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Five shows to watch after Love is Blind

There are so many wonderfully trashy reality dating shows out there to enjoy, and here are our five recommendations

Features by Graeme McMillan, Editor

Additional contributions by Ashley V. Robinson

Published on Thu Mar 21 2024

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The pods are empty, as Love is Blind season 6 has run its course — messy reunion included — leaving a nation full of fans wondering just where their next reality show partner might be coming from. Thankfully, we have an answer — or, rather, five of them.

Popverse’s own Ashley Victoria Robinson and Graeme McMillan, both lovers of some truly trashy television got together to discuss the five shows everyone who enjoyed Love is Blind should check out after recovering from the shock of seeing Trevor’s texts getting shared during the reunion. You can watch the video below — or keep reading for our choices.

Couple to Throuple

The most recent of the shows we suggest, this Peacock show pretends to ask whether or not some couples are ready to open up their relationship to a third — when what it’s really asking is whether or not any of these couples had any sense of self-awareness before they agreed to go on this show. It’s arguably the messiest of all shows we suggest, which might make it all the more watchable for those reading. (It’s very much a binge watch, as well, just be warned; you won’t be able to stop after just one episode.)

Love Island

The OG of contemporary dating shows — sorry, The Bachelor, although we do call you out in the video — is arguably coming back from a slump with the recent All Stars season (available in the US on Peacock, which also owns the US version of the show). We discuss both why the Australian version of the show might be the superior one, as well as the brotastic male-bonding that the show inevitably brings out in its male contestants… and the fact that each season always seems to be extraordinarily long.

Too Hot to Handle

Just as Couple to Throuple pretends it has a higher sociological purpose, so does Netflix’s Too Hot to Handle. As discussed in the video above, it’s possible that’s actually true, although it’s not the purpose the show seems to believe: instead, it’s allowing the viewer to go, “What is wrong with these people on my screen that they can’t control themselves for a few weeks when there’s literally hundreds of thousands of dollars at stake?” Also under discussion: when is the moment when you start to lose interest in a reality show? Too Hot to Handle has a specific tipping point.

FBoy Island

If Too Hot to Handle has a moment where the producers feel too present, what to make of FBoy Island, which entirely leans into the facade and plays out like a parody of a reality dating show? Unsurprisingly, we’re fans, even if we’re more than happy to pick apart the fake dichotomy at the heart of the show: what if someone is neither 100% FBoy or Nice Guy? Would they end up in “Limbro” or not?!?

The Ultimatum: Marry of Move On

The Ultimatum: Marry or Move On — Image credit: Netflix

Our final recommendation is one that shares hosts with Love is Blind, as well as all manner of moral quandaries. After all, as Ashley points out in the video, ultimatums rarely actually work in real life, so perhaps it’s not the best idea to base an entire reality show about two people’s lives around one…? And yet, what compulsive, if morally troubling, viewing it provides. Does this mean we’re terrible people, or just people who know what they want when it comes to reality TV?

Watch the video above — or check it out on YouTube — for more conversation around the five suggestions, and feel free to leave your own suggestions in the comments below.

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Graeme McMillan: Popverse Editor Graeme McMillan (he/him) has been writing about comics, culture, and comics culture on the internet for close to two decades at this point, which is terrifying to admit. He completely understands if you have problems understanding his accent.