You guys all know the scene where Sherlock shoots Magnussen, right?
Can we take a moment to appreciate how John reacts?
At first, he’s just downright shocked. He can’t believe it. He’s looking at him with so much confusion and worry. Even fear. He, I think, believes Sherlock did it for him. Probably because he was flicking John’s face. Probably because he put John in a fire. “Utter cock”, he was probably thinking.
But then Sherlock turns and says “Give my love to Mary. Tell her she’s safe now.”
And that’s when Johns face drops.
Sherlock, his Sherlock, had just murdered a man to keep his wife safe. To keep John happy. Anything for his John.
He even drops his arms slightly, as if to give up surrendering, as if he wanted to collapse and scream why why why
Because that’s where Sherlock had got it wrong. John wouldn’t have wanted him to do that. Didn’t want him to do that. Not for him. Not for Mary. From what John can tell, Sherlock just threw away his life for a woman John doesn’t even love. Not in the way he loves Sherlock, anyway.
And I think Sherlock knows it too, in his own little way.
I don’t know if any of this makes sense, but I can just see the HUGE difference in reactions from before the quote and after. And it broke me.
Sherlock would do anything for John even if it’s to save someone John <only> thinks could make him happy. Sherlock knows better but he respects John’s decisions. He saves Mary for John because he thinks that by extension he saves John.
Remember when this show was subtle? You shouldn’t because it never has been.
I never noticed the empty table set for dinner between them. Could the symbolism be any stronger. There’s that heart for romantic love, there’s that raging fire, and there’s that empty table, just sitting there like the elephant in the room, They could be ‘eating’ and they’re not. There’s just all this goddamned tension, and heat, and love between them, but they just can’t bring themselves to take those couple of steps to the table and sit down to ‘eat’.
The reason? There are still so many misunderstandings between them, which we are about to find out in this scene where Sherlock has his meltdown, and John reacts badly, and neither knows what it was really about or how to fix it.
OH MY GOD I NEVER…
MY HEART LITERALLY JUST DID A WEIRD SKIPPED BEAT THING????
AN EMPTY TABLE
SET FOR DINNER
BETWEEN THEM
BUT THEY’RE JUST SITTING THERE
WITH THEIR BACKS TURNED
LOOKING AT THE FIRE
A DISTANCE APART
THERE IS EVEN A FUCKING CANDLE ON THE TABLE
A BURNING CANDLE
LIKE IN ASIP
AND ANOTHER THING:
USUALLY WAITERS LIGHT THE CANDLE WHEN THE TABLE IS TAKEN OR NOT?!
SO THIS SHITTY TABLE IS RESERVED FOR JOHN AND SHERLOCK
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