The Progress of Sherlock Holmes*

 (Sherlock meta by Ivy Blossom)

I was thinking about The Abominable Bride, and all the ideas swirling around about what statement its making about the relationship between Sherlock and John. Perhaps an unpopular opinion, but I don’t think it says a whole lot about it. The story is mainly (thought not only) about Sherlock trying to work out how someone who shot themselves in the head with an audience might still be alive. So much so that I found it slightly odd that there isn’t even room for Sherlock to feel any relief about being released from his death sentence. Where’s his joy and being able to go home and take his life back, even if it’s just for a short while? He’s all work all the time, that guy.

But then I started thinking sideways about what kind of statement The Abominable Bride makes about Sherlock’s relationship with John. Look how far he’s come since series one, where he abandons John all over the place, and how he waited until John left the flat to sneak off and meet Moriarty that time. He is a solitary figure in the early days, even as his partnership is getting started. He ditches John most terribly at the end of series two, as if he’s still a completely independent actor without any ties to bind him. And in series three Sherlock is gobsmacked when he discovers that John considers him his best friend. As he’s dying and seeking comfort and control, Sherlock has his demons for company, but John is completely absent. He’s very much outside of Sherlock’s reach, and Sherlock is very much alone in his head. As essential as they are to each other, there is still a distance and disjointedness between them.

At the end of The Abominable Bride, while Sherlock’s wrestling with his demons as they threaten to consume him, for the first time John steps in and saves him from himself. Sherlock is no longer alone in his battles. From here on in, there’s always two of them; two of them on a case, two of them against the rest of the world, two of them saving Sherlock from the things that haunt him. He started out stubbornly independent, all doors shut to vulnerability and personal connections. But now, it seems he’s left one of those doors ajar, and John has slipped in.

So that’s something.

* Self-plagiarism is a thing.