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seeingteacupsindragons · 2 years ago

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Sherlock Holmes: The Man Who Goes Through Hell and High Water

So I wrote a few thousand words about William’s fire motif, and in it, I mentioned Sherlock being associated with water. I got some pushback on this, which I found interesting, but I can easily find it in me to write as many words about Sherlock, William’s other half and foil, and fire’s equal and opposing element, water. So let’s do it.

While fire and water are typically put in opposition to each other for obvious reasons, their symbolic meanings probably overlap as much as they differ. They’re both powerful, necessary, dominant forces in human life and have been…oh, what, for the entire existence of the species? So it makes sense that humans can see so many different things in them, and that fire and water are both associated with the deadliest dangers and the most necessary sustenance.

What I especially like about the motifs in Yuukoku no Moriarty is that these two characters, associated with these two things, are opposites in so many ways—the authors even discuss making choices for each to be in opposition to the other—but equal matches that are really much more similar than it would appear, just as their elemental motifs are.

On a related note, I also like that both are Symbols of London, the light and the dark, the crime and the justice, the Thames and The Great London Fire (of which there were…well, more than one of). So both are also strongly associated with their rainy, rainy, entirely too flammable home, and the Thames is…pretty well known for being filthy and polluted, as much as London needs it to survive. Hm, I wonder who that sounds like…

But I’m a few hundred words in already and have not even started my argument for Sherlock’s elemental motif as water. So let’s dig into the good stuff. Unlike with William, it seems I’ll have to prove myself a bit this time. William’s is omnipresent and obvious, but perhaps, as is the way of water, Sherlock’s is a tad more subtle.

We could start with Sherlock’s first proper introduction, but I think it’ll be fun to go even further back, to that first page again, with that waterfall obscuring Sherlock’s features in mist while William nearly falls from the slippery, wet rock to his death. Although it’s not obvious back then, William is trying to give in to the water and let it kill him (the way he’d like Sherlock to, in fact).

That page is a nice big splash panel, although not as big as the later one that chapter with William, his brothers, and fire, but it’s a strong association drawing Sherlock and water together from the beginning and it’s a flash forward, too, so the impact is pretty strong for a one-off scene that’s not really dealt with for a while. And it’s just about all we know of Sherlock for the first volume and a half: Wiliam in conflict with him, Sherlock shrouded and hidden by water. William is in danger from that torrent, just as Sherlock appears to be one.

Water has long been thought of as unknowable, the holder of mysteries of the deep. One of the least explored and difficult to access places on Earth. An often calm, easy surface hiding depths and danger below it. There’s a million idioms about it. “Hidden depths” itself is one—and Sherlock is certainly full of those, as much as he tries to throw his personality on display. There’s a lot to him that takes quite a lot of light and time to explore.

This brings us neatly to his “proper” introduction to the series: when he meets William on a cruise ship isolated in deep water. Where William pierces right through Sherlock and sees…not everything, but far more than most.

The mysterious, watery depths that can swallow a man whole (Enders) arrived with Sherlock (who did much the same to William). The water is dangerous, but perhaps William can still make use of it, no? He can blaze a bright beckoning path of flame and the water will follow, as its purpose is to put out fires.

It’s not a coincidence that Sherlock shows up on a cruise ship in the middle of deep water that way. The Noahtic is a fun setting, but it’s also wildly in contrast to…most of the series. It’s not as if, “Oooh, play on a boat,” even makes a lot of sense. The reason Sherlock’s even on the damn thing is given extracanonically, because there’s no clear reason for it. The only other times we see anyone on boats in the series are: the steamship escaping London for America (Sherlock), the chase on the Thames in The Sign of Mary (Sherlock) and, very briefly, Moran and Moneypenny on their way home from India.

Similarly, despite the series taking place largely in the rain, wet, gloomy city of London…there’s not actually a lot of rain in the series. But there is in A Study in ‘S’. And, yeah, okay, drawing rain all the time is a pain in the ass, but they still made the point of including it there.

Sherlock doesn’t really shield himself from it. He kind of just throws his jacket over his head. Sure, that’s also about showing what a disaster man he is and how little he cares about social norms, but it’s more than that, too: he’s exposing himself to the rain and accepting that it’s just part of his life.

There’s two different sections it rains during in that arc, and they’re not actually attached. There’s a period of dryness between them. It rains when he first meets John and they meet up with Hudson, and it rains later after Fred shows up to claim Hope’s ring. Interestingly, it does not rain when Sherlock is in jail, investigating the scene, or even when he then announces his deductions and finishes off the case. It only rains when Sherlock is pursuing his own ends and meeting people he builds bonds with.

The water isn’t The Great Detective. The water is Sherlock—and we know after the time skip especially that they aren’t one in the same and that Sherlock is more than just the guy who solves mysteries, as he says himself. Sherlock’s personality reflects a lot of traits of water: deep, unknowable, insightful and clear of purpose, relentless, turbulent, moody, inclined to reflection and sadness. Dangerous, cold, but curiously soothing and helpful. He longs for the unknown adventure, to explore and discover abroad.

William’s personality erupts in a purposeful, intentional inferno. Sherlock’s comes in as a force of nature. Water isn’t easily controllable, and rain the least of all. It’s simply…undeniably there. And everyone is soaked by it whether they want to be or not. Drowning in it. Thriving off it. Really annoyed by it. You know. How rain is, how Sherlock is.

And then Adler shows up in A Scandal in the British Empire.

Adler is the one who jumps into the Thames to rescue a kid, not Sherlock…and yet, when Adler becomes Bond and switches over to William’s side, there’s a very similar scene, in which Bond ducks in, smeared with fiery ash, to save a kid from danger from fire. They’re basically parallel scenes indicating which side the character is on, and Adler is firmly aligned with Sherlock when she jumps into the Thames.

In fact, it’s with that water rescue between the two of them—pulling a kid from danger, and pulling a friend from danger, that finally starts to bond them and gives them a new start on their relationships. It’s an extremely revealing scene for Sherlock and Adler both and gives them both pure insight into each other’s goals and values. The turbulence of the river washes away the trappings they’ve put on around each other and their relationship is renewed and reborn—both of which are associated with fire, but equally with water and baptism.

And “Adler” supposedly meets her end in the river and finds her final resting place permanently on Sherlock’s side.

Now let’s talk a bit about The Sign of Mary. Most of the plot was adapted pretty straight from the novel, I’m told, so I’m not going to say they obviously chose the setting and the Thames for Motif Reasons. They didn’t. But it still serves a purpose in this story, too.

There’s something so high adventure about Sherlock standing at the peak of a boat, water flying into his face as they rush forward and he calls out to the others. Something so adventurous about the tense shootout and rapid action. Something that calls to mind “adventure” novels about young boys and men flirting with danger at sea. Something adventurous and fun that William tends to be missing. William can be dramatic, but he doesn’t have fun killing people and taking down enemies. Fire is dramatic, but it’s not adventure. Water has always been Here Be Dragons to humans, and Sherlock has always wanted to seek out, find, and know those dragons.

I noted in William’s essay that the Jack the Ripper murders flee from William’s fire to water, which held no safety for them and Sherlock closes the book on their story even being known. And it’s not the only time something like that happens: Milverton also assumes Sherlock will be the water on William’s fiery rage and that involving Sherlock would handle it for him, and instead meets his end in a watery grave. His plan was for fire to boil away water and water to drown out fire and he would be rid of both and the dangerous Lord of Crime would no longer be targeting him. But, well: Sherlock is just as dangerous as William in his own way. Water isn’t necessarily a safe harbor. The open ocean is dangerous.

It's also interesting that Sherlock sets things on fire in The Two Criminals—the entire arc is about him being able and willing to use William’s methods as well as his own. Yet even when Sherlock murders someone, he uses a gun instead of a sword as is William’s preference, and water is the thing that hides the evidence of his crimes, not the fire William typically uses—fire hid the evidence of Milverton’s crimes.

Sherlock sends Milverton to the deep and leaves everything about Milverton undiscoverable. He doesn’t kill with drama, passion, or flare: he kills cold and still like an unassuming pool of water. He washes away Milverton’s harm to allow Mary and John to start their life anew.

And that brings us to The Final Problem, the ultimate clash of water and fire, of the Thames and the Fire of London, of the Detective and the Lord of Crime. William sets all of London ablaze knowing it will be put out by the water from the Thames, the same way he anticipates Sherlock putting an end to him. That water, from the Thames and from Sherlock, will wash away not only his sins and his life, but restore, renew, and bond all of London. It will heal and soothe its wounds and clean out the rot William has all this while been trying to burn out. Sherlock is the cool head to negotiate a true change.

