Everyone should stop watching “The Bachelor.” Yes, the lights, the extravagant dates, the wild (and not so wild) backstories and the heartbreak of having “fallen in love” with two women is an entertaining story and amusing to watch, but do they actually fall in love?
Only a few of the 23 seasons have ended in a lasting partnership. You may be asking yourself “but where else can I go to watch accelerated reality TV romance happen where it isn’t as fake and forced?”
The answer is “Love Island.” On the surface, it seems to be even more unlikely than “The Bachelor” franchise to contain real love. However, “Love Island” is host to many real relationship troubles and tribulations that portray love more realistically than seen on “The Bachelor.”
Wih low-budget dates (picking lemons, eating cheese on your front porch and relaxing in the hot tub in your backyard), more options for romance than just one man and many mini-games which, below the surface, deal with many of the relationship troubles seen in everyday life.
With a narrator who pokes fun at the show and a bedroom where all the couples sleep, “Love Island” has it all. For your escapism needs to live vicariously through others television romance, don’t watch something that is too good to be true. Watch these Brits fall in (and out) of raw, real romance in the most slow- motion trainwreck you have ever seen.
My advice is: don’t strive for the extravagant, go for someone who will make you happy even while picking lemons, not just skydiving through the Swiss alps or watching the northern lights in a secluded cabin in Finland.
Love in real life isn’t like it is on reality television. While it is fun to watch all the drama unfold, make sure to not take anything you watch on these shows to heart.
While some of these shows may be more realistic than others, in the end it is all just acting. Also don’t forget to remember that no one actually looks like these people in real life. It takes a lot of makeup and usually plastic surgery, so don’t expect to find anyone who looks like anyone on these shows.
This doesn’t mean you can’t kick back and enjoy these shows in your free time. If we are all being honest with ourselves, they are undeniably entertaining. The fifth season of Love Island premieres on Monday June 3, in case you are interested.
Having trouble navigating the St. Olaf dating scene? Need help finding a date? Got more dates than you can handle? Or have a response to this week’s column? E-mail your questions to mess-ae@stolaf.edu and maybe one of our love columnists will answer them in next week’s issue. All submitted questions will remain anonymous.
