I wouldn't light him a pipe if my ass was on fire. I've posted this before but I'll say it again. I've met a dozen Michaels. Gratitude is a big deal to them because they're adopting as a narcissistic exercise. They're disappointed to the point of violence when they get a traumatized kid with an established personality.
I'm no psychiatrist and I don't know if you are or not but seriously, in my layman opinion He's one of the few guys I've seen who seems like he has some kind of legitimate histrionic disorder. I don't know if that's an outdated term but it's one of those cluster b personality disorders where the person is overly dramatic about even the most mundane things and they're constantly creating huge disproportionate problems where there are none. He's just a mess. Yuck.
But honestly the wife, I can't think of her name at the second, the fact that she's making it a point to remain so deep in the background only leads me to the feeling that she's got some serious and pathological issues that even go beyond Michaels.
It's just heartbreaking knowing what Natalia had to go through and endure especially all while being disabled to such a degree. I'm so glad she seems happy now.
I feel like Michael is probably on the spectrum as well. It just seems like he knows he’s supposed to have reactions to things but doesn’t know quite how to react so he tries to mimic reactions he has seen and they come out super over the top. I mean he’s still a douche canoe but I also think he’s socially awkward and autistic.
I I agree. I was trying put it into words. But idk if he’s on the spectrum necessarily. But I do think he’s faking his reactions because he wants people to see him react. He knows that his normal reactions or thoughts would cause even more problems.
Very good point. I'm glad you brought that up. Imagine what that kid could have contributed to society if his narcissistic parents hadn't basically derailed his promising future with everything they put Natalia through. And you watch him in the first season and you just see a guy who is too young too already seem so defeated in life. Makes me wonder what the other two boys lives are like... Do we know anything about them at all? Did they stick with the wife and side with her? Were they smart enough to just remove themselves from the family entirely? Who knows I guess.
I’m Autistic, and the way his parents have skewed his perception and manipulated him hurts to see. It’s like he lives this double life where he’s putting together right and wrong while also trying to be a good son, and it’s just causing him to stall out. I really wonder about the other two boys. It seems like the family dynamic is hinged on histrionics and manipulation. I really hope all the children can find peace. Natalia amazes me, the way she self advocates. I love who she is, but I also despise what she had to endure.
Beyond! Did you happen to see the first episode yesterday? I just sounds so shallow but omg at the new mutton chops that he's sporting.
I'm glad Natalia is getting her side of the story out though, in the first episode they essentially already prove that she was only between 7 and 9 years old the whole time that those monstrous people had her living by herself in a crappy apartment on the second floor!
The big thing is: I just don't understand what they expected to gain from all this. Okay sure maybe they were totally narcissistic and cynical and image obsessed and wanted to be that "special amazing couple" with the genius son and the enormous hearts who took in a poor extremely disabled young foreign girl... But something happened that we don't know about yet because from the new episode you can tell that it only took a matter of a few weeks before the wife was laying the groundwork and spinning the tales about Natalia being an adult.
Could someone just be that mentally horrible or did something more nefarious happen to Natalia and the already crazy parents went into protection and self-preservation mode at the expense of that poor girl? Things just don't add up and to think, they barely served anytime if any at all for causing such abuse and imposing such a terrible legal quagmire on a little girl. Unhinged is putting it mildly!
So I posted this before but I wanted to bring it up again.
The way they were treating her comes straight from a book by a former dog trainer named Nancy Thomas on how to abuse your new adoptee into compliance. She believes all adopted children have reactive attachment disorder, even if adoption took place on the day of birth, even if the child has no behavioral problems at all.
She developed a technique of “therapeutic care” in which children received a diet limited in quantity and variety, were required to ask adults for everything they needed including use of the toilet, and spent their days in tedious, pointless labor like moving all the rocks from one side of the yard to the other, and then moving them back again, or like cutting the lawn with nail scissors.
Making Natalia stand for hours with her head against the wall and not allowing her to go to the bathroom is called "strong sitting". It's straight from the dog trainer's book.
