#yes i’m still doing my big craig manning meta while also going back and watching djh

[buffyspeak]

tw for discussion of physical child abuse and emotional abuse/manipulation

something i think about a lot, in that scene in tears are not enough part 1, is how well done the contrast between craig and his dad is done.

it’s admittedly rare but i have nonetheless seen people in forums / comment sections / the podcast i just listened to (yes i’m mad) / what-have-you blame craig for shoving albert in this scene. and i am just so unwilling to do that, as i think it’s a fundamentally victim-blaming mindset.

the scene very deliberately demonstrates the power imbalance. they’re leaving the restaurant, albert angry that craig refuses to to move back in with him and craig following behind. albert won’t slow down even as craig calls for him to wait up, and craig has to run to keep up with him, while albert is berating him all the while. when craig, overcome with frustration, runs up to albert to shove him—the first time we’ve ever really seen him truly fight back or lash out in any significant capacity; in when doves cry, there’s specific emphasis on him not fighting back at the end of part 1. throughout the two-parter, he freezes, or takes protective measures, or runs away—but he doesn’t fight back.

and now, here, there is such a clear contrast: craig’s shove barely does anything. albert stumbles forward slightly, but his immediate reaction to backhand craig is so forceful it knocks craig to the ground and he ends up with a cut on his eye/cheek signifying the huge power imbalance throughout the scene. what craig can do to albert is not equal or even anywhere close to what albert can do to craig.

i AM gonna talk about this more in the big meta, but i think part of the reason some might have this mindset is because they perceive the hit, which is done in response to craig’s shove, as the first moment of abuse from albert in these eps. but it’s not. he has been behaving emotionally abusive, manipulative, and inappropriately since the moment he arrived on the steps of degrassi at the start of this episode.

i won’t act like the shove is craig’s best idea ever, but it’s also clearly a reaction to the manipulation of his father and craig’s trust being broken when he realizes it was all just to get him back in the house, and his turmoil as his father is berating him. craig may have ‘started’ the physical altercation here, but in an established abusive dynamic like this one, it’s not that simple. context matters here.

[roadswewalk]

T6T - my full reaction

Right I know this is super late (work project overload, apology posted preemptively), but here, finally, are my actual thoughts on second watch of T6T.  This is my first new episode since joining the fandom, so I really indulged.  This is like a live-blog meets rewatch review meets spaghetti meta.  Almost all of this is uninfluenced by others, since I missed the majority of what’s been written, but I’ve called out a few cases where popular opinion filtered through.  It probably goes without saying that to be able to write functionally about any of it, I have to make a baseline assumption that what I’m seeing has enough relationship to reality to be worth reacting to.  Doesn’t mean I believe that overall, but I’m not interested (not here, anyway) in playing mistake-lie-or-clue for every detail, so.  Grain of fish food.

Under the cut because LONG.

The hearing - uh oh.  Retcon technique crashes through the fourth wall into the fictional universe.  Or, I’m all up in ur fictional universe, redefining fiction.  Meta.  I get it: Don’t believe everything we’re about to show you, nor everything we’ve shown you before.  Or, at least, don’t take it too seriously.   And THAT is actually problematic

For starters, some of the people who abandoned ship last series complained that consequences aren’t real enough on this show.  For me, shooting Magnussen looks awfully gimmicky now that they’ve resolved it in this way; they'd never have got away with this if there hadn’t been a three-year hiatus.  Mycroft’s “oh Sherlock, what have you done?” is one of my favorite lines in the series.  Every.  Time.  Watery eyes to sobbing in 6 words.  It is utterly cheapened by not making the consequences real.  A little resistance, an impassioned appeal on the strength of Sherlock’s record of service - these would not have been out of place.  “My brother is a murderer”, sardonically, as the episode’s opening line should have been the first clue, I guess.

@ Sir Edwin shutting down the Moriarty discussion quickly and single-handedly: Has following TJLCers made me better at watching television, or was this disappointingly obvious?  @ Sherlock in this entire scene: I love it too, baby.

