BBC Sherlock Fan Forum - Serving Sherlockians since February 2012 » The Magic and Desecration of 221B

SusiGo · May 9, 2014 10:56 am

The Magic and Desecration of 221B

The flat (and by extension the house as a whole) have become an iconic feature in Sherlock. In series 1 and 2 they were more than a home, a sort of magic place which is only occasionally disturbed by invaders from outside like Irene Adler and the CIA men. And they are dealt with quite thoroughly.

So I would like to have a look at what happens with the flat in series 3. On the one hand it is still shown as a magic place symbolising Sherlock‘s and John‘s relationship and their slow reconciliation, on the other hand it is repeatedly desecrated by people not really belonging there.

Magic

Voices in the head - John entering the hallway and remembering Sherlock‘s violin play and their giggling after that first mad chase that established their friendship.

Golden dust - the dust particles reflecting the sunlight when Mrs Hudson‘s opens the curtains revealing that nothing and yet everything has changed.

Stag night - there have been so many brilliant metas that I have nothing to add.

Coming back from the dead - Sherlock fighting his way back from death and touching the famous wallpaper using it as an anchor to pull him back to life.

Desecration

It hurts to hear people speaking so contemptuously about 221B. First there is Janine calling it a „scuzz dump“ where you cannot invite your friends.

This is outdone by Magnussen who virtually desecrates the room by peeing into the fireplace - not using the bathroom after having asked if it was like the rest of the flat. And later he mentions Sherlock‘s „smelly little apartment“.

I am not sure why but these remarks are more hurtful than Moriarty‘s visit. In spite of all he did he did not manage destroy the magic of the place.

And then there is the most harrowing scene in the room that symbolises the whole relationship between Sherlock and John. They enact the well-known triangle of Sherlock, John, client - except that now Sherlock‘s life and John‘s safety are at stake. And that the client is the very person who could destroy (and tried to destroy) their lives. We see Mrs Hudson being insulted by Sherlock, Sherlock deliberately hurting John and siding with Mary, Mary hurting John, Sherlock hurting from the inside and and nearly dying in the flat that has been the centre of his life.

In this scene the room that has seen so many memorable encounters - funny, moving, threatening, light, dark - has become a place of hurt. Which is sad.

So let‘s hope that in series 4 they will be able to restore the magic to 221B.

SolarSystem · May 9, 2014 11:12 am

Wonderful observations there, Susi.
I really love the fact that 221B has become like the third main character on the show. In S3 we have so many scenes in which we don't have the boys there together, but you still can feel both of them there. And you can feel that something or rather someone is missing in the flat when it's Sherlock being there alone. When John's chair is suddenly gone, everything about the room feels utterly wrong - just as it feels utterly wrong that John himself doesn't live there anymore.
And quite frankly, it felt pretty painful to me when John kicked a chair or tiny table in HLV... it almost felt like he kicked himself as well as Sherlock, just because everything in that room is so closely connected to the both of them.

tonnaree · May 9, 2014 11:58 am

I see 221b as symbolic of Sherlock's heart. The center of his universe. What keeps him alive.
And it's not whole when John's not there. It does't function right.

I see this represented in fics all the time. In Sherlock's mind palace the sitting room of 221b is often showned as the place where he retreats to when he needs stability and comfort.

SolarSystem · May 9, 2014 12:42 pm

Btw, did anyone else ever wonder about the coffee in the kitchen cabinet? When Jeanine asks John to make coffee in HLV and he goes to the cupboard where the coffee obviously always was stored and she tells him that it's somewhere else now... Did Sherlock put it somewhere else? If so, why? But then Jeanine probably wouldn't even know that it had been stored somewhere else in the past.

gently69 · May 9, 2014 12:52 pm

I think Janine changed the place. She seemed to feel a bit at home already and knew the flat. Maybe she tried to tidy up and put her "marks" there.

Btw wonderful writing about this topic, Susi. Makes me think a lot.

Mattlocked · May 9, 2014 12:59 pm

I also think it was Janine.
Imo it's a sad symbol: You don't know where the stuff is - you're not at home here anymore.

