: A sexual subtext. In 1954, Wertham's book Seduction of the Innocent coincided with Congressional hearings on (among other topics) the negative influence of comic books. For a time, superhero comics lost their popularity, and many teenage sidekicks faded into obscurity. ( Rick Veitch 's graphic novel Brat Pack , and issues of Alan Moore 's Top 10 , directly address the seamy, exploitative, and potentially pedophilia -related aspects of

1296-838: A supporting pivotal role to the star. Examples include Ethel Mertz to Lucy Ricardo ( I Love Lucy ), Ed Norton to Ralph Kramden ( The Honeymooners ), Screech Powers to Zack Morris ( Saved by the Bell ), Major Roger Healey to Major Anthony "Tony" Nelson ( I Dream of Jeannie ), or even a group of people such as the Sweathogs to Mr. Kotter ( Welcome Back, Kotter ). Duos of equal importance on TV such as Kate McArdle and Allie Lowell ( Kate & Allie ), Oscar Madison and Felix Unger ( The Odd Couple ), Bret Maverick and Bart Maverick ( Maverick ), or Laverne De Fazio and Shirley Feeney ( Laverne & Shirley ), are sometimes both called sidekicks to each other, although

1377-544: A supporting role to his brother Mario. Sonic the Hedgehog is often accompanied by his sidekick Miles "Tails" Prower , and his would-be girlfriend Amy Rose also has a hero-sidekick relationship with Cream the Rabbit . Diddy Kong is often seen as the sidekick to Donkey Kong , while Mega Man is aided by his robotic dog Rush. However, video game heroes will occasionally work alone-as in the case of Kid Icarus ' Pit-or with

1458-628: A team supporting their efforts-as with Fox McCloud -as opposed to a single sidekick. Comic book sidekicks have a long and popular history, dating back to the beginnings of the form. Examples include the Crimson Avenger 's sidekick Wing , and Mister America 's sidekick Fatman , both of whom debuted in the late 1930s. Other notable comics sidekicks include Ebony White , Jughead , Etta Candy , Captain Haddock , and Obelix . In 1940 DC Comics introduced comics' first teenage sidekick, Robin

1539-447: Is Inspector . In The Dead of Jericho and The Wench Is Dead it is noted that his initial is E. At the end of Death Is Now My Neighbour , his name is revealed to be Endeavour. Two-thirds of the way through the television episode based on the book, he gives the cryptic clue "My whole life's effort has revolved around Eve, nine letters". In the series, it is noted that Morse's reluctance to use his Christian name led to his receiving

1620-406: Is deductive, and one of his key tenets is that "there is a 50 per cent chance that the person who finds the body is the murderer". Morse uses immense intuition and his fantastic memory to apprehend the perpetrator. Among Morse's conservative tastes are that he likes to drink real ale and whisky , and in the early novels, drives a Lancia . In the television and radio productions (and reprints of

1701-490: Is fundamental to the series. Morse's father was a taxi driver, and Morse likes to explain the origin of his additional private income by saying that he "used to drive the Aga Khan ". In the episode of the television adaptation Cherubim and Seraphim , it is revealed that Morse's parents divorced when he was 12. He remained with his mother until her death three years later, upon which he had to return to his father. Morse had

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1782-421: Is not shy to show his liking for attractive women and often dates those involved in cases. Indeed, a woman he falls in love with sometimes turns out to be the culprit. Morse is highly intelligent. He is a crossword addict and dislikes grammatical and spelling errors; in every personal or private document that he receives, he manages to point out at least one mistake. He claims that his approach to crime-solving

1863-418: Is often used to make a non-intellectual hero look intelligent. Similarly, a flamboyant or effeminate sidekick may make an otherwise unimposing hero look more masculine. And a strong, silent and modest hero may have his fighting qualities revealed to the other characters and the audience by a talkative sidekick. While many sidekicks are used for comic relief, there are other sidekicks who are less outrageous than

