BBC Sherlock Fan Forum - Serving Sherlockians since February 2012 / Has Sherlock ever been in real danger?

**Posted by Mrs.Wenceslas** August 30, 2014 7:03 pm

Just wondering (after rewatching ASIB - the Vatican Cameos scene with American guys - yeah, thanks for that, Mycroft) - how far does Mycroft´s protection after Sherlock goes? He found him even in Serbia...Would Sherlock really die in his Eastern Europe mission? And was Sherlock trained by MI6 or whatever? just questions to kill time. (if this is discussed anywhere else, please post a link and I will continue there)

**Posted by Whisky** August 31, 2014 2:34 pm

I think Mycroft tries to protect, but fails whenever Sherlock just goes after something on his own on a very short notice. Sherlock did manage to get shot, so he's definitely able to get into real danger.

I'm rather sure the Eastern Europe mission could have ended deadly indeed. Mycroft is just human after all, and he can reach limits, even if it doesn't look like it most of the time.

No idea about Sherlock's training, but somehow I doubt he would agree to being trained by the "official" guys.

Last edited by Whisky (August 31, 2014 2:34 pm)

**Posted by Sherlockismyfix** September 2, 2014 11:39 pm

There were a number of times when Sherlock was in real danger, the poison pill and with Moriarty at the pool to name two is Season 1. As Whiskey observed, Mycroft doesn't have much chance to protect him when he goes off after some wild hare.

**Posted by maryagrawatson** September 3, 2014 12:48 am

One scene where I really believe that Sherlock was in true peril was in TBB. Not the strangling scene, the one at the circus where he's kicked in the gut, flies through the air, lands badly, and is so winded he can't move. John gets rid of one bad guy, then disappears. Another bad guys come in to deliver a killing blow and Sherlock is still just lying there. Thank goodness for Sarah!

Mary

**Posted by Sherlockismyfix** September 3, 2014 1:17 am

Good point, Mary! I do thing Sarah was grossly underappreciated. She showed a lot of guts in that scene, and smarts too when ahead the one who pointed out the code.

**Posted by maryagrawatson** September 3, 2014 1:55 am

Sherlock was incredibly kind to Sarah at the end of the episode. She must have made quite an impression on him!

Mary

**Posted by besleybean** September 3, 2014 5:52 am

Just answering the title:
Yes.
With the Cabbie, when trying to save John and Sarah, at The Pool, when rescuing Irene, on the roof...to name but a few.

**Posted by Liberty** September 3, 2014 10:21 pm

I think Mycroft tries to protect him from the really dangerous stuff, but doesn't seem to feature in the smaller cases. Sherlock is at risk from the unexpected, and sometimes from being headstrong. I think he was in real danger when Mary shot him (Mycroft vetted John so why didn't he check out Mary? Or did he?). And the fall from Barts looked very dangerous to me, given the height - what were the chances of bouncing and breaking his skull or spine? in the Underground, if he hadn't found the off switch, etc.

**Posted by Punch me in the face** September 5, 2014 3:29 pm

I think Mycroft really does his best to protect Sherlock, and as he is smarter than his brother, I'm pretty sure he manages to keep an eye on him even when Sherlock isn't aware of it.

But as mentioned before, he is human and he can't protect Sherlock 24/24.

People have already mentioned a couple of times where Sherlock was in real danger. I will add the Gollem scene to that list.

And that's what's been bothering me since I saw HLV. To me, it is impossible that Mycroft doesn't know anything about Mary. I'm almost sure he knew some stuff about her past and knew she was a potential danger to Sherlock and/or John. This really can't have escaped him, I can't believe that. This is where I wonder how the shooting scene has even been possible.

Like I said, Mycroft can't control everything, ie the cabbie's pills. But if he knew how dangerous Mary could be, I'm sure he would have placed under high surveillance and that even if Mary is very smart and trained and all, the Magnussen's office scene wouldn't have happened.

I'm all confused about that...

Last edited by Punch me in the face (September 5, 2014 4:25 pm)

**Posted by besleybean** September 5, 2014 4:12 pm

The Mycroft angle is the big question with regard to Mary...

**Posted by silverblaze** September 6, 2014 9:16 pm

Besley, the Mary Mycroft thing drives me insane. I'm generally not that much into conspiracies and complicated theories but this one really got me going.

I don't think Mycroft generally protects Sherlock. He's busy running a country, saving the world from nuclear meltdown or black holes under Switzerland (though where would they get the mass for a black hole? What's up with that theory? Ehm anyway...). Sherlock is a smart guy, doesn't want Mycroft's involvement and I think Mycroft is fine with that. I mean otherwise there wouldn't be a show, would there? Well, maybe a Mycroft show.

**Posted by Draconia** September 7, 2014 10:59 am

Well Mycroft played his games, and failed ....period.
He was the one who gave Moriarty the infos about Sherlock first hand....

I know..perhabs its a really far away theory but perhabs he KNOWS about Mary...and pulls his own strings in a new Game of ...protection....

Last edited by Draconia (September 7, 2014 11:01 am)

**Posted by vastonsmith** May 15, 2015 10:42 am

Thank you Schmiezi!

I really like these metas, are very well worded, very well thought. I do not agree either with everything (i think i see Mary a little bit more of villain), but they are GREAT! They gave me also some other POV, made me rethink some of my impressions. Such a pity there are only for the third season....

I read them too quickly, in the next days i will take at a slowly pace each episode and put my thoughts about it.

**Posted by RavenMorganLeigh** May 28, 2015 8:13 pm

I suspect that Sherlock is often in mortal danger a lot more than we think, because John sees very little of it. Sherlock has a tendency to keep John out of the line of fire; and doesn't tell him things like, "I just got strangled", or "there were these Middle Eastern Asassins in the apartment that were trying to kill me; sorry about the scratch on the table. " Or, " Oh, John-- I was held by the Serbs and tortured. So, not on a pleasure cruise for the last two years." ;-)

**Posted by Sherlock Holmes** May 28, 2015 11:02 pm

It's kind of cute that he doesn't want to worry him, or doesn't see the need to make a big deal out of all the brave and dangerous things he's constantly doing. True hero and he doesn't even know it.

Also, he's pretty much in danger anytime he's in the vicinity of Mary Watson.

**Posted by SusiGo** May 29, 2015 6:55 am

Well said.