Of course, Sherlock chases William directly into the river to save him, and that river and the land across an ocean brings William peace, and rest, and clarity at last.

And it’s across that entire ocean that Sherlock manages to build a new life in a new world, restoring William’s health. Just as the Thames washes away the worst of William, it washes away the worst of Sherlock, too. Sherlock is the cool, steady, unrelenting presence in New York that William can and must rely on.

And in the end, after William has come to his own realization about himself, it’s water that he finally washes away his doubts with and steels himself with to chase after Sherlock, and water that he cools his head with to temper his fiery anger into something strong and relentless.

And when William refers to himself like fire, Sherlock accepts it and turns it back on William: William keeps a flame stoked, but Sherlock is amongst the stormy sea and needs to know where to turn. William has always thought Sherlock is his light, but perhaps it was that mirror character Sherlock is to him he was seeing, that brilliant water in a dark night reflecting William’s own bright light back at him, allowing William to finally see himself for who he is.

#Yuukoku no Moriarty #Moriarty the Patriot #character meta #I don't want to tag Sherly's name this time for Reasons #Anyway I proofread this and edited it again and if there's still typos I'm sorry

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just-dreaming-marvel · 3 years ago

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In The Game of Love ~ Sherlock’s Epilogue

IN THE GAME OF LOVE MASTERLIST

Word Count: 1,230ish

Summary: What Sherlock was doing before Y/N found out the truth.

Notes: You must read my series In The Game of Love before you read this.

Sherlock ran all the possible scenarios in his head, trying to figure out the best way to stop Moriarty. To save Y/N. Even after all the different scenarios, he could come up with only one option. So he quickly braced Moriarty and put his foot up on the chess table for leverage. Sherlock was about to throw himself and Moriarty off the ledge when the doors opened. Y/N stood in the doorway looking at the scene before locking eyes with Sherlock. They locked eyes and Sherlock hoped that she could read what he was trying to tell her. What might be his last ‘I love you’. He memorized her face before he closed his eyes and launched himself and Moriarty off the balcony.

Moriarty began screaming immediately as he and Sherlock held onto each other, but Sherlock was too busy focusing on Y/N’s scream from the balcony. The sound was breaking the detective’s heart. Eventually, the men let each other go, falling into the stream and mist of the large waterfall. Sherlock allowed himself to fall a bit longer before pulling out Mycroft’s private supply of air.

~~~

Sherlock grew more and more concerned upon his arrival back in London. Y/N clearly wasn’t doing well. It was physically hurting him to know that he had caused that pain, but he couldn’t break the truth to her yet. Sherlock had to make sure that she was truly free.

Sherlock wasn’t stupid. He knew that Moriarty would have people go after Y/N, even if he was dead. So he intended on ending every one of them before he would even think about telling Y/N he was alive. Sherlock took each of the sent assassins out, all while watching Y/N fail to protect and take care of herself. It was breaking his heart to see his love so broken because of him.

The mission Sherlock had sent himself on was almost done. There was just one final person he needed to take out: Sebastian Moran. If anyone was going to continue Moriarty’s plans and go after Y/N, it would be that man. Sherlock found himself not going too far from Baker Street. He spent most of his time on the roofs of the flats across the street. He kept watch on Y/N through the windows and could keep an eye out on anything suspicious. Sherlock was watching Y/N slip on one of his shirts over her outfit when he sensed someone’s presence.

“I wondered how long it would take you to come,” Sherlock commented. He looked at Sebastian Moran who stood to the side, leaning on a chimney while smoking and holding his rifle.

“I had some other loose ends to tend to myself first,” Sebastian replied. “Figured you were the one taking out the assassins sent Y/N’s way. She’s clearly not handing everything well.”

“I’m sure your concern means the world. I’ll be sure to relay that to her.”

“Or I could do so myself.”

Sherlock whipped out his gun, aiming for Sebastian’s forehead. “Not if I have a say.”

Sebastian chuckled. “What are you waiting for?”

Sherlock pressed out a fake smile. “Deciding whether or not to end you now or make it painful.” He took a step towards Sebastian.

“Y/N clearly mentioned something to you… you know, she did enjoy it, everything I did. Like—“

A shot rang out over Baker Street. Those in the streets looked around confused as Sherlock watched Sebastian Moran drop dead, blood pouring from the bullet wound in his head. Sherlock threw the gun down and looked back at his flat. Y/N hadn’t moved from her spot in Sherlock’s chair. He yearned to go over and comfort her, but it wasn’t time yet.

~~~

Sherlock was hiding outside the flat, listening in through the cracked open window, when John had convinced Y/N to finally get out of the flat to come and watch Gladstone. He knew that that was his time to show her that he was alive. To make her smile again. He instantly went to John’s house, hitching a ride on the back of John’s carriage once he left Y/N. Sherlock inspected John’s house and found the perfect chair to create a new urban camouflage outfit.

He watched, with so much love in his eyes, as Y/N entered John’s office and chatted with John and Mary. He stayed put as Y/N wished the couple goodbye and came back into the office. With a careful eye, Sherlock watched Y/N as she went over to John’s desk a read the page on the typewriter. She gasped and teased up, making Sherlock want to read what she had just read. So when Y/N walked back out of the office, Sherlock knew it was his chance. He ripped his mask off, warning Gladstone not to do anything, before carefully going over to the desk. He smirked as he read the last paragraph and added a question mark to the ‘The End’. Sensing Y/N had come back into the room, he looked up.

“Sherlock?” Y/N gasped, clearly shocked.

“Hello, my love,” Sherlock smiled.

“Are you… are you really here?”

“Yes,” he took a step closer to her. “I am.”

“I… you…”

Y/N took the needed steps to be right in front of Sherlock, staring at him. She put her hand up to his face but did not make contact. Sherlock watched her, not wanting to make any movements so as to not scare her away. Just when he thought Y/N was going to make contact with his cheek in a loving way, she slapped him. His head snapped away with the impact. Y/N huffed before marching away.

“I deserved that,” Sherlock moved his jaw around before going after Y/N. “Darling, please, let me explain. There’s a simple answer to this.”

“Oh, is there?” Y/N spun around. “Cause I mourned you. I was still in mourning up until mere seconds ago! I… you… I watched you throw yourself and my father off a balcony and into a large waterfall!”

“I know, I know,” he came up and carefully grabbed Y/N’s upper arms. “I should have told you sooner.”

“You should have told me that night before you did it.”

“It was the only way to stop Moriarty, you have to understand.”

Y/N eyes were tearing up. “I still deserved to know.”

His large, calloused hands came up to carefully hold her head. “Truly, I did not know the night would end like that. It was the only way.”

She bit her lip to try and keep her tears at bay. “I just… I hurt, so much…”

“I know, I know.” His thumbs gently rubbed against her cheeks. “And I understand that my apologies will never be enough.”

“No they won’t but,” she pressed a small kiss to his lips, “never stop apologizing, okay?”

He pulled her in for a longer kiss. “I love you, my love.”

“I love you too.” Sherlock pulled her in, trying to feel her against him as he kissed her passionately. Y/N pulled back slightly. “You still owe me an explanation.”

“Well, I had grabbed—“

Y/N cut Sherlock off with a kiss. “Not now. Right now I need you to love me and apologize some more.”

“Yes, my love.”

#Sherlock Holmes #sherlock holmes 2009 #Sherlock Holmes fanfiction #RDJ Sherlock Holmes #Sherlock Holmes A Game Of Shadows #Sherlock Holmes x Reader #rdj sherlock holmes x reader #rdj!sherlock holmes x reader #rdj sherlock holmes x fem!reader #rdj!sherlock holmes x fem!reader #sherlock holmes imagine #rdj sherlock holmes imagine #rdj!sherlock holmes imagine #ritchieverse #ritchie holmes

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ogsherlockholmes · 3 years ago

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The Valley of Fear was published after The Final Problem.

So, either the events of Valley happened before FINA because the timeline was always messy or Moriarty didn't die in the end of FINA.

Which one is it?

Well.

The simple answer is, yes, the timeline is messy, ACD needed classes on chronology (Tolkien could teach him a thing or two) and we can just leave it at that. We’ll just ignore all the details (very un-Sherlock of us) and say that it’s not that important when it happens, more just the enjoyment of reading the stories.

However, that’s boring.

