Marrying a total stranger is a bad idea. Marrying one on television sounds even worse, but that’s what Married at First Sight is all about.
The Australian reality show, which is based on a Danish show of the same name, revolves around 4 couples who agreed to get married on the first day that they will meet. The pairs, which were matched by three experts, will spend their wedding night in a hotel before heading off on their honeymoon. They will live together for a month, after which they will choose whether to stay together or get divorced.
The show’s first episode has already aired to mixed reactions. A majority of viewers lambasted the show, calling it an “insult to marriage” while others think of it as a new low standard for reality shows.
But despite the negative reactions, there are those who found the show to be their new guilty pleasure and have already started rooting for one of the couples.
While the show’s premise can be off-putting for some who think it disregards the sanctity of marriage, the first episode was compelling in its raw honesty and refreshing with its realism.
In the first episode, audiences were introduced to couples Clare and Lachlan and Michael and Roni. While Michael and Roni seem to start out well, it was the opposite for Clare and Lachlan.
Clare Tamas, a 37-year-old marketing manager, was seen having a panic attack at the idea of marrying Lachlan, a sensitive and soft-spoken farmer.
The bride seems standoffish at first and even avoided looking at her new husband. But her feelings seem to have melted during the reception when Lachlan gave a heartrending speech about his late father.
“Lachlan’s speech moved me,” Clare admitted. “I didn’t expect a guy to be so open, honest and willing to commit so it’s now made me want to drop any barriers or inhibitions I had in place.”
Married At First Sight’s Clare Tamas HAS been to the alter before http://t.co/gthLq9Oht4 pic.twitter.com/zaqcCBkNVe
— Daily Mail Australia (@DailyMailAU) May 19, 2015
The slow and reluctant start to their marriage has certainly made viewers want to see what will happen next.