1944-465: Is ostensibly the embodiment of middle-class Englishness, with a set of prejudices and assumptions to match, although his background, being the son of a taxi driver, might be considered working class. As a result, he may be considered an example of the gentleman detective , a staple of British detective fiction . This is in sharp contrast to the working-class lifestyle of his assistant Lewis (named after another rival clue-writer, Mrs. B. Lewis ); in

2025-557: Is replaced with "partner" or "companion". Whenever there is a team of more than two characters, the term sidekick is generally reserved for another team member of the same sex. It is rare for the relationship between a character and an opposite-sex sidekick to lack romantic or sexual overtones of any kind — though there are examples, like Modesty Blaise and Willie Garvin , The original Doctor Who series intentionally avoided any explicit onscreen indications of romantic or sexual attraction between The Doctor and his female companions. ( See

2106-673: The X-Men live action films). Some well-known fictional sidekicks are Don Quixote 's Sancho Panza , Sherlock Holmes ' Doctor Watson , The Lone Ranger 's Tonto , The Green Hornet 's Kato , Shrek 's Donkey and Puss in Boots , Aquaman 's Aqualad , Mickey Mouse 's Donald Duck and Goofy , Mario 's Luigi and Yoshi , Sonic 's Tails and Knuckles , Donkey Kong 's Diddy Kong , Bugs Bunny 's Daffy Duck and Porky Pig , Captain America 's Bucky , Batman 's Robin , and SpongeBob SquarePants 's Patrick Star . TV sidekicks usually play

2187-464: The Old Bailey between 1780 and 1808 show that male pickpockets were somewhat younger than female ones: 72% of men pickpockets convicted at the time were aged from under 20 to 30, while 72% of women convicted of picking pockets were aged between 20 and 40. One reason that may explain why women pickpockets were older is that most of women pickpockets were prostitutes (this explains why very few women under 20 years old were convicted for picking pockets). At

2268-677: The Royal Corps of Signals as a cipher clerk. Upon leaving, he joined the police at Carshall-Newtown, before being posted to Oxford with the Oxford City Police . He was awarded the George Medal in the last episode of Endeavour Series 4. He is assigned to a uniformed position in Series 6 despite having his opinions and observations disregarded by CID. He does not wear his GM ribbon, leaving his uniform breast bare. Morse

2349-411: The 17th century, pickpockets were sometimes referred to as "cut-purses", as can be seen in some 17th century ballads. At that time, pockets were not yet sewn to clothes, as they are today. This means that the pockets were a small purse that people wore close to their body. This was especially true for women, since men's pockets were sewn "into the linings of their coats". Women's pockets were worn beneath

2430-413: The 18th century, most pickpockets stole out of economic needs: they were often poor and did not have any economic support, and unemployment was "the single most important cause of poverty", leading the most needy ones to pick pockets. In most cases, pickpockets operated depending on the opportunities they got: if they saw someone wearing a silver watch or with a handkerchief bulging out of their pocket,

2511-464: The 1960s television series with Bruce Lee ) been depicted as a capable man of action, for instance in martial arts . The earliest Doctor Who serials, particularly during the First Doctor era, had young male companions who were capable of the physical action that the elderly William Hartnell was not. This became more important as Hartnell's health declined during his tenure as The Doctor. This

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2592-608: The Bible from memory, agreeing with the phrases, as he does with lines from various literary books/texts. The novels in the series are: Inspector Morse also appears in several stories in Dexter's short story collection, Morse's Greatest Mystery and Other Stories (1993, expanded edition 1994). The Inspector Morse novels were made into a TV series (also called Inspector Morse ) for the British commercial TV network ITV . The series

2673-712: The Boy Wonder , created to soften the dark tone of the Batman comics and make the Dark Knight more attractive to younger readers. Robin's instant popularity spawned a host of imitations, including such iconic characters as Bucky , Toro , Sandy the Golden Boy , and Speedy . ( Stripesy was the exception to the rule: an adult sidekick to a teen hero, the Star-Spangled Kid . Another unusual sidekick pairing

