#mirroring in sherlock

[sarahthecoat]

narrator: he was, as it turns out, talking to a mirror.

in the teaser, does sherlock say i love you to john?

John is clearly standing behind him in the trailer, so unless he’s talking to a mirror for some very bizarre reason, I should think not.

-Mark

[22ndnervousbreakdown]

You're Sherlock Holmes.

You're unique, and you know it. You're one of the smartest people in the world, and you take pride in it. You refine your skills, use them and make a living out of it like no one else could. It's not always good, though. You don't fit with others. No one truly sees or understands you — and at this point, you're sure no one ever can.

You move in with a new flatmate. You have him figured out pretty much from the moment you met him: he's quite simple, really, there's not much to learn. It's not long before you know his every habit, every expression — his expressions are so easy to read, the man is an open book. He's good company, though. And he doesn't seem to mind your eccentricities, so that's nice. You bond, somewhat.

And then — then, he surprises you for the first time. And the second. And the third. He's smarter than you thought, braver than you thought, more loyal, more stubborn than you ever realised, and as you live on together for longer and longer, as you grow closer and closer, he doesn't ever stop surprising you. Just as you think that this time, surely you know all there is to know about him, it turns out there's a new side to him you've never yet experienced. Just as you think you can always predict how he'd behave, he turns to do something unexpected. You spend years together, he's your closest friend, your other half, and there's still so much to learn about him, you know your study will never be complete.

And just as you realise how you can never truly learn all there is to know about him, he learns all there is to know about you. Your habits are unique, strange, unconventional, and he knows them all. Your expressions are unreadable, misleading at times, and he can read every one of them. Your moods are fast-changing, and he anticipates them, and knows how to deal with each one. He knows your opinions, your tastes, what you'll find interesting, what'll make you bored and irritated. At times, you think he knows you better than you know yourself.

He understands you. You never thought anyone could — but then, John Watson always surprised you.

[queerholmcs]

4x01

[finleycannotdraw]

yeah sorry i just need to *checks notes* make a gay edit in my head while listening to this song on repeat. it’s urgent

[sarahthecoat]

good one to re read!

i have a feeling that if/when s5 comes out, the beginning of the first episode will give us all even worse whiplash than the opening of s2 or s3, where all those thing we obsessed over during hiatus and thought "this HAS to be addressed" just... weren't.

except they will be, just not the way we expected.

part of me is just hoping i live long enough to see it, and that it's even more surprising and wonderful than i could imagine, and part of me is dreading how many fans will (again) rage-quit because it isn't what they expected. when in so many ways the whole show has been about being unexpected. with mixed results, i grant you.

time will tell.

Culverton Smith & the Golem

So, if the five pips in TGG correspond to the five (planned) series of ‘Sherlock’, then we have to talk about characters used as foils:

The Golem kills people by squeezing the life out of them with his hands. So does Culverton Smith.

The Golem is a giant (like in a fairy tale). Culverton is a dwarf (like in a fairy tale…well, he’s shorter than a Hobbit, at least:) ).

…Aaaaand John struggles with both the Golem and Culverton to save Sherlock’s life.

Oh, nice teeth, by the way…

The Golem is an assassin. Culverton is a serial killer.

The Golem has to hide, constantly, because his appearance alone would give him away. Culverton Smith hides ‘in plain sight’.

The Golem/fake painting case is the 4th (!) pip in TGG. The Culverton/fake series is SERIES 4!

(Please excuse the TAB screenshot. TGG didn’t have actual orange pips, just acoustic ones. Hence this shot.)

The 4th pip in TGG starts out with John being angry at Sherlock. TLD starts with John and Sherlock having ended their friendship because John is angry with Sherlock.

Is there more? Yes, there’s loads more under the cut…

The 4th pip starts with John blaming Sherlock for the death of the blind woman. TLD is about John blaming Sherlock for Mary’s ‘death’ - Mary…the, erm, shortsighted woman.

When the 4th pip case in TGG starts, John basically thinks Sherlock is an unfeeling sociopath who doesn’t care for what happened to the blind woman. Sherlock even says, “Oh, you���re angry with me, so you won’t help. Not much cop, this caring lark.” Which is pretty much the plot of the first half of TLD when you think about it. 

