Sherlock series three, writing round-up, Sherlock Remix

[innie_darling]

Hi, everybody!

I was asked by a friend what I thought of the new series of Sherlock, and it ended up being so long that I thought I might as well post it.

Comments

[innie_darling]

I did see Sherlock being nervous in the restaurant, but I can't cut him slack for it - he's just said to Mycroft that John could not possibly have had a life in his (Sherlock's) absence (as if John were just hanging around in stasis, waiting for a dead man to return to life), he's gleeful that he has such an upscale setting for the reunion, and he's very conspicuously smirky as he makes his preparations (stealing the accessories, etc.). The disguise is from ACD, but there was no need for Sherlock to interrupt what was clearly a private and important moment for John.

he tried deflecting with humour - ill-conceived as it was - I guess partially because he and John always were able to laugh at inappropriate stuff. I take your point - it's a good one - but I would ask: why does he need to stage a reunion in public at all? To put it another way, what is he "deflecting" (as you put it) from?

And the thing with the bomb - I think until he went into his mind palace, he honestly didn't know/remember how to diffuse it, and thought they would die. He also knew that John wasn't good at expressing feelings, and that there were still things that he needed to say to Sherlock - and what better opportunity than when you think you'll die? So after he'd turned it off, he acted as if the bomb was still a threat. I don't think he was aiming for the "best and wisest" speech per se, but just provided a space for whatever John needed to get off his chest.
I didn't see anything in that scene that indicated that Sherlock was thinking of John's emotional health at that moment. I can buy that he got stuck trying to figure out how to defuse the bomb. What I can't buy is that Sherlock found it acceptable - let alone therapeutic - to allow John, who's been through war and the supposed suicide of his best friend and is still carrying the scars from both, to believe that they will be dying in a matter of moments. John's confession of caring still felt absolutely forced, and it didn't help that Sherlock started laughing at him. That laughter was, to my mind, the cruelest thing Sherlock's done, and it has a lot of competition.

I didn't feel it was maliciously making fun of fans, more like a friendly wink and nudge to the fandom and the copious amounts of slash that's out there. The Empty Hearse Club with Anderson, of all people, leading it... Ha!
I know I have a low tolerance for fanservice in canon, and I'm squeamish about official creators taking over/alluding to fannish work. In this case, especially so, since, as I said in my post, WE the fans did the work that the official creators evidently felt was beneath them.

I am glad that you've enjoyed these two episodes, and I wish I could enjoy them more. I do very much like Mary and what she's brought to the show, and my dissatisfaction with BC's Sherlock started when "Scandal" aired. At the end of the day, for me, it's all about Martin Freeman and his John Watson.