Love is Blind: Season 5 Review

Is love truly blind? The popular reality Netflix show Love is Blind sets out to answer that question once again in its newly aired fifth installment! The new season, taking place in Houston, Texas, is 10 episodes long (excluding the reunion and After the Altar episodes, which will be released later) and continues with the aim of casting aside the common practice of dating based on superficial aspects, such as appearance, and instead seeks to determine if contestants can establish relationships rooted in deeper emotional connections. The premise of the show involves (literally) blind dating in separated “pods,” where couples must find their match and get engaged without ever seeing any of the people they’re dating. Later, they must decide at the altar whether or not to marry their fiancé. Since the announcement of the new season, fans have eagerly anticipated the unfolding events and whether the new cast will once again demonstrate that love is truly blind. The following review will contain spoilers for the events of Love Is Blind season 5!

The first four episodes of the season depicted the preliminary round of the experiment in the pods. Dating without being able to physically see your partner and relying solely on their voice can be an awkward experience at first, which, coupled with the limited episode time and the show’s taste for dramatic scenes, is probably why these episodes mostly skipped over the participants’ “getting to know each other” phase and dove straight into trauma dumping right from episode one. These scenes showed audiences the importance of vulnerability in a relationship but also revealed the pitfalls of being too vulnerable with someone you’re not fully committed to yet. The contestants were very open with each other from the beginning, resulting in complex relationships and the inevitable formation of complex love triangles and quadrangles. Ultimately, these complications resulted in multiple breakups that caused many participants and viewers to feel blindsided. At the end of episode 3, the show uncovered a huge and unprecedented plot twist in Love is Blind history: two of the participants, Uche and Lydia, actually knew each other and had dated prior to the experiment. This revelation, disclosed by Uche to his partner Aaliyah, who had become close friends with Lydia in the women’s living quarters, quickly escalated tensions within the trio and with Lydia’s partner, Milton. In an unexpected turn of events, Aaliyah left the experiment with no explanation right when Uche was about to propose in episode 3. The two officially end their relationship in episode 7, and the entire situation raised questions about the casting for this season. Only 3 pairs—Taylor and JP, Stacy and Izzy, and Lydia and Milton, were able to get engaged — an all-time low in Love is Blind history.

Following their engagement, the couples embarked on a show-sponsored getaway to Cancun. However, we soon find out that love isn’t actually blind for one couple: Taylor and JP. They break up after a conversation about the awkwardness of their physical relationship, which revealed JP’s unsavory views on makeup and infuriating lack of self-awareness. Viewers believe that Taylor dodged a bullet by breaking up with JP the next day, leaving the show with only two couples heading back to Houston for the next phase of the experiment, where relationships are put to the test: seeing if they can survive real world issues. In addition to the fact that this segment was incredibly formulaic — fiancés met each other’s families, visited each other’s apartments, and argued over silverware and credit scores — there were only two engaged couples to follow, as compared to the 4-5 seen on previous seasons. To compensate for the lack of interesting content, the show tried to stir the pot by arranging a reunion party with everyone on the show, where contestants were insistent on airing out unnecessary dirty laundry. Many “chats” led to full-on arguments, and the contestants all seemed to agree that the best way to get their point across was to talk over each other until not a single coherent sentence could be heard. Some of the arguments were clear instances of the contestants digging up past irrelevant issues for screen time; others led to embarrassing public meltdowns. The entire reunion was the epitome of reality TV dramatization and added another layer of uncertainty for the future of the engaged couples. In the final phase of the show, the two couples prepared for their weddings. More personal conflicts between the couples occurred on the eve of their weddings, with a noteworthy first for the show: only one couple, Lydia and Milton, got married at the altar, the lowest by far of all five seasons.

While the show is titled Love is Blind, it tests way more than just the blindness of love. Season 5 has shown that while it is entirely possible to fall in love based on an emotional connection, it is incredibly difficult for the connection that is made in such a controlled environment to last in the real world, shown by the abysmally low successful marriage count at the end of the season. The show made a lot of choices in its production this season that I felt were supposed to increase viewer engagement, such as the questionable casting and the organization of the disastrous reunion, but overall did not contribute to the show’s purpose of testing whether or not love is truly blind. However, as always, the drama is really what made the season interesting to watch!