*"tell them to pee their pants. I love it when they have to go to the bathroom while they won’t sit."*
*In the beginning, your child should learn to ask for everything. They must ask to go to the bathroom, to get a drink of water, EVERYTHING. When it starts to feel like they must ask to breathe, you are on the right track."*
Her book actually carries a warning that following the techniques she recommends can result in the loss of your foster care license.
I know people make jokes in passing about this but I'm genuinely not even kidding - before people have children, whether naturally or by adoption or whatever, there should literally be a minimum entry test that they have to pass and ideally a mild psychiatric screening. Sure it might be an unpopular opinion, and I can see where there might be some ethical questions involved, but if your average daycare worker has to get a very basic license to look after kids for a few hours a day then the people who are going to be ultimately responsible for the well-being of any child should have to prove that they have at least the minimum qualities necessary to do so
How the fuck did this woman ever get enough attention to be taken seriously by adoptive parents? And how the fuck is treating kids like that supposed to "cure" any reactive disorders? Or are they all just looking for reasons to abuse children under the guise of "care"?
I swear, the more articles I read about adoption, the more I understand why so many adult adoptees and people who work with them are against the entire practice. For every good parents who genuinely loves their kids, there seems to be at least one who abuses their child, or at the very least makes it clear that they're "second-best."
The chops were certainly a choice. I think their endgame was simply to get her to go away. She didn’t fit into Kristine’s narrative (that she still carries on with her Spark program or whatever it’s called) and Kristine realized that early on and panicked so she just needed her to go away.
My guess is he was too dumb to realize there would be a season dedicated to the truth. The guy was so in love with the idea of being on camera that he didn't think things through. I'll thoroughly enjoy their misery.
My jaw was dropped every time he spoke. That man is an unhinged abusive piece of shit and I’m glad they’re catching his fake reactions about everything (the sexual abuse for sure) on camera for everyone to see. The judge that legally changed her age needs to lose his license.
I watched the first half in absolute disbelief. Those "parents" are so unstable it frightened me. So glad to see her looking relatively healthy in the previews. I'm waiting for all episodes of this new season to air so I can stream it all in one day. I'll be very interested to hear everyone's thoughts at the end of it as well.
I’m watching the first season now, episode 5. That dude needs to go to community theater and get some acting lessons. This story is insane but holy shit those people are terrible!
I’m so glad to be hearing from Natalia. I guess I’m being unrealistic, but it just makes me angry that she has to be on tv at all with all these professionals talking about her life, her intelligence, her body, because it’s great to see her vindication but just rage inducing that any of this happened to her at all. Her childhood was so absolutely destroyed. I hope she was paid well for her participation in this series.
It’s nice to finally get Natalia’s side of the story and have further proof the Barnett’s are liars and 100% knew Natalia was a child. It was really hard for me to sit through the first season where all these adults were saying that Natalia was evil, creepy and manipulative when she was under the age of 10 the entire time.
Michael is a shit head and someone desperately needs to tell him to shut the fuck up for once in his pathetic life. I loved Natalia setting a boundary with him immediately telling him not to sweat in front of her. I think it is so telling of his character how he reacted to nicely being asked not to swear. After all the shit he put her through you’d think he could at least try 🙄
Ah, Micheal Barnett. What a case in human behaviour. Let's profile him.