Basically this is all still about, “Don’t make people into heroes, John. Heroes don’t exist, and if they did, I wouldn’t be one of them.” (Transcript from Ariane de Vere).

The fourth pip in TGG is all about s4!

“This whole case has a distinctly Czech feeling about it. Is that where this leads?” Sherlock asks Ms Wenceslas. And then s4 is all about that East (!) wind coming.

Also, women as baddies…

Oh, no, hang on! There’s one villain missing…There, I’ve fixed it for you:

Anyway, where was I?…Ah, yes…

The 4th pip is s4 in a nutshell! The whole of series 4!

When Alex Woodbridge, a character mirroring Sherlock, is found, he had been submerged under water for a long time. Series 4 is all about, “Deep waters, Sherlock, all your life. In all your dreams.” (Note that this could support EMP theory or some sort of s4-is-all-a-dream theory.)

In TGG, the 4th pip has John say about the Golem, “It’s a horror story, isn’t it?” And series 4 is a horror story! Both to us, the viewers, who were literally horrified by it and because of it’s blatant use of horror film tropes.

(Seriously, I could have gone with any screenshot from s4. I picked The-Ring!Eurus from TFP. But references to the horror genre started in TST already.)

The 4th pip in TGG is series 4 in a nutshell.

Remember what Sherlock told Ms Wenceslas:

“It’s a fake. It has to be. It’s the only possible explanation.” And then “It is a fake. I don’t know why, but there’s something wrong with it. There has to be.” And then we (collectively) as a fandom went nuts after TFP aired, trying to prove that TFP was a fake because it just HAD TO BE!

(Was that Anderson in TEH? Oh, I though that was us after watching TFP…)

By the way, the scene on the left is also where Sherlock tells Ms Wenceslas, “The art of disguise is knowing how to hide in plain sight.” This is literally what Culverton Smith is doing in s4. (It is also arguably what Mofftiss are doing with us as they hide the fact that s4 is fake as hell.)

And what is the clue to the painting being a fake? The supernova!

The painting in the 4th pip case is a fake because there’s a supernova, a ‘dying star’ in it. And TFP is fake because it’s all about a dying John (Sherlock’s dying star). 

(For those who subscribe to EMP theory, the whole of s4 is fake and Sherlock’s the one who’s doing the dying.)

The hostage in the 4th pip case is a child, and that kid is notably absent for most of the story, except for a disembodied voice at the very end of the case. Just a voice on the phone. The child at the very end of s4 (on the plane in TFP) is just a voice and not real. 

(Bonus: John’s daughter is in an odd Schrödinger’s cat-like state of being-there-yet-also-being-non-existent-absent throughout s4. Is she even real?)

Other people have already pointed out how the countdown in the 4th pip case stops at exactly the same number as the countdown in TFP when Sherlock tries to shoot himself.

And how does the 4th pip case end in TGG? How does it all segue into the 5th pip? With Sherlock and John in a half-destroyed Baker Street flat. Sounds like the end of TFP, no?

From there it transitions smoothly into the 5th pip case. Ergo, THERE WILL BE A S5! You know it, I know it, and they know it, too.

Mark Gatiss’s whole song and dance about s4 possibly being the last series is a lie. And the ‘finale’ (TFP) is a fake ending.

And judging by the 5th pip in TGG, a future series 5 (or possibly ‘The Lost Special, if it does indeed exist) will be about John dying. It will be about John being in mortal danger.

Judging by the 5th pip, they will then both end up in mortal danger very quickly…

…and Moriarty will somehow be involved.

Because Jim hasn’t really been in touch lately, has he? I mean, he hasn’t been in series 4…just like he hasn’t been during the 4th pip case in TGG, where John and Sherlock even commented on the fact that the bomber was strangely silent until eventually they got that call at the very end, but even there it was a child’s voice, not Jim’s. 

Just like series 4 which is all about that fake child that binds John and Mary together. Moriarty doesn’t even need to be there. The child is the gun; just like amo (love) is the ammunition.

Note that right before the 4th pip case transitions into the 5th pip case, Sherlock is questioning someone’s paternity here, “Look at the turn-ups on his jeans!”

My guess is that John’s fake child will be a major theme in s5 (or possibly in the ‘The Lost Special’, if that thing exists.)