Moriarty not dying is not a particularly unpopular theory, and I’m not just talking about BBCSherlock. When Sherlock comes back in The Empty House, his explanation to Watson is pretty unsatisfactory, so much so that it’s not widely believed. I’ll insert the quote of how Sherlock describes Moriarty’s death:

“I walked along the pathway, Moriarty still at my heels. When I reached the end I stood at bay. He drew no weapon, but he rushed at me and threw his long arms around me. He knew that his own game was up, and was only anxious to revenge himself upon me. We tottered together upon the brink of the fall. I have some knowledge, however, of baritsu, or the Japanese system of wrestling, which has more than once been very useful to me. I slipped through his grip, and he with a horrible scream kicked madly for a few seconds and clawed the air with both his hands. But for all his efforts he could not get his balance, and over he went. With my face over the brink I saw him fall for a long way. Then he struck a rock, bounded off, and splashed into the water.”

I mean, sure, it could happen, which is why some do believe Sherlock. But Moriarty? Apparently Sherlock’s greatest foe and the smartest man alive? Just throwing himself at him?

I don’t have all the answers, I’m not an expert, so I’m not going to be able to give a direct answer as to if Moriarty survived. Perhaps Sherlock was telling the truth, but Moriarty managed to paddle away at the bottom of the waterfall and wasn’t seen. Or, Sherlock’s fibbing and Moriarty escaped in an early version of an airplane with Sebastian Moran. Who knows? It’s anything you want: we can fill in all the plotholes or add our own mini plotlines to help the canon, but we’ll never know for certain.

I will say this, however: you mentioned The Valley of Fear, another story which Moriarty features. In it, it implies that Moriarty was involved in the deaths at the end of the story, and Sherlock intended to go after him. Canon inconsistencies aside, if Moriarty was involved in one of the cases, what’s to say he wasn’t involved in any others?

I haven’t really answered your question, and I’m sorry I can’t be of much help, but if you have an idea, and you have evidence to back it up, no one can tell you wrong. Really, you don’t have to have any evidence, you could say whatever you like and there’s probably at least one person out there who agrees.

#an attempt was made #damn ACD and his inability to write in chronological order #*shakes fist*#sherlockholmes #Sherlock Holmes #Sherlock #ACD #acd books #acd canon #sherlockanalysis #Moriarty

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incorrect-ritchieverse · 4 years ago

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Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, a summary.

Irene: *murdered by Moriarty*

Moriarty: I'm coming for Watson next.

Holmes: Oh no! I must save Watson!

Holmes: *throws his last memory of Irene into the sea*

Holmes: Oh no! I must save Watson!

Holmes: *throws Mary into the sea*

Holmes: Oh no! I must save Watson!

Holmes: *throws himself into a waterfall, also a body of water*

#rdj holmes #ritchie holmes #ritchieverse #incorrect quotes #source: me #sherlock holmes

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sniperwithasmoke · 5 years ago

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someone pls talk to me abt hound of the d’urbervilles, but specifically the end of chapter seven: the problem of the final adventure. i want to delve deeper into basher in ways that i haven’t yet and, though i’ve claimed to be a modern hotd’s take, i very adamantly keep ignoring the most important part. the end.

even more specifically, this excerpt :

[...] I was flat out, on a blanket of fresh snow. [...] The air was thin and I was quite merry. Your brain gets like that in the mountains. You can hear bells and birdsong and voices in the waterfall if you let yourself. I had the stock to my cheek, the telescope sight to my eye. There was no more Firm. It was smashed and scattered. In his talk of starting anew, Moriarty had spoken in the singular person. There was no ‘we’ in his world. I had prospects. Even without funds, I had my wits. And Sophy was handy. I had not yet been netted by Scotland Yard and even had the last of my reputation as a hero of the Empire and a cool hand in a crisis. In time, London would welcome Basher Moran. I could always get up a hand of high-stakes whist at the Bagatelle Club. Tiny figures were struggling down the mountain path. Through the telescope sight, I saw the antagonists come face to face. They had words. They broke off. One scribbled a note he left on a rock -- a notice of the cancellation of milk delivery in Baker Street? I saw two masterminds, two hunters, two tigers. From my perch, above them, they were small boys playing fight. A red and a white ant. Bacteria. Then, it was on. Professor Moriarty and Sherlock Holmes rushed at each other. Moriarty raised his arm -- the signal! I took my shot.

pls talk to me abt the inference that moran is the one to have shot moriarty and that, as he is the one presumed to be throwing rocks at holmes after they plummet ( backed up further by this, several paragraphs higher than my excerpt above : “once the gun was discharged, i’d be reduced to chucking rocks. as i said, i usually only need a single shot. i had a small pile of rocks ready, though. more planning.” ), he knows holmes is alive and that moriarty is dead and all that that could mean for my basher.

pls talk to me abt how moran being the one to kill moriarty plays into the adventure of the empty house ( god, the GUILT at not having completed his last job, let alone fucking it up so entirely ). talk to me abt how he is cold and logically calculative while the stock of his rifle is held in place, no more over-thinking, but once the shot is taken, he realises what an absolute mistake it was and what that does to him mentally --- no longer is he the one that everyone leaves, he’s the one that pushes them away so forcefully that he physically cannot get them back. TALK TO ME ABT THIS in the terms of him having been a “live in one” and the non-relationship he and jim could have had. the attachment he’d developed and then literally ripped away from himself.

talk to me abt what this could potentially mean for the eight (8) years of character development on this blog and like, how, when applied, makes it hurt all the more.

i’m just... having a lot of feelings this night, as i await the laundry to get done so i can sleep.

and like, obvs, this would be different w moriarty muses, and mildly edited for my main moranfam verse ( FOR THE WORSE, BEEB I KNOW YOU’RE ASLEEP WHILE I WRITE/POST THIS BUT I HAVE IDEAS AND I NEED TO RUIN YOU WITH THEM ), but just the raw potential of what basher having had his life in his hands this entire time could say towards his character is v emotional to think abt.

#alex’s d’urberville blogging.#OOC.#not that i think anyone will but :#pls don't reblog.#this is mostly me rambling a stream of consciousness.#and i can't reread it again or i'll delete the whole thing so.

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ebaeschnbliah · 5 years ago

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PAIRS … TWINS … DOUBLE OHs

________________________________________________________________

Twins? … It’s never twins! … But there's always two of us! Two of us against the rest of the world!

There is something about the number 2 in Sherlock BBC, which is impossible not to see after the course of thirteen episodes. And a lot has already been written about it by various people. ‘Two’ and several names which are also meant to express a number of ‘two’ - like double, couple, pair, twins - turn up time and again throughout the whole story.

A summary and some musings on the topic below the cut ...

The two beginnings

First of all, Sherlock BBC is a story with two starting episodes, which in itself isn’t unusual. And yet, if one takes a closer look, there are some things - just minor details - that seem to be a little bit strange after all. The two points of beginning are:

THE UNAIRED PILOT - a 60 min episode called ‘A study in pink’

A STUDY IN PINK - the 90 min official first episode of S1

An extension of 30 min naturally leads to differences, as does a change in directing. The unaired PILOT was directed by Mary Rose Helen Giedroyc, Lady Bowyer-Smyth, known as Coky Giedroyc. The BBC decided not to broadcast the episode because they wished to change the length to 90 minutes. The PILOT was released on the DVD of the first series, and it proved to be slightly different from the final 90 min version, directed by Paul McGuigan.

However … there are certain changes between PILOT and ASIP which seem … odd. Most of all though, some seem quite unnecessary.

Angelo went to prison for car-jacking in PILOT ... for house-breaking in ASIP.

Sherlock can identify (by looking at the hands) a retired plumber in PILOT … an airline pilot in ASIP. (plumber/water, pilot/air … an interesting change)

Northumberland Terrace in PILOT changes into Northumberland Street in ASIP.

The barking dog can be first heard at the end of PILOT and at the beginning of ASIP.

Sherlock and John meet at 221b for the first time on January 14th in PILOT … on January 29th in ASIP (according to John’s blog). The victim prior to the lady in pink dies on January 27th (stated on screen).

The visual appearance changes from natural, vivid colours in PILOT ... to pale and cold colours in ASIP. Especially Sherlock looks like a marble statue in some scenes.

The attraction between Sherlock and John is a much stronger one in PILOT than in ASIP. The PILOT episode isn’t called ‘gay pilot’ for nothing.

Virtually all the scenes from PILOT which have been taken over to ASIP are shot mirrored. The brilliant video Mirror Mirror Mirror by @kateis-cakeis shows this in detail.

