BBC Sherlock Fan Forum - Serving Sherlockians since February 2012 / There's something about Mary

**Posted by tonnaree** January 2, 2014 1:10 pm

My thoughts exactly Susi. We know that Mary is not there just to be arm candy for John. Her character will play a big part in the events of this series.

**Posted by stoertebeker** January 2, 2014 1:31 pm

Be wrote:
I like the scene when Mary reads John's blog to John.

Yeah and then both bickering about, why or for whom John shaved is moustache! That was so good! One of my favorite dialogues of the episode:

"God, I had six months of bristly kisses for me and then his nibs turns up..."
"I don' t shave for Sherlock Holmes."
"You should put that on a T-Shirt."

**Posted by Sherlock Holmes** January 2, 2014 1:58 pm

SusiGo wrote:
I think it may be that Mary's past etc. is deliberately kept in the dark for the future episodes. There is usually more to it than we expect and I think she may either involved with CAM or is his real target.
Because if John was meant to die the warning would have made no sense. The whole dramatic bonfire scene was created for another purpose.
As for her and Sherlock - he maybe feels that she is right for John. Or he is distracted by his attempt to make up with John. And of course she is the one who offers to bring John around to forgiving Sherlock which is a big promise. She could have told him to piss off for being to cruel to John after all but does not.

You're definitely on the right lines there.

**Posted by SilverMoonDragonB** January 2, 2014 2:06 pm

stoertebeker wrote:
Be wrote:
I like the scene when Mary reads John's blog to John.
Yeah and then both bickering about, why or for whom John shaved is moustache! That was so good! One of my favorite dialogues of the episode:

"God, I had six months of bristly kisses for me and then his nibs turns up..."
"I don' t shave for Sherlock Holmes."
"You should put that on a T-Shirt."

That was great!

Mary seems really cool and interesting, she would have to be . Obviously she is hiding something, got some secrets and such.
Overall, I'm really looking forward to seeing what they've done with her character

Last edited by SilverMoonDragonB (January 2, 2014 2:06 pm)

**Posted by Mirthxx** January 2, 2014 2:07 pm

I adore Mary, I think she is brilliant and the actress is superb.

However, I have many, many, misgivings. If you listen to Mary in the restaurant when Sherlock reveals himself she sound positivley panicked and it sounds way more for herself than for John. ("no, no, that's impossible, it can't be...)

In addition, the texts to rescue John went to Mary, not Sherlock. Why was that?? The first text does not direct itself to Sherlock, unlike all the others that follow. Also, he is already updating his website and has clients so his new number must be accessible, yet the texts went to Mary's mobile??

And then yes, I also froze the screen and found Liar and Disollusioned amongst them.

I like her and hope it works out. I'm having trouble working out the living arrangments *grin* but I do like her, and I like that she likes Sherlock and she cares for John. The way she tried to calm him during the initial meltdown showed that she can read him, and that she cared for him.

Mirth
xx

**Posted by Absurdity** January 2, 2014 3:36 pm

Hi all,

my first post here, loving the thread.

personally i think mary is the most interesting character in the series at the moment, simply as she hasn't been fully developed.

the words that really stuck out to me when sherlock read her were:

Guardian
Liar
Secret
Clever

It was the last word above (Clever) that really got me thinking (Sherlock is using "clever" to describe her?!).

I have two initial reactions at the moment:
a) She is in league with Mycroft (guarding Watson?..)
b) She is in league with Moriarty (or connected to in some way) (guarding moriarty against the return of SH?..)

the other words (nurse, child, linguist, Lib Dem, size 12 etc) i'm assigning as either references to the original character (a governess) or red herrings.

an interesting twist on my b) theory is when she is reading Johns blog back to him she reads the line:
"I couldnt help think what an amazing criminal he would make if he turned his talents against the law". If i were to clutch at straws (which i have actually tried, but i digress...) then a woman, perhaps as clever as SH (certainly more clever than the average human), who with moriarty has turned her "talents against the law".

