Cave, on Sherlock's women/misogyny:
- Irene and Mary are male fantasies: a dominatrix and a Lara Croft-style assassin. They also between them play out the old virgin/whore dichotomy.
Irene was 'strong' and 'independent' to a point, yes (side note: does anyone ever use those words approvingly about a man? I think not; because we all assume that men just ARE those things) –but Irene had to be rescued by Sherlock in the end. Contrast with the original story, in which she gets one over on him, disappears and leaves him admiring her impotently (!) from afar for ever.
- Mary, after her sexy Lara Croft background has been dealt with (summarily, I'd say), is cheated on emotionally by John. Then she becomes that other male fantasy:a dead woman (in fact, a dead mother –even more brownie points), who can no longer threaten men. Only then does John dare to fess up about the EA; she forgives him. He's off the hook. Isn't she saintly? As a reward for being dead and spotless, she's the one who gets to give her blessing to the 'boys' and close the show.
- Molly is interesting; she has a normal job and is clearly educated and qualified. This the show deliberately undermines, though, by dint of her pathetic love for Sherlock and her appearance and manner – mousy, stammering, plain (NB the actor ISN'T plain but is made up, dressed, hair done etc to look as dowdy as possible) and, generally, sidelined unless she is of use to Sherlock and/or John.
In the last episode her phone call with Sherlock and its fallout are summarily 'tied up' by that vague shot of her in their flat, happy, smiling, and presumably having forgiven Sherlock. (BTW I refute Steven Moffat's fatuous comments that she wasn't as upset as Sherlock after the call and probably got drunk and had a shag
).
In this series in particular she has been seen at work/in professional mode less and less, only pulled into service to be the voice of concern and tell the audience exactly what kind of state Sherlock had got himself into. A highly trained pathologist is, surely, above summary examinations and diagnoses in the back of an ambulance.
- Mrs Hudson. In early series she was a comedy older woman; flapping and fussing. The benign flipside of the Les Dawson-type battleaxe mother-in-law. She is indulged and 'put up with' by John and Sherlock. Isn't that big of them?
In this series she is allowed to drive a fast car and make jokes about kinky sex, IMO a) because it amuses the writers, in the manner of silly schoolboys, to put 'dirty' words in an old woman's mouth and have her do 'naughty' things and b) because as an old and (in their view) post-sexual woman, she is unthreatening and therefore can do these things without posing a danger. Isn't she funny driving her fancy car? I wonder if we would treat a man of her age group e.g. Jack Nicholson in a fast car as a joke to chuckle indulgently at.
- Eurus: brainy, yes. Cool as a cucumber, yes –to a point. But manipulative, guiding the poor men through her series of puzzles. A metaphor IMO for how the writers think women generally manipulate men.
It is interesting that Moriarty, with whom she is explicitly allied, dies at his own hand in a blaze of glory and will be forever the unreachable, almost super-human, psychotic genius. He even gets, post-death, to get out of a helicopter looking sharp as hell and amuse/delight/arouse us one more time with that 'I Want To Break Free' routine. His place in history/mythology is assured.
Eurus, though, begins as a Moriarty-type figure but in the end is reduced to nothing more powerful or threatening than a vulnerable, half-dressed, infantilised figure; crouched in her childhood room, hair tangled, shaking, and insane beyond reach. The only thing that can help her at all? A hug from and the attention of a man who – guess what? – understands and forgives. How magnanimous of Sherlock. And of the writers.
This show really has left a bad taste in my mouth. A great pity; the cast is
outstanding and, when they're not being ugly misogynists, the writers have come up with some excellent writing and situations.