If anyone is interested, @callie-ariane did a wonderful script comparison of PILOT and ASIP, side by side, on a download PDF here. This comparison reveals that the biggest parts that have been changed for ASIP are:

the addition of a fifth victim

a short description of the victims

the visual introduction of Mycroft

the (very early) intoduction of Jim Moriarty compared to canon

the transfer of the showdown between Sherlock and Jeff Hope, from the Baker Street 221b living room to the Roland-Kerr Further Education College

All of these are understandable decisions. Even the different visual appearance can be easily explained by the work of another director …. though regarding Sherlock BBC, an amendment like this would largely depend on the creators themselves, I guess.

What’s really odd though are all those little, seemingly unnecessary changes listed above. What makes the difference between car-jacking and house-breaking … between terrace and street … between plumber and pilot … between January 14th and 29th? And the mirrored shooting of almost all the reused scenes. Doesn’t this need a rewriting of all the shooting scripts in question? This seems to be a load of unnecessary extra work for an extension of 30 min .. Anyway, be it coincidence or purpose, there are a lot more ‘2s’ interwoven in this story.

Playing with contrasts happens regularly … red&blue, fire&water, burning&drowning, high above&deep down, no-one&anyone, big&small, consulting criminal&consulting detective ...

Playing with the meaning and double meaning of names and words is also quite common in Sherlock BBC … John/Hamish, sister/nun, brother/monk, beech/beach, rooster/cock, cock/penis, game/game, Underground/underground ...

A choice between two possibilities happens several times …. good bottle or bad bottle, saint or sinner, James or John, forwards or backwards ...

Two twin-houses

Roland-Kerr Further Education College is the place where Jeff Hope takes Sherlock for his ‘good bottle-bad bottle’ game near the end of ASIP. The Cardiff Univerity main-building had been used as film-set and for this scene the building was altered and mirrored to give the appearance of two identical buildings. (Cardiff University (x) (x) (x)

Twenty-three and twenty-four Leinster Gardens ... the empty houses ... appear in HLV. They are Sherlock’s property and Mary’s face is projected on them when Sherlock compaires her to a facade. Originally, there was only one ‘empty house’ in canon, situated opposite 221b Baker Street. Strangely, the place from which John shoots Hope in PILOT would conform to the empty house from canon. (Empty houses The impossible house)

Two high security facilities … with several levels below ground, are visited by Sherlock

Baskerville, the military compound where the fear inducing HOUND aerosol is created. Skulls and crossed bones are displayed on the danger signs.

Sherrinford, the special prison where Eurus, the sister turned into a ghost story, is locked up behind elephant glass. Two ‘pirates’ enter the island.

Two landladies rent a flat to a male couple

Mrs Hudson rents a flat to Sherlock and John and asks them if they will be needing two bedrooms.

Mrs Turner, next door, rents a flat to a married couple. Mrs Turner appears in ACDs story ‘Scandal in Bohemia’ as landlady of Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson.

Two skulls reside in the 221b livingroom. The inflexible bone skull on the mantlepiece next to the statue of the ancient Chinese bowman and the changeable blue skull painting on the wall behind the sofa next to the equally changeable yellow smiley.

Two palaces with partly similar looking interior …. Buckingham Palace and Sherlock’s mind palace (x)

The secret code in TBB is written in ancient cyphers which always come in pairs. The numbers are references to specific pages of a book and to specific words on those pages.

Two neat plans and two rehearsals

The flight of the dead - code 007 Bond Air from ASIB & the similar project of the plane crash in Dusseldorf prior.

The attempted murder of Major Sholto - room number 207 from TSOT & the rehearsal of it involving Private Bainbridge prior.

Two '00′ (double oh) can be heard related to the ‘neat’ plans (x)

In ASIB the number ‘double oh seven’ uttered by Mycroft, refers to the plane he intends to use for the ‘flight of the dead’.

In TSOT the number on Sholto’s door reads 207 - ‘two oh seven' - Mary calls it.

Doppelganger bodies appear conveniently and seemingly out of nowhere to cover up the fake deaths of Sherlock, Irene and Emelia.

Janus Cars … is the car hire company; assiciated with Jim Moriarty, who helpes clients to fake their death. In ancient Rome Janus was the god of beginnings, gates, transitions, time, duality, doorways, passages, and endings. He usually is depicted with two faces, since he looks to the future and to the past.

And there is also the not very subtle sexual double meaning hiding in plain sight behind the name of this car hire company ... J-anus C-ars … which basically are two different names for roughly the same area. :)

Two explosions hit 221 Baker Street. The first one, in TGG, comes from the outside. The second one, in TFP, comes from the inside.

Two countdowns from 10 to 1 happen ere someone is in danger to die.

The first one happens in TGG related to the fake Vermeer painting and the kidnapped child who wears a vest full of explosives. It’s he fourth cold case Sherlock has to solve.

The second one happens in TFP when Sherlock aims a gun at himself. It’s the fourth task Eurus has set up for him in Sherrinford in which he should choose between Mycroft and John.

Two ‘falls’ from great heigth come to pass in two episodes:

In TRF Sherlock throws himself down from Bart’s roof - to save his friends - after Jim Moriarty shot himself in the head.

In TAB Sherlock throws himself down a waterfall - without being forced - and follows Jim Moriarty into the abyss, flying and smiling.

Two reddish balloons represent ‘quite the guy’ John Watson in two episodes - TEH and TST.

Two roosters/cocks appear in two episodes which also contain two serial killers with certain similarities. In ASIP the cock is linked to John Watson. In TLD the cock is linked to Culverton Smith. (x)

Felines and canines appear in two different versions. One is harmless, like cats and dogs. One is dangerous, like lion and monster hound. (x)

Two pet animals of two children are taken away by a family member. Sherlock misses his dog Redbeard. Kirsty misses her rabbit Bluebell. (x)

Redbeard and Yellowbeard are the names little Victor and little Sherlock invented for themselves when they played pirates.

Two occurrences define Sherlock’s personality - Carl Powers and Victor Trevor:

‘It’s where I began’ … that’s how Sherlock describes the Carl Powers case about a drowned boy and his missing shoes.

‘Every choice you ever made; every path you’ve ever taken – the man you are today ... is your memory of Eurus’ … that’s how Mycroft descirbes the Eurus case about a drowned boy and a missing dog.

Two serial killers appear, who deem themselves nice. They like to talk to their victims and have quite noticeable teeth. Jefferson Hope in ASIP & Culverton Smith in TLD.

Two stillborn children play a role …. Rachel Wilson, her first name turns out to be the password of the pink ladies pink phone and Mary Morstan, whose identity was stolen by the woman who later becomes John’ s wife.

AMO & AMMO ... two almost identical words for love and explosives

Codename ‘AMO’ … is used by two different characters. Legally by Lady Smallwood & illegally by Vivian Norbury.

Two times Rosamund Mary …. the same name for mother and daughter

Two times Charles

Carl Powers, from TGG, is the boy who had a fit in the water and drowned.

Charlie Welsborough, from TST, is the boy who had a fit in a car and burned.

Two times Faith … Culverton Smith’s daughter, mirror for John, is envisiond by Sherlock as two different persons. (x)

Two variations of the name James … Jim (short for James) Moriarty & John Hamish (Scotish for James) Watson.

Musgrave and Trevor … Reginald Musgrave and Victor Trevor are original characters who appear in two canon stories (Musgrave Ritual & Gloria Scott) which are the only ones linked to Sherlock’s time at university. TFP combines those stories and connects them to a trauma Sherlock might have experienced in his childhood..

Two problematic sisters

John and Sherlock, each ot the two men has a ‘problematic’ sister. John’s sister Harry is an alcoholic and Sherlock’s sister Eurus is locked up since childhood in a high security facility because she is a dangerous genius.

Eurus is revealed on screen only by the end of the (for now) penultimate episode. Harry has still no visual appearance at all.

There is hardly any contact between the siblings during the majority of the story. They ‘don’t get on’ with each other or are completely forgotten at all.

Harry is listed as potential pressure point for John by Magnussen, while Eurus is a potential pressure point for Sherlock, used by Mycroft.

Both sisters are called by male names

Both sisters are mistaken for brothers by Sherlock as well as John, when they are first mentioned in their presence.

These are enough similarities between those mysterious sisters to call it quite strange, I think. Mycroft’s advice for Sherlock comes to mind:

SHERLOCK: For one person to be in both groups ... could be a coincidence. MYCROFT: Oh, Sherlock. What do we say about coincidence? SHERLOCK: The universe is rarely so lazy.

As much as Harry and Eurus seem to have in common, there’s one big difference. While Eurus lives her lonely life mostly behind elephant glass, Harry had been married with Clara for some time. But three months before John and Sherlock meet, the women split up and got a divorce.

