Contrary to what Michael tells him, Brian won't be young and beautiful forever. And he is beginning to figure that out. Brandon enters the scene and not only denies Brian's advances, but he also steals away tricks from him. I don't know about other viewers, but I thoroughly enjoyed watching this happen because it serves to shatter Brian's illusion of himself. It's about time Brian is shoved off his pedestal so that he can finally realize that what he has with Justin is so much more important than tricking himself into believing that men will worship him forever. In the end, it's all meaningless if Brian can't share his life with Justin.

Though it may seem heartless that Brian kicked Justin out of his life for knowing that he has cancer, it does make perfect sense if you understand Brian's character. Brian prides himself on being immaculate in every aspect of his life, and it is a big part of the reason why he thinks Justin loves him so much. But it is obvious that Brian still has so much to learn about Justin's love for him. Justin loves Brian for his imperfections, not in spite of them. I think from the very beginning Justin saw through Brian's mask of perfection and somewhat abrasive personality. Justin knew there was something more to him, and he was right.

When Brian's perfect image was shattered, he therefore became afraid that his spell over Justin would end. Brian has come to love Justin so much that, once he discovered that Justin knew he had cancer, he thought that he had lost Justin for good. So, rather than risk the pain of growing to love and care for Justin any more than he already has--and then have Justin leave him--he thought he'd try to spare himself any more grief by ending it with Justin right away. That's why Brian only pushes away Justin, and no one else. Brian pushes away the person he loves the most because he can't stand the thought of losing him later on, when he believes Justin will grow tired of him and begin to not love him anymore.

Now if that isn't true love on Brian's part, then I definitely have no clue what love is. But I like to think I do!

Anyway, Justin puts Brian's fears to rest when he declares his committment to Brian, no matter what. You can see Brian ease up after Justin says this. Brian just needed reassurance. He never wanted to be rid of Justin. In fact, he wants Justin by his side more than words can express. He just needed to know that Justin's love for him isn't based on his being perfect.

I marvel at how slow Michael is on the uptake. I mean, Justin figured out right away that Brian and Ben had sex immediately after Brian mentioned that he and Ben both were at a White Party a couple of years ago, but Michael just doesn't catch on. And you think he would, after all the years he's known Brian.

Anyway, it turns out that Michael is very upset that Ben has had sex with Brian. Are we surprised? But then, something quite extraordinary happens. Brian willingly offers himself to Michael. This isn't like the time in episode 119 when Brian makes a move on Michael because he doesn't want to think about his father's death--and besides, he is completely wasted at the time. But this time, Brian offers himself up for Michael's sake, and not for his own.

I have a theory about why Brian finally decided to let Michael have what he always wanted: Before Justin, before Brian fell in love with Justin, Brian took pleasure in knowing that he had this power over Michael. Brian always knew that Michael wanted to be lovers with Brian, and perhaps Brian felt that maybe someday in the far future, when he was no longer young and beautiful, that he and Michael would be together. Since Brian didn't want to risk losing Michael as his friend--and as a way to always have him by his side--Brian took advantage of the fact that Michael wanted Brian as his lover. He gave him bits of his affection, to make him think that maybe someday Brian would be his, but never following through on the deal. As a result, Michael always stuck around, hoping that someday his time would come. And Brian had the security of knowing that Michael will always be around for him, just in case he changes his mind.

But then something unexpected happened. Brian actually fell in love with someone, and that person wasn't Michael. I think that when Brian fell in love with Justin, he figured out that Michael's fantasy would never come true, even when Brian grew older. He was left without a doubt in his mind that he'd never be Michael's, because he wanted to be Justin's. Brian said it himself: he wants Justin around for a long time (episode 207). So, in this episode, when the moment of truth came, Brian was willing to relinquish his hold on Michael so that Michael would finally have the chance to love someone for real, who would love him back. By having sex with Michael, Brian would be giving up a great deal of power that he's had over Michael for the past 17 years. And Brian's finally able to let him go in that respect because he found a whole new life with Justin. In some ways, Michael was a temporary fix for Brian until Brian found something more. Don't get me wrong, I love Brian and Michael's friendship and I don't doubt that they'll be friends forever. But Michael isn't what Brian really wants or needs. So when Justin came along and managed to inspire feelings in Brian that Brian thought he'd never have for anyone, everything changed.

In the end, Michael didn't accept Brian's offer, I guess because he knew that it wouldn't mean anything to Brian, the way he would like it to. That is, after the act, Brian wouldn't feel for Michael what he obviously feels for Justin. Michael realizes that he and Brian will never be, though I think he continues to hold on to the idea even after this episode. But finally, there's absolute closure on that part of their relationship. Brian and Michael are forever friends, but nothing more. The 'more' part on Brian's side is reserved only for Justin.

The first to make his parents happy, and the second to make himself happy. Thank goodness he chooses the latter, or else he would've been miserable. And he would be without Brian, which is just unheard of and unacceptable. We have to give Brian time to fall in love with Justin, and that can't happen if he goes to Dartmouth. Brian takes the trouble to make Justin understand the importance of living life for himself and not for someone else. If that means defying his parents wishes, then that's what he needs to do. When Brian tells Justin that "there's no turning back", I think he is applying that statement both to Justin and himself. Now that Justin has turned into a "big queer he can't go back in the closet and hide from who he really is. It's out there, and there's no denying it. Similarly, now that Brian has grown attached to Justin, there's no letting him go, and he'll be damned to let Justin go through his life unsatisfied. Brian had to have seen something in Justin from the very first night he met him to stick by him so long and to try to make him the best homosexual he could. Before, Justin had to go out of his way to make Brian see him, for Brian to take an interest. But at this point, Brian can't help but involve himself in Justin's life. Somehow, Justin managed to get himself in under the wire, and now Brian cares for him in a way he's never cared for anyone else.

There's no turning back for either of them.

Once again, Justin proves how important he is to Brian by helping him to see how to fix the situation between Melanie and Lindsay, though Justin may not realize how big of a part he's played. Justin tells Brian that he is "killing him with kindness" because it has "proven to be a highly effective technique for achieving one's goals." Brian takes this advice and uses it to bring Melanie and Lindsay back together. In an act of selfless generosity, Brian relinquishes his parental rights because he knows Mel and Lindz love each other, and they both love Gus. Thanks to Justin, Brian was able to see this. And though Brian may appear to be annoyed with all of Justin's nagging, he doesn't pull away from him. At the end, you can see that Brian considers Justin's statement of "Not as long as I have you to protect me" as if he's deciding whether or not Justin's saying this is a positive or negative thing. And we see that Brian is not bothered by it, but instead he draws Justin closer to him. What a great moment! That is, the verification that Brian likes having Justin around and he likes being there to protect him.

I also love the opening scene when Brian and Justin are making out during the Paris slideshow--"We're Frenching." They're too adorable. Ted's also a big laugh with his snoring--I love his sarcasm.