Crime Dynamic Duos: Sherlock (Sherlock / John) vs. MacGyver (Bozer / Riley)

We’re back with another showdown in our Crime Dynamic Duos series, and this time, remakes / revivals are at the center of the discussion! After all, the two shows we’re focusing on here are Sherlock — one of the most-adapted properties in history — and then also the recent MacGyver remake on CBS. Both are excellent, and what makes the duos featured in this tournament so great is that they celebrate the property’s legacy while also creating new, innovative interpretations of characters. They effectively stand on their own two feet.

With that intro out of the way, let’s get to spotlighting Sherlock / John and Bozer / Riley, both in terms of why they work as effective duos and why they’re great representations of the crime TV genre as a whole.

Who moves on to the next round? That’s totally up to you! Check out the poll at the bottom of the article.

Voting Rules – You may vote however much you want within the specified voting window. (The image above explains everything in terms of start and stop dates.) Note that if you are struggling to cast repeat votes, you may need to clear your cache or use a different browser or device. If you are on mobile and you cannot view the poll, scroll to the bottom and click to view the non-AMP version of the page.

Still with us? Let’s dive into this battle…

Sherlock and John, Sherlock (#2 seed) – Through four seasons, few duos have gone through more than these two in terms of dealing with near-death experiences, complicated cases, notorious villains, and personal revelations. They certainly don’t always agree with other, but they have been there for each other through thick and thin and we do think that the two also do have a tendency to make each other better at their jobs — and sometimes better as people.

In the event that the show ever does get a season 5, we’re certainly excited to see where this story picks up, and how the relationship between them has evolved during that time.

Bozer and Riley, MacGyver (#7 seed) – While there may have been characters named Bozer and Riley in the original series, these characters are so distinct that they may as well be new. They’re also a great source of almost-constant fun and joy on the show. While Mac and Jack tend to run things out in the field, they help to pave the way behind the scenes — while doing a good bit of dangerous work when they’re called on to do so. They’re hilarious, but they also have great chemistry and it’s hard to imagine there being many people out there who aren’t rooting for the two of them to become a romantic pair down the road.

For the sake of this article, though, we’re focusing more on their crime-fighting ability, and Bozer / Riley stop at nothing to make sure the job is done … even if they have to get creative to do so sometimes.

Now, let’s turn this over to you

As mentioned earlier, vote for your favorites in the poll below! You can also head over to this link in the event you want to see more editions of our Crime Dynamic Duos series. (Photo: BBC One)