So the scene leaked via KBS dubbing was at the beginning, after all.  And completely not serious spoiler material, thanks for the slap on the wrist!

I like this tango they’re playing during the case montage!

Birth scene, :/  cliché.  Baby jokes - okay actually really cute.  Loving these boys with the baby, and apparently I could go for parentlock if it’s always just side-plots and comic relief.  John’s little flirtation - not so much, hope this is going somewhere plotty.  John’s backbend to ask about being godfather, though.  How flexible is that back, Dr. Watson?

Welsboroughs are pretty adorable.  Why does Mr. W. wear his ring on the pinky, though? - asked about this separately and never got a reply.  Mirror / magnifier next to Sherlock’s head - I guess this is Meaningful but it escapes me.

Noticing the Thatcher bust / pricking of my thumbs, a little difficult to accept.  But, “intuitions are not to be ignored” OKAY DADS.  A lot different from previously, though, with “dangerous to theorize without data“ etc.  “OCD - my respects”, lol.

Is Mr. Welsborough a John mirror here?  They’re wearing turquoise and defending Mrs. T’s existence together.  (Is this the same day that John goes home and texts E back?  He’s wearing the turquoise jumper?)  Wonder where Gatiss picked up this horrific story of Charlie’s death, I was in slight tears.  Relatedly (or not), Mycroft is GOLD in this episode.

On the established subject of the client-with-a-spy-wife being a John mirror: Note also, his line “I thought you’d done something clever.  But now you’ve explained it, it’s dead simple, inn’t it?” is directly from Watson on multiple occasions in ACD canon.  Also, at first I was like, “Why is Sherlock spending so much time impressing this man with his deductions?  He doesn’t know yet whether Lestrade (and arguably Hopkins) have brought him anything more interesting.“  Then I realized - he thinks John is sitting there watching him, apparently stunned into silence and charmed head-waving.  Awww. 

Lestrade saying “straße”, John saying “idée fixe”... it’s clearly Sherlock narrating.  Reliably or not, that is the question.  Sherlock noticing the scent of formaldehyde mixed with Lestrade’s usual cologne. <3 Sherstrade moment.  But why do people think Lestrade is going on a date with Hopkins?  He’s not? Sherlock said someone new from forensics; Hopkins is a DI working with Interpol.

“Slow, but sure, John.  Not dissimilar to yourself...  Well, I like you.”  I wasn’t sure I heard this right the first time!  Gratuitous compliments why.  John’s face does a nice journey after this but unfortunately Mary speaks right away.  Lovely on slo-mo.  “Having fun while I can” / “a noose for me to put my neck into” - awww, cheer up Sherlock, honey; you can’t die, you’re the star of the show.

When Craig first tells Sherlock the busts are from Tbilisi, he’s already looking up with his eyes doing their deduction dance.  The next scene implies it’s because of the Black Pearl of the Borgias case, but is it?  Lestrade’s reaction when Sherlock already knows the name of his victim - priceless.

Why does “luxury 1, 2 & 3 bed apartments” scroll across the screen when Sherlock is searching his phone about the pearl?  Graphics team: “well ads are unavoidable, it adds to the realism” lol what.  Man, it makes me a bit salty that they’re mentioning the blog so much even though we don’t get updates anymore, boo.

Sherlock: “They’re not destroying them, that’s not what’s happening.”  Lestrade: “Yes it is.”  Sherlock: “Well it *is* what’s happening but that’s not the point.  [Okay, thanks AGAIN, dads.]

Floor-to-ceiling Hokusai “Great Wave” print behind the pool - I am in lo<3!  Wearing leggings printed with Hokusai’s Phoenix as I type this and I just.  Guh.  That entire location is beautiful, thank you scouts!

All the ‘hand-waving” instead of proper switches in this house - again, I get it, thanks.

