The Lying Detective

As the discussion about TLD here (x) got a bit confusing, I decided to start a new post about it to get a clearer overview again. This is just a brainstorming-post where anybody is free to join the discussion to make some sense of the episode.

So it’s been established in the discussion mentioned above that the hospital wing featured in TLD was opened by Culverton Smith on 20/07/2014 (x). This is the day before John writes up the Mayfly Man-case on his blog (x), the case that is clearly about him dating a row of women only to stab Sherlock in the back with it, as @possiblyimbiassed​ established here (x). As we are under the impression that Sherlock is constructing the narrative of the show inside of his head, this means that Sherlock built the hospital wing dedicated to Culverton Smith the day before John wrote up the Mayfly Man-case.

Furthermore @possiblyimbiassed​ pointed out that Sherlock planned to get a confession out of Culverton three weeks ago (x), the amount of time between the Mayfly Man-case and Sherlock’s blog post about John’s wedding (x).

Let’s take a look at TLD again with this information in hand (I’m not gonna dive into every tiny little bit of this episode, because that would be too much for my early morning-rant here; and this is not spell-checked or anything, I’m just writing my thoughts down):

Edit: It’s neither morning anymore nor is this post in any way short. Oh well…

Keep reading

this makes sense, on the whole. that the subtext of TLD is generally consistent with the subtext of TSOT definitely reinforces it.

i love the insight that "faith" as played by "eurus" is a projection of sherlock's own mind/emotions, that's why she's such a strong john mirror. and throwing her gun in the river is a kind of "if only" moment for him. a little bit like how sherlock rewrote their meet-cute in TAB.

i also couldn't help noticing that the screencap of john with nurse cornish over one shoulder and "mary" over the other, reminds mexof the framing in TFP when sherlock has john over one shoulder and mycroft over the other. Also how in tis image, all three of them are dressed very similarly, wearing a dark blue jacket with a v neck over a white shirt. nurse cornish's white lanyard stands in for that v neck shape in her case. so that makes me wonder if they are representing something about john's inner conflict?

I have just realized that among the people who knew of Sherlock’s fall, of what it really was (falling in love), were Mycroft, his brain, his rational part that could not but take note of the thing. And Molly. Molly John’s mirror that has always been obviously in love with him. Unable to hide it. That mirror to which Sherlock will find the courage, under threat of his emotions, to declare his love. So a part of John always knew that Sherlock was in love with him, but he ignored it, letting hell go to both of them.

@ebaeschnbliah @possiblyimbiassed @gosherlocked @sarahthecoat @sherlockshadow @loveismyrevolution

Hmmm …. but if the Reichenbach scenario happens inside Sherlock’s head wouldn’t John (like Mycroft, Molly, Eurus) represent a specific aspect of Sherlock as well? I mean … the John character on Sherlock’s mind stage (like all the others) is created entirely by Sherlock himself, with all his actions and dialogues. If anything is ignored there or goes to hell there … it would be Sherlock’s doing (for whatever reason) and not that of MP-John. 

In case this is indeed a mind palace scenario, of course.

while I am convinced that all the characters are allegories of feelings, aspects of the Sherlock himself I are also convinced that John Watson is always simply himself. Not the heart (Mr. Hudson), but the object of Sherlock’s love, the one around whom everything turns (one fixed point in a changing era, the conducto of light, his sun). 

Analyzing his feelings and those of John himself is the aim of this whole game, of this tragedy staged on the Sherlock’s Mind Theater. John’s denial, its closure can not fail to be obvious to the most observant man in the world. It’s already all there on the first evening from Angelo. The interest and denial by one and the terror and reticence on the part of the other. And this is what must be untangled …. or at least I think  @ebaeschnbliah ;-P

Interesting thoughts @raggedyblue ! I do hope Sherlock is aiming for more than just analysing his and John’s feelings, though; I hope that by doing this, he’s actively trying to figure out ”what to do about John”. Even if this show right now seems like a tragedy (like Shakespeare’s classical ’Romeo and Juliet’ - we all know how that ended), I still feel confident this will change. I agree Sherlock probably saw John’s main problem already at Angelo’s. But what he still can change in the future is his own response to it. Overcome his fear, so to speak. ;)

Absolutely @possiblyimbiassed. It wouldn’t be sensible to understand and not to act, to develop hypotheses that don’t lead to anything, Sherlock must understand and then, as accurately as possible, act. And with tragedy I actually meant its classic meaning. According to Aristotle, the cathartic path (catharsis as clarification, enlightenment, understanding of passions) of the hero, narrated not following what happened, a task that is entrusted to the historian (blog), but following criteria of verisimilitude. A story of what could have been (hypothesis). The catharsis of the protagonist, the last term of the tragic journey, leads him (and the spectator, in this case Sherlock himself) to an understanding of his emotions on a rational level. After staging them, he appropriates, or reposses possession of those events that seemed senseless and random (what do we say about coincidences?). The passions that move the protagonist are not eliminated, but understood, accepted, rationalized. (S5)

@ebaeschnbliah @possiblyimbiassed @gosherlocked @sarahthecoat

I have just realized that among the people who knew of Sherlock’s fall, of what it really was (falling in love), were Mycroft, his brain, his rational part that could not but take note of the thing. And Molly. Molly John’s mirror that has always been obviously in love with him. Unable to hide it. That mirror to which Sherlock will find the courage, under threat of his emotions, to declare his love. So a part of John always knew that Sherlock was in love with him, but he ignored it, letting hell go to both of them.

@ebaeschnbliah @possiblyimbiassed @gosherlocked @sarahthecoat @sherlockshadow @loveismyrevolution

Oh my, yes!