A Catherine hiding in plain sight

As @shylockgnomes pointed out in her post about the 'High incidence of Katherines’ in Sherlock BBC, the name Clara basically has the same meaning as Catherine … bright, clear, clean, pure. Clara seems to be a Catherine hiding in plain sight, one might say.

Catherine is of Greek origin and became later, in the early Christian era, associated with the Greek ‘katharos’ … meaning ‘pure’. Earlier derivations list as possible roots for Catherine the name of the goddess Hekate and the Greek name Hekaterine ... meaning ‘each of the two’.

And this is the point where especially one possible meaning behind the name Catherine ... ‘each of the two’ … becomes highly interesting for a story packed full of pairs, couples, double ohs and twins.

Each of the two - what might this mean?

Does it refer to two autonomous characters like Sherlock and John or does it refer to two different versions of one and the same character. What if we are dealing with two John’s in this story (alongside with two Sherlock’s)? Two of a kind for each of the two ... but not twins.

John Watson seems to be the character everything else circles around inside Sherlock’s mind palace. But there is a great difference between the John Watson of the PILOT and the one in ASIP. While PILOT-John seems to have not much problems to show his romantic interrest in Sherlock, the same character is much more restrained in ASIP. This attitude grows constantly over the course of the story, until it reaches an absolute low point in TLD. John claims again and again, in almost each episode, that he’s not gay. He downgrades Sherlock’s introduction of him from ‘friend’ to ‘colleague’. He tries to teach Sherlock the appropriate interaction with other people and the correct social behaviour … even when it is quite clear that Sherlock doesn’t like it. He jokes about some of Sherlock’s special characteristics with mutual friends and even tells him to ‘be not himself’ and demands that Sherlock should ‘hold himself to a higher standard’ because of the people who read the stories. And alongside those repeated verbal rebukes there’s also a constant increase of physical violence.

For more than a century the friendship and love between Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson is known to be among the most famous in literature. It hardly ever happens that the one appears without the other. Not one of the many adaptations I ever watched, depicts the ‘good doctor’ as someone who behaves like John Watson in Sherlock BBC. This John Watson becomes more and more out of character as the story runs along. Sometimes it’s almost as if this man isn’t THE John Watson at all.

‘When you have eliminated the impossible whatever remains must be the truth’ … that’s a main principle of Sherlock Holmes. If this John Watson is so very much OOC, perhaps this is so, because he isn’t THE John Watson?

Viewing all the characters on Sherlock’s mind stage as aspects, as certain opinions he has on various matters, and not as autonomous real-life people, it could be entirely possible that Sherlock tries to analyze his attitude towards a romantic/sexual relationship by creating different ‘editions’ of John Watson. The special attempt of a genius brain to fathom out his own feelings, desires and fears. If so, are there any indications in this story that more than one John Watson is present?

Two times John?

As mentioned in this post, there exists a scene in PILOT in which John appears twice in one single shot. It happens during the taxi ride to the crime scene of the pink lady, when Sherlock explains his first deductions about John to John. In one of the flashbacks John can be seen entering the lab while he is already inside, offering Sherlock his phone.

Recently I discovered that a similar shot exists in ASIP as well. It’s also in one of the flashbacks during the taxi ride to the crime scene of the pink lady, when Sherlock explains his first deductions about John to John. ‘Wounded in action, suntan – Afghanistan or Iraq’ … that’s the exact point when it happens. This time though the appearance of the ‘second John’ is rather colourful. One might even say … rainbowy. :)

Hope and Faith

The Lying Detecive is the (for now) penultimate episode of the story and very closely connected to A Study in Pink. Each of the two episodes is about a serial killer who deems himself 'verging on nice’, loves to talk to his victims and displays quite noticeable teeth.

Jeff Hope from ASIP has two bottles to offer, good pills and bad pills full of ‘chemistry’, from which Sherlock is expected to choose one.

Culverton Smith from TLD has a daughter called Faith. With her bad leg and the cane, she’s very obviously a mirror for John. The included flashback to John limping away from the pink lady’s crime scene and also the scene in which Faith’s gun gets thrown into the Thames (like John’s in PILOT), underpins the mirroring even more. Faith is displayed as two similar looking but entirely different persons.

As it turns out later, one of the two Faith’s is actually Eurus, Sherlock’s 'other one’, his sister who gets mistaken for a brother (like John’s sister Harry). Eurus represents Sherlock’s emotional side … especially with regards to his feelings for John … hence Faith’s display as John’s mirror with cane and limp.

TBB and the theory of two John’s

The Blind Banker has proven again and again that this episode is the user manual for Sherlock BBC. If there are indeed two different John’s - respectively Sherlock’s - put into this story, TBB should confirm this theory. Are there two John’s/Sherlock’s included in TBB? Yes, surprisinly, there are.

In this episode John as well as Sherlock are presented as double mirrors. Due to several random and minor incidents, General Shan mistakes John for Sherlock.

Debit card, name of S. Holmes.

A cheque for five thousand pounds made out in the name of Mr. Sherlock Holmes.

Tickets from the theatre, collected by you, name of Holmes.

We heard it from your own mouth. “I am Sherlock Holmes and I always work alone …”

And so, in General Shan’s view, John becomes Sherlock and Sarah - the ‘pretty doctor companion’ - turns into John. Basically, in every scene in which those three characters interact with each other, there are indeed two John’s and two Sherlock’s present ‘on stage’. It seems the theory that both main characters are represented in two slightly different versions is not that farfetched after all.

That’s not the John Watson I know

There’s this short dialogue from ASIP, the first official episode of Sherlock BBC, (it doesn’t show up in PILOT) ... could it be another piece of evidence that there’s more than one John Watson in this story. Is this a classical case of ‘we told you, but did you listen’?

Two Johns? Two differnt aspects represented by the same character? One positive, one negative? Like Jeff Hope’s good and bad bottles? And also two Sherlock’s?

The concept of an inflexible, unchangeable relationship between ‘eternal’ just-friends, the same as it has been for over a century. A version that will slowly kill Sherlock internally until he ends in the solitude of the Sussex Downs all alone with his bees? Again ...

And the other concept … a finally changed 'new’ friend, a different John, who falls in love with Sherlock Holmes at first sight and never leaves him again? And a Sherlock Holmes who gives in to the softer emotions and his neglected ‘transport’. A man who finally drops his facade to accept love, romance and sex in his life?

The detective and his doctor who, at long last, leave their crime scene and have dinner with each other (fulfill their desire) at a lovely Chinese (emotional) restaurant. :)))

More about pairs: Things coming in pairs Couples & Pairs Double oh 7 - Bond Air is go

I leave you to your own deductions. Thanks @callie-ariane for the scripts.

December, 2019

#pairs Twins double ohs #pairs #twins #double ohs #sign of two #couples #metaphorical reading #sherlock bbc #two concepts #two versions

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sasha-whos-askin-racket · 6 years ago

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BTHB - Human Shield

Bad Thing Happen Bingo - Square 4 Square - Human Shield Fandom - Ritchieverse Sherlock Character - John Watson Ship - Holmes/Watson Requested by - @stacee-not-jaxx

The alley is dark, and Watson can barely see to put one foot in front of the other. He stops a bit too abruptly for fear of tripping, and the blade at his neck bites into his skin. It doesn’t draw blood, but it stings. “Go.” Colonel Moran hisses in his ear, and Watson gets an elbow to the small of his back for his troubles, stumbling forwards slightly, unsteady on his feet. “I don’t know what you want,” he tries gently. “Holmes is dead. I haven’t seen Simza in weeks.” That was a lie - they made a point to see each other regularly, but Moran didn’t know that, and if lying kept her safe, he’d do it gladly, even at the cost of his own life. “He’s dead, sure, but he’ll come back if his little pet’s in danger, won’t he?” Moran asks, a bitterness in his voice. “It seems he will.” Watson looks up; there’s a silhouette stood in the opening of the alleyway. It carries something dangling by its side in its left hand, and something else in his right, the hand extended towards them. Moran chuckles, and it makes Watson skin crawl. “Pleasure to meet you again, Mr. Holmes. I’m sorry we didn’t get to have our little chat last time. How’s your shoulder?” “A lot better than yours will be if you don’t let Watson go.” His voice is shaking, Watson can hear it from here. The unshakable, perfectly calm, Sherlock Holmes’s voice is shaking, and the gravity of his position finally sinks in.

