Is love truly blind or is there more to it than meets the eye? This is the age-old conundrum that has been baffling humanity for longer than the saying has even existed, so it stands to reason that in this modern age, the best way to test it is through the medium of a dating show.
First, we had Cilla Black’s Blind Date. Now, there’s Netflix’s hit show Love is Blind.
The show itself consists of a set of hopeful singletons who are placed in private pods from which they date potential partners before actually seeing them. Following this, the couples who decide to continue seeing each other must get engaged. And then, at the end of the season, married. Yes, this isn’t your average dating show.
Now as Love is Blind is set to take the UK by storm with hosts Emma and Matt Willis, we are going to look back at the most iconic (and bonkers) moments to have made it to screen on the original American series. Enjoy.
1. Jessica lets her dog drink her wine while Mark tries to convince her that he's not comparing her to his mum
This is quite frankly as mad as it sounds. This tumultuous Season 1 moment occurred suddenly in the midst of a very serious conversation between Jessica and Mark. The couple were discussing the future of their relationship, specifically the prospect of having children together when Jessica decided to lean down and let her dog drink her wine directly from her glass. If this wasn’t bizarre enough she then follows this up with the whisper, "She loves wine." Sure.
2. Shake says being with Deepti is like ‘being with his aunt’
Much like all dating shows, there is always the chance that contestants may lose sight of the show's fundamental goal: to connect with someone on an emotional level as opposed to just a physical one. The aim of Love is Blind is to encourage the building of a deeper connection founded on shared values, conversation, and experiences.
Yet despite, season two contestant Abhishek "Shake" Chatterjee completely misunderstood all of this. Before proposing, the 32-year-old decided to ask his partner Deepti how much she weighed, a question that sealed his reputation as a Love is Blind villain. Nevertheless, despite the initial few red flags, the couple eventually became engaged and proceeded on their honeymoon. However, the love that was in the air quickly started to dissipate as Shake mentioned that being with Deepti is like being with his aunt. Incest alert. And rude: thank goodness Deepti turned him down at the altar.
3. Carlton throws Diamond's engagement ring into the pool
One of the biggest bin fires of season one. Carlton and Diamond seemed to have a good connection, but when they arrived in Mexico, their relationship fell apart; it soon became clear that Carlton was keeping his sexuality a secret.
He was bisexual and wanted to wait for the perfect moment to disclose this to Diamond. Unfortunately, this didn’t go down too well as his admission sparked the series' first-ever split. Diamond didn’t understand; things escalated. The icing on this cake of chaos was when Carlton felt so infuriated at Diamond's lack of sympathy that he lost his cool and threw her engagement ring into the swimming pool.
4. Damian rejects Giannina at the altar, and she runs away — only to fall in the mud
It goes without saying that being rejected at the altar is a pretty traumatic experience, however this particular incident seemed to come with a little extra drama. Despite forging a strong relationship, Damian ultimately chose to say ‘no’ on the big day. A tearful Giannina then fled, with the camera operator pursuing her as she exited the ceremony. She then lost her footing and fell in the mud (it wasn’t her day).
Meanwhile, in the church, her mother seemed more upset that Damian had been the one to say no instead of her, while Damian used Giannina's absence to clarify to the guests that he wanted to say yes but didn’t feel as though he could commit to a marriage quite yet. After spending some time away, Gigi eventually decided to go back inside and talk to him after she had overcome her desire to "punch him in the face" -- and the two talked it out. They did go onto date again, before once again breaking up. And yes, it was messy.
5. Andrew puts teardrops in his eyes to cry on camera
When Michael Bublé sang Cry Me a River I don't think this quite what he had in mind. In season three, Andrew Liu proposed to Nancy Rodriguez, but she said no. Then in an interview, Andrew took out what seemed to be eye drops and placed a drop into each eye. Visibly smirking, he then looked teary-eyed as he explained how betrayed he felt by Nancy for rejecting his proposal.
It is believed that this particular scene was included in the final edit as a way of showing the viewers Andrew’s true personality, despite his attempts to garner sympathy. Within this whole situation, there is a thinly layered undercurrent of irony that runs through it as Nancy initially rejects Andrew as a result of her believing he is not a genuine person. Very astute.
6. Irina tells Zach he looks like a cartoon
Season four contestants Irina and Zach certainly didn’t pull their punches when they got together. During one post-pod conversation, Irina admitted that he resembled a character from a cartoon and was quoted saying “You have like the blankest stare in your eyes,”, a comment that Zach unsurprisingly didn’t especially appreciate. Not long after this they came to the realisation that their engagement was a mistake. Ya think?
7. Raven working out in the pods
This is one of the strangest moments to come out of the show ( and there's a lot to choose from). The incident took place during a conversation between season three contestants Raven Ross and Bartise Bowden, whilst they were in their separate pods.
As Bartise told her the story of how his parent's divorce impacted him, Raven then started to exercise and stretch in her pod. She went further, doing some crunches while propped up against the couch, following them up with yoga, jumping jacks and sit-ups. Bartise eventually worked out that she was working out after noticing the chance in her breathing and speech. Understandably, he was annoyed.
After the series aired, Raven did tell Elite Daily that in hindsight, she felt bad about the incident and finds it difficult to watch back. Maybe if she works out whilst watching it, it will become more bearable.
