marcelock:

while i search for trf screenshots to make these dumb memes- because im a multifaceted human capable of being very smart and gay AND hilarious- i find it interesting TRF is kinda billed as this big sherlock vs moriarty episode- and it is! im not saying its not, out of all the episodes its the Most one with 1. moriarty 2. sherlock being the angel to his devil character, but even then hes just kinda There, he does some wacky stuff, sets up some cameras, does a villain speech or two, fucks shit up, and thats very big of his character, but JOHN? the framing device? the dramatic opening scene? THE WHOLE FLASHBACK MONTAGE OF THEM spending months together being more married than ever in their growing partnership? “Youre doing the face again” ? john being by sherlocks side in and out of court???? in and out of the kidnapping case?? being there for him??? literally going out of his way to be by his side? punching a man to get arrested for him? not even flinching when he points a gun at him WHILE HES SUSPECTED of being a MASTER CRIMINAL because he TRUSTS HIM SO IMPLICITLY??? confronting mycroft in sherlocks honor? only finally leaving when hes basically forced to or Left? THE ENDING? LIKE HELLO?

listen, moriarty is a good villain, hes a good secondary character, andrew scott is a good actor, and this is definitely the best episode for all those factors, but oh man oh man oh BOY, this episode- like most episodes but this one especially like what even is it without john? whats any of this without john? whats the point of the fall without john? who would it be for? what if john wasnt there? from an audience perspective, a tv maker perspective, like who is any of this for besides john????? from SHERLOCKS perspective??? HELLO??

but moriarty really did do the ultimate villain move that day, not by making sherlock fake his death to like, disgrace him, or stop his crime fighting, or whatever, but to make him fuck up the most important thing in his life by putting him in an unwinnable position where he refused to risk trusting john in order to save john, thereby betraying johns UNFALTERING trust, the ultimate fucking suicide of sherlock holmes