Meanings
- uncountableSherlock fandom slangThe Johnlock Conspiracy; a theory prevalent in Sherlock fandom before series four, which interpreted the show as having a strong queer subtext, and held that the showrunners intended an eventual romance between Sherlock and John.
These expectations became confronted with the decision on the side of the screenwriters that angered many fans supporting the TJLC theory.
2018, Małgorzata Lisowska-Magdziarz, “Authors, Owners, Influencers, Entitled Fans And Ultimate Fanboys: TJLC Controversy And The Politics Of Media Content Creation”, in Tadej Pirc, editor, Participation, Culture and Democracy: Perspectives on Public Engagement and Social Communication, page 852 more examples
The queer utopianism infusing TJLC fanworks is shaped by a strand of collective fan labor often dismissed by mainstream sources as self-indulgent and overemotional: that of protest, in this case against toxic heteronormativity.
2018, Diana W. Anselmo, "Gender and Queer Fan Labor on Tumblr: The Case of BBC's Sherlock", Feminist Media Studies, Volume 4, Number 1, Winter 2018, page 93Where TJLC differs from traditional Sherlockian fandom and fannish scholarship is in its insistence on a single correct reading of the text: […]
2019, E. J. Nielsen, “The Gay Elephant Meta In The Room: Sherlock And The Johnlock Conspiracy”, in Joseph Brennan, editor, Queerbaiting and Fandom: Teasing Fans Through Homoerotic Possibilities, page 83
Origin
Initialism of The Johnlock Conspiracy.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
TJLC. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/TJLC
“TJLC.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/TJLC. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “TJLC,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/TJLC.
Source: TJLC on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.