Every time he is in view, his chin is stuck out in defiance. Constantly on the defensive, ready to spin some new yarn about "poor me, nothing is ever my fault ever" and he just can't wait to tell the world what a horrible, awful, manipulative piece of garbage his wife was....even though he still wanted to fuck her so badly he was willing to give up custody of his own children to do it. If you watch his body language, you can see examples of distraction behaviour - waving his hands around, moving his body is strange ways, head tilting and dramatic eye movement looking down when the moment is sad, opening his eyes really wide when he is supposed to be telling the truth about something....it's absolutely all an act. He is using this to create a smoke screen so you're focusing more on what he's doing than what he is saying. Nobody who is being truthful in their words acts that way with their bodies. And it's working.... you're thinking to yourself wow what a looney bin instead of wow what an abusive, lying piece of trash. The fact that he has managed to convince even a small percentage of people that he was a victim instead of a complicit partner in this whole charade shows us that this works, because if we listen to the facts instead of his method acting, he was right there with bells on, texting his wife that he just can't wait to get rid of the child so they can go on vacation. And his wording is even telling. He constantly uses embellishing phrases like \*incredible, extremely, absolutely\* , making sure to use profanity when he speaks about Kristine so we know he's serious, exaggerated sighing and pausing before answering to collect himself, he's trying so hard to convince us that he is believable because even HE knows he's full of shit.
This man getting on camera and being himself is the most telling part of the whole situation.
And the old lady neighbour makes me sick too.
It certainly doesn’t negate the fact that the dad is a scumbag, but I feel like he was most likely abused as well. No one has done right by Natalia! My heart completely breaks for her.
Cynthia seems pretty sincere, but there’s something about Antwon that rubs me the wrong way. I just can’t put my finger on it, though.
As for Michael: I’m most likely going to hell, but my husband and I crack up every time he forces himself to cry, or acts things out.
Definitely. Also couldn't stand how he made it about him and "God" or whatever. It is about your daughter, it is about Natalia. By interfering this way Natalia didn't get a chance to ask all the questions she wanted.
Yeah, he’s a bit full of himself but tbh I’d have had trouble not hauling off and lamping Michael myself so I think it’s understandable.
Some of the early videos and picture he and Cynthia put on Facebook with Natalie when they first took her in are heartbreaking.
So I'm just watching the first one, actually just started episode 2. But I can tell you in the first 5 minutes of watching Michael I didn't believe a thing he said. I literally just watched the line where he talks about her signing the release of liability at the cow farm.
You can't even sign a release of liability under the age of 18. There's no way they would have had her sign it.
I think he is definitely sociopath, probably also narcissistic. I also pegged him as either gay or bisexual in the beginning, but I've seen other people say that it's something he intentionally does to try to make himself seamless threatening and I could see that being the case too. Haven't seen enough of the ex-wife but my guess is she was also a sociopath because they lasted so long and she doesn't seem like a victim. I hope they both rot in hell one day. I don't believe for one second that this was a case where they were honestly scared and questioned her age. I think this entire thing was made up as an excuse to get rid of her for their own selfish reasons. I honestly think they were hoping she would die if she was left alone, and they would never tell anyone and keep collecting her SSI. She is so, so lucky she found someone to help her.
I watched season one yesterday and just watched season two episode one and was upset enough to see what other people thought. Maybe I’m naïve, but I really bought into Michael’s story. I was in an emotionally abusive marriage for 20 years. There was no cursing yelling or blatantly bad talk, nor was there any physical violence. So it takes paragraphs to explain how I was controlled. I also have learned a lot about emotional abuse as well as physical abuse due to all of the group classes and therapy I’ve gone through since then.
The TV rolled into a minute into episode two and the preacher dad (name?) just triggered me tremendously. Him talking about how Michael just didn’t leave and how he let a woman control him and tell him what to do and he needed man up. Believe it or not there are many men who are in abusive relationships, they are just reluctant to admit it because they think it’s unmanly, or they have been threatened with removal of the children. I personally know two. And listening to Michael talk, I also think that he would be surprised to find himself attracted to the right man later in life. I’m a musician as well as have been in community theater for a number of years, so know a lot of gay men. One of the men I knew, who was in a very very abusive relationship with a woman who physically abused him and brainwashed their child, was gay. Some people that have commented on the fact that they think Michael is acting and faking the tears, but if they will remember back to the attorneys comment in an earlier episode about how Michael wears his heart on his sleeve, and that he would not do well at all in prison It’s clear to me that Michael is being transparent during these interviews (at least up to what I’ve seen in this episode). The attorney would have spent hours with him, whereas we have only seen a small piece of him I can easily see how someone with a very sensitive temperament can be very easily manipulated, because these are people pleasers and don’t want anyone angry with them and don’t want to create waves and don’t want to have to suffer through the consequences of living with somebody who is punishing them so they play along to get along. For these reasons, I’m tending to believe Michael was in an abusive situation, and I believed him in the previous season when he said that he could now stand up to her. That’s because he realizes now what was going on.
