Ready To Love: Season 1/ Episode 1 “First Impressions” [Series Premiere] – Recap/ Review (with Spoilers)

Ready To Love, thanks to its elimination process, will only differ from other dating shows thanks to it having people from 30 to 50.

Ready To Love, thanks to its elimination process, will only differ from other dating shows thanks to it having people from 30 to 50.

Network
OWN
Creator		Will Packer
Air Date		10/23/2018
Genre(s)		Reality TV, Dating Show
Good If You Like		Dating Shows
Introduced This Episode
Himself	Tommy Miles
Himself	Alexx
Himself	Aaron
Herself	Stormy
Herself	Shanta
Herself	Tiffany
Himself	Michael
Himself	Chris
Himself	Paco
Herself	Melinda
Herself	Angel
Himself	Kebba
Herself	Dr. Lexy
Herself	Ashlee
Herself	Shatava
Herself	Shea
Himself	Darnell
Himself	Devan
Herself	Rita
Herself	Christina
Herself	Courtney

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The Introduction

In this dating show, Tommy Miles acts as the host as 12 women, to 8 men, try to whittle down to three couples. Everyone is between 30 and 50 so it is believed everyone is serious about finding true love. Problem is, to end up one of those three couples you got to avoid being eliminated. That is when the show veers from these people finding love to sharpening their game. Take Michael and Shea, for example, if not Stormy and Chris, these two couples seem like they are ready to date and be off the show. Problem is, you can’t just find the one in one night and off you go into the sunset. You got to impress the other women, the other men, or you get cut.

Something we see the two men who are told they are safe, Alexx and Aaron, do with ease. Mostly by playing the field and getting multiple women in their feelings. Leading you to wonder, as the women start off with elimination power, and three men have to go in the first round, who is going to get chosen? Then, following that, who will the men eliminate? Though, perhaps the big questions might be whether there might be verbal altercations and if people may quit because the person they were feeling got eliminated?

Collected Quote(s) or .Gifs

Love for me isn’t what I can give you. Love for me is what I’m willing to sacrifice for you.
— Kebba

Highlights

Damn Near Everyone Had A Notable Personality

Now, I won’t pretend like I wasn’t in desperate need of the name tags whenever they did one on one interviews, but when it came to a handful, they stood out enough for you to not need them. Some, like Paco, were for terrible reasons like him being a cheater and low-key misogynistic. Others, like Ashlee, you remember because they were just extra in the best way. To the point that, if they put their social media out when they get eliminated, I can guarantee you some would have their private messages filled to the brim. Hell, in real life, they’d have the pick of the litter.

You Could See Some Real Connections

Though a lot of people stayed in a group setting, there were some who paired off and seemed like the final three. Shea and Michael clearly did not need to meet other people. Same goes for Chris and Stormy – to a lesser extent. Making this seem, in the slightest of ways, different from other dating shows because, from the get-go, you see people ready to settle down and forsake all others.

Criticism

You Got To Play The Game To Win

The main thing which leads this show to have a side eye is it isn’t process of elimination by you finding someone and saying goodbye. Nope, both you and the person you want got to keep playing the field, while being committed to each other, to make it to the end. I don’t know about you, but just seeing how Aaron and Alexx play the field, it’s clear this elimination process is going to cause drama. Especially since they getting touchy already, just in episode 1, so imagine down the line?

Granted, it isn’t clear if there are rooms and such they can sneak away to, or if the show would allow anyone to do that. However, these are grown ass people. Many of whom, I’m sure, if they want it, and there is consent, they will find a way. Add in they don’t seem bound to that house and… well, it might just go down.

First Impression: Mixed (Stick Around)

The elimination method is what is messing this up for me. It pushes people to be flirty just to still have access to someone and hope that, if they leave, that person won’t get swooped up by another. Making the competition element seemingly not address the problem the women, perhaps the men too, have in the first place: Finding someone trustworthy and stable to love and share a life with. For, again, just looking at Aaron and Alexx, as well as the season preview, it is clear they are going to get multiple women in their feelings and feel crushed when it is decided they are not the one. Which is going to all play out on national TV.

Hence the mixed label. I like the idea but the execution is mid-key trash.

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