Their Love Is No Longer Blind: Why Some Fans Say They've Soured On Netflix's Dating Show

Not 1 mates who met during play 9 of “Love Is Blind” had a fairy-tale ending, a shocking conclusion that has made immoderate fans mobility whether nan making love show is worthy their time.

When nan bid debuted connected Netflix successful February 2020, viewers gravitated toward its refreshing premise: Can group autumn for each different without seeing each other? The thought particularly resonated pinch group who were starting to consciousness isolated arsenic nan Covid-19 pandemic began to return hold.

From their isolated “pods,” contestants velocity day each other, engaging successful hourslong earthy conversations that sometimes tin lead to proposals wrong days of their “meeting.” Netflix past has nan lovebirds trial whether they really mesh successful person. The travel yet leads immoderate of nan couples to nan altar, wherever they are tasked pinch saying yes aliases nary to their matches aft conscionable weeks of knowing each other.

But nan absence of genuine romance this season, coupled pinch several controversies complete nan past fewer years, has fueled disdain for nan bid from immoderate fans who opportunity nan show has go unwatchable.

“I deliberation nan bid has mislaid its spark, nan logic it was created,” said Kadidjha Traore, who was among nan galore fans who posted astir their disappointment connected TikTok. She cited nan occurrence of play 1 instrumentality favorites Lauren Speed-Hamilton and Cameron Hamilton, whom she described arsenic “the poster kid of loving being blind.”

However, arsenic nan seasons went on,” Traore said, nan show “kind of has deteriorated.”

Season 9 formed members Kalybriah, left, Nick Amato, Madison Maidenberg, Anton Yarosh and Megan Walerius stitchery for a reunion episode.Adam Rose / Netflix

Dating shows proceed to vie for viewership successful an oversaturated marketplace for specified programming. Ratings for nan long-running “Bachelor” franchise and its galore spinoffs person waned amid criticism for being excessively stale. Even highly celebrated shows for illustration “Love Is Blind” (both nan U.S. and U.K. versions) person faced aggravated scrutiny from fans complete really they person handled cyberbullying of contestants and their intelligence health.

“Love Is Blind” hasn’t faced a dip successful viewership during its five-year run. Each season, which has taken spot successful a different U.S. city, has continued to support a spot successful nan most-viewed rankings connected Netflix aft it drops. The season 8 premiere this twelvemonth generated 1.07 cardinal viewing minutes successful nan United States for nan week of Feb. 10-16, according to Nielsen. (Viewing numbers for nan latest play aren’t yet available.)

However, galore viewers online person complained that nan show nary longer lives up to nan premise that captivated them. On nan Reddit page dedicated to nan show, fans person analyzed the ninth season’s trajectory crossed hundreds of comments successful much than a twelve threads. TikTok users person besides dissected nan couples successful their videos, immoderate of which person racked up millions of views and thousands of likes.

A typical for Netflix didn’t instantly respond to a petition for comment.

Keeping viewers engaged is portion of nan situation of reality TV, according to Claire Fallon and Emma Gray, co-hosts of nan “Love To See It” podcast, which covers different popular civilization topics.

“The point astir a reality tv show is that while producers tin intervene and do a batch to style that narrative, you are still dealing pinch existent group astatine nan extremity of nan day,” Gray said. “And you’re going to get what you tin get and person to make do pinch what was felt.”

Fallon said: “There’s thing that’s very straightforward astir making a reality making love show, right? Like, you don’t request to constitute scripts or, you know, get group successful costume, and, like, it’s low-budget and it’s a beautiful elemental formula.”

“A batch of fans understandably want a play that has bully drama, a mates of villains and past astatine slightest 1 emotion communicative that’s benignant of uplifting that makes them consciousness inspired and for illustration they tin unrecorded done nan romanticist happiness of nan group successful that relationship,” Fallon added. “And if you don’t person each of those components really firing connected each cylinders, particularly erstwhile group person specified precocious expectations of a show, group are going to commencement to consciousness disappointed pinch nan product.”

But that’s a accumulation feat that’s “hard to nail successful practice,” she said.

“Love Is Blind” has received blowback successful past seasons, pinch viewers taking rumor pinch nan show’s having technical challenges, short-lived marriages and secret relationships. The candidates’ governmental beliefs person also sometimes prompted wider discourse surrounding whether ideological differences tin still beryllium a deal-breaker erstwhile it comes to love.

This season, which took spot successful Denver, fans appeared particularly disappointment by nan casting choices. Several online questioned nan information and maturity of those selected for this season, arsenic good arsenic whether their backgrounds (and their making love histories) were really vetted.

As pinch different reality shows, galore contestants from “Love Is Blind” person gone connected to go influencers and podcasters pursuing their appearances aft having gained notoriety and assemblage connected societal media.

Ali Lima and Anton Yarosh successful play 9 of "Love Is Blind."Netflix

“People tin usage nan show to motorboat different projects to motorboat their careers, and that’s not thing you tin really get around, because that is benignant of nan attraction system that we unrecorded in,” Gray said.

A storyline that drew a batch of antagonistic reactions progressive contestant Patrick Suzuki, who was turned down by his match, Kacie McIntosh. She ended their engagement soon aft they met successful person. McIntosh told Suzuki it was because she couldn’t do nan show anymore, but to nan cameras she said it was because she didn’t deliberation her “attraction to him” would “grow.” (Suzuki is Asian American, and McIntosh said she’d ne'er dated anyone of his ethnicity before.)

Contestants Nick Lancaster and Annie Lancaster besides garnered backlash aft their chat successful nan pods astir what they would do if their early kids were gay. Amato said he feels being portion of nan LGBTQ organization is simply a “fad” (he has since apologized connected his Instagram account), and Lancaster said she wouldn’t beryllium thrilled.

“I watch these reality shows to escape,” Traore said. “I for illustration each those shows conscionable to not deliberation astir what’s going connected correct now. But this play of ‘Love Is Blind,’ like, really conscionable brought you backmost into it.”

Rikkii Wise, who has amassed a pursuing of astir 200,000 group connected TikTok, wherever she posts “tea” (or gossip) related to reality shows, said she really enjoyed that location were “mess and drama” alternatively than romance. But she understands nan instrumentality complaints — of nan 5 featured couples, 3 collapsed up before nan altar, meaning conscionable 2 weddings were shown connected screen.

“Obviously you can’t unit group to spell to nan altar, but I deliberation that possibly they should bring that clause back, because if we had nary couples spell to nan altar, nan assemblage is going to beryllium successful an uproar,” said Wise, who goes by storytimewithrikkii connected societal media.

The play 9 reunion airs astatine 9 p.m. ET (6 p.m. PT). Wise, who has posted speculation astir what will spell down successful nan episode, said she doesn’t judge emotion is blind, moreover aft having watched each season.

“People person recovered emotion connected nan show,” she said. “People are still married; group do person babies. And I don’t deliberation it’s astir emotion being blind. I deliberation it’s about, OK, these group really wanted to get married, they recovered each other, and they are attracted to each other, you know?”

The creator of “Love Is Blind” maintains that nan research worked arsenic intended.

“In Season 9, astatine slightest 1 personnel of each mates felt their emotion was not beardown capable to flooded nan challenges of nan existent world, and they chose not to get married,” Chris Coelen told Netflix’s publication, “Tudum.” “That’s precisely really nan research is expected to work, truthful I would opportunity not only is nan research working, I deliberation it’s moving amended than ever.”