Netflix recommendations- Perfect Match (Season 1

Not exactly you’re Greg Evans’ Perfect Match game show from the 80’s!

When I first saw this pop-up on my Netflix app, I was thinking ‘Oh yeah’, I know what you’re all about. As being a kid of the 80s, I remember the game show of the same name, which aired on Australian TV. A dating game where a male contestant quizzed 3 females with a series of scripted questions to gage their compatibility, whilst being unseen behind a sliding screen (Blind Date for you Americans). But O boy! The Netflix version of Perfect Match was nothing like that show from your childhood!

No studio set here,  no studio audience, no scripted questions (I lie, there were some of that), and not a lot of clothing either- Netflix’s Perfect Match is truly a reflection of the era we live in.

First of all, the guys and gals on screen are all familiar faces! It’s like Super Smash Bros, Netflix style! As all these people had previously appeared in other Netflix reality TV shows. People from the Circle, Love is Blind, Too Hot to Handle, Sexy Beasts, Selling Tampa, The Mole etc. It’s a whose who of the Netflix reality TV genre. I joked with my wife and asked how come there weren’t any of the contestants from the Cooking Reality shows! Imagine that! Haaha.

But these guys were hand picked for their attractiveness and presumably lack of luck in the love department, inserted into a mansion in Panama, with alcohol to lower inhibitions and organised challenges to test couple’s compatibility. And these TV elements were tried and tested ingredients, to produce a saucy Netflix series! But what kept it fresh from previous similar Netflix shows like Love is Blind or Too Hot to Handle, was the fact that each couple had to be paired up by the end of the night- so where Love is Blind was a slow process to get to know one another like peeling back the layers of an onion, Perfect Match was like a mad rush around to find your “Match”, like an adult version of musical chairs. And where Too Hot to Handle was all about restraint, Perfect Match encouraged a ‘try it before you buy it’ approach, the blindfold kissing challenge comes to mind.

And where Netflix tries to justify their antics to be altruistic, as they positioned the show as if they were on a mission to help these hot singles find true love. But from my perspective, it was just throwing young attractive people into compromising situations, for the entertainment of paying viewers. And I have to admit, it was entertaining for us, but I’m sure probably not that helpful and perhaps traumatising for some participants.

The most interesting part of the show, had to be when the winning couple from the challenges were given the power to enter the boardroom, where they could bring in 2 new singles and set them up on a date with two others already in the house. And as each person in the house were essentially playing a game, as at the end one couple was going to leave the house with the title of “The Perfect Match”, so most moves to bring others in were for strategic reasons. And oftentimes this broke up still blossoming relationships, which was sad to see. And at the end of the night, as the injection of 2 more guys (or gals), resulted in a gender imbalance, then the cliff-hanger part of the show came where we learned which two unmatched individuals were going to leave the house.

But what I most most, liked about the show, was the fact we’re reunited with familiar Netflix faces again! As we’re not on Instagram and unaware of what they get up to after they’re Netflix famous,  it was really nice to see them again and hear how they’re getting on after their 30 seconds of fame. But unfortunately, for half of them, this second time around had left me with an even worse impression of them, as they weren’t as likeable as I first thought them to be. But while saying that, a few really represented themselves well and hopefully more good things will happen for them down the track.

And I guess as sceptical as I am of Netflix’s motivations for creating these shows, but I have to admit it ended well and perhaps a few of them did end-up finding their long-term Perfect Match’s! Which wouldn’t of been possible, if it wasn’t for Netflix and the show. And for once, Netflix didn’t dangle a cash prize at the end to entice players, but there was a pleasant surprise at the end in what the winning couple ended up walking away with, aside from each other.

And last thing, it was funny to see that the Netflix family of reality TV talent was quite small, that people from other shows had dated each other, knew each other’s business and were fans of each other (for those who hadn’t met before). So, I found that fascinating and I do wonder if there will be a season 2 of Perfect Match, would it feel like a second rate show? As they have already used-up all of their big guns for this first season? I guess we’ll see in 2024?

So, if you’re curious to check-out Perfect Match season 1, and in general you’re a fan of the Reality dating TV genre, check it out! Find it on your Netflix app! And thank goodness it wasn’t Perfect Match from the 80s, as we don’t need another AI love bot called Dexter in our lives!