richardjohnsplett:

Of all the episode’s callbacks from earlier in the season—Morland’s shady business tactics, Kurtz’s double-agent act, an old villain reappearing sidelong—Sherlock and Joan’s quiet scene with the ring is by far the most narratively satisfying. Sherlock started this season on the edge of serious trouble after his breakdown and relapse, and has managed to sidestep nearly every major punishment for it; he doesn’t even stand in his father’s debt any more. Alone with Joan, who he trusts most in the world, he quietly realizes that the most lingering effect of his relapse is the knowledge that his mother was fallible in the same ways he is; that his mother fought and failed. The difference between Sherlock and his mother goes unsaid, with Liu trusting their eye contact to carry it all, and it does. Having Joan in the room with him, sharing the ring and his mother’s secret and preparing for whatever trouble they find themselves in with Moriarty, is evidence enough. Sherlock has someone he can trust; things might well turn out differently for him. [x]