2754-795: The Irish prostitute Chicago May , who was profiled in books; Mary Frith , nicknamed Moll Cutpurse; the Gubbins band of highwaymen; and Cutting Ball , a notorious Elizabethan thief. George Barrington 's escapades, arrests, and trials, were widely chronicled in the late 18th-century London press . The 17th and 18th centuries saw a significant number of men and women pickpockets, operating in public and/or private places and stealing different types of items. Some of those pickpockets were caught and prosecuted for their theft, however, in most cases, they managed to avoid punishment (whether they were skilful enough not to get caught or they were acquitted in court). In

2835-431: The adult hero-teen sidekick relationship.) In the early 1960s, at the advent of comics' so-called Silver Age , a new round of superhero sidekicks made their debuts, including Rick Jones , Aqualad , Snapper Carr , Kid Flash , and Wonder Girl . Indeed, the original Teen Titans superhero team, appearing in 1964, was composed entirely of sidekicks. ( Marvel Comics mostly got around the teen sidekick quandary by creating

2916-610: The authority of an adult who trained them to steal. The children involved in these gangs were orphans (either because of having been abandoned or because their parents had died), and the whole relationship they had with the adult ruling the gang and the other children was that of a "surrogate family". Charles Dickens ' Oliver Twist provides a good example of how orphans were recruited and turned into street criminals. Male and female pickpockets tended to operate in different locations: 80% of men operated in public areas while 78% of women operated in private places. This can be explained by

2997-471: The bank of the River Thames at Oxford, opposite the boathouse belonging to 22nd Oxford Sea Scout Group; the building is named T.S. Endeavour . Although details of Morse's education are kept vague, it is hinted that he won a scholarship to study at St John's College, Oxford . He lost the scholarship as the result of poor academic performance stemming from a failed love affair, which is mentioned in

3078-472: The capital sentence, as only 6% of defendants accused of pickpocketing between 1780 and 1808 were hanged. In the cases of prostitutes being accused of having pickpocketed male prosecutors, the jury's verdict was very often more favourable to the woman defendant than to the man prosecuting her. Men who had been laying with prostitutes were frowned upon by the court. One of the reasons was that they had chosen to take off their clothes, they were also drunk most of

3159-673: The character, as well as the (2012–2023) prequel series Endeavour , portrayed by Shaun Evans . The older Morse is a senior Criminal Investigation Department (CID) officer with the Thames Valley Police in Oxford in England and, in the prequel, Morse is a young detective constable rising through the ranks with the Oxford City Police and, in later series, the Thames Valley Police. Morse presents, to some,

3240-578: The club, where he meets several other sidekicks who spend the night lamenting their second-fiddle lot in life. Some video games have sidekicks who provide assistance to players during their adventures. An early example was Floyd in Planetfall , whom Computer Gaming World in April 1984 described as "unique". A potential example of this is found in the case of the Mario Bros. , with Luigi serving in

3321-526: The discussion of comic books' teenage sidekicks below .) While unusual, it is not unheard of for a sidekick to be more attractive , charismatic, or physically capable than the supposed hero. This is most typically encountered when the hero's appeal is more intellectual rather than sexual. Such heroes (usually fictional sleuths and scientists) are often middle-aged or older and tend towards eccentricity. Such protagonists may, due to either age or physical unsuitability, be limited to cerebral conflicts, while leaving

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3402-467: The distractions of crowds and sudden stop-and-go movements from the train to steal from others. As soon as the thieves have what they want, they simply get off at the next stop leaving the victim unable to figure out who robbed them and when. Pickpocketing skills are employed by some magicians as a form of entertainment, either by taking an item from a spectator or by returning it without them knowing they had lost it. Borra  [ de ] , arguably

3483-402: The easiest items to take from someone without them noticing it. Women tended to steal watches (some pickpockets also stole watches in public places, but it was more difficult) and bags with money in them. When defending themselves in court, prostitutes often argued that the money had been a gift from the victim and managed to be acquitted, as the men prosecuting them were often drunk at the time of

