I have a question about something irene said. There was this part where She and john were talking and john says, "Im not actually gay" Then she responds with "Well I am, look at us both." But then they both realize Sherlock's been listening. THEn she says, "I dont think so... do you?" What does that mean? Thank you xxoo
Ohhh, I’m always up for a discussion about the Battersea scene. :)
You broke the moment down perfectly. My interpretation is that Irene is finishing her thought, and their realization that Sherlock has been listening helps to confirm her point. So what IS her point? Let’s back up a little bit more. (Transcript credit: Ariane DeVere)
JOHN: We’re not a couple.
IRENE: Yes you are. There …
(She holds up her phone to show John the screen, although he’s too far away to read it. She tells him what she has typed anyway.)
IRENE: “I’m not dead. Let’s have dinner.”
(She presses the Send button. John turns away momentarily and then turns back to her.)
JOHN (quietly): Who … who the hell knows about Sherlock Holmes, but – for the record – if anyone out there still cares, I’m not actually gay.
IRENE: Well, I am. Look at us both.
(John laughs ruefully. Just then an orgasmic female sigh can be heard a short distance away. In the corridor outside the room, unseen by either of them, Sherlock switches his phone off and rapidly walks away. John starts to walk in the direction of the sound but Irene holds out her hand to stop him. She looks at him pointedly.)
IRENE: I don’t think so, do you?
Before they both became aware of Sherlock’s presence, Irene was trying to make a point to John. Regardless of her own attraction to/feelings for Sherlock, she did not hesitate to throw their feelings for one another in their faces. One of her texts to Sherlock even says:
John’s blog is HILARIOUS. I think he likes you more than I do. Let’s have dinner.
Irene knows what people like. She tells us again and again. And there’s no subtext in this scene. It’s blatant. “We’re not a couple.” “Yes you are.”
She knows they aren’t in a sexual and/or romantic relationship. But she also knows that doesn’t mean they aren’t a couple. She knows it’s just a matter of time before they acknowledge it. Note that right before this scene, John tells the fem!lock Irene sics on him (the woman he thought worked for Mycroft), that Sherlock “doesn’t follow him everywhere.”
(Not “I’m straight.” Not “I’m not interested in dating Sherlock.” But the standard John Watson #notgay.)
And Irene replies with: “Well I am. Look at us both.”
The second phrase is meant to contradict the first. In other words:
“Well I am. [But] look at us both.”
Irene has already confessed to flirting with Sherlock. She doesn’t try to hide her interest in him (unlike John). Here’s what she’s saying:
“You’re not gay. I am. But look at us both (in love with Sherlock).”
Sherlock literally enters the picture after the word “both,” with that orgasmic sound. Irene and John are both startled, and John looks very worried. Irene stops him from going after Sherlock, then finishes her thought.
“I don’t think so, do you?”
Irene is saying that their sexual orientations don’t matter, because they’re both in love with Sherlock. She has totally accepted this about herself, and is trying to make John understand it about himself, too. After all, John thought Sherlock wouldn’t follow him – but Sherlock did. They are a couple. Him showing up, the fact that he followed John, helps confirm her point.
Please note that I do not in ANY way believe this means Irene is not gay, or John is not straight (or…not not gay?). We’re told multiple times in this episode that Irene sleeps with both men and women. Irene *gets* sexuality. She’s well aware of the Kinsey scale and sexual fluidity. Being attracted to a man is not alarming to her, and does not change her sexual orientation (in her mind or in reality). It happens to plenty of people. Rules have exceptions.
For John, though, this is an utter mindfuck. Being attracted to/in love with Sherlock does not necessarily change his sexual orientation to “gay.” But, like many people, this is a foreign concept to John. It’s possible he’s never been attracted to a man before and this is intensely confusing for him.
Irene understands. She’s trying to explain it to John. Gay, not gay, it doesn’t matter, it doesn’t change how they both feel.
“He doesn’t follow me everywhere. We’re not a couple. I’m not gay.”
“I don’t think so…do you?”