Last edited by Mattlocked (May 9, 2014 1:00 pm)

SolarSystem · May 9, 2014 1:08 pm

Yes, Mattlocked... first the chair, five minutes later the coffee... and John himself has been replaced by Janine, to a certain extent...

SusiGo · May 9, 2014 1:44 pm

Yes, all these symbols are really sad. First it was Sherlock who left, and the John went away and did not come back.
But looking back from the end of HLV I think that Mary might have changed the place as well. I honestly still do not like the trick to get them out of the flat (even if we give her the benefit of the doubt that she just wanted to distract them, especially Sherlock). Her standing under the horns looking a bit like she owned the place. But maybe this is just me.

tonnaree · May 9, 2014 1:48 pm

Janine was absolutely doing a little territory marking. However, only because Sherlock let her. I have no doubt that if it hadn't been part of his plan Sherlock would have moved that coffee right back to where John kept it!

I also think that part of the whole chair moving thing was because the one thing Sherlock couldn't bear was to see Janine lounging in John's chair.

gently69 · May 9, 2014 1:48 pm

And isn't it also strange anyway that they did the wedding planing in Baker Street?

Last edited by gently69 (May 9, 2014 1:54 pm)

gently69 · May 9, 2014 1:52 pm

tonnaree, do you think that Sherlock is really interested in unimportant things like where the coffee is usually stored. Imo it was always John's part.

SolarSystem · May 9, 2014 1:54 pm

gently69 wrote:
tonnaree, do you think that Sherlock is really interested in unimportant things like where the coffee is usually stored. Imo it was always John's part.

And that's exactly the reason why it would bother Sherlock that Janine changed it. She changed something that was closely connected to John.

gently69 · May 9, 2014 2:25 pm

But without the Johnlock aspect ... do you think Sherlock would realise those kind of changes?

Mattlocked · May 9, 2014 3:30 pm

He would probably never notice as he never knew where to find the coffee.
But John noticed.....

Last edited by Mattlocked (May 9, 2014 3:30 pm)

SolarSystem · May 9, 2014 3:42 pm

gently69 wrote:
But without the Johnlock aspect ... do you think Sherlock would realise those kind of changes?

What do you mean, "without the Johnlock aspect"...? For me Johnlock is not just an aspect in fanfic, but to a certain extent also in the show. So yes, I think he would realise those sort of changes, as long as they have to do with John. Sherlock pays attention to detail, especially where John is concerned. So in my head canon he would know. He might not change it around again, but he knows that something is off. He observes.

tonnaree · May 9, 2014 3:54 pm

SolarSystem wrote:
gently69 wrote:
But without the Johnlock aspect ... do you think Sherlock would realise those kind of changes?
What do you mean, "without the Johnlock aspect"...? For me Johnlock is not just an aspect in fanfic, but to a certain extent also in the show. So yes, I think he would realise those sort of changes, as long as they have to do with John. Sherlock pays attention to detail, especially where John is concerned. So in my head canon he would know. He might not change it around again, but he knows that something is off. He observes.

Yes. That's basically how I feel.

SusiGo · May 9, 2014 4:02 pm

I think this is not about shipping Johnlock or not but about what we see, about simple facts:
Sherlock looking sadly at the empty chair on the day of John's wedding (accompanied by sad music). Chair being gone after John is married and they have not seen each other for weeks. Another person being tolerated in the flat for the sake of a case (but maybe not in the chair - only this is speculation, the rest is just what we see).

Mattlocked · May 9, 2014 4:11 pm

I don't know if the chair has been removed because of Janine.
After that sad look at it, which you just mentioned, I'm sure Sherlock couldn't bear the sight of the empty chair anymore.
Also remember his reaction on Mrs Hudson's "You don't know, you always live alone."

SusiGo · May 9, 2014 4:13 pm

Yes, the Janine thing is just one theory and I like the idea that he could not stand looking at the empty chair even better. I just tried to be as objective as possible. No Johnlock glasses and all that.

Mattlocked · May 9, 2014 4:15 pm

Just found "A study in chairs". Don't know if it has been posted here before and didn't read it yet (no time), but I don't want it to get lost and I will read it later. If you want to give it a try right now?

http://foriamsincerity.tumblr.com/post/73247553430/a-study-in-chairs-the-symbolism-of-john-and-sherlock