Love Is Blindhas arguably one of the most unconventional themes for areality TV dating showcurrently on television. TheNetflixseries fast-tracks romance and eliminates the distraction of physical appearance: the singles can only hear each other’s voices but not see their faces. When a couple believes they have connected on a deep level, share the same values, and have developed emotional and romantic feelings, they can get engaged and begin planning a wedding. The end of the season focuses on the Big Day.
It’s a premise that has, against all odds, (sort of) worked, ending (so far) in 10 marriages, 8 of which are still going strong. But the show could easily do away with the forced weddings and still be compelling to watch without losing sight of its focus.
How Netflix’s Love Is Blind Works
Each season of theNetflix reality dating showLove Is Blindbegins with a new set of singles who, rather than meet in person, do rounds of anti-speed dating in pods. They can only talk to the other person, take notes, and enjoy shared activities (separately), from eating sushi to water painting or even shooting mini hoops. They never see one another but learn as much as they can about the other people until they narrow the list down to the individuals with whom they most connect.
If two people mutually feel they have a connection worth exploring, one can propose, and the other can accept. Then and only then do they meet in a big reveal. The wedding planning begins along with a vacation, a shared living space, and meet and greets with the family. It all ends with the big wedding day, which is essentially a question mark: Will both say “I do” at the altar?
Why Love Is Blind Should Leave the Forced Weddings Behind
The idea that two people must prove that love is blind by getting engaged andcommitting to a weddinga month from that date without seeing one another arguably takes the experiment too far.Love Is Blindwould still be a viable experiment if the two individuals chose to continue dating one another in the real world without the pressure and commitment of a wedding. If the proposal element is a stand-out, that could still be part of the equation, but with a longer engagement. Planning a wedding is stressful enough. Planning one with someone you not only just “met” (no matter how many hours you have spent chatting) and have only seen a month prior is even more emotionally overwhelming.
During the reveal stage, it’s highly unlikely that anyone would look at the other person, wince, and walk away if they weren’t physically attracted to them. It has been evident on numerous occasions that some people weren’t immediately attracted to the person they were about to call wife or husband at the reveal. Shaina didn’t appear attracted to Kyle at all. Irina outright talked about Zack’s purported cartoonish looks. JP admitted to Taylor that he was put off when he first saw her by her “excessive make-up.” In Season 6, Jimmy was visibly disappointed that Chelsea did not bear a strikingresemblance to Megan Foxsince she told him people have said that about her. Amy from Season 6, meanwhile, admitted that while Johnny is nothing like the typical guy she would go for when it comes to physicality, he is growing on her.
Love Is Blind Could Learn Something From Big Brother
Big Brother might not be a reality dating show, but it has resulted in many successful marriages, and Love Is Blind could learn a thing or two.
But because the wedding is the big goal of the show, the couples are forced to either continue with the all-or-nothing premise or cut the relationship short in as desirable a way as they can. If you’re not 100% sure, you need to get into that headspace within four weeks. In some cases, people choose to end things before the finale. It’s either in explosive fashion, like with Diamond and Carlton from Season 1, or more heartbreaking, like Shaina abandoning Kyle in Mexico in Season 2.
Jessica from Season 2 knew she did not want to marry Mark early on after meeting him but had to continue for the sake of the show. She toldEntertainment Weeklythat she “had a conversation about leaving” and “wasn’t able to do that.” She admitted she found the experience “frustrating” because she “kind of knew [we] weren’t going to get there.” It’s one thing to carry on with someone you know isn’t “the one” for the sake of television, but an entirely different thing to have to go through an entire wedding experience, from shopping for dresses to having your family and friends show up for what could end up being a non-event.
With the clock ticking on that four-week deadline, it’s a compelling reason to cut your losses and go, even if there could be potential down the line with the other person. The other option, of course, is to use the wedding opportunity to make a statement, as was done with Deepti in Season 2 and Zanab in Season 3. They both, in their own ways, used the wedding to call out the men they were to marry for alleged behavior, actions, and words or, in the case of Deepti, to simply show everyone that she values herself too much to settle. Deepti flipped the script and turned the forced wedding into a positive, but not everyone is so lucky.
How Love Is Blind Could Be Better
What’s a possible resolution to this problem?Love is Blindshould leave the forced weddings behind and allow cast members to commit to continued relationships versus marriage. The vacation, shared living space, and even meeting the family could still be part of the show, along with all the drama that comes with these events. But the wedding doesn’t have to be the immediate end goal.
Take the pressure of marriage and planning a wedding – something that is overwhelming for even couples who have been dating for years – out of the equation and let the cast get to know one another outside of the pods without the thought in the back of their mind of a necessary looming, life-altering decision. The results would probably be the same, and some couples that didn’t work out might have even grown closer without feeling like it was now or never.
Couples like Shayne and Natalie, Damian and Gianina, and Raven and S.K., for example, continued to date after saying no at the altar. Even though they didn’t last, the wedding was nothing more than an overly dramatic blip in their relationships. Conversely, Nick and Danielle and Jarrette and Iyana, the two couples who marriedbut later divorced, could have avoided the trauma by spending more time with one another in the real world, without cameras, to ensure that the hiccups they had been experiencing weren’t going to be lingering issues.
If one individual truly loves the other person but needs more time, the fact that their partner said no, especially in front of all their loved ones, will always make them wonder why they weren’t enough. Izzy from Season 5 is a perfect example: he felt completely betrayed by Stacy when she couldn’t go through with it, despite every indication leading up to the day suggesting they were both ready. She hinted at the possibility of them continuing to date after the failed wedding, but he was ultimately too hurt to consider it. It’s tough to come back from someone looking you in the eye and saying I love you, but I’m nottotallysure.
Which ‘Love Is Blind’ Couples Are Still Together In 2025?
‘Love Is Blind’ has delivered its share of drama, but also successful marriages, too, and even a few upcoming babies.
A Change Could Be Good for Love Is Blind
Love Is Blindhas an opportunity to become the most successful reality dating show, ironically, if it gets rid of the one element that has defined it: forced weddings. Perhaps the finales could involve the proposals,The Bachelor-style, versus the acutal weddings. The partners decide at that point if they want to propose for the first time (or again) to the person now that they have gotten to know them. But they don’t have to set a date in stone to officially tie the knot.
Marriage might be considered an antiquated tradition to some, but for those who believe in it, it’s not a reward that should come at the end of a reality show. Leaving things at just the proposal removes the element of intense pressure and might help cast members and couples let down their guards more. They can work towards deciding if they want to continue dating this person and start planning a life together…eventually, not head to forever right from the jump.Love Is Blindis available to stream on Netflix.
