Blind Date

The best thing about this show are the "thought bubbles" and cartoon drawings that supposedly tell what the couples are really thinking. Those are very funny. I have to wonder though--where do they find some of those people? From what they say in the little intro before the cameras start following them on their dates, I get the impression that most of the participants are 1) sex obsessed, 2) have huge egos, 3) very immature, 4) lacking social skills, 5) crazy. Do they even want lasting relationships?

Apparently the premise of this show is to illustrate how smug, egocentric, self-centered, and materialistic 20-somethings are. If that's the case, it succeeds beyond its wildest dreams. Planned Parenthood should use episodes from this show as training films; the moral would be, "If you have kids, they might turn out like this!" The men--for lack of a better word--are invariably totally obsessed with their bodies; many of them take their "dates" to a workout at their gym. They then spend most of the date strutting, preening and bragging about their sexual prowess, and can't understand it when the women don't laugh at, or even get offended by, their smarmy, juvenile attempts at double entendre. The women don't come across much better, either. They're either simpering bimbos or arrogant, balls-to-the-wall barracudas determined to show the guy who's boss and take control of everything from the get-go. If this is an example of the generation that's going to take over from us, then we're in worse shape than I thought.

A simple premise: a man and a woman talk to a camera and state the kind of partner they are looking for and add their likes, dislikes in and out of bed. Then they meet, and either have the best date of their lives and even open the door for a second date (which often ends up in some heavy action), or have some of the most dysfunctional, hilariously bad dates that the camera has ever seen, and those predictably end up inches away from a fist-fight... or in one audacious scene, the woman literally leaping from her date (which was on a boat) and swimming to shore, effectively calling it a day. While it is occasionally nice to see a date that doesn't go outrageously bad, it pays to see people make fools of themselves by putting themselves in the most embarrassing of situations while carrying out their quasi-date, and hearing Roger Lodge's wry observations at the beginning or end of these skits, and of course, the stars of the show are the often spot-on bubbles that "describe" what the daters might actually be thinking, especially in scenes of escalating awkwardness.

"Blind Date" is one of the better dating shows to come on the scene in a long time. To date, my favorite dating show was "Love Connection", but "Blind Date" comes in at a close 2nd. It's a lot better than shows like "Studs", "The Fifth Wheel', "Elimidate" and the worst one of all "Shipmates". One thing that I've noticed on this show is the candidates that they choose for dates. I don't know where they get these people from! A lot of them just seem to be looking to get some booty. You would think that this would be happening with the young daters, but it seems to be right across the board, even with the older people. I know that most of the Producers of these shows love it when couples don't get along. This makes for better ratings and is more entertaining to the viewer...or so they think. It would be nice if some of the couples really connected, and not just for one night. In past episodes, when they do a follow-up on previous daters, none of them have lead to marriage, or even a long term relationship. Most of the follow-ups have been the same scenario. The couple will maybe go on a few dates after wards, then something comes up and the dating stops. The other point I've noticed, a few times, are the people that go on the show and they are already in a relationship! I assume they are thinking that some talent scout will spot them on the show, and make them a movie or TV offer. Guess what? That is not going to happen. To me, they end up making fools out of themselves when they do this. The other point it could be is that they are looking for the elusive BBD (Bigger & Better Deal). This is fine, but do they have to go on national TV and make a fool out of themselves? The host of "Blind Date", Roger Lodge, is funny. His sarcastic comments and facial expressions are priceless. He is no Chuck Woolery, but he does make the show fun. What really makes this show entertaining are the thought bubbles, and the animated characters that come on screen to show what the daters are really thinking. The "Fifth Wheel" tried doing this too, but "Blind Date" does a better job with it. Even though most of these dating shows seem to follow the same formula, "Blind Date" is entertaining and a lot of fun to watch.

Blind Date is an hilarious show. The producers got wise pretty quick and figured out the dates would be more interesting if they paired opposites instead of people who might actually get along. Just watch, the results are among the funniest things you will see, and the writers do a surprisingly good job with their comments during the dates. Consult your local listings.