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Writer's pictureKristaleagh Walthall

My Thoughts on "Too Hot to Handle"


Being home for two months means that not only have I caught up on all of my shows, but that every new show I've started, I've also finished and caught up on. I've slowly run out of options. That being said, Netflix released a show called "Too Hot to Handle," which is a show where they take a group of people, put them on an island, and teach them how to create meaningful and deeper connections with other people. Oh, did I mention, they're all super hot, sex-crazed people and as soon as the retreat starts, they're not allowed to have sex or kiss anyone? Definitely different than any reality TV dating show I've seen before, and this is just the information you get from the little teaser they show you when you scroll onto it. I was intrigued so I decided to watch it because at the very least, it'll be good background noise while I work on this a bit.


Y'all, I have some thoughts.


To start with, I actually really love this concept. I feel like a significant portion of people expect a physical connection almost instantly nowadays when you start exploring the possibility of a relationship with them, and from what I've seen, most reality TV dating shows tend to place more emphasis on the physical aspect of relationships over connecting emotionally. For this show to based their concept off this idea that they want to help these people create deep connections with each other (not even necessarily romantically) and break through the things that are holding them back from being able to trust and be open with other people is pretty dang cool.


Some things I liked about the show were the private dates; it was cute for potential couples to go out and have some time together to chat alone over dinner and drinks. Most everyone broke the kissing rule on the dates though, with the exception of Francesca and Kori's date, so that was kind of annoying. I liked the workshops; it made the concept feel more authentic and not like they just created the show for drama and the suspense of who would break the rules and who wouldn't. The contestants all seemed to be super into them as well, even if it did take some convincing, and watching them work through their past was awesome. Also, Lana was a queen. I'm here for the dating show run by an AI; less awkward.


Things I would have done differently if it would my show would be: making the prize a little bit bigger then splitting $100,000 between potentially fourteen candidates, not giving any of the prize money to anyone who broke a rule or consistently broke the rules (looking at you Harry and Francesca), and having everyone be there from the beginning. The people who came in later on the show got mad gypped out of the workshops and time with the other contestants.


My thoughts on said contestants...


I didn't like Francesca or Harry, or them together, one bit. I thought Francesca was super self-involved and didn't really care about what was happening throughout the show aside from getting with whoever would show her any sort of attention. Her little stunt with Haley as "revenge" was complete bull, and everyone else let her off way too easy for that. She didn't seem authentic to me after that, even after her "growth." She never talked to Kelz about the fact that she didn't feel anything for him; she just dropped him after leading him on and went back to Harry. Toxic. Also, I didn't like the fact that she knew Chloe was into Kori and still went on a date with him despite being with Harry and then being like "Oh, I was just doing what's best for me and anyone's who's mad at me is wrong." Like, no you weren't! You was being a little hoe who was trying to be the center of attention. Harry was just annoying and I didn't think he was all that attractive to begin with. His only redeeming quality in my eyes is that he did embrace the process of trying to be better (at first) and because he was into Francesca, didn't really bother with messing with any of the other girls. I don't think they should have been together because they were both really selfish and had no regards for the how their actions affected everyone else, in regards to the prize money. They literally lost $32,000 out of $100,000! Their whole "We don't want to break any rules bit" was only believable for like .2 seconds when they initially got back together and it was just Harry who said it. This couple should not have been one of the show's main storylines because they sucked.


Rhonda and Sharron on the other hand. Hmm... They're cute; I kind of liked them, but I felt like they were kind of stale after two episodes together. Hear me out; like 85% of their conversations, before and after they got together, were "I've been hurt in the past so I didn't think I could trust again." Don't get me wrong, Sharron's ex cheating on him with his best friend SUCKS, but like after the second time you bring it up on tv, I'm over it. I did love when they were in the private suite, he was like, "i'm not going to have sex with you because I want it to be right and I don't want to mess us up before we're actually something real." Good for you, ten out of ten stars, would watch that scene over and over again. Rhonda having a kid was a nice plot twist and I thought Sharron took it well. However, I wished they would have brought that up a little more beside, "I miss my son" and "Oh, now we're Face-timing him," but at the same time, I do understand privacy and maybe Rhonda didn't want her kid on tv. Regardless, I would give these two like a six out of ten for their couple-ness on the show. Not bad, but not amazing.


David and Lydia... Meh, I don't have too much to say about them because Lydia came on the show so late in the season so you didn't get a chance to know her or them as a "couple" really. David was a pretty stand up guy though; him not pursuing Rhonda for Sharron was probably the nicest thing I saw on this show. He could have 1000% been like, "She likes me, I like her, sorry Sharron, I'm going to see where this goes," but he didn't. I feel like him and Nicole would have been a good match...


This show did Kelz, Nicole, and Matthew dirty. These were the ONLY three people who didn't break any rules (aside from Madison, but she's irrelevant), and the only screen time they really got was when they were dealing with everyone else's emotion messes or complaining that everyone was screwing (literally and figuratively) them over. I would have LOVED to see a bit more of Nicole and her Irish self going on dates and talking to the guys, but nooooooo, they were too busy following the obvious and somewhat problematic couples around. Also, Matthew is probably my new hero. That hair. Am I right? Also, just a ten out of ten of a human being. I was really sad that he decided to leave mid-show, but I don't blame him. Kelz was killing it as the accountant and I was so proud of him when Francesca was trying to get with him for being like, "No, I'm going to follow the rules because I want to do this right." Ugh. As Lady Gaga would say, "Talented. Brilliant. Incredible. Amazing. Showstopping. Spectacular." Here for this shit.


Bryce was kind of meh for me. He didn't really seem to serve any purpose as a late arrival other than to shake things up a bit, and him and Chloe were boring together so I'm not mad they didn't work out. Now don't get me wrong, I am PISSED at Kori for messing with Chloe like that. She was finally starting to get the concept and put herself out there only to get screwed over. She dressed up as a Barbie for him; I've decided to adopt her as my child so I can take care of her. I loved her. Even if she did kiss (oops) and try to date like three of the dudes on the show, she was always honest with them about where she was at and what she was feeling.


Kori was a dick and Madison was irrelevant, but I do think they would have faired better in the show had they not come in so late in the game.


Overall, this wasn't the terrible trashy reality tv show I assumed I was going to get. I mean, it was kind of trashy and I def wouldn't say it's the best thing I've ever watched, but I'd probably watch the next season of this show if they did another one. I thought that it was interesting and entertaining enough, and like I said in the beginning of this blog, I really liked the concept. Oooo, I think they should do a reunion episode, kind of like the Bachelor does "Women/Men Tell All."


I mostly just want to know which of the couples are still together.


Take a shot to the money lost and toast to the self-progress.


Cheers

Kristaleagh

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