19:00 ... 22:00 flashing on screen.... so Sherlock waited 3 hours.  Am I supposed to get something from this?  (I hate not trusting anything I see on this show, nor my own ability to interpret art.  I take back one of those ‘thanks’, dads.)

Fight scene: gratuitous, fun, hard to accept.  Boys will be boys.  The people living in the house didn’t wake up?

 Why does Sherlock know what John said to forgive Mary?  Also, biggest mistake of the episode is right here, revealing he knows what that flash drive is and who had it.

The ambassador says she’s got something they would dearly love if they could get out - amo/ammo...  I’m still not sure how she fits in?  The flash drive is dangling around Ajay’s neck during the op?  So if the rescue goes wrong, AGRA are supposed to kill themselves, and what - hope the hostages are allowed to survive in captivity thereafter?

Lestrade knows about Mary’s past, seriously?  Once again the blog and the Internet fame make Sherlock & friends easy targets - though I don’t doubt Ajay could have found them easily enough without that.  Wow, shooting up the plaster bust studio must have been a good time ;)  Sherlock’s hidey-hole is... epic.  He even has a travel chemistry set and microwave (for the real experiments~), all that’s missing is a John Watson balloon, gods.  “That was quite a text you sent me” - what did it SAY?  At least he’s not giving her an easy time here. And is a different accent coming out?

“We were family.”  “Families fall out.”  [later, paraphrase] “I don’t know anything about them - happy families.”  Break my heart.  Sherlock, your mum and dad and big brother love you.  Don’t they?  Don’t they, Moftiss~?

Mary’s little smirk when Sherlock reminds her of his vow pretty much mirrors mine.  Like what can Sherlock Holmes do to protect her family better than a trained assassin?  (As we find out, nothing.)  The hubris here... it’s a huge part of what goes wrong in this episode, too.  Making the vow in the first pace was problematic and one of my least favorite things that Sherlock did, because it’s out-of-order, ridiculous, and impossible to maintain even before we knew anything about Mary and just.  Did anyone except Sherlock EVER believe that vow was worth something in reality, as opposed to some sad devotion he pledged to his best friend for wont of any more suitably dramatic exit from said friend’s wedding?  This brings me back to the awful angst-fest of a head-canon wherein Sherlock no longer places any value on his life alone, and he’s secretly longing for an excuse to start on a path that will secure his own death.  I’ve been there in depression and I’m not sure the writers realize they’re invoking it, nor that I trust them to handle it properly if they do.

Aw, PLEASE give us more of baby Holmes boys playing pirates.  Also, again, Mycroft <3.  But, Sherlock’s got a cracked rib here and he won’t go to John to get it wrapped.  “You don’t have many favors left” - apparently the only real consequence so far.  Mycroft: “What then?” - YES, THANK YOU, VOICE OF REASON!  “Not on my watch” - first from Mycroft, then from Sherlock.  But only Mycroft turns out to be able to back it up.  Score one for ice.

Why do the country names include U.S.S.R?  LMAO at Gatiss coming up with this sequence, like oh then she’ll grab a passport out of a rock in Norway, then how about a motorcycle in America?  I hope alcohol was involved, let everyone have fun with it.

She covers her head but shows her ankles?  Sherlock’s game with Karim, again, love.  It’s easy to forget why I love this show when I can’t follow the plot, but in the end, I do love it.  Sherlock’s little speech that he’s been preparing for ages to rattle off to Mary.  And then John walks in and wow, I can feel the smile slide off my face faster than Sherlock’s.  Definitely a hell of a lot faster than Mary’s!  It’s so awkward that Sherlock is there for the following conversation, especially the point he joins in, literl chills at the creep factor.  But - “couples are supposed to stay together and work things through” - as in, what John and Sherlock did while she was away?

And sorry to break in again here, but the “love” connection (lol) is tenuous enough.  Who would believe that an intelligence committee member would use a variation of her own code name as a sabotage code word?  Trying too hard to be clever, Mark, sorry.  Lady S under pressure is pretty hot, though.

