MAFS promote The Beauty & The Beast syndrome

The #MAFS “experts” delighted in the moment when Lucinda “talked Tim down”.
Unlike Jack, he has not been cast as the villain, he is the one with blokey charisma, his story is of deep emotional wounds and he is unable to open up to Lucinda.
So when he banged his fist on the table he was able to get away with it in a way that Jack the villain would not.

Lucinda is relentlessly patient, she’s identified his wounds and although he has clearly stated that he is difficult and a “hot head” (volatile and unpredictable / entitled and unapologetic ) the experts delighted in her skilful way of “talking him down”.

He pounded the table with his fist, knocking wine over and entered the dinner party combative and ready for a fight.

The idealising of Lucinda’s patience after being strung along for weeks by a man who clearly has no interest in her and announced himself as difficult in the beginning, is an instructional story for women that the Beauty and the Beast fairytale is worth sinking yourself into because we all know that wounded charismatic, emotionally distant man-Beast will transform under the selfless patience of the lovely Beauty who understands him like no other and is the answer to his transformation.

Over the years MAFS “experts” and producers on this popular ratings television show have leveraged some of the worst aspects of relationships, coercive control , lies, infidelity and gaslighting as ratings fodder.

At the dinner party, the experts glowed as Lucinda sat down to patiently confront Tim for his man tantrum.
The imposition of his rage at the dinner party was edited far less spectacularly than the storylines for the villains.

Today MAFS social media includes comments from women who say they would love be like Lucinda and would attend any women’s coaching classes that she held.

I’m not sure to what degree the experts have hands on experience in the area of coercive control and intimate partner violence, but there should be accountability for repackaging the Beauty and the Beast story as aspirational, sending the message to women that their patience and reasonable response is the very thing needed to transform that volatile angry man beast into the version of him that she has in her head and heart.

Tim is 51, he is combative, arrogant and dismissive of her needs but he’s got that twinkle, touch of the silver tongue, a bit charismatic and arrogant, and Lucinda’s light could well be the beacon that will bring Tim home to himself.

Of course this isn’t going to happen and in the meantime thousands of women across Australia are watching on in awe whilst being reinforced with the myth that if the Beauty is patient and understanding the Beast will no longer be volatile or unpredictable.

UPDATE- When Lucinda’s Bubble Bursts: https://carolom.wordpress.com/2024/03/19/when-the-bubble-bursts/