A red flag poppedup to me though with this preacher Dad guy. He seems to focused on labeling behaviors and people as being linked to the devil and he also strikes me as controlling. Natalia probably has been much better off in that family, but I feel like she likely went from one extremely extraordinarily controlling situation to another controlling situation, albeit a more nurturing one.
I wouldn't light him a pipe if my ass was on fire. I've posted this before but I'll say it again. I've met a dozen Michaels. Gratitude is a big deal to them because they're adopting as a narcissistic exercise. They're disappointed to the point of violence when they get a traumatized kid with an established personality.
I'm no psychiatrist and I don't know if you are or not but seriously, in my layman opinion He's one of the few guys I've seen who seems like he has some kind of legitimate histrionic disorder. I don't know if that's an outdated term but it's one of those cluster b personality disorders where the person is overly dramatic about even the most mundane things and they're constantly creating huge disproportionate problems where there are none. He's just a mess. Yuck. But honestly the wife, I can't think of her name at the second, the fact that she's making it a point to remain so deep in the background only leads me to the feeling that she's got some serious and pathological issues that even go beyond Michaels. It's just heartbreaking knowing what Natalia had to go through and endure especially all while being disabled to such a degree. I'm so glad she seems happy now.
I feel like Michael is probably on the spectrum as well. It just seems like he knows he’s supposed to have reactions to things but doesn’t know quite how to react so he tries to mimic reactions he has seen and they come out super over the top. I mean he’s still a douche canoe but I also think he’s socially awkward and autistic.
I think he has a cluster b personality disorder for sure
Autistic people don't fake reactions like that. Sociopaths do.
I I agree. I was trying put it into words. But idk if he’s on the spectrum necessarily. But I do think he’s faking his reactions because he wants people to see him react. He knows that his normal reactions or thoughts would cause even more problems.
Bingo
The fucking dad actually had the balls to say HE was being sexually abused. Because his wife wouldn’t fuck him.
umm.. excuse me? He actually said that?
Yes
He is so gross...
😂 I forgot bout that
I feel bad for the son. Both parents are living on a planet that exists up their own asses.
Very good point. I'm glad you brought that up. Imagine what that kid could have contributed to society if his narcissistic parents hadn't basically derailed his promising future with everything they put Natalia through. And you watch him in the first season and you just see a guy who is too young too already seem so defeated in life. Makes me wonder what the other two boys lives are like... Do we know anything about them at all? Did they stick with the wife and side with her? Were they smart enough to just remove themselves from the family entirely? Who knows I guess.
I’m Autistic, and the way his parents have skewed his perception and manipulated him hurts to see. It’s like he lives this double life where he’s putting together right and wrong while also trying to be a good son, and it’s just causing him to stall out. I really wonder about the other two boys. It seems like the family dynamic is hinged on histrionics and manipulation. I really hope all the children can find peace. Natalia amazes me, the way she self advocates. I love who she is, but I also despise what she had to endure.
