Married at First Sight, Season 10 Review
Married at First Sight is a reality show on the TV network Lifetime. The show consists of an interviewing process where relationship experts evaluate young, ready-to-marry singles to see if they are a good fit to literally be married at first sight. The experts arrange marriages for 4–5 couples, have them legally married right as they meet each other, send them off on a honeymoon for a week and then have them move in together for 6 more weeks to determine if this marriage is viable or not. The experts do their best to not only pick couples that will work out in the long run but to pick entertaining couples that are comfortable being on camera. Camera crews will document the couples every step of the way from right before they meet on the altar, till the very end on Decision Day where the couples decide if they would like to continue their marriage or get a divorce. Throughout the experience, many of the couples face a lot of conflicts which causes the experts to have to step in to try and mediate the situation. This is because since the couples were married as strangers, it's hard to immediately know how to communicate with one another.
In season 10, five couples are paired together. Many of the couples chose to go the arranged marriage route because they are either not a fan of dating in today’s society or because they feel like they have exhausted all of their resources. The experts in this season were Dr. Viviana Coles (a psychologist), Dr. Pepper Schwartz (sociologist), and Pastor Calvin Roberson.
The concept of Married at First Sight is very interesting and entertaining. During the interview process, the experts ask many questions to be able to come up with an accurate profile for each person in order to pair them. However, in this day and age, reality TV is all the buzz to boost one’s social career. It is hard for me to believe that everyone in this process is in it for the right reasons (wanting to find a perfect match). In season 10, several cast members give off the vibe that they aren’t super invested in their marriage and are rather invested in the show and how they are portrayed on camera.
This is something I wish the experts were able to wean out before the pair happens and filming begins because it would make the show that much more captivating. It is not entertaining to see cast members possibly using this as a stepping stone in their social media careers. Over this past semester, I have learned a lot about influencing. I know that having a bigger platform or a bigger reach definitely helps when trying to form an influencing career. This is why I am skeptical about some of the cast members using this exposure as just that, exposure.
I do really enjoy the fact that they use relationship experts to guide the show. Many times, the couples will come to a complete halt and if it weren’t for the experts, some of these conflicts might never have been solved. They are available on the phone throughout the entire 8 weeks of this process for any of the cast members to reach out for advice. As mentioned before, it is really hard to communicate with a stranger, especially over big topics like finances or having children. So having these experts around to provide a cleaner line of communication for the couples was definitely a good idea.
Overall, I found this to be a very entertaining show, it is just unfortunate that some of this entertainment comes at the cost of the cast members. I know that for most reality TV shows this is the case, but it does make me feel a little more uneasy that we aren’t just watching failed relationships, but failed marriages in which real vows were said and real divorces happened. After watching the show, I can say that I have learned a lot from both the couples and the experts. Watching conflicts get solved between couples has helped me a lot, communication wise, in my own relationships. I would recommend that anyone who likes reality TV or is questioning their relationships should watch this show.
