Love Is Blind Season 8, Episodes #10-12 Recap

Y’all are playing me. But I still love ya. We are back to these written reviews because I see your eyes on my words.

In any case, if you’re seeking a fun social media-based recap for episodes 7,8,9, then head on over to Instagram to get properly caught up.

Episode 10: “Oh Spare Me” –

14 days until the wedding (cue more overly-dramatic music)…

Lauren and Dave are still in what I’d like to describe as ‘Fracture City’ – after finding out that she allegedly was with another guy days leading up to the filming of the show (on top of getting information to corroborate this from his friends and family) – even though he says he wants to figure it out with her… he chose to bail and stay overnight with friends rather than at their apartment. After talking it out the following morning, it seems like she is far more keen to want this to work than he is. My gut is that if the energies and efforts aren’t matching right now and don’t align quickly, it ends up being a ‘no’ at the altar because of all the emotional and mental volatility… I mean, I’m not even in the relationship, and I’m already exhausted and over it. And not Dave unconsciously putting a nail in the coffin of their status while on a bowling date when he says, “I don’t want to waste her time (referring to sister)” – when Lauren asks about meeting his family. OUCH.

Over to Joey, AKA ‘random dude and stranger’ as described by Monica’s sister – the trio are trying to clear the air and have her explain why she was so harsh in her initial judgment of him as being ‘fake’. Seems like she’s come around… blessing received.

As for the Ben and Sara and the ‘bombshell’ of a TikTok issue – the drama was overblown by the producers – because now we (as the audience see) this as quickly resolved because Sara has dismissed and laughed it all off. For me, as a viewer, this felt SO anticlimactic and LAME. The producers of the show are trying to make mountains out of molehills this season. The only ‘dramatic’ thing is when her friends meet Ben and put doubt in her mind after a private conversation along the lines of ‘it’s not real – it could be anyone sitting next to you’ …SAVAGE talks… and I’m here for it. We (all secretly) love critical and judgy friends.

Devon meets Virginia’s mama: nothing much to report here… her mother is grounded and kind even though out of the gate – dives right into the deep lines of questioning like ‘why is she the one, what does commitment mean to you, what if you change…’ – which Devin and Virginia later on acknowledge with their at-home (non-sexual) pillow talk. (Stray thoughts: it’s so curious to recognize that we’ve normalized this level of intimacy that is borderline intrusiveness – thanks to this series – and how it’s structured in terms of accelerating a relationship and pushing marriages onto people so early on).

Taylor and Daniel’s Instagram ‘hiccup’ seems to be completely forgotten at this point, especially since the producers initially made it such a ‘big deal’ narrative arc between them. UGH. At this point, I’m over the narrative psych-outs/ trickery the producers stoop to. ANYWAYS… their putt-putt date is pretty standard, and they seem to be back on track relationship-wise.

Final thoughts: There has been A lot of big talk but small actions right now. The strongest contenders, IMHO, and who I think will say yes at the altar, seems to be Joey and Monica at this point.

Episode 11: “Sliding Down Slopes and Into DMs” –

LOL @ the title of this episode and myself for some reason, thinking of Alpine skiing (yeah, that’s my nerd brain for you). Spoiler: it was alluding to a snow tubing date with all the couples.

Cue dramatic, soapy music when we are once again circling back to the Lauren/Dave love triangle fiasco. So here’s my take: if he actually and truly ‘loved’ her, he’d acknowledge that she owned up to her faults (having a hook-up with a guy a week before LIB started filming) because the people that love him WOULD show up for him (e.g. family to meet her) if he pursued it. Because he’s reluctant to initiate this means that there are severe trust issues between them – he doesn’t believe her. And if there’s no trust, the relationship… simply put… is already dead. Oh, and lookie-me (wrote this right before I saw it confirmed)… It’s over between them.

Apres snow-tubing date: The remaining couples meet up, and some of the people on LIB who never matched up also show up to the party. This includes Molly, who seeks out Lauren, and they have a heart-to-heart girl talk. I also love the whole girls-supporting-girls energy when Molly calls out Dave when they also chat about his break-up with Lauren.

In other random news (thanks to a LOT of sliding into respective DMs): Mason and Meg ended up getting together IRL and showed up at the apres snow-tubing fete. Alex tries to chase after Madison, but she gets the ick from him.. “Did we not just break-up… if it doesn’t work out in the pods, then it’s not going to work IRL,” she says. Apparently, Meg and Alex were also messaging, but Madison thinks he’s two-faced. Overall, there’s a lot of hatef*ck energy going around thanks to DM/IRL attempts off-camer, and the juicy gossip is ** chef’s kiss**. Also, Dave and Lauren randomly meet at this party and attempt to reconcile, but it doesn’t work out (no surprise here). Stray thoughts: All of these exchanges (as short as they were) were far more interesting than any of the actual couples profiled this season.

My thoughts about the men hunting for suits and women going wedding dress shopping: considering how expensive weddings are these days ($33,000 USD on average), it’s pretty incredible that they’re getting free outfits, venue, and food/drink covered by production.

Last thing we venture back into is the business of marriage: Virginia hands Devin prenup papers and he’s hesitant – he is alluding to the idea that it sets up a bad precedent and assumes that the marriage will fail (he’s emotional with it) – whereas she is coming from the framework of protecting her assets. Again, and I said this before, the fact that they’re interpreting the situation so differently without trying to find a ‘mentality-middle-ground’ is problematic.

Final thoughts: sappy and saccharine wedding fits collide with low-key slope-DM dating drama. LIB loves its juxtapositions.

Episode 12: “Brides’ Last Ride” –

The last date nights with the four remaining couples happen, and it’s a lot of sappy reflections and indirect therapy sessions/ relationship analyses with each other. Stray thoughts: how incredible is it that these otherworldly and expensive dates (like Ben/Sara stargazing and ‘igloo’ overnight stay) are covered (again) by production? It’s a wonder how any couple can ‘come down to earth’ once all the theatrics vanish. The only thing worth mentioning here is the Ben/Sara religion issues (she is not comfortable with the lack of acceptance she felt when at his church service) and that shortly after Virginia and Devin’s date, he ends up signing the prenup papers. Stray thoughts: out of all the dates… I think the coolest one was the conservatory meal between Monica/Joey – just having the place to yourself would be sheer magic.

Then we head into the ‘infamous’ bachelor/bachelorette parties – which are beyond a snooze: The guys are at the Vikings Training facility for a training session, and they act like giddy little boys. Meanwhile, the ladies enter the ‘granny mode’ era quite literally and dress up like the elderly while playing at the amusement park inside the Mall of America (how Minnesotan of them).

Aside from that, there’s a lot more talk about feelings, circumstances, and anxiousness – but nothing we haven’t heard before. Topically, it’s all quite redundant at this point with every couple.

Lastly, Sara and Ben are ‘up to bat’ first and headed to the altar. We have another cliffhanger with a seemingly long and drawn-out awkward silence when the officiant asks Sara if she wants to marry Ben.

Final thoughts: Meh. Context: The first few Seasons of LIB were SO enthralling because the casting was perfect… for instance, you had the couple you wanted to root for, the villainous A-holes who kept it fresh, the outlandish/eclectic ones, etc. You need to have variety to keep it all interesting for the viewers. Every couple here is rather bland and basic, so it’s difficult to remain vested in their respective journeys.