3564-790: The end of the 18th century, 76% of women defendants were prostitutes, and as a result, the victims of pickpockets were more often men than women. In most cases, these prostitutes would lay with men (who were frequently drunk), and take advantage of the situation to steal from these clients. Men who were robbed by prostitutes often chose not to prosecute the pickpockets, since they would have had to acknowledge their "immoral behaviour". The few men who decided to prosecute prostitutes for picking their pockets were often mocked in Court, and very few prostitutes ended up being declared fully guilty. The men who were prosecuted for picking pockets and who were under 20 years old were often children working in gangs, under

3645-429: The fact that most female pickpockets were prostitutes, robbing their victims in their lodging after having lain with them. Male pickpockets, on the other hand, tended to operate in public places because they did not have the opportunity that prostitutes had. The fact that men and women did not operate in the same places led to them stealing different types of items: men stole mostly handkerchiefs, because they were one of

3726-418: The hero from a dire fate. Kalimán , a heroic character depicted on movies, radio theatre and comic books, mentors a young lad named Solín. A villain 's supporters are normally called henchmen , minions, or lackeys , not sidekicks. While this is partially a convention in terminology, it also reflects that few villains are capable of bonds of friendship and loyalty, which are normal in the relationship between

3807-450: The hero, or giving the hero someone to talk to, the sidekick provides an opportunity for the author to provide exposition , thereby filling the same role as a Greek chorus . Sidekicks frequently serve as an emotional connection, especially when the hero is depicted as detached and distant, traits which might make it difficult to like the hero. The sidekick is often the confidant who knows the main character better than anyone else, and gives

3888-508: The hero. The sidekick was a regular presence in westerns , where Fuzzy Knight , Al "Fuzzy" St. John , Smiley Burnette , and Andy Devine had longer careers than some of the heroic singing cowboys for whom they took pratfalls. In science fiction the sub-type of the alien sidekick has been established. Examples of alien sidekicks are Mr. Spock (sidekick of Captain James T. Kirk ) on Star Trek and Chewbacca (sidekick of Han Solo ) in

3969-407: The heroes they pledge themselves to, and comedy derived from the hero can often be amplified by the presence or reaction of the sidekick. Examples include Porky Pig , who is more sensible and calmer than Daffy Duck in later short films; similarly, Sancho Panza is more rational than Don Quixote . It is typical for the character and sidekick to be of the same gender — otherwise the term "sidekick"

4050-401: The main character. British entertainer James Freedman created the pickpocket sequences for the 2005 film Oliver Twist directed by Roman Polanski . American illusionist David Avadon featured pickpocketing as his trademark act for more than 30 years and promoted himself as "a daring pickpocket with dashing finesse" and "the country's premier exhibition pickpocket, one of the few masters in

4131-569: The most famous stage pickpocket of all time, became the highest-paid European performer in circuses during the 1950s. For 60 years he was billed as "the King of Pickpockets" and encouraged his son, Charly, to follow in his cunning trade, his offspring being billed as "the Prince of Pickpockets". Henri Kassagi , a French-Tunisian illusionist, acted as technical advisor on Robert Bresson 's 1959 film Pickpocket and appeared as instructor and accomplice to

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4212-537: The new identity of Nightwing . Grayson for awhile succeeded his mentor and took on the costumed identity of Batman himself. Another example is the popular comic-strip soldier of fortune Captain Easy , who started as the two-fisted sidekick of the scrawny eponymous hero of the strip Wash Tubbs . Frodo Baggins 's Samwise Gamgee , and Harry Potter 's Ron Weasley , as well as the afore-mentioned Sancho Panza and Doctor Watson, are notable sidekicks from fiction. In fiction,

4293-705: The nickname Pagan while at Stamford School (which Colin Dexter , the author of the Morse novels, attended). In the novels, Morse's first name came from the vessel HMS Endeavour ; his mother was a member of the Religious Society of Friends ( Quakers ) who have a tradition of " virtue names ", and his father admired Captain James Cook . Dexter was a fan of cryptic crosswords and named Morse after champion setter Jeremy Morse , one of Dexter's arch-rivals in writing crossword clues. Dexter used to walk along

4374-574: The ninth series, bringing the total number of Endeavour episodes to 36. The ninth and final series comprised the final three episodes, which aired from 26 February 2023 to 12 March 2023. An adaptation by Melville Jones of Last Bus to Woodstock featured in BBC Radio 4 's Saturday Night Theatre series in June 1985, with Andrew Burt as Morse and Christopher Douglas as Lewis. In the 1990s, an occasional BBC Radio 4 series (for The Saturday Play )

4455-405: The novels), this is altered to a suitably British classic Jaguar Mark 2 . His favourite music is opera, which is echoed in the soundtracks to the television series. The original music is by Barrington Pheloung . His dying words, said to Jim Strange, are "Thank Lewis for me." Morse is portrayed as being an atheist . However, in some scenes, he does entertain the possibility of God and/or quote

4536-611: The novels, Lewis is Welsh , but in the TV series this is altered to a Tyneside ( Geordie ) background, appropriately for the actor Kevin Whately . Morse is in his forties at the start of the books ( Service of all the Dead , Chapter Six: "… a bachelor still, forty-seven years old …"), and Lewis slightly younger (e.g. The Secret of Annexe 3 , Chapter Twenty-Six: "a slightly younger man – another policeman, and one also in plain clothes"). John Thaw

4617-552: The original Star Wars trilogy. One of the roles of the alien sidekick is to act as a mouthpiece for social commentary on the human condition from an outsider's point of view. Heroic sidekicks such as Streaky the Supercat of Krypto the Superdog , Festus Haggen of Gunsmoke 's Matt Dillon , or Gabrielle of Xena: Warrior Princess not only provide comic relief, but can occasionally be brave and/or resourceful and rescue

4698-653: The physical action to a younger or more physically capable sidekick. This type of sidekick is rarely encountered in fiction, because the hero runs the risk of being upstaged by them. However, examples of successful such pairings include Detective Monk and his sidekick Sharona, Inspector Morse and his sidekick Detective Sergeant Robbie Lewis , Nero Wolfe and his sidekick Archie Goodwin , Hiro Nakamura and his sidekick Ando Masahashi , and Miles Vorkosigan and his sidekick cousin Ivan Vorpatril. In other media, The Green Hornet 's sidekick, Kato , has (especially since

4779-441: The pickpockets took the item. This means that the theft was, in such cases, not premeditated. However, some pickpockets did work as a gang, in which cases they planned thefts, even though they could not be sure of what they would get ( Defoe 's Moll Flanders gives several examples of how pickpockets worked as a team or on their own, when the eponymous character becomes a thief out of need). The prosecutions against pickpockets at

4860-478: The police department, the prequel also consisted of Fred Thursday’s family members: Win Thursday, (Caroline O’Neill), Sam Thursday ( Jack Bannon ), Joan Thursday ( Sara Vickers ) and the newspaper editor Dorothea Frazil ( Abigail Thaw ). A second series of four episodes followed, screening between 30 March 2014 and 20 April 2014. On 3 January 2016, the third series aired, also containing four episodes. A fourth series

4941-561: The second episode of the third series, "The Last Enemy", and recounted in detail in the novel The Riddle of the Third Mile , Chapter 7. Further details are revealed piece-by-piece in the prequel series. He often reflects on such renowned scholars as A. E. Housman who, like himself, failed to get an academic degree from Oxford. After university, he entered the army on National Service . This included serving in West Germany with

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5022-452: The series has been recommissioned for an eighth series, screened on 12 September 2021, also containing three episodes. Morse was voted number two on the top 25 list in ITV 's Britain's Favourite Detective first broadcast on 30 August 2020. On 23 May 2022, a day after filming began for the ninth series, ITV announced that Endeavour would end production after a decade on air at the conclusion of

