While watching the current season of everyone’s favorite romantic “experiment,†I kept thinking not of love but of William Hung. Do you remember him? He became notorious for singing what is possibly the world’s worst rendition of “She Bangs†during the audition phase of the third season of American Idol way back in 2004. This came to mind because Love Is Blind only shows us the good dates, only follows the five successful couples who have proposed before even seeing each other. The 20 other singles who were tapped for this show are dropped like a biting dog at the animal rescue.
In season six, we do see Matthew Duliba go on a number of very awkward dates that get him branded as a serial killer, and he does get caught saying the same thing to two different women. One of those women is AD, who goes on to be part of a couple that will be featured for the rest of the season. (Hey, AD: Yes, Clay is hot, but run, girl, run!) The only reason we get to see Matthew is because he was entangled with her. If she hadn’t become a fixture on the show, he might have ended up on the cutting-room floor with all the other randos who don’t seem to make a connection.
But if this really is an “experiment†to see if love is blind, then why are we only looking at the people who develop a connection in the pods? I wish that Love Is Blind would be more like the reality version of Squid Game, which introduced us to characters who were certainly going to be fake-killed before the end of the series. The audience develops emotional bonds with these people, and when they don’t succeed, we feel as disappointed as they are. Just like when your favorite contestant on Squid Game kicks it, seeing your favorite single fail to find the connection they were hoping for could be devastating in the right way.
The biggest thing I want from Love Is Blind, however, is a giant reveal party. Maybe it happens at the resort where the five couples are honeymooning. Yes, there’s a cocktail party where the ten of them get together, but why not have all 30 contestants there? That way everyone gets to see everyone and maybe some people who didn’t connect by speaking to each other will connect once they get a look at the rest of the dating pool. This would also let us see whether people made the right choice or not. Would Jimmy have really choked on his words, as Jess said he would, if he saw her in person after picking Chelsea? Yes, they meet up later in the season, but what if that meeting happened when their feelings were still fresh? I expect reality carnage, and we want nothing less. We’ll never know!
The real reason I want all of this is because there are 20 contestants that we’re barely getting peeks at. These people have all been cast on a reality-television program, so we know the whole lot is just as batshit insane, emotionally maladjusted, and bad at relationships as the ten we get to focus on. Think about all the crazy we’re leaving on the table by getting rid of the also-rans. Remember season three’s Andrew, the guy who gets caught putting eye drops in his eyes to make it look like he cried? This guy was a Shake in the making, but we only see a tiny bit of him.
Love Is Blind can seem like a conservative trap, making us all believe that the point of human existence is to be in a heteronormative relationship where monogamy reigns and you have a whole horde of kids with misspelled names like Jayydin and Rafi Elle. I often feel like it’s leading me to a megachurch and giving me a 20 percent off coupon to Home Goods. The mess of the broken hearts would leaven that and add a touch of reality to this reality show. The series is always peddling the sanctity of its experiment, but how can we really judge if we don’t get a full picture? Not all love ends well, and not all experiments are a success. Be honest with us about everyone. After all, I can’t tell you who won the fourth season of American Idol, but 20 years later, I’m still thinking about William Hung.