Lydia’s Nice-Girl Act on LIB Made Her the Season’s Villain

There have been quite a few gasp-worthy moments in the newest season of “Love Is Blind.” But from JP mocking Taylor’s make-up and Johnie making a grand entrance with Chris in tow to Stacy’s numerous euphemisms for a golf stick, there was not a single second that got here near the shock and horror that came to visit me when Uche admitted to Aaliyah that he had a romantic historical past with one other contestant on the present and uttered the phrases: “It’s Lydia,” aka Aaliyah’s closest pal.

To sum up the Uche, Aaliyah, and Lydia drama, it is revealed in episode three that Uche and Lydia had dated earlier than each coming on “Love Is Blind” season 5. They reveal their relationship spanned a number of months, and Lydia says they slept collectively just a few weeks earlier than coming on the present. Lydia acknowledges Uche’s voice on their first pod date, and after fairly a little bit of prodding, he remembers hers as properly. However, they determine to not proceed on with each other, maintaining their historical past secret from the different contestants. Their determination was supposedly made to stay to the “Love Is Blind” experiment, which requires contestants to not know their potential love curiosity’s look and, as a substitute, solely fall in love emotionally.

When Uche lastly reveals all to Aaliyah, she is blindsided, to say the least. She and Lydia had met on the present and grown shut, seemingly spending most of their time exterior of the pods collectively, and she or he’s understandably horrified to study her closest pal is her present accomplice’s ex. She has been confiding in Lydia about Uche, crying on her shoulder and taking her recommendation, all whereas Lydia withheld this secret. Making issues worst, Uche makes this revelation after beforehand chastising and distancing himself from Aaliyah after she acquired sincere and susceptible about her earlier infidelity with an ex. Why be so harsh when you understand you are withholding your personal main secret?

Uche is equally — if no more — liable for the lies that induced Aaliyah’s heartbreak on this scenario. But right here, we are going to focus on Lydia’s position, and why she completely represents the hazard of the “nice girl” archetype.

When Lydia and Uche each discover themselves on “Love Is Blind,” she means that they fight issues from scratch once more, asking, “Do you want to start at zero?” and “You don’t think it’s even worth it to get to know each other more?” suggesting there have been nonetheless emotions on her aspect. But Uche decides this would not be becoming for the experiment, and sooner or later, it is presumed they determine to maintain their historical past personal. This is a choice they made, and whereas I’m undecided I might have performed the similar, I can see their reasoning for it. They needed the different contestants to have a clean slate with each other and never be influenced by this prior relationship.

I take difficulty with Lydia pursuing a friendship with Aaliyah, nonetheless. Lydia appears to actively search out Aaliyah. She is all the time by her aspect — the one to wipe her tears and provides her phrases of encouragement. When Uche harshly dismisses Aaliyah for her earlier infidelity, she’s the one to carry her as she sobs and tells Aaliyah how a lot she is reminded of herself and her previous relationship. Rewatching these scenes, I really feel nauseous that Lydia virtually dropped in Easter eggs for the viewers. On prime of that, manufacturing crudely selected a music referred to as “I Got a Secret” to play in the background.

I am unable to perceive how Lydia might, in good conscience, maintain Aaliyah’s hand all through her points with Uche with out revealing her historical past with him. How are you able to supply all of this recommendation and encouragement realizing the lie that you simply’re carrying? She should have recognized that the secret can be revealed sooner or later. If it wasn’t revealed in the pods, it could be later when Aaliyah met Uche’s mates or when the present ultimately hit Netflix. Why did Lydia pursue a friendship with Aaliyah? They say that it’s best to preserve mates shut and enemies nearer, and plainly Lydia did precisely that. She grew to become Aaliyah’s confidante for all issues associated to Uche, a place of energy I imagine she relished.

If I had been Lydia, I might’ve stored my distance from Aaliyah as a substitute of falsely making a narrative that we’re “sisters,” as Aaliyah describes them in episode 4. Take Stacy, for instance. When she realized she and Johnie had been each courting Izzy, she determined to keep away from Johnie and never talk about her scenario along with her. If Lydia had avoided Aaliyah, I’d discover it simpler to beat this deception.

When the reality is revealed, Lydia manages to make herself the sufferer of the scenario after which proceeds to make Aaliyah increasingly uncomfortable about it. Lydia is an clever lady, so she would ideally have the emotional maturity to acknowledge that Aaliyah would not wish to hear about how Uche’s canine and mates all cherished her and all the different private particulars she is aware of as a result of they had been collectively beforehand. She basically twisted the knife she caught in Aaliyah’s again after which blamed Aaliyah for not having fun with the ache.

A variety of actuality tv revolves round villains, so we’ll discover them in virtually each season of “Love Is Blind.” In season 4, Irina and Micah are the villains of the season. This occurred largely in the pods when the feminine contestants gathered. They can be seen maintaining their distance, eavesdropping on gossip, and infrequently mocking others, and whereas this conduct was undoubtedly petty and infantile, at the very least it was performed in the open. Irina and Micah did not pretend friendships with different contestants, notably these pursuing the similar companions as they had been. Perhaps they did not like the different contestants or noticed them as threats, in order that they stored their distance and engaged in imply conduct. All villainous, sure — however at the very least they had been clear.

Lydia performs on the “nice girl,” the place she desires nothing greater than everybody round her to be joyful and claims she’s a really sincere and open particular person. But her actions on “Love Is Blind” show she is not that sort of particular person in any respect when it counts. Where is that this transparency and loyalty in terms of the folks she chooses to befriend?

There is way to be mentioned about apparent villains, however at the very least you understand the place they stand. I’ve had individuals who smiled to my face after which mentioned terrible issues behind my again. I’ve had an in depth pal pursue somebody I used to be romantically concerned with after which declare I used to be paranoid for pondering something nefarious was occurring. I’ve additionally had individuals who clearly acknowledged from the begin that I wasn’t their sort of particular person, or that we had nothing in widespread. While the latter felt harder and hurtful in the second, I’m grateful for it now. I’m relieved they may very well be clear about their intentions relatively than lulling me right into a false sense of safety and switching up on me when I’m most susceptible — a betrayal that’s way more hurtful in the finish.

It’s simple to villainize contestants who make their emotions recognized and maybe isolate themselves from different contestants and go for the simpler, smiling figures who grow to be everybody’s greatest pal. But in reveals the place they’re basically competing with one another, some with out their information of this, we must always applaud those that preserve their playing cards on the desk.

Ultimately, it goes again to the age-old adage about actuality TV: contestants aren’t there to make mates — they’re there to win. If that is the case, so be it. But do not play good and pretend friendships alongside the method, after which cry over the knife you stabbed in another person’s again.