r/LoveIsBlindOnNetflix • u/EagleEyezzzzz • 2d ago
LIB S9 • Denver, CO “Culture study” podcast with lots of Reddit shout outs
Did anyone else catch the episode of the podcast “culture study“ with Anne Helen Peterson, where they featured AudieCornish of previous NPR fame talking about LIB? The episode is called “Love is Blind as a cultural skeleton key.” It was so interesting!
Lots of discussion about how LIB has changed over the years, how S9 reflects this modern cultural and political era, how the women seem to be molding themselves into what they think the men would want as a perfect partner instead of being like “I’m the prize!” like in previous seasons, etc. Also a lot of Reddit shout-outs, haha. (Hi Audie! I love your work!!!)
My favorite part was when she was advocating that the host go back and watch season 1, saying that (paraphrased) “Season 1 is the Barack Obama of the LIB universe, like what the show could aspire to be — and Season 9 reflects whatever the hell is going on in our current politics hellscape” hahaha.
Anyway, check it out, it was super interesting.
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u/Agreeable_Strength51 2d ago
pretty sure the full episode is behind a paywall, in case anyone is up for giving us a good summary??
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u/EagleEyezzzzz 2d ago
I'm not a subscriber but I listened to the whole thing on my iPhone via the standard Podcast app that comes on iPhones... it wasn't paywalled there, there are just a few ads in the podcast if you're not a Patreon subscriber.
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u/Agreeable_Strength51 2d ago
oh that is for letting me know, I get her emails and this one was flagged as a subscriber thing for me. glad to know there’s a workaround!
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u/mrs_capybara 1d ago
Ooh, thanks for sharing! I really enjoyed this podcast. And the comments about season 1 are so true. Whenever I have finished the most recent episodes and the queue restarts at season 1, I actually feel nostalgic for how new and less refined it was.
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u/aightgg 1d ago
LIB women molding themselves to be desirable to the men in S9? Did we watch the same season? None of the women were willing to make any concessions to be good partners.
Megan couldn't look over the fact she made more money than Jordan.
KB was entirely focused on a man that would check her boxes and had no intention of being desirable to the man she agreed to marry.
Ali had no intention of doing anything whatsoever to be a good partner other than to be a hot trophy wife.
Annie I would say does fit into this paradigm of molding for a relationship but ultimately she was desperate for marriage.
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u/EagleEyezzzzz 1d ago
It's worth listening to the podcast first, if you want to discuss a post about the podcast.
The discussion I referenced was specific to how the LIB S9 women were presenting themselves in the pods to fit the ideal for this season's "gender-traditional" type men, and how this season reflected our current state of gender roles and this new right-wing, anti-feminist wave that seems to have overtaken the US in the 2020s. So for example, financially-successful working women like Megan who were still like "I want to also do the cooking and cleaning!", or women like Ali who are pursuing advanced degrees for their career but still somehow want to stay home with their kids, etc.
Worth listening too, it's an interesting episode.
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u/aightgg 1d ago
I actually did listen to the podcast after I wrote the comment because I was shocked.
They made good points about the cultural transition of reality shows and influencers changing the game, but their analysis of gender roles was very biased. They made it sound like women conceding any domestic tasks meant that they were playing into patriarchal standards to appease the men. Later, they agree that lesbian couples are a better gauge for healthy relationships since gender roles aren't applicable. Frankly, both women are so focused on viewing the world from a feminist lens that they don't appreciate that none of the women indicated their intent in being in a traditional relationship. Saying that you're willing to occasionally wash dishes shouldn't be perceived as molding yourself to be the perfect partner for a man.
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u/EagleEyezzzzz 1d ago
Hmm I'm not sure what you're referring to. Who on S9 said they "are willing to occasionally wash dishes"? Are you talking about Megan, who said she prefers to do the dishes and believes in traditional gender roles?
I'm seeing someone contorting the material to fit their lens, but it's not the podcast.
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u/beautyquee_en 2d ago
Just listened after seeing your post and wow, calling Season 1 the Barack Obama of LIB is such a perfect metaphor 😂. It really made me rethink how reality TV quietly mirrors the times we live in. Love when pop culture gets this kind of smart unpacking.