But what's with his shocked state after the Battersea? Why would he follow John if he knew about Irene's being alive all along?

ETA:
"The pain of loss, the joy of redemption" - I think Sherlock wouldn't have been so easy to play if he didn't believe Irene was dead at one point.

I too have been thinking that the wedding waltz would have been macaber so soon after Mary's demise.

Besides, we should remember that Sherlock composed Irene's theme well before he could have slept with her. So Eurus picks on his state of mind at that moment in the past which is full of sad longing - Sherlock thought Irene dead. This is why this theme represents first of all Sherlock's human side for me. After composing it he could have slept with either Irene or John (if at all). Summarizing over the whole show, there's been shown more sad longing for John than for Irene hands down.

Schmiezi wrote:

Liberty wrote:

I think they always did (write what they wanted).   I suspected at one point that they were being careful not to alienate people who shipped them, and so wanted to leave some ambiguity there.   But later on, I thought that probably wasn't the case.

I wonder if they really cared about people who shipped Johnlock when doing S1. The ambiguity was there right from the start.

I think they did everything to put this ambiguity there. To the point that it was barely ambiguous. But it's just my opinion, I know others don't see it this way.

If I were Irene (and I almost am! Russian names, ha!), I'd never have really slept with Sherlock because that would diminish the fun. It's the chase and the evasion that's interesting in their case, don't you think?

In case with Sherlock and John (to come back on topic), a physical relationship would merely uncover a different aspect of their loving relationship.

Anyway, since we are talking about unconsummated (unshown, unspoken) romance being the most intriguing one... I think that a night of passion woulf be too pedestrian for Sherlock and Irene both and they'd lose interest in each other afterwards. Her game was about seducing him, wasn't it?

besleybean wrote:

@ ewige.See I find that odd, particularly when Benedict seems fairly clear that Sherlock and Irene s----d in Karachi!

Now I'm dying to know what you censored out!

Liberty wrote:

Yes, if anything it was ASIB (or perhaps my thoughts about it after viewing) that swung me the other way!  Partly because of the choice to do it like that.   The canon story was much more ambiguous - Holmes is clearly fascinating by Irene and admires her, but he's outwitted by her, rather than losing the game through falling for her, I think.   There was a clear choice to go in that direction. It wasn't something that was necessary to follow canon. 

But Sherlock almost lost the game not because of falling for Irene but because she was smart enough to "make him dance".
This ep made Sherlock look suddenly more human than I dared hope so it swung me from "cheap gay jokes" to "wait a mo, what exactly is happening here?"
 

Oh yes, Janeway and Chakotay! I went online after watching "Resolutions" on TV and saw words like "ship" and "UST" for the very first time! Janeway and Chakotay intoduced me to this whole shippers business. I awe them so much, lol

Liberty wrote:

... I wonder if part of the attraction of Johnlock is because it's not shown?   Maybe even especially for those of us who don't normally like romances - we like it in our imaginations rather than being shown explicitly (and by "explicitly" I mean "clearly, no room for doubt" rather than explicit sex scenes!), perhaps in a way that doesn't resonate with us? 

I don't seek out romances either, so I'm curious about this. 
 

I feel the same. I prefer the unspoken (while it's not "not shown" in my opinion; one could say it's not "unspoken" either, but I mean confessions in romantic context) love between John and Sherlock so I sort of feared the resolution in the last ep. Now I actually had my cake and ate it too, clever Moftiss!
 

Love it, nakahara! So warm and fitting!

Okay, I got it! Phew! Not that I wouldn't appreciate such a promo shot, but it would throw my whole UST concept of the show outta the window! :D

I mean, it looks legit - the same direction and depth of the shadow, the same contrast, the same sharpness. But it's obviously John and Sherlock (as opposed to the actors) and I just can't imagine the camera guy saying anything like "Just hug him from behind, yeah, just like that."

On the other hand, this shot is official too and even more intimate imo: