When it comes to dating reality TV shows, pretty much every one of them is messy. From rumors of cheating to fights and drama between contestants, hard truths being revealed during filming or in the aftermath on reunion episodes, and more, part of what makes them exciting is both the focus on love and the inclusion of drama.
With that said, Love is Blind on Netflix is arguably the messiest dating show around, for numerous reasons. The very premise of singles meeting in pods where they must get engaged before meeting in person is awkward in and of itself. But the events that proceed thereafter sometimes lead to messy, albeit also entertaining, moments.
10.A Lack Of Physical Attraction Makes Things Awkward
As noted, it’s admirable that the idea behind the show is for people to fall in love with who they are and not what they look like. But this ignores the importance of physical attraction. There’s a fine line between judging someone for how they look or not being a usual “type” and not being physically attracted to a person at all. This has led to awkward moments whereby it’s clear two individuals have no physical attraction to one another at all yet continue to go through with the process.
Irina Solomonova from season four immediately commented that Zack Goytowski looked like a cartoon character. Shake Chatterjee from season two, one of the worst Love is Blind contestants, told anyone who would listen that he wasn’t attracted to Deepti Vempati. And Hannah Jiles and Nick Dorka from season seven both made comments about their disappointment with the other’s looks (Hannah on camera and Nick reportedly off). The most notable, of course, is Jimmy Presnell from season 6, who believed Chelsea Blackwell looked like Megan Fox based on earlier misconstrued conversations in the pods. He was visibly disappointed when he met her and realized she only had a tiny resemblance. “She lied to me,” he joked.
9.Insecurities Are Fueled Due To Other Connections
After meeting the person each single, has gotten engaged to for those who end up progressing on the show, there are moments to meet with the other couples as well. This includes other singles from the pods with whom they connect as well. This often leads to awkward conversations where newly engaged people meet face-to-face with the person they turned down or who turned them down. There’s still an emotional connection there and the feelings are fresh. Sometimes, the person’s new fiancé wasn’t even aware of how deep that other connection was.
This has led to many messy moments whereby fiancés have become jealous at their partner’s flirting (think Hannah in season seven), or engaged people commenting on how the person they turned down is more their type (think Cole Barnett from season three talking about Colleen Reed or Bartise Bowden from the same season calling Raven Ross a “smoke show.”) Trying to remove physical attraction from the initial equation is admirable. But it leads to moments when eyes bug out of their heads at what the person missed out on physically, fueling insecurities with their partners who feel like they don’t measure up.
8.People Go On The Show For The Wrong Reasons
While the first season seemed to attract the most wholesome cast, each season thereafter seems to include at least a few people who appear to be on the show for the wrong reasons. Some are social media influencers, or have become so, suggesting they were looking for clout and exposure. Trevor Sova in season six, for example, later (sort of) admitted to having a girlfriend before going on the show, and even texting with her about his time in the pods while there. This suggested it was all a joke to him.
In season seven, while some are on Nick’s side, Hannah reveals that she found a journal where he had written his life goals for the next few months. Among them was to become one of the most famous people from Love is Blind.
7.People Literally Left At The Altar
Couples know that the moment at the altar is up in the air right until the last minute. Some cast members like Jessica Batten from season one, have admitted that they knew they weren’t going to say yes but claim to have been pressured by producers to see the process through anyway. For those who legitimately don’t know, however, it becomes messy when someone is blindsided at the altar.
With Bartise and Nancy Rodriguez, it almost led to an all-out brawl when Nancy’s brother looked like he wanted to fight Bartise for hurting his sister. With Raven, fans were convinced they would both say yes, but she was visibly destroyed when SK Alagbada said no, though the pair did continue dating afterward. Giannina Giabella from season one literally walked out in her wedding dress to pout in the forest, angry that she was embarrassed in front of her friends and family. Izzy Zapata in season five broke down in tears, truly believing he had found “the one” in Stacy Snyder. It’s heart-wrenching to see some of the cast members who truly felt this would be their big day have their hearts ripped from their chests.
