Yes, things were addressed and paid off

 (Sherlock meta by bbcatemysoul and tiltedsyllogism)

bbcatemysoul:

Also like in HLV John is shocked when he sees Magnussen’s video of Sherlock pulling him from the bonfire. John witnesses Sherlock shooting Magnussen and has the context to know Sherlock was throwing his life away to keep him and Mary safe. John knows that Sherlock tried to kill himself when he was exiled and was literally spending the supposed last moments of his life reading the story of how he met John. John saw Mary’s video saying “the man we both love” and knows that Sherlock put himself in the hands of a serial killer for the sake of saving John Watson (from… whatever, I guess). John knows that Sherlock let down his guard completely to hold him while he cried. John knows that Sherlock considers him family. John was present when Sherlock repeatedly was more willing to sacrifice Mycroft than to sacrifice John. John was there to hear that Mycroft knows Sherlock loves John more than his own flesh and blood. And then none of that was ever addressed or paid off in any way. Ok.

tiltedsyllogism:

Not in any way at all? One week ago in our time - maybe 48 hours ago, in the world of the show - John was so deep in a hole of rage and despair that he was ready to push away his best friend, and lay the blame for his wife’s death at that friend’s feet.

But at the beginning of this episode, he has teamed up with Sherlock for the lunatic and high-risk enterprise of pranking Mycroft (which is itself serious business, given Mycroft’s likely home security) and then follows him to a gothic island prison for the criminally insane, basically on the strength of love and trust – and, very likely, on the strength of Sherlock’s insistence that he is family. And in the end he and Sherlock are living together joyously in 221b, raising his daughter together.

I understand that it’s not exactly what you wanted. I know we didn’t hear the words “I love you” spoken between them, or see a kiss. I get that Mary’s voice-over does not actually say “please start banging if you haven’t yet,” (although it felt pretty on the nose to me, to be honest.) I know how high the expectations were, and I get being disappointed – for that reason, or simply because this episode was even more off-the-wall hyperbolic and manipulative than anything that preceded it (which is a high bar.)

But surely there is some daylight between “onscreen kiss” and “it doesn’t matter that John had those experiences, they had no impact,” isn’t there? To me, it’s pretty clear John did understand. We see John and Sherlock take the time to restore 221b to its S1 glory, piece by piece. We see them commit to a shared future, in which they share family commitments, their friendship with others, and ongoing adventure. There might be sexual intimacy in the mix, or there might not; I think it’s left open to interpretation. But their commitment to each other is, I think, indisputable. The joy in their shared home is palpable. The love between them is indisputable.

So this is an honest question, because I really don’t understand. Why does that resolution feel like nothing?