Moran laughs again. “That loyal animal of yours came running then?” Sherlock kicks a piece of wood out of his path, gun in his hand never wavering for a moment. “Wiggins’s more of a human than you’ll ever be, Colonel.” Watson’s still trying to process the fact that Sherlock’s alive, here, in front of him, when he saw him fall. He sees him fall every time he closes his eyes, hears the rush of the waterfall over the sound of Moriarty screaming. So how, how can Holmes be here? Alive. In London, just a few streets away from Baker Street. Before he can think, there’s a weight on his back and he collapses to his knees, the blade of his sword still resting against his neck, never relaxing for a second. He could fight. If he was facing down anybody else, he would. He’d fight and he’d most likely win. But its not worth the risk. Because at the end of the way, you can talk your way out of a fistfight, debt or favour. You can’t talk a bullet into swerving around you, or a knife into dulling itself as it presses against your skin. You can only reason with a human, and neither the blade at his neck nor the man wielding it seem to fit into that category; something Watson knows all too well.

Holmes tries to clear the distance between them, stopping a few feet away. Watson can see now in his left hands he holds the sheath to Watsons sword, and in the right, his revolver, pointing towards them. “I wouldn’t try that.” Moran tells him. “The doctor here makes a pretty effective blockade. I’d hate for you to misjudge your aim and hit him instead.” “What do you want?” Watson asks, and the handle of the sword hits him in the temple. He almost slumps over, but Moran’s hand on his collar keeps him upright. “I was given orders from the professor, you see.” Moran says, though Watson is no longer sure who he’s talking to. “To find the most creative of endings for the Doctor. Now, this isn’t necessarily creative, but I can’t deny it's been fun.” “What’s your goal?” Holmes asks. “For me to kill him? I won’t do it, Colonel.” “No?” The blade pushes further into Watson’s neck, but Moran twists it at the last second and it slices through the skin of his shoulder instead. Watson bites back a scream that he’s unable to completely quell as Moran puts more force on the blade, and his head rears back instinctively, striking Moran’s torso from the Colonel’s position behind him.

Through blurry eyes, Watson can see the gun trembling in Holmes’s hand, and he closes his eyes as Moran pulls the blade away sharply. He can hear the sound of the blood dripping from the end of the sword onto the cobblestones, and it makes him feel sick. Holmes is now even closer to them both, less than a metre away. Watson doesn’t understand why Moran hasn’t attacked him yet, and then realises it's because he’s so confident he has control over the situation that even at this distance he doesn’t view Holmes as a threat. Holmes’s left hand twitches, and his index fingers points towards, twisting slightly. It’s a subtle motion, but Watson catches it. He doesn’t fully understand what Sherlock has planned, but trusts him enough to go along with it anyway. Moran rests the blade back against Watson’s throat just as Holmes yells “Norbury!” and Watson throws himself forwards into the flat of the blade, hoping he’s angled it right. The blade twists from Moran’s grasp, and as soon as Watson’s head moves with the momentum, the sound of a gunshot fills the alley.

Without Moran as support, Watson pitches forwards, and Holmes moves into him. Watson’s head collides with Sherlock’s shoulder and Sherlock slides the two of them to a sitting position, cradling Watson carefully against him. Holmes can feel him trembling even through his jacket, and swallows down a thousand things he wants to say, allowing only one to bubble to the surface. “Always good to see you, Watson.” Watson laughs weakly, and it’s the best sound Holmes has heard in a long while.

#bad things happen bingo #square: human shield #fandom: sherlock

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astudyinimagination · 7 years ago

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Let’s cut to the chase: this fic is about Sherlock Holmes and vampires

So either you’re going to be interested in it or you won’t be, because this story unfortunately does not have a title yet. (Nor is it Halloween anymore—I spent the first 45 minutes of NaNoWriMo finishing up a different fic, oy!) So... sorry about the delay and the lack of a proper title. When I have one, I’m sure Tumblr will be the first to know.

Warnings: Violence, soft-core gore, and what basically amounts to fantasy rape. These are vampires we’re talking about, who tend to feed non-consensually on their prey. If anything approaching sexual assault triggers you, please do not read! I wanted to do due justice to the idea of vampire feeding/conversion being akin to rape a la lack of consent, physical violation, and mental/emotional trauma, and that is what I have tried to do.

So please, if you can’t handle that, scroll right past me!

Professor James Moriarty appears at the head of the path that leads towards the Reichenbach Falls, standing between Sherlock Holmes and the safety of the land beyond. The mist from the falls is swirling thicker and seemingly darker now, more akin to a London Particular than the spray of a pristine waterfall, and the air has chilled, and Holmes shivers.

Perhaps Moriarty might let him go yet. No, Holmes cannot entertain such foolish notions. Not only are they unrealistic but they are also traitorous. To run now would be to turn his back on everything he has fought for, everything he believes in. He does not wish to die, but he cannot be certain that he will survive this encounter—there is a grim, inexorable purpose in those ice-grey eyes—and he needs to see this through to the end.

Watson and Mary and their unborn child, the Irregulars, Mrs. Hudson, Mycroft… even Lestrade and all his colleagues… they will be safer for it.

This is his duty, the duty he’s chosen for himself, and he would never forgive himself if he falters now.

He lifts his chin, squares his shoulders, and walks forward, nodding a greeting to his adversary. “Professor.”

Moriarty stands unmoving. “Holmes.” A beat, and then: “You wish to write a farewell note to your companion, no doubt.”

Holmes’s heart beats so quickly that it is a wonder he can’t hear it. “If it is not too much trouble.”

A trace of a smile flashes across the older man’s features. “Not at all.”

The detective inclines his head in thanks, then sets to jotting down his last words to Watson. Forgive me, dear friend—this is for your own safety. Finishing the note, he tucks it underneath his silver cigarette case—from Watson last Christmas, no less!—on a rock, and now he can no longer delay the inevitable.

He stands straight and returns his attention to his opponent, who looks paler now than ever, even more corpse-like than before… but it is his eyes that both bewilder Holmes and make him shudder. There is an inexplicable crimson gleam in those eyes, as if glinting dully in the light of a dying fire. The detective feels colder, and tries to mask it with a dry smile. “Well, then, Professor. Is there anything else that needs to be said?”

The domed head begins to oscillate slowly, serpentine, and the other man’s voice is scarcely less sibilant. “I grant you one last chance, little detective. Run now, back to your friend, and let me go my way, and you may live.”

Holmes can’t help barking an incredulous laugh. “You cannot seriously expect me to accept such an offer, sir.”

Moriarty smiles thinly, his lips seemingly as unnaturally red as his eyes. “Well then. It is a pity, but I did give you a last chance.”

He springs forward, and Holmes throws a hard right hook… only to have a hand meet his fist in mid air, blocking his blow and holding his hand in place with ease. Holmes stares, and Moriarty’s lips peel away from his teeth in a facsimile of a smile, and his canines are strangely long…

And then Holmes is crashing to the sodden ground, hurled to it with no more consideration or difficulty than if he’d been a rag doll. He regains his feet, only to receive a stunning blow across his face, breaking his left cheekbone if the sudden agony in his face is any indication, and knocking him to the ground once more.

He looks up, and the tall Professor seems to have grown taller still, black mist curling around him, face hideously contorted in a feral snarl. “Foolish child,” he hisses, swooping down and pulling Holmes up effortlessly by the neck, dashing him against the cliff wall and making his vision flash white for a moment.

Fire jolts through Holmes’s body, every inch of him in pain now, and his best adrenaline-fueled efforts to pry Moriarty’s hand from his throat are as useless as if he were a child.

Moriarty simply increases the pressure. “Do you begin to understand now?” he says mildly, conversationally, as Holmes gasps for breath. “I was not boasting when I told you that you had not realized the full extent of the forces I command. I have lost a mere fraction of the men who call me ‘master,’ and they shall be replaced. You sought to play your wits against me—I who have commanded nations, and intrigued for them, and fought for them, hundreds of years before you were born, little detective.”

Holmes stares at him, his struggle to breathe forgotten as he tries to process what he just heard. Hundreds of years.

Moriarty laughs, a smoky, rumbling laugh that chills Holmes’s blood. “And still you do not understand.” With his free hand, he draws a fingernail up the side of Holmes’s neck, but the fingernail is more like a talon… and it slices the skin open.

Dazed and confused, Holmes can only groan softly in discomfort, blood trickling freely down his neck.

Moriarty chuckles and draws Holmes away from the cliff wall and into his arms in a cruel parody of a father’s embrace. “But very soon,” the Professor murmurs, “you will understand only too well, and you will wish you did not.”

“Understand… what…?” Holmes croaks past an abused throat.

Moriarty only smiles, and bends down until Holmes feels Moriarty’s teeth on his neck, and the detective shudders, a horrifying suspicion pushing its way through the fog in his head. Then, his flesh is pierced, and he cries out in agony, struggling feebly against his tormentor. There’s a rushing, throbbing sensation, and he realizes that blood is being drawn—no, is being sucked—right out of him.

