Everyone is talking about Season 6 of Love Island USA. The series has been on air since 2019 but has reached new heights this season. It has broken records regarding viewership and has taken over reality TV fans’ lives for the last couple of weeks. With the finale just around the corner, let’s take a moment to honor the breakthrough show of the summer.
Here is why Love Island USA is the best reality show on TV right now…
Love Island USA is fun!
One thing I love about Love Island USA is the show’s tone is super playful. The emotional moments are plentiful but so are the comedic moments. Scottish Comedian Iain Stirling narrates the show, which helps keep things upbeat and not too serious. He loves to poke fun at the contestants, whether it be about their intellect or their lack of communication skills.
Some reality shows like Love is Blind or The Bachelor tend to take themselves too seriously. Love Island USA appears to know what it is and what viewers want to watch. The show creates jaw-dropping drama while still being silly and mindlessly entertaining.
Love Island USA has a great host
Season 6 kicked off with a brand new host. Vanderpump Rules star Ariana Madix entered the Villa this year to guide the Islanders in their journey to find love. Her involvement has transformed the show. Reality TV hosts often feel out of place. They are usually actors or career hosts who clock in, cash their checks, and don’t seem too invested in the drama. Ariana offers something new. Not only is she a massive fan of the show but she is a reality TV veteran. She puts herself in the center of the action. Ari has hot takes and isn’t afraid to spill all the tea on Love Island: Aftersun. She spoke about her new gig in a recent interview with The Washington Post.
“I am a fan, I am invested in everything that’s going on. I really do care,” she said.
Not only has she excelled as a host but she’s also introduced a brand new crop of viewers to the show. VPR fans tuned in to see her but stayed for the drama.
“I have seen a lot of people comment that they haven’t watched before, but they started watching because I was hosting and they stayed because of how great the show was,” she said.
The girls are united on Love Island USA
It always surprises me how united the women on Love Island are. Maybe I’m cynical, but it amazes me how supportive they are of each other, especially since they are dating the same group of men. Once in a while, you’ll have a new bombshell stir up drama and break “girl code.”
But more often, the women are a steady source of love of support for each other. Ben Thursby-Palmer, an executive producer on the show, spoke to The Washington Post about the girl power this season, referring to them as “the Spice Girls of Love Island.”
“They are a really eclectic bunch of people, but they really support each other,” he told the outlet. Ariana also shared her thoughts, telling the publication that the friendships between the women make the show better.
“That [closeness] makes the stakes high when you’re watching dramatic moments, or if a recoupling is happening, and you’re not sure who’s going home, it really matters to everyone there,” she said. “I think that feeling translates to the audience feeling like all of these things really matter when you’re watching them.”
Love Island USA is edited in real-time
Love Island is edited in real-time, which makes the show feel immersive. Editors feverishly comb through hours upon hours of footage to produce 6 drama-filled episodes a week. According to The Wrap, the Love Island USA editing team is made up of “about 50 editors and 20 producers.”
Executive Producer Claudine Parrish spoke to the outlet about the show’s unconventional editing style. “We edit it as it comes in,” she said. “The islanders wake up [and] the control room [will be] commissioning scenes based on what’s happening. They’ll label them like, ‘Boys make breakfast for the girls,’ and 15 minutes after it’s happened, it’s in our edits — an editor’s on it and making it into a scene.”
The unique approach makes the show feel less produced. The editors are discovering the Islander’s stories and behavior at roughly the same time as viewers.
TELL US – WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT SEASON 6 OF LOVE ISLAND USA? WILL YOU BE WATCHING THE FINALE?