Wow, John is so smooth when he’s being hit on.  Like the plot or no, really makes me want to try it, hehe.  Vampire... this screams foreshadowing but I won’t know of what until I see it, derp.

John’s bus number is 59 (159 return).  Another reference to that sonnet?

“How many more times?”  Lady S calling Mycroft on putting his brother before his other obligations.  Ouch.  When this dries up it’s going to be even more painful...  And, “you had better be right about this”, 'cept he wasn’t.  No wonder Sherlock is ready to die later.  There’s no pretty escape at this point.

“The curtain rises” - third time we’ve heard that.  He does love a touch of the dramatic.  Does it mean something else too?  The different text styles, poetry to one, usual demands to the other - I love it but i don’t know why.  Does it mean we won’t get poetry anymore from Sherlock?

Ballsy to film up in there.  I was expecting the aquarium walls to get shot up at some point.  Pity.  Well, maybe not.  Is this the entire shark analogy - “we’re like them, ghostly, living in the shadows, predators, we have to keep moving or we die”?  I guess the last one pretty well clinches it.  But it rubs up the wrong way to use the same symbol as for Magnussen, but for different reasons.

So she got involved for money, then she set up both sides of the rescue operation to get the ambassador assassinated to protect the fact that she was ever involved and hopefully make her exit?  Why didn’t she retire at that point?!

Hmm, does John call Mycroft or Lestrade from the cab?

So Sherlock going on about the wedding ring relocation here, when John is still wearing his ring on his left ring finger in the chess promo photo from TFP... I blogged some crack about it but now I’m wondering if it’s legit significant.  But anyway, Sherlock, shut up about single old ladies, alright.

Mystrade on screen together.  Maybe eye contact!  And Lestrade putting his brave on when Mrs. Norbury raises her gun.  Sherlock staring down the bullet like “I give in, I am yours” - not sure why people wondered at him not jumping out of the way, seems clear he’s ready and willing to die at this point, because he thinks it’s a solution to something.  Well, living on borrowed time, now, and with all favors called in, that’ll make for some good drama, can’t wait!

Wow, so, a woman has been on the edge of a dangerous lifestyle, but eventually she just wants a little peace.  A man with uncanny knowledge and mysterious connections to the government is on her trail.  She tries to confront him, but there are inconvenient witnesses.  Eventually she does fire her gun, but someone else gets shot, and it resolves nothing.  ...Am I describing Vivienne or Mary?

Pausing between Mary’s moment and John’s so I can appreciate the scene properly.  Oh god, I hate myself for this.   But really, Martin’s acting in TRF was perfect.  I know real primal grief is not pretty and that was probably very accurate, but I don’t come to television to see that much of reality.  You’re breaking our contract here a little by shocking me so much in a moment like this.  First watch, my tears dried right up.  This time I let them fall for awhile, and it was nice.  :/

They’re talking about proper portrayal of grief, but isn’t this transition to the anger stage a bit quick?  Mystrade and Sherlock facing off above the Watsons - this is very iconic-looking, though for the life of me I couldn’t say why Lestrade is there.  Hope it’s a backstory thing that we get to hear about later.  So many white men on this show, always coming out on top.  How can I adore them all?  Feel like I have to take a few punches out of my various identity cards for this weakness.

Roll call, who knew almost instantly that Ella was talking to Sherlock? How did you know?  I can’t decide what clued me in - I guess it was the camera angle, the transition from John to her on the same side of the frame?  By her second or third line it was obvious, but I swear I knew before that...

It just bugs me when Ella speaks in platitudes.  When my therapists weren’t as clever as me, they would do this.  It solves nothing.  Also I’m pretty sure she would have to recuse herself from Sherlock’s case if he mainly wants to talk about John, another client.  They’ve shown in THoB that they understand doctor-patient privilege, so, not sure what to make of this.

