Mind the gap!

 (Sherlock meta by mae-jones)

I noticed something in the series finale watching it on the big screen for a second time. Just before our ‘I love you’ scene, there is the announcement, ‘Mind the gap’. Remember Sherlock and Molly’s day solving crimes? Well, the doorbell at the train fellow’s flat rang, ‘mind the gap’. I thought this was a cool little addition ahead of Molly’s scene. It was a bit of a subconscious broadcast and buildup to Sherlock about what was to come.

The more I think about this episode and series, as well as TAB, the more little pieces I see that they were trying to steer us towards. The things happening behind the scenes.

What happens if you don’t, ‘mind the gap’?

You fall. You fall! But, falling isn’t the problem.

“It’s never the fall, Sherlock … IT’S THE LANDING.” 

So, we get to ‘The Final Problem’. The Final problem is about Eurus and what she did to Sherlock, right? Of course, but it’s also about ‘fixing’ him. The Final problem points to more than one theme.

For example, falling is well-known short hand for ‘falling in love’. So, the falling part isn’t the problem. It’s the landing, or realizing you’re in love. This would be the ultimate final barrier broken, final emotional problem solved for Sherlock. So, why did Eurus need Sherlock to land and land hard before he saved her?

She was lost. She couldn’t find her way. This theme was echoed over and over in this episode. The boat in the fog. The plane in the sky. The maze of Sherrinford.

Eurus needed Sherlock to land because only when Sherlock’s two feet were planted firmly on the ground could he become her compass. He had already reciprocated love in all its other forms (ie/ the other points on the compass). The landing of realizing he was in love with Molly Hooper and she with him, was something he needed to internalize. Molly Hooper’s theme this entire show has been that of unconditional love. Eurus needed him to fully accept and reciprocate that type of love and understand its importance, because she knew only unconditional love would save her from herself.