Ready To Love: Make A Move: Season 1/ Episode 1 “Welcome To Nola” – Recap and Review [Series Premiere]

General Information

This section Includes information about the Director, Writer, and Cast.

Release Date (OWN)	October 13, 2023
Newly Noted Characters and Cast
Self	Jabari
Self	Tamica Lee
Self	Antonio
Self	Donald
Self	Richard
Previously Noted Characters and Cast
Self	Ashlee
Self	Zadia
Self	Shareese
Self	Verneashia

Plot Recap

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Switching Things Up – Tamica, Ashlee, Zadia, Shareese, Verneashia

“Ready To Love” changes things up with this spin-off, and unlike “Ready To Love: Last Resort,” there is no Nephew Tommy. Instead, we have Tamica Lee, a matchmaker married with two children, guiding some familiar faces. We have Ashlee, the bubbly personality from the first season. Verneashia, the sweetheart from Houston, and then Shareese and Zadia. Because – balance?

Now, one of the major changes in this season, or spin-off, is that we start with four ladies, of which they will never be up for elimination, but the 25 men they can date will be. All of them are supposed to be ready to love and will have to compete against each other for these four women, so it is more aligned with the majority of the women have always wanted on this show – to be chased.

However, it isn’t all 25 at once since that would be overwhelming. The ladies are allowed to pick one of a handful shown to them for a conversation and a first date to start things off.

The Two For One Special – Jabari, Zadia, Verneashia

You’d think with there being 25 men in all, no one would have to compete, but Verneashia and Zadia both hone in on one man, Jabari. Though, maybe it would be unfair to say they are competing. Verneashia is trying to avoid how things ended in her season with Joel, where she was left despite thinking things were good. So, while she and Jabari have a vibe, she doesn’t want to put all her eggs in a basket.

Then, with Zadia? Because she is not only focused on the physical but also wants a special connection, Jabari ends up not being the pick but the only one who was decent enough to go out with after a small mixer Tamica hosted. But, while cool, it doesn’t seem like he is the one – never mind someone good enough to get her to move to New Orleans.

You Tried It Your Way, Now Try Mine – Tamica, Ashlee, Zadia, Shareese, Verneashia, Antonio, Donald

But Tamica is trying to keep people open to the journey, as she wants them to experience it. So, while Verneashia fears putting her all into the first man she gets along with, Tamica pushes her not to get scared just because of one bad and public experience. Rather, she would like people to enjoy themselves as Ashlee does with Donald but make sure to ask the right questions and peer beyond the rose-colored glasses a bit.

Because when it comes to Ashlee, she is hoping for someone real after all that happened with Alexx and how her dad died. Not just real in terms of not being a liar, but a down-to-earth dude who, even if he can’t match her energy, at least can appreciate her shine. Which brings us to Shareese – Like Zadia, Shareese is particular, perhaps more so, and you can already see it is going to be an uphill battle for her. She liked this one man, Antonio, but him dressing wrong once, the age of his youngest kid, and having a past that included cheating? She was done with the quickness.

Which is why Tamica is needed. The ladies got to pick who they wanted and desired from the superficial to begin, but Tamica, based on how the ladies move and what they speak about, is going to pick dates for them to go on in the next episode. Here is hoping she has the qualifications needed to help these ladies out.

New Character Description(s)

Jabari

Jabari is a 43-year-old program analyst who has a daughter in college in Texas, where he went to school (Texas Southern).

Tamica

Tamica is the Tommy for “Ready To Love: Make A Move,” and she touts herself as a professional matchmaker as her credentials, alongside being married with two kids.

Antonio

Antonio is a 38-year-old Marine Corps engineer officer from Baltimore who has three kids, aged 13, 11, and 4.

Donald

Donald is a 35-year-old videographer.

Richard

Richard was Zadia’s original choice, who is a 41-year-old high school principal, but because she didn’t like the way he started their conversation, like skipping over what her name is, she switched over to Jabari.

Also, he was married for five years previously.

Review

Highlights

Ashlee and Verneashia

In the history of the “Ready To Love” franchise, I don’t think anyone beyond Ashlee and Verneashia, especially for the women, deserved a second chance at love more. Both made it to the end, were bamboozled, and deserve the fairy tale they worked for. So to see them coming back, it leads me to hope that, similar to Kris, aka KG Smooth, they can achieve what they were looking for and deserved their first time around.

What Tamica Could Offer

So, if you go to Tamica Lee’s website (LINK), being a matchmaker isn’t her main gig whatsoever. She is a newscaster and dancer, heavily into the sports world, and while she has been part of the reality TV sphere, it wasn’t in this capacity. But, you know, while she may not be a matchmaker as a job, who is to say, with the network she has, that maybe she hasn’t met a lot of people?

Though, to be fair, I don’t know if she knows any of these dudes or if it was strictly casting who picked them out. So, Tamica could very well be playing a character or an embellished version of herself. But let’s keep it positive.

On The Fence

Shareese & Zadia

Because Shareese and Zadia are already pushing you to question if they were picked for anything but drama. Now, Zadia is particular, and we can understand that. While she isn’t interested in having children, she is 35 and does want to have a family, travel with someone, and make memories, and you can’t just do that with anyone. You have to find someone who meshes well.

But, when it comes to Shareese, it is much harder to put a spin on her struggles with dating. Which isn’t to say she doesn’t deserve love, companionship, and what she verbally says she is looking for. It’s just what she wants in theory, and what her actions say, it doesn’t match up and pushes the idea she isn’t ready to love, especially not through a reality TV method.

However, there are very few reality shows that are feel-good programs about people finding love without someone causing a scene, and you and I know that this franchise likes a bit of toxicity and surely wasn’t going to let that go, even in a spin-off.

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