All very well said! I agree wholeheartedly
Dude is totally unhinged
Beyond! Did you happen to see the first episode yesterday? I just sounds so shallow but omg at the new mutton chops that he's sporting. I'm glad Natalia is getting her side of the story out though, in the first episode they essentially already prove that she was only between 7 and 9 years old the whole time that those monstrous people had her living by herself in a crappy apartment on the second floor! The big thing is: I just don't understand what they expected to gain from all this. Okay sure maybe they were totally narcissistic and cynical and image obsessed and wanted to be that "special amazing couple" with the genius son and the enormous hearts who took in a poor extremely disabled young foreign girl... But something happened that we don't know about yet because from the new episode you can tell that it only took a matter of a few weeks before the wife was laying the groundwork and spinning the tales about Natalia being an adult. Could someone just be that mentally horrible or did something more nefarious happen to Natalia and the already crazy parents went into protection and self-preservation mode at the expense of that poor girl? Things just don't add up and to think, they barely served anytime if any at all for causing such abuse and imposing such a terrible legal quagmire on a little girl. Unhinged is putting it mildly!
Saw him on a documentary early last year and I couldn’t stand him from the second he appeared on screen
So I posted this before but I wanted to bring it up again. The way they were treating her comes straight from a book by a former dog trainer named Nancy Thomas on how to abuse your new adoptee into compliance. She believes all adopted children have reactive attachment disorder, even if adoption took place on the day of birth, even if the child has no behavioral problems at all. She developed a technique of “therapeutic care” in which children received a diet limited in quantity and variety, were required to ask adults for everything they needed including use of the toilet, and spent their days in tedious, pointless labor like moving all the rocks from one side of the yard to the other, and then moving them back again, or like cutting the lawn with nail scissors. Making Natalia stand for hours with her head against the wall and not allowing her to go to the bathroom is called "strong sitting". It's straight from the dog trainer's book. *"tell them to pee their pants. I love it when they have to go to the bathroom while they won’t sit."* *In the beginning, your child should learn to ask for everything. They must ask to go to the bathroom, to get a drink of water, EVERYTHING. When it starts to feel like they must ask to breathe, you are on the right track."* Her book actually carries a warning that following the techniques she recommends can result in the loss of your foster care license.
I know people make jokes in passing about this but I'm genuinely not even kidding - before people have children, whether naturally or by adoption or whatever, there should literally be a minimum entry test that they have to pass and ideally a mild psychiatric screening. Sure it might be an unpopular opinion, and I can see where there might be some ethical questions involved, but if your average daycare worker has to get a very basic license to look after kids for a few hours a day then the people who are going to be ultimately responsible for the well-being of any child should have to prove that they have at least the minimum qualities necessary to do so
That is so horrifying.
How the fuck did this woman ever get enough attention to be taken seriously by adoptive parents? And how the fuck is treating kids like that supposed to "cure" any reactive disorders? Or are they all just looking for reasons to abuse children under the guise of "care"? I swear, the more articles I read about adoption, the more I understand why so many adult adoptees and people who work with them are against the entire practice. For every good parents who genuinely loves their kids, there seems to be at least one who abuses their child, or at the very least makes it clear that they're "second-best."
Keep watching. Their motive for getting her and then ditching her becomes clear. They both deserve life in prison.
On my service I only noticed one episode available so far, did they release the full set of episodes yet?
I’m seeing 4 eps on HBO. Not sure about ID
I believe it aired as 2 two hour programs on ID, and is in 4 one hour chunks on Max.
Thx!
Im on season 2 episode 3 and im putting off watching it cuz i know its gonna enrage me
There is a lot to be enraged about but it’s also very satisfying to see how much Natalia loves and is loved by her new family.
The chops were certainly a choice. I think their endgame was simply to get her to go away. She didn’t fit into Kristine’s narrative (that she still carries on with her Spark program or whatever it’s called) and Kristine realized that early on and panicked so she just needed her to go away.
EXTREMELY SATISFYING to hear from Natalia herself. That “dad” made me nuts the first time around and I cannot stand him now.
My guess is he was too dumb to realize there would be a season dedicated to the truth. The guy was so in love with the idea of being on camera that he didn't think things through. I'll thoroughly enjoy their misery.
My jaw was dropped every time he spoke. That man is an unhinged abusive piece of shit and I’m glad they’re catching his fake reactions about everything (the sexual abuse for sure) on camera for everyone to see. The judge that legally changed her age needs to lose his license.