Also, note how the 4th pip case in TGG ends in an exercise in keeping up the heterosexual façade. John takes off to go see his girlfriend, and Sherlock lies to him by pretending that, yes, he will eat that risotto in the fridge when we, indeed, know that he won’t have sex eat anything and will be lonely.

Well, and how does s4 end? With the heterosexual façade preserved. John is still the grieving widower with his child and that ring on his finger, a straight widower who comes to visit Uncle Sherlock, and Sherlock pretends that these visits are enough for him and that, yeah, everything’s hunky-dory, never been better.

That closing montage at the end of s4 (TFP) is as fake as Sherlock’s lie at the end of the 4th pip case, just as the 5th pip case is about to start.

This s4 montage is as fake as their ‘happy’ goodbye in TGG when John stalks off to go to his very, very female girlfriend and Sherlock is absolutely, not at all, in no way lying about eating that risotto in the fridge.

We all know what will happen during the 5th pip case: *Boom*

Also: “Jim from IT. Hi!”

Also: Sherlock’s (and Jim’s) past is going to get dragged up from ‘under the water’ of the swimming pool.

Aaaand: Sherlock and John are going to talk about ripping each other’s clothes off.

So, technically we know what s5 (and/or ‘The Lost Special’) will be all about, yes?

The rest is fake. Like John’s heterosexual façade at the end of the 4th pip case in TGG. Fake. Like when they assume ‘the bomber’ will now leave them alone and Sherlock will just eat that risotto in the fridge all alone in his cold flat.

Why are Mofftiss doing this?

Well, in their defence, I think they’re not doing it to piss off their fanbase. They’re taking the piss out of the media and the casual viewers. They knew their fans would be too clever to fall for this ruse.

They even told us so, using the voice of Ms Wenceslas during the 4th pip case in TGG:

“I mean, really: brushwork immaculate, could fool anyone… Well, nearly anyone.” Mofftiss never intended to make us angry. They weren’t making fun of us. They were making fun of all the media outlets and casual viewers out there, of the fools that could be fooled. Not us. They knew we would be cleverer than that. “…Could fool anyone…well nearly anyone…”

Because in the end, they fooled (nearly) everyone by using Culverton Smith’s strategy, not the Golem’s.

In s1 the subtext was still hidden in the way the Golem tried to hide himself. The subtext could only be found by the Homeless Network (us!). 

In s4 the subtext is so blatantly in-your-face that they’re using Culverton’s strategy; they’re hiding their intentions ‘in plain sight’.

The difference between the Homeless Network (us!) and the media that are watching Culverton’s ‘in-plain-sight’ routine is that the Homeless Network is clever and recognises a Golem when it sees one in the dark. The media are stupid, and they don’t recognise a Culverton even when he’s hidden ‘in plain sight’ right in front of them.

My meta about the sculptures and paintings on “Sherlock” can be found: HERE.

All screencaps in this posts came from here. (Except for the s4 promo pic, which is, of course, the cover of the s4 DVD.)

Transcripts from Ariane deVere.

[thatswhyhestays]

Once you've opened your heart, you can't close it again.

[hrjafael]

Everyone, there is a new point-and-click game demo out called “Ward: The Bird Knew Everything”.

It’s made by fans inspired by the Nancy Drew games, the Black Mirror games, and the Sherlock Holmes games by Frogwares.

[sarahthecoat]

ah, and the parallel continues: in ASIP, what do we bet sherlock asked mycroft to collect john because he realized he dashed off without him. in TLD, we see mycroft tracking sherlock on a map. pretty sure i remember reading this idea back in s4 semester.

For @sherlockchallenge​​ April prompt HEAVY

[consult-johnhwatson]

[buckingham-ashtray]

You talk to the dead. You make your confession to them.

—— SHERLOCK, The Lying Detective

All screencaps taken from here.

[winterdaphne2]

okay so I'm re-reading the original ACD Sherlock Holmes stories for the first time in years, and I have to talk about "The Adventure of the Noble Bachelor." Holmes takes a case that centers around a couple who live a rough, dangerous life together and fall in love, but then have to part because of reasons beyond their control. The husband goes off on his own to complete a task that will allow him to return to his beloved, but then gets captured. He escapes and tries to return to his wife, but by that point she's believed him dead for more than a year. He follows her to London, only to find out that she's about to marry someone else. But now here's the real kicker: when he approaches her and she catches sight of him and realizes that he's still alive, she immediately decides to leave her new fiancé for her first, true love.

