Hey everyone, It’s been a minute since I dived into reality show reviews, but recently, my attention’s been captured by the whirlwind that is “Love is Blind” on Netflix.
For those unfamiliar, “Love is Blind” is essentially a dating experiment where individuals aim to find their life partner. They’re placed in pods where they connect with strangers without seeing each other’s faces or engaging in physical contact. If they fall in love and choose to marry, they finally get to see each other. That’s the essence of the show.
Let’s delve into the storyline involving Aaliyah, Uche, Lydia, and throw in Milton for good measure. This particular storyline has left me astounded because it seems Aaliyah got the short end of the stick. Her experience on the show was marred by two individuals—Uche and Lydia—and let’s not forget about the production team.
The whole premise of “Love is Blind” revolves around falling for someone sight unseen. However, it’s revealed that Uche and Lydia had a history before the show. This wasn’t a coincidence. Uche claims he joined the show independently, but Lydia, who had been keeping tabs on him and other women he knew, decided to sign up as well.
“It’s not a coincidence,” Uche asserts. “She [Lydia] orchestrated this so we’d both be here. She could’ve let me go. She was snooping through my stuff. I started getting messages from girls I follow on Instagram, saying she’d been watching their stories.”
“They sent me screenshots of her profile, saying, ‘This girl’s been watching my stories for weeks,'” he adds.
“But you’re looking at their stories,” Lydia interrupts.
“I don’t know,” Uche responds uncertainly.
“Instagram’s awkward,” Lydia comments.
“Lydia, Uche said we weren’t going to lie, right? You were going through my followers and picking out girls to watch. Why would I even do that? How come so many people are texting me, saying that you’re stalking their profiles and they feel uncomfortable?” Aaliyah questions.
“And then you drove by my house one day. You took a picture of my house and sent it to me. You said, ‘I see you,'” Aaliyah adds.
So, Lydia was out here stalking Uche and the girls he was connected to, but Lydia seemed to have her reasons. Apparently, she felt like Uche was cheating on her, and she did find out that he did sleep with another woman while they were dating.
“He knows what really happened between us,” Lydia insists. “He knows. He knows he slept with another girl when he was with me.”
So, there was a lot of cheating, lying, and stalking in Uche and Lydia’s relationship. They even appeared on “Love is Blind” and targeted poor Aaliyah, who got caught up in their drama. The producers also share some blame for playing her. However, Lydia and Uche were the main culprits.
Uche and Aaliyah formed a connection in the pods, and Aaliyah shared this with the other ladies. Lydia’s interest was piqued because she saw Aaliyah as competition for Uche’s affection. She cunningly befriended Aaliyah without revealing their past connection.
Aaliyah, unaware of Lydia and Uche’s history, fell for Uche and became close to Lydia. Lydia’s ulterior motive was to monitor Uche through Aaliyah, a manipulative move.
“It’s very scary,” Lydia admits. “Lydia kept telling Aaliyah, ‘I see so much of myself in you. We’re literally the same person.’ It was just creepy. Lydia is unhinged. I believe that she’s crazy. I really do, and she can’t be trusted. She’s not a real friend. She wasn’t a real friend to Aaliyah at all. She got close to her because she wanted to interfere with her connection with Uche. That’s what I feel.”
Trouble arose in Aaliyah and Uche’s relationship when Aaliyah confessed to cheating on her ex-boyfriend two years prior due to sexual dissatisfaction, without informing him or ending the relationship properly. Uche’s response was judgmental rather than understanding, which was concerning.
“You’ve done things. Have you ever cheated in a relationship?” Uche asks.
“Once. When was this? Two years ago. Oh boy, you’re a recent cheater,” Uche remarks.
“No, don’t say that. You don’t feel embarrassed or ashamed of what you did?” Aaliyah asks.
“I dealt with that guilt for a long, long time, and if you actually told him about it, you would have had to confront that embarrassment and guilt, and you would have felt even worse. So, you said it’s not about hurting him, but really, it might have been about you, right?” Uche probes.
“You cheating on somebody and you being dishonest is about you. It’s not about him. I’ve cheated in a relationship, right? But when I did cheat, it was when I was 18 years old and only kissed somebody else, so it’s a little bit different. I would never do that to somebody else, and I think if I did, like, I had the type of conscience where I would have to tell that person about it, okay?” Aaliyah explains.
Later, it’s revealed that Uche cheated on Lydia, undermining his judgmental stance toward Aaliyah’s past. This exposed Uche’s hypocrisy, and Aaliyah deserved better treatment from him and Lydia.
The situation escalates when both Aaliyah and Uche discover that Uche and Lydia had a previous relationship. Their connection was evident through social media, where Uche had confided in Lydia about his budding relationship with Aaliyah. However, when Lydia confronted Uche about it, tensions flared as Uche was adamant about keeping Aaliyah in the dark. Unfortunately, Aaliyah eventually learned the truth and felt betrayed not only by Uche but also by Lydia for being involved in the situation. Lydia, too, harbored resentment towards Uche for not disclosing his relationship with Aaliyah. The entire ordeal left everyone feeling hurt and betrayed, especially Aaliyah, who felt manipulated and deceived. It’s undoubtedly a messy situation, and it’s disheartening to witness Aaliyah endure such emotional turmoil.
As for my thoughts on the situation, I empathize with Aaliyah’s feelings of being played and manipulated. It’s understandable that she trusted Uche and felt hurt by the revelation of his past relationship with Lydia. While Uche and Lydia may not have intentionally set out to hurt Aaliyah, their lack of transparency and communication certainly contributed to the turmoil. Ultimately, honesty and open communication are crucial in any relationship to avoid such messy situations.