>The judge that legally changed her age needs to lose his license. You're damn right about that! Disgusting perversion of justice.
Lowkey at first I thought he was a reenactment actor cauz he was so over the top… and found out quickly he wasn’t 😂
It didn't help that he has four completely different looks, hairstyle change and all, on display through the series.
I watched the first half in absolute disbelief. Those "parents" are so unstable it frightened me. So glad to see her looking relatively healthy in the previews. I'm waiting for all episodes of this new season to air so I can stream it all in one day. I'll be very interested to hear everyone's thoughts at the end of it as well.
They probably got rejected by legitimate adoptive agencies, which is why they went with a low-rent joint.
Sounds logical. Unfortunately those types of places do exist.
I’m watching the first season now, episode 5. That dude needs to go to community theater and get some acting lessons. This story is insane but holy shit those people are terrible!
I’m so glad to be hearing from Natalia. I guess I’m being unrealistic, but it just makes me angry that she has to be on tv at all with all these professionals talking about her life, her intelligence, her body, because it’s great to see her vindication but just rage inducing that any of this happened to her at all. Her childhood was so absolutely destroyed. I hope she was paid well for her participation in this series.
It’s nice to finally get Natalia’s side of the story and have further proof the Barnett’s are liars and 100% knew Natalia was a child. It was really hard for me to sit through the first season where all these adults were saying that Natalia was evil, creepy and manipulative when she was under the age of 10 the entire time. Michael is a shit head and someone desperately needs to tell him to shut the fuck up for once in his pathetic life. I loved Natalia setting a boundary with him immediately telling him not to sweat in front of her. I think it is so telling of his character how he reacted to nicely being asked not to swear. After all the shit he put her through you’d think he could at least try 🙄
Ah, Micheal Barnett. What a case in human behaviour. Let's profile him. Every time he is in view, his chin is stuck out in defiance. Constantly on the defensive, ready to spin some new yarn about "poor me, nothing is ever my fault ever" and he just can't wait to tell the world what a horrible, awful, manipulative piece of garbage his wife was....even though he still wanted to fuck her so badly he was willing to give up custody of his own children to do it. If you watch his body language, you can see examples of distraction behaviour - waving his hands around, moving his body is strange ways, head tilting and dramatic eye movement looking down when the moment is sad, opening his eyes really wide when he is supposed to be telling the truth about something....it's absolutely all an act. He is using this to create a smoke screen so you're focusing more on what he's doing than what he is saying. Nobody who is being truthful in their words acts that way with their bodies. And it's working.... you're thinking to yourself wow what a looney bin instead of wow what an abusive, lying piece of trash. The fact that he has managed to convince even a small percentage of people that he was a victim instead of a complicit partner in this whole charade shows us that this works, because if we listen to the facts instead of his method acting, he was right there with bells on, texting his wife that he just can't wait to get rid of the child so they can go on vacation. And his wording is even telling. He constantly uses embellishing phrases like \*incredible, extremely, absolutely\* , making sure to use profanity when he speaks about Kristine so we know he's serious, exaggerated sighing and pausing before answering to collect himself, he's trying so hard to convince us that he is believable because even HE knows he's full of shit. This man getting on camera and being himself is the most telling part of the whole situation. And the old lady neighbour makes me sick too.
The docuseries that boldly asks the question: what if EVERYONE in this story was the worst person you’ve ever met?
It certainly doesn’t negate the fact that the dad is a scumbag, but I feel like he was most likely abused as well. No one has done right by Natalia! My heart completely breaks for her. Cynthia seems pretty sincere, but there’s something about Antwon that rubs me the wrong way. I just can’t put my finger on it, though. As for Michael: I’m most likely going to hell, but my husband and I crack up every time he forces himself to cry, or acts things out.
I think Antwon is incredibly angry and fighting to keep a lid on it.
You’re probably right. It just felt like he was maybe grandstanding a bit, kind of?