5103-479: The sidekick of Mr. Burns on The Simpsons , Baba Looey being the sidekick of Quick Draw McGraw , and Stimpy being the sidekick of Ren Höek on The Ren and Stimpy Show . In the seventh episode of the 1994 animated series The Tick , the heroes take a night to relax at a local superhero nightclub. When they arrive, however, Arthur is promptly escorted to the Sidekick Lounge, a small shack behind

5184-518: The sole purpose of illustrating the protagonists' prowess as they defeat them. Nevertheless, some villains do have sidekicks, including Lex Luthor 's Mercy Graves , the Joker 's Harley Quinn , Jigsaw 's Amanda , Shao Kahn 's Shang Tsung , Shinnok 's Quan Chi , Ben Wade's Charlie Prince (from Three-Ten to Yuma ), Light Yagami 's Misa Amane and Ryuk , Wario 's Waluigi , Dr. Eggman 's Orbot and Cubot, and Magneto 's Mystique (albeit only in

5265-484: The team of "squints" back in the Jeffersonian Institution's Medico-Legal Lab, each with their own scientific specialty, all of whom are usually needed to break the case. In certain cases, a sidekick can grow out of their role of second fiddle to the hero and become a hero in their own right. Dick Grayson is one such example, having outgrown the mantle of Robin when he was under Batman and taken up

5346-485: The television incarnation of Lewis , was titled Lewis ; it first aired on 29 January 2006 and last showed on 10 November 2015. The spin-off consisted the following cast members: Kevin Whately as DI Robbie Lewis, Laurence Fox as DS James Hathaway, Clare Holman as Dr Laura Hobson and Rebecca Front as CS Jean Innocent. In August 2011, ITV announced plans to film a prequel drama called Endeavour , with author Colin Dexter's participation. English actor Shaun Evans

5427-435: The term "sidekick" commonly refers to assistants to crime-fighting heroes. However, sidekicks do not necessarily accompany a crime-fighter, such as Leporello, Don Giovanni 's servant in the 1787 opera. Villains can also have sidekicks, who are usually portrayed as less brilliant or lacking cunning. The sidekick has the literary function of playing against the hero, often contrasting in skill, or performing functions not suited to

5508-453: The theft and were not taken seriously by the court. In the eyes of British law, pickpocketing was considered a capital offence from 1565 on: this meant that it was punishable by hanging. However, for the crime to be considered as a capital offence, the stolen item had to be worth more than 12 pennies, otherwise it was considered to be petty larceny , which meant that the thief would not be hanged. The 18th century law also stated that only

5589-436: The thief could be prosecuted—any accomplice or receiver of the stolen item could not be found guilty of the crime: "This meant that, if two people were indicted together, and there was not clear proof as to which one made the final act of taking, neither should be found guilty". Moreover, in order to be able to prosecute someone for pickpocketing, the victim of the theft had to not be aware that they were being robbed. In 1782,

5670-611: The third Captain Marvel (Genis) . Pickpocket Pickpockets and other thieves, especially those working in teams, sometimes apply distraction , such as asking a question or bumping into the victim. These distractions sometimes require sleight of hand, speed, misdirection and other types of skills. Pickpockets may be found in any crowded place around the world. However, Barcelona and Rome have been noted as being particularly dangerous pickpocket havens. Thieves have been known to operate in high traffic areas such as mass transit stations, even boarding subway trains so they can use

5751-422: The time, so they were considered responsible for being robbed. The other reason is that it was considered bad for a man to mix with a prostitute, which is why in many cases there was no prosecution: the victim was too ashamed of admitting that he had been with a prostitute. In those cases, since the jury was often inclined to despise the prosecutor and to side with the defendant, when they did not completely acquit

5832-518: The usual sense of the term denotes inequality. Many television talk shows make use of a sidekick as a co-host who anchors a show with the main star. Ed McMahon played this role famously to Johnny Carson on the Tonight Show , as did Andy Richter to Conan O'Brien on the Late Night with Conan O'Brien , Tonight Show , and Conan . The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson employed

