Why it fits in the narrative for Molly to be upset before Sherlock called her 

 (Sherlock meta by theleftpill)

Q: Hello! What do you make of Molly in The Final Problem, I thought it was odd both how upset she was and how she drew everything out and made him say it first etc. I actually think that even the writers knew that Molly usually would been weirded out and maybe annoyed but gone with the flow once Sherlock said it was for a case, so they made her have 'had a bad day' beforehand so they could create the scene they want. But it gives the scene a whole weird vibe.

A: Hello Nonny! I’ve been thinking about this, actually, and wondering how the scene would have played differently with a Happy Molly. I definitely think it was the smarter narrative choice to have Molly start out upset and reluctant to help Sherlock; it makes her defiance more reasonable. If she started out upbeat and in a good mood, she would have been more willing to go along with one of Sherlock’s “stupid games” and answered him right away, albeit very confused: “I love you, what is this all about Sherlock?” And then that’s the end of your scene.

Starting Molly off as terribly upset, terribly depressed, immediately ups the tension of the scene. Sherlock is completely on the wrong foot with her from the start: he has to win her over. This helps not just the tension but the dynamic: Molly has bite, Molly has strength, she’s not the trembling little mouse who’s an easy pushover. Sherlock has to earn this.

Also, having Molly hostile from the outset makes you entirely unsure whether she’s going to say it or not. She gives a litany of reasons not to say it: I’m not having a good day, one of your stupid games, I’m not an experiment, leave me alone. At each step Sherlock is terrified she is going to hang up and destroy herself. I was on the edge of my seat horrified that she was going to say no. Because it was entirely possible, the way she played the scene.

It would take a pretty huge, unrealistic emotional turn to get to those depths of pain if she started out helpful and willing. Also, I feel she would have then felt more like the Morgue Mouse, unable to deal with her crush in the face of it, wilting under the pressure of her love. Because his demand would have altered her mood, she would have felt defensive rather than attacking. Her begging him not to make her say ILY would feel like whining, more like she couldn’t deal with the humiliation, than the act of defiance it plays as now. Her demand for him to say it first would have felt petty and vindictive. As it’s played, her spikyness and challenge reads to me like she’s standing up for herself. She begins the scene not taking his shit. She’s protecting herself. Her refusal is deeper than self-pity; it’s strength.

I’m not sure this is your point, but I don’t feel like Molly’s drawing him out was any sort of manipulation or cruelty. I don’t think she made him say it first to torture him. It’s defiance. It’s protection. He’s just told her to say it anyway since it’s true, she calls him a bastard, and then demands he say it first. “Say it like you mean it.“ If he’s going to force her over the edge, she’s damn well going to take him with her. It’s not manipulation because she means it: she needs to hear it and she needs it to be real, in order to pull it from herself. If he can’t give that to her, then she cannot give him what he wants. Remember that she has no awareness of the time limit or the stakes; to her this is just one of his games. It’s a brilliant turn of the tables and perfectly shows her power, over Sherlock and within herself.

I love the tone and vibe of this scene. For me, it’s one of the most powerful and grounded of the entire episode, because for the first time we’re truly exploring the dynamic between these two characters, in a new and revealing way. This is entirely new ground for both of them and between both of them. I think the pain and the angst and the heartbreak are perfect for the magnitude of what these two are going through. But then I love the dark side of things. It might feel off because we don’t have any sort of grounded resolution for them; not a kiss or any definitive romantic status, but a real exchange where we can see where they stand with each other now. A scene of that power deserves and demands that.