The only thing John is not good with emotion is putting them into words - he seems very scared for looking ridiculous and being hurt and laughed at when he is vulnerable. Perhaps it comes from his military life (i had a friend who worked in the technical military and he and all his camarades were very keen to don't show any vulnerability, to look always the alfa-men, always strong, perhaps it comes from living in a small place and in dangerous/ stressfull situations with loads of other alfa-men - it was a very difficult relationship to deal with, i can tell you. I was then also too young to understand some things and to react appropriate).

He  deeply cares not only for Sherlock, but also for Molly, for Ms Hudson for example. He feels the feelings and the emotional state of the others while Sherlock gets carried away (for example in HOB or in TRF) and knows when the other may get hurt, he is very sensible at that. He is even very sad to hear about the still-born child in ASIP. 

When we meet John, he is already after the war adjusting to normality once again, we don't know how it was before that. He still go out with his friends (or mates better said), tries to have girlfriends and relationships. 

As with relationships, it took to find the right person for him. Someone who would understand his demons, his nightmares and his ways to cope with them. It is not easy to fall in love with someone with PTSD, i suppose - they have anger issues, trust issues, nightmares, not quite funny, you have to be a very bright or strong personality to stay in such a relationship i think. For loads of people coming back from the war was difficult to find someone who can understand their experiences so they tend to feel alone, even when they have family or mates. 

How he saved Sherlock? That could be a veeeeeeery long discusion. But he brings Sherlock into reality, connect him to the others, teach him about their feelings and how to behave and give him a moral way of life and thinking (while Sherlock is more interested about the game and thinking emotion free). He gives Sherlock another point of view about life, quite different from what Sherlock experienced or was interested in. 

But yeah, the saving was reciprocal, Sherlock saved him also from a life withoud drive. 

I think that Sherlock is nothing depressing but the opposite! I think the majority of us wish for a deep friendship like the one between Sherlock and John, a friendship who gets beyond words and where each one would do anything for the other. Because this kind of friendship is much more seldom than love relationships amd much more selfless. 

What i like about this series is how multi-layered the personalities of both Sherlock and John are. They are not the stereotypical hero-normal person. There is white, and black, and grey, and colour. Loads to think about, loads unspoken. 

tobeornot221b wrote:

Best scene ever? Just for the smacking? Why would you say that?
 

It's not just the smacking, it's what she says to him afterwards as well. She's treating him like a little kid, which I found hilarious. You can hear the care & the exasperation & you know that it's not done out of spite.

How on Earth was the shelves thing a sex joke?

Not in England, that I'm aware of.
He was making a detective joke.

Well I am English!
He was clearly being funny that no he wasn't helping a guy solve a crime, he was helping with something else which you would never associate Sherlock with.
I doubt he would be so crass with Molly.

All I said, bb, was that some British people use it that way. If you don't, fine.

Last edited by Harriet (July 13, 2014 6:57 pm)

besleybean wrote:

I doubt he would be so crass with Molly.

Either he and Molly are as close as I think they became between series 2 and 3, or the writers were making another joke like at the end of TGG where Sherlock responds innocently to a sexual euphemism (gun in your pocket or are you happy to see me?) to be funny.

Mary

besleybean wrote:

But he ddin't initiate a gay joke.

Please tell me how you know that for sure.

(I am really interested of your line of argument here. How did you come to your conclusion?)
 

besleybean wrote:

Because Moriarty initiated it...that's what I meant!
Do people really think Sherlock is the kind of guy to make that sort of joke with Molly?!

There's really two ways to look at that scene.

The most probable is that the writers are going the Sherlock is so innocent when it comes to such double entendres. He thinks he's telling Molly that he helped a guy put up shelves (which is funny in its own right) and Molly smirks at that image as well as the other image the phrase conjures up.

The other way to look at the scene is that Molly and Sherlock have gotten a lot closer since the Fall (for which there is plenty of evidence peppered throughout series 3) and Sherlock knew exactly what he was saying in the stairwell. I like this interpretation because it's funny and it goes a long way to showing the evolution of their relationship. This line, if he means it as the euphemism, is just a friend teasing another friend. Considering Sherlock's crass comments about Molly's mouth and breasts in SIB, I really don't think this interpretation is entirely improbable.

Mary