Also, Holmes doesn't think the wife did anything wrong by leaving her new lover for her first husband.

Ugh. It's like Moftiss truly just lifted this plotline and embedded it into TRF and TEH, but obviously with John making the opposite decision from the wife in the ACD story.

The story literally ends with Holmes saying to Watson that they should "thank our stars that we are never likely to find ourselves in the same position." (Holmes is talking about the position of the second man whom the wife left, but still.) That hurt.

[sarahthecoat]

i've reblogged this before, but tonight i had this thought pop into my head, that both sir eustace and lady carmichael are john mirrors. it's been a while since i watched TAB, or even read meta about it, so i'm not even sure if i am remembering ttis from someone else... anyway, i always felt like it didn't make sense that lady c was the one begging sherlock to keep her husband safe, and then sherlock accuses her of killing him (and then reveals moriarty under the veil) but if other pairs of characters are dual john mirrors (e.g. the out of work fisherman and his mother at the next table at the cross keys in THOB, i forget who wrote that), then why not both carmichaels?

An Experimental Application of Homospectrality

So @heimishtheidealhusband wrote the world’s most amazing meta about homospectrality. I highly recommend reading it, because they were spot on, and also just for some sweet, sweet education. I am also hoping they’ll be writing a post TAB meta soon about how it all played out but I thought I might try my hand at using some of the understanding I got from them to explain something in TAB that bothered me.

Ok, so, after Sir Eustace is killed, Holmes gets very angry and shouty toward Watson. And I kept asking myself, why is he so angry? On one hand, I know that Sherlock hates it when he can’t save people (I think it’s why he prefers to investigate crimes, he can manage bringing justice to people but it’s too much for him emotionally to try to protect living people all the time) but it still seemed to me like there might be something else going on, he is specifically angry about Watson’s belief in ghosts.

When Watson first brings it up in the train carriage, Holmes mocks him and states, “There are no ghosts in this world save those we make for ourselves.” If ghosts are taken to represent the threat of homosexual impulses, then this line could be read as stating that homosexuality is only monstrous if we make it out to be that way, the danger is in believing it’s dangerous. 

Later, when they’ve gone into the house to find out what’s happened Holmes charges Watson with guarding the escape route of the window, but in Holmes absences, Watson succumbs to his belief in the ghost and leaves his post. Watson can’t stand guard against his acceptance that homosexuality is monstrous. Remember, this is all in Sherlock’s mind, this is a reflection of Sherlock’s subconscious belief that John chose straight marriage as an antidote for his feelings for Sherlock. John’s closetedness is his fear of the specter of homosexuality, and it causes him to abandon his guard. 

Holmes shouts at Watson, “There are no ghosts!” “There is no reason to fear homosexuality!”

Then:

Lestrade: “You really musn’t blame yourself you know”

Holmes: “No you’re quite right.”

Watson: ”I’m glad you’re seeing sense.”

Holmes: “Watson is equally culpable, between us we’ve managed to botch this whole case.”

They’ve managed to botch their whole relationship with misunderstanding and fear. 

Watson: “I saw the ghost with my own eyes.”

Holmes: “You saw nothing you saw what you were supposed to see.”

Watson: “You said yourself I have no imagination.”

Holmes: “Use your brain such as it is to eliminate the impossible in this case it’s the ghost and observe what remains which in this case is a solution so blindingly obvious even Lestrade could work it out.”

Sherlock is angry that John has given in to seeing what he was “supposed to see”, to choosing a “normal life” with Mary. But if the fear of homosexuality were eliminated, what obvious solution would remain? Well, even Lestrade has probably worked out that they belong together. 

Further, several people have already pointed out that Sir Eustace is a mirror for John. I think Sherlock’s anger, beyond that he thinks John is afraid of his feelings for Sherlock, is that Sherlock feels by giving into that fear, John has actually put himself at great risk. Just as Sir Eustace was a victim of the Bride, so John is in danger from Mary and it’s the danger to John that Sherlock really can’t handle. 