Mycroft at home is my severe kink.  Him with his lack of furniture in his kitchen, brolly has to lean against his case on the floor.  Still wearing his coat and waistcoat when he gets to the fridge (suits are cut much better this season, damn Mark), rubbing his sore neck, takeout menus, cuff links, pocket watch.

It’s hard to express the strength of my yearning to see inside Mycroft’s fridge.  Like I love that it’s mostly empty, but not seeing pitiful gaping immaculate interior is still one of the biggest disappointments of the episode, tbh.  And frankly that yearning extends a bit further, into slithering up behind and offering a neck rub territory.  People who read him as queer, are we talking zero exceptions?  Mind if I test that?   Antarctica, darling, give me a call.  That empty, listless feeling… I can help.  I hear you’re the Ice Man.  Well it may interest you to know that in certain circles, I’m known as the Ice Queen.  I realize you have incredible power and influence - probably enough to stop global warming.  Don’t do it, baby, I don’t care about that stuff.  I wanna melt with you.  (Heh, might send  that one to bbcsherlockpickuplines.)

13th in a post-it note, prompting a call to Sherrinford - at this point my money’s on drug rehab facility.  That Sherlock burns down.  Won’t that be fun.  And like season 2, I’m guessing this is setup for a plot arc that will be fully revealed in episode 3.  And that’s about the extent of my non-crack predictions for the next few episodes!

John’s balloon drooping off the table, oof.  “Work is the best antidote to sorrow” - like sorrow is poison, oh Sherlock, what would Ella say?  Not it’s not, it’s normal and it’s a thing you work through.  “Norbury” - she doesn’t know the details but she can see the significance, poor Hudders.

Mary making Moriarty jokes on the level of sensitivity that I often display (and which never fails to earn me zero notes)...   LOVE IT DON’T STOP BITCH!

“Nothing’s certain, nothing’s written” - the words that overlay John and Mary holding hands in that teaser of all teasers - a throw-away line picked up by marketers or a sign of things to come~?

“The danger was the fun part but you can’t outrun that.  You need to remember that so I’m giving you a case.”  What, retire to Sussex and stop putting John Watson in danger?  This is getting ‘danger’ously close to some of my crack theories for why a longer hiatus should follow.  MAYBE I’ll accept but only if they actually film us three episodes of retirementlock - with some quaint flashbacks or something - alright?

I’m glad Molly only says sorry the one time.  It’s not her apology to make.  Maybe best scene in the episode right here.  Reading the letter in the cab... brave.

Path locking around your feet, the demons under the street and the sharks in the river (sharks in a river?   really?), etc. - this seems to be confirmation that Sherlock is still awaiting his consequences; okay, good.  But “can Samarra be avoided?” - learned nothing, have you?  Or is it that your survival is necessary to save John Watson?

Go to Hell - not speculating, too little information.  I already know Sherlock’s going to Hell, that he takes John with him, and that they come back - my dad told me.

Summary things:

So live-Tweeting didn’t happen.  That was disappointing.  What is Joe Lidster’s new project, then?

I already knew the Samarra story really well from childhood and then a brief study in Arabic class once.  So the communication of it here felt really heavy handed.  Wish I hadn’t brushed up on it (thanks to NYT reviewer, I believe) beforehand.  I feel like Benedict’s retelling with the sharks would have been chill-inducing.

Contrasting with my complaint about weak consequences for the Magnussen incident, perhaps I’m supposed to take it that this episode was Mary’s consequences.  I wonder if we’ll see Sherlock’s consequences in episode 2 and John’s in episode 3 (or vice versa)?  Or, the ensembles (Hudders & co) in 2, and Sherlock & John’s in episode 3?  I know it’s a three-part story arc so I hope we’ll see something.  Sharks in the river, I’ll get my fishing pole!

Lastly, the “NO WAY” moment that the press reported - which even was it?

- Vivian "Ice Lolly” Norbury as the double agent?

- Mary jumping in?

- Sherlock at therapy?

I seriously couldn’t tell.  Again, does that me good at watching television, or bad?!