mrs-hudson: here have this homosexually coded tea that i made for you both- i still have that bedroom upstairs. it's okay if you get married. married ones live next door
teEaTeA
sherlock: *gives tea to john*
john: aw thx i dont usually take tea but like i like tea which means i'm bisexual
sherlock: i know this within my heart i don't drink coffee at all keep it away from me it's horrendous
Baskerville
sherlock: hey um. i'm gonna make some coffee.. for you.... … *fake heterosexual smile*
john: .... you never make coffee. (This tastes bad.)
sherlock: Ikr, it has poison in it
john: why would you do this thing
sherlock: sometimes heteronormativity will blind you to the truth and show you hallucinogenic hounds, john
Not a question but ... I've just read a discussion about John's long-lasting drinking issues (screens from MHR and HLV). So I'll just send you this: SUE: That’s a huge glass of wine [John’s] having there, isn’t it?BENEDICT: I think that’s a whisky, isn’t it? (...) STEVEN: If you watch this show carefully, there is a subtext about John drinking. John’s just hammered by every midnight! (...)MARK: Even he forgets the names of his girlfriends, and that’s why! [Scandal in Belgravia Commentary on DVD]
Hi Nonny!
Yeah, John’s drinking has been brought up before, and I believe that quote was added to the post in later reblogs!
A lot of us believe that drinking in this series has a lot of subtext behind it:
Tea and Subtext - There’s a lot of subtext about the use of tea vs coffee in Sherlock, and it all points to Johnlock.
related posts: Subtext of Drinks in Sherlock | [Why is there So Much Tea in TBB?]
All Drink Mentions and Their (Assumed) Meanings - An excellent compilation of drinks and the connotations associated with them within the series. This expands upon the Tea Metaphor, looking at all the drinks. Similar to the Phone & Hearts Metaphor, drinks in Sherlock symbolize sexuality. (Pre-S4)
related post: [Infographic] | [Red Wine vs Water] | [Champagne in Sherlock] | [Water in Sherlock]
Is “cup of tea”…code? - A post S4 Mini Meta on the drink code.
“He’s Your Cup of Tea”: Use of the Tea Metaphor in Sherlock - Another more in depth meta regarding the tea = homosexuality metaphor, this one strictly focusing on tea in relation to Moriarty and Sherlock.
related posts: [More on The Metaphor in Relation to Mary]
Tea in TPLOSH
Just How Much Did They Drink?!? - The science side of tumblr answers. Molly’s a little shit, methinks.
related posts: [John was Adding Drinks]
“Can a Cheap Wine be a Winner at Dinner?” – Discussion about wine in the series
related posts: [The Champagne Sherlock Stole] | [Red Wine is Romance, What is Champagne?] | [Red wine or Water?]
Water and the Drink Code
related posts: [Water Also Has Meaning] |[Still water runs deep II: The villains] | [What does water represent?] | [The Gay is On (archive.org link)]
blog tag: water meta
Blog tags: drink meta, drink code, glass of tea, tea in sherlock
There is SO MUCH meta about drinking and liquids in the series, so the last links bring you to more theories about the various “codes” that we think exist as subtext in the series, since there is just so much of it, I think it’s just better, if you’re interested, to peruse my tags instead, LOL.
All S4 Drink Mentions and Their (assumed) Meanings
If you're new to TJLC and the Drink Code, please see my other compilation for some background info first!
I hit post limit at 9pm the day TLD aired (poor planning on my part tbh) so I sat down and rewatched both TST and TLD to comb through for drink appearances and mentions. Therefore, this is mainly just a list at the moment, with a few of my own embellishments and linked metas from what few posts have been made.
This is a living post, open to new additions and contributions at any time. If you see/come up with something that you think should be added, please message or tag me so I can credit you, or else it may get buried beneath notes! Lines marked with a “(?)” are indicative of posts that I’ve seen but can’t find the link to. Help me out?
And now, my friends, once more unto the breach...
The Six Thatchers
- Molly is seen drinking what looks like white wine at John and Mary's flat
- Mrs. Welsborough holds a champagne flute at her husbands birthday party. He's seen without one.
- An glass container of alcohol sits behind them on the counter while they talk with their son Charlie. (This alcohol is sitting on the opposite side of the table when visited by Sherlock, but I’m not sure this is actually significant. Rich white people just always have alcohol out, right?)
- Literally everyone at this party is seen with something in their hands, except the birthday boy. (Possible connection to Sherlock's “birthday” in TLD?)
- The car that Charlie is hiding in is covered in rain droplets. (Emotions/tears)
- John holds a cup of tea/coffee while Sherlock is conferring with the carpenter client. He doesn't drink from it.
- Toby smells haemoglobin (blood), caffeine (coffee/tea) and whisky. That sounds like John Watson to me. (x)
- Ajay lays on the floor of his room drinking what looks like rum as he remembers the days he was kept imprisoned.
- Sherlock asks Karim to fetch the tea. He tea doesn't arrive until Ajay dies, then it spills. If Ajay is meant to be a John mirror, this could be indicative a Garridebs moment ~
- John's mug of tea/coffee sits untouched as he hesitantly texts "E". There is a carton of milk sitting out on the counter behind him. The “straight desire” is there, but the “sexual drive” behind it is only in the background, going bad.
