Okay, look. I know reality TV is supposed to be a cringefest. We’re all fiends for drama so we can laugh at these crazy people and feel better about ourselves, but there has to be a limit right? Surely? Apparently not. Channel 7’s new show ‘The Proposal‘ is taking cringe to all new heights, and I can’t believe it’s real.
Oh my word. #theproposalau is pretty much every terrible dating show that’s ever existed rolled into one hot mess on a massive LED stage. It’s The Bachelor x with MAFS x with Take me Out x with Perfect Match x with First Dates x with Yasmins getting Married. Nope nope nope. Nooo
— Lucy Holmes Official (@lucyholmestweet) August 27, 2019
Basically how it works is there’s a person who’s looking for the one, and then a bunch of people who compete for their chance to be with said person. It sounds very Bachie-esque right? Either a guy or gal being pursued by a bunch of suitors until there’s two left and they pick one. It sounds normal, but here’s the kicker: it all happens in ONE episode. And the weirdest part: The person being pursued sits behind a screen so the suitors don’t actually see them until just before they propose.
The Hiding
I’m gonna elaborate on that last part because it actually took 5 minutes to explain to a mate when discussing how fucking ridiculous this show is. For simplicity’s sake, lets just say the main person is a woman. (I think the episodes alternate between make and female people).
So this knock-off version of the Bachelorette sits behind an actual screen, and watches the suitors do tasks and activities and shit, slowly weeding them out until there’s two guys left. Yes, one of the acitvities involved minimal clothes. Which I hate. It’s one thing to watch it on Bachie, where yes they’re being recorded but it doesn’t feel like it because they’re on private property. It’s another thing to be doing this shit on stage to a LIVE AUDIENCE. FOR A PERSON YOU LITERALLY HAVE NEVER MET OR SEEN BEFORE.
*hasnt come face to face with any of these guys at all”
Jess: “I just don’t feel a connection” #TheProposalAU pic.twitter.com/bmG6UO0e0p
— Dylan Matthews (@DylanMatthews91) August 27, 2019
Then there’s a big reveal, and they propose to her. Like. Immediately. After basically just meeting.
The Proposal
I just can’t get over the fact that these people are meant to propose after meeting her for like 0.5 seconds. Like, we watch a 60 minute episode where 8 guys compete for a stranger’s attention, and then she gets engaged to one of the last two. Is this not ludicrous? Am I just crazy and old fashioned?
And to think I grew up with white people here in Aus asking ME about arranged marriages, as a brown Muslim gal. SMH.
Honestly, the show’s premise is kinda fucked. It just pushes the ‘desperate single’ narrative to all new heights, and I honestly hate that. The sky-rocketing fame of dating shows just reflects how much we can’t handle people being single, and how we think a relationship will fix all our problems. Pls no. It wont. Let’s normalise being single.
The US version of this show unsurprisingly tanked and was cancelled, and the Aussie one isn’t doing much better, with the episode tanking from expected ratings.
Image Sources: Channel 7, Giphy, Twitter: @lucyholmestweet, @DylanMatthews91.