6.Damning Secrets Revealed Halfway Through
It’s inevitable that in every season, damning secrets are revealed as the episodes start streaming. None of this impacts the show itself, which is filmed long before it airs. But the fallout often becomes fodder for explosive reunion episodes. From Trevor having a girlfriend and texting her about his conversations in the pods with Chelsea to Tyler Francis from season seven having fathered three children as a sperm donor for a lesbian friend and her wife, these secrets get more bizarre every season.
Then, there are secrets revealed during and on the show, such as Stephen Richardson’s emotional cheating via racy texts in season seven, Carlton Morton disclosing to Diamond Jack that he’s bisexual only after they had already gotten engaged, and Lydia Arleen admitting to Aaliyah Cosby that she dated Uche Okoroha, the man Aaliyah had fallen for in the pods, in real life.
5.The Meeting Of Love Triangles
Along with the couples meeting one another, the show ensures that everyone meets everyone eventually. This means people who were in messy love triangles, which happen every season, come face-to-face during a make-or-break time in their relationships. One of the most notable is Amber Pike, Matt Barnett, and Jessica from season one. Jessica continued to question Barnett’s decision, clearly attracted to him, which understandably angered Amber.
There was also Natalie Lee, Shayne Jansen, and Shaina Hurley, whereby Shaina regretted not telling Shayne how she felt and losing him to Natalie. She made her presence known, and Natalie alleged that she continued to interfere in their relationship even when they continued to date after saying no at the altar. The worst by far, however, was with Jeramey Lutinski, Laura Dadisman, and Sarah Ann Bick in season six. After meeting with Sarah Ann until the wee hours of the morning while engaged to Laura, they had a dramatic and public break-up. Immediately after, Jeramey went jet-skiing with Sarah Ann as if they were on a romantic first date, right in front of his ex-fiance.
4.He Saids, She Saids Involving Other Cast Members
Not every moment is caught on camera, of course, and there are a lot of “he said, she said” moments on the show, often brought out during the reunion. In the season seven reunion, for example, there was a heated debate over whether Nick commented on Hannah’s looks to some of the other guys, calling her derogatory names.
In other episodes, there have been accusations among people like Natalie, Shayne, and Shaina. During the pods phase in season six, cast member Matthew Duliba was accused of feeding the same sappy romantic lines to both Amber Grant and AD, resulting in Amber deciding to leave the show altogether.
3.Raw Footage Of Emotional Break-Ups
Not every couple who gets engaged and meets in person makes it to the wedding portion of the show. There have been many dramatic break-ups and these, for the most part, play out on camera. For Chelsea and Jimmy, this was awkwardly at an amusement park after a wonderful day of carnival rides and games in one of the best episodes of Love is Blind season 6. With Kenneth Gorham and Brittany Mills in season six, it was a tearful break-up at home, as it was for Ramses Prashad and Marissa George in season seven, where she cried uncontrollably when he said he no longer wanted to go through with the wedding.
Others, like Marshall Glaze from season four and Alex Byrd, Monica Davis, and Nick from season seven, dealt with dramatic break-ups on camera that were, at times, uncomfortable to watch.
2.Parents And Families Put On The Spot
In some cases, the cast members haven’t told their families about the show at all, like with Natalie. When it comes to more traditional parents, this leads to awkward on-camera situations where moms and dads are put on the spot. In other instances, even when families know their loved one is going on the show and the premise of it, they don’t expect them to come home and say they are getting married in a few weeks to a stranger. Yet this is what happens with an entire camera crew around.
While the parents handle it in stride, some come off as the most entertaining part of the show, marriage is a big deal. Putting parents through that, especially more traditional or religious ones, or parents who have been through nasty divorces themselves, can be uncomfortable at times.
1.Lots And Lots Of Wine
Love is Blind is known for its signature gold cups from which the cast drinks everything from water to wine. They are used to avoiding continuity issues when scenes are spliced together, so someone’s drink doesn’t go from half empty to half full mid-conversation. But it’s clear that throughout most events, everyone is encouraged to drink. From the pods to the parties, those glasses are always nearby.
Especially when it comes to the parties where all the couples and singles from the pods get together, the drinks are flowing. People are seen taking shots and downing cocktail after cocktail so they can have a good time. But it also often leads to messy drunken fights and savage truth-telling.