“No,” he whimpers, feeling weaker every second. “Please…”

But Moriarty pays him no heed, and soon his arms are the only thing keeping Holmes upright, the detective’s legs giving out beneath him.

At last, Moriarty raises his head, sharp teeth glistening with blood. Holmes’s blood. The detective would vomit at the sight had he the strength to do it.

The older man—no, the monster—raises one hand to stroke Holmes’s cheek, as if in affection. “You will be blood of my blood,” the thing murmurs, and at last Holmes truly understands.

Moriarty was never human, and now his best, cruelest victory over the man who tried to stop him will be to make Holmes like himself.

“Please,” Holmes rasps, loathe to beg but having no choice, no strength left to do anything else.

Moriarty puts one icy, white finger on Holmes’s lips, making him gag, and gives him a revoltingly paternal smile. “You may thank me one day.”

Holmes does not clearly remember what follows next. He is forced to suck Moriarty’s cold blood, that much he knows, and then he is borne up by strong arms and he is rising, rising into the sky, even as he’s burning, fever wracking his abused body, and then he’s sinking to the ground again, the blessedly cool earth, and there is a voice somewhere above him and also very far away: “There. One last mercy. The good doctor shall undoubtedly return soon, and when you wake, you shall wake hungry. It would be such a pity were you to feed upon your dearest friend because you could not help yourself.”

Then he is alone, alone for days—or perhaps only hours, he doesn’t know. He only knows the fever, and the darkness raging within him, seeking to remake him from the inside out.

But then, at last, he hears a blessedly familiar voice, dearest to him in the whole world, calling his name. He tries to reply—Watson! I’m up here! I need you!—but the words come half-formed out of his mouth in gasps. It’s so difficult to breathe now, so difficult…

And Watson has no way to know that even as he mourns his friend for dead, drowned in the falls, that friend is burning to death on a ledge high above him, Watson’s sobs the last thing Holmes hears…

When he wakes, he is confused. The sky above is dark, the deep dark before the first vestiges of dawn, and there’s an ever-present roar in his ears, and the ground beneath him is cold and damp. The ground. The sky.

Why is he lying out of doors?

He shivers, and tries to rise, and as he does, a powerful wave of hunger washes over him. No, not hunger. Thirst. That’s it. He needs… not water… no, not water, but not food either…

He pushes himself slowly, unsteadily, to his feet, and the roar suddenly makes sense. The Reichenbach Falls. Moriarty. Memory returns to him in a rush, scarcely less swift and powerful than the falls themselves, and he drops to his knees.

James Moriarty is a vampire.

Holmes checks his pulse at his wrist, and only when panic begins to claw at his insides does he feel the faintest thread of… something. He presses his hand to his heart and waits, counting the seconds, and at the end of a minute, his spirits sink further still. His heart is beating only every ten seconds, far too slow to work properly, far too slow for him to still be alive…

James Moriarty made him a vampire like himself.

Tears prick his eyes, and Holmes wants to throw his head back and scream at the sky for the unfairness of it. He had only been trying to do his duty to his fellow man, the best way he knew how. He had been ready to die—he would rather have died than become a monster!

Already he feels the hunger-thirst—for blood, he realizes—grow louder, more insistent. He needs blood. As much of it as he can get.

Moriarty’s parting words return to him and Holmes swears fervently. A last mercy, indeed—and Holmes hates the vampire for making him grateful for it. He cannot return to Watson now, not like this—what if the blood-need takes hold of his senses and he turns on Watson? He can’t put his friend in danger like that!

He needs to stay away, on his own, for now, possibly forever, if he cannot learn to master this need. For sake of his own sanity, he must. He cannot, he will not lose himself to what Moriarty has unleashed in him.

Still weak, still wracked with pain, Sherlock Holmes climbs down from the ledge and staggers back up the path and into the mountainous forest. Forgive me, Watson—this is for your own safety.

#Sherlock Holmes #James Moriarty #Professor Moriarty #vampires #vampirelock #The Final Problem #Reichenbach Falls #Sky writes stuff

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dizzyscene · 7 years ago

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tbh, the waterfall scene of The Abominable Bride is so so gay

Sherlock: Oh, I see. Still not awake, am I?

Moriarty: Too deep, Sherlock. Way too deep. Congratulations, you'll be the first man in history to be buried in his own mind palace.

Sherlock: The setting's a shade melodramatic, don't you think?

Moriarty: For you and me? Not at all.

Sherlock: What are you?

Moriarty: You know what I am. I'm Moriarty. The Napoleon of crime.

Sherlock: Moriarty is dead.

Moriarty: Not in your mind. I'll never be dead there. You once called your brain a hard drive. Well, say hello to the virus. This is how we end, you and I. Always here. Always together.

Sherlock: You have a magnificent brain, Moriarty. I admire it. I concede it may even be the equal of my own.

Moriarty: I'm touched... I'm honoured.

Sherlock: But when it comes to the matter of unarmed combat on the edge of a precipice, you're going in the water, short-arse.

Moriarty: *hiss*

*both grunting*

Moriarty: Oh, you think you're so big & strong, Sherlock? Not with me.

*more fighting*

Moriarty: I am your weakness! I keep you down! Every time you stumble, every time you fail! When you're weak! I-AM-THERE. No, don't try to fight it. Lie back and lose! Shall we go over together? It has to be together, doesn't it? At the end, it's always just you and me.

*John clears throat*

*cocks gun*

John: Professor, if you wouldn't mind stepping away from my friend, I do believe he finds your attention a shade annoying.

Moriarty: That's not fair, there's two of you.

John: There's always two of us. Don't you read "The Strand?" On your knees, Professor. Hands behind your head.

Sherlock: Thank you, John.

John: Since when do you call me John?

Sherlock: You'd be surprised.

John: No, I wouldn't. :) Time you woke up, Sherlock.

Sherlock: *looks*

John: I'm a storyteller, I know when I'm in one.

Sherlock: 'Course. Of course, you do, John.

John: So, what's he like? The other me, in the other place?

Sherlock: Smarter than he looks.

John: Pretty damn smart then.

Sherlock: Pretty damn smart.

Moriarty: Ugh, why don't you two just elope, for God's sake?

John: Impertinent.

Sherlock: Offensive.

John: Actually, would you mind?

Sherlock: Not at all.

*John kicks Moriarty off waterfall edge*

Moriarty: Ohhhhhh *fades*

John: It was my turn.

Sherlock: Quite so.

John: So how do you plan to wake up?

Sherlock: Ohh... I should think like this.. *walks to edge*

John: Are you sure?

Sherlock: Between you and me, John, I always survive the fall.

John: But how?

Sherlock: Elementary, my dear Watson.

*throws hat*

*spreads arms & jumps*

#sherlock #the abominable bride #tab #waterfall #deep waters #john watson #storyteller #jim moriarty

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nat-20s · 5 years ago

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Moriarty shows up like "Ah Mr. Holmes. Our final battle of wits. Unfortunately not one you will survive" and Sherlock is just "Wits? I'm here to beat the shit out of you" and then just fuckin THROWS him off of a waterfall

Thinkin about "The Final Problem" without context like djdjjdfj "Local coked up 30 something with boxing training kicks an elderly teacher's ass then fakes his death with a homoerotic letter"

#sherlock holmes #james moriarty

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sherlockshadow · 8 years ago

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One Word

“Names aren’t one word”

Obviously names can be one word, the show is called Sherlock.

Jeff Hope yelling Moriarty!

Sherlock walks over and throws the gun in the Thames, a callback to John throwing his gun in the Thames in ASIP/Pilot.

We see a gunshot and then the London Aquarium. The aquarium where Mary died. Mary died by a gunshot in front of sharks. Sherlock died in CAM’s tower; CAM is like a shark.

(Ever notice the plane flying over the aquarium?)

Sherlock then appears to be floating in the sky on a ledge near water. This is a metaphorical reference to Sherlock’s death. Which also matches Moriarty’s deaths: TRF, TAB waterfall scene.

Why show the aquarium? Why bring up Mary’s death?

Like Moriarty, Mary is a facade. The facade has many names.

Anyone is one word. One word for Facade

Molly: “He’d rather have the facade.”

Faith/Love: “Your nicer than the facade.”

Mary: “Don’t think the facade is going to save him, because there isn’t a facade.” “I’m dead, remember. It’s important you remember.”

Facade!

Culverton: “I need to kill someone.”

Facade!