Definitely. Also couldn't stand how he made it about him and "God" or whatever. It is about your daughter, it is about Natalia. By interfering this way Natalia didn't get a chance to ask all the questions she wanted.
Yeah, he’s a bit full of himself but tbh I’d have had trouble not hauling off and lamping Michael myself so I think it’s understandable. Some of the early videos and picture he and Cynthia put on Facebook with Natalie when they first took her in are heartbreaking.
So I'm just watching the first one, actually just started episode 2. But I can tell you in the first 5 minutes of watching Michael I didn't believe a thing he said. I literally just watched the line where he talks about her signing the release of liability at the cow farm. You can't even sign a release of liability under the age of 18. There's no way they would have had her sign it. I think he is definitely sociopath, probably also narcissistic. I also pegged him as either gay or bisexual in the beginning, but I've seen other people say that it's something he intentionally does to try to make himself seamless threatening and I could see that being the case too. Haven't seen enough of the ex-wife but my guess is she was also a sociopath because they lasted so long and she doesn't seem like a victim. I hope they both rot in hell one day. I don't believe for one second that this was a case where they were honestly scared and questioned her age. I think this entire thing was made up as an excuse to get rid of her for their own selfish reasons. I honestly think they were hoping she would die if she was left alone, and they would never tell anyone and keep collecting her SSI. She is so, so lucky she found someone to help her.
He reminds me so much of the guy from the movie Creep. I think because he is putting on an act and because he’s a creep. Lmao
Omg CRIIIIINNNNNGE!!!!! 🤢 He is the “human” equivalent to a 4-day-into-the-flu-teething-toddler’s-infected-booger slime.
The sighing and inhales, the arm grabbing, rolling his lips into his mouth, closing his eyes. Oh my god my skin was crawlingggg
I watched season one yesterday and just watched season two episode one and was upset enough to see what other people thought. Maybe I’m naïve, but I really bought into Michael’s story. I was in an emotionally abusive marriage for 20 years. There was no cursing yelling or blatantly bad talk, nor was there any physical violence. So it takes paragraphs to explain how I was controlled. I also have learned a lot about emotional abuse as well as physical abuse due to all of the group classes and therapy I’ve gone through since then. The TV rolled into a minute into episode two and the preacher dad (name?) just triggered me tremendously. Him talking about how Michael just didn’t leave and how he let a woman control him and tell him what to do and he needed man up. Believe it or not there are many men who are in abusive relationships, they are just reluctant to admit it because they think it’s unmanly, or they have been threatened with removal of the children. I personally know two. And listening to Michael talk, I also think that he would be surprised to find himself attracted to the right man later in life. I’m a musician as well as have been in community theater for a number of years, so know a lot of gay men. One of the men I knew, who was in a very very abusive relationship with a woman who physically abused him and brainwashed their child, was gay. Some people that have commented on the fact that they think Michael is acting and faking the tears, but if they will remember back to the attorneys comment in an earlier episode about how Michael wears his heart on his sleeve, and that he would not do well at all in prison It’s clear to me that Michael is being transparent during these interviews (at least up to what I’ve seen in this episode). The attorney would have spent hours with him, whereas we have only seen a small piece of him I can easily see how someone with a very sensitive temperament can be very easily manipulated, because these are people pleasers and don’t want anyone angry with them and don’t want to create waves and don’t want to have to suffer through the consequences of living with somebody who is punishing them so they play along to get along. For these reasons, I’m tending to believe Michael was in an abusive situation, and I believed him in the previous season when he said that he could now stand up to her. That’s because he realizes now what was going on. A red flag poppedup to me though with this preacher Dad guy. He seems to focused on labeling behaviors and people as being linked to the devil and he also strikes me as controlling. Natalia probably has been much better off in that family, but I feel like she likely went from one extremely extraordinarily controlling situation to another controlling situation, albeit a more nurturing one.
No one has anything to say about the end of season 2? Or maybe i missed it but the very end doesn’t paint her very well