I have to say what i love most about the series is the fact i haven't been able to predict the plot with any significant level of success yet, so hopefully Mofftiss will surprise me yet again

Absurdity

Reductio ad absurdum

**Posted by SusiGo** January 2, 2014 3:42 pm

Guardian is in capitals so I thought it was the newspaper. But "liar" and "disillusioned" might be key words.

**Posted by sherlocked4ever** January 2, 2014 7:26 pm

Swanpride wrote:
She is a little bit a female version of John, isn't she?

Oh yes, she is! So lovely to see Amanda and Martin playing a couple ...
I'm also very excited what the words mean that Sherlock "saw" in her ;).

**Posted by besleybean** January 2, 2014 7:29 pm

Something else I was slow to pick up on...sorry people, I hardly slept a wink last night!

**Posted by Sherlock Holmes** January 2, 2014 7:29 pm

She has a history that she's keeping secret and that Magnussen will be determined to expose.

**Posted by besleybean** January 2, 2014 7:31 pm

Gonna be interesting.

**Posted by beekeeper** January 2, 2014 9:22 pm

Swanpride wrote:
Perhaps she was just smart enough to recognize the skip code? It's not that complicated, after all. A better question would be why it was send to her and not to Sherlock.

Sure, but that's useful information about her character. She is estabished as knowing the words to use to describe the code to Sherlock. And yet we also know she is a liar, and disillusoned (from the SherlockScan) and working as a receptionist. It feels like a Chekhovian gun.

Oh I read Guardian as newspaper, but I don't actually see any reason why Guardian shouldn't be capitalised if it was a role, iyswim. Actually, we also know she is a Lib Dem, and IME the Guardian would not tend to be the paper of choice for a Lib Dem as it is a left wing paper and the Lib Dems are a centrist party. So my money is actually on her being a Guardian. Also, I think the SherlockScan would have said Guardian reader.

eta sorry she is a nurse. is she working as a nurse in John's surgery? Not clear. And why is she a part time nurse? what is she doing the rest of the time? Nurses don't earn loads.

Last edited by beekeeper (January 4, 2014 9:35 am)

**Posted by anjaH_alias** January 2, 2014 9:30 pm

I somehow think Mary is watched from far (CAM?). It´s not about Sherlock, he´s just one day back, this could last for a longer time. Maybe she has had a kind of relationship to that person, former partner e.g., who is jealous about John? The bonfire scene which he is watching repeatedly always shows her desperate "John!" And Sherlock is new in that all and gets now attention because he saved John. A red herring could be that John was kidnapped in front of 221b and that he is always assuming that it must have to do with something Sherlock is on.

**Posted by beekeeper** January 2, 2014 9:38 pm

yes I think the kidnap is Mary related not sherlock related. First off, the text came to her. Second, Sherlock doesn't get it. I need to watch it properly, I was only half watching last night...

**Posted by anjaH_alias** January 2, 2014 10:02 pm

Btw. what´s a lib dem?

**Posted by besleybean** January 2, 2014 10:04 pm

A Liberal Democrat.

**Posted by anjaH_alias** January 2, 2014 10:05 pm

Ahhh, thanks....

**Posted by beekeeper** January 2, 2014 10:49 pm

The other reason I'm going to go for guardian as a role not as a newspaper is that, tbh, reading a specific paper isn't terribly interesting. I don't think the vast majority of the watchers are going to go, "wow, she votes for a centrist party but reads the most leftwing of the broadsheets. Dissonance or what?". I mean as a political geek I would love it if it did, but I don't think most people are that aware or interested (which is fine). I don't think it tells most viewers a huge amount extra over Lib Dem and given that I reckon every word there was chosen quite carefully, unless its a plot point somehow, I'm not convinced.

I actually think what is notable about a lot of these words is that they are quite ambiguous. Its as though the writers expected us to freeze frame and endlessly debate them or somthing.....

Last edited by beekeeper (January 2, 2014 10:50 pm)

**Posted by besleybean** January 2, 2014 11:02 pm

Interesting suggestion.

**Posted by tonnaree** January 2, 2014 11:03 pm

. "Its as though the writers expected us to freeze frame and endlessly debate them or somthing."

What ever would've given them that idea.