5913-479: The woman they often reached a partial verdict and this mostly meant transportation to America (that is the case for Moll Flanders ), and to Australia later on. Inspector Morse Detective Chief Inspector Endeavour Morse , GM , is the eponymous fictional character in the series of detective novels by British author Colin Dexter . On television, he appears in the 33-episode drama series Inspector Morse (1987–2000), in which John Thaw played

5994-499: The world of this underground art." According to Thomas Blacke, an American illusionist who holds several world records, it has become more difficult nowadays to pickpocket both in the streets and on the stage because the general population wears less, or lighter, clothing. In 2015 an artist hired a pickpocket to distribute sculptures at Frieze Art Fair in New York. Pickpocketing often requires different levels of skill, relying on

6075-439: Was 45 at the beginning of shooting the TV series and Kevin Whately was 36. Morse's relationships with authority, the establishment, bastions of power and the status quo, are markedly ambiguous, as are some of his relations with women. He is frequently portrayed as patronising female characters, and once stereotyped the female sex as not naturally prone to crime, being caring and non-violent, but also often empathises with women. He

6156-459: Was aired, once again with four episodes, on 8 January 2017. Filming of a fifth series of six episodes began in early 2017 with the first episode of the fifth series aired on 4 February 2018. On 10 February 2019 the sixth series aired, which comprises four 1-hour-30-minute episodes. A seventh series of three episodes was filmed in late 2019, aired on 9 February 2020 and in August 2019 ITV announced that

6237-658: Was cast as a young Morse in his early career. The pilot episode was broadcast on 2 January 2012 on ITV. The prequel was made by Mammoth Screen . Four new episodes were televised from 14 April 2013, showing Morse's early cases working for DI Fred Thursday ( Roger Allam ) and with Jim Strange ( Sean Rigby ), initially as PC Jim Strange, later DS Jim Strange, and pathologist Max De Bryn ( James Bradshaw ), plus Chief Superintendent Reginald Bright ( Anton Lesser ), DS Peter Jakes ( Jack Laskey ), WPC Shirley Trewlove ( Dakota Blue Richards ), DC George Fancy (Lewis Peek), DI Ronnie Box (Simon Harrison) and DS Alan Jago (Richard Riddell). Alongside

6318-578: Was made by Zenith Productions for Central (a company later acquired by Carlton ) and comprised 33 two-hour episodes (100 minutes excluding commercials)—20 more episodes than there are novels—produced between 6 January 1987 and 15 November 2000. The last episode was adapted from the final novel The Remorseful Day , in which Morse dies from a heart attack. Morse was played by John Thaw and Lewis by Kevin Whateley . A spin-off series, similarly comprising 33 two-hour episodes and based on

6399-596: Was made starring the voices of John Shrapnel as Morse and Robert Glenister as Lewis. The series was written by Guy Meredith and directed by Ned Chaillet . Episodes included: The Wench is Dead (23 March 1992); Last Seen Wearing (28 May 1994); and The Silent World of Nicholas Quinn (10 February 1996). In 2018, Alma Cullen wrote an original drama entitled Morse: In The Shallows , with Neil Pearson as Morse and Lee Ingleby as Lewis. An Inspector Morse stage play appeared in 2010, written by Alma Cullen (writer of four Morse screenplays for ITV). The part of Morse

6480-535: Was not an issue with the following Doctors as they were cast with significantly younger actors. It is also not unusual, especially in more recent TV programs such as Bones and NCIS , for there to be a team of sidekicks. In Bones , for example, FBI Special Agent Seeley Booth often fulfills one of the traditional roles of a sidekick by providing translations for the brilliant but socially incapable Dr. Temperance Brennan . Both Brennan and Booth, however, are heroes in their own right. The sidekicks in this case are

6561-529: Was the Blonde Bomber [a.k.a. Honey Blake], a newsreel camerawoman, chemist, and crime-fighter with a male sidekick named Jimmy Slapso.) The prevalence of so many adult male superheroes and their teenage "wards" caused some observers to look askance at the trend. Psychologist Fredric Wertham decided that the phenomenon was a landmine of hidden and repressed Freudian issues, and that a sidekick's participation in violent encounters alongside his hero masked

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