- Before the aquarium scene, John has a glass of red wine. It’s probably because he wants to confess his affair. Mary doesn’t drink any. (x)
- Norbury had been drinking red wine before coming to the aquarium as well, making her a mirror for John. (?)
- A cup of tea sits next to John's phone as Sherlock attempts to contact him. (?)
- A glass of water is sitting next to Ella. Sherlock doesn't have one. This could just be because it’s just a therapist thing, but also Sherlock isn’t very keen to open up to her, emotionally.
The Lying Detective
- John is shown drinking (and gripping his bad shoulder) (?) when he tells his therapist "last night wasn't good".
- A coffee pot sits out on the table when John is thinking about Mary at their flat
- "I'm very busy at the moment, I have to drink a cup of tea" says Sherlock, to a woman who reminds him of John.
- "Is cup of tea...code?” Yes. It means gay. (x)
- “Because you might prefer some... 'coffee'” He gestures to the woman in the sitting room when he says “coffee”.
- Sherlock asks for a cup of tea when Mrs. Hudson walks into the room as he spouts "Once more unto the breach" from Henry V.
- He demands the tea a second time. He just really needs that tea to keep him sane.
- Mrs. Hudson drops the tea (on purpose, in order to force Sherlock to see John). “Spilling the tea” is an expression used to describe sharing gossip, or revealing a surprising truth. (In the case of the show, the tea being spilled is the fact that Sherlock and John are in love.) (?)
- Sherlock lets go of the gun to catch the tea. He chooses Amo over Ammo. (x)
- Sherlock grabs a vase from the therapist's house and drinks the water. Euros (the therapist in disguise) is the name of the Greek god of the East Wind, whose symbol is an upturned vase, spilling water. (x) Euros is also the “bringer of rain” (emotions/tears). (x)
- He asks for a "cleaner" glass of water, and Euros give it to him. (Bringer of rain, again.)
- Sherlock and John sit together in Baker Street again. They're probably both drinking tea. Sherlock's mug has fireworks on it, symbolic of the explosion/”bomb” that is the Love Confession. (x)
- Irene's text alert goes off. Sherlock takes a big swig of tea.
- Lady Smallwood asks Mycroft out for a drink, saying what kind of drink is up to him. She's letting him take this where he wants to go, romantic wine, or Buddy Beer.
The Final Problem
- TBA
MISC:
Baker Street Google Maps Tour
- Coffee sits untouched on the shelf, whereas the box of tea shows signs of heavy use (x)
- The coffee maker is unplugged, to make room for the kettle (x)
- Half-empty bottles of gin sit next to bottles of red wine in two different spots. (x)
PBS Answer Time
- Mark handles the tea. (x)
Tagging the Drinks Code crew to help spread this around, and because @thequagmire1 asked to be tagged as well!
@loudest-subtext-in-tv @skulls-and-tea @thepineapplering @welovethebeekeeper @waitingforgarridebs @warmth-and-constancy @57-circlesofhell @hudders-and-hiddles @heimishtheidealhusband please forgive me if I forgot to tag you it’s been so long
Hi, can you recommend me some metas about john's drinking, please? P.S. I love your blog.
Hi Nonny!
I know there’s specific meta about John’s drinking, but I’m going to also link you to the drink meta that I have on my Masterpost, since it’s all connected anyway :)
Tea and Subtext - There’s a lot of subtext about the use of tea vs coffee in Sherlock, and it all points to Johnlock.related posts: Subtext of Drinks in Sherlock
All Drink Mentions and Their (Assumed) Meanings - An excellent compilation of drinks and the connotations associated with them within the series. This expands upon the Tea Metaphor, looking at all the drinks. Similar to the Phone & Hearts Metaphor, drinks in Sherlock symbolize sexuality.related post: [Infographic] | [Red Wine vs Water] | [Champagne in Sherlock] | [Water in Sherlock]
“He’s Your Cup of Tea”: Use of the Tea Metaphor in Sherlock - Another more in depth meta regarding the tea = homosexuality metaphor, this one strictly focusing on tea in relation to Moriarty and Sherlock.related posts: More on The Metaphor in Relation to Mary
Just How Much Did They Drink?!? - The science side of tumblr answers. Molly’s a little shit, methinks.
Buzzfeed has this “We Know Which Crime Show You’re Obsessed With Based On Your Taste In Alcohol” quiz and I got Numb3rs, which, like, kudos to Buzzfeed because it was the first crime show I liked and LOOK AT ME NOW—but anyway, the real quiz would be “We Know Which Sherlock Episode Is Your Favourite/We Know What Kind of Shipper You Are Based On Your Taste in Alcohol.”
The drink meta has forever changed the way I look at this show. I can’t NOT notice when and what people drink now. I mean Sherlock is coming back to see John for the first time in two years, and all I can think about is that before Mary comes back, John fucking downs that glass of red wine like he just wants to get it out of the way and then makes a face like he hates the taste of it in his mouth.
