I think the show has done a good job of making Joan a character who does what Joan would do - she's not supposed to be an example of what "women" or "minorities" would do in any situation. And if she's bad at communication - well, some people are. I mean, when *Sherlock*is the one remembering you made plans with your friends or getting you back in touch with your family...I have to take that as a sign that the show knows that Joan doesn't deal with this stuff in the most functional way. Just because we're on her side doesn't mean that her actions are always in the right. (Like, she's shown to be at fault for getting herself arrested; she got overeager to prove she could be just like Sherlock, directly off of that meeting with her friends, and we're meant to see that, I think: that story is *about* the fact that she screwed up, and whether she's going to decide to overcome that, or give up.)
As for her friends: personally, I think they did a *horrible* job of indicating actual concern, and a really good job of acting like they knew exactly what was best for Joan, exactly who she ought to be "when she grew up," and were upset that she was stepping off of that narrow path.I found it telling that her friend mentioned talking to Joan's mother, and how proud her mom was of Joan's new choice - but then completely disregarded that fact to say that *she*, the friend, knew that Joan wasn't a detective. Joan's mother had met Sherlock, and talked to Joan about being a detective, and wasn't worried, but the friend didn't seem to bother taking that into consideration in making her pronouncement and *belittling* Joan's choice. (Calling her a private eye, in that tone, was only one step up from calling her a gumshoe.) I'm not saying that her friends had no right to be concerned about Joan (and the point about moving in with her last client was a decent one; that must look strange and worrisome), but most of their comments were basically along the lines of "no, you're supposed to be a doctor," and "you must be involved with the guy, because you couldn't have made this choice for your own reasons" - instead of, you know, *asking* her about what she was doing and why.
Also, last night's episode demonstrated for me the subtle additions that Joan's being a woman brings to the show: when the criminal was confronted by two male cops, Sherlock, and Joan, he could have addressed them all, could have said that they *all* were crazy, or that their collective *story* was crazy - but nope, he only confronted Joan, and specifically said she was a crazy *woman* with a story. That just seemed incredibly pointed and accurate to me, and I think they've been good about stuff like that. (And that is particularly interesting to me in this case, because even Sherlock, who rocks up to crime scenes looking scruffy, insults people, and behaves oddly even at his best, is protected by a certain amount of white male privilege, so that he gets away with that behavior. I'll be interested to see if the show keeps playing around with the fact that Joan doesn't have that privilege.)
no subject
As for her friends: personally, I think they did a *horrible* job of indicating actual concern, and a really good job of acting like they knew exactly what was best for Joan, exactly who she ought to be "when she grew up," and were upset that she was stepping off of that narrow path.I found it telling that her friend mentioned talking to Joan's mother, and how proud her mom was of Joan's new choice - but then completely disregarded that fact to say that *she*, the friend, knew that Joan wasn't a detective. Joan's mother had met Sherlock, and talked to Joan about being a detective, and wasn't worried, but the friend didn't seem to bother taking that into consideration in making her pronouncement and *belittling* Joan's choice. (Calling her a private eye, in that tone, was only one step up from calling her a gumshoe.) I'm not saying that her friends had no right to be concerned about Joan (and the point about moving in with her last client was a decent one; that must look strange and worrisome), but most of their comments were basically along the lines of "no, you're supposed to be a doctor," and "you must be involved with the guy, because you couldn't have made this choice for your own reasons" - instead of, you know, *asking* her about what she was doing and why.
Also, last night's episode demonstrated for me the subtle additions that Joan's being a woman brings to the show: when the criminal was confronted by two male cops, Sherlock, and Joan, he could have addressed them all, could have said that they *all* were crazy, or that their collective *story* was crazy - but nope, he only confronted Joan, and specifically said she was a crazy *woman* with a story. That just seemed incredibly pointed and accurate to me, and I think they've been good about stuff like that. (And that is particularly interesting to me in this case, because even Sherlock, who rocks up to crime scenes looking scruffy, insults people, and behaves oddly even at his best, is protected by a certain amount of white male privilege, so that he gets away with that behavior. I'll be interested to see if the show keeps playing around with the fact that Joan doesn't have that privilege.)