"Moving on" 

or Molly as Johns mirror in s3 

(Sherlock Meta by leandraholmes)

John was in love with Sherlock and he knows it.

After this season of Sherlock was concluded, it was quite apparent to most of us that Sherlock loves John in a way that exceeds mere friendship. Many people have already tackled that subject and listed all the clues for this fact. However, we rarely got an inside glimpse into John’s mind in any of the episodes - deliberately done so by the authors to keep us guessing.

There was one little fact that struck me as odd, though. One ‘clue’ that makes me quite certain John (prior to The Reichenbach Fall) had feelings of a (nearly) romantic kind for Sherlock, and that he was aware of them despite his vehement denials (“I’m not gay”).

Let’s look at this bit of dialogue between John and Mrs Hudson at the beginning of The Empty Hearse.

MRS HUDSON: Oh, God. Is it serious?
JOHN: What? No. No, I’m not ill. I’ve, er, well, I’m … moving on.
MRS HUDSON: You’re emigrating.
JOHN: Nope. Er, no. I’ve, er … I’ve met someone.
MRS HUDSON: Oh, lovely!
JOHN: Yeah. We’re getting married … well, I’m gonna ask, anyway.
MRS HUDSON: So soon after Sherlock?
JOHN: Well, yes.
MRS HUDSON: What’s his name?
JOHN: It’s a woman.
MRS HUDSON: A woman?
JOHN: Yes, of course it’s a woman.
MRS HUDSON: You really have moved on, haven’t you?
JOHN: Mrs Hudson! How many times? Sherlock was not my boyfriend.
MRS HUDSON: Live and let live, that’s my motto.
JOHN: Listen to me. I am not gay!

That wording struck me as odd from the very beginning. Moving on, here, relates directly to the fact that John has started a new relationship. He doesn’t say he’s moved on from mourning and therefore can visit places that remind him of Sherlock again, he doesn’t move out of town or the country as Mrs Hudson first assumes, no, he’s moved on to a new partner with whom to share his life. One that is on the same level and of the same importance to him as Sherlock.

You could argue that he immediately corrects Mrs Hudson by saying he’s not gay. I, personally, see that as sort of defence mechanism because John has recognised his error. He knows what his words sounded like, and he knows there is a reason for him using them instead of something else. He could have said “I’ve got news” or “There’s something I wanted to tell you”, but he directly starts with “I’m moving on.”

Now, who else has used the exact same wording in the same episode?

LESTRADE: So, um, is it serious, you two?
MOLLY: Yeah! I’ve moved on!

Molly, after introducing her fiancé Tom, confirms that she has moved on. From what? Her unrequited crush on Sherlock. So why use those words, twice, in the same episode, in a context of introducing new relationships, when the premise is supposed to be a completely different one? Sure, it could be sloppy writing, but with Mark Gatiss’ usual attention to detail I very, very highly doubt it.

So what can only be the point of this? Molly is a mirror for John, one that will allow the audience to automatically and directly read the intended meaning: she’s over Sherlock. She’s not in love with Sherlock anymore and has moved on to - to what exactly? A young man that dresses like Sherlock (or whom she made dress like that) who is a clear substitute for Sherlock. And a rather poor one as we find out later.

Molly’s “I’ve moved on” furthermore doesn’t sound all that convincing, especially in the light of everyone staring at the obvious similarities between Tom and Sherlock, and every one in the room (plus the audience) is wondering whether she doesn’t just tell herself that.

I’m not saying that I think Molly will still have a crush on Sherlock after this. I do believe Tom finally helped her get over it and move on, but at this point in the story she is still kidding herself. (Also, pay attention to how she assumes Sherlock is about to ask her out for dinner when he really just asks her to solve crimes with him, and look at her gaze and body language when Sherlock kisses her cheek. Completely and ultimately over someone looks different).

So, if Molly is a mirror for John then this also means that John has, same as she, found himself a (poor) substitute for Sherlock. In fact, we get confirmation for this in His Last Vow when it becomes apparent that Mary is very similar to Sherlock and that this is ‘what he likes’.

Furthermore, since Molly is John’s mirror, the end of her and Tom’s relationship also foreshadows the same for John and Mary. Though under which circumstances and when precisely remains to be seen.

tl; dr: Molly serves as an obvious instrument to affirm John’s feelings for Sherlock to the audience because she uses the same words in the same context. Both new partners have similarities to Sherlock, one on the outside and the other on the inside. And both she and John are kidding themselves and are trying to deny this fact by trying to be extra convincing.