I don’t mean to imply that Sherlock in real life has been ready to run off with John if only John were out. Obviously, Sherlock has many layers of his own hang ups to work through, and since this is all in Sherlock’s head anyway, it is equally possible to level the accusations at Sherlock himself, that he allowed his homosexuality to be made into a specter and it his fear that has botched everything. 

[luneariann]

[waitingformyfool]

[calaisreno]

WIP Wednesday: Through a Glass, Darkly

Coming soon!

It begins in an alley. Two alleys, to be accurate. John and Sherlock, chasing a suspect. Holmes and Watson running for their lives.

“There’s nowhere to go.” Sherlock’s calm voice echoes off the alley walls. “If you turn yourself in, I will see that you get reasonable terms. Your crimes are all financial, though I suspect that if we go looking for murder, we’ll find a few that can be attributed to you. Surrender now, and it will go better for you.”

Stepping out where they can see her, she holds a gun pointed in the direction of Sherlock’s voice. She must know that he wouldn’t come alone, that John is somewhere in the darkness, his gun drawn. 

“No thanks,” she says, and fires.

Parallel stories, in two different timelines/realities. While Sherlock and John run from Scotland Yard, accused of a crime they didn't commit, Holmes and Watson must figure out the mystery behind what happened in that alley.

Thanks for reblogging! ❤️

Let me know if you'd like to be tagged for this one!

@totallysilvergirl @keirgreeneyes @meetinginsamarra @raina-at @lisbeth-kk @momma2boys @bertytravelsfar @jrow @peanitbear @lhrinchelsea @starrla89 @missdeliadili @thegildedbee

[sarahthecoat]

she knows what they like. she knows they like each other. she can tell by the way each of them reacts, when she flirts with the other.

also, not to forget, she is also being used (and threatened) by moriarty.

So...hi. I've just rewatched A Scandal in Belgravia, yes, again. All metas I've read say that Sherlock and Irene are mirrors. I understand that the main reason is because they both play the game using their superb abilities and what not. But, in detail, what other things are mirroring here? Because I'm sure there are plenty. The question in my mind is What does it say about Sherlock, that Irene is his mirror? Thank you, as always 🎻📱❤️

Hi Lovely!

Oh gosh, hmm. Well, aside from the physical appearance, as we see is being DELIBERATELY alluded to here (Sherlock was also nude at sitting next to John in a scene prior to this one above…) and in the scene where they’re “getting ready to go into battle”, she is also there as a “female Sherlock” of sorts, essentially playing the role of Sherlock’s libido. I have some interesting posts about Irene, perhaps some of them will help you answer your question:

Irene Meta Masterpost 

Irene is Done in the Narrative

Irene: The Woman, the Myth, The Meta

What Can We Deduce About his Heart

Irene Is the Female Sherlock

Sherlock and his Violin Playing

How Can We Be Sure Irene’s Theme is for John?

“You Clearly Don’t Understand. Play You.”

Why Is Sherlock Mourning Irene?

He Can’t Be Upset Because Irene is Alive

Irene = Sherlock’s Libido

Did Sherlock Have Sex With Irene?

Irene’s Sexuality (is a Mirror for Sherlock’s) {contains further links about her sexuality}

Why Make Irene Sherlock’s Mirror?

Texting Behind Their Backs

Was She In Love With Sherlock? Plus: Kate

I Don’t Think She’s in Love With Sherlock

“But Her Sexuality Can Be Fluid!”

Sherlock’s Naïveté’

Why the Woman is Naked in Sherlock’s MP (TSo3)

Sherlock’s MP in S2

Irene Pushes Their Feelings Forward

“The Woman Will Cry”

Is Irene’s Purpose to Make John Jealous?

Posh Boy

An Analysis of Battersea as a Johnlock Scene

Of Thatcher and Adler

Bond Air and Irene

Do We Want Irene Back?

John and the Woman, Pt. 1

Tea at the Palace

Jim and Irene: The Final Problem (Pre-S4 Meta)

The Parallels of Mary/Irene and John/Sherlock

As an aside, I think Irene can be a mirror for EITHER John or Sherlock; she essentially expresses the lust that neither of them dare speak aloud to each other.