Culverton: “I don’t want to kill one person, I want to kill the facade.” Sherlock is the serial killer. Killing himself to kill the facade. “Taking your life. Interesting expression. Taking it from who? It’s not you who will miss it.” Sherlock dies/John dies.

Facade!

John: “Have you spoken to Mycroft, Molly, uh, the facade?”

Mary: “You don’t want the facade knowing you’re in therapy.” (“I need to know what to do about John”)

John: “The facade ever “opt” to remember?”

Mrs. Hudson: “You want to know what’s bothering Sherlock? Easiest thing in the world, even the facade can do it.”

“If the facade stays here a minute longer, they are admitting to me personally they don’t have a single spark of human decency.”

Mary: John Watson never accepts help, not from the facade. Not ever.

Mycroft: “It will certainly destroy this flat and kill the facade in it.”

Mycroft: “The facade spent time with her (Eurus/love) and was automatically compromised.”

Mycroft: “She (Eurus/love) won’t communicate with the facade in any way. She has passed beyond our view. There are no words that can reach her now.” Translation: Love conquers all.

“You said your life turned on one word. That’s the impossible thing. Just that, right there.”

“This is a lie!”

Sherlock’s life did change on one word. It wasn’t Jeff Hope yelling out Moriarty’s name.

Sherlock’s facade married John in TSOT. Traditionally it’s “The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.” Mary is Sherlock.

Redbeard was introduced in TSOT. Sherlock has a vision of him and Redbeard during the same scene with Faith on the bridge. Redbeard is one word.

Redbeard is John. John is one word.

“One word to let me know you were alive.” Alive inside. “Flesh and blood. You must have feelings.”

Faith is one word. Faith is Sherlock and John. She’s love.

Your life turned on one word.

Love is one word.

@sarahthecoat @kateis-cakeis @ebaeschnbliah @gosherlocked @221bloodnun @loveismyrevolution @tjlcisthenewsexy @monikakrasnorada

#sherlock series 4 #sherlock #tld #tjlc #tjlc meta

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hollow-head · 8 years ago

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Watsonian vs Doylist storytelling in RPGs

If Justin is going to do a detective game, I think it’s worth mentioning how Doylist vs Watsonian storytelling plays into RPGs. If you don’t know what these words mean, here’s a TV Tropes link

Doylist: the motives are explained outside the story. The story’s structure comes first.

Example:

Why did Sherlock Holmes fall off the waterfall in The Final Problem? Because Doyle was sick of writing Sherlock Holmes stories and wanted to kill him.

Watsonian: the motives are explained in-story, within the context of the narrative. The Watsonian explanation usually is written to support Doylist motive. Once the extra-narrative events are determined, the in-story aspects are written around it.

Example:

Why did Sherlock Holmes fall off the waterfall? Because he grappled with Moriarty and Moriarty pulled him over.

Sometimes, the Watsonian explanation comes first. A character may do something that the author did not expect. This can happen in works of a single author when a character is particularly well developed, but it literally happens in an RPG. The character decides to do something so the narrator or GM has to decide how the action plays out.

Example:

Why did Sherlock Holmes fall off the waterfall? Because Sherlock Holmes decided to, instead of walking away or shooting him, run at Moriarty with a flying kick and knock him over the edge of the waterfall.

Now, within the context of a dice-based RPG, actions are determined by the players, and also by chance, so we might have an explanation like the following:

Why did Sherlock Holmes fall off the waterfall? Because he rolled a critical failure dexterity saving throw in his conflict with Moriarty.

In this circumstance the ultimate cause of the action is chance and the narrator creates a Watsonian explanation for the actions that must follow from the roll of the dice. We might call this the chance motive. Within the context of TAZ we might give an example of the end of Rockport Limited, where Jenkins failed his throw and fell out the back of the train. The Watsonian explanation for his death would be that he was a shitty wizard. The Doylist explanation is that he had to be defeated eventually somehow because he was the villain and the arc needed to end. The Chance explanation is Griffin’s bad dice roll against the meat monster.

Why am I talking about this? Gameplay-driven narratives are a unique type of fiction. These are good words to have, and it’s just an interesting way to think about how a story can develop when it’s out of the hands of a single author, or certain aspects are dictated by chance.

(And I don't know if you even could incorporate these concepts in a meaningful way into a detective game, but that'd be pretty cool.)

#taz #the adventure zone #rpg #watsonian vs doylist #literary theory #meta

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ebaeschnbliah · 6 years ago

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DEVELOPEMENT OF THE FALL

________________________________________________________________

The Reichenbach Falls in Switzerland play a prominent role in the original Sherlock Holmes stories. It’s the place where it comes to the final confrontation with his archenemy James Moriarty. ‘The greatest crisis of my career’ Holmes writes in his farewell letter to Dr. Watson in the story titled ‘The Final Problem’. One of the most interesting deviations from ACD canon in the modern Sherlock BBC adaptation lies in the considerable time difference between the first meeting of Sherlock Holmes and John Watson and the introduction of James Moriarty, which ultimately leads to the dramatic events at the Reichenbach Falls and Holmes’ hiatus after his faked death.

While in canon Holmes and Watson know each other for 10 years before Moriarty enters the story (X), Sherlock BBC introduces that famous antagonist of the great detective already in the first episode and sets the Reichenbach Fall only eighteen months later, thereby replacing the Swiss waterfall with Bart’s roof. Jim Moriarty compares falling to flying ... ‘falling’s just like flying except there’s a more permanent destination’ … and indeed, both topics play a major role throughout the story told so far and are constantly repeated in the series and episodes. Appart from S1, each series ends or starts with a ‘fall’ or ‘flight’.

However, whereas strangeness, improbability, drama and violence increase in a lot of other repeated scenes, the outcome of the ‘fall’ seems to decrease.

TBC below the cut …

Series Two: The Reichenbach Fall

Sherlock and Jim maneuver each other into a position of stalemate. Both commit suicide. Jim shoots himself. Sherlock spreads his arms as if ready to fly and throws himself from Bart’s roof. He falls and lands hard on the pavement in front of the hospital. Both characters end with their skulls cracked open. It’s the beginning of Sherlock’s (and Jim’s) hiatus.

Series Three: His Last Vow

Sherlock doesn’t fall at the end of this series, he flies instead. He takes a plane into exile, which turns round and returns after a few minutes. Sherlock lands safely on the same tarmac where he’d entered the plane. Somehow Jim is back as well on every TV screen of the country.

Special: The Abominable Bride

Sherlock, John and Jim have their showdown at the Reichenbach Falls inside an imagined victorian setting. John pushes Jim over the brink of the waterfall and Sherlock jumps after him out of his own free will. This time Sherlock doesn’t fall though. He flies ... with a broad smile on his face. Someone who is able to fly like a bird, should also be able to land safely, I assume. :)

Series Four: The Final Problem

In contrast to the other episodes, neither ‘fall’ nor ‘flight’ happen at the end but near the beginning of TFP. When the ‘passions’ grenade explodes Sherlock and John are catapulted through fire and flames out of the windows of 221b right onto a ship somewhere on a stormy ocean. Both men become pirates.

SHERLOCK: My name’s Sherlock Holmes. BEN: The detective! SHERLOCK: The pirate.

FISHERMAN: This man stole my boat. ’e’s a pirate. JOHN: Yeah, I really am.

The ship takes them to the island Sherrinford and subsequently, to modern Sherlock’s ‘final problem’ … followed by a long, still ongoing hiatus ...

(Thanks @gosherlocked . Without your reminder I would have concentrated on the episode-ends only and forgotten the most important ‘fall/flight’ caused by the ‘passions’ grenade.)

Instead of a ‘fall’ or a ‘flight’ the fourth series ends with a race. This makes even more sense because Sherlock had been able to land Eurus/his plane safely. The last picture of TFP shows Sherlock and John running side by side full speed out of a building with a high arched opening, onto 'Rathbone Place’.

Back to Series One

Among the promotion pics for the first series there are two which display a great resemblance with the final shot for S4. Sherlock and John are running full speed under vaulted arches (source of pic). Appart from the location there are some interesting differences:

While the first race takes place inside or even underground with a seemingly dark destination, the other race goes out into the open and into sunlight

Sherlock and John have switched places from left to right. It’s a mirrored position.

While in the pic for S1 Sherlock runs slightly ahead of John, in the final pic for S4 both characters run exactly side by side and completely in sync with each other.

A balance has been found and something has definitely changed …..

I leave you to your own deductions. Thanks @callie-ariane for the scripts.

October, 2019

#developement of the fall #the reichenbach fall #falls #flights #decreasing

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