Vhanja wrote:

Yeah, but didn't they all say that BBC John Watson is the most fleshed-out and developed/nuanced Watson out of all versions so far? Mostly he is this bumbling, funny and rather stupid sidekick, and Moftiss made him into something more than that.

I wouldn´t say that other Watsons are mostly bumbling, funny and rather stupid. It was not like that in the originals and it was not like that in most adaptations I know. The newest versions like Guy Ritchie films, Elementary, new Russian version and the like actually have very capable, intelligent, even attractive Watsons....

I actually think the only bumbling version of Watson that got popular was that of Nigel Bruce (who appeared in Rathbone movies).

And so I wouldn´t say that BBC John is the most fleshed out and developed Watson... I would rather say he is the most unusual or most distanced from his original depiction. This is certainly the first Watson that brought bodily harm to his Holmes. 

I think a big problem with all this is the format and the time issue of having only three episodes every three years or so. They delve into complex emotions - which I think is great - however, they do not have the time to do the complex emotions justice, and so even though the emotions are realistic, the resolve of the matters might not be. Or at least they happen too quick.

I view that as an issue with the format. They don't have a choice, really. If they were to deal with all these issues realistically, it would turn into pure psychoanalytic drama with a very slow pace. 

Some interesting musings about John:

http://silentauroriamthereal.tumblr.com/post/158375955695/season-4-the-case-of-the-missing-watson-and-why

I think the on screen doctoring we do see in Sherlock is limited by the creator's actual knowledge of science, anatomy, medical stuff. They just throw stuff in occasionally to remind us that he's a doctor, but the fact that he is a doctor isn't an integral part of the story, unless it absolutely needs to be. This series is, and always has been, more about the characters' relationships with one another than anything else, and that allows for a lot of creative license.

A lot of the choices they made for John in S4 and the direction they took him in, which really started in S3 E1 with John's reaction to Sherlock's faked death, have definitely shocked me and surprised me. It's not the John Watson we know from canon who fainted when Sherlock revealed that he was alive, but then, this isn't the canon and this isn't that era. This is modern era Sherlock Holmes where people respond and react differently, and this John Watson is just one interpretation of the character. Whether you agree with the direction they've taken him in or not, it's certainly made for some interesting discussion.

To some extent I can understand his anger and frustration at Sherlock. I get that he was pissed at him for faking his death. He appeared to get over that by the end of S3 although I suspect there's still some bitterness lingering that may resurface occasionally into banter. I get that he was pissed at him over Mary, and that he blamed him. That was his immediate reaction, even if it was the wrong one, but I did feel it was slightly over dramatic and dragged on for a little too long. Because it really wasn't Sherlock's fault that she made that decision. She CHOSE to jump in front of that bullet, and they wouldn't have all been there in the first place if it wasn't for Mary's shitty past and the fact that Sherlock was trying to help her. So yeah, I can understand John's initial anger but I felt it was misplaced for it to go on for so long, and the way he beat him up in TLD was pretty difficult to watch.

Some of you mentioned the other characters...

I've always felt as though Molly has been little more than a plot device, and that felt particularly true in S4. I had hoped she'd moved on from her hopeless doting on Sherlock Holmes but clearly not. And now her emotional state is going to be worse than ever because of that scene in the flat. I think they need to do something more exciting/interesting with her character development or kill her off, tbh.

Mycroft, on the other hand, has developed wonderfully. We always knew there was a softer side somewhere and now we've seen it. We know for a fact now that both brothers DO care, it's not just Sherlock. Mycroft has emotions too. Shock horror. I mean really, we knew it all along, I've just been dying to actually see it on screen. The moment in TFP when Mycroft tried to get Sherlock to shoot him was the highlight of his character development so far. We've seen hints at it, but this was the ultimate pay off. I'd be interested to see where it goes from there and where it leaves them as brothers and their relationship with one another.

 

Thank goodness for us that he gets over it!

I know and I find that statistic rather worrying, for the population at large!
I would have settled for a faint, too.
But you know, I've always said John should really have reacted as Greg did.

I loved John's reaction in the restaurant, his initial look of hurt and then anger was very powerful (Martin as ever was amazing) I'm not sure it would have worked if he had fainted, could have been sweet but would definitely have been weird, so I much prefer the way they did it in the episode.

I can understand John's anger towards Sherlock (even if it was misguided and unjustified) after Mary's death and he obviously had issues to work through from long before but like others have said it's a shame that each series is only three episodes long as it felt like John and Sherlock were apart, or at least not close (for one reason or another) for a lot of series four and I missed their dynamic. John beating up Sherlock was not good even with what he had gone through, especially in terms of the level of violence, I mean talk about kicking a man when he's down...literally and poor Sherlock let him which broke my heart. I thought the scene was very well done but I would have liked to have seen John later address what he did to Sherlock.

Last edited by Lis (March 16, 2017 9:09 pm)

I knew from setlock, what they were going to do.
I didn't like it, but I also knew Steven and Mark would do it brilliantly.
The Reunion remains one of the best pieces of TV, it is hilarious.
But this will never change my mind about my hoping John would react differently.
But yes, I accept it was right for him.

besleybean wrote:

But you know, I've always said John should really have reacted as Greg did.

That would have been ideal.
 

Yes, the best writing and talented acting always brings the best results.