Dating in the Dark

I am sitting here, minding my own business, drinking a glass of white, having just finished a chicken burger from Trader Joe's that I cooked up on the grill and ate on toast, not having hamburger buns in the house. I am reading my Entertainment Weekly magazine, an issue of which I have not missed in about 10 years. And there's a little note, under the Summer TV Preview section, about a new show called "Dating in the Dark."

Yes, this is exactly as it sounds to you. A reality show in which two people "meet in the dark room to get to know each other emotionally and physically, while viewers watch via night vision." Then they turn on the lights.

Great. Just great. This is where we are as a society. And, before you even say it, I realize that there are a lot of other things that could make me question where we are as a society other than this. So shut up.

Course, the little EW blurb goes on to say that the executive producer of this show says that these folks in the dark room form a connection, but do looks change that? And EW says "We're gonna go with yes." This, dear friends, is the problem.

The show has set us up to further realize that looks are the end all and be all of everything. And this being television, they are going to find the hottest dude ever who has the personality of a noodle or a velocaraptor, have the normal, fine looking chick hate him, then the lights come on, she changes her mind, and the ass decides she's not good looking enough for him. And they'll definitely have the total dork guy or the woman who isn't even as overweight as I have been, and their partner-to-be will love them, declare them the best kisser ever and will get one look and back out.

All proving to all those young, impressionable girls and boys out there that in the end, it doesn't matter a whit whether you're nice, or smart, or have a super personality. And even worse, it'll prove to all those unpartnered 20- and 30-somethings out there that they're justified to reject the person they really dug over email or on the phone the minute they get a look at them (even if they, themselves have some relatively good sized flaw either physically or otherwise).

It's embarrassing. And disgusting. And it's shit for those of us out here still looking, in the dark, for someone who gets us.

Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe this show will be the best thing ever and people will overcome their prejudices and go home with the girl with acne to live happily ever after. Maybe. But I won't be watching to find out.

Note: Half-way through writing this post, I thought to myself "Who are you? Don't you judge guys by what they look like? Haven't you rejected someone because they were just too much of a dork for you?" And then I tried to figure out what to do. Go back and insert a paragraph? Write a disclaimer about how I too have done this? Psychoanalyze myself about why I do that and then try to either justify it or explain it away by society's influence? Then I decided to just name it here. Say I've done it. I'll do it again. We all do. But let's not make it voyeuristic. It hurts every time someone does it to me. Or you. So let's not watch it happen to other people.