huh. I guess for me, at least within genre fiction, "villain" is defined structurally rather than morally. since the show is structured around Sherlock, that makes him the hero, and anyone who opposes him is positioned structurally as the villain.
but if we imagine a hypothetical show called, "Sergeant Donovan", Sherlock could very well be considered a villain. and yeah, I can *definitely* imagine people viewing Mycroft as a villain -- but the way the narrative is structured right now, he doesn't occupy that role relative to Sherlock.
by that definition, I don't think Mary can be considered a villain at the moment. potential villain? sure. who knows what the future may bring. but at the moment, Sherlock has clearly and enthusiastically aligned himself with Mary. and structurally, HLV gave us a different villain (CAM) so Mary didn't need to occupy that position.
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but if we imagine a hypothetical show called, "Sergeant Donovan", Sherlock could very well be considered a villain. and yeah, I can *definitely* imagine people viewing Mycroft as a villain -- but the way the narrative is structured right now, he doesn't occupy that role relative to Sherlock.
by that definition, I don't think Mary can be considered a villain at the moment. potential villain? sure. who knows what the future may bring. but at the moment, Sherlock has clearly and enthusiastically aligned himself with Mary. and structurally, HLV gave us a different villain (CAM) so Mary didn't need to occupy that position.