Similar in tone to He's Just Not That Into You and hosted by Master Matchmaker Steven Ward, eight single females, each of whom normally commits various dating “don’ts,” agree to be guided to better dating technique. Housed in a gracious home, Ward intends to put his single students through an intensive program, which he thinks will cause each lady to find love.
It may sound like “Desperately Seeking to become a Desperate Housewife,” but this VH1 reality series shows some potential.
JoAnn and Steven Ward
Mother and son matchmakers run a highly successful matchmaking company. In the course of this television series, Steven intends to teach the eight single felines how to revamp, rejuvenate, and reevaluate their love lives.
In the first episode, Steven began with the basics of “first impressions,” and guided the girls toward better salesmanship of self. Many of the “dating rules” mentioned by Steven are the same always joked about on television, so if you are watching the show for information you may be disappointed, but the rules are noted and explained in an entertaining way.
The Wards did successfully give the ladies makeovers which actually improved rather than diminished the appearance of the women, and Steven is an effective and entertaining host. He can be both comical and honest, and although the truth can be harsh, he does not seem to veer toward cruelty in the mistaken name of entertainment.
The Eight Participants
The program has done a good job compiling a collection of women of actually diverse backgrounds and personality types. Different viewers may like or dislike different participants, but unlike the participants of certain other reality shows, it is possible to find many of these females generally likeable, or, at least, interesting.
Some of the dating mistakes of the ladies may cause the faint-of-heart viewer to cringe, but most of the women seem to have potential for achieving romantic rationality, two words which do not often accompany one another.
As the show continues, it must be careful not to focus on any one single, but overall, it is possible to hope the best for the participants.
Reality Television
Many reality television shows are filmed as a compilation of speed-by and sensational scenes. Tough Love may not be entirely void of these errors, but it does seem to be much more closely linked to reasonable reality.
Tough Love for Tough Love
Tough Love may yet deteriorate, but thus far, it is fairly decently entertaining. It may wear thin fast, descend into ridiculousness, or simply be something which does not interest an individual viewer. It probably should be watched for entertainment, rather than as a learning exercise, but the same could be said of many documentaries. Tough Love is more pulled together than many other reality shows, so on Sunday nights, it may be worth taking a look at VH1.
