@ingravinoveritas In this clip and the one where DT says "maybe I should've married Michael Sheen," after he mentions him, he looks away super duper seriously and bites his lip. He talks about MS like a teenage girl embarrassed by liking a boy band a lot lol

@cloud-based-and-rainpilled That is such a perfect description and you are honestly not at all wrong...

I think we're so used to Michael being so loud about being thirsty and wanting David so enthusiastically that we forget there are other ways of expressing those emotions. That things like fondness, adoration, and lust can all be conveyed just as loudly in actions as they can in words.

David is so damn soft when it comes to Michael; in how he talks about him in a way he doesn't talk about any other co-stars, the way he brings him up completely unprompted, and how he looks away like you said, looks down and to the side as if he's remembering something. And let's remember that this was in May of last year and he was in Cardiff (despite Georgia trying to convince everyone otherwise), so it's highly likely that he and Michael saw each other during that time.

For me, though, it's especially the other thing you said, which is how serious David is when he says this and "Maybe I should've married Michael Sheen." A lot of folks want to keep saying that he's joking, but the thing is, David jokes about so many things...but Michael is someone and something he seems to take incredibly seriously.

@ingravinoveritas still can’t get over David giggling and turning bright red in the last .gif after Michael implied to the interviewer and the audience and all in the universe that he’d blown his back out last night 💀

@cloud-based-and-rainpilled Oh god, I am fucking wheezing right now...

(Original post here.)

@cloud-based-and-rainpilled You're welcome! And I am definitely with you, re: body language analysis being tricky, particularly for neurodivergent people. I just completed a sex ed curriculum for autistic young adults/adults that I helped to create as part of a grant I received, and one of the things I really wanted to emphasize was how neurotypicals have certain expectations/ideas about body language and what things can mean, but that also doesn't mean there is anything wrong with how autistic people communicate.

So yes, that analysis can be difficult, but I agree with you that it (and that gut feeling) exist for a reason, and I think for me, as someone who is neurodivergent and always had difficulty picking up on these things, it's Michael and David being so "loud" that has helped me to pick up on it with them.

Someone mentioned in a comment that Michael got ‘downgraded’ to boyfriend, so my tinfoil (again, could be wrong/insane) is that AL & GT referring to each other as wifey is to downplay the previous MS ‘wife’ jokes, since people keep commenting about a poly thing going on, moreso than the past. Also since MS is in London rn, he’s with DT more, so I think there’s a bit of insecurity going on. a lot of (doomed) poly couples have an ‘out of sight, out of mind’ rule, or think the swinging being gay 'doesn't count/isn't a threat,' which could be why the posts feel forced. (parasocial, creepy, bad person, etc., whatever, I calls it as I sees it and have seen it before 🤷‍♀️ )

lepqueen replied to your post: 

My biggest question on this was actually about the song choice, given that I am reasonably sure Sting said at some point Every Breath You Take is a stalker song.

@cloud-based-and-rainpilled I had a similar thought about the insecurity. I think Georgia and AL trying so hard to give the appearance of everything being "fine" and everyone getting along only makes it feel more like things in reality are not exactly what's being presented on social media. I personally did not see "boyfriend" as a downgrade (because from my perspective, "other wife" reads as more jokey/unserious, but boyfriend is...softer, somehow), but I can see why some folks could interpret it as a downgrade when it's actually a readjusting of whatever the dynamic is between all of them.

Going back to the insecurity, I had also wondered how things would play out while Michael was in London for such a long time during the run of Nye, and it makes all the sense in the world that things would change with Michael and David being able to see each other in person frequently. And you make a salient point about the gay swinging being seen as less threatening (which I think is why it's been easy for Georgia and AL to start up with that, and why we have never seen even one reference to David/Anna or Michael/Georgia and swinging). It could be that shipping Michael and David was also seen as less threatening and easier to play along with a few years ago, when it was all still new and Michael and David hadn't gotten as close as they have now. So yes, I do think something has changed, and though we may never be privy to what specifically, we can still see its aftereffects and reverberations in a variety of ways.

(I also wish the antis/people making vitriolic posts in the tags would understand your final point, which is that some of us have seen these things before and are speaking from a place of experience--unlike their assertions (and I have actually seen someone say this) that we have never had any close friendships or relationships like these, and therefore know nothing.)

To your comment, @lepqueen, I also found myself raising an eyebrow at the song choice. You are correct that Sting has described the song as being creepy, and I found one quote from him in particular attesting to this:

@ingravinoveritas Not to go full conspiracy mode (as she goes full conspiracy mode,) but methinks Anna & Georgia’s recent underhanded critiques are directly related to resentment from David & Michael hanging out for the past 4-5 months

@cloud-based-and-rainpilled I don't think it's a conspiracy when it's now visibly, demonstrably noticeable to multiple people. It's been amazing to me to see people talk about how much things have changed recently in terms of the fandom and the discussions that are happening, but somehow not make the connection to what else has been going on the last six months (because I think it was November when Michael first relocated to London, for Nye rehearsals).

None of this was happening when Michael was still in Wales. Georgia and AL's social media posts were completely different and nothing like what we've seen since Michael and David have been together in person. Not just together in person, either...but neighbors. Who could now see each other at their leisure. And all I have thought is that not one of the four of them were prepared for what it would be like when Michael and David would be in close physical proximity.

I'm just hard-pressed to think of any other reason why the passive-aggressiveness from both Georgia and Anna has ramped up so much, especially over the last months (and which is reflected in the change in tenor of their Insta stories/posts and the seeming abandonment of the whole "wife" thing). It does raise the question as well of why either Georgia or AL would feel such resentment. Michael and David are best friends, as we know, and the supposed narrative is that Georgia and AL are also "besties" and that they're all one big happy polycule...so if that is the case, why would Georgia and AL be making these comments, especially if said comments are related to Michael and David spending so much time together?

@ingravinoveritas ahhhh the parallels are just so… honestly, yes of course they love acting with each other, but also considering their life circumstances, it’s like they’re living the fantasy of actually being together, hence pushing so hard for working together, especially as a duo. It’s opaque but using acting is a brilliant non-disguise. abso-lutely down bad, I forgot how flirty those interviews were

@cloud-based-and-rainpilled I absolutely love the way you phrased this, and I fully agree. "Living the fantasy of actually being together" is a perfect description for it.

I think that's why the parallels with DJ and Ty just struck me so much (meeting on set, starting off as friends, the relationship deepening into something more over time, and now they never want to be apart). And Michael and David living that fantasy by saying they want to do a theatrical tour of GO or play them very old seems so transparent at this point, yet still looks opaque to those who aren't paying close enough attention. Because when you think about it, what is really so different about DJ saying he and Ty are going to be old men together versus Michael and David saying it? How much more can you say "I want to spend the rest of my life with you" without actually saying "I want to spend the rest of my life with you"?

“Subconscious leakage” is an alternative term for a Freudian slip, and her use of “leaving Michael” 100% feels like her actual desires slipping through. Something like “you’ve got competition/my other love/boyfriend” is more typical of posts like this; it’s screaming “I want out” The “I’ll fax you lol :)” pic is pretty funny tbh (real loving thing to say to the mother of your child lol) They’re not happy and it’s hand-over-face embarrassing to watch :/

@cloud-based-and-rainpilled Spot on, once again. It's interesting to notice that both she and Michael can't seem to hide their real feelings, but where Michael just refrains from saying anything at all, Anna goes the route of making these little passive-aggressive comments that give away more than she probably intended. And while she doesn't often talk about their relationship at any length, the few moments when she does haven't gone over very well.

What you said about her actual desires coming through is what stood out to me as well, particularly in thinking of that post with the pictures from the weekend at David and Georgia's home. Putting the blurry photo of Michael and David last was not an accident, and it says something that AL made that specific choice. That she knows what people want to see and resents it, and wants the attention for herself instead. (It's curious as well that in all of the photos, there are at least three selfies of her, one of her and Georgia, one of Michael and David...and none of her and Michael. Sort of gives you a good idea of who was hanging out with whom the entire time...)

That answer is so cheeky and coy and honest, esp considering it wasn’t for any sort of publicity— he actually means it. Absolutely precious, my man is down bad

@cloud-based-and-rainpilled I thought exactly the same thing, re: cheeky, coy, and honest. All of those are what made me love his answer so much, and also that this wasn't a TV interview, or an instance of Michael promoting anything. It was him just talking to a fan (again, much in the same way as he used to on Twitter) and being fully honest.

As I had said in my previous post, the "coy" part is what really gets me, too. I actually really love that he didn't lay everything out on the table. Michael didn't say "It was just a work kiss," but he didn't give a graphic or detailed response, either, and it feels like that's because he is holding onto something just for himself. I'm lamenting that we don't have audio or video of Michael saying this, because he is so good at expressing so much with just his voice and/or his eyes, and